Disclaimer: not mine
Chapter 6
Harry jerked awake, staring at the closed curtains around his work, breathing heavily. He yanked one back and slipped out of bed, looking around but nothing seemed wrong. He went to the 'window' that showed a view outside of the castle despite the dorm being underground and it showed empty grounds. So what had woken him? Something felt…wrong…no, not nearby? He shook his head and crawled back into bed, his dreams haunted by Darkness and storms.
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He saw Riku standing at the edge of the small island across the bridge, facing the orb in the sky. There was something wrong, he wasn't moving, like he was….in some kind of trance or something. Sora ran as fast as he could, dodging the strange shadowy creatures.
"Where's Kairi? I thought she was with you!" He called as he hit the island, panting slightly from the run and scared out of his mind.
"The door has opened..." Riku stated, and Sora jolted at his words, remembering his odd dream from a few days earlier.
"What?" he asked, worried about Riku, why was he acting so weird?
Riku turned to face him and his expression…he'd never seen Riku look like that. "The door has opened, Sora! Now we can go to the outside world!"
"What are you talking about? We've gotta find Kairi!" he yelled, hands balling into fists.
"Kairi's coming with us!" Riku snapped at him, and Sora blinked in shock, unsure. "Once we step through, we might not be able to come back. We may never see our parents again. There's no turning back. But this may be our only chance. We can't let fear stop us! I'm not afraid of the darkness!" he held his hand out to Sora.
"Riku..." he whispered, scared and uneasy. This wasn't the Riku he'd known all his life. Yeah, Sora wanted to see other worlds, but to never be able to come home? What about his Mom?
A pool of darkness formed at Riku's feet, its tendrils licking at where he stood, wrapping around his impassive body. Sora rushed forward to save his friend, and the darkness grabbed at him. He tried desperately to reach toward Riku, but the weight of the darkness pulled him down. Riku's face was unchanging as Sora failed to grab his hand.
"Riku!" He called, struggling to reach him but the darkness proved too much for him.
He blacked out for a second before a light twinkled into existence. It started out small, but soon grew into an incredible brightness. It filled Sora's vision and he felt something metallic fall into his hand. He opened his eyes, nearly stumbling forward as the light dissipated. He stared at the large object in his hand. Its golden handle and silver blade shone like a sword, but the tip of the blade was pointed like the teeth of a key. A keychain hung from the pommel of the weapon.
A voice whispered softly in Sora's ear, "Keyblade... Keyblade..."
Shadows appeared around him again and he swung at them with the Keyblade. A Shadow, unable to dodge, was knocked backward in a flurry of stars. With a few more swings, the darkness of the Shadows was driven away by the might of the blade, and they vanished. With as many as he defeated, more appeared and Sora raced back across the bridge. He saw a strange door over the entrance to the Secret Place and just knew that was where he had to go so he fought his way towards it. The door opened and he ran inside.
"Kairi!"
She stood in front of the door-like wall of the cave and he was terrified she'd be like Riku. A soft hum hungs in the air as she slowly turned toward him, her empty eyes weak with exhaustion. "Sora..." she mumbled.
Sora was shocked to see her like that even as she struggled to move toward to him, lifting a hand to him, and he immediately reached back. Suddenly, the door behind her gave way and a great wind rushed out. Sora barely stood his ground, covering his face, as Kairi lost her footing, literally flying toward him. He opened his arms to catch her, even knowing it would knock him over as well, but just as she reached him, she vanished, leaving him to catch nothing but empty air. Shocked, he lost his ground as the dark wind knocked him harshly out of the cave.
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Harry sat in the stands, watching the Hufflepuff Quidditch team train. Cedric had invited him after hearing Draco brag over Harry's flying over the summer. The team was holding tryouts for the reserve team plus one of the starting Chasers since the old one had graduated. He loved flying but he wasn't sure about the game itself.
"Hey Harry!" Cedric called, landing on the walkway.
"Hi Cedric," Harry waved. "You're great!"
"Thanks. Gonna try out?"
"I don't know…"
"There's no harm in trying, and you might like it," he pushed.
Harry nodded and stood up, getting on the broom behind Cedric who flew them down to the ground. He even leant Harry his broom for the tryout since using the school ones was crazy. Everyone trying out was being run through all the positions since the one they wanted might not be the one they were actually suited for.
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"Harry! Look!" Ernie yelled, grabbing his arm and pulling him over to the announcement board, grinning at his friend.
Harry looked at him and then the board, reading the Quidditch team lists, and Ernie waited impatiently for him to spot it. "I'm reserve Seeker?"
"That's great! Told you, you could do it," Ernie clapped him on the back, laughing as everyone began congratulating the shocked Harry. He'd heard the talk from the team, Harry was good enough to be the starting Seeker, it was only his age that had kept them from swapping him and Cedric, but next year would be different. Out of their dorm, only Wayne had made the reserve team as Keeper.
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Hermione bit back a giggle as Colin followed Harry into the library, her friend rolling his eyes, obviously frustrated by the hero worship but unwilling to hurt the boys' feelings. Sometimes Harry could be too nice. Colin was a bit much, even for a Gryffindor. Still, he was harmless if rather excitable, and he could have a far worse role model than Harry.
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Riku sat on the bed in his new room, everything inside was of higher quality than he was used to. Maleficent had promised to help him find Sora and Kairi, to give him the power to protect them any danger, he just…wasn't sure. Why would a stranger off him all of that? There had to be more to it.
He'd hoped Sora at least would be with him, he'd seen him reaching for him, so why had they been separated? He was sure their hands had at least brushed. He didn't want to see the Worlds alone, he wanted them with him. His hands clenched into fists, he would find them, he would!
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Albus watched the students from his chair at the head table. It seemed a summer with the Malfoy's had not impacted the boy badly, but it was still too dangerous for him to be near that family. He would never have thought Amelia or Augusta would agree to such a thing and yet they had.
All his work at the end of the year to ensure a meeting between Harry and Tom had come to nothing, Lily's protection working to kill Quirrell but not Tom, meaning the prophecy was still in play. It was for the Greater Good that young Harry die and then Albus could deal with Tom once and for all. He'd ensured the protections on the stone were ones a first year could bypass, especially one working with friends, and yet neither Harry nor anyone in his group had attempted to, they had not looked into any of the clues left lying around. In the end, he'd had to engineer the opportunity for Quirrell to grab Harry.
He had nothing planned for this year since he'd expected last year's plan to work. How could he draw Tom out again? He'd be more wary now after another defeat at the boys hands. Then again, the wards had detected a very dark object entering the school among the First Years, perhaps someone else was attempting something? He was keeping an eye on things, but there had been nothing suspicious yet.
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Maleficent and Hades stood around a table in the Dark Chapel. Hades sighed as Maleficent faced away from them,
"That smarmy vizier could've had 'em—if someone had stuck around to give him a hand," he looked over at the boy, who looked back with narrowed eyes.
"Hey, I did my part. I brought the princess, didn't I?"
"Jafar was beyond help, consumed by his own hatred. One should beware of letting it burn too fiercely," Maleficent stepped in before the argument could escalate. She knew Riku was not yet ready for true battle, such a mindset took time to cultivate, especially against sentient opponents…and old friends. A pity the boy was in the company of the King's men, had they found him first, they could have had a Keyblade wielder on their side as well. Riku had great potential but their plans needed a Keyblade too. Perhaps…
"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Hades interrupted her thoughts, "lighten up. I'm as cool as they come, okay? By the way, kid, have we got something special for you." The god of the dead smirked at Riku who startled slightly.
"Huh?" he glanced towards her and she nodded, allowing her lips to curve up.
"We had a deal, yes? You help us, and we grant you your wish..." she waved her hand and image of the girl he sought appeared over the table.
"Kairi!" he gripped the edge of the table, eyes wide.
"Go to her. Your vessel is waiting."
A man walked in wearing pirate's robes and a large, feathered cap. He held up a hook for a hand, smirking. "Just remember, this is no pleasure cruise. It won't be a pleasant voyage."
"Why are you doing all this for me? What's the catch?" Riku asked warily, staring at her, smart boy but not smart enough.
"Catch? What's the catch?" she bent down and placed a hand on his cheek, feeling him lean in briefly to the contact. He craved a mother figure, someone to care for him, and that made him easier to manipulate. "Silly, boy. You're like a son to me, I only want you to be happy."
He knocked her hand away but the blow lacked any real strength to it. "I seriously doubt that," he denied, lying to himself perhaps, but she could tell he wanted desperately to believe it.
"Believe what you wish. But lest we forget, I kept my end of the bargain," she reminded him, getting a stare before he walked away towards the pirate.
She watched them go before turning back to the table, bringing the image of young Sora up again, pondering her next move.
"That kid's trouble," Hades commented, and she glanced at him.
"Which?"
He chuckled darkly. "Both of them. That Sora might not be the smartest, but he's got power to spare, if he can get the experience to back it up, he'll be a very real threat, even to the gods. As for your pet, you're not the only with a hold on him," Hades warned before vanishing.
She frowned in thought, who else could have an influence on the boy?
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Draco sat down at the table, barely stifling his grin, and Harry looked up from his book.
"Okay, what has you almost smiling in public?" he asked, and Draco smirked at him.
"Guess who the new Slytherin Seeker is?"
Harry's eyes widened. "Really? That's great!"
"Father bought the whole team Nimbus two thousand and ones after I made the team."
"Wow, not really fair on the other teams though, I know at least one of our players is using a school broom."
"Well you could always do the same."
Harry started, he kept forgetting that his trust vault was only to cover schooling and it had a lot more gold than he could spend in those seven years.
"You are the reserve Seeker, right?" Draco asked, and Harry nodded, considering the idea.
"I heard the team talking, Harry's only reserve this year to get experience and because they didn't like the idea of a second year on the main team," Ernie offered as he joined them. "Cedric has his OWLS next year so Harry will definitely move to starting Seeker then."
"What?" Harry stared at him in shock.
"You didn't know?" Ernie winced, and Harry shook his head.
"Well, you need to at least get yourself a broom. Nimbus is the best out for Seekers."
"Can I even take that much out of my trust?" he asked, still in shock.
"Send an owl to Father, he can speak to the goblins about it, and make any purchases for you. I suppose winning would mean more if the opposing team actually stood a chance," he smirked, and Harry laughed.
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Severus nodded as he joined the other heads, accepting the glass of whisky from Minerva as he took his usual seat in her quarters. He relaxed, listening to them talk of their students.
"I hear young Draco made the team Severus, you must be proud," Filius offered, and Severus nodded.
"Of course, we are sure to win the cup again," he smirked at Minerva who huffed.
"Maybe not, I hear young Harry has joined the team too," she looked at Pomona.
"Sadly, only as a reserve for this year at least. He is apparently better than Diggory without any training but Micah is reluctant, and I agree, about allowing someone so young to play. However, next year he should move teams due to it being Diggory's Owl year. Although, he has matched Lord Malfoy's gift to the Slytherin team to the main team. So don't expect the brooms to play any part in a match against my Badgers, Severus."
"Really? That was very generous of the lad," Filius was surprised.
"Indeed," Severus inclined his head.
James Potter may have done the same, but he would have made a big production of it, showing off his wealth and seeking attention. Harry…had done so anonymously, not that it had taken long for everyone to work it out since few could have afforded so many of those brooms. Plus, Lucius had admitted to handling the transaction for him when Severus had inquired. The boy truly was more his Mother's son than his Father's.
They moved on to speak of other students, such as Miss Granger who thankfully was finally getting the idea that when they asked for a set length with homework, they meant it. he had once hated the monthly get togethers but over the years they had become a time to unwind. He may be the greasy bat of the dungeons, but even he needed to spend time with his peers, even if he was the youngest of them.
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Harry glanced at the others and then they were shifting through the crowd to where they could see better. As soon as he could, he understood why they were all standing there, muttering. Between two burning torches, words had been written on the stones of the wall in what was either red paint…or worse. 'the chamber of secrets has been opened. enemies of the heir, beware.' Beneath that…was Mrs Norris, stiff as a board. What was it with him and Halloween? He met Draco's eyes across the hall, seeing the hesitation there, did he know something?
"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!" One of the older Slytherin's shouted gleefully and Harry's eyes narrowed, glaring at the boy, who actually flinched slightly. Harry didn't realise his eyes had actually flashed gold in the torch light, the Darkness within stirring at his anger.
"What's going on here? What's going on?" Attracted no doubt by the shout, Argus Filch was shouldering his way through the crowd. Then he saw Mrs Norris and fell back, clutching his face in horror. "My cat! My cat! What's happened to Mrs. Norris?" he shrieked. And his popping eyes fell on Harry who was now at the front of one side of the students, an obvious target for the distraught man. "You!" he screeched. "You! You've murdered my cat! You've killed her! I'll kill you! I'll -"
"Argus!" Dumbledore had arrived on the scene, followed by a number of other teachers. In seconds, he had swept past Harry and his friends, and detached Mrs. Norris from the torch bracket. "Come with me, Argus," he said to Filch. "You, too, Mr Potter, Mr Macmillan, Mr Finch-Fletchley, and Miss Granger."
Lockhart stepped forward eagerly. "My office is nearest, Headmaster - just upstairs – please feel free,"
"Thank you, Gilderoy," said Dumbledore.
The silent crowd parted to let them pass. Lockhart, looking excited and important, hurried after Dumbledore; so did Professors McGonagall, Sprout, and Snape.
As they entered Lockhart's darkened office there was a flurry of movement across the walls; Harry saw several of the Lockhart's in the pictures dodging out of sight, their hair in rollers. The real Lockhart lit the candles on his desk and stood back. Dumbledore lay Mrs. Norris on the polished surface and began to examine her.
Harry, the guys, and Hermione exchanged tense looks and sank into chairs outside the pool of candlelight, watching. Why had they been singled out? Because they were at the front when the Professors arrived…or because they hadn't been at the Feast? But they'd gotten Professor Sprout's permission not to attend and to instead have a small meal and remembrance for his parents.
The tip of Dumbledore's long, crooked nose was barely an inch from Mrs. Norris's fur. He was looking at her closely through his half-moon spectacles, his long fingers gently prodding and poking. Professor McGonagall was bent almost as close, her eyes narrowed. Snape loomed behind them, half in shadow, wearing a most peculiar expression: It was as though he was trying hard not to smile. Professor Sprout had placed herself between them and Filch, as if protecting them from the angry caretaker.
And Lockhart was hovering around all of them, making suggestions. "It was definitely a curse that killed her - probably the Transmogrifian Torture - I've seen it used many times, so unlucky I wasn't there, I know the very counter curse that would have saved her…" Lockhart's comments were punctuated by Filch's dry, racking sobs.
He was slumped in a chair by the desk, unable to look at Mrs. Norris, his face in his hands. Much as he detested Filch, Harry couldn't help feeling a bit sorry for him.
Dumbledore was now muttering strange words under his breath and tapping Mrs. Norris with his wand but nothing happened: She continued to look as though she had been recently stuffed.
"I remember something very similar happening in Ouagadogou," said Lockhart, "a series of attacks, the full story's in my autobiography, I was able to provide the townsfolk with various amulets, which cleared the matter up at once…" The photographs of Lockhart on the walls were all nodding in agreement as he talked. One of them had forgotten to remove his hair net and looked quite ridiculous.
At last Dumbledore straightened up. "She's not dead, Argus," he said softly.
Lockhart stopped abruptly in the middle of counting the number of murders he had supposedly prevented, Harry didn't believe he'd stopped one.
"Not dead?" choked Filch, looking through his fingers at Mrs. Norris. "But why's she all - all stiff and frozen?"
"She has been Petrified," said Dumbledore ("Ah! I thought so!" said Lockhart). "But how, I cannot say…"
"Ask him!" shrieked Filch, turning his blotched and tearstained face to Harry.
"No second year could have done this," said Dumbledore firmly. "it would take Dark Magic of the most advanced -"
"He did it, he did it!" Filch spat, his pouchy face purpling. "You saw what he wrote on the wall! He knows I'm a Squib!" he finished.
"I never touched Mrs. Norris!" Harry stated firmly, uncomfortably aware of everyone looking at him, including all the Lockhart's' on the walls. "And I don't even know what a Squib is."
"Rubbish!" snarled Filch.
"If I might speak, Headmaster," said Snape from the shadows, and Harry wondered if the man would speak for or against them. "Potter and his friends may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time," he said. "But we do have a set of suspicious circumstances here. Why was he in the upstairs corridor at all? Why wasn't he at the Halloween feast?"
"I can answer that Severus, I gave them permission to skip it. Mr Potter did not wish to celebrate the night of his parent's death, instead they shared a quiet meal and held a remembrance. Ads for being in the corridor, they were likely escorting Miss Granger and Mr Longbottom back towards the Gryffindor Common room," Professor Sprout answered, glancing at them.
"Yes Professor, and there were lots of students there before we arrived, we just slipped through so we could see what they were all muttering about," Hermione informed them. "I think we lost Neville and the other girls in the crowd though. "
Dumbledore was giving Harry a searching look. His twinkling light- blue gaze made Harry feel as though he were being X-rayed. "Innocent until proven guilty, Argus," he said firmly.
Filch looked utterly furious. "My cat has been Petrified!" he shrieked, his eyes popping. "I want to see some punishment!"
"We will be able to cure her, Argus," said Dumbledore patiently. "Professor Sprout recently managed to procure some Mandrakes. As soon as they have reached their full size, I will have a potion made that will revive Mrs. Norris."
"I'll make it," Lockhart butted in. "I must have done it a hundred times. I could whip up a Mandrake Restorative Draught in my sleep -"
"Excuse me," said Snape icily. "But I believe I am the Potions master at this school."
There was a very awkward pause.
"You may go," Dumbledore said to them and they went, as quickly as they could without actually running.
"That was crazy!" Hermione complained once they were well clear.
"At least Professor Snape wasn't too bad about it. Glad Sprout was there though," Justin grimaced and they all nodded. They had to listen to a fellow head of house.
Harry thought it was sad that Professor McGonagall hadn't spoken up for Hermione, but apparently she had little to do with her own house, unlike Sprout. "Want us to walk you back?" he asked, but she shook her head.
"I'll be fine, none of us should be caught out after curfew tonight."
Goodnights were exchanged and then they split up. Harry was relieved to crawl into bed, after sending off two letter with Hedwig who had appeared in the magical window, knowing he needed her. One to Lord Malfoy and one to Madam Bones about what had happened, just to be safe in case Filch really did try something because he wanted to blame Harry for his cat. At least it wasn't dead. Hopefully the teachers found whoever did it before something like the end of last year happened again.
TBC….
So Harry sensed the fall of the Destiny Islands because both he and Sora hold a part of Ventus' heart, though Sora has a much bigger part, the majority.
