Chapter 4

For a brief moment Harry's heart felt light and unburdened as he pushed through the heavy doors from the ominous courtroom. It felt as if an immense weight had been lifted from his shoulders and in that instant he breathed freely. It was a shame that this breath was wasted on a lungful of moldy air thanks to his surroundings.

It was not long before thoughts and worries again bombarded him and he looked around the tight hallway. Past Mr. Weasley who was walking towards him, an anxious expression on his face, but there was no telltale swish of elegant robes nor shine of silvered beard.

Anger and confusion flashed swiftly through Harry's thoughts at Dumbledore's stranger than usual behavior. It seemed to Harry as if the old headmaster was avoiding him completely.

But these thoughts were broken by Arthur's question. To which Harry's answer was a wide grin, "cleared of all charges!"

"That's wonderful Ha-" before he could finish his sentence the courtroom emptied of the rest of its occupants. "Merlin's beard you were tried by the whole…"

"I guess,"Harry shrugged and tried not to focus on the passing faces remembering the sick feeling that had been rolling in his stomach at the beginning of his trail. But he did notice when Mr. Weasley got red in the face and glanced down at the ground.

Harry looked up to the line of exiting wizards and spotted the reason. Percy's bright red hair had just bobbed into view. The Weasley boy had done his utmost during the trail to ignore Harry's imploring glances and now the anger that had not fit amongst the anxiety earlier rose to the surface with a surprising heat.

"Hey Perc, enjoy the show in there did you?" Harry spat out, plastering a cruel sneer across his face. Percy ignored him once again and Harry waved obnoxiously, "hope I don't see you around." A blush could be seen turning the older boys ears red as he continued to walk away.

Harry opened his mouth more scathing words burning at his tongue when a sigh distracted him.

Arthur was still looking at the ground but the redness in his face had gone. "Why did you have to do that?" Without another word the older man, who now looked much older than his years, lead Harry out of the dungeon like space, back up the elevator with the odd little papers carrying their messages. Harry walked with leaden step. All of the sharp happiness he had gotten from teasing the oldest Weasley boy had been drained and Harry was left to deal with a dark pulsing guilt that grew with questions.

Why had he even done that?

Where was this anger coming from?

How was he going to handle it?

Because he wasn't handling it.

So deep in his own thoughts he almost didn't notice the sleek blonde hair as he exited the elevator with Mr. Weasley a step ahead of him. He almost didn't register the cane and the haunting mercury eyes which he had last seen peering through a slit in a mask.

It was as if Harry had walked through had walked through a ghost and he suppressed a shiver. He could not reign in the anger as it swelled up so unexpectedly. This man who had helped to kidnap him and Cedric, who had a hand in his death. Who had tortured him and watched at the sidelines for his own death. This man was standing amongst others in a public place talking to the minister of magic. Anger blinded him for a moment, until he ran into someone, forcefully, for his steps had gained speed and momentum.

"Harry are you okay?" Mr. Weasley ran over to the boy. Harry's glare with Malfoy had been broken and he looked up, surprised to see that a helping hand was offered.

A young man stood above him, garbed in strange white robes. His light brown hair curled down to frame his face which squared glasses adorned. Harry took the offered hand cautiously and muttered an apology. He shouldn't have bothered however for Fudge was sputtering his profuse apologies every which way. Harry even thought that some of it landed on his shirt.

Fudge turned to Harry and Mr. Weasley. A look of displeasure on his face. But then turned back to Malfoy and the other man, choosing to ignore Harry.

Which just kindled the fire of course. Harry did not feel the weight of Mr. Weasley's hand upon his shoulder. He stepped forward, no words in his mouth nor plan on his tongue.

Malfoy had one eyebrow cocked in amusement.

The stranger was simply studying him with flat eyes. It was this gaze that gave Harry pause. It was then that the man spoke in a pleasant voice.

"Sorry to have knocked you over."

Taken aback Harry was almost thankful for Fudge's predictable but rude response.

"You don't need to apologize to this boy Aizen-sama." The foreign name fell awkwardly from his lips.

"Well well well patronus Potter," Malfow stated coolly side stepping Fudge, "the minister was just telling us about your lucky escape. Quite astonishing the way you continue to wriggle your way out of tight places. Positively snakelike in fact."

The pressure of Arthur's hand increased. Harry did not trust himself to speak, though he was screaming on the inside.

Lucius had noticed the subtle tightening of Mr. Weasley's hands and his cool grey eyes rose to the other man's face. "And Arthur! What are you doing here?" the false surprise in his voice did nothing to hide the mocking tone.

Now the pressure on Harry's shoulder, which was becoming painful with its intensity was not so much to hold Harry back.

"I work here," Arthur bit out through gritted teeth.

"Not here surely? I thought your job was located somewhere on the second floor and dealt with taking muggle things home and tinkering with them…"

Mr. Weasley's "no" was heard by no one save Harry as Lucius continued.

"Well either way I'm sure you have met," here Lucius flourished his hands towards the unknown man who had simply been standing by "Sir Sosuke Aizen, the Japanese diplomat." The cool grey eyes narrowed, watching Arthur , calculating. Harry shot a quick glance over his shoulder to Mr. Weasley whose face had paled.

Finally words came loose from Harry's throat and he shot them rudely towards the blonde man.

"What are you even doing here?"

"Business between the minister and myself is none of your concern Potter. Really just because you are Dumbledore's favorite doesn't mean you should expect the same indulgence from the rest of us." With that he turned, motioning for the Fudge and the foreigner to follow him.

Throughout the exchange the man who had been introduced as Aizen had never shifted his gaze from Harry. Even now as he began to walk away the man paused and sent him one last piercing glance.

Harry could not place this feeling that was stronger than unease that jolted through him as those eyes slid off of him.

BREAKBREAKBREAK

Mr. Weasley had stayed silent the entire way home. Refusing to answer any of Harry's questions.

Which simply let the young wizard to stew in his agitation on the way home. Despite being cleared Harry did not feel very relieved. Instead more anxiety seemed to pile up around him.

The last three days at the Black house had been filled with busy work. Cleaning mostly. And Molly emphasized the importance of making the Black manor livable. But Harry still felt completely useless. And he was going back to more or less the same. Besides Harry's trial the only other topic of conversation was the strange boy, who had not woken up yet.

The night of Harry's arrival had been exhausting. Harry had forgotten all about the boy while he had been yelling. If the twins hadn't been spying beforehand and prompted him once he had cooled down he would have completely forgotten.

But the twins curiosity had won out as it always did.

Harry had then, reluctantly shared the sparse amount of information he had on the boy.

"He's not human?" Ron's voice had an anxious edge to it. While a thoughtful look settled over Hermione' face. The twins had simply shared an evil smile.

Most often times the mundane and sometimes painful tasks that Molly set them too drowned out all other thoughts. Which was perhaps their purpose. And no matter how much the twins badgered Sirius, Lupin or even Mundugus no order member would talk about the boy.

And now, icing on the cake, on top of Harry's other worries he now had to wonder about the man who had been with Lucius and Fudge. Was he a death eater as well? He hadn't seemed like one.

The boy who lived was much more worn out by the time he was watching Grimmauld place materialize than he had ever been. But thankfully this meant that he didn't have to deal with anymore anger for the time being. He was simply empty now.

He was barely in the door when Molly bustled up to him all excitement and nerves. Before she could even open her mouth to whisper a greeting Fred and George were standing on either side of her with a sudden POP. Molly fell backwards before her motherly irritation could kick in.

"Glad to see you got off again Harry mate!" they laughed in unison.

Harry could not muster up the energy it took to smile and simply took the thick envelope that was handed to him by a glaring Mrs. Weasley.

Almost as quickly as they had appeared they dissaparated.

"Really! They could walk like the rest of us mere mortals!" Molly was shaking her head but could not keep the scowl for long. A wide grin spread smoothly and animated her features, "ooh, but I can't be in a sour mood right now!"

"And why is that dear?" Arthur asked, passing Harry.

"I'm sure Ronald would like to tell you himself!" and she ushered Harry upstairs with a quick, "I still have so much planning to do!"

Arthur sighed, knowing he was no match for whatever his wife had put into motion. "Just don't forget about the order meeting tonight."

"Oh yes… that could be a problem…" their conversation faded as Harry reached the room.

The first thing he noticed as he stepped into the room was Ron sitting silently on his bed an opened envelope hanging loosely from his hand. The red headed boy's eyes were following their bushy haired friend as she scurried around the room talking a mile a minute.

"Oh Harry! You won't believe it! Such good news!" Hermione practically bounced in his direction.

"Yeah your mom was telling me…" Ron gave Harry a weak smile. And was it just Harry or did Ron seem a wee bit nervous?

With a loud crack the twins apparated once again next to Harry.

"So has he told you yet?" they asked with a sneer towards their younger brother.

"Like he's had time, and don't you spoil it for him!" Hermione chastised them.

Harry looked to Ron who had stood. "Here" he had taken a small something out of the envelope and tossed it. Harry's seeker reflexes sent his hand up to snatch it out of the air before he had time to really think about it. He held it up for inspection and it took him a moment to decipher what exactly it was.

A prefect's badge.

Even though he knew what this meant his brain was struggling with the connection between it and Ron.

Fred made a disgusted noise near Harry's ear while George stalked over to Ron.

"We'd high hopes for you mate." He said shaking his head in mock disappointment.

Harry raised his eyes to take in Ron's cautious smile. With a jolt Harry realized that the reason behind Ron's anxious behavior was him. Quickly the boy who lived forced a smile onto his own face hoping that no other emotion had been betrayed.

"Good for you!" he said in what he hoped was a jovial tone and slapped Ron heartily on the back.

"Really?" Ron had the beginnings of a real smile.

"Of course-" Harry was interrupted by Fred who snatched the badge out of his hand, pretending to study it closely.

"What we don't get-"

"-Is why they chose-"

"-You Ronald."

That had been Harry's question and he hoped it didn't show on his face.

They sighed, "Guess you were just too good, we'll have to make Harry our new protégée."

They continued joking and Harry just let it flow on, the same ridiculous smile on his face, and tried not to think.

BREAKBREAKBREAK

Lunch for Harry could not come too soon. Anything to distract him from the mind numbing questions that circled in his head like vultures.

Questions about his trail.

Questions about Dumbledore.

Questions about Voldemort.

And most ridiculous of all, questions about Ron.

Why was he the prefect?

Why couldn't Harry just be happy for his friend who was so often overshadowed by his brothers?

Why was he even angry?

They trudged down to the dining room with the twins and now Ginny still teasing Ron lightly about his new position while Hermione tried to dissuade them by rattling off the many benefits of being a prefect. Harry had tried and failed to join in the fun and instead fell back on the excuse of summer time homework he had forgotten which had earned him a disapproving look from Hermione.

As Mrs. Weasley prepared lunch for not only the students but also Mad-eye and Lupin, who seemed to be hanging around more than usual (or so Hermione pointed out)and Sirius whom Harry had not yet seen that day, stomped in late and seemed to be in a foul mood.

"So sorry dears but we'll have to postpone the festivities until tomorrow evening." She did not say why, but she didn't have too. Molly however, ever the optimist, was able to turn even this travesty around, "at least we'll have more time to plan!"

She laid out the silverware and plates while talking excitedly about the next day. "We'll run to Diagon Alley for your things. A day out will be a pleasant break from this dreary place."

"Hey!" Sirius whined

"And while we're out you Sirius can work on the decorations. Don't give me that look! I'm sure you could get…Mundugus to help. We'll also grab…"

She continued to talk but Harry had noticed something. He only noticed this small detail because he had not been paying attention to the current conversation at all. Mad-eye Moody's usually chaotic blue eye was eerily still. Trained on something above them.

"Molly…" Moody growled quietly to the woman. Who was still having conversations with her husband and sons about what they could and could not afford in regards to new brooms.

"But Ron gets one!"

Before she could answer the twins whine she waved the ex-auror off "this is a happy time, stop being so grumpy!"

Harry nudged Ron who nudged Hermione and he cocked his head in Moody's direction. Obediently their gazes followed to the eye, which was moving once again. In a steady line to the kitchen door. The three of them turned towards the door just as it was creaking open. They wouldn't have even heard it had they not been focused on it already.

In the doorway was the teenage boy, dressed in black jeans and a t-shirt.

It took a moment for the rest of the occupants in the room to realize that something had changed. But when they had silence rose from them and Harry could feel the room holding its breath.

The boys eyes widened in surprise and he chuckled in a way that struck Harry as relieved.

Harry hadn't even realized that he had reached for his wand but at least he wasn't outright pointing it at the boy like many of the adults in the room were.

But the stranger didn't seem to be worried about that.

Before anything could be done a heavy pressure pushed on Harry from all sides. It was all he could do to stay sitting up. It pushed the air out of his lungs and he could feel his skeleton creaking from the weight. Everyone else in the room had strained expressions upon their faces and Harry was relieved that he was not the only one experiencing this. It wasn't yet another thing that set him apart.

It went as suddenly as it had come and had lasted barely a moment.

Nothing else happened but the boy was rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly.

A few more minutes of awkward silence passed painfully before finally Molly, the only adult who had not reached for her wand, stepped forward. When she did some around the room loosened their grips. All except for Mad-Eye and curiously enough Lupin.

"Come on in and join us for dinner. My name is Molly, this is my husband Arthur and my family…" she continued introductions smoothly gesturing to each person in turn. When she had finished she turned back to the boy whose facial expressions had moved from cautious to panicked to confused to understanding while she was talking. "and what's your name dear?"

The boy put his hands up, fingers splayed and a clueless smile on his face. "Gomen nasai. Eego o hanashimasen. Wakaranai." He spoke a jumble of syllables that made absolutely no since to Harry nor anyone else in the room by the look of it.

"Oh do you not speak English?" she asked a little louder and when the boy showed no sign of understanding Molly pulled her own wand from a pocket in the front of her apron. He cocked his head to the side still smiling. "Not to worry dear, we can take care of that."

She raised her wand, but now the boy was doing something strange. The smile dropped from his face and his eyes narrowed just slightly. He shifted his feet almost unnoticeably except for the fact that the entire room was hyper focused on him. Even though he moved nothing else Harry felt the tension usually present before a fight.

Lupin stood suddenly. "Molly!" he warned.

"Just a moment." She said a word Harry only recognized as a spell. The boy had backed up a step. "Can you understand me now?" he still had a confused look on his face, paired with something else and he eyed the wand wearily.

A frown creased the motherly woman's features, "that's strange."

"I was trying to tell you," Lupin sighed sitting back down not taking his eyes off the boy nor his hand from his wand. "Spells don't seem to work on him." Realization dawned on Molly's features and she crossed her arms in a worried fashion.

"Well what shall we do?"

At Lupin's proclamation the Hogwarts goers leaned in for their own conversation.

"So the meeting the other night-" started Fred.

"What Harry told us!" continued George.

"He's not human." Harry deadpanned.

"No way!" Ginny said incredulously.

"It can't really be true." Ron argued.

They turned to Hermione, just as they had on Harry's arrival. And just as she had on that night she looked confounded.

"I really don't know." She whispered, flustered at her own ignorance. "And I don't have the book resources to find out right now." She turned her perplexed gaze to the subject of her discontent, as did the rest of them.

The boy continued to stand in the doorway. As Harry looked his way their eyes met. His were a strange light brown, almost golden. Harry felt like those eyes are taking in everything as if the other were assessing the situation.

Finally Molly simply led him to the table and sat him between Harry and Hermione.

"Now you two be polite!" she spelled a plate in front of him and ladled a large portion of food on top of it. The stranger dug in with heart and the meal was unnaturally quiet for a time. Everyone was even eating in a subdued manner. Harry did his best to not stare, instead choosing to study his plate which he had emptied of food without even realizing it. He didn't even look up to see what the rest of the table was doing.

Thank god for the twins, for it was them who broke the horribly awkward silence.

"Me George." The twin placed a hand on his own chest in an exaggerated gesture and then moved it to his brother's chest, "him Fred."

Harry looked up and could not quite stifle his snort.

The boy had pasta hanging from his mouth as he looked blankly between the two Weasleys. Fred repeated the statement with the same gestured embellishments. By now others at the table were snickering.

"Oh really you two." Hermione sighed then turned to the boy. "My name is Hermione, can you say that?"

He looked from face to face of the people at the table. Swallowed and cleared his throat. "Harumeni. Furedo. Juooju." He pointed to each person in turn. By this time all but Moody were openly laughing and the boy took it all in good humor.

It became a game of sorts and quickly the meal went back to its normal noise level. Listening to his horrible pronunciations of the names had lightened the mood considerably. He seemed to have a good memory for names, even if they were foreign.

"So what's your name?" Ginny asked after his third run through of all the names.

"Eeto…" he looked blithely confused once again.

"You know…" Fred pitched in and touched his chest, "Fred," he pointed next to him, "George," he pointed across the table to the boy.

"… Ichigo… Kurosaki Ichigo…" the boy responded touching his own chest.