A/N: Told ya it would be up super fast :)
Harry could feel the wind whipping through his hair. The sun was shining bright, and heat was beating down on him, but he didn't mind. In fact, he welcomed it with opened arms.
Then, an urge came over him, and he began to run. He started slowly; then he steadily ran faster and faster, pushing harder and harder against the grass-covered earth floor. An almost unfamiliar feeling came over him… he felt free. He felt as though it was just him and the scene around him- calmness, serenity, peace, isolation. No one could control him… He could be who he wanted, do what he wanted, and nothing could get in his way. Nothing.
He woke up on the hard, cement floor. It had just been a dream. The comforting warmth was replaced by the coldness of his imprisonment. He couldn't run away from it.
He sighed with disappointment. Then, he stood up and began pacing.
This was how everyday passed- he would wake up, pace, eat, think, eat again, pace some more, and fall asleep to dreams of freedom. Always waiting for something to happen.
Little did Harry know that his schedule would be majorly disrupted.
The Previous Day
Hermione and Ron had been in the garden looking for Crookshanks. Now, the sun was setting, and it was slowly getting dark, stars popping into the night sky, and the moon becoming visible. It was a beautiful night, but they decided to head inside, or Fred and George would have started to joke about the romantic setting the two were in. But when they walked into the Burrow and through the kitchen door, their jaws dropped.
"P-Professor Dumbledore?" Hermione sputtered out.
"Good evening Mr. Weasley, Ms. Granger," Dumbledore beamed at them. He chuckled in amusement at the sight of Ron, who was still gaping and stammering.
"B-b-b-b-but-"
"RON!" Mrs. Weasley suddenly shouted. "You aren't supposed to be in here! We are in the middle of a meeting! Go upstairs NOW!"
And she ushered them out of the room, immediately placing enchantments over the door.
The two friends walked up to Fred and George's room in stunned silence. Fred, George, and Ginny were playing Exploding Snap on the floor. Ignoring them, Ron immediately rounded on Hermione.
"WERE YOU SEEING WHAT I JUST SAW?" He burst out.
"YES!" Hermione gasped, equally shocked.
"WHAT?" Ginny inquired loudly.
"Dumbledore!" Ron informed her. "In the kitchen! Alive!"
A shocked silence fell upon them, before George broke it.
"I think you two are hallucinating," he said skeptically.
"We're not!" Ron erupted indignantly. "He was there, breathing and fully alive, with the rest of the Order! We wouldn't lie about something like this!"
"Well then, he was a ghost," Fred implied.
"He wasn't a ghost," Hermione said quietly. "I could tell. He was completely solid. He talked to us, too…"
"He acted as though he had never died!"
"But he DID die!" Ginny interrupted.
"I KNOW!" Ron and Hermione exclaimed simultaneously.
"Well, let's just see if you're right," George said mischievously, pulling out an extendable ear.
"Mum put wards on the door, though," Ron muttered.
"We improved them, ickle Ronnie," Fred said, grinning. "They can get through Mum's simple wards now."
They all grabbed an extendable ear eagerly (even Hermione), and crept down the stairs and towards the kitchen. Hermione placed disillusionment charms on them so they would become nearly invisible, and they fed the strings under the door.
"So, you mean to say that Severus Snape didn't fire the killing curse at you?" a voice that they recognized as McGonagall's said incredulously.
"Indeed," replied Dumbledore's voice. Fred, George, and Ginny tensed with excitement, while Ron shot them a look that clearly said, 'I told you so'. "I told you to trust him, and he proved himself trustworthy on that night. He merely shot another curse at me, which could easily be mistaken as the killing curse. He saved me in a major act of bravery, and I am sad to say that it can be assumed that Lord Voldemort will have… punished him for it." An uncomfortable silence fell over them, which was broken by Remus after a few moments.
"So, you mean that You-Know-Who knows that you are alive?" he said quietly. Dumbledore didn't say anything, but they assumed he nodded because murmurs broke out amongst the Order.
"But there's more," Dumbledore added grimly. "I believe that Voldemort has taken Harry captive for interrogation of my whereabouts." A stunned silence fell upon them all. Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins shared looks of wide-eyed shock.
"We always thought that Harry might have been captured by Death Eaters," Tonks murmured solemnly, "but you think he is being questioned by You-Know-Who himself?"
"I'm afraid so," Dumbledore confirmed darkly.
"Did you even communicate with him?" Mr. Weasley asked. "Does he even know you're alive?"
"No, I'm afraid I was not able to contact Harry before his disappearance."
"But he could be being TORTURED!" Remus suddenly shouted, making the four eavesdroppers jump. "He could be suffering because of information he doesn't have! He could be… dead…" At this, his voice broke, and he didn't continue shouting.
"I know, Remus," Dumbledore murmured, sounding tired and defeated. "I know…"
"We have to get him," Mrs. Weasley said anxiously. "We have to find out where they're hiding him."
"I believe I have an idea of where he is," Dumbledore admitted, and Hermione glanced hopefully at Ron. "I have tried my best to track a couple of Death Eaters, and it seems that they all head towards some sort of meeting house. Harry could be kept there."
The group of teenagers shared surprised looks as they pondered over all of the new information. But the thing they heard next shocked them the most.
"We can't wait much longer," Dumbledore announced, after a pause. "Gather a search party. We leave tonight."
A/N: YAY action time! Please review and I will get it posted ASAP!
-Breeze :)
