So, this is the second chapter, I hope, you like it.

Please, let me know and review.

ooooooo

2 Leaving Hogwarts

"What do you mean: I can't go in and see them?" Harry Potter asked the medi-witch irritated. "It was me, who found them. Malfoy owes me some explanations." He had come to the infirmary first thing after waking up this morning. He had tiptoed out of his dorm in order to not awake his class mates. And now he needed to know, what all that with Malfoy was about.

"Potter, I know that", Madam Pomfrey answered, "but I still can't let you in. Orders from the headmistress. Besides they are still asleep."

With that she turned and slipped through the door to the infirmary. Harry stood and thought for a moment, then turned on his heels and walked straight to the office, that no longer belonged to Prof. Dumbledore. When he arrived at the stone gargoyle guarding the entrance, the Boy-who-lived swore under his breath: "Damned, I don't know her password. It surely is no longer easy to guess…" Professor Dumbledore had always had a liking for sweets and so there was always a fat chance to guess the right kind of sweets and gain access.

He pondered, if he should go back to his dormitory and start packing his trunk or wait for Prof. McGonagall to arrive at or leave her office. Going back to Gryffindor Tower was not a very good option, because he didn't want to have to tell Ron and Hermione what bothered him. At least not until he had some answers from Malfoy. So he opted to wait for the headmistress.

He sat down on the stone floor and was just thinking that he would miss breakfast completely, if she would not turn up soon. It was nearly time for the post owls to arrive. Just as he thought that, one of the school owls came swooping down the corridor and landed in front of Harry.

"Shouldn't you be in the Great Hall right now? Delivering that letter? What are you doing here?" he asked the owl curiously. The owl hooted for an answer and pecked him in his arm and held out her leg. "Oh, the letter is for me? Thank you very much!" He untied the letter from the owl's leg, un-scrolled it and read:

"Potter,

Please come to my office.

The password is 'Quidditch Cup'.

Minerva McGonagall"

"I could have guessed that one…" he thought, smiling at the stern professor's obsession with winning the Quidditch Cup. He stood up and gave the password to the gargoyles. They sprang to life so he could step onto the moving spiral staircase. His knocking on the office door was not answered and so Harry hesitated, if he was nevertheless allowed to enter. He decided soon, that he was invited in by her letter and as it had no time given he should be allowed in.

Knocking once again he opened the door and looked in. "Professor?" "Ah, Harry, come in, dear boy!" He must have imagined that. He could most definitely not have heard Prof. Dumbledore's voice! That was just not possible!

Harry shook his head and entered the office still wondering, what he had heard. He started looking around once again and when he saw the portrait of his mentor realisation dawned. As with all wizard portraits the person in it was able to move and more important talk! Harry saw Prof. Dumbledore twinkle and called out, "Professor!" "Good day to you, too!" the old wizard with the long silver beard and half-moon spectacles answered out of his brand new portrait right beside the one of Prof. Dippet.

After Harry had abandoned his initial amazement he was soon engrossed in the conversation with his mentor. He had so much to ask Prof. Dumbledore, so many burning issues to discuss… But Prof. Dumbledore being himself nonetheless stayed as mysterious as he always had been. Being a portrait did not change that much.

Anyhow, he cajoled Harry into returning to Hogwarts after the holidays. They both shared the opinion that Hogwarts had to be re-opened. "And, Harry, don't forget, you need to use the library here", Dumbledore insisted, "I believe, you won't be able to find the Horcruxes without it. The library at Grimmauld Place is huge and will be useful to research in during the holidays, but the Hogwarts library is unrivalled. I will ask Prof. McGonagall to give you unlimited access to the restricted section."

Harry considered that but still thought, he should put more time in the research and not in school issues. His mentor understood, what was going on in Harry, anyway, he begged Harry to take into consideration, that he would need the assistance of Hermione, Ron and Remus Lupin to find and especially destroy the Horcruxes. "And, Harry, will you really take the responsibility for your friends' leaving school? You know how important school is for Hermione. And have you thought of Molly Weasley's reaction? Can you really do this to her?"

"They don't have to accompany me, or do they?" Harry asked defensively.

"You're right, they don't have to, but you know as well as I do, that they will. Don't play dump, Harry." the portrait countered, "I would suggest, you three all return to Hogwarts after the summer and you get release from classes and permission to leave whenever it is necessary for your task, how about that?"

The Boy-who-lived promised to think about his arguments and also to discuss the matter with Ron and Hermione. Prof. Dumbledore smiled at him, satisfied with that. He asked Harry to take the Pensive, which still held the memories concerning the Horcruxes they both had watched together. Dumbledore wanted Harry to share them with his friends and also to make sure, they did not fall into the wrong hands.

Harry agreed to that. It was mandatory, that they kept the Horcruxes secret. If Voldemort came to know, that they were destroying them, there would be no hindrance for him to create more of them to guarantee his immortality. The-Chosen-One had a chance to ridden the world of this evil, only if he never knew, his Horcruxes were all destroyed.

After talking to the headmaster for a long time, Harry was still itching to ask one special question, but didn't know how to. How could he ask the portrait of his late mentor, why and how his trusting the wrong person led to his own murder? What had let the wise old wizard to trust the double agent Snape? Which proof had he had? Harry still struggled, how to word this matter, when Dumbledore said: "Harry, today I will not answer this question, you want to ask. I'm sorry, there will be a time for it, but it is not today." Harry knew the old man had again managed to be omniscient and didn't bother to ask, how he did that. Still he needed to know, "But…" "I promise to give you the answer, when the time for it has come", the professor interrupted him. "I promise!"

Just then Prof. McGonagall entered her office and smiled seeing Harry talk to Prof. Dumbledore.

"Oh, Potter, good, you're here."

"Good Morning, Professor! I got your letter."

"Fine, I asked you to come here, because Prof. Dumbledore and I think it is best, if you take care of Fawkes. He has never really liked me. And seeing your history together..."

"Really? Professor Dumbledore?"

"Yes, my boy, yes. See, I can no longer look after him and Minerva and Fawkes never got along too well. And Fawkes has taken a liking to you at that time in the Chamber of Secrets. It seems to be the best solution."

Harry thanked both of them and approached Fawkes, who tilted his head in recognition. Harry held out his arm and the beautiful red and gold Phoenix hopped gracefully onto it. Harry took the Pensive in his other hand, said his good-byes and went to the door.

He had nearly left the room, when he suddenly remembered why he came here initially.

"Ah, Professor McGonagall, I wanted to know what Malfoy is up to?" he asked, turning back.

"We don't know yet." was her answer, "they are both severely injured and Poppy, erm, Madam Pomfrey, I mean, put them into dreamless sleep. We had no chance to question them by now."

"But…"

"Potter, you can't do anything at the moment. Believe me; I want to know what happened, just as much as you do. And I must ask you, not to tell anyone about them. It might be vitally important."

Seeing that he would not get to know anything new about the matter at hand, Harry nodded and turned to leave once again.

Just outside the headmistress' office Harry met Hermione. "Harry, there you are. You missed breakfast, where have you been? Have you been to Prof. McGonagall? I'm headed there, too. Why are you carrying Prof. Dumbledore's Phoenix on your shoulder?"

"Wow Hermione, slow down, that were three questions at once. See, I'll tell you later, as I assume you don't want to be late for your appointment."

"Ok, bye, Harry!"

"Bye, Mione!"

Harry arrived at the Gryffindor Common Room without further intermittences. As not many students knew the beautiful Phoenix, the questioning began there anew. Harry decided to ignore his peers and headed straight to his dormitory, where he found Ron packing his trunk.

"Oi, Harry, you're back. What happened?

"Ron, a lot happened, I talked to Prof. Dumbledore's portrait and I will tell you the whole story when Hermione is back. Else I would have to tell it all twice. What do you think about going to the kitchen in the meantime? I missed breakfast and I suppose it will be a while before Mione is back."

Ron being Ron did not hesitate to get an extra meal, although he just had had breakfast, and agreed at once.

So they left Fawkes in their room and headed to the kitchen, where the house elves where delighted to serve them a lot of food. Harry and Ron sat and ate at one of the large tables, when Dobby accompanied them. Harry asked the small elf to sit down with them and Dobby did that. The Gryffindor could tell, that something was bothering the house elf, so he decided to ask, what it was.

It showed, that Dobby was afraid, that the new headmistress would not tolerate Winky and himself as free house elves at Hogwarts, he feared, they would possibly no longer be accepted. Harry did all he could to assure Dobby, that there was no need to fear that. He told the small elf, to just talk to Prof. McGonagall. And even if she would not accept them being free elves, they could always come to Harry's house in London. Dobby did still not believe, that the headmistress would let them both stay, but was calmed down by having the option to come to Harry, if necessary.

Back in the Gryffindor Common Room, Hermione was already waiting for them. The three of them went up to the sixth-year-boys-dormitory to talk in private. As Seamus, Dean and Neville had already finished packing; they were alone in there and put locking and silencing charms on the door, before Harry started telling them about his conversation with Dumbledore's portrait. Hermione nodded at some parts of his story and in the end said, that she was told the same things. The Boy-Who-Lived thought it strange, that the two of them had been called there for the same reason but separately. And so he was curious, if his friend had really told him all, she came to know up there.

On the other hand, he himself was not telling everything. So he thought it better not to ask, but stay alert and see, if he could find out, what she was concealing.

Harry felt better after the conversation with his friends. As all three had to pack their trunks, Hermione left and Harry and Ron worked in silence. Harry was once again deep in thought: "What had happened to Malfoy? Who had done that to them? And why? Had he really been civil? And said please? Would they awake before he had to leave with the rest of the students the next morning?"

As he had done the previous morning Harry went to the infirmary very early. And again he was sent away by the medi-witch. "Potter, you can't see them. They are still sleeping and will not awake soon. They need to heal. You can't do anything. Just leave", Madam Pomfrey shooed him away. So he had started his way back to Gryffindor Tower but decided to go to the Room of Requirement first to get Snape's potions book back. After all he was a real potions genius and one never knew, where such knowledge could be useful. He hid the book in his robe and went to meet his friends and accompany them to their last breakfast at Hogwarts.

Harry, Ron and Hermione found a compartment for themselves at the Hogwarts Express, where Neville, Ginny and Luna soon found and joined them. These six had been the only members of the DA, who had fought against the Death Eaters a few days ago. Now they shared a quiet and uneventful train ride to King's Cross.

As they arrived there, they were surprised about the number of order members who had come to fetch them from there. There were five Weasleys (Bill was still not too well), Remus and Tonks, as Harry had expected. But in addition Mad-Eye Moody and Kingsley Shacklebolt had come with Oliver Wood, Angelina Johnston, Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell, who had all accompanied the order during the last year (thanks to the twins!). Kingsley told them, that they would go to Grimmauld Place by Side-Long-Apparition as this was the safest measure of transport. Harry was very thankful for not having to walk through the station with an owl and a phoenix… But he hated the thought of going back to Sirius' house, even though he knew, he had to start researching in the huge library of the grim, old place.