Chapter 7 - Unspoken Bonds

"Why is everyone staring?" Ron asked.
"I'm The Chosen One." Harry said in a mocking tone.

Harry had the urge to hex everyone in sight as they walked down the street in Diagon Alley. They were whispering. Pointing. He attempted to flatten his hair over his scar. Not like that would help him any as most people knew what he looked like since his picture had been in the Daily Prophet so much.

"Yeah, but this is excessive." Ron said seriously.
"Ron's right," Hermione said. "This is just…odd."

People were stepping back as they walked down the street, the crowd parting like it was the Red Sea.

"Let's just get what we need and get out of here." Harry said, quickening his pace.

It didn't take long to get to Weasley's Whizarding Wheezes seeing as no one was in their way. Harry opened the door and complete silence followed as he entered the store. His hand was on his wand, ready to hex the first person that spoke to him. No one did though, they just stared and whispered. What the hell was going on?

"Harry! Good to see you again!" Fred's voice rang through the room.

People had started filing out of the store by now. Harry just wanted to get out of there as soon as possible. Looks like he was going to hurt their business if he stayed much longer.

"I'm going to be needing products from your Defense Against the Dark Arts line." Harry said.
"Of course! Take anything you need, free of charge." Fred said.
Not this again. "I'm paying for everything I take."
"Not this time Harry, I need to pay you back somehow."

Harry wasn't in the mood to continuing talking and nodded his head instead. He followed Fred into the back room, followed closely by Ron and Hermione with Brooklyn lagging behind them. There were more products than Harry remembered; obviously they had expanded their line.

"Now, what exactly can I interest you in?" Fred asked. "Some Shield Cloaks? Darkness Powder? Decoy Detonators?"
"What's that?" Ron asked, pointing to the small, grey boxes next to the Detonators.
"Those are fairly new," Fred began. "They're…"
"Shape Identifiers." Brooklyn said.
"How'd you know?" Ron asked, eyeing her curiously.
"My dad was, uhh, transferring some."
"And just who exactly is your father?" Fred asked, sounding slightly annoyed.
"She's Mundungus' daughter." Harry interjected.
"That explains where that shipment went." Fred scoffed. "Er, sorry. I shouldn't have said that."
Brooklyn merely nodded and remained silent.
"Anyways," Fred said. "The way these work is you push this button and look through the portal at who ever. You can see anything they might be hiding…tattoos, weapons, branded with the Dark Mark..." Fred turned and stared at Harry. "Be on the look out mate, I'm sure people are dying to get a glimpse of yours"
Harry's mouth dropped. "What! How did…"
"In the Daily Prophet this morning. You have a new nickname."
"Dare I even ask?"
"The Marked One."
"That's actually quite clever!" Ron said. "Ow! I swear Hermione…"
"Can we just get what we need and get out of here!" Harry said irritably.
"Course you can, mate. Don't mean to be holding you up." Fred said. "Just put what you want in this bag. And if I find one knut left on the counter it's going to end up back in your possession."

They took quite a bit of the Darkness Powder and Decoy Detonators. Fred even had to go restock the shelves since so many were taken, but he didn't mind in the least. In the process, Hermione asked where George was and Fred informed them that he's been running the Hogsmeade location until they can find someone they deemed able minded enough to.

Harry's attention turned to Ron when he heard a slap. He saw the Shape Identifier in the hand Ron was rubbing. It was apparent that he was trying to get a glimpse of the mark that now resided on Harry's chest. He grabbed the bags, as well as Brooklyn's arm, and headed for the door.

"What are you doing?" Brooklyn asked.
"We're going to Gringott's without them." Harry said. "I don't want them trying to get glimpses of me while I'm not looking."
"But what about the vault key!"
"I sent Hedwig with a message to the Ministry before we left telling them to send it over. It should be there by now."
"Can I have my arm back?"

Harry looked back and realized he was dragging her though the street. If people weren't already staring at him, they were staring at him now.

"Can you keep up?" He asked.
"I guess I'll have to start running." She said.
"Come on."

Harry took her hand in his, thinking it would make less of a scene if he were to be leading her by her hand rather than her arm. He quickly restored his prior pace and felt her hand grab on tightly to his. He clutched it back, not wanting to lose her in the crowd of people they were weaving in and out of.

Gringotts was now in sight and he finally slowed his pace. Brooklyn was now at his side, breathing heavily, instead of a few feet behind him. Her grip on his hand loosened, but contact still persisted. Why was she still holding his hand? Whatever the reason he didn't mind. The sensation of her touch was the only thing reminding him not to run out of sight like a mad man. That and reminding him that hexing anyone looking at him was not a good idea, no matter how good of an idea it seemed to be.

And what a brilliant idea it seemed right now….

The flash of the camera went off right in front of them. They were both blinded for a few moments by the sudden flash of white light and were frozen in their place. Harry regained his vision and was greeted with reporters and more flashing lights.

He put his other arm around Brooklyn in a half embrace and apparated so they ended up right in front of Gringotts. He cursed himself for not thinking of that sooner. Both of them were sure to end up on the front page of the Daily Prophet now with a headline about The Marked One and his possible girlfriend. They'd probably speculate on whether or not she was also marked.

Harry was pretty sure he knew how the Daily Prophet got a hold of this information. The only other person who knew had been his mediwitch, who he had forbidden her from even telling any other medical staff members about his condition.

He felt like he couldn't trust anyone, not even his friends. After all, they had an argument over whose fault it was that they never saw it and they even tried to get a glimpse not too long ago.

If anything, Brooklyn, a girl he barely knew, was his only security right now. She seemed to be one of the only people who could care less about the mark and right now that was the only type of company he could stand. Moreover, besides when she was ticked off, she was relatively quiet. A quality Harry simply reveled in right now.

A part of him felt guilty for liking that quality for he knew she was like that for the same reason he was. Too much tragedy in such a short span of time. Well, maybe on a lesser scale for her, but the magnitude of her loss was still quite significant.

The silence between them said the unspoken words of sympathy they held for each other. The familiar look in their eyes expressed the words of gratitude of having someone that understood their situation and didn't push them to get over it and be happy again.

When the time was right, they would open up. And with the unusual bond they were creating, it would most likely be him she would talk to first…and vice versa.

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"Well, that was more gold than I had expected." Brooklyn said somewhat dejectedly. "I guess I'll go get those new clothes now. Thanks for taking me here."
"I'll go with you." Harry said.
"I didn't think you'd want anyone to get a chance to print more rumors in the paper. You know that's exactly what they're going to do with those pictures they took of us."

One thing was for sure, she definitely thought along the same lines as him.

"Quite honestly, I could care less if they make-up another relationship for me. At least it will divert attention away from their other stories." He said. "But if it bothers you, I'll leave you to your shopping."
"The Marked One and the blagger's daughter." She said mockingly. "What an enchanting headline."
"Is that your way of telling me to leave?"
"I'll be fine. Thanks for taking me to Gringotts though, I don't know if I would have maintained composure if you weren't there."

As soon as they had stepped foot into Gringotts, her hand had found its way to his again. He hadn't questioned it. He knew she was only seeking something, anything, to keep herself from falling apart. She had often tightened her hold to keep herself from shaking, though it was unable to keep the shakiness out of her voice.

He watched her walk away. For some reason he had the urge to follow her, but instead he was greeted by a familiar face. It was Neville Longbottom.

"Harry! How's your summer been?" Neville asked.
"Fine." Harry lied. "How about yours?" He was waiting for the Dark Mark question.
"Oh, you know. Me and my grandmother."
"Yeah…"

Harry wanted him to just shut it and leave. Naturally, Neville had other plans.

"How'd it happen? I really don't believe that rubbish they print in the Daily Prophet." Neville said.
"Then why do you believe that I have the mark to begin with?" Harry snapped.
"I-uh…"
"What? Did you try to look for it with a Shape Identifier too!"
"I didn't mean-"
"Didn't mean what? Didn't mean to invade my privacy? Didn't mean to stare and talk about me behind my back? Huh? Which one is it?"
"Harry stop it!" Hermione's voice came from behind him.

He whirled around and glared at her.

"Go find Brooklyn, we're leaving." Harry growled.
"Leave her be, Harry." Ron said.
"Who's Brooklyn?" Neville asked.
"You'll find out tomorrow in the Daily Prophet." Harry said as he glowered at Neville.

He didn't wait for anyone else to say anything, he apparated back to Gimmauld Place. When he got inside he stomped up the stairs, practically tore his door off the hinges and his hands immediately went for his hair to pull it. He let out a groan of frustration as he went for his bed and grabbed a pillow that lay on his bed. He threw it across the room, just barely missing Hedwig, who flew out of the way just in time. She swooped down at Harry's head, making him duck so they didn't collide. He went and sat on his bed and resumed to pulling his hair.

He was so frustrated with himself all he wanted to do was punch a hole in the wall. All he knew was that he was very confused about everything. How was he supposed to continue searching for the Horcruxes in his current state of mind? He could barely communicate with people he knew, was snapping at anyone that talked to him, on the verge of hexing anyone that looked at him and possibly the most confusing of all was the fact that the only person he was now being civil to was a girl he barely knew.

A girl who was now standing in his doorway….

How much of his outburst had she seen? Moreover, why did he even care if she had seen any of it? Nevertheless, he was hoping she hadn't seen any of it.

"Find any new clothes?" Harry asked.
"No. Ron and Hermione came and said something about you having a row and insisting they come find me." Brooklyn said. "Was there something you wanted from me?"

Harry flopped back on his bed and let out a groan of frustration. He didn't mean for her to think that he needed her for something.

"Harry?"

He didn't answer. He merely rolled over on his stomach and placed his face in the pillow. He felt extra weight push the mattress down as she let out a sigh.

"I put a silencing charm on my room so no one can hear me at night. It's the only way I can think of dealing with it. Thinking about it and talking about it is just too painful. I have a tendency to throw things around too…had to repair a few things."

She ran a hand over his messy hair and he lifted his head at the gesture. She held out her left hand. Her knuckles were slightly swollen.

"I can repair things, but I can't heal them. I wouldn't recommend hitting the walls."

She placed her hand back on her leg, letting out another sigh. Her eyes seemed to be fixed on the floor and he rolled over on his back and stared at the ceiling. She got up and walked towards the door, making him sit up at her absence.

"I'll leave you be, just remember what I said about the walls." She said.
"Do you have trouble sleeping?" He asked.
She turned around in his doorway and a frown was present on her face. "Every night."
He nodded. "What I would give for Madam Pomprey's dreamless sleep concoction."
She faintly smiled. "That would be brilliant."

With that she turned and left. He stood up and walked over to the wall that stood between them and put his ear against it. He heard the door close and then a few moments later he heard her cast the silencing charm.

There was silence.

He could only imagine what she was doing, but it was probably the same thing he wanted to be doing…

Trashing his room and then passing out from the exhaustion.