Chapter 8 - The Misadventure Before the Misadventure

The thought occurred to him…did he really want things to get destroyed in that room from some venting? Sure they got repaired, but nonetheless they probably shouldn't be broken in the first place. Harry decided that he should probably go stop Brooklyn before she got a chance to break something.

He left his room and turned in the direction of her room. He could hear Ron and Hermione downstairs. It sounded like there were extra voices, but he decided to check on Brooklyn first before going down to investigate.

He knocked on her door.

There was no answer.

He knocked again. "Brooklyn? It's Harry." He said.

A few moments later he heard the click of the lock and the door opened. She was a complete mess. She was attempting to flatten he hair that it appeared she had been pulling on. Her braids were no longer present. Instead they were replaced with extremely wavy hair. It was also obvious that she had just recently been crying.

"I didn't break anything if that's what you're wondering." She said defensively.
"I-uh…it's just…we have company." He said, hoping she wouldn't catch on to his semi-lie.
"Do I have to be present for this?"
"You are coming along with us to the orphanage, so yes, this most likely will pertain to it."

She nodded and went to the dresser with the mirror attached to it. With a wave of her wand, the braids began to redo themselves. She began rummaging through the drawers, throwing her clothing everywhere.

"Where is it?" She muttered angrily.

She went to the closet and took out her bag. After throwing a few of its contents out, she flung the bag across the room and it stopped at Harry's feet. He knelt down and retrieved the bag. She was now on her hands and knees searching through her clothing that was now scattered on the floor.

Harry went over to return the bag. She grabbed it from him roughly and threw it in the direction of the closet.

"What are you looking for?" Harry asked.
"Nothing that concerns you." She snapped.
He knelt down next to her. "I just-"
"Get away from me!"

She pushed him away forcefully. He lost his footing and his head collided with the edge of the bed post. He grimaced in pain as he sat up, rubbing the back of his head. Brooklyn was now sitting against a wall, banging the back of her head against it, covering her face with her hands.

Harry picked up the jeans and shirt that lye next to him. Something fell to the floor. It appeared to be a pendant of some sort. Upon closer inspection, the pendant encased an appealing green colored stone.

When he picked it up he felt a strange sensation go through him. His mind felt strangely at ease and he was able to think more clearly than he had in a long time. He placed the pendant in his pocket and turned his attention back to Brooklyn. She was crying.

He immediately went over and knelt down next to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She pushed him away a few times, but he persisted until she stopped.

"I c-can't believe I l-lost it." She said.
"Lost what?" Harry asked.
"My dad gave me something last year. An aventurine stone. He told me that his mother gave it to him and now he was going to give it to me. He told me that it was the most powerful of its kind. He said that it would help ease my mind of troubles if any were to arise."

Harry had the sudden urge to not give the pendant back to her.

"He told me that I had to be careful though. That it would only ease the mind enough to make you be able to think clearly, but it wouldn't solve any problems."

She began crying again.

"The only reason I haven't been crying in front of everyone is because of it! Now look at me!" She said as tears streamed down her face.

Harry reluctantly reached into his pocket. He really didn't want to give it back. Unfortunately for him, he was feeling more like his old self with it and held out the hand that contained it.

"This fell out of your pocket." He said.

She immediately grabbed it from his hand and held it tightly in hers. Harry instantly felt the weight of everything come back on him and his mind was once again overcome by his confused and frustrated state.

She came over and took his hand. "It's your birthday today, right?"
He thought for a moment. "Tomorrow…"
"Have a good birthday then." She said.

He found the stone back in his possession.

"I'll be fine, I'm just going to stay up here." She said, turning away from him. "Happy Early Birthday."
With her back still to him, he wrapped his arms around her waist tightly and whispered in her ear, "This really means a lot to me, thank you."
"Just make sure to return it."
"I promise I will."

He knew he had people waiting for him downstairs, but he knew she was a mess right now. He could feel her shaking in his arms and her tears were falling onto the exposed skin of his arms. He moved the wet hair that was sticking to her face.

"Come on, let's go sit down." He said.

He led her over to the bed and they sat down. It seemed that all of the tears the stone had been helping her hold back were uncontrollably flowing out of her eyes. She began coughing and having trouble breathing shortly after.

"Calm down, you're making yourself sick." He said, holding her tighter.

He was doing everything he could think of to calm her down. Rubbing her back, holding onto her, stroking her hair, reassuring her that things would get better…he was no good at this.

He reached into his pocket for the stone. She obviously needed it more than he did. She wouldn't take it though. When he offered it to her, she knocked it out of his hand, sending it to the floor.

Now they were both stuck in their misery.

He could no longer hold onto her like he was, so he let his arms drop. She turned to him and wiped away the tears from her face. They simultaneously went for the stone that lay at their feet, both of their hands meeting right above it.

He turned to look at her only to be greeted by her gaze. That same familiar gaze.

Their noses were merely inches from touching.

He pushed the stone towards her. She didn't reach for it.

She reached for him….

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Unwrap. Smile. Say thank you.

Harry got this routine down and didn't even pay attention to what he had received as early birthday presents.

Eat food. Attempt to engage in conversation. Thank everyone for coming.

Everyone being Tonks and Professor Lupin.

Besides coming to be with Harry on his birthday, Professor Lupin came bearing some news. Most of the werewolves were turning to Voldemort and being given a form of the Dark Mark to show where their loyalties laid. He could no longer return because of it, for he was one of the remaining ones to have not gotten it yet. Others were being killed for not being branded with it.

Worst of all, he was now being hunted by them and he was going into hiding. He did not know when he would return.

"Best we head to the orphanage in the morning, don't you think?" Ron asked.
"Harry?" Hermione asked. "Are you listening?"
Harry snapped out of his racing thoughts at the sound of his name. "What?"
"Ron said we should head towards the orphanage in the morning."
"Oh. Yeah, that's fine."
"You okay mate?" Ron asked.
Harry nodded.
"Come on, you've been either dazed or in deep thought since you came downstairs." Hermione said.

Her hands wrapped behind his head, slightly pulling on his hair, and pulled him the remaining space between them.

"He probably managed to make Brooklyn mad again and is trying to think of a way out of it." Ron said.

Both Harry and Hermione glared at him.

"Honestly, Ron…" Hermione said shaking her head. "You have no tact whatsoever."
"Then why else wouldn't she be down here if she wasn't mad and couldn't stand to be in the same room as Harry?" Ron asked.
"Did you ever think that maybe she might want to be alone? She did just lose her father not too long ago." Hermione said. "She's still grieving."
"Her dad…" Harry muttered to himself.
"But why all of a sudden is she secluding herself?" Ron asked.
"If you're so concerned, go ask her yourself." She said while crossing her arms.
"Well, you were up there Harry, did she tell you anything?" He asked.

He was speechless as she stood before him. But their eyes always conveyed unspoken messages to each other…and his eyes were telling her that things had just changed.

"Not really…" Harry said.
"Hey Brooklyn!" Hermione said cheerfully.

Harry turned around to see Brooklyn at the foot of the stairs. She looked completely different than from the last time he saw her since she had changed her clothes, fixed her hair…and was that make-up she was wearing?

He looked at her, desperately searching for any sign from her…he received nothing.

"I made sure to save you some dinner," Hermione said. "Would you like some?"
"Forget the food, have the cake. It's delicious!" Ron said while eyeing up what was left of the cake.
"I'll just have dinner for now." Brooklyn said while taking the vacant space next to Harry.

Hermione went into the kitchen to put together a plate for Brooklyn, while Ron scooted closer to the cake with a fork in hand and his eyes fixated on the bakery delight. Harry took the opportunity to close the gap between himself and Brooklyn. She showed no sign that she had even noticed that he had moved closer.

Their lips united again as his hands ran firmly up her back, provoking her to intensify her actions. Even if he tried he wouldn't be able to focus on anything else…and he definitely wasn't about to try to focus on anything else but her in the near future.

He went for her hand that was resting on her leg and held it in his.

She shook him off.

He looked at her confused. Being with her now seemed to ease his mind even more than that stone of hers. What was the problem?

"Something wrong?" He whispered in her ear.
She looked at him quizzically. "No, why?"
"Ron! That cake is Harry's you know." Hermione said from the kitchen.

Ron shoved another forkful of cake in his mouth before ceasing. Hermione came in with a plate of food and sat it in front of Brooklyn, then took notice of the proximity, more lack thereof, between them. Her all knowing eyes could tell something was different and thankfully for Harry she kept her mouth shut about it.

Ron on the other hand….

"Harry, let the girl have some space to eat!" Ron said.
Harry didn't budge. "So, we're leaving in the morning?"
"We could just apparate to save some time and then we could leave a bit later."
"Only Brooklyn knows where it is."
"We can just grab onto her then."
"Maybe she doesn't want you grabbing onto her." Harry said defensively.
"Well blatantly she doesn't have to do it if she doesn't want to." Ron said.
"You know, she is right here, you can just ask her." Hermione said, rolling her eyes.
"Would you mind?" Ron asked.
"I don't mind." Brooklyn said.

"I've seen it before." She whispered.
"I know, but…" He started.
"It doesn't matter to me..."

He reached for his wand on the dresser next to him and she grabbed it out of his hand. As she muttered the spell he looked at the mirror across from him. He could hardly recognize himself. It made sense though, this was very uncharacteristic of him. Even more unlike him was the fact that he didn't care at all.

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It was nearly noon when they decided to head off to the orphanage. Brooklyn apparated them each there one by one, because she said she was nervous about transporting so much in one trip alone.

Harry was by no means going to leave first, so Ron stepped up and link arms with her. With a crack they were gone.

Hermione grabbed Harry's arm and quickly said, "What's going on between you two? Did something happen?"
Harry took his arm back. "No."
"Come on Harry, this is me you're talking to…"
"I don't know what's going on, okay?"
Brooklyn appeared in front of Hermione. "Ron insists you come next."

Hermione blushed and linked arms with her. They were gone moments later. Harry pulled at his hair and let out a frustrated groan. The last thing he needed today was to not be focused on the task at hand.

He needed to focus.

He closed his eyes, trying to clear his mind. He took a deep breath trying to calm down, but he was just becoming more frustrated by the fact that it wasn't working. And what was taking Brooklyn so long? She should have been back by now.

Without any warning, he fell to his knees. The all too familiar, crippling pain of his scar was at full force. He was certain that this time the pain would be too much and just claim his life.

What it did was claim his reality.

As everything began to turn a shade of red, he felt unwarranted anger rise up in him. He kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see all of the red and having a deep seeded feeling that his eyes were no longer their vibrant shade of green.

The voice crept into his head. His instantly thought of nothing, made himself completely empty. He could do this now, he knew he could. The growing intensity of the anger he was trying so hard to ignore was testament to it.

He heard a crack.

"Harry? Where'd you go?" Brooklyn asked.

He could now see everything as if it were in night vision, though it was all a shade of red. The pain in his head was subsiding and being overtaken by the most malevolent anger he had ever felt in his lifetime.

Her calls to him grew closer.

The instinct to hide from her had now turned into something else. He didn't want to kill her…he wanted to torture her. Torture her until she pleaded with him to kill her.

He no longer had control of his own actions.

"There you are." She said.
"Yessss, here I am." He responded in an unusually deep voice.
"Look Harry, you need to stop acting weird about everything."
A wryly smile came across his face. "About?"
"Stop playing games Harry, you know what I'm talking about."

He turned to face her. His sadistic red eyes made her step back in fear. This pleased him greatly. He stepped forward and grabbed her shirt, pulling her roughly toward him.

"What hassss Potter been up to?" He seethed. He whipped his wand from his pocket and held it at her throat. "Ansssswer me!"
"I don't know!" She cried.
"Legilimensss!" He bellowed.

Flashes of her thoughts passed through his mind at first, but then he began to focus. He saw himself laughing hysterically at the reception, throwing the locket to Pettrigrew, Mundungus dead on the floor…

Flashes of her memories continued to pass. It seemed they only slowed when Harry was involved somehow in the memory.

"Where are you going…" He said to himself.

A flash slowed down to show her taking off his glasses. His eyes possessed a look in them that he had never seen them have before…but he recognized the confusion his eyes possessed after she had shook his hand off under the table.

He knew what memory was about to come next.

Something inside of his head started to scream out in protest. A new wave of anger flowed through his veins and he shoved Brooklyn into the wall. He stumbled in the other direction, desperately trying to get as far away from her as possible.

He was no longer a threat though…

Everything subsided. He staggered a few paces, the only thought registering was a terrifying one…

Voldemort knew they were being destroyed.

Then with one sudden burst of intolerable pain, he heard his name being called as he fell to the floor.

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"Harry! Harry! Come on, you have to wake up!" A voice laced with concern pleaded.
"I think he's starting to come to." Another one said.

Harry groggily opened his eyes, but closed them again due to the piercing sunlight that lay behind the darkness of his lids. A dull, throbbing pain was in head. He thought back to the last thing he could remember. He was trying to hide from Brooklyn for fear of his whole body succumbing to Voldemort's command.

He reopened his eyes slowly to find no blinding sunlight. Ron was blocking it front his view.

"Better mate?" Ron asked.
Harry grimaced at the throbbing in his head. "Yeah, much."

As he became more aware of his surroundings, he realized his head was resting in someone's lap. He looked up and found Hermione smiling down at him.

"You really scared us there." Hermione said. "Do you remember what happened?"
Harry told her what he could remember.
"You were right, you lost complete control of yourself." She said. "He knows we're after them Harry. I'm sure he's going to be putting extra protection around all of them now."

He moved his hands across the soft blades of grass, getting them in a position to allow him to help himself sit up. Hermione ended up doing most of the work, though. He looked around to observe their surroundings. Through the bushes he could see a building. It must be the orphanage. He could make out the faint sound of children, but couldn't see any.

Where was Brooklyn?

He looked around and found her leaning against a tree with her back to the orphanage. It was obvious that she was having difficulty being back here. He didn't know how long he had been staring in her direction, but it must have been noticeable.

"She says she'll be okay." Hermione said. "You on the other hand…"
"Maybe we should just go back. You shouldn't be doing this after what just happened." Ron said.
"He's right. You can barely sit up by yourself."

He hadn't even realized that Hermione was about the only reason he was still in a sitting position. Maybe they should go back. If he couldn't even sit up without needing help, how was he supposed to destroy a Horcrux…one that probably now had extra protection surrounding it.

He couldn't go back. The longer he waited to do this, the higher the likelihood that there would be something extra guarding the Horcruxes. He had to do this today. He had to do this now.

But first, he had to stand up.