DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harry Potter, that's JK Rowling's creation.
Author's Note: Thanks to everybody who's reviewed so far. I must say that my muse has been REALLY active these last two weeks. Here's chapter 4! Chapter 5 is being beta'ed and chapter six is being written as you read this. :)
Re-Awakening - Chapter 4
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Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry woke up bright and early the next morning. He'd had a wonderful dream of socks and phoenixes. He couldn't remember too much, but it was delightfully silly - just the way his summertime dreams should be. As he took in the sight of the sunlight playing across his duvet, the last hazy fragments of the dream disappeared and gave way to the reality of the day. He admirede the view of the grounds as he dressed in one of his more colorful robes and made his way into his office.
Everything seemed to be in order. Fawkes trilled a warm greeting as he entered. The unfinished paperwork beamed at him in the way only unfinished paperwork could, the fireplace crackled with life, and Harry Potter grumbled a not-entirely-friendly greeting as he crossed the threshhold.
'Harry?' the headmaster started. This was unusual.
"Good morning, Harry," the old wizard greeted as he sat. "I was unaware you'd left Little Winging."
He'd tried to smile, but could not help the slight frown that creased his forehead. The boy should be at home, where it was safe and he had somebody keeping an eye on him!
The young wizard before him did not smile in return. In fact, he seemed to become more angry as the moments ticked by.
"Professor Dumbledore," he began curtly, "a very interesting thing happened to me last night. I want an explanation."
The tone of the boy's voice grated on the old man's nerves, agitating him. It was an uncomfortable feeling, and it screamed of mistrust and disrespect. If he wasn't careful, he would lose the boy to his emotions again.
"I'm sorry, Harry. It had to be done," the headmaster started. He wasn't sure what the boy was talking about, but it may have had something to do with the false ID he'd procured. It was brought to his attention by an order member. He'd meant to visit the boy himself about this, but hadn't been bothered yet. So he'd arranged for one of the relatives to fetch it.
"If I were to allow you to continue going to those nightclubs," he continued, "your chances of harm would have been greatly increased."
He studied the boy's reaction in hopes this explanation would placate him. There was a very brief flash of confusion followed by a bark of laughter. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small card.
"You think I was talking about this sir?" he asked. "No, I have no need for this anymore."
Albus watched the boy toss the card in his direction, only to see it burst into flames in mid air. A fine dusting of ashes was all that made it to his desk. A gasp escaped him as he realized the boy had used incendio both wandlessly and wordlessly. The boy stood up quickly, his smile fading to a scowl as he crossed to lean on the desk.
"You've been keeping things from me, Professor."
Albus began to worry. The younger wizard looked like a Filibuster Firework ready to go off.
"Harry, I'm only trying to help you, to keep you safe."
"Oh, CERTAINLY!" Came the sacrastic reply. "Keep me safe from WHAT? The Dark Lord or the muggles that killed me last night?"
The old headmaster felt the blood run from his face. So it had already happened, had it? The boy had gone through his re-awakening. The thought horrified him. What of the Dursleys? Were they innocent victims to this boy? Would he be too powerful for him to control?
No, he was a boy no longer. Now he was a monster. He was a monster ready to escape. From the very core of his being, Albus feared he would lose control of the person in front of him, his greatest weapon in his fight.
"Tell me, Harry," he replied, schooling his features into an impassive mask. "Tell me what happened."
He looked at the boy in front of him who was staring at the top of the desk. He seemed to be formulating his answer.
Albus found himself unable to break eye contact once Harry looked at him. His mind was filled with images of the night before; the man from the club, the skinheads, and finally Harry's death. When the boy broke contact, Albus slumped back into his seat, gasping. It looked like a very painful death, but it still didn't explain why Harry was standing before him now.
Albus let out a long sigh.
"Harry," he started, "I need to know what happened after that."
Albus became more tired as his energy was drawn from his body into the boy across from him, the angrier he became the quicker it was taken. His eyes glowed Avada Kedavara green and the charged air crackled around him.
The boy roared, "DON'T PLAY STUPID WITH ME, ALBUS! You know BLOODY WELL what happens to a Regal when their blood has been drained."
Harry was breathing heavily after that outburst. As Harry relaxed, so did the drain on Albus' energy.
"I'm sorry, Harry," he began, "but first I need to know --"
"NO!" shouted the young wizard. "I asked you first, and this time you WILL tell me!"
Albus felt himself shrinking away from the young vampire before him. He was truly at a loss for words. How the boy found out he knew was a mystery to him.
"How long have you know I was a Regal, Albus?" the boy queried.
He strangely felt compelled to tell the boy what he knew.
"Since your birth," replied the headmaster.
"And you were going to tell me this when?"
"After you had defeated Voldemort."
The old man shook his head. He realized what the boy was doing to him. Regals had natural powers of Legilimency, Occlumency, and were experts at mental manipulation.
"Stop, Harry," Albus said softly. "Please. Don't make me go through this. I have a reason for my secrets. Please let me keep them."
It sickened the aged wizard that he had to plead his case to this mere boy, this monster he couldn't control. He looked up from his desk at the vampire.
"Please."
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Harry knew this was a last ditch effort by the old man to save his dignity. As far as he was concerned, the man had none left. The manipulative old bastard had been using him his entire life.
"I will no longer be your toy, Albus," he said calmly. "I will not tell you of my re-awakening, it is a very personal matter, one that I will only tell my family of. You know full well how much family I have left, I used to include you in that list. I do not trust you any longer. I find it difficult to respect you even. Nobody needs to be put through the hell I've lived in before they reach their teens. You now believe that I am a monster, a weapon you can no longer control. I am not a monster, Albus Dumbledore. You have nothing to fear from me unless you treat me as such. I was a child, but you took that away from me when you named me the savior of the Wizarding World after Voldemort's first defeat."
Harry paused a minute to gauge the headmaster's reaction. The man was seething in anger. It served him right, really. After all, he had been betrayed by the old coot. Turnabout was fair play.
"One more thing before I leave, headmaster. You are a very crafty, manipulative old bastard. For this I commend you, as one Slytherin to another. But I warn you now, do not give me a reason to fight you as well as Voldemort. I do not want you to meet the fate that will become him.
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Albus watched in shock as Harry faded out of the room. He was truly seething with anger as he realized histool would no longer obey him.
"Remember, Dumbledore," came the little monster's voice in his head, "I am no longer your tool. You would do well not to make an enemy of me."
Why did the boy find it necessary to be so bloody difficult? Albus had given him plenty of leeway and and allowances. He'd let the boy know the taste of freedom. He even showed promise during his sixth year, recovering quite nicely from the death of his Godfather.
'Maybe I've given him too much freedom,' he thought.
The old wizard pondered the thought for a moment as he went over to the fireplace to make a firecall. He tossed in the blue powder and called into the flames.
"Remus Lupin!"
Within moments, the werewolf's head appeared with a soft pop.
"Good morning Albus. What can I do for you today?" came the cheerful greeting.
"Remus, I need you to visit Arabella and check on Harry's whereabouts. I have reason to believe he may be dealing in dangerous affairs."
The werewolf was shocked.
"Are you certain, Albus?" he asked, his concern showing through.
The headmaster smiled sadly. "Yes, unfortunately. please pay him a visit as well, if you can. Keep your senses open for anything out of the ordinary. I may also need you to shadow him for a few days."
The werewolf nodded in agreement. "I will do it immediately, headmaster."
"Thank you Remus," he responded.
With another soft pop, the wolf was gone. The wisened wizard sighed and sat back down behind his desk. He shot an accusatory glance at his phoenix for not helping. Fawkes blinked apathetically before promptly bursting into flames.
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Author's Follow-up Note: Thanks again to everybody who reviewed. You make me happy! :) If you haven't done so for this chapter, please hit the Go button and let me know what you thought!