Chapter 2
Harry slowly made his way back to Gryffindor tower, his mind on his conversation with Dumbledore. He was glad that the old wizard had listened to him eventually. He knew that Dumbledore tended to see things in black and white, evil or good. There was no in between. He also knew that Dumbledore had an inflated sense of his own infallibility. He had honestly expected the Headmaster to put his foot down and Harry to have to make a clean break from him, running away as it were in order to gain the training he so desperately needed.
Now that he had Dumbledore on his side for his future plans, he needed to also have a conversation with his two best friends. He was not looking forward to that at all. He knew that Hermione would be horrified that he had dared go against 'the great Albus Dumbledore'. He was the ultimate authority figure in their lives at the moment and Hermione was known to give unwavering respect to authority figures, never looking beyond the obvious or seeing the flaws behind their authority. She had read so much about Dumbledore before she even got to Hogwarts that she had practically deified him in her mind. Dumbledore could do no wrong simply because the books and other wizards told her so.
As for Ron, well he could go either way. He was a bit of a fair-weather friend at times, and may be extremely jealous that Harry had emancipated himself, got his hands on his family fortune and found out he had many properties that he owned. Alternatively, he could decide it was just another adventure in a long string of adventures and be happy to accompany Harry to his training. Harry had no illusions that Ron's loyalty came with a price, and it was that he wanted to be thought of as "The Harry Potter's" best friend, his loyal companion. He wanted the world to know that he was just as important as Harry. He knew that Harry didn't like all the attention and fame and would quite happily step up and take the spotlight if Harry hesitated. Harry knew that he would have to take charge of his reputation and his fame in order to gain any semblance of control, but he honestly dreaded it. Having put it off for so long now, he was unsure of how to proceed in doing so. He decided he would ask Remus about that when they got to his home for the summer. If Remus agreed to accompany him of course.
Harry looked up and, realising he was at the portrait of the Fat Lady, provided the current password, Fortuna Maxima. As the portrait swung open, he stepped through still pondering how to begin what was sure to be an angst-ridden conversation with his two friends. He looked up as he entered the common room and saw Hermione and Ron on the sofa in front of the fire. Hermione had her head in a massive ancient looking book as usual, Ron was eating chocolate and reading the latest Quidditch stats magazine.
"Hey guys," Harry said as he plonked into an armchair beside the sofa.
"Hey Harry," Ron mumbled around his mouthful.
Hermione just mumbled distractedly and continued reading. Harry shook his head at her and gazed at the fire for a bit, willing himself to relax.
"Do you guys want to come with me to the Room of Requirement for a bit? I have to talk to you and we need privacy for this conversation," Harry explained.
Hermione raised her head from the book and looked at Harry deeply before she sighed. "Oh Harry, what have you done now? Did you get in trouble again? You didn't blow up the Headmaster's office again, did you? Oh no, did something happen? What's going on Harry? Tell me now!" She finished desperately.
"Merlin Hermione, take a breath and chill!" Harry said firmly. "There's nothing wrong, I'm not in trouble, and I haven't done anything to Dumbledore's office. Honestly, you'd think that was all I ever did the way you carry on," he said exasperatedly. Harry shook his head again, then continued. "No, Hermione, I just want to talk to you and Ron about something. Will you please come with me?" he asked.
Hermione looked at him sceptically and then sighed. "OK, Harry, we'll come with you. Won't we, Ron?" she said pointedly.
Ron looked up again and shrugged. "Of course we will, mate. You want to go now?" he asked.
"Yes, now would be good," Harry said as he stood up. He led them through the corridors and up to the 7th floor, pacing in front of the blank wall until a door appeared. When he opened the door and ushered them in the found a very cosy room with 3 overstuffed armchairs with an end table between each. They were arranged in front of a fireplace, which was already lit. Harry sat down in the chair closest to the fire, waving the others to the remaining armchairs.
The raven-haired wizard sat for a moment, wondering how to begin. Then he looked at his friends and started. He told them about his conversation with Dumbledore, about his emancipation and about finding out about the other properties he owned. He left nothing out, including his plans for the summer. He then paused and waited for the explosion that he was certain was imminent.
He didn't have to wait long. Hermione was breathing heavily and appeared to be approaching panic. "Oh Harry, how could you be so stupid? So disrespectful to the Headmaster? How could you possibly do something this huge without even consulting me? You know very well this whole thing could have been avoided if you had just spoken to me first!" she wailed.
Harry just stared at her, trying to hold his temper back and respond without raising his voice. "Stupid? How was it stupid Hermione? I have taken control over my life for the first time since Voldemort killed my parents and Dumbledore dumped me on the Dursley's doorstep like a piece of forgotten baggage. I am through allowing everyone to make decisions for me, when those decisions have done nothing but harm me for the past 14 years! And I was not disrespectful to Dumbledore, I was calm and logical and he even ended up agreeing with me by the time we finished talking. So how was I stupid or disrespectful Hermione? And what on earth makes you think that you have the right to demand that I consult you about anything to do with my life?" He asked quietly but firmly.
"Well really Harry. How many times do you think things through?" she asked condescendingly, like she was speaking to a child. "That's what you have me for, isn't it? You always run things by me, and then I help come up with a plan. And I would never have come up with something like this! This is a ridiculous plan that is going to get you killed. You heard the Headmaster, he told you about the prophecy and about the protection you get from the blood wards. How could you just ignore his advice on this? I would have stopped you had I known in time. What were you thinking?" She finished stridently.
Harry's face went hard and his eyes glacial as he replied. "Hermione, you will listen to me now. You are neither my mother, my sister, nor my lover. You have no say about any of the decisions that I make. I am the same age as you, I am not a younger sibling to be ordered about. We are friends, but that is also of my choosing. And do you honestly think you could have stopped me? What makes you think you should have any say about this at all? How about you stop thinking only of yourself and actually listen to me while I explain exactly what I was thinking. At the end of that, if you still think I was wrong, I will happily go my own way and leave you to yours. But I will not allow you to dictate my every action the way Dumbledore did. You and he both seem to think you have the right to control me, well I'm sorry to say that you are both very wrong. This is my life, and I will do what I think is best for my future. The way Dumbledore was going, I wouldn't even have had a future. At least this way, if everything goes wrong and I die anyway, then I will know I have tried my hardest."
Hermione stood there, panting heavily and wide-eyed, gobsmacked that Harry had stood up to her like that. Likely that was exactly the issue, as Harry would be the first to admit he did usually go with whatever Hermione said, since it was easier than making a fuss. However he was determined to have things his way from now on. He meant what he said, if he was going to die anyway, he would do so on his own terms.
"Now," he continued calmly, "maybe you should actually listen to me for once and hear my reasoning before you continue to make a fool of yourself by speaking without knowing all the facts. After all, aren't the facts what you are all about Hermione? Or does that only count when they're written in a book by someone you don't even know?"
Ron chose that moment to speak up. "Harry, mate, I agree that you need to take control of your training and all, but you really need to lighten up on Hermione. She's only trying to.."
"Take control Ron. That's what she is trying to do. It's what she always does, since she has this unreasonable belief that she knows better than everyone because she has read more books that anyone else. Well, I think it's about time that you actually remember, Hermione, what you said in first year, when we were chasing the Philosopher's Stone. There's more important things than books and learning. You actually seemed to believe that at one time, but now you have gone back to being someone who believes that books are the be all and end all, simply because you believe yourself better than everyone else. No one is debating your intelligence Hermione, but there are some things you can't learn from a book.
"For instance, did you know that Dumbledore was the witness to my parent's will? A will that specifically stated that I was never to be placed with the Dursleys if anything happened to my parents? In that will, which Dumbledore himself stopped the Goblins from enacting, there were multiple other choices listed as possible guardians for me if Sirius was not available to take me. He deliberately ignored the wishes of my parents to place me with the Dursleys. Now, I'm not saying that this was done maliciously. I honestly believe that Dumbledore thought I would be safer in the muggle world with the Dursleys. I believe that he didn't know exactly how horrible those years with them would be. I have to believe that, because if I thought for a moment that he knew what I would go through and did it anyway, then I would go completely mad.
"I believe that Dumbledore left me there, hoping that I would be able to have a normal life, away from the craziness that would have come from being in the wizarding world and being touted as the Boy-Who-Lived-to-be-hyphenated. However, I also know that he knew I would not be loved there. He said himself that he knew he was condemning me to 10 dark and difficult years, but he thought that the protection of the blood wards would be paramount. Unfortunately, like everyone else, he forgot to take into account that Voldemort used my blood to resurrect himself. He was able to touch me without pain in the graveyard, Hermione. You realise what that means, don't you?"
Hermione stared at Harry from where she had sunk back into her chair during his tirade. Her eyes suddenly went bright with tears. "Oh Harry, it means that the protection from your mother's sacrifice was voided when he used your blood. The wards would be next to useless against him or any of his Death Eaters that wanted in. Oh, I'm so sorry that I didn't get that Harry. I didn't give it much thought. I was so caught up in you losing Sirius and everything else that went on, that it didn't even occur to me. Is that why you did all this without even talking to us about it? Because you thought we wouldn't support you? What am I thinking, you were right. I wouldn't have supported you in this. I would have gone immediately to Dumbledore and told him what you were up to so he could stop you in time. Oh Harry, I'm so sorry, so very sorry!" Hermione broke off as she was overcome with tears of regret. She had no idea that she had slipped so far past friendship and into believing so fervently that she knew best for Harry. He was right, she was nothing but a friend to him and her input was neither required nor desired unless he asked for it. That was a somewhat bitter pill to swallow. She wasn't sure she knew how to be on an even par with anyone else. She had got so used to being the 'brains' of their little trio that it honestly didn't occur to her not to feel superior to both Ron and Harry. No wonder Harry hadn't trusted her. That made her feel very petty, to be honest.
Harry stood and came over to Hermione, kneeling on the floor in front of her. "Hermione, I love you like I would love a sister if I had one, but your blind faith that Dumbledore knows best about everything pertaining to me is a weakness that you needed to work through. I am sorry for my words, I know they hurt you, but I needed to shake you up and make you think it through enough to come to the same conclusion I did. He was wrong Hermione, and I suffered for it, for 14 years. I have scars that will never heal because of the Dursleys, and I am having to work hard not to go back and let Dumbledore have it. The only thing stopping me is that I know he had no idea how much I suffered there. Yes, he knew it would be difficult, but he would never have thought that Petunia would allow me to be hurt there. Unfortunately, Dumbledore only sees the good in people. He believes unwaveringly in family and that they will always protect each other. He has no experience with this type of situation and so, is unable to comprehend what happened in that house.
"I didn't tell him much about that either. There is something so innocent in his beliefs that I didn't have the heart to shake his faith in humanity that much," Harry admitted sorrowfully. "I like how Dumbledore is such an optimist, but he has lost touch with some things and that is unfortunately how people like me get overlooked. That part I can't blame him for. I still look up to him as a mentor, but I no longer believe that he is the source of the solution to all of my problems. It took a lot for me to go against him, but I know that I'm right in this Hermione. I know I am. And I need to know that you will support me in this, be my friend and honour my choices. Can you do that Hermione? Are you able to trust me on this and let me make my own decisions?" he asked pleadingly.
Hermione let out a sob and threw herself at Harry, hugging him so tightly that he swore he felt his ribs creak ominously. "Yes, Harry. I can do that. I'm sorry, I'm so sorry that I ever made you doubt that you could trust me to have your best interests in mind. I promise I'll be a better friend from now on. I will," she vowed fervently.
They stayed that way for a while, Harry rocking Hermione gently until she calmed down. Finally, Ron cleared his throat and they broke apart slowly, only to smile wetly at each other and brush the tears from their cheeks.
Harry looked at Ron, not sure what to expect. Ron looked at Harry, his face more serious than Harry remembered it being ever before. "So, you're going away to some unknown location to train with Remus, if he agrees to go with you, and you honestly thought you would be leaving us behind? Like hell!" Ron said strongly. "Mate, you've been my best friend for years, there is no way I'm letting you go off to Merlin knows where without me. I know I've been a jealous prat before, and you have no reason to trust me now, but I'm telling you now so you know. I'll stand beside you until the end. I will not allow you to go through this on your own. I've never really given it much thought until recently, but the so-called adults in this world were wrong to put the destruction of Voldemort on your shoulders. You're just a kid Harry, it's not right that they're all hiding away waiting for you to save them all. But, since that's all we have to work with, then I'm going to learn whatever I can to help you with it. I promise you Harry, you will never have to worry about my loyalty or my support again," Ron finished. He then sat back in his chair and waited for Harry to say something.
Harry sat there on the floor staring up at Ron, his jaw dropped and his eyes wide. "Who are you and what have you done with Ron?" he finally asked, huffing a small laugh. "Honestly Ron, you have no idea how relieved I am to hear that. I don't know if I could get through everything without my two faithful companions beside me," he joked weakly.
Ron looked down and seemed to be thinking heavily before he responded. "I'm not blind to my faults Harry, but ever since the thing with the brains in the Ministry that night, I've been more prone to thinking things through. Took me a while, since it's not something I'm used to, but I got there. I'm not jealous anymore, simply because I can't imagine having the pressures that you do on your shoulders. I can honestly say that the price for the fame you have and that I once craved is far too high. I'm with you mate, just don't get me killed or you have to be the one to tell Mum," he finished with a sly smirk.
"Oh boy, don't even joke about that," Harry groaned. "I think I'd rather face Voldemort than your Mum when she's riled up!" Harry grinned at Ron then extended his hand. Ron took it and pulled Harry up from the floor, pulling him into a manly back-clapping hug as he did so. Harry clung to him for a moment longer. "Thank you," he whispered. "Thank you for being on my side."
Hermione sniffled behind them and they broke apart awkwardly, shuffling their feet and looking away from each other. She couldn't hold back any longer and threw her arms around both of them, grabbing them in a tight group hug.
Harry patted her on the back and gasped, "Air, Hermione, need air!"
She let them both go and stepped back sheepishly. "Sorry, I'm just so grateful that you brought us into this with you. I'm honestly surprised that you didn't just take off and tell us later. You can't tell me you didn't at least think about doing that," she said, grinning at Harry.
Harry rubbed the back of his neck, blushing and trying to look anywhere but at Hermione's knowing grin. "Yeah, alright, I might have thought about it. But I knew I would regret it if I didn't at least give you the chance to come around. I'm sorry about how I went about it, I was a bit harsh, Ron's right about that. But I knew I needed to get through to you quickly before you went off at me. Forgive me?" he asked, making huge puppy eyes at her.
"Honestly, Harry, when has that ever worked on me?" she huffed. "Yes, yes, I forgive you. Now, we need to get planning. We'll need to draw up a schedule for training, and who we need for what part of it," she said excitedly.
Harry laughed. "Hermione, don't ever change," he got out. He was so relieved to get through the hard part. He concentrated for a moment and a big area opened on the far side of the room, with a couple of desks, some bookshelves filled with defence books, and a unit with various maps included.
Hermione squealed and ran over to the new section. She started running her hands over the books, looking at the maps, and finding parchment and quill to begin making lists of spells from the various books that she wanted them to learn. Ron shook his head and looked at Harry with a resigned grin. "We better get over there before she has the whole thing planned out without our input," he said.
Harry looked at Ron gratefully. "You know, I'll need your strategy insights to be able to pull this off. You're brilliant with that stuff and I will be busy learning everything I can. I'll need you to work with Kingsley and Remus to make sure we have a solid plan. I want to take the battle to Voldemort this time, eventually. I don't want to keep waiting around for him to make his next move," Harry said.
Ron looked thoughtfully at Harry. "Alright mate, I'll do whatever I can, but I reckon you might be overestimating my strategic abilities just a tad," he chuckled ruefully. "Not sure I want you to rely that heavily on me."
Harry shook his head vehemently. "No Ron, I'm not overestimating anything, you tend to underestimate yourself a lot. Hermione's good at scheduling and learning, you're good at strategy, and I'm good at execution. Between the three of us, we make a pretty good team, I reckon," he grinned at Ron.
Ron looked at Harry, still grinning. "Reckon you might be right, mate. Guess we'll see, won't we?" With that, they joined Hermione, both grabbing some of the defence books to start going through them. Harry picked up one on bonds that can be formed between people, and another on shielding and warding. Ron picked up one of the treatises on the strategies of war. After a moment, he looked at Harry, brows raised in surprise. "Harry, this is a book about muggle wars. Why would this be here?" he asked.
"Well, I asked the room for anything that would help in planning a major battle. I reckon it must have thought this would help. Let's face it, the muggles do things differently because they don't have magic to rely on. But wizards are notoriously lazy and tend to rely on their magic to the point where they've lost a great deal of common sense and the ability to reason strategically. I know that Voldemort has Malfoy helping him, and like it or not, the man comes up with some brilliant plans. But like all other wizards, he doesn't take into account the need for a Plan B, C, D or E, just in case something goes wrong. With you helping to plan, I reckon we can do that and make sure we're prepared for any contingency," Harry said with absolute conviction.
Ron gulped audibly, giving a nervous laugh. "Right mate, no pressure then huh?" he said, his voice a bit shaky.
"Ron, I have absolute faith in your ability to think things through. Unfortunately sometimes your temper gets in the way and you rush in without thinking, but as you said, you've changed since that night at the Ministry. I'm confident that you can do this, and if I have you both there with me, I know we can win. We just have to have the right plans in place. Still with me?" Harry asked, only half-joking.
Ron looked at Harry for a moment longer. "Yeah mate, still with you. Right, tuck in boys and girls, we got a war to plan!" he said, giving them his trademark goofy grin. The others laughed and then settled down to plow through the books they had grabbed, the only sound in the room the flipping of pages and quills scratching on the parchments in front of them.
After about an hour or so, a small chime rang out in the room. They all startled and looked around. Harry calmed himself, then said, "I asked the room for an alarm when it got close to curfew. I guess that was it," he chuckled. "Let's pack up and we can come again tomorrow after dinner to keep working," he said, getting up and starting to put everything away.
Hermione gave Harry a curious look. "Harry, how is it you're able to change the room while we're in here? Usually we have to set the parameters when we're pacing in front to open the door, and they don't usually change unless we leave and ask again. But today, you've been adding things while we've been in here and not even asking out loud. It wasn't something I thought was possible," she said.
"Hmm, not sure Hermione. I just thought of what I wanted and it happened. Maybe that's how it's meant to work? Or maybe Hogwarts herself wants to help?" he mused, almost to himself. "We'll have to experiment with that some more tomorrow. We can try different things and see what works and what doesn't. This may prove pretty invaluable when it comes time to train," Harry answered excitedly.
"Good idea Harry, that just might make a huge difference to how we work the training, and we know it's going to help with the research part since the room so easily gave us what we needed tonight," Hermione said. Shrugging, she gathered up all of the parchments they had been making notes on, ending with a sizeable stack to cart back to the tower with them. "We'll know more when we get a chance to test it. Until then, time to get moving before we run into Filch or, Merlin forbid, Professor Snape," she said with a sly grin.
Harry took a moment to close his eyes, for the first time consciously thinking about what he wanted to ask the room. "If we come back tomorrow, will we be able to access the same environment as we have today? Will the same books and everything be here for us to use?" he thought. He got an overwhelming feeling of agreement, although he couldn't have described it if he tried. He just somehow knew that the room was agreeing with him. It was a bit weird, but still a pretty amazing feeling.
He opened his eyes to find Ron and Hermione looking at him quizzically. He explained, "I was just confirming with the room that we can come back tomorrow and find the same setup. I didn't get a chance to finish the book I was working through, and I wanted to make sure the same books would be available next time. The room said they would be, we just have to ask when we pace to open the door."
Ron looked at him in shock. "Harry, did the room actually speak to you? Like, in words?" he asked incredulously.
Harry shook his head. "No, it was more like a feeling, like I just knew it was agreeing with what I asked. I'm not sure how to explain it, but it somehow managed to get the point across. Now I can't wait to get back and experiment a little, to see what we can accomplish if the room can communicate with us in some way," he said, sounding a little breathless with anticipation. He had a feeling tomorrow was going to be a long day, waiting until they could get back here after dinner.
