Beta's: 5/8/2015

Solo

Chapter 11, New Friends

Harry's eyes snapped open before he jerked upright only to rise a few inches before slamming his head into the low ceiling he didn't see and did not know was there. The pain in his head refocused his attention for a few moments before he rose up once more. This time cautiously so he could take stock of his surroundings and save his skull from acquiring any more dents.

His eyes first rested on Hermione who was sleeping nude next to him under a massive hide blanket. He also noticed he was nude as well. Weak Daylight streamed through a long window in front of their heads proudly telling him it was either very early morning or late evening. With the curtains closed it was difficult to tell which it was. The ceiling was very low, a fact he already knew very well, and there was barely enough room for them to lay full out. Harry leaned forward allowing the blanket to fall from him a bit to see past their feet. The ground dropped low to reveal what looked like a small table on one side and a kitchenette on the other. On the far wall in front of him was a thin door.

Harry leaned back, blinked and rubbed his eyes before moving back up to once again taking in his surroundings. Nothing had changed. His confusion made itself known in the frown on his face. Two stacks of clothes were sitting on the small table for two and thankfully, their wands rested on top. Something wasn't right here. Never before had he seen this blanket but it seemed familiar to him though it seemed out of place in this setting. After a few moments of looking around Harry decided it was the only thing around him that looked in anyway familiar aside from their clothes.

Suddenly his eyes grew massively wide as the events before he lost consciousness rushed back to him. Exploding trees, spell fire, and a harrowing race that led to a long drop. Harry spun to look at Hermione once again lifting the blanket to assess her injuries. Surprisingly there were none. Not even a scratch marred her body. His confusion became more pronounced when he checked himself and found nothing but the old scars his body always showed. That wasn't right. That fall must have been thirty feet easy. And that was thirty feet to the tops of the trees below them. No telling how much further it was to the forest floor below that. There was no way they got away from that without a scratch.

Voices of two men grabbed his attention. Harry slightly opened the curtain over the window and decided it must be closer to sunset than sunrise by the quality of light filtering through the forest surrounding them. He was distracted from the voices when he noticed that this strange room rested on top of a truck. The large brown hood stretched out before him was a dead giveaway. He returned his attention to the men he heard and watched as both were laughing about something. Chainsaws held loosely in their hands while the big one pointed to a fallen tree they were walking toward. A moment later the machines buzz saw cadence began to sing their harvesting duet while wood chips danced in the air about them. Those were not the same two men that tried to capture them. Had they been rescued? More questions piled on top of the few answers he had when the noticed the forest didn't look right either. The trees were not as tall and seemed different than the ones they had run through. What the hell was going on here?

One thing he knew for sure, whether they were rescued or not naked and sleeping was not a way to get answers. He moved his hand and lightly shook Hermione's shoulder to wake her.

"Love wake up." He whispered.

She groaned in the way she always did when she woke after nowhere near enough sleep but he jerked his hand back in surprise when her body bolted straight up. He winced in sympathy as before he could warn her she smashed her head into the low ceiling similarly to how he imagined he had only a few moments ago. Harry had to fight the chuckles that tried to escape when she laid back down mumbling curses at the inconsiderate obstruction to her movements.

After a few moments she opened her eye slightly to squint at the low ceiling before her eyes moved to his. He watched as they grew wide when they connected.

…At first she could feel only the light breeze trailing along the cold paste on her body before she started to feel a bit uncomfortable. Suddenly her eyes snap open as pain beyond anything she ever felt in her life tore through her causing her hand to clench tight in Harry's, her back to arch and a scream to rip itself from her throat…

…My people call this place Heartland. We are the People of the Flint, or at least that is how it translates in your language. Our community here resides in the very center of the valley and is a holy place to us. Not many of our people come here anymore…

…The Shaman nodded and cautioned, "This Darkness has bound itself to Raven's soul. We must cut it free before we can kill it. To do so will make Raven even weaker, possibly Raven may die. They have been apart of each other for a very long time, I do not know if either can survive without the other…

…Bowls of slowly burning herbs rested about and the only light came from the fireplace. They smelled refreshing yet her made her mind slightly hazy and her eyes water a bit. She became startled a moment later by the ghostly voice of the Shaman sounding next to her. "All is ready. Are you prepared Daughter of Owl?…

…Someone walked over to her and sat on the bed but she wasn't able to see much of them. A young feminine voice broke the silence. "Your awake, good. How do you feel…

…"Do it." She stated as she reached forward and pulled his hand the last inch into the skin of her soft stomach. The paste was cold, almost unnaturally cold which caused her to take a sharp breath. Hermione kept her eyes on Harry's form standing as still as she could…

…Young Raven is not well." Someone's hand moved quickly to her arm as she made to get up effectively stopping her. "However, Grandfather has spoken of a healing that could help him. First however you must speak with him. Grandfather has been waiting for you for sometime Daughter of Owl…

Images, emotions, memories and more rushed through his mind like a bolt of lightning. It lasted less than a moment before it passed. In a shaky breath and eyes as wide as hers he asked, "Bloody Hell, what the fuck was that?"

"L…language Harry…" Hermione quietly admonished him from habit.

"Hermione, if ever there was a time I should be allowed to curse, this would be it." He countered.

She was quiet and didn't refute his statement. Nor did she say anything for a moment. Tears gathered in her eyes for a few moments while her eyes drank in his awake and, more importantly to her, healthy form. She ran her hands over his body seemingly unwilling to believe what her eyes were telling her. "Your okay…"

Harry nodded. "Very confused but yeah I feel better than ever."

Still ignoring his query she began firing off questions of her own. "No headaches? What about aches and pains? None of your bones hurt or…"

Harry cut her off before she got a full head of steam going. "Love, I feel fantastic. Not even a twinge from my scar. Now please tell me what is going on."

Once again Hermione ignored him instead engulfing him in a fierce bone cracking hug. Harry was about to refocus her on his questions when she started crying into his bare chest. Waves of sadness and relief washed over him further confusing him because they were not his emotions. Harry did the only thing he could do; he leaned back and held her whispering reassurances that he was okay into her hair. After a while she calmed down and began explaining everything to him. Harry would get a flash of images sometimes while she was talking which strangely did more for his understanding than her words did. She told him about waking up in Heartland, about Marlene, Jim, and the Shaman. She explained everything she understood about the mysterious 'Darkness' that almost killed him and about the soul bond.

"It's a pretty safe bet he was unable to undo the bond. He mentioned it was a possibility. You're not upset with me are you?"

Harry shook his head and hugged her tighter. "Of course not. You know I would have done the same had it been you needing healing. Do you know much about the bond?"

"No, no one really does. I've read a bit about them but their very rare, and even rarer are people willing to share what theirs was like. Most of what I know is speculation and guesswork but we know we can kind a feel what the other one is feeling and sort of share memories. The Shaman mentioned the bond would grow in time but didn't say more than that. He only said the bond was different with everyone."

"Huh."

Both of them sat quieting in each others arms for a bit until Harry noticed the sound of the chainsaws had stopped. It reminded them they were not alone. Gently he moved the curtain a bit to see what those guys were up to. They seemed to know what they were doing as the tree they were harvesting was pretty much completely cut up in to blocks with the big guy sorting the timber. The thin one had set down his saw and currently held a rifle of some kind. After a moment of inspecting it he loaded a cartridge, said something to the big guy and headed out into the woods. The large man waved, replied with something and continued working to sort the wood.

"Hermione, do you know these guys?" he asked.

Rising her head from his bare chest she parted the curtain for her to see. Her brow crinkled a touch and frowned. "No I don't. Granted the only Native Americans I talked to were, Marlene, Jim, and the Shaman but even I can tell these blokes are not Native Americans. I have no idea where we are or who they are. I know this isn't Heartland though Harry. Heartland was a huge valley with a small town. This looks like the middle of nowhere."

"Okay, so lets sort of recap. We currently have no idea where we are, what day it is, and we are in the care of unknown people with unknown intent. That about right love?"

Hermione worried her lip while mulling over his statement. "Um, yeah. That about sums it up."

Harry nodded his head. "Good thing we're use to this kind of garbage happening to us. Otherwise I would be kind of freaked out." Harry quipped. The big guy was sorting wood with the tall thin guy in the woods somewhere. He didn't like the fact they had weapons but he wasn't going to assume the worst. If they wanted to hurt them he doubted they would have put them up in a bed. They would have been tied to a tree or something. "Lets get dressed hon and then figure out what is going on."

Hermione nodded while Harry slipped out from under the blanket climbing down. There was barely enough room for one person to move around down here so he handed Hermione her pile while he dressed below. Both of them felt a lot better about their situation once they were dressed but neither felt ready to meet the strangers outside quite yet. While Hermione watched the one that stayed behind Harry snooped through cabinets.

There were four above the little two-man table but instead of the expected foodstuffs, dishes or something he found an array of video game consoles. An Xbox, Super Nintendo, Playstation (which he recognized as a similar one to what Dudley had) and something called a Sega Genesis CD were all wired into the paneling. At least a hundred titles for the various systems sat shelved in one of the cubbies. He also found a VCR and a few movies. He looked to the wall of the cubby, which served as the back for one side of the table and noticed the large TV screen there.

In a tall Cabinet close to the door he found a rack of clothes and as strange as it seemed, a switch. Curious Harry reached up and flipped it. The closet quickly spun to the right revealing completely different closet. This one was set up like a Library full of Science fiction, Fantasy Fiction, and various other novel books. Bemused he flipped the switch again to reveal another room; this one was a massive safe. He flipped it one more time to reveal something that surprised him even more.

This room would have fit in any apothecary anywhere. He recognized various herbs, plants, and other such ingredients used for potion making. There was even a cauldron sitting at the bottom of the closet, though it was huge compared to the standard ones they used at school.

"Hermione look at this."

Harry turned to look at his lover to see the disapproving look on her face from his snooping fade to puzzlement at what was in the closet. After a minute he flipped the switch again to reveal small library. This one though held old leather bound tomes of various thickness and sizes. He raised an eyebrow and flipped the switch again, which reverted the closet back to the clothes section.

"Its like our trunk…" Hermione reasoned.

Harry nodded his head thinking the same thing. "Whoever they are they're not Muggles. They're not very wizard like either though. This guy's got more video games than Dudley could ever dream about."

Hermione turned away to look back out the window. "He's chopping wood right now. A minute ago he was setting up a bonfire pit and a cook grill."

Harry was half listening to her as he had noticed a note taped to the opaque glass window in the door. After he finished reading it he replied. "Speaking of our trunk, this note says our saddlebag is in the other closet." Harry took a deep breath before he continued. "Sirius's bike didn't make it did it?"

When he brought his eyes up to hers he could see the sadness that was all the answer he needed. He also felt a ghostly twinge of sorrow coming through their bond. He sighed. "Yeah, I didn't think so." He put a small smile of resignation on his face to let her know he was okay. "I kind of figured as much. From what I remember it was a hell of a fall and it was already pretty torn up from when I summoned it."

"I'm sorry Harry…"

He waved her off. "Its okay Hermione. We knew when we took off something like this could have happened. Did you ever find out what happened to the Hit Wizards that were chasing us?"

She shook her head. "When I talked to Jim about it he only said that he doubted they would continue to hunt us. When I asked him why he told me he was very persuasive when he spoke with them."

Harry raised his eyebrow at the hidden meaning in those words. "Well, hopefully then we wont have to worry about them anymore. I am worried that they won't be the last. We'll need to figure out how we are going to get around once we find out what's going on here."

Hermione nodded and returned to watch the stranger outside while Harry pulled the saddlebags from where the note said it would be. He could see the gouges in the leather, streak's and other signs of damage and whistled. They were lucky to be alive if they got banged up as much as the bag did. He opened one side reaching in confirming the trunk was still inside. Harry commented as much to Hermione while opening the other side seeing if everything was there.

"I hope Crookshanks and Hedwig are okay in there." Hermione worried.

Harry replied. "They should be. We knew when we went shopping in Diagon Alley before we started all this there would be days when we wouldn't be able to take them out. That's why we got those whatsit bowls from Magical Menagerie…"

Hermione absentmindedly corrected him. "Transwitch Companion Crockery."

Harry rolled his eyes, "Yes those and the self cleaning thingys…"

"The Familiar Carrier Caretakers."

With an amused look on his face Harry continued. "They have had the entire flat to fly and roam around in, food and water aplenty since we stocked up before we left Virginia, and the Caretaker things to keep their carrier and cage clean. Even if we lost a month they would have plenty to keep them going for a while more. We'll check on them in a bit once we figure out what the deal is with these blokes outside."

XxXDaRXxX

It was still a while more before the finally ventured out into the woodland before them. There was just enough room to pull the trunk out and climb inside so it was decided they would change into a fresh set of clothes, shower, and retrieve their familiars. Harry exited with Hedwig resting possessively on his shoulder and helped Hermione down who was holding a pissed off Crookshanks who absolutely refused to allow either of them out of his sight. Then again, Harry thought, the half-Keazle always looked pissed unless he was eating or being loved on by Hermione. That was how he looked to him anyhow. Hermione seemed too not believe so.

To keep the existence of their trunk a secret they decided to put it back into the saddlebags Harry was holding. If they needed a quick getaway he wanted to have it on hand. He still didn't think these people meant them any harm but Constant Vigilance and all that he supposed. It really was a neat trick they came up with when they talked to the sales person at The Wanders Haversack. Harry had seen the Loony Toons cartoon earlier that morning and when he found the sister trunk to Mad-Eyes the idea just clicked. They had decided early on when they first arrived at Diagon Alley they would avoid the main stores in favor of the lower end areas where they would not be expected to go. More importantly, where it would be harder to track their purchases. He really didn't think they would actually find anything there. It was more along the lines of looking to see what was available since the junk stores, unlike the rest of the ally, didn't really have regular merchandise. Their stock was based on what people got rid of.

The Wanders Haversack was just one of a several Junk stores. Granted they had paid an enormous, and in Hermione's mind unreasonable amount, for it but none of the charms or enchantments on the truck would react negatively with the ones on the saddlebags. The trunk even had a side compartment that would allow them to store Sirius's Motorcycle when they were traveling via the trunk. It was perfect, travel by trunk to other countries and by bike with the trunk in the saddlebag while in said country. Was perfect anyways. Harry didn't know what they were going to do now that they had lost Sirius's bike. At least they still had the saddlebags for easily hauling though.

Once outside of the camper shell Harry looked over at the stranger who was watching them. The splitting maul rested easily in his hands and a great pile of split wood rested haphazardly about him. He had an easy grin on his face at seeing them and a welcoming demeanor that was at odd to his large frame. He seemed built more to intimidate than to welcome but after five years of friendship with Hagrid Harry was easily able to put aside such notions.

The man called out to them in a deep yet friendly voice. "Welcome back to the world of the living! Coffee's in the house behind you there as well as a bathroom if you need it. Coffee cups in the cupboard next to the pot, milk and sugar if you take it with that, is in there too. I take mine with French Vanilla creamer so if you have a liking for that, feel free to use it as well."

Now that he was closer Harry could see there was a slight streak of gray in his goatee along the right side. His unruly brown hair was specked with a bit of gray as well. Despite his coloring he didn't look that old. Bits of wood chips still dusted his t-shirt and jeans, which joined with his slightly tanned skin, gave him kind of a farmer's look. Harry took few steps forward until they didn't have to shout to hear each other. "Thanks, not to be rude or anything but who are you?"

"Roland Basil. My friends call me Boxin or Ro. Whichever works for you Homeskillet."

"Huh?" was Harry's eloquent reply.

Roland's jovial laughter boomed into the clearing. "Not locals eh? British if I had to guess."

Hermione entered the conversation at this point. "How did we end up in your caravan sir?"

The man before them looked insulted by her words. "Hey, I'm only twenty-eight and a far cry from a knight of any kind. Roland, Ro, or Boxin works. First one of you that calls me Mr. Basil gets whacked though." He finished with a joking tone to his voice.

Harry shook his head at his antics but felt a bit better about him already. "I'm…"

Roland cut him off. "Raven, Justin, David, and a half dozen others." He laughed. He looked to Hermione. "Only name I have for you though is Owl." At their stunned looks Roland laughed again. "Jim gave me your wallet. It's in the glove box of the truck whenever you want it. I'd wipe the blood off your passports though first if you actually plan on using them."

For Harry and Hermione an awkward silence settled in for a moment. It didn't seem to bother Roland though who kept chuckling to himself the longer it went on. Finally after a few moments he spoke again looking at Hermione.

"To answer your question I've known Jim for a couple of years. Every once in a while when I come across something I think might interest him I stop by to see. This time though he gives me you guys. Seemed you guys are in a bit of trouble or somthin. Tell you what, how about we choke down some chow and drink a bit of coffee first and then worry about the big stuff later eh? So, which names can I call you guys by?"

A quick look to Hermione and Harry knew she felt the same as he did. "I'm Harry, this is my Girlfriend Hermione."

Roland nodded his head. "Good to meet ya. My brother should be back soon with our sup'. Fresh deer is better than the other stuff I got frozen in the camper. Go ahead and get that coffee and I'll finish up here alright?"

XxXDaRXxX

Harry and Hermione helped themselves to the coffee and sat on a log watching Roland split wood, stack the bonfire and prep the grill. Roland's brother turned out the be a thinner and slightly younger copy of Roland. The only real difference was were Roland had wide shoulders and a large frame his brother was built the opposite He was thin and narrow. Both stood over six foot tall easy and had jovial personalities. After a short introduction to his brother, who's name turned out to be Benjamin Watson, they talked amongst themselves while Ben skinned the deer and dressed it to be cooked. The brothers joked amongst themselves poking fun at the mistakes each of them made while they watched and drank coffee. Hedwig had taken wing a while back and even Crookshanks had finally decided to look about the camp.

Hermione looked to Harry. "What do you think Harry?"

"Of the brothers?" She nodded. Harry smile slightly. "I like them. They remind me of Fred and George."

Hermione giggled. "I know what you mean. I have expected one of them to offer me a Canary Cream."

Her comment got Harry to chuckle. "I know. I miss those two prats. I said it earlier but they are the strangest wizards I have seen. They don't act like wizards at all. I haven't seen either of them use a bit of magic period. The thin bloke there, Ben I think he said his name was, noticed right away our wands strapped to our thighs but didn't say anything."

"I noticed that too. I would have expected them to use some magic to make their work easier. I know of at least four spells that would have made Roland's job a lot easier with the wood."

"Same here. Think we can trust them?" Harry asked.

Hermione worried her lip for a moment thinking. "I think so. If they meant to harm us they would have done so long ago. I mean, we were out for at least two days. That would have been the time to do something and get away with it. Instead they've brought us here and gone out of the way to make us feel welcome."

Satisfied that his thoughts mirrored hers he opened his mouth to say something when Ben suddenly looked out into the woods. As if he could sense something too Roland let go of the splitting maul to watch the trees. Darkness had set a while a go with the setting sun leaving the only light in the area coming from the bonfire and the small cabin. The hairs stood up on the back of Harry's neck sending chills down his spine. Almost in unison both Hermione and Harry rose and pulled their wands.

"You feel that Bro?" Ben asked.

"Yeah. I'm thinking its one of the Wargs. Krillian mentioned his heard was having trouble with them a few months ago when I talked with him after harvesting the Moon Rose."

Harry raised an eyebrow at Hermione keeping one eye on her and the other on the forest. These were the first words even hinting at anything magical the either brother had yet to say.

"You can't trust anything Krillian says Ro. The Centaurs don't exactly like us."

Keeping both eyes on the dark forest ahead of him Roland answered. "You're still pissed he fired a couple of arrows at you? That was what, two years ago?"

"It was last year and all I did was bag that doe. Krillian doesn't like sharing the woods with anyone. Bet you he is hoping we die with the Wargs."

Roland snorted. "Not likely. I can't see him can you tell about where it is?"

Harry looked around and didn't see anything either. They stood back to back waiting while the brothers talked. "He's watching us from close to the line. Get ready and I'll point him out."

"Huch low Bro, Its gunna arc. There won't be enough time…"

Ben pointed his finger and shouted, "THERE!"

What happened next was so quick, violent, and so unexpected Harry would later swear he still wasn't sure of what had happened.

Harry had just noticed the glowing eyes in the darkness of the tree in front of them when Roland thrust his palm in front of him as if to ward the animal away with the universal stop sign. He heard Hermione yelp in surprise when there was an incredible explosion of sound. The impact they felt knocked both teens off their feet and onto the ground. Harry's ears were deafened and eyes blinded from the burst of blue-white light that suddenly seemed to explode into the unknown creature before them. His bones ached, the smell of ozone filled the air soon joined with Burnt meant and singed hair leaving him slightly nauseous. Every hair on his body seemed to stand on end. It seemed to take forever for his vision to clear and the ringing in his ears to decrease to an annoying chime instead of a jungle drums it was a moment before.

Ben was almost prone to the ground looking around while Roland was still standing as Harry helped Hermione to stand back up. Hermione had only just gotten to her feet when she accused, "That's impossible, no one can do silent wandless spell casting that powerful!"

Harry shook his head to help the ringing leave him alone while he listened in. "For your information, that wasn't a spell."

"If that wasn't a spell what was it?"

Roland replied. "That, Hermione, was Wyarding."

Authors Notes:

Okay, Chapter Eleven revision is done. For those of you interested in the story instead of my drivel, by all means leave a review telling me what you think of this chapter, and then hit that 'Next' button. Enjoy the read. As always thank you to all reviews and readers. You are noticed and appreciated.

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