A/N: Throughout the story I will be adding tid-bits of information on Harry's Uncle Matthew. I replaced the Dursley's as his guardians because a new element needed to be introduced into the story. Matt brings a link that is needed throughout the story and I didn't feel I could get the needed results using the Dursley's. Also, the Dursley's just suck. I've always wanted to read a story where Harry isn't being abused by a fat, drunken englishman. I decided to try it out, I promise to try to make it interesting.

A/N#2: Also, I am getting my inspiration for the characters personalities and actions through the books and movies but I am also putting my own ideas into their character.

Dementors are a Bitch

The strongest human instinct is to impart information, the second strongest is to resist it.

-Kenneth Grahame

The first thing he realized upon waking was the dull throbbing he felt in his scar. The excruciating pain it had caused earlier seemed distant and far away, as though it was only imagined. He became aware of other things as his mind slowly finished wakening, such as the fact that he wasn't on the train but in a plump bed instead, laying over the covers in his damp muggle clothes. He opened his eyes further and peered around as he swallowed dryly, realizing his extreme thirst as well. Before he shifted his way too much out of bed a glass of water was handed to him. He downed the clear liquid before peering at the visitor.

"Professor Lupin?" The man's shoulders were slouched in fatigue, and his face seemed paler than he remembered on the train. "What are you doing here?"

As Harry spoke a wisp of dark fog swirled in his vision. It didn't clear away at all when he blinked. The empty glass in his hand was taken and set on a bedside table.

"You really scared your friends and I on the train." The swirling fog made it hard to focus on the Professor as he spoke. He rubbed his eyes before sitting himself up further on the bed. The fog in his vision churned again as he spoke to Professor Lupin.

"What happened?"

He wasn't asking because he didn't remember, in fact he could remember perfectly. Pain is a great way to seer something into your memory. What he didn't know was what had caused the pain in the first place, and why he was the only one who seemed to have experienced it. Harry checked around the Hospital Wing again. The only ailing student here was him.

"I'm not entirely sure. Your friends said you didn't start having a fit until the Dementors boarded the train."

Harry hated that he used the word 'fit'.

"Dementors?" They sounded familiar. Did his Uncle mention it to him once?

"They are the creatures that guard Azkaban Prison."

Harry remembered the window of the train freezing over, as well as his resulting 'fit'.

"I can see why."

He laid his head back down on the pillow, closing his eyes. The swirls in his eyes might go away if he rested a bit. The Wing echoed somewhat as Professor Lupin moved a chair next to his bed and sat down.

"Now that you know what happened on the train, do you think you could tell me what happened in there?" Harry opened his eyes and saw the Professor's hand move forward, two fingers lightly tapping his forehead. It reminded him once again of how tender his scar was.

How was he supposed to answer that? Harry winced as he recalled every agonizing detail of the torrent his mind and body experienced on the train. Even if he attempted to explain what happened they would think he was making it up, or had some sort of mental disorder. Either way it wouldn't make for a good school year.

"Don't worry too much about it Professor. A dark entity was released to roam freely through my mind, but I'm sure it will go away in a few weeks if I remember to eat my vegetables."

Yeah, right. Better to keep his mouth shut. There was no way he would even attempt to describe what happened until he understood the phenomenon more himself.

He frowned as he observed the dark swirls play in front of his eyes. Perhaps it wasn't that we just tired.

"I honestly don't remember that much. All I know was that I was on the ground one minute and the next

I'm waking up in the Hospital Wing."

Go away now please.

He rolled over away from the Professor, hoping the gesture wouldn't be seen as rude, but rather as a desire to sleep.

"Alright, well Madame Pomfrey is here to check up on you. Hope to see you in class."

Harry relaxed slightly as he heard footsteps retreat from the infirmary. Even if Professor Lupin didn't entirely believe his story, it would get him off his back for a while. Besides, it wasn't his place as a teacher to put much thought in the happenings of one of his students.

"Now Mr. Potter, I want you to stay in the infirmary tonight to ensure you get enough rest. Most people take a while to recover from the effects of the dementors."

Madame Pomfrey swooped to his bedside table while talking, holding a potion vial filled with purple liquid in her hand.

"This is Dreamless Sleep Potion. I wouldn't give this to a student under normal circumstances, but the dementors affect on you was extensive and will help you recover by class time tomorrow." She placed the vial onto his bedside table, then quickly scanned her eyes over his appearance.

"You are still really pale but at least you've stopped twitching."

He didn't know why, but that comment made him blush profusely.

"Madame Pomfrey, what exactly does Dreamless Sleep Potion do?"

She waved her wand and a pair of pajamas appeared in the seat Professor Lupin had recently occupied.

"As the name implies Mr. Potter. Dementors are notorious for bringing out the worst dreams."

She refilled the empty glass with water and handed it to him, making sure he drank all of it.

"The potion works quickly so take it after you've dressed for bed. I will check up on you in the morning, to see if you're well enough to go to breakfast."

She left to give him privacy, dimming the lights in the wing with a flick of her wand. One of the things Harry liked most about Pomfrey was that she didn't pester her patients with questions about how they exactly ended up under her care in the first place.

He quickly changed his clothes before laying back in bed. He had the potion in his hand but he wasn't ready to take it yet. He closed his eyes, hiding the shadows that had been playing in front of his eyes since he first spoke to Lupin. His muscles twitched slightly as he started to relaxed. He hadn't realized how sore he was until he had gotten up to change into his pajamas.

He fingered the dreamless sleep potion and sighed. He was glad for once that he was staying in the Hospital Wing. He never would have been able to rest once he got to Gryffindor tower. His presence would have caused a brouhaha among the students as they clamored around him to ask questions about the events on the train.

He stared at the ceiling in the infirmary, letting his mind wander as he watched the light darken, the moon taking dominance over the world once the sun had completely disappeared. The shadows that had danced before his eyes earlier had completely disappeared by now. He swallowed the purple potion, relaxing his head back down, head hitting the pillow just as he fell into a deep sleep.

xXxXxXx

"Glad to see you are doing well Mr. Potter, although it didn't seem to help your mood at all"

Harry grunted. He had awoken this morning, thinking everything was peachy when the shadows returned in front of his vision again. He wouldn't be normal if he didn't feel something about the anomaly that made itself home in his mind, and right now he could deal with being irritated but couldn't handle the fear he felt quivering beneath the surface. There was no denying it now. Something was wrong with Harry Potter.

"Can I just go now? I want to get my class schedule before breakfast is over."

Madame Pomfrey clicked her tongue in annoyance as she saw him eye the door of the infirmary.

"You may, but make sure to return here after classes are over. I don't want to get woken up in the middle of night by something I could have fixed earlier."

Harry agreed with Pomfrey's request and left the infirmary, heading down to the great hall for something to eat. He had his wand but he still needed to get his bag from the common room. An elf had appeared to him after he woke with a change of robes and his wand, telling him that all his belongings had been placed in his dorm already. But first he had to get his schedule to know what he needed for the day.

The Great Hall was filled with students, all gabbing about their summer holiday and contemplating which friends they will have classes with this term. He peered his head over to the Gryffindor table and scanned the crowd until he saw Ron and Hermione. He waved at them as he walked toward them.

He had tried looking at Hermione and Ron when they greeted him but he couldn't. The shadows jumped in his field of vision again, it distracted him so much that he couldn't even focus on their faces.

"Oh Harry, I'm so glad that you're alright!" Hermione hugged him before letting him sit down at the table. "Pomfrey wouldn't let us see you at all once we got you to the Wing. I was so worried something was wrong, but I'm glad that you are well."

"The way you started flaying about on the train really freaked me out." Ron stuffed a huge mound of pancakes into his mouth. "I thought you were being possessed or something."

Sometimes Harry hated how Ron was so naively crude.

"Do you remember what happened though Harry?" She had waited to ask until Ron left. Harry saw him shyly approaching a girl at the Ravenclaw table. "Why did you react that way to the Dementors?" Hermione had turned her full attention to him. He knew she would demand more answers than Professor Lupin did.

"I don't remember much, but Professor Lupin told me what happened after I blacked out. I never would have imagined creatures like Dementors ever existing." Hopefully the subject of the dark creatures would distract Hermione into talking about a different subject.

"Well, on the train you kept saying 'get it off of me!' as though you were being attacked."

Guess not. He piled some eggs on his plate but mostly focused on preparing his coffee. He wished he could talk to his friends about what he experienced, but he knew that Hermione would go blab about it to a teacher and Ron would treat him as though he were a mental patient. He refused to put up with any of that. She would have to deal with her unanswered questions as far as he was concerned.

She eyed him as he continued to ignore her, not meeting her gaze fully. He was still distracted with the shadows playing before his eyes to really care. Why won't it go away!

"Are you sure you don't remember anything?"

Shit. Hermione was always too perceptive for her own good. She probably saw the way his eyes wandered when he tried looking at her. He put his full attention on his cup of coffee. He was too tired to continue to play anymore games.

"Look, I don't want to talk about it okay? Just drop it."

"Harry! I am only trying to help. If something did happen you know I could..."

"I said to drop it!"

Hermione jumped as he slammed his fist on the table. The other students at the table looked over at him. He could hear them start to whisper when McGonagall swished her wand and all of the students schedules went flying all over the Great Hall. Thank God for small miracles. His outburst was already forgotten by the other students, distracted by the beginnings of the new term. He refused to look at Hermione. Her breathing was ragged and tense. He knew his outburst would upset her, but he hadn't intended to make her cry.

He snatched his schedule in mid-air before it dropped onto his plate of food. He peered at his schedule, not out of curiosity but as a way to distract himself from the transparent entity that made itself home in front of his pupils.

Day A:

Transfiguration

Charms

Ancient Runes

Lunch and study time

Potions

Day B:

Defense Against the Dark Arts

Herbology

Astronomy

Lunch and study time

History of Magic

He was about to speak to Hermione, thinking talking about classes will cheer her up, when Ron came over and plopped down between them.

"Look, I got Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid! I bet we wouldn't even have to go and we would still pass." His bubble of excitement was burst when Hermione scolded him.

"You will not skip that class! That would put Hagrid in a very awkward position, since he is not only our teacher but our friend. You should be supporting him Ron not using him."

Ron rolled his eyes and waved her comment off to the side. "Whatever. I know an easy class when I see it." He peered at Harry's schedule.

"Wait, why don't you have Care of Magical Creatures?" He peered closer at Harry's schedule. Suddenly his face went very pale. He looked at Harry, mortification streaked across his face.

"Ancient Runes?" His voice was small and high pitched. "You replaced a class taught by Hagrid for one that requires FOUR textbooks!" He reeled on Hermione.

"Was this your idea?" He pointed at Harry's schedule? "Why did you think Harry would want to take the same worthless class as you?"

"Ancient Runes is not worthless, and I didn't make Harry do anything!" She was getting extremely hysterical. Not only was Ron unknowingly cruel, he also didn't have the ability to know when to shut up.

Hermione grabbed her bag and lifted it over her shoulder, obviously restraining herself from hitting Ron over the head with it.

"Harry decided to take that class on his own. I didn't have any say in his choices, but I am glad that he's actually thinking about his future studies instead of just looking for classes that will give him an easy way out."

Harry grabbed his schedule back from Ron. Hermione briskly walked out of the Great Hall and toward the Library.

"Did you really want to take that class?"

Harry nodded.

"Why?" Ron sized himself up, ready to shoot down any reasoning Harry would give him.

"Because it was one of my mum's favorite classes."

Ron left him alone after that.

xXxXxXx

Harry jumped down the last flight of stairs as he made his way to Transfiguration. He had forgotten about getting his bag in the Tower until breakfast was over. He was already 5 minutes late. Why did the Common Room have to be on the top floor?

He ran into the classroom just as McGonagall finished reading off the last name on roll. She peered at him as he sat down in the back of the class.

"10 points from Gryffindor. This is the first class of the school year Mr. Potter. It isn't a good habit to already be late for class."

One of the students in the front row flipped him off when Professor McGonagall started her lecture. He couldn't really see who it was. The shadows in front of his vision diverted his attention from the upset student. Great. He was reminded of last year when everyone thought he was the Heir of Slytherin. The only difference this year was that he wasn't hearing homicidal snakes in the walls, instead he had a being inside his head that thought it was funny to play tag with itself in front of his eyes.

Taking notes at first was difficult, he couldn't really see the chalk board at the front of the class, but as time went on, McGonagall's recited lecture seemed to calm the shadows in front of his eyes. He sighed, as the unknown tension he had been holding in his chest all morning seemed to relax. It seemed odd to him that he was taking notes. His first two years at Hogwarts he didn't really care about taking notes or studying for tests. He only cared about the practical work, thinking the rest was useless. But after nearly being killed by the Basilisk and the memory of Tom Riddle he knew he could no longer do things half-assed. He didn't know what his future would hold as Voldemort's existence was still a possibility, but he knew he had to prepare for the unexpected.

He was glad that he was late to class. He wouldn't have been able to focus his mind and calm down if he had sat next to Ron, who would do nothing but nag him the whole time with questions about why he was taking notes in class, how he could just copy off of Hermione afterward. In Charms class he was also saved from Ron's crass comments by the busy spell work of learning an Unbreakable Charm. Hermione on the other hand smiled at him in surprise at his new found devotion to studying. He took it as a sign that she wasn't mad at his behavior towards her at breakfast.

Ron, Hermione, and Harry left Charms class and prepared to go to their last one before lunch.

"See you at lunch." Ron said before heading to the Tower for Divination. "You sure you don't want to come Harry?" He asked with a flicker of hope in his eyes, completely ignoring Hermione as she glared balls of flame at him.

"No Ron, that's okay." He smiled at his best friends disappointment. "I really do want this class. I hope you understand."

"Yeah, I guess." Ron mumbled under his breath before turning around and heading towards the Tower.

"He'll be over it before dinner tonight." Hermione stated as they headed towards Ancient Runes.

"Yeah I know." Harry grinned widely. He felt a lot better than he did this morning.

As they neared the door to class Harry swore loudly and quickly turned around, sprinting down the hall.

"Harry where are you going?"

He turned his head back as he continued to run, calling out to Hermione.

"I forgot my books in the common room!"

"What?"

"I'll explain later, gotta hurry!"

Harry sprinted up the stairs, taking two at a time. His pace was quick and he was pleased to realize he would have three minutes to return to class once he reached the common room. Hopefully that would be enough time.

Unfortunately for Harry, luck didn't seem to be on his side. As he rounded the corner to jump onto one of the revolving staircases he ran straight into Draco Malfoy.

"In a hurry, Potter?" He spat.

Harry rolled his eyes. Not wanting to deal with the Slytherin brat, he swerved passed him without even stopping. He wished he hadn't. Long ago he should have learned never to turn your back on a Slytherin.

He fell flat on his face, breaking his nose as Malfoy hit him with an immobilizing charm. Not only did his head swim as his nose pulsed, his mind was abruptly clenched by the Shadow. The world around him started turning gray as the previously transparent swirls encased itself around his entire vision. What's happening to me? He struggled out of his confinement as Malfoy drawled some sort of nonsense.

"Nobody walks away from me!" He stepped in front of Harry's face to smirk at his broken nose, and his obvious struggle to break his invisible bonds.

"What's wrong, can't remember how to break a simple binding charm? How pathetic. It amazing how even with your lack of magical abilities people still thought you were the Heir of Slytherin."

Harry was completely horrified. As he had verbalized the spell to break his bonds he realized that he couldn't. He knew it wasn't because of Malfoy's spell, it was because of the shadow that was encasing his vision. Not only had the shadow adhered itself in front of his mind, it had affixed itself around his magic. He could feel how his magic swelled inside him as he intended to perform a spell, then he would feel it stop abruptly, barricaded from escape by the Shadow.

He started hyperventilating. Not only was he suddenly overwhelmed by the revelation that he no longer could control his magic, but he was shaken by the fact that he was completely helpless and trapped. He was insignificant, and he knew it. He realized that his demise might not be at the hands of Voldemort, it could happen flying, walking, tripping, sitting at the lake watching the sun go down, and it could also happen by laying on the ground, helpless while Malfoy did as he pleased.

Shit, shit, shit!

Harry was distracted from these dark revelations as he saw Malfoy's polished shoe connect with his jaw in a swift kick, his head immediately exploding in pain at the abusive contact.

It didn't matter that he had defeated Voldemort twice in the first two years as a Hogwarts student if he couldn't even stop a juvenile Slytherin from beating him to death. Not only was he filled with these overwhelming manifestations, he was aware of a secondary feeling, an emotion he knew didn't belong to him. It was an emotion from the Shadow. It was anger, a rage so intense that it hurt. This anger stemmed from being trapped in a mind it didn't know, being formless, and shapeless, knowing that no matter how much power it had, it was all completely worthless. Harry's mind cleared slightly from the trauma to his head as he realized that the Shadow felt exactly like he did.

Amidst Malfoy's burst of laughter and the stars he saw in his eyes, Harry realized that he was free from the immobilizing charm. Even though he hadn't broken it himself, the charm itself was fairly weak and had finally just worn out.

As he picked himself up off the floor Harry realized that his own rage was escalating to that of the Shadow. Pretty soon the anger that emanated from the shapeless being would no longer be secondary, but his as well. His hands trembled as he freed his wand from inside his robes. Reaching for his magic he swelled with rage as it was still inaccessible to him, and how Malfoy continued laughing, not worried in the slightest that Harry had a wand in hand.

"Haven't had enough yet, Potter? I could play with you all night." Malfoy leered at the sight of his enemies broken face and stilled movements. He had proven who the superior was, and he would never let Harry Potter, The Boy-who-Lived, forget it.

Rage coursed throughout his body and mind. He had to do something, had to make Malfoy regret what he did, make him pay for making him feel so weak.

His hand moved of its own volition, wand pointed straight at Malfoy's heart. Harry willed his magic to work, focusing on the hate that overwhelmed his mind and body, the enemy who caused that hate, enticing his magic to do something about it.

Tacenda Vis

The magic in his chest swelled freely as those words echoed through his mind.

Tacenda Vis

The voice was smooth and seductive as it whispered those words consolingly once again. His magic continued to swell, asking permission from Harry to be released.

"Tacenda Vis!"

Harry was aware of the look of horror on Malfoy's face as the spell flew at him, a spell that had left his lips in Parseltongue. Harry continued to head towards the common room, stepping over the unconscious body of Malfoy, no longer seeing him as a threat, but as someone who had foolishly gotten in his way.

When he made it to the portrait he had to focus on his speech as the password for entrance had also left his mouth in the hisses of Parseltongue. When he finally managed to control his speech and enter through the portrait he ran up to his bed, drawing the curtains around the posts before lying down.

He smiled as he felt the power of his magic course through his veins. When he uttered that spell his body was completely overtaken with raw power, a feeling that left him breathless and wanting for more. He was consumed by the feeling of ecstasy. Not only elated by the power that freed him of his enemy, he was filled with relief when the Shadow dissipated from his vision as he spoke those words, and felt the magic surge through his arm. The monochromatic world that had surrounded him disappeared along with any awareness of the Shadow that had stalked the corners of his vision all day.

He lay there soaking in the feeling of bliss that had overtaken him. It never occurred to him to repair the damage to his body until 45 minutes later, when the high of his surge of power started to calm down into something less consuming. Gripping his wand tighter he made his way to the bathroom to survey the damage.

His nose was broken. It bent in a way that eerily reminded him of Professor Snape. It was also swelling and turning various colors of blue and purple. Dark bruises had formed under his eye and a massive bruise was accentuated with a gash of open flesh extended along his jaw line where Malfoy had kicked him. He experimentally opened his jaw and winced at the pain it produced. It was amazing how he had uttered that spell at Malfoy without being aware of the damage that had been inflicted.

Raising his wand to his face he began working on repairing the damage. Despite hating every second he spent in the hospital wing he had to admit that he learned a lot. He knew nearly every spell by heart that Madame Pomfrey had used to heal him and other Quidditch players of their injuries. By the time he was done the only thing that seemed off was the darkness under his eyes, which he knew would fade in a few days. He also observed the amount of blood that drenched his shirt. If he were under the care of Madame Pomfrey he knew she would make him drink a Blood-Replenishing Potion, but he would have to do without. Rest and fluids would have to work instead.

As he spelled his robes clean of his blood he couldn't help but wonder if the Pink Lady noticed his appearance at all or if she just didn't care. He didn't bother asking her as he made his way out. Third period was almost over and he had to find a way to hide. He knew Hermione would come looking for him, having expected him to return to class only a few minutes after retrieving his books. Smiling, he headed to the Library to hide. Although Hermione was there a lot, there was no way she or Ron would look for him there.

xXxXxXx

Hermione had watched the entire fight between Malfoy and Harry while under the Disillusionment Charm. When she had used her Time-Turner after Ancient Runes she had purposely traveled in this direction in the hopes of seeing Harry. She was completely surprised by what she saw. She figured there was a good reason why Harry had missed class but she wasn't expecting it to be because of a violent fight with Malfoy.

What shocked her most was how Harry acted throughout the fight. He seemed in pain, and at one moment when he was on the floor, before Malfoy kicked him, he had a look of despair that consumed him entirely. She noticed how he struggled to move, struggled to use his magic. She also knew that it wasn't because of fear towards Malfoy. There was fear, no doubt, but it was directed toward something entirely, something she didn't understand.

When Harry left after defeating Malfoy she moved toward the sprawled body of the Slytherin. She couldn't see any markings on his body, any trace that any violent spell was used on him. A violent spell was used she was sure. Even though she didn't understand what spell Harry cast, or why he had used Parseltongue to speak it, she suspected that it was Dark Magic.

She left the hallway and considered her options. She could tell one of the Professors, the Headmaster most likely, but she felt it wasn't the best move to make. Dark Magic was forbidden she knew, but she was mostly worried by the fact that Harry even knew Dark Magic. Harry could be expelled for this fight just for uttering the dark curse even though Malfoy had instigated the brutal violence in the first place. Not only was it the Dark Magic, it was the confirmation that Harry was hiding something. She knew something had happened last night on the train but Harry refused to speak a word about it. Whatever it was, she knew that Harry needed her help whether he asked for it or not. As long as she had her Time-Turner she would be able to find out whatever information she needed in order to help Harry.

First things first, she had to find out what spell Harry used.

A/N: So, what do you think? Should I keep at it or quit while I still can?