Chapter Thirteen
Halloween Again
"You have to eat something Harry," Hermione said, concern laced in her voice, "It'll do you no good if you don't."
Breakfast was not going down entirely too well that Halloween morning, the new Seeker of the Gryffindor Quidditch team felt like his stomach was clenched into a very tight little ball that refused to unravel itself.
"I'm really not hungry, Hermione," he said, pushing away the plate of toast she had put in front of him.
"Take a few bites," Ron said knowingly, "Trust me, I didn't eat anything first time I had to play reserve. Thought my stomach was going to fall out of me."
Under the scrutiny of both his friends now, Harry grudgingly took a bite of toast. It tasted dry in his mouth and he found he had trouble swallowing, he took a large gulp of pumpkin juice and washed it down as quickly as he could.
"First round of Butterbeers this afternoon is on me," Ron said, smiling encouragingly at his friend, "Win or lose, I think we'll need it. You ready mate?"
"As I'll ever be…"
Ron and Harry exited the Hall together after saying goodbye to Hermione, who headed off to get a good seat in the stands. Students were already gathered on the impressively large Quidditch pitch, some in green, but most wearing Gryffindor red and gold. Slytherin didn't seem to be very popular.
Harry clutched the handle of his broom and gulped as he followed Ron to the changing rooms, he had never played a formal Quidditch match and, despite all the training, he was so nervous he thought there must be a toad squirming around in his stomach. The last two days weren't helping matters much, the knowledge that his dream was most probably real and that Ginny was the girl in the tunnels irked him to no end. He had hardly been able to talk to the red head in question for the past forty-eight hours and every time he tried it felt like his throat would tighten on its own. He'd break out in a cold sweat when she was near, he was truly too terrified to ask her if she recognized him from all those years ago. Then there was of course the question of whether or not he wanted her to recognize him. A part of him hoped to his last breath that she would never know it was him; Merlin knew he was getting tired of being famous Harry Potter already, imagine if the school thought he had been the one to stop the monster four years ago?
He shuddered.
Then there was the small part of him that really, really wanted Ginny to know, no one else, just Ginny and he couldn't for the life of him fathom why.
On top of these revelations, there was of course Dobby's little warning and the dream he had had the previous night. He knew he'd promised Ron and Hermione that if it ever happened again he would tell his parents, but…
It could wait until tomorrow, couldn't it?
Still, the dream was replaying in his head the entirety of the way to the pitch.
Flashback
Harry was standing.
He could feel the cool, black robes being draped over his shoulders as he turned to the watching audience. A collection of unsavoury characters to say the least. Each one of them wore dark cloaks, their hoods were up but when Harry spoke, it was like he knew just who each and every one of them was.
"Macnair," he voice was cold, older and chilling, "Are all the preparations in place?"
"Everything is prepared, my Lord," one of the figures grovelled, his voice rasped a little as he spoke.
"Malfoy," Harry gave an internal start, could that be someone related to Nick? "Are those inside informed?"
"Messages were sent in discreetly," the voice wasn't Nick or Draco's and Harry found himself wondering who the mysterious Malfoy was, "The Dementors are all on our side, my Lord, they merely await your final orders."
"Excellent," Harry felt intense pleasure rise up as he looked at those surrounding him, he was happy, very happy, "With the treaties Greyback has acquired for us, tomorrow will be a day the wizarding world will not easily forget. Soon, they will all tremble at the sound of my name again."
He started laughing and Harry started screaming as his scar erupted in pain.
End Flashback
"Just a dream," he told himself shakily, though now he thought he knew who the man was. It was Riddle. It had to be Riddle, which meant that it really was just a dream because Riddle was gone. He could still remember the young man he had faced in the tunnels, or the Chamber as he supposed it was now, the cruel blue eyes that bore into him and the triumphant smile. The coldness in his voice and the way he spoke, with a smooth eloquence that chilled Harry to the bone. It was the same with the man in his dream, but this man seemed so much older…
It couldn't be Riddle, but it was Riddle and yet, it couldn't be real because he was quite certain he had seen Riddle explode in a flash of white light.
At least, Harry hoped that was what happened, some things that had happened in the Chamber were still a little fuzzy, but he was pretty sure he'd slain a giant snake and watched the bad guy explode.
"You alright mate?" Ron asked, concerned when Harry was being overly quiet.
"Huh-uh-yeah," Harry said quickly, "Just nervous."
"You'll do fine," Ron said encouragingly, "I've seen you in practice, remember?"
"Right," Harry said weakly, now wasn't the time to worry about dreams or Chambers or House elf warnings.
He had a match to win.
XXXHPHPHPXXX
James Apparated to Hogsmeade, he wasn't about to miss his son's first match after all, Lily wasn't coming. She had something important to do and James had the sneaking suspicion she was going to St. Matthews to find out what she could about Harry's life there. They both had the feeling Harry wasn't going to be very forth coming about his life before now and though they trusted their son, it was just something Lily had to lay to rest.
James suspected though that her sudden need to do this had come from the little message Fawkes had given them only the day before. A single red-gold phoenix feather had been left for them in their home and they both knew exactly what it meant.
The Order was being reformed.
That Dumbledore would deliver such a message only meant one thing; Voldemort was back.
The thought chilled James to the bone, but had also solved the mystery of why the Death Eaters had been after Ally on the train.
Revenge.
It was James' son, after all, that had seen the defeat of their master the last time. At the time, no one knew where Harry was or even if he was alive, so the next logical choice to target would be Allison Potter.
James swallowed hard.
It was one puzzle he wished hadn't been solved.
He didn't know what they would have done to her if they had caught her and quite frankly, he didn't want to. He was just glad that their plan had been thwarted, what ever it was. But there was a reason Voldemort had been so quiet the past few months and the only thing James could think that meant was that he was gathering troops. The Order had found out about this late, if it had come earlier they may have been able to stop him gathering support, but now…
Now they would just have to do the best they could.
So James was determined to make sure today was a good day for his son, it may have been Halloween and he may not have enjoyed the holiday in the slightest since his son's disappearance, but by Merlin, today was going to be a bloody good day for his son.
He owed it to him.
Another reason James was coming to the match; guard duty of a sort.
Harry was going to have a good Halloween, because the next time James saw his son, there might not be any happy times left.
He and Lily were still at odds on what to tell Harry, Lily was fearful he would resent them for keeping the prophecy a secret and wanted to wait a while longer. James, on the other hand, thought that his son was quite capable of handling the news and that they should tell him immediately.
They had both come to a sort of agreement though.
They would let Harry have Halloween, one care free holiday without dark lords, prophecies or trouble.
And then they would find a way to tell him, together.
"Hey! Prongs!"
James turned as he recognised the voice of his best friend and waved enthusiastically.
"Sirius!" he smiled in greeting as the dog animagus bounded up to him, blue eyes blazing and hair flying, "You made it!"
"Of course," Sirius said indignantly, "Can't miss my godson's first match, what kind of a godfather would I be if I did that?"
"Of course," James rolled his eyes, "You seen Harry on that Firebolt?"
"Not yet," Sirius shook his head, "How'd he get one of those beauties in any case?"
"Apparently he won the Diagon Ally raffle," the Potter patriarch shrugged, "What can I say, he's got Potter luck on his side."
"That raffle!" Sirius exclaimed, "You're kidding me!"
"Nope," James sighed a little, "You have to admit though, buying the broom for Harry would have been a brilliant way to make up for fifteen years worth of birthday presents."
"Yeah, well," Sirius shrugged, "There's always a certain family heirloom you could pass on…"
James stopped in his tracks.
"You mean-?"
"What else?"
James suddenly smiled thoughtfully.
"You know, I do believe it is time it had some use out in the world," he said.
"Definitely," Sirius smirk, "Now lets go, I want to see a Gryffindor victory!"
"And what if Slytherin wins?"
"Don't say such blasphemous things!" Sirius hissed at James, he then composed himself and said in a matter of fact tone, "Then I buy ice-cream for the whole house, of course."
James merely smiled and shook his head, his smile faded a moment later though and his expression turned solemn.
"Did you get one?" he asked.
Sirius frowned in understanding.
"Yes," was the quiet reply.
"How do I tell Harry?" James asked, his voice chocking a little.
Sirius remained silent, his blue eyes closing in pensieve thought for a moment before he reached out and grabbed his friend's shoulder in comfort.
"You tell him the truth," he said simply, "Its all you can do at this point."
James nodded, glad to have his friend there for him, there had been so many low times in his life since Harry had disappeared, times when he'd been unable to be strong for Lily and it had been only Sirius' support and occasional 'slap of good sense' that had kept him stable.
Speaking of good friends, he looked up at the bright sky, a chilly October wind blew through the trees and James could see some heavier clouds rolling in from the distance. Today, Halloween though it may be was also a full moon night.
Reason number three for coming to Hogwarts that day; he and Sirius would be around for Remus' transformation. Not that he really needed them anymore, not since the Wolf's Bane potion, but sometimes they went out with the old wolf if only for old times sake.
"So," he said finally, trying to lighten the mood that he had foolishly decided to dampen, "How does it feel coming back to Hogwarts just to be a spectator?"
Sirius' eyes took on a rather maniacal gleam.
"You know," he said finally, "It feels pretty good, although there is something I've been wanting to do since we left Hogwarts…"
"What's that?" James asked, his eyes starting to gleam as well as he began to guess the possibilities.
"Well…"
XXXXXXHPHPHPHPHPXXXXXXXXX
Lily looked up at the faded sign; St. Matthews Children's Home. It hung a little loosely and squeaked as it flapped in the wind. She looked at the large and unwelcoming black gate, her hand reaching out slowly to open it and stopped.
What was she doing?
She should just ask Harry about this, she knew. She should work on gaining his trust, she knew that too. But when the message from Dumbledore arrived the previous day, it had taken all of Lily's strength not to break down.
How could he be back?
Why now? Why her family?
She could already feel the hot tears welling in her eyes and aggressively pushed them away. She remembered Harry's story, that his foster parents had passed away, but then she remembered what the Headmaster had told her.
There was a record of a boy named Harry running away from this orphanage.
She had to know if that Harry was her son and although she knew the answer in her heart, after hearing James' fears she had decided she needed to settle the matter herself.
Did her son run away from this place five years ago? And if so, what had he been doing in that time all on his own? Dare she think-?
She shook her head and, summoning her Gryffindor bravado, determinedly pushed open the black gate and let herself inside. Beyond the heavy stone walls of the outside was a large garden with a path leading from the gate up to the main building. The garden was dry and covered in fallen autumn leaves, colouring it in hues of greys, browns, reds and yellows. Taking a deep breath, she made her way up the pathway, pausing only once to glance at a collective of children that were playing on some swings to the left of the garden. She smiled to herself as she watched the little ones play.
She wondered if years before, Harry d been one of those happy children on the swings.
She took a deep breath and walked up the steps to the large house, she stopped just in front of the welcoming mat and rang the door bell cautiously. She didn't have to wait long before the door creaked open and a young, cheery looking woman looked at her with some surprise. The woman couldn't have been more than thirty, probably younger and had her long, ash blonde hair tied back in a high ponytail. She wore jeans and a long sleeved vest, she was looking at Lily now with large, questioning hazel eyes.
"Hello?" her voice was light and sweet, "Can I help you?"
"Uh-yes," said Lily, struggling for a moment to find her voice, "My name is Lily Potter, I've come to enquire after a boy you had in your care up until about five years ago? His names Harry?"
She looked confused for a moment before something seemed to spark in her eyes and she gasped, her hand coming to her mouth.
"Oh I remember now!" she exclaimed, "You'd best come in. I'm Ingrid, by the way, I'm the Head Matron."
She gestured for Lily to come into the children's home, her young face willed with excitement and curiosity.
"Thank you, Ingrid," Lily smiled as she stepped into the warm home and Ingrid shut the door behind them.
"Please," she said, "Come to my office, I'm sure you'd like a spot of tea?"
"That would be lovely, thank you," Lily nodded, following Ingrid through the house. It seemed like a nice enough environment, there were pictures everywhere; some were photographs of children, others looked more like art that the children themselves had done. She smiled in spite of herself, it seemed like this was such a cheerful place compared to the outside appearance. She could hear laughter and children running up and down the stairs. There were a few older woman sitting around too, watching young ones play, or helping them with what was probably homework.
"Here we are," said Ingrid and Lily was lead into a small office, like the rest of the house, it too was decorated with the art of children and such.
"Please have a seat," Ingrid gestured to a rather comfortable looking chair whilst she called out of the door for someone to bring in a tray of tea. She smiled at Lily and sat down at the desk opposite her.
"Now then, you're here about Harry?" she inquired, "Black hair, green eyes and glasses, right?"
"Yes," Lily said in amazement, "So, he was here?"
"Yes," Ingrid nodded, "Up until just before his eleventh birthday. Sweet kid, if I remember correctly, may I ask why your asking about him?"
Lily pursed her lips a little. She could just imagine what this woman would probably think of her when she told her who she was. Depending on what circumstances they had found Harry in, it was most likely she would think Lily had abandoned her son.
Oh well, she hadn't been sorted into Gryffindor for nothing.
"He is my son," she said softly, waiting patiently for the shock on Ingrid's face to pass, but instead there was only surprise.
"I thought maybe you were," the girl admitted, "He showed me that photo of his once, and when you said your name was Lily-"
She cut off abruptly and cleared her throat.
"Yes, well," she looked uncomfortable, "I'm sorry, we don't know where Harry is right now-you see-you see he ran away five years ago…"
Lily closed her eyes against the statement.
So James had been right to worry.
"I know where Harry is right now," she said finally, opening her eyes and looking at Ingrid sadly, "We found him a few months ago, at the moment he's in school. Its just, he never told us he had run away from here, he gave us the impression that he had been with a foster family until shortly before we found him."
Ingrid looked extremely surprised and could only gape at Lily for a few moments before she seemed to regain some composure.
"I see," she said finally, "What is it you want to know?"
"My husband and I searched everywhere for our son," Lily said, "You see, we were, attacked, by someone and in the chaos Harry was taken from us. We contacted the police, we put out notices to homes like this one all over England and even into surrounding countries. So what I want to know is, how was it possible that no one reported Harry when he was first found? I was under the impression that was what happened in such a case."
She didn't mean to sound harsh, but this had been irking her for a long while; had she really missed out on years with her son because someone had conveniently forgotten to file the paper work?
Ingrid turned pink.
"Yes, you are correct," she sighed a little, "Mrs. Potter, Harry came before my time here, the first time I met him was when he was eight. But I do think I know what may have happened and I deeply apologise on behalf of St. Matthews."
"What happened?"
"My predecessor, Matron Jane Hilary, was responsible for several instances of illegal adoptions during her time here," Ingrid continued, there was obvious disdain in her voice, "She was finally caught five years ago, just after Harry disappeared. I've often wondered if it wasn't a favour he did us. Bad as it sounds, if he hadn't run away, the police would never have investigated and she never would have been found out."
Lily didn't like the sound of it at all, but she remained silent and waited for the woman to continue.
"As I said, Harry came before my time, but one of the older Matrons explained the situation to me during the police investigation," she took a deep breath, "Not long before Harry was found, Matron Hilary authorised the adoption of a little boy named Riley Green, he was about the same age as Harry, also had dark hair and a lighter eye colour. Harry's appearance seemed to come at just the right time, because she gave him Riley Green's records and called him such. The reason she did this was because of some sort of inspection that was happening countrywide. I assume now that that was the search for young Harry. I believe Matron Hilary thought it to be an investigation into some of her dirtier dealings."
Lily blinked away tears.
"So-so you're telling me," Lily said, her voice cracking a little, "That the reason my son grew up without me, the reason I spent fifteen years looking for him, all in vain, was because a woman who was supposed to look after him, used him to cover up her crimes?"
"She couldn't have Riley Green missing when the investigators came," Ingrid's eyes were filled with pity, "I'm very sorry Mrs. Potter."
"No," Lily shook her head, "It wasn't your fault. But then, how did he know his name was Harry?"
A moment later she realised the reason; the photograph.
"It was a photograph," Ingrid confirmed Lily's silent thought, "I assume it was you and him. Actually, you have one of the older matrons to thank for that. Helen Morgan, she was very close to Harry when he was growing up, always insisted everyone call him Harry, though officially he was Riley Green. Until the investigation five years ago, of course."
"And Riley Green?" Lily questioned, "They found out what happened to him?"
"Yes," the young matron responded, "Sad business that, as it was an illegal adoption, he was seized again by the Crown."
"Poor boy," Lily nodded sympathetically.
"He always said he was going to find you."
"I'm sorry?" Lily was caught by surprise at the woman's gentle statement.
"A lot of the kids here eventually accept that they'll never see their parents again," Ingrid had a soft smile on her face, "Not Harry, that's why I'll always remember him. No matter what was said to him, no matter how many years passed, he always believed he was going to meet you someday. I'm glad he did, I was kind of routing for him when I found out he ran away."
Lily just nodded, unsure on what to think about the statement; she was happy Harry had held onto her as a child, but that might have been her own ego talking. If he had let her go, would he have been adopted? Found a nice family?
Not run away?
"Thank you Ingrid," she said finally, "You've been…very helpful."
"How is Harry?" the young woman seemed to be bursting with curiosity over her long since missing charge and Lily couldn't help but smile a little.
"He's well," she said, "Today he's playing in a Q-uh, a football match at school. He made the team a couple months ago. He seems to be settling in very well and has made some good friends."
Ingrid beamed.
"Well send him the best of luck from us here at St. Matthews," she said, "I can give you the name of the inspector in charge of the case if you like? In case you had anymore inquiries."
"That would be great," the red head said, "And, is it possible to speak with, Helen Morgan did you say?"
"Oh yes!" Ingrid started scribbling something on a bit of paper, "She retired a few years ago, so I'll just give the address and such. Here you go!"
Lily took the sheet of paper, her eyes scanning over the two names and the numbers below them. She didn't wonder at the fact that Ingrid had them memorised, if she had indeed taken over the home, it had been on shaky ground when she did. She smiled at the young girl, thanked her again and promptly left St. Matthews.
Oh Harry, she thought as she Disapperated, What have you been doing all these years?
XXXXXXHPHPHPHPHPHPXXXXXXXXX
"Alright guys and gals," Katie said, broom in one hand, the other on her hip, "I'm not going to give a Wood speech or anything, Merlin knows how long that would take…"
Those who had known Oliver Wood before he graduated gave a snicker.
"…But I am going to say this," she continued, her eyes surveying the team, "I've seen you all practice and I know you are all capable Quidditch players with talent and drive and I know that you all have the determination to go out there and give it your all. So what do you say, lets take back the Cup for Gryffindor!"
To her credit, she did know exactly what to say to get the team riled up. Harry couldn't help the big smile he had on his face as excitement coursed through him, over taking his nervousness and pushing most of his previous thoughts aside. He followed his team out of the changing room, his hand clenching tightly to the handle of his broomstick. The moments leading up to Madam Hooch's whistle seemed to go by rather slowly. The two teams faced each other on the pitch, the crowd's cheers died down for a moment as the captains shook hands. Then the Bludgers were released, followed in quick succession by the Golden Snitch. Harry and his team members had mounted on Madam Hooch's command, he watched as the Snitch took off into the air.
"Remember Harry," Katie's voice from the previous day rang in his head, "Wait until we've got at least fifty points ahead before you catch the Snitch. That'll knock us nicely into first place."
His grip firmed, his eyes darting to Malfoy's. He frowned as he did, Malfoy looked a little anxious and his eyes weren't darting after the Snitch, they were fixed quite securely to the ground. He guess it must be nerves for the match, but, hadn't Malfoy done this before?
He didn't have time to ponder the observation, because the Quaffle had been launched into the air, followed almost simultaneously by the whistle. Harry kicked off of the ground and the game began.
The crowd in the stands cheered loudly when Ginny managed to grab the Quaffle first and was zooming her way down the pitch to the Slytherin goalposts.
"AND WEASLEY HAS THE QUAFFLE," the commentary started from the box, Harry thought the voice was familiar, but didn't immediately recognise it due to the loudness, "SHE PASSES TO BELL. BELL IN POSITION, SHE'S GOING TO GO FOR IT-OH! SHE WAS BLUFFYING! CLEVER GIRL! PASSES TO ROBINS, WHO PASSES IT BACK TO WEASLEY AND GRYFFINDOR IN…SCORE! TEN POINTS TO GRYFFINDOR!"
Katie had gone all out for the goal, before she could be intercepted by three Slytherin Chasers at once, she passed the ball off to her side. Demelza caught it and in turn passed it to Ginny, after narrowly dodging a rather well aimed Bludger. Ginny, with the Slytherin Chasers momentarily confused by the ploy, made a move and managed to score. The crowd erupted in cheers.
It carried on like this for a while, eventually the score was Forty-Ten to Gryffindor, Harry was really impressed with Ron as the Slytherins had come close nearly six times to scoring a goal and each time but once had been thwarted.
"SLYTHERIN IN POSITION," the tone of the commentators voice was almost bored now, "AND-ER-WHATS THAT ONE'S NAME AGAIN?"
"I THINK ITS NOTT," came another familiar voice over the speakers.
Harry's eyes widened.
No way…
"ALRIGHT, NOTT HAS THE QUAFFLE, HE PASSES TO ANOTHER SLYTHERIN AND…HEY! THAT'S NOT LEGAL! WHY YOU LITTLE-"
Harry listened as the commentator let out a stream of curses, but couldn't really blame him, he was doing the same himself. One of the Slytherin Beaters, obviously in an attempt to subdue Ron, had aimed a Bludger directly at his friend. Luckily, Ron was as good at dodging as he was at Keeping and managed to roll away just in time. That of course, didn't stop the Beater from throwing his bat at Ron a bare second later and hitting him in the face. Madam Hooch's whistle sounded and she showed a red card to Slytherin. While the captain flew over to argue with her, Harry flew to Ron.
"You alright mate?" he asked.
There was a large, red mark on Ron's left cheek and he grimaced a little when he reached up to touch it. It was definitely going to leave a bruise.
"I'll live," he said finally, "Good thing it wasn't a Bludger, right?"
Harry could only nod.
"Do you recognise who's commentating?" Ron asked curiously as he squinted towards the commentators box.
Harry smiled ruefully.
The curses had been a dead give away.
"MR. BLACK!" the shrill voice of Professor McGonagall echoed dangerously across the pitch, even the arguing Slytherin captain looked up in surprise, "AND MR. POTTER! WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU ARE DOING? YOU ARE SETTING A BAD EXAMPLE TO THE STUDENTS WITH YOUR BEHAVIOUR! HOW DARE YOU LOCK ME OUT OF THIS BOX! WHO SAID YOU COULD COMMENTATE THIS MATCH?"
"AW, COME ON PROFESSOR-" Sirius whined over the megaphone and Harry could just imagine him giving her some kind of puppy dog look, "I ALWAYS WANTED TO COMMENTATE A MATCH, DIDN'T I MR. PRONGS?"
"YOU DID INDEED, MR. PADFOOT," James confirmed, amusement evident in his voice.
"IN FACT, YOU COULD SAY ITS BEEN A DREAM-"
"A CALLING-"
"AN INSPIRATION IF YOU WILL-"
"TO BE IN YOUR ASTOUND PRESENSE-"
"AND GIVE VOICE TO THE GLORIOUSNESS THAT IS GRYFFINDOR!"
"ITS NOT OUR FAULT AFTER ALL-"
"THAT THOSE SLIMY SLYTHERINS WANTED TO RUIN THE DAY BY CHEATING!"
"IN FACT, I THINK MR. PADFOOT'S RESPONSE WAS MOST ACCURATE," James concluded.
"WHY THANK YOU MR. PRONGS," Sirius said appreciatively.
"DETENTION!" came the transfiguration teacher's screech.
By this point, Harry was in near hysterics, he didn't know whether to laugh or groan, he hadn't even known his father was going to come to his Quidditch match. Beside him, Ron seemed to be having trouble balancing on his broom as he laughed.
"Blimey Harry!" he exclaimed, "They're worse than the Twins!"
"They're the Twins inspiration remember," Harry said dryly.
"Good point," Ron smirked.
"SORRY MINNIE," Sirius' voice sang, "I'M NOT A STUDENT, YOU CAN'T GIVE ME DETENTION."
"OH CAN'T I?" Professor McGonagall's voice took on a dangerous leer, she must have done something because all of a sudden came Sirius' howl of pain.
"OW! OW! OW!" he exclaimed, "THAT'S ATTATCHED, YOU KNOW?"
The majority of the crowd had turned quite quickly from confusion to laughter as Sirius continued to beg for McGonagall to let go of whatever appendage she had managed to grab onto. All the while, James kept trying to soothe his overly irate old Head of House, but only seemed to direct her anger towards him.
"AND AS FOR YOU!" she said, her voice filled with dead seriousness, "I AM GOING TO OWL YOUR WIFE."
There was a truly dramatic pause before James gasped.
"YOU WOULDN'T-"
"WATCH ME."
"THAT'S CRUEL AND UNUSUAL," James said, "EVEN FOR YOU."
"YES," McGonagall continued, "I THINK SHE WOULD VERY MUCH LIKE TO KNOW ALL ABOUT THIS."
There was another brief pause before James sighed.
"VERY WELL," he said rather dramatically, "WE CONCEDE-"
"OH JAMES, YOU-"
"SIRIUS."
"OH FINE! WE, THE MARAUDERS," Sirius sighed in defeat, his voice a little strained, as though McGonagall still had a hold on him, "CONCEDE VICTORY-"
"TO THE STERN, PASSIONATE-"
"THE MARVELOUS, EXEPTIONAL-"
"LIONESS OF GRYFFINDOR HOUSE HERSELF-"
"WHO WE LIKE TO CALL MINNIE," Sirius added playfully.
"BLACK!" McGonagall's voice rang out testily.
"PROFESSOR MINERVA MCGONAGALL!" the finished together grandly.
Every Gryffindor in the stands burst into applause and even Harry and Ron couldn't help giving whistles of encouragement into the entourage of cheers. What happened next had to be the work of James and Sirius as a huge red and gold stream irrupted from the commentators box and exploded over the pitch. A huge, golden lion streamed out and gave a great roar before fading into words; 'GO GRYFFINDOR!' shone brightly in the sky in gold and red for a minute, before it too began to fade away.
"CAN YOU LET GO OF MY EAR NOW?" was the last thing they heard from Sirius Black before Madam Hooch had finally had enough and started the game up again.
Now Harry was seriously on the look out for the Snitch, the way Gryffindor was going, he wouldn't have long to wait before he would have to catch it pretty quickly. He ignored most of the rest of the commentary and concentrated on that goal. No way was he going to lose this game now.
Eventually, he caught a glimpse of gold and trained his eyes on where the Snitch was hovering near the Hufflepuff stand. That was when he noticed Malfoy. He was a lot closer to the Snitch than Harry was and should have noticed it immediately, but his eyes weren't scanning the area. In fact, it looked like he was trying to avoid looking in the direction of the Snitch at all. He could have already known where it was and was trying not to alert Harry to its presence. Like Harry, he too may have been given instructions not to catch it until Slytherin were some points ahead. But then there was still that anxious look on his face, he was so much paler too, if that was at all possible. Harry couldn't help but remember how worried Nick had looked a few days back and briefly wondered if it had something to do with Malfoy's behaviour.
"AND GRYFFINDOR SCORE! NINETY-FORTY TO GRYFFINDOR!"
Harry didn't have time to ponder further, he shot off like a rocket towards the Snitch, time seemed to slow a little. He could hear the cheering and the announcement over the speaker that he had seen the Snitch, but in that moment there was nothing distracting him. There was just him and the Snitch.
He was so close.
He felt, rather than saw, Malfoy come up beside him, he was so close he disrupted the air around Harry without touching him. Both their hands inched out towards the Snitch. Harry's hand was just a couple inched more forward than Malfoy's, he could almost feel the metal on his skin.
He was going to win.
Malfoy seemed to know it too, because in the split second before Harry's hand curled around the golden ball, his curled into a fist and he drew his broom away. Harry took a sharp dip upwards and held the Snitch triumphantly in the air. The whistle sounded and the crowd cheered all the louder. Harry landed and was immediately engulfed in hugs from his team mates, pretty soon the whole team was surrounded by a stream of Gryffindor supporters.
"You did it! You did it!" Ally and Nick were chanting together while Mickey gave a shy smile of congratulations when the three had eventually dragged themselves through the crowd.
Up to this point Harry had gone from being patted firmly on the back by the two Gryffindor Beaters, Jimmy Peakes and Ritchie Coote, to being hugged by Katie, then Demelza and then Ginny. He suppressed the blush when said red head barrelled into his arms, feeling a little awkward over the entire situation. She let go, but was quickly replaced by Ally and then Hermione. Though, and this Harry noticed with something of a grin, she had quickly moved on to fuss over Ron.
"Maybe we should take you to the Hospital Wing?" she suggested, wringing her hands out a little as she inspected Ron's bruised face.
"It's not that bad," Ron said nonchalantly, though there was definitely a flush of pink in his cheeks.
"Just in case," Hermione admonished, her brown eyes wide now.
"Hermione," Ron groaned, but Harry was pretty sure everyone within sight of the exchange could tell he was enjoying the attention.
Then Hermione hugged him.
And in public too.
Harry could have rolled over laughing at the pleased, but clearly shocked look on his friend's face. Ron was just about to go as red as his hair at this point.
"Er-congratulations," she said hurriedly, as she pulled back blushing.
"T-thanks," Ron managed to croak out.
Harry gave one last chuckle, the crowd had started to die down a little and he was greeted with the sight of his father and godfather coming up to congratulate him. Sirius had an insanely happy smile on his face as he lifted his hands up and said loudly.
"Butterbeers at the Three Broomsticks on me today!"
James shook his head and approached Harry, a proud smile on his face and Harry felt warm inside. He'd won his first game and his father had been there to see it.
"That was awesome," he said with a wink to his son.
And Harry did something he hadn't done before.
Maybe it was the stress of the past few days, coupled with the exhilaration of winning the match, but for the first time ever, Harry made the first move and hugged his father.
"You came," he said, drawing back after a moment.
"Of course," James Potter was a little surprised by his son's burst of affection, but welcomed it as a good sign, "Couldn't miss my boy's first match, now could I?"
The way he said 'my boy' only made Harry's smile widen.
"Thanks," he said a little shyly.
"Harry!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed, "Spectacular catch there!"
"Thanks Sirius," Harry chuckled, "How did you escape Professor McGonagall?"
"Minnie?" Sirius puffed out his chest, "I'll have you know we have avoiding punishment down to a fine-"
"Black! Potter!"
Both men froze.
As though from nowhere, Professor McGonagall, nostrils flaring and eyes piercing, appeared directly behind the two old trouble makers and grabbed them both by the collars of their robes.
"I'm not done with you two yet," she said sternly, "Honestly, nearly twenty years on and you two still act like a pair of schoolboys. Well fine, then I will treat you as such."
She turned her gaze on Harry and he could feel himself almost standing to attention under her gave.
"Excellent catch Mr. Potter," she said and she actually smiled at him, "I'm sure the Cup will be ours this year."
Without another word, she proceeded to drag Harry's father and godfather away, both under duel protest.
"We'll meet you later!" James managed to call out, "Do you really have to be so rough?"
"At the Three Broomsticks!" Sirius joined in before he gave pleading yelps, "Mercy Minnie, mercy!"
Harry, his sister and their friends all stood and watched, laughing in unison as the Marauders' cries faded into the distance.
XXXXXXXHPHPHPHPHPXXXXXXXXXX
It was a couple of hours later, when Harry, Ron and Ginny were changed, Ron had been dragged to the Hospital Wing and back and Harry had managed to escape Ally's pouting face, that they were finally in Hogsmeade. Harry found himself being dragged from one store to another in quick succession by his over eager friends. Ginny left at one point to meet Luna, promising to meet them all back at the Three Broomsticks. Harry had mixed feelings about her leaving him alone with his two best friends, especially when Hermione was so obviously trying to not fight with Ron.
After hitting Honey Dukes, where Harry bought a large bar of chocolate for Remus, the poor guy had been under the weather the past day and hadn't been able to make Harry's match, the three eventually made their way to the Three Broomsticks. The crowd inside was quite spectacular and as soon as they entered Harry was pounded on the back by excited Gryffindors. He noticed all of his team mates were there and that each had a mug of Butterbeer in front of them. Then he saw his father and godfather who were waving ecstatically for him and his friends to join them.
"Took you long enough," Sirius said testily as Harry sat down.
"My first time in Hogsmeade," he said finally, "What do you expect?"
"You three want a Butterbeer?" James cut in, he rose from his seat, "I'll go-"
"I'll help you, Mr. Potter," Hermione chirped in obediently, getting up as well.
James beamed at her.
"Well, thank you Hermione."
The two disappeared to organize drinks.
"So," Harry couldn't help but smirk at his godfather, "How was your detention?"
Sirius shot his godson a small glare, it had been a while since they had last batted each other like they did whilst Harry was staying with Remus and despite the tease, both found that they had missed it.
"Oh fine," he said and grinned, "I'm the master at puppy dog eyeing my way out early though."
"I thought you were good at avoiding punishment?" Harry quirked an eyebrow, "Losing your touch, are you Padfoot?"
"Never!" the Marauder grimaced, "Today was merely a…small lapse in character."
"So you don't think calling the strictest teacher in Hogwarts 'Minnie' was just a bit of a bad idea?"
Sirius gave him an innocent look.
"Maybe…"
The two glared at one another for a moment before the two burst into laughter.
"Nice to see you again too, Prongslet," Sirius scoffed.
"Prongslet?" Harry's mouth twitched, "What the hell is that?"
"Well what else am I supposed to call the miniature version of Prongs? Unless you prefer Prongs Junior?"
"How about neither," Harry suggested.
"I don't know Harry," Ron cut into the exchange, "Prongs Junior sounds pretty good."
"Thank you Ron!" Sirius beamed at the red head, "Prongs Junior it is then."
Harry was glaring at both of them when James and Hermione found their way back to the table, carrying three Butterbeers. It was at James' enquiring look at Harry's face, that Ron blurted out the reason and the table again erupted in laughter. Harry pursed his lips.
"How did you get the nickname Prongs in any case?" he asked his father
Sirius was the one who opened his mouth, but was cut off by a commotion not far from their table. There seemed to be some shoving and a blonde woman fell neatly against Sirius' chair, causing him to jolt forward and hit his rib cage into the table painfully.
"Ouch!" the woman exclaimed as she collided with him, she hurried to stand up right, "Ruddy idiots. Oh, I'm sorry-Black!"
Sirius looked up at the woman in surprise.
She was at least as tall as Sirius, maybe taller in fact, with a generous hour glass figure and long, curling honey blonde hair. Her blue eyes were widened with shock when she saw him; she looked familiar, very familiar.
"Do I know you?" he asked.
She glared, it was like looking into twin pools of ice.
And Sirius looked like he wanted to take a step back, save for the fact that he was sitting.
"Tabitha Hollow," she said, her voice oddly cold, "I was a couple years below you in Gryffindor."
Sirius still looked blank, but Harry's father's face lit up a little.
"Tabby?" he questioned getting up, "Wow! I haven't seen you since before Harry was born. What are you doing in Hogsmeade?"
Tabitha Hollow looked at James Potter and immediately smiled. The smile seemed enough to melt the frostiness of her gaze and created a very different woman to the one who was staring so frigidly at Sirius Black.
"Hello James," she said, "It is good to see you again, I'm just here on business, though I was going to owl you soon, I wanted to congratulate you and Lily on finding Harry."
When she said business, she shot a glare at the bar, probably at the person who had pushed her into Sirius.
"The article in the Prophet?" James smiled, "That was really good of you, I know Lily appreciated it."
"Well I do owe her a lot," Tabitha chuckled, "Send her my best will you?"
"Will do," James nodded, "Don't be a stranger, you really must come to dinner some time, I know Lily would like you to."
"I'd love to," Harry noticed her cast a wary glance at Sirius.
"I'll owl you a date," and with the carried on verbal agreement to eventually meet up, Tabitha Hollow eventually left the Three Broomsticks.
"Who was that Dad?" Harry asked.
"She was one of the under years your mother used to tutor when we were all at Hogwarts," James explained, "Nice girl, she's a reporter at the Prophet now, used to help us a lot in the old days though."
He glared at Sirius.
"Please tell me you actually remember her?"
"Er-"
"Sirius Black!" Harry and Sirius both jumped at the tone of James' voice, "You really are a knuckle head!"
"Did you pick that up from Lily or Remus?" Sirius asked, this earned him a glare from his best friend, "What?"
James Potter gave a huge sigh and shook his head.
"Remus was right," he said in exasperation, "You are clueless."
"Okay, I want to hear this," Harry said curiously, "What's the deal with Sirius and Tabitha Hollow?"
"Actually, I want to know that too," Sirius looked at James expectantly, "Do tell."
James gave a huge sigh.
"When Tabitha was in Second Year and we were in Fourth, she developed something of a crushed on Sirius," the three younger Gryffindors eyes widened and they cast their gazes to Sirius, who looked confused himself, "Poor girl used to follow him everywhere and was always trying to impress him. Anyway, eventually Remus and I sat Sirius down and told him he had to stop leading her on and let her down easy. Stupid idiot wasn't even aware she fancied him."
"Hey-"
"So in the end it was Remus and I that had to explain to a twelve year old girl that her first crush not only wasn't interested, but also hadn't even noticed her. I think it broke her heart. And then, about three years later, when she was in Fifth and we were in Seventh Year, she finally got a pair of-" he cut off, looking warily at Hermione and cleared his throat, "She uh-developed into a more womanly figure."
Hermione gave a humph and rolled her eyes, muttering something under her breath about 'typical boys.' Ron looked like he wanted to snicker, but was watching Hermione just as warily as James had as he struggled to control the laughter from leaving him. Said girl was shooting a glare at Sirius, and said godfather was trying his best to look completely innocent as he ignored the accusatory gazes from his godson's friend.
"So yeah," James shot a glare at Sirius too, "It was then that he thought she was worth a look see. Of course by that time he had dated about half of Gryffindor Tower-"
"Hey!"
"So she wasn't about to take anything from him, she turned him down flat in front of the entire house and threatened to hex his-er-his more sensitive parts for good measure."
"The Ice Princess!" Sirius suddenly exclaimed, "Now I remember her!"
"No," James corrected, "You remember her because she's one of the only girls who ever rejected you and your-ahem-charms."
"Hey!" Sirius pouted, "She didn't know what she was missing! Ruddy girl was always such a popsicle, no one could melt her heart of ice and stone and other cold unforgiving things…"
"Sirius-"
"I mean," he continued unrelenting, "She never dated anyone."
"You're such an idiot," James sighed, "She wasn't a 'popsicle' until after her Second Year, I wonder why?"
"Yeah," said the oblivious Sirius, "So do I Prongs."
Finally, Ron let out his snicker, but he was saved Hermione admonishing him because she was too busy shaking her head at Sirius, whilst Harry rolled his eyes before joining in the laughter.
"Padfoot," James sighed, rubbing his temples.
"What?"
XXXXXXXHPHPHPHPHPHPHPXXXXXXXX
"I can't believe we have to wait two whole years to go to Hogsmeade!" Ally whined as she leaned back against a couch in the Gryffindor Common Room, "This really bites!"
"Ever the impatient one, huh?" Mickey smirked, stroking Hermione's cat Crookshanks fondly.
Ally just shot her a glare.
"What is it with you and that cat in any case?" she said, reserving a second glare for Crookshanks, "You and Hermione seem to be the only people it likes."
"He likes," Mickey corrected, cuddling the feline closer, "Crookshanks just has good taste, don't you Crookshanks?"
As though in answer, the cat gave a particularly loud purr and rubbed its head affectionately against her arm. There seemed to be few witches and wizards that could contend with the ferocity and evil that was the cat Crookshanks, Ally was pretty sure the thing was too smart for its own good, but Mickey seemed quite attached.
She frowned in disgust.
"Where's Nick?" she asked, looking around the Common Room, "I haven't seen him since the end of the match."
"Either with his brother," Mickey said, "Or Mark Barrette."
"Oh," Mark Barrette, a Ravenclaw First Year, was Ally's partner in transfiguration and Nick's in defence, "Well if its Mark, he'll be down at the pitch watching the Ravenclaw team practice."
"They're practicing already?" Mickey whistled, "Chang is quite the task master. The match between Slytherin and Gryffindor is hardly in its celebratory stages."
"Well, now she has to go up against the most brilliant Seeker in Gryffindor history," Ally smiled proudly, "My brother!"
Mickey snorted in spite of herself.
"It was his first match," she shook her head, "Though, I admit that catch was quite spectacular. Boy does have skill."
"All in the blood," the youngest Potter boasted proudly.
"So you say."
Ally pursed her lips a little.
"Listen, Mickey," she said finally, "Nick told me about-about why you're going to the library so often."
"Oh, he did," she didn't sound offended, but she kept stroking Crookshanks, perhaps a little more frantically this time.
"Why didn't you tell us before? I mean, we could help you, you know?"
"You never asked."
Ally groaned.
"Alright then," she looked right at Mickey, "I'm asking now; what happened to your dad?"
"I don't know," the stroking was definitely getting quicker.
"Okay," Ally said slowly, as calmly as she could, "What do you think happened?"
The stroking stopped.
"He disappeared the same night my uncle died," she said finally, "You see, he and my dad were twins, identical in every way possible, except for their personalities."
"What do you mean?"
Crookshanks had stopped purring.
"My Uncle Jasper was a supporter of You-Know-Who," Mickey's lips were like two thin white lines, "He'd been gone four years and Uncle Jasper was still on his side. I was told the night my Dad disappeared, he went to go bring Jasper to justice. Something happened, Jasper was killed in a crossfire and my Dad disappeared. He didn't even know I existed yet, Mum only found out she was pregnant a couple weeks later."
Ally gulped, Mickey was always so calm about things, she was probably the most down to earth person she had ever met and yet here she was, still talking calmly, but showing stronger emotions of rage and sadness than Ally thought existed. Her eyes were dark and filled with pain.
"Oh Micks," she sighed and pulled her friend into a hug, dislodging Crookshanks as she did, the cat in question sauntered off without looking back at the girls.
"You'll find him someday," Ally said firmly and she smiled at her friend, "If we could get Harry back, then you can get your dad back."
Something triggered inside of Mickey and for the first time in a long time…
She cried.
XXXXXHPHPHPHPHPXXXXXX
Albus' hand moved quickly over the paper as he began writing a detailed message to his friend Moody. It was time to start restructuring the Order, and although the message had been sent out, Albus was still trying to get hold of some of the more reliable of the old crowd. He didn't have much time, that he knew and he also knew that the chances were high he wouldn't be ready for Voldemort's first range of attack which he assumed would be very soon. He hoped though, that given his lateness in bringing Severus into the game, Tom was looking to spy into Hogwarts first. If that was the case, then he had time. But if it wasn't, then everything could fall apart quite quickly.
He wrote faster.
It was at this point that his potion master's Patronus burst into the room, mildly startling the aging headmaster. As soon as he saw it though, his heart dropped, even before the words were out of its mouth.
"Attack on Hogsmeade!" Severus Snape's voice rang out, "He'll be there by sundown! He has werewolves!"
The doe disappeared and Albus' eyes widened. It wasn't long to sundown, he had less than half an hour.
He had to hurry.
XXXXHPHPHPHPHPXXXXX
It was a few hours, Butterbeers and conversations later that the Gryffindors who had assembled in the Three Broomsticks finally started to dissipate. Ginny, who had jointed them earlier, was on the other side of the room talking to Luna and a few other Fifth Years about the match. Harry cast a few glances their way, his head was still a turmoil over Ginny Weasley and he tried to ignore the impulse to go over and talk to her. Most likely he'd freak the red head out and then where would he be. His Dad and Sirius got up to refill on the drinks, which they still insisted were on them.
"They seem happy," Hermione commented and smiled at Harry, "It was nice of them to come for your first match."
"Yeah," Harry agreed and he grinned widely, "It was great."
His friends exchanged a look each and turned to smile at Harry, both seemed happy for him.
"So, are you gong to tell them?" Ron asked curiously, "About the dreams and stuff, when was the last one you had again?"
"Last night," Harry answered automatically, not really thinking about it. He realised his mistake immediately when Hermione bristled.
"Anything else happen to you we should know about?" she asked testily, "You have been jumpy the past couple of days, ever since the two of you disappeared to the kitchens. Coming out with probably the largest chocolate cake I've ever seen I might add."
Harry and Ron both shrank under the gaze of Hermione Granger. She had not been too happy about the fact they had apparently used the elves for their own pleasure. Merlin, but when Hermione said these things it was pretty scary and Harry had been dragged involuntarily into a discussion about SPEW. Ron had been right, but they couldn't very well have tea and cake at Hagrid's without Hermione, could they?"
Come to think of it, she'd eaten the cake too.
"Um, well there might have been a house elf who warned me to stay in Hogwarts at all costs," Harry said innocently, "What?"
"Harry," Hermione said testily, "Tell your father, now."
"But-"
"Harry Potter," she said in a way that sounded suspsiously like Professor McGonagall.
"Alright, alright," he rose his hands in defeat, "I'll tell him before he leaves, happy now?"
Obviously she was, Harry sat back with a frown. It had been a really good day and he didn't want to bother his father with dreams of all things. He sighed, there was no escaping Hermione though and she would be on his back for another week if he didn't. He reflected back on the afternoon in general and realised there had been something, to rather someone missing from their little get together.
Remus Lupin.
He had been sick and unable to make Harry's match, actually, now he thought about it, Professor Lupin was sick a lot-
"We miss anything?" James asked, sitting back down next to his son.
"Nah, I was just thinking, it's a shame Professor Lupin is sick," Harry commented to his father, "Are you and Sirius going to see him before you go?"
James looked surprised by the request, but quickly cleared his throat and nodded.
"Yeah, later tonight," he smiled at his son, "You'll be at the Halloween feast, now that is something to look forward to."
Harry rose an eyebrow at the evasion and his suspicion from months earlier only grew, then Hermione gave his father a peculiar look. It seemed like she had just realised something and her eyes darted to the darkening sky outside the pub window. Harry followed her gaze and noticed the moon had already come out in the still bright sky, heavy clouds were moving in, but there was still a gap in the clouds clear enough to see it. He'd seen the moon coming out early before, in the late afternoon like it was now, but he had never given it much thought. The moon that hung in the sky was full.
That was a little odd.
James looked out of the window too and he grew a little pale.
"What time do you guys have to be back in Hogwarts?" he asked Harry, his eyes still strained to the moon.
"In about half an hour," Hermione said, checking her watch.
"I'll get the bill so long," Sirius said, giving James a pointed look, "We're going to drop in on Mooney later, so-"
"Ron and I will help you," Hermione said immediately.
"Why-" Ron began, but was cut off when Hermione gave him an odd look, "Oh right."
Harry looked at his friend in confusion, she leant in beside him and whispered;
"Tell him about the dreams."
Harry glared at her.
"What was that about?" James asked, his eyebrows raised. Harry sighed and turned to his father, his eyes troubled.
"Hermione," he said, as though it were all the explanation he needed, "Listen, Dad?"
"What's up?"
"Uh," Harry looked over to where Hermione was distracting Sirius from returning to the table, she really wanted him to tell James, "Its-its just-that I've been having these weird-"
He was cut off when a harsh scream pierced the air, the noise in the pub died as everyone paused to listen. Another scream penetrated, this time it was followed by a deafening howl.
XXXHPHPHPXXX
Sorry for the lack of update, I nearly dropped this story a couple of times. Don't get me wrong, I do want to finish it, but its just the next couple of chapters involve action-ish scenes, which I am loathe to write.
Oh well, I'll get it done, I hope…
Thanks for the reviews and advice, all is much appreciated at this point.
-Southern Hearts-