Still don't own Harry Potter….

Harry felt like he had been punched in the stomach. He couldn't catch his breath and was pretty sure he was going to throw up. Dementors at ASU? All the events of the past year flashed through his head and the pieces slowly came together. "If there are Dementors at the college, then does that mean Vold—"

"I'm afraid I don't know, Harry." Kingsley interrupted. "Dementors mean that someone must be controlling them, but as to whom, your guess is as good as mine."

Harry and Kingsley were interrupted by a knock at the office door. The door slowly creaked open and Alice stuck her head in. "Sorry, can I come in?" Kinsley nodded and motioned for her to sit in the chair across from Harry. Alice walked in and sat down, shifting in the seat uncomfortably. Harry could tell she had something on her mind, and it must be important. She knew that he was going to meet with Kingsley and Alice wasn't the type to interrupt people unless it was urgent. "Sorry to interrupt Kingsley, but something just happened and I think that Harry needs to know." Harry noticed that Alice was close to tears, and his heart jumped in his chest, preparing him to get up and defend her. (Which was ridiculous, because he didn't even know what was wrong yet. Stupid reflexes.) "I was up in the dormitory room and someone came and knocked on the door. It was a young boy, who said his name was David. He told me there was a message waiting for me in the dining hall that had been brought by owl late last night." Alice paused, her voice catching as a tear slid down her cheek. "So…I went to the dining hall and checked, and there was a letter that had my name printed on it. I opened it and it was from back home, or well, from the university….it's probably better that you just read it." Alice reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. Her hands were shaking slightly as she handed it to Harry. He unfolded it and read aloud:

Alice,

By now I'm sure you're wondering exactly what's going on. Well my dear, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: Harry Potter is not who he says he is. He is a Dementor, a terrible monster that will stop at nothing to get what he wants: the death of all those you know and love. He will try to tell you otherwise, but do not listen. I am the only one you can trust. Meet me at the clock tower on campus this Friday at 2:00pm. Bring the wand from his room. I know he has one. Tell no one about this, especially that terrible Potter.

Josh

If steam could shoot out of Harry's ears like it does in cartoons, it would. Harry threw the letter on the ground and scoffed. "If he thinks he can get away with this….Alice you know I'm not….How does he know about…." His thoughts were racing at a mile a minute and he couldn't get them all out at the same time. "You know that's not true, right Alice? None of what he said is true."

"Of course I know that, Harry." Alice said, and Harry sighed with relief. "Although, how does he know that you have a wand? How does he always seem to know all this stuff about you?" Harry was thinking exactly the same thing.

"I don't know, but what I do know is Josh has given us an opportunity that we can't pass up. You're going to meet with him at the clock tower, just like he wants. I'll be nearby, listening and ready to help you if you get in trouble." Alice just nodded, she had already thought of the same plan. Harry turned to Kingsley, "we need to get back to ASU, and fast. Friday is two days away, we need time to prepare." Kingsley nodded and walked towards the office door, which was still slightly open from when Alice came in. "Of course Harry. I will do everything I can here to keep the students safe and send you any additional help that I can spare."

Harry and Alice walked out the front doors of Hogwarts, and Harry felt a twinge of sadness. Even though he hadn't been here to stay, leaving still made him a little sad. Alice put her hand on his arm and smiled. He really did have a great girl, and things weren't going to get any easier from here. Harry shook hands with Kingsley and Alice gave him a quick hug before they headed off towards the waiting car. Kingsley had arranged a ride to the train station for them as well as everything they would need for the ride back home. Harry had arranged for Molly to meet them at King's Cross Station and from there they would get a ride to the airport. Arthur had booked them last-minute tickets back to Arizona. The entire trip schedule was going to take all day, leaving them only one day left before the meeting with Josh. Alice slept most of the way on the train, which was probably for the best. It was mostly empty, being in the middle of the school year and all, but there were some stragglers travelling back to London. When they arrived at King's Cross, it was just about lunch time, and Harry and Alice were starving. They hadn't eaten breakfast in their hurry to leave Hogwarts. Molly met them at the ticket stations, hugging them both and producing sandwiches from her purse. Molly was always prepared for anything, and seemed to know exactly what her children wanted (since Harry is basically her son, Alice was welcomed in as a daughter.) They didn't have much time to stand around the station as the plane would be leaving within two hours. Molly drove them to the airport, making small talk along the way. Harry and Alice updated her on the status of Hogwarts and Kingsley, leaving out the part with the Dementors and Josh, though Molly could tell that something was wrong. She could always tell.

Harry and Alice arrived at the airport with just enough time to get in line and board the plane, but not much else. They had seats towards the front of the plane, which Alice kind of preferred. She gave Harry the window seat, and he fell asleep almost immediately after the plane took off. Alice spent her time dozing and watching the in-flight movie, some nondescript action movie where things blew up a lot. The plane landed in Arizona around 11pm, and Harry and Alice took a taxi back to the university. Harry was eternally grateful that Kingsley had given him some extra money for the trip which he used to pay for the taxi ride. Harry was about to drop Alice off at her room and head to his own when she stopped him. "Harry, would you spend the night here? With everything that's been happening…I just don't want to be alone." She shifted on her feet, looking embarrassed. Harry smiled and nodded. They curled up in Alice's bed and slept soundly.

Alice opened her eyes and sat up in bed. She stretched and looked around, finding Harry sitting in her desk chair. "Hey," she mumbled, not quite awake yet. "Mmm." Harry responded, his attention focused on the letter from Josh again. "How long have you been awake?" Alice asked, checking the time. 8:37am. Too early, usually. "A while." Was all Harry said, though she guessed that meant hours.

"I made this." Harry said, holding a carved stick in the shape of wand. "When you meet with Josh, take this. That way, he will think you actually brought my wand and won't get suspicious." Alice nodded, taking the stick-wand and getting out of bed to get dressed. "I will have my actual wand with me, just in case." Harry didn't seem to be against using his wand on Josh, and Alice couldn't really blame him. If the roles were reversed, she'd act the same way. Alice got dressed and they ate breakfast in relative silence. Alice could tell Harry was lost in thought, and she didn't want to interrupt. A lot had happened in the last 48 hours and they both needed some thinking time.

The day passed without anything exciting happening, considering what was happening at 2pm. Around 1:30, Harry and Alice headed towards the clock tower, Harry taking a different path and hiding behind some large bushes out of sight. When Alice got there, Josh hadn't arrived yet. She sat on a bench next to the clock tower and waited. Minutes ticked by and still no Josh. Maybe he's not coming , she thought. Man, she would be pissed. After all the last minute travel, all the worrying, and the people that came to their aid, if he didn't show up she was going to hunt him down herself. She checked her watch 2:03. She was about to get up and leave when she heard footsteps behind her. Alice turned around and Josh was standing maybe 30 feet away, smiling a rather creepy smile. Alice stood and faced him, making sure she had the stick-wand in her hand. "Josh, what's going on?" Alice said, her voice more shaky than she wanted it to be. She had to stop herself from glancing at the bushes to see if Harry was still there.

"Alice, glad you could make it." Josh said cheerfully, which only added to the creepy factor. "I take it you got my note. How was Hogwarts? Is Kingsley still in charge?" Alice opened her mouth to reply, but nothing came out. How did he know so much?! "I'm sure there's a lot you're wondering, and there will be time for all of that, but first…" Josh lunged forward and grabbed Alice's arm before she could react. He grabbed the stick-wand from her hand and examined it. "Hah! A cheap imitation. I should've known. I'll bet Potter is nearby with the real one, isn't he?" Alice said nothing, frozen with fear. Josh still had a tight grip on her arm and she couldn't break free.

"Josh, let her go!" Harry charged out from behind the bushes where he was hiding, pointing his wand at Josh and Alice.

"Harry, thought I'd be seeing you. But unfortunately, we have to go." Josh tugged on Alice's arm, and she stumbled into him. He wrapped his arm around her and held her tight. Alice screamed and tried to break free. Harry saw Josh push on the necklace he was wearing and he and Alice disappeared.

Please r&r, it really does help! Thank you so much for reading!

Until next time,

Eridium Blight