![[private post]](https://l-stat.livejournal.net/img/icon_private.gif?v=7017 "[private post]"){kind=icon}
‘The Prophecy Pact’
The Prophecy Pact
By: Hidders
:: :: Important-Stuff-That-Will-Only-Be-Posted-O
Rating: PG-13/Teen (for language) When the story is finished I'll be able to have a set rating.
Warnings: None yet
Pairings: Eventually Harry/Draco. Ron/Hermione (given). Talks of Harry/Ginny & Dumbledore/???. (Sexual Dumbledore!?!?! I know! But no icky old man sex.) And whatever pops into my head.
Spoilers: up to HBP; some elements from DH can be found rather blatantly spread throughout this fic. If you haven't read DH then that's just great! Because you don't need to know ANYTHING from that book to know my story. You having not read DH means you will not know what is a spoiler, alteration, or what is all mine! Muahahaha... I hope even my little twists on the canon things amuses people who know better, at least.
Summary (at the moment): A prophecy anticipated, a pact contrived. As Harry prepares for the final fracas with Voldemort he learns of the world he lives in and about his ancestry.
Disclaimer: I own everything you haven't read before... If it's new, it's mine... Not good enough!? Fine, Harry Potter and all it's fandom goodness is owned by J.K.Rowling & Warner Bros. AND she doesn't seem to be keen on sharing any time soon. So I thieved it away for the duration of my fic. I'm not up to posting this every chapter so I won't. I mean really, this is a fanfiction website! Why should we disclaim anything when it's already implied!? Oh, I claim Clyff Endor, that's mine! Totally.
Chapters Information: Chapters will be at least 3,000 words each. That is unless something rather significant happens and is deserving of it's own chapter despite length; like something to do with Voldie or other plotty things, not random fluff... that stuff will be meshed into a larger chapter. Also, udpates are sporatic as of right now. I'll post the chapters as I go, once I reach it's chapterly goal of 3,000 words. This might lead to cliff hangers... Yay. Encouragement in the form of reviews might help spur me to go fast. And I'm open to suggestions about things not pertaining directly to the plot - unless you have a great plottable idea that would fit this fic, then I'll listen!
Author's Note: The plot (Yes, I know, a plot!) will pretty much rule most of the story but please bear with the work-up. I don't want to drag things out but I also don't want to just give it all away in the first five chapters. Sorry for the OCCness. The books really don't give anyone a personality anyways. And as shown in book 5, characters can have drastic personality changes on the fly. (I mean Harry's quick anger - now that was canon OCC!) If my facts about something in the books (1-6) are wrong please tell me so I can fix it. I hate reading fics that had the wrong information placed. I'm sorta testing the waters with this, my first novel-length fic. Be happy I didn't go with my first idea of a vampire fic. Maybe next time. Have to climb over this one before I can do the 'fic that's been done before'. I'm a big fan of magical bonding fics so I might throw one case, or three, in if it fits with my story. I hope to have a mildly believeable friendship form before any romance happens between our boys. Like Draco Malfoy and the Heart of Slytherin by Saber ShadowKitten and Snakes and Lions by GatewayGirl - these are envible pieces. Everything is currently un-beta-ed. But I know how to use spell checker, and I read through my work more times than necessary.
Anywho, on with the show...
<(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)>
Chapter One: Two In Tow
This was stupid, Harry thought as he bit his lip. What was he thinking when he thought about skipping out of his last year of school to begin a hunt of objects he had not one clue on finding? Well, he wasn't thinking about how his friends would take the news, so he was rather shocked when they declared they'd follow him anywhere and everywhere. That might explain why he was now standing just outside the magical barrier of platform 9¾ with his two friends looking into the enraged face of Vernon Dursley. This was not going to be pretty when they got back to the house. As it were Vernon just kept his mouth shut and lead the trio to the waiting car.
The drive was quiet with a heavily taut atmosphere. Harry knew that if any one of his friends had spoken the littlest of words there was going to be hell to pay. Hermione and Ron seemed to have understood this and gave him sheepish, tight-lipped smiles to encourage him. His own eyes stayed focused to the back of his uncle's head.
Discretely, a piece of paper was pulled unnoticed out of Hermione’s rucksack. After she hurried a note and slid it to Harry she relaxed into her seat. Ron observed the change in Hermione’s posture with curiosity but chose to take her hand instead of addressing it. Hermione squeezed it.
Harry watched the exchange out to the corner of his eyes. It never creased to amuse him to watch his two favorite people fight and show their affection for each other. His attention was soon brought back to the slip of parchment cradled in his hands. It said:
Your uncle seems furious, what should we do?
Harry bit his lip. To say he hadn’t thought this far would have been an understatement. In truth Harry hadn’t given the matter the least bit of thought. His mind went over possible outcomes of the confrontation that was bound to happen. There was nothing more Harry wanted than to shield his friends from that. So he scribbled back:
As soon as we get into the house I want you two to drop your luggage
and keep walking straight out the sliding doors leading to the backyard.
Please don’t fight me on this.
And no matter what you may hear or see, stay outside.
The look Hermione gave him would have been comical had the situation been different. Ron just nodded his accord. Reluctantly, Hermione also gave a stern bop of her head.
Ten minutes they had pulled into the drive way of a plain suburban house lined on Privet Drive. Identical to those on either side of it in every way. Mowed lawn, trimmed bushes, primed roses, sprinkler system set for noon. The only obvious differences were the choice of vehicles ranging from sports car to minivan. Harry's Uncle's sedan rested comfortably in the middle of the spectrum.
To Hermione this was nothing new. She herself lived in a neighborhood similar to Surrey. Ron, however, was in mild awe. Wizards tend to spread their homes away from others as to keep their private matters... well, private. The Weasley home itself was nearly 5 kilometers from the sign of civilization. Neither Harry nor Hermione been to a wizarding home that was not the Burrow or Grimmauld so they didn't grasp Ron's surprise. (1)
Harry groaned inwardly. It was too soon. He wasn't ready to go inside so he stalled as long as he could, pointing out the neighbors and what he knew of them. Also minding to point out Mrs. Figg's house across the street in case of an emergency, assuming her fireplace was hooked up to the floo network.
Ron gave Harry's arm a comforting squeeze before levitating all three of their Hogwarts trunks, Crookshanks' and Hedwig's cages. With his wand raised and his hand in Hermione's, Ron lead the way into the awaiting house. Pride in his friend filled Harry. Sometimes, being a reckless Gryffindor was what saves you. Harry thought this was one of those times.
Vernon, flanked by Petunia and Dudley, stood near the staircase waiting for the 'freaks' to come in. His face getting redder by the minute. First was the tall redhead, pulling along a pale girl he assumed was the boy's girlfriend. Behind the two was an array of floating objects; only at this time did he notice the boy holding a stick.
From outside Harry could hear the moment his uncle exploded. This also meant the neighbors could too, and it would only be a matter of time when heads would be popping out of doors and windows. Sighing, Harry mustered up all the courage and patience he could to walk into the line of fire, so to speak.
As expected, Vernon was shouting at the backs of his retreating friends, Petunia was silent but gripping the railing with white knuckles, and Dudley was flushed against the wall in fear despite his demanding size. Harry slammed the door just enough to bring the attention back to him the second the back door closed. He prepared for the verbal onslaught. Occumency was a wonderful contribution to keeping his own temper in check.
The man's mouth opened to lay into Harry but the boy just put up a commanding hand. Amazingly enough, this was enough to shut the large man up. He set his emerald eyes upon his relatives.
"We will be staying. All three of us," Vernon tried to cut in at this statement but Harry's voice sharpened, "will be spending the duration of two weeks inside of my room or outside. I'll also do all my expected chores. Don't talk to them, they won't talk to you." Vernon had enough of the boy's presumptions.
"What makes you think we'll put up with your lot? We barely put up with you!" A big shit-eating grin planted on Harry's face.
"Because, they are adults in my world. And that means they have free reign to wave those twigs and do magic tricks. The girl's the smartest witch I know - and I know plenty. The boy... Well, I'd be wary of him, he's got a right temper." He milked their fear knowing he'll never get the chance again. Praise be the gods that allowed him the company of such great friends, whom he could exploit at times like this.
"So," Harry continued, "I don't think any repeats of previous summers would be wise. Hell knows what those two would do to you if they ever found out what you pathetic muggles have done to me. They're very protective."
<(^_^)>
Outside Ron and Hermione had their faces plastered to the window. The view wasn't a great one but it as enough to get an idea of Harry's confrontation with his relatives. By the stories told by their neglected friend they expected a lot of yelling and maybe some physical violence. Their knowledge of the small (or rather two-large and one-small) family was quite vague. Harry was never keen to talking about his life in the muggle world.
"I - can't - see." Came the brunette's strained voice.
Hermione had to stand on her tip-toes to see over the potted plant on the inner windowsill. Ron saw the girl struggling and offered her a boost on his back which she accepted blushing. Now on the similar viewing level they eyed the four inside.
They watched as the large man's lips poised to lay into Harry but his mouth shut as soon as it had opened. Ron would have thought Harry had magicked it if he had not seen the demanding hand and determined eyes. Without being able to hear what Harry calmly said they assumed it was something harmless. That was until they seen the stand-off between the muggles and the Gryffindor.
There was no raised voices shouting back and forth, and there was certainly no raised hands. Harry was standing there with the three family members looking at him in fear that was not in the least bit mild. This family was terrified of their wizard nephew, with great reason. In the blink of an eye the mood had changed in Harry's favor.
"What do you think they're saying?" Ron asked when he noticed the window was virtually sound proof. Hermione huffed and shifted on his back.
"Honestly, Ron! It's obvious that he's telling them how much he missed them and loves them. And there's his uncle saying it back. Oh, and now Harry's telling them he's the Merlin incarnate."
"Are you serious?" Ron asked her.
"Don't be daft, I'm just jesting. What would be the point in guessing, we're bad at that game. It's high time we learn not to play games we can't win."
"Is that some sort of riddle?"
Chocolate eyes stared into the boy's confused blues. Ron really was rather hopeless. She sighed in defeat.
"Just watch Harry."
They both looked back inside the house but didn't see Harry or his relatives. The sound of the sliding door cause them to both jump. Harry's fuzzy head popped out with a smile.
"All set," he said. "Let's get settled first."
The three marched their trunks and other belongings up the isolated staircase and into the second room on the right. Also known as Dudley's second bedroom, the junk room, Harry's room. Harry pointed out the other four doors and explained what lain behind them. He also advised them to stay clear of all but the bathroom.
"Now, it's not much but it's better than my old room and has tons of broken toys my cousin forgotten about that you two could configure so we should be able to live relatively comfortable for the next few we-"
"Harry, your rambling," Hermione chided.
"Sorry." He gave a defeated sigh.
Harry wasn't sure he was ready to let even his two best friends in on this little secret of his life but it was far too late to stop it. For years he had managed to avoid the questions brought up about summer vacation and his childhood. He'd try to say it was 'good' and 'as well as a magic-free summer could be'. As intruding as Gryffindors were, Ron and Hermione seemed to understand not to push him.
The door opened to reveal the room he called his own only temporarily. Mounds of toys and forgotten trinkets covered the right side of the room. It showed no visible boundary between what was there before Harry stayed there and after. The left held a small wardrobe and a bed that could barely hold a teen Harry's size pressed into the far left corner. A gap was flanked by the furniture to leave access to the lone window.
"Guess they were quick to put those bars back up, huh?" Ron whistled.
"Heh, yeah," Harry managed a small smile. "There were back up when I came back the next summer."
"That's barbaric!" Hermione had a dark, disapproving look on her face.
"It's alright. They're scared; and as muggles they should be. It's usually during the summer that my magic gets away from me."
"Mate, that shouldn't happen anymore." Ron had already abandoned his trunks and started sifting through the piles of muggle things. Hermione was opening the window to air the room out.
"He's right, Harry. Only untrained children lose control. You shouldn't have had that problem the moment you bonded with your wand. That's the point of wands after all."
"I thought they were focal points," Harry kick off his shoes and climbed on top of the bed. "Like the bottom of a funnel, drawing our magic into a centered point. Sorta like an antenna sending waves of magic out of our body."
"Well, that's true enough," she said as she sat beside him. "See, wands become like a filtering top to a magic filled jar. Without it your magic would be unbelievably stronger, but you'd tired out within minutes from the magical drain and strain."
"Wands are like a limiter?"
"Exactly," answered Ron. "I don't see how you don't know this already," he mumbled the last to himself.
"Muggle-raised," he stated before seeing Hermione shoot a look at him. "Whom has little love of books," he added quickly.
"You should have enough curiosity about your heritage to at least read up on it." Hermione tsked, then paused. "But it's understandable."
"Damn straight!" Ron and Harry shouted with smiles. Voldemort pretty much occupied Harry's magical life and they all knew it.
"Harry, what's this?" Ron held up a tiny piece of scrap metal that came to several points from the middle.
"It's a piece to a muggle game, it's called a jackstone."
Ron pulled out his wand and pointed it at the jack as he threw it high up into the air. It stuck itself to the ceiling and started to glow white. He collected the other seven jacks, split them three or four times and repeated tossing them. They now glowed like mini stars.
"I'm good with decoration charms." He shrugged while his friends stared at him.
"Then why does your room look like an orange threw up?" Hermione pointed out.
"I like my room, thank you very much!"
"How about you guys fix this room and make it livable." Harry tried to put a stopper to the incoming fight.
The other two just set their jaws and pointed their wands at the piles of toys. Hermione's spell created a bottomless box and Ron's placed the junk inside. One of them then spelled the carpet clean while the other followed it with a coloring charm to make it go from blue to beige. Ron then used a handy space saver spell his family used at home to add ten or so feet to the room.
"Harry," Hermione called. "Would you mind getting off the bed?"
Harry bolted off the bed just before she shot a spell at the worn duvet. She had cleaned it up a bit, gave it an updated striped pattern and fluffed out the pillows. The bed, while still the small single sized frame, was now reminiscent of something that would be seen in a nice hotel. Two matching replicas were transfigured from piles of junk. The first one, originally Harry's, was navy blue and tan. Hermione's own was light brown and rose. And of course, Ron's had to be the trusty eyesore that was Gryffindor colors.
The beds were levitate into different corners of the room, boys to the back and Hermione just right of the door. Desks were spelled for each of them around the room and in-between beds, Hermione's doing. Harry noticed Ron was already stuffing their trunks into the closet he had never seen before. The box of Dudley's disused toys was shrunk and placed in the desk closest to Hermione's bed for later transfigurations. His friends were amazing.
"Done," cheered Ron.
"You two are the best," Harry praised, bouncing on his newly improved bed. "Can't wait to see the look on the Dursley's faces when they see this room!"
"Oh!" Hermione jumped up from her desk's chair. "Two more things."
Both boys watched the girl open the room's door and run her wand down the length of locks, banishing them it seemed. When that was done she shot another banishing charm out the window and at the bars. They too vanished.
"No more confinement! That was simply horrible of those people. And they're supposedly your family!"
Harry tried to bypass the pity and embarrassment by moving Hedwig's cage to his desk under the window. In a matter of minutes his friends had converted his room into a functional co-ed dorm room. Hermione started gathering her textbooks and moving them to the drawers of her desk, sorting them by subject and year. Ron went back to his bed with various piles of magazines that screamed 'muggle'.
"How about I get us some sandwiches? Anything you prefer?" Harry shrugged off his light jacket and moved towards the door.
"Turkey?" Offered Ron while going through a stack of muggle comic books.
"Peanut butter and jelly!" Hermione excitedly popped her head out of the closet. "It's been ages since I've had the craving."
"Grape, raspberry, or strawberry," he tallied off the choices as he kicked at the door frame.
"Surprise me."
"I promise!" He made a hasty exit, grateful to be away from sympathetic looks. Harry could hear his friends to discussing peanut butter from within the room as he made his way down the stairs.
Sometimes he really wanted to tell his friends about life on Privet Drive, maybe just to get it out, to tell anyone. But then the reality of who he is and what he is perceived to be comes back to him. Harry Potter; Boy-Who-Lived; Savior of the Wizarding World; The Chosen One (the title was still going strong) was neglected and verbally abused for the first eleven years of his life!? And that's not including being Dudley's personal punching bag. Who would believe that? What's more, what would happen if they did? Further looks of pity and the occasional non-believer who would tell him the just wants the added attention.
After denying such claims for years it seemed to have the opposite effect. Tell the reporters 'no' and they come running. Saying 'yes' only holds them back for so long. There really was no escape from the press. To believe that it would stop after the war, who was Harry kidding. It's an endless cycle.
Thanks, Tom.
Harry stared into the bottom of the nearly empty jar of mayo having not noticed he opened it. He set to making a turkey, lettuce, and mayo sandwich to introduce Ron to muggle stuffed-bread goodness. At virtually four inches thick, he called it passing. As promised, he made a PBJ that would be sure to surprise Hermione. Just longing for the sweetness, Harry's own was filled with plain strawberry jam.
On his way back up to the once small room, he checked the whereabouts of his relatives seeing he had yet to pass one. The first room on the right was the shared room of his aunt and uncle. Inside he could hear the news coming over the telly and that sharp voice of his aunt's on the phone, too excited to be talking to Vernon. Sneaking down the hall to the last door on the left, Harry rested his ear against the wood of the door. Silence. Dudley was either in his parents' room, or more likely out finding weak kids to practice on. It was obvious Big D was keeping up with the muscle training.
It was then Harry notice the silence coming from the once small bedroom. Chancing a peek, he saw what could only be his best friends' first kiss. The three had been virtually glued at the hip since the funeral, this had been their only opportunity to take the next step. Just by a glance one could know he was intruding on something special, and not meant for prying eyes.
Their kiss was soft, tender even, compared to the one he had with Ginny. While Cho's screamed 'wet', Ginny's was a cry of utter triumph. It was hard, possessive. It said 'this one's mine'. There was no tender vow of suppressed love underneath the lips, tongue, and teeth. Just a complete loss of control on inhibited desire.
He waited for the telling sign of labored breathing announcing the release of the kiss' hold on them. The pants let him know it passed and was safe to interrupt.
"Food!" He grinned knowingly.
"How long have you been there?" Ron asked when Hermione buried her head in his pillows in embarrassment.
"Long enough to know to wait out your 'moment'." Harry slid two paper plates contain their lunch across Ron's bed. "It's alright Hermione. It would have been worst if I had came in right away, right? Not every kiss can be your first." The girl revealed half of her flushed face.
"You're probably right. Doesn't make it any less embarrassing." Ron snorted.
"Imagine if we'd done that at the Burrow. The entire family would know by sundown." This seemed to coax the level-headed girl out to the open with a sly grin.
"Yeah... Thanks Harry."
"You're welcome." He had taken a bite into his bread so his response was muffled with food. "I come baring grub," he indicated the plates after he swallowed.
Both ate appreciatively for a few bites. Ron's eyes almost rolled as he was hit by the creamy mayonnaise and crisp vegetation. That was a hit. Hermione pause every other bite to eye her sandwich. Every time she thought she knew the flavor of her fruit spread the next morsel quickly changed her mind. Harry watched in amusement. No one said Harry Potter doesn't know how to keep his promises, he thought. And he voiced this to the girl.
"What did you do to it?" Clearly, she was surprised.
"Open it," he pointed to the half that was left. The inner jam-side was marbled red and purple, guaranteed to be a different taste nearly every chew.
"Touché. Ingenious, Harry!" She consumed the remains with a pleased smile.
They finished in silence. Summer at the Dursleys was going to be enjoyable for once in his life, and he was happy that this also meant the end of his stays at the Dursleys. A great way to end it all.
<(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)>
Chapter Two: Day One Down
Dinner that night was an awkward affair. The table was divided like a battlefield; muggles on one side, wizards on the other. But a battlefield would have held more action than the silent filling of gullets. Every now and then Hermione would try to start up neutral conversation that even the muggles could work with. Nothing but noncommittal grunts, if that. Harry had to smile for her effort though.
His friends had never had Harry's home cooking so he tried to go all out. The end result was an impressive feast for eight. Maybe more since he knew both Dudley and Ron could eat for three, each, instead of the two Harry normally cooked Dudley.
"Harry," Hermione was helping him bring dishes to the kitchen sink. "Those roasted potatoes you made were excellent. I never knew you could cook so well." This caused Harry to blush.
When the meal was over the Dursleys returned to their respective rooms leaving free reign to the wizards. Ron was occupied by the television's moving pictures, flashing colors and loud noises. "A talking picture not on loop," he had called it. With her boyfriend completely drawn in by TV, Hermione was free to help Harry.
"It's not like we ever talked about who's the best cook. And I wasn't going to bring it up," he informed her, filling the sink with soapy water.
"Why not?" Harry turned off the water.
"What boy prides himself on his house keeping skills?" He immersed the cups and bowls into the water, proceeding to washed them by hand.
Had he been allowed magic he thought he'd still have done this menial task without. Like his work in the garden, it was calming. Another way to make himself feel normal and forget there was ever a war taking place outside the cool patch of tilled dirt. However, he could only be distracted for so long.
"Just another thing I'd rather the world did not know about," he ended the conversation. Hermione had always been there when the wizarding papers caught wind of something happening with his personal life. She knew he'd want to keep as much as he could to himself.
"So, you're really okay with Ron and me?" He paused in putting a plate on the drying rack.
"To be honest, I've been waiting for you two to start snogging all over the place. Ow!" The girl shoved an elbow into his side for his answer. "Fine, I'm just saying I was expecting it eventually. Ever since he found out you were indeed a girl."
"I couldn't believe he had said that at the time. I mean, duh, boobs!" Her gesture to her chest caused them both to crack into laughter.
"But really, it's not like I'm 'one of the boys'. I don't play in dirt, if I can help it. I despise flying, so Quidditch is out - indefinitely. I really hate flying," she whined. She waited for Harry to finish the last of the dishes. "As I've said before, Victor was mature enough to see me as a - a beautiful girl."
Her stutter told Harry how little she believed that statement. Hermione wasn't very good with compliments about her personal looks. She really had grown out of the homely looks she had when they met and now had a face that was of memorable beauty.
"But there was the language barrier and the whole thing with Ron. It just wasn't what I needed anymore."
"And Ron is?"
"Maybe..." She looked a little hesitant.
"What about Cormac?" He received a glare that one would get for laughing at a funeral.
"Okay," he held his hands up in surrender. "Dumb question."
"Do you think it's alright," she asked slowly. Harry's voice dropped to a whisper, any louder would probably disrupt the Earth's daily rotation.
"I don't know." It was honest, he didn't know. "But I'm starting to wonder. Any relationship starting from now until the end of the war might not be right. Like getting married because your biological clock is ticking; when it stops you wonder how in the world you could have married someone you don't love." A frown was set in his brows, his eyes were downcast.
"This war will change us, for better and worse. And we're at the forefront. I'm not sure what's going to happen and it scares me. I'm scared, Hermione." Arms wrapped around him with inviting warmth. He desperately needed this hug.
"You know she's taken. And I'm not the type to share, neither." Ron's voice came from the intersected dining room. Harry released Hermione with a grin.
"It might not be the right time, even if your time for this to work has passed, you have to admit it's a fun way to wait for what's next." He gave her a fleeting, cheeky smile before clapping Ron on the shoulder on his way to the staircase.
He probably shouldn't have said any of that.
Harry had been talking about his brief relationship with Ginny and not his best friends' love life. He knew beforehand that he had no place in his life for anything remotely romantic at the moment. It was a good distraction but thinking of it as such meant he was taking advantage of Ginny's feelings for him. She never fully gave up on her infatuation, and starting a meaningful relationship based on it was not the smartest thing he could have done. Breaking it off before anything damaging could be done was the best thing he could have done.
Maybe after this war, if he was granted the honor to live in this world longer, they could rekindle the flame. And for the time being he could keep her safe. Yeah, they might not have had the long friendship and attraction like Ron and Hermione, but maybe there was a chance at happiness for them together.
His goals were clear: find the horcruxes, kill Voldemort... and Pettigrew... and Bellatrix, then come home to sweep Ginny off her feet, and proceed to have a large family of ladybug-colored children. It was an image that flooded his stomach with liquid warmth. That is until he pictured his children being as spotted as ladybugs. Harry had to chuckle at that.
Ron came into the room asking what was so funny. He went into another round of laughs and told his friends that it was nothing as they settled down to go to bed for the night. They managed to survive 'Day One' no worse for the wear with Thirteen days left. One day at a time, he told himself.
"Good night," he called through the dark of the room not waiting for the responses before rolling towards the wall, immediately passing out.
<(^_^)>
The time spent in that small, muggle house with Hermione and Ron seemed to push the days into nights at a refreshing speed. Harry's days were spent doing the chores from a list, updated daily by Petunia. Hermione would help him in the garden while Ron practiced his stealth skills by following Dudley and his gang. But Ron's utter lack of craftiness made him more that slightly obvious. A man of Ron's statue surely could not believe he could hide behind a common streetlamp, no matter how much he sucked it in. He only seemed to cause the 'D-irty D-eeds' (the name Dudley gave his group of ruffians) to fall prey to acute paranoia.
Ron also developed a habit of leaving the bedroom door open during the day when the other two studied their old textbooks. One would think he did this out of carelessness, however that was not the case. He knew that if he left the door open curious muggles would look in. (The Dursley's were quite known at this point to be nosy.) The redhead would sit on his bed in wait for a snoopy face. Sometimes, he'd send a small array of sparks from the end of his wand. Others, he'd charm a sock to inch and crawl its way to the only entrance. This would always erupt into an amusing round of hysterics from the victim.
Hermione would try fruitlessly to talk to Harry's aunt. The stick-like woman would just would not have it, talking to a freak. Eventually, she gave up. Being an only child to a pair of work-a-holic dentists herself, she had no problems with helping with the housework, and Harry enjoyed her company. They would exchange recipes and experiment with spices together.
The trio started to take their meals after the Dursleys to avoid the discomforting stares. This worked out rather well seeing as the Dursleys woke up early. Hermione, who was always awake before every one else, would already have her head in a book or writing meticulously on a notebook when Harry would wake to start their breakfast. She didn't mind waiting, and Ron wasn't getting up any time soon.
Harry still experienced nightmares at night. Some were of the sadistic pleasure he'd get from punishing Snape for his ultimate betrayal. Most were an endless reel of the events from the night Dumbledore died. On a rare occasion Sirius would make an appearance.
That's how it was on the fourth morning. After what started as a torture session with Sirius on Snape turned to something darker.
Harry had stood over Severus Snape's prone form laying in the grass, his holly wand raised parallel to Sirius' own black birch. The professor was writhing with the affects of the double crucio. Harry could feel himself grinning in sadistic pleasure, eyes twinkling as if it was all good fun. Sirius cackled with vicious mirth in a voice unlike his own, it was that which drew Harry to see the man standing next to him was not his godfather. No, it was Tom Riddle's deranged laughter that came forth.
And when Harry looked back down at his victim it was no longer the man who, at one time, called himself the Half-Blood Prince. Greasy, black hair was traded for long, coarse, white hair. A beard grew rapidly down the man's front and touched the holy ground of the graveyard. Black, soulless eyes suddenly became piercing blue that held no sparkle they were known for. Harry was looking down into the eyes of his mentor, Albus Dumbledore.
His eyes began taking in the broken man hunched before him and a noise erupted from his throat. It had taken a moment for him to realize he was not crying out, but laughing. A sharp, high-pitched laugh that matched Riddle's. Dumbledore looked up with sad, defeated eyes as the men above him became deranged. Harry was aware of what was going on and he knew that his heart should be breaking at the sight of the old man cowarding on the muddy ground, but he was not. He was oddly light, like his laugh that carried over the hills of his memory.
He felt himself being pulled back through the mist, out of the dream.
"Harry? Harry, wake up!"
Harry woke to see the worried eyes of Hermione staring into his. The flannel cloth of his night clothes was sticking to his body with perspiration.
"You were having a nightmare," she stated the obvious.
"It's okay now," he whispered. "Just a dream. You can go back to bed now, 'Mione." Instead of going back to her bed, the girl sat down on the edge of his.
"Well, it's six-twenty now. You have to get up soon anyways."
He nodded, there was no use in trying to go back to bed. Light was just breaking over the horizon. Ron was snoring in the other corner, mumbling about dementors and spiders every so often. There was no other sounds but the birds awakened.
Hopping gingerly from foot to foot, Harry made his way over to the closeted trunks. He pulled out a cold pair of very loose shorts and a large shirt. Hermione stood behind him with asking eyes and he held up the articles of clothing one at a time. The witch shrunk them to a size more ideal for Harry's frame. He gave her a grin in thanks before going across the hall to change.
It was nearly routine for Hermione to shrink down Harry's clothes every day. Just as practically everything they did day-to-day was run on a routine. He possessed just enough outfits for a week straight and they were almost to the last of the bottoms.
When he came out, Hermione was standing by the bathroom door to offer her services in preparing the morning meal with him. He accepted. Having her company would help speed the morning along, and she was a great conversationalist.
He collected the bacon, eggs, sausages, and pancake mix from the refrigerator and lower pantry. She told him about the spells they skipped over in the last 6 years of charms and transfiguration. He heated the frying pan and flat skillet. And he started to scramble eggs with milk for the ham and cheese omlets. She got started on the pancake batter, telling of her theories on why such spells were left out of the curriculum. As facinating as they were, they were just guesses and speculation and that conversation soon ended.
"Harry," Hermione spooned the last of the batter onto the skillet thinly. "What are we going to do about the Horcruxes?"
"What do you mean? We're going to look for them," he said behind a slightly burnt piece of toast, as he waited for the Dursleys to lumber downstairs. Damn tubbies were late for food, for the first time in years.
"Yes, but how are we suppose to do that, oh-great-one?"
Nothing but silence, followed by absolutely dumb sounds. "Uh... Um... Er..."
"We're being a little stupid about this, Harry."
Before Harry could answer, Vernon's mass could be heard bumbling down the stairs. He grumble about bewitched clocks and freaks who must have been the cause. Hermione helped Harry get the food to the table quickly to avoid confrontation with the cranky man.
They decided to have breakfast on the back porch in wait of Ron's lazy carcase, which would soon be slithering towards the smell of buttermilk pancakes and freshly cooked kippers. Hermione placed a stasis spell on the bounty, knowing they would have quite a sum amount of alone time. She prepared her crepe with cream cheese and garden strawberries before going back to their earlier conversation.
"Now, we're going to need books. Lots of books. Lots of old books." She said in between noises of appreciation; whether for the food or the books, Harry did not know. "There shouldn't be anything more to learn about Riddle from a book. No more memories... And we can't exactly go up and ask him where he put his soul."
"I understand. We look into the Founders, see what we can find. I know it won't be easy, Hermione, but I don't have much choice in the matter. If I don't do this, I die." Harry's eyes became earnest, "You and Ron don't need to get involved. You could attend your last year at Hogwarts and help me afterwards. I don't expect this to be something that would only take up a few months. Dumbledore spent years working on his theories."
"Exactly, Harry!" Hermione put down her fork to point at open air, "Dumbledore was the most brilliant wizard around, and it took him forever! We're just children." Her flailing finger stopped his childish protest, "I'm not about to think we'll get blessed by your luck, time and again, to find all horcruxes in record time."
Harry thought about her words. Hermione wasn't only book smart, she was logical and realistic, even if realism is a lost cause in the magical world.
"Okay, then what do you sugg-"
"Hey, did you know I could smell that food from the room!?" Ron had awoken and was making his way towards the table.
Hermione fixed him a big plate, "I left the window open for that reason. Figured it would get you up quicker."
"Thanks," Ron tucked in. "So what did I miss?"
"Not with your mouth open, Ron. Harry and I were just discussing the horcruxes. Like where to start our search, and other things."
"I was just asking Hermione what her suggestion would be, when you came out."
"Well, neither of you are known for your research skills. And I'm only one person. We need help from someone smarter than us. Stop giving me that look, Harry. I'm smart but not enough for this."
Harry stared at his empty plate with a vacant gaze, undoubtedly telling them nothing. Ron, however, gulped down his cup of orange juice and brought voice to his opinion.
"Why doesn't Harry just hire some Velmers kids? Their always looking for a job and Harry's up the wazoo in money."
Harry blinked, he didn't know what the hell a Velmers kid was, but the idea of hiring outside help wasn't that bad. And it was a little strange to hear Ron talk about Harry's inherited wealth without the scathing tone. Hermione seemed to be thinking about it's oddness also because she gave Harry a questioning looked, which he answered with an unknowing shrug.
(1) Remember, it was night time when the Weasely's 'rescued' Harry in 2nd Year.
He wouldn't have gotten a good look around. And in 4th Year the Weasley's
came by floo network, they remained inside the house.
June 21 (Sat.): Hogwarts student ride the express to King's cross for the end of the year.
June 21 - July 5: Harry, Ron, and Hermione stay at the Durleys.
July 6 (Sun.): The trio settle into #12 Grimmauld Place.
July ?: Lupin arrives at #12GP and announces the survival of the Order. He also moves in.
July ?: The three arrange shopping in Diagon Alley and Muggle London. With Lupin, Shacklebolt, & Moody.
July 30 (Wed.): Harry finally has a birthday party. (Make a guest list!!!)
July 31 (Thur.): Harry gains his 'coming of age' powers.
August 1 (Fri.): Draco Malfoy arrives at #12GP and is greeted by Lupin while Harry's in the shower.
::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~:
Ideas From 6th Book:
- Hocruxes... Can't be avoided now that it's canon.
- 7 total
- 2 destroyed (Riddle's diary and Slytherin's ring)
- 5 out there:
- 3 known (Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup, and Voldemort)
- 2 unknown (Something from Gryffindor and/or Ravenclaw (ask Helena - the Grey Lady), Nagini?, or Harry?)
- Burrow after Dursley's for Bill and Fleur's wedding
- Godric's Hollow (low valley) during summer
- Visit Harry's parent's graves in Godric's Hollow
My Ideas:
- Talks
- Explanation of a wand's purpose.
- How pure-blooded families raise their children to ways of magic, old school (Malfoys) and new school (Weasleys).
- Draco's flash dance: Draco tries to apparate to Private Drive but it tapped by Lupin, so he tries to lose
the man by apparating back and forth to many locations. Draco fails to lose him
thus gives up this time.
- Back to Hogwarts!!! Because our golden trio are stupid kids in which only one seems to be able to read!
- Harry hires people to find the last horcrux... Maybe??? Either way, they are going back to school! ... With Draco!
- Conniving Dumbledore... Can't do much since the man is DEAD!
- Memories of Voldie in the form of dreams. Crying child or something of that nature.
- Mental suffocation of Voldie in Harry's head! LOL! Always wanted to torture him this way!
- Power the Dark Lord knows not... Magical creature?? An unusual bonding?? Power... Dunno...
- Truth about Remus and his life mate Sirius... He truly is settling on Tonks. He's twice her elder! Wrong, Lupin's
a rule/law abider! Pervert... Maybe I'll end that...
- Wizarding ways... Lots of thinking here.
- Separation between muggle born & raised and pure-blooded: Schooling and natural reactions to magic.
Muggles will always have some 'awe' factor that will handicap, them as purebloods
are magic conscious and do not hesitate.
- Final, or just one battle/kidnapping at Stonehenge. Voldemort's muggle-raised so he'd have locations of
muggle's tales in mind. Tommy would be that kind of muggle, yeah?
- The truth about the Sorcerer's Stone, also known as Philosopher's Stone. Using elements from Fullmetal
Alchemist: A large group of people, maybe twenty, use in its making. Nicholas Flemmel
was not a wizard but an alchemist; a believer in the balance of magic and all things.
- Dumbledore's nasty truths: He knew the price for a Philosopher's Stone, yet he still went through with it. How
did Dumbledore defeat Grindelwald? Simple, he really didn't. He was a follower, high
ranking, and just happened to be tired of it. Thus shoving the dark wizard into the veiled
arc. He's really a dark wizard who eventually becomes the leader of light after G's 'death'.
Maybe a change of heart; don't want to bash him too much.
- The veil is really a doorway to the realm of the dead. (Limbo, wronged people, murder victims, war victims???)
You do not die just by entering; you are tortured by the dead's memories. Sirius is alive,
but likely insane after over a year in 'death'.
- TRUTH: The veil is called the 'gateway to Nurmengard', a prison created by Grindelwald. Above, engrained
is the words 'FOR THE GREATER GOOD'.
- Dumbledore's betrayal of Gellert Grindelwald: They were lovers, somehow Dumbledore betrayed the love
Grindelwald had for him. (Unknown how just yet.) G.G. loved A.D. but A.D. had yet to return
that love, until years after the final battle in 1945. What does Albus Dumbledore see when
he looks into the mirror of Erised? "I see the man I betrayed in his very best, forgiving me."
- Prophecy Pact: A prophecy was made about the undesired loathing between the families Malfoy and Potter.
When down to only 1 member each to carry the family name during a time of great battle
will both fall at the other's foot. If they refused to change their ways the end of their long
existed families will end in one fell swipe. Thus the pact: Marry off the two sole heirs. Had
Harry's parents lived he would have been enlightened to this arrangement as Draco had.
- Book shopping for information on the founders Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. The (Sovereign) Wizard's Library or
The Wizard's Capital Library
- Coming of Age powers: Strickly for pure-bloods and half-bloods. Most pure-blooded lines practiced intergrating
magical creatures into their blood without tainting the line. Like the Malfoys used veelas to gain
their fair looks. Weasleys used fire nymphs or sprites or pixies (for their mischievious and
cheerful nature. None of the bloodlines have actually mated with a creature of a different being,
that's like breeding a dog with a horse, can't happen. Only Bill and Charlie have inheired the
gift of fire but usually only the eldest gains the gift, thus why Ron got nothing but the usual
wizard's boost. That also explains why Charlie works with dragons; fire-users of a feather.
And why Bill and Fleur would get on well, both with magical background and slightly different.
Kinda want Harry to have fire because I envision a bed aflame, but then I also want to give
it to Draco. Draco because of dragons and fire... but I can't really see fair Malfoys being
fire-users, maybe water or air. But if I have both Harry and Draco both can harness the
power together, Draco already knowing it coming would be a great teacher for Harry.
- Sacraficial Soul - Avada Kadavra protection charm. If a person sacrafices their soul for the life of another (step into
the way of the curse) their life-force is thus thrust upon the protected. It gives them one chance
to defy nature's law of death brought by AK'ing. Proof is left behind in the form of a scar - in
Harry's case, a lightning bolt - nature's sign, nature's blessing. It also might extend one's life
but cases are rare since the AK'er just tries again after the body block, hence no living proof
to the affect left behind. (This would also take away Harry as a Horcrux.)
ancestors:
Matharius, Matharis, Matheus, Mateus, Methuseus, Methusius,,,
Barathrus, Barathius, Bensiatio, Barethes, Barethis, Barithis, Barithan,,,
Dante, Rannex,,,
Octurus, Octurius,,,
Amerson, Amersen, Amersin, Amersan, Amerius, Amos,,,
Clyff Endor Potter,,,
Ambrose, Ambrosius,,,
Dane, Damian(?),,,
Xander, Xvavier, Xavier,,,
Xarian, Sarian, Carian, Karian,,,
Lexian, Lexus, Lexius, Lilien,,,
Shane, Shainius,,,
Edward, William, Henry, Charles, George, Albert, Rupert, John, Arthur,
POTTER: Clyff Endor Potter (Son of Endor -- Potter);
MALFOY:
Antioch Peverell - The Elder Wand // Peverell > ??? Gryffindor!? Maybe...
Cadmus Peverell - The Resurrection Stone < Peverell > Slytherin (950-990's) > Gaunt > Riddle
Ignotus Peverell - The Invisable Cloak \\ Peverell > Potter
- Gryffindor had RED HAIR & GREEN EYES... Lily Evans.
Latin: connexio-BOND, connecto-BIND conjuro-UNITE BY OATH
Unforgivables:
Cruciatus Curse - Crucio
Killing Curse - Avada Kadava
Imperius Curse - Imperio
The Prophecy:
Born of one year... Two ends of families met... Both of war-torn beliefs...
Dark clashed Light in pride... A great war will roll the family trees...
Malfoy... Potter... Perpetual eradication unless lines are one...
Pax pacis ab conjugium an desisto sum fui futurus.
(Truce of wedlock or cease to exist.)
Tune - "Lovely Bunch of Coconuts":
I've got a lovely bunch of Gryffindorks, da-da-da-da
There they are a-standing in a row, bum-bum-bum-bum
The tall one, the short one, the one that gives great head
-smart-
--Draco: OW! Harry! Why'd you hit me!?
- (big ones, small ones, ones that give great head)
- (the dumb one, the smart one, the one that gives great head)
- Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, & Hufflepuff create Hogwarts - before 993, Chamber of Secrets created early 1000s
- L.A.M born in 1954?, enrolled in 1965 [DH]
- Cissa's born 1955, enrolled '66
- S.S., J.P., S.B., R.J.L., P.P., & L.E. enrolled in 1971
- Merope Gaunt born in 1907
- Tom Marvolo Riddle born in Dec.1926
- T.M.R. enrolled in 1938
Harry: You're a murderer.
Draco: [sharply] No more than you, Harry Potter.
H: [shocked, sqeeky] What...?
D: You heard me. I've never killed a man, never held my wand before him and whispered the last words he'd ever hear. But my actions have caused death, to more than one person. For that I may just be a murderer. For that, you too may just be a murderer.
H: I don't know what you're talking about.
D: Why were you so down last year? Why did you allow yourself to become obsessed with what I was doing?
H: That-
D: You allowed yourself to become that weak because you blamed yourself for what happened at the Ministry.
By: Hidders
:: :: Important-Stuff-That-Will-Only-Be-Posted-O
Rating: PG-13/Teen (for language) When the story is finished I'll be able to have a set rating.
Warnings: None yet
Pairings: Eventually Harry/Draco. Ron/Hermione (given). Talks of Harry/Ginny & Dumbledore/???. (Sexual Dumbledore!?!?! I know! But no icky old man sex.) And whatever pops into my head.
Spoilers: up to HBP; some elements from DH can be found rather blatantly spread throughout this fic. If you haven't read DH then that's just great! Because you don't need to know ANYTHING from that book to know my story. You having not read DH means you will not know what is a spoiler, alteration, or what is all mine! Muahahaha... I hope even my little twists on the canon things amuses people who know better, at least.
Summary (at the moment): A prophecy anticipated, a pact contrived. As Harry prepares for the final fracas with Voldemort he learns of the world he lives in and about his ancestry.
Disclaimer: I own everything you haven't read before... If it's new, it's mine... Not good enough!? Fine, Harry Potter and all it's fandom goodness is owned by J.K.Rowling & Warner Bros. AND she doesn't seem to be keen on sharing any time soon. So I thieved it away for the duration of my fic. I'm not up to posting this every chapter so I won't. I mean really, this is a fanfiction website! Why should we disclaim anything when it's already implied!? Oh, I claim Clyff Endor, that's mine! Totally.
Chapters Information: Chapters will be at least 3,000 words each. That is unless something rather significant happens and is deserving of it's own chapter despite length; like something to do with Voldie or other plotty things, not random fluff... that stuff will be meshed into a larger chapter. Also, udpates are sporatic as of right now. I'll post the chapters as I go, once I reach it's chapterly goal of 3,000 words. This might lead to cliff hangers... Yay. Encouragement in the form of reviews might help spur me to go fast. And I'm open to suggestions about things not pertaining directly to the plot - unless you have a great plottable idea that would fit this fic, then I'll listen!
Author's Note: The plot (Yes, I know, a plot!) will pretty much rule most of the story but please bear with the work-up. I don't want to drag things out but I also don't want to just give it all away in the first five chapters. Sorry for the OCCness. The books really don't give anyone a personality anyways. And as shown in book 5, characters can have drastic personality changes on the fly. (I mean Harry's quick anger - now that was canon OCC!) If my facts about something in the books (1-6) are wrong please tell me so I can fix it. I hate reading fics that had the wrong information placed. I'm sorta testing the waters with this, my first novel-length fic. Be happy I didn't go with my first idea of a vampire fic. Maybe next time. Have to climb over this one before I can do the 'fic that's been done before'. I'm a big fan of magical bonding fics so I might throw one case, or three, in if it fits with my story. I hope to have a mildly believeable friendship form before any romance happens between our boys. Like Draco Malfoy and the Heart of Slytherin by Saber ShadowKitten and Snakes and Lions by GatewayGirl - these are envible pieces. Everything is currently un-beta-ed. But I know how to use spell checker, and I read through my work more times than necessary.
Anywho, on with the show...
<(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)>
Chapter One: Two In Tow
This was stupid, Harry thought as he bit his lip. What was he thinking when he thought about skipping out of his last year of school to begin a hunt of objects he had not one clue on finding? Well, he wasn't thinking about how his friends would take the news, so he was rather shocked when they declared they'd follow him anywhere and everywhere. That might explain why he was now standing just outside the magical barrier of platform 9¾ with his two friends looking into the enraged face of Vernon Dursley. This was not going to be pretty when they got back to the house. As it were Vernon just kept his mouth shut and lead the trio to the waiting car.
The drive was quiet with a heavily taut atmosphere. Harry knew that if any one of his friends had spoken the littlest of words there was going to be hell to pay. Hermione and Ron seemed to have understood this and gave him sheepish, tight-lipped smiles to encourage him. His own eyes stayed focused to the back of his uncle's head.
Discretely, a piece of paper was pulled unnoticed out of Hermione’s rucksack. After she hurried a note and slid it to Harry she relaxed into her seat. Ron observed the change in Hermione’s posture with curiosity but chose to take her hand instead of addressing it. Hermione squeezed it.
Harry watched the exchange out to the corner of his eyes. It never creased to amuse him to watch his two favorite people fight and show their affection for each other. His attention was soon brought back to the slip of parchment cradled in his hands. It said:
Your uncle seems furious, what should we do?
Harry bit his lip. To say he hadn’t thought this far would have been an understatement. In truth Harry hadn’t given the matter the least bit of thought. His mind went over possible outcomes of the confrontation that was bound to happen. There was nothing more Harry wanted than to shield his friends from that. So he scribbled back:
As soon as we get into the house I want you two to drop your luggage
and keep walking straight out the sliding doors leading to the backyard.
Please don’t fight me on this.
And no matter what you may hear or see, stay outside.
The look Hermione gave him would have been comical had the situation been different. Ron just nodded his accord. Reluctantly, Hermione also gave a stern bop of her head.
Ten minutes they had pulled into the drive way of a plain suburban house lined on Privet Drive. Identical to those on either side of it in every way. Mowed lawn, trimmed bushes, primed roses, sprinkler system set for noon. The only obvious differences were the choice of vehicles ranging from sports car to minivan. Harry's Uncle's sedan rested comfortably in the middle of the spectrum.
To Hermione this was nothing new. She herself lived in a neighborhood similar to Surrey. Ron, however, was in mild awe. Wizards tend to spread their homes away from others as to keep their private matters... well, private. The Weasley home itself was nearly 5 kilometers from the sign of civilization. Neither Harry nor Hermione been to a wizarding home that was not the Burrow or Grimmauld so they didn't grasp Ron's surprise. (1)
Harry groaned inwardly. It was too soon. He wasn't ready to go inside so he stalled as long as he could, pointing out the neighbors and what he knew of them. Also minding to point out Mrs. Figg's house across the street in case of an emergency, assuming her fireplace was hooked up to the floo network.
Ron gave Harry's arm a comforting squeeze before levitating all three of their Hogwarts trunks, Crookshanks' and Hedwig's cages. With his wand raised and his hand in Hermione's, Ron lead the way into the awaiting house. Pride in his friend filled Harry. Sometimes, being a reckless Gryffindor was what saves you. Harry thought this was one of those times.
Vernon, flanked by Petunia and Dudley, stood near the staircase waiting for the 'freaks' to come in. His face getting redder by the minute. First was the tall redhead, pulling along a pale girl he assumed was the boy's girlfriend. Behind the two was an array of floating objects; only at this time did he notice the boy holding a stick.
From outside Harry could hear the moment his uncle exploded. This also meant the neighbors could too, and it would only be a matter of time when heads would be popping out of doors and windows. Sighing, Harry mustered up all the courage and patience he could to walk into the line of fire, so to speak.
As expected, Vernon was shouting at the backs of his retreating friends, Petunia was silent but gripping the railing with white knuckles, and Dudley was flushed against the wall in fear despite his demanding size. Harry slammed the door just enough to bring the attention back to him the second the back door closed. He prepared for the verbal onslaught. Occumency was a wonderful contribution to keeping his own temper in check.
The man's mouth opened to lay into Harry but the boy just put up a commanding hand. Amazingly enough, this was enough to shut the large man up. He set his emerald eyes upon his relatives.
"We will be staying. All three of us," Vernon tried to cut in at this statement but Harry's voice sharpened, "will be spending the duration of two weeks inside of my room or outside. I'll also do all my expected chores. Don't talk to them, they won't talk to you." Vernon had enough of the boy's presumptions.
"What makes you think we'll put up with your lot? We barely put up with you!" A big shit-eating grin planted on Harry's face.
"Because, they are adults in my world. And that means they have free reign to wave those twigs and do magic tricks. The girl's the smartest witch I know - and I know plenty. The boy... Well, I'd be wary of him, he's got a right temper." He milked their fear knowing he'll never get the chance again. Praise be the gods that allowed him the company of such great friends, whom he could exploit at times like this.
"So," Harry continued, "I don't think any repeats of previous summers would be wise. Hell knows what those two would do to you if they ever found out what you pathetic muggles have done to me. They're very protective."
<(^_^)>
Outside Ron and Hermione had their faces plastered to the window. The view wasn't a great one but it as enough to get an idea of Harry's confrontation with his relatives. By the stories told by their neglected friend they expected a lot of yelling and maybe some physical violence. Their knowledge of the small (or rather two-large and one-small) family was quite vague. Harry was never keen to talking about his life in the muggle world.
"I - can't - see." Came the brunette's strained voice.
Hermione had to stand on her tip-toes to see over the potted plant on the inner windowsill. Ron saw the girl struggling and offered her a boost on his back which she accepted blushing. Now on the similar viewing level they eyed the four inside.
They watched as the large man's lips poised to lay into Harry but his mouth shut as soon as it had opened. Ron would have thought Harry had magicked it if he had not seen the demanding hand and determined eyes. Without being able to hear what Harry calmly said they assumed it was something harmless. That was until they seen the stand-off between the muggles and the Gryffindor.
There was no raised voices shouting back and forth, and there was certainly no raised hands. Harry was standing there with the three family members looking at him in fear that was not in the least bit mild. This family was terrified of their wizard nephew, with great reason. In the blink of an eye the mood had changed in Harry's favor.
"What do you think they're saying?" Ron asked when he noticed the window was virtually sound proof. Hermione huffed and shifted on his back.
"Honestly, Ron! It's obvious that he's telling them how much he missed them and loves them. And there's his uncle saying it back. Oh, and now Harry's telling them he's the Merlin incarnate."
"Are you serious?" Ron asked her.
"Don't be daft, I'm just jesting. What would be the point in guessing, we're bad at that game. It's high time we learn not to play games we can't win."
"Is that some sort of riddle?"
Chocolate eyes stared into the boy's confused blues. Ron really was rather hopeless. She sighed in defeat.
"Just watch Harry."
They both looked back inside the house but didn't see Harry or his relatives. The sound of the sliding door cause them to both jump. Harry's fuzzy head popped out with a smile.
"All set," he said. "Let's get settled first."
The three marched their trunks and other belongings up the isolated staircase and into the second room on the right. Also known as Dudley's second bedroom, the junk room, Harry's room. Harry pointed out the other four doors and explained what lain behind them. He also advised them to stay clear of all but the bathroom.
"Now, it's not much but it's better than my old room and has tons of broken toys my cousin forgotten about that you two could configure so we should be able to live relatively comfortable for the next few we-"
"Harry, your rambling," Hermione chided.
"Sorry." He gave a defeated sigh.
Harry wasn't sure he was ready to let even his two best friends in on this little secret of his life but it was far too late to stop it. For years he had managed to avoid the questions brought up about summer vacation and his childhood. He'd try to say it was 'good' and 'as well as a magic-free summer could be'. As intruding as Gryffindors were, Ron and Hermione seemed to understand not to push him.
The door opened to reveal the room he called his own only temporarily. Mounds of toys and forgotten trinkets covered the right side of the room. It showed no visible boundary between what was there before Harry stayed there and after. The left held a small wardrobe and a bed that could barely hold a teen Harry's size pressed into the far left corner. A gap was flanked by the furniture to leave access to the lone window.
"Guess they were quick to put those bars back up, huh?" Ron whistled.
"Heh, yeah," Harry managed a small smile. "There were back up when I came back the next summer."
"That's barbaric!" Hermione had a dark, disapproving look on her face.
"It's alright. They're scared; and as muggles they should be. It's usually during the summer that my magic gets away from me."
"Mate, that shouldn't happen anymore." Ron had already abandoned his trunks and started sifting through the piles of muggle things. Hermione was opening the window to air the room out.
"He's right, Harry. Only untrained children lose control. You shouldn't have had that problem the moment you bonded with your wand. That's the point of wands after all."
"I thought they were focal points," Harry kick off his shoes and climbed on top of the bed. "Like the bottom of a funnel, drawing our magic into a centered point. Sorta like an antenna sending waves of magic out of our body."
"Well, that's true enough," she said as she sat beside him. "See, wands become like a filtering top to a magic filled jar. Without it your magic would be unbelievably stronger, but you'd tired out within minutes from the magical drain and strain."
"Wands are like a limiter?"
"Exactly," answered Ron. "I don't see how you don't know this already," he mumbled the last to himself.
"Muggle-raised," he stated before seeing Hermione shoot a look at him. "Whom has little love of books," he added quickly.
"You should have enough curiosity about your heritage to at least read up on it." Hermione tsked, then paused. "But it's understandable."
"Damn straight!" Ron and Harry shouted with smiles. Voldemort pretty much occupied Harry's magical life and they all knew it.
"Harry, what's this?" Ron held up a tiny piece of scrap metal that came to several points from the middle.
"It's a piece to a muggle game, it's called a jackstone."
Ron pulled out his wand and pointed it at the jack as he threw it high up into the air. It stuck itself to the ceiling and started to glow white. He collected the other seven jacks, split them three or four times and repeated tossing them. They now glowed like mini stars.
"I'm good with decoration charms." He shrugged while his friends stared at him.
"Then why does your room look like an orange threw up?" Hermione pointed out.
"I like my room, thank you very much!"
"How about you guys fix this room and make it livable." Harry tried to put a stopper to the incoming fight.
The other two just set their jaws and pointed their wands at the piles of toys. Hermione's spell created a bottomless box and Ron's placed the junk inside. One of them then spelled the carpet clean while the other followed it with a coloring charm to make it go from blue to beige. Ron then used a handy space saver spell his family used at home to add ten or so feet to the room.
"Harry," Hermione called. "Would you mind getting off the bed?"
Harry bolted off the bed just before she shot a spell at the worn duvet. She had cleaned it up a bit, gave it an updated striped pattern and fluffed out the pillows. The bed, while still the small single sized frame, was now reminiscent of something that would be seen in a nice hotel. Two matching replicas were transfigured from piles of junk. The first one, originally Harry's, was navy blue and tan. Hermione's own was light brown and rose. And of course, Ron's had to be the trusty eyesore that was Gryffindor colors.
The beds were levitate into different corners of the room, boys to the back and Hermione just right of the door. Desks were spelled for each of them around the room and in-between beds, Hermione's doing. Harry noticed Ron was already stuffing their trunks into the closet he had never seen before. The box of Dudley's disused toys was shrunk and placed in the desk closest to Hermione's bed for later transfigurations. His friends were amazing.
"Done," cheered Ron.
"You two are the best," Harry praised, bouncing on his newly improved bed. "Can't wait to see the look on the Dursley's faces when they see this room!"
"Oh!" Hermione jumped up from her desk's chair. "Two more things."
Both boys watched the girl open the room's door and run her wand down the length of locks, banishing them it seemed. When that was done she shot another banishing charm out the window and at the bars. They too vanished.
"No more confinement! That was simply horrible of those people. And they're supposedly your family!"
Harry tried to bypass the pity and embarrassment by moving Hedwig's cage to his desk under the window. In a matter of minutes his friends had converted his room into a functional co-ed dorm room. Hermione started gathering her textbooks and moving them to the drawers of her desk, sorting them by subject and year. Ron went back to his bed with various piles of magazines that screamed 'muggle'.
"How about I get us some sandwiches? Anything you prefer?" Harry shrugged off his light jacket and moved towards the door.
"Turkey?" Offered Ron while going through a stack of muggle comic books.
"Peanut butter and jelly!" Hermione excitedly popped her head out of the closet. "It's been ages since I've had the craving."
"Grape, raspberry, or strawberry," he tallied off the choices as he kicked at the door frame.
"Surprise me."
"I promise!" He made a hasty exit, grateful to be away from sympathetic looks. Harry could hear his friends to discussing peanut butter from within the room as he made his way down the stairs.
Sometimes he really wanted to tell his friends about life on Privet Drive, maybe just to get it out, to tell anyone. But then the reality of who he is and what he is perceived to be comes back to him. Harry Potter; Boy-Who-Lived; Savior of the Wizarding World; The Chosen One (the title was still going strong) was neglected and verbally abused for the first eleven years of his life!? And that's not including being Dudley's personal punching bag. Who would believe that? What's more, what would happen if they did? Further looks of pity and the occasional non-believer who would tell him the just wants the added attention.
After denying such claims for years it seemed to have the opposite effect. Tell the reporters 'no' and they come running. Saying 'yes' only holds them back for so long. There really was no escape from the press. To believe that it would stop after the war, who was Harry kidding. It's an endless cycle.
Thanks, Tom.
Harry stared into the bottom of the nearly empty jar of mayo having not noticed he opened it. He set to making a turkey, lettuce, and mayo sandwich to introduce Ron to muggle stuffed-bread goodness. At virtually four inches thick, he called it passing. As promised, he made a PBJ that would be sure to surprise Hermione. Just longing for the sweetness, Harry's own was filled with plain strawberry jam.
On his way back up to the once small room, he checked the whereabouts of his relatives seeing he had yet to pass one. The first room on the right was the shared room of his aunt and uncle. Inside he could hear the news coming over the telly and that sharp voice of his aunt's on the phone, too excited to be talking to Vernon. Sneaking down the hall to the last door on the left, Harry rested his ear against the wood of the door. Silence. Dudley was either in his parents' room, or more likely out finding weak kids to practice on. It was obvious Big D was keeping up with the muscle training.
It was then Harry notice the silence coming from the once small bedroom. Chancing a peek, he saw what could only be his best friends' first kiss. The three had been virtually glued at the hip since the funeral, this had been their only opportunity to take the next step. Just by a glance one could know he was intruding on something special, and not meant for prying eyes.
Their kiss was soft, tender even, compared to the one he had with Ginny. While Cho's screamed 'wet', Ginny's was a cry of utter triumph. It was hard, possessive. It said 'this one's mine'. There was no tender vow of suppressed love underneath the lips, tongue, and teeth. Just a complete loss of control on inhibited desire.
He waited for the telling sign of labored breathing announcing the release of the kiss' hold on them. The pants let him know it passed and was safe to interrupt.
"Food!" He grinned knowingly.
"How long have you been there?" Ron asked when Hermione buried her head in his pillows in embarrassment.
"Long enough to know to wait out your 'moment'." Harry slid two paper plates contain their lunch across Ron's bed. "It's alright Hermione. It would have been worst if I had came in right away, right? Not every kiss can be your first." The girl revealed half of her flushed face.
"You're probably right. Doesn't make it any less embarrassing." Ron snorted.
"Imagine if we'd done that at the Burrow. The entire family would know by sundown." This seemed to coax the level-headed girl out to the open with a sly grin.
"Yeah... Thanks Harry."
"You're welcome." He had taken a bite into his bread so his response was muffled with food. "I come baring grub," he indicated the plates after he swallowed.
Both ate appreciatively for a few bites. Ron's eyes almost rolled as he was hit by the creamy mayonnaise and crisp vegetation. That was a hit. Hermione pause every other bite to eye her sandwich. Every time she thought she knew the flavor of her fruit spread the next morsel quickly changed her mind. Harry watched in amusement. No one said Harry Potter doesn't know how to keep his promises, he thought. And he voiced this to the girl.
"What did you do to it?" Clearly, she was surprised.
"Open it," he pointed to the half that was left. The inner jam-side was marbled red and purple, guaranteed to be a different taste nearly every chew.
"Touché. Ingenious, Harry!" She consumed the remains with a pleased smile.
They finished in silence. Summer at the Dursleys was going to be enjoyable for once in his life, and he was happy that this also meant the end of his stays at the Dursleys. A great way to end it all.
<(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)> <(^_^)>
Chapter Two: Day One Down
Dinner that night was an awkward affair. The table was divided like a battlefield; muggles on one side, wizards on the other. But a battlefield would have held more action than the silent filling of gullets. Every now and then Hermione would try to start up neutral conversation that even the muggles could work with. Nothing but noncommittal grunts, if that. Harry had to smile for her effort though.
His friends had never had Harry's home cooking so he tried to go all out. The end result was an impressive feast for eight. Maybe more since he knew both Dudley and Ron could eat for three, each, instead of the two Harry normally cooked Dudley.
"Harry," Hermione was helping him bring dishes to the kitchen sink. "Those roasted potatoes you made were excellent. I never knew you could cook so well." This caused Harry to blush.
When the meal was over the Dursleys returned to their respective rooms leaving free reign to the wizards. Ron was occupied by the television's moving pictures, flashing colors and loud noises. "A talking picture not on loop," he had called it. With her boyfriend completely drawn in by TV, Hermione was free to help Harry.
"It's not like we ever talked about who's the best cook. And I wasn't going to bring it up," he informed her, filling the sink with soapy water.
"Why not?" Harry turned off the water.
"What boy prides himself on his house keeping skills?" He immersed the cups and bowls into the water, proceeding to washed them by hand.
Had he been allowed magic he thought he'd still have done this menial task without. Like his work in the garden, it was calming. Another way to make himself feel normal and forget there was ever a war taking place outside the cool patch of tilled dirt. However, he could only be distracted for so long.
"Just another thing I'd rather the world did not know about," he ended the conversation. Hermione had always been there when the wizarding papers caught wind of something happening with his personal life. She knew he'd want to keep as much as he could to himself.
"So, you're really okay with Ron and me?" He paused in putting a plate on the drying rack.
"To be honest, I've been waiting for you two to start snogging all over the place. Ow!" The girl shoved an elbow into his side for his answer. "Fine, I'm just saying I was expecting it eventually. Ever since he found out you were indeed a girl."
"I couldn't believe he had said that at the time. I mean, duh, boobs!" Her gesture to her chest caused them both to crack into laughter.
"But really, it's not like I'm 'one of the boys'. I don't play in dirt, if I can help it. I despise flying, so Quidditch is out - indefinitely. I really hate flying," she whined. She waited for Harry to finish the last of the dishes. "As I've said before, Victor was mature enough to see me as a - a beautiful girl."
Her stutter told Harry how little she believed that statement. Hermione wasn't very good with compliments about her personal looks. She really had grown out of the homely looks she had when they met and now had a face that was of memorable beauty.
"But there was the language barrier and the whole thing with Ron. It just wasn't what I needed anymore."
"And Ron is?"
"Maybe..." She looked a little hesitant.
"What about Cormac?" He received a glare that one would get for laughing at a funeral.
"Okay," he held his hands up in surrender. "Dumb question."
"Do you think it's alright," she asked slowly. Harry's voice dropped to a whisper, any louder would probably disrupt the Earth's daily rotation.
"I don't know." It was honest, he didn't know. "But I'm starting to wonder. Any relationship starting from now until the end of the war might not be right. Like getting married because your biological clock is ticking; when it stops you wonder how in the world you could have married someone you don't love." A frown was set in his brows, his eyes were downcast.
"This war will change us, for better and worse. And we're at the forefront. I'm not sure what's going to happen and it scares me. I'm scared, Hermione." Arms wrapped around him with inviting warmth. He desperately needed this hug.
"You know she's taken. And I'm not the type to share, neither." Ron's voice came from the intersected dining room. Harry released Hermione with a grin.
"It might not be the right time, even if your time for this to work has passed, you have to admit it's a fun way to wait for what's next." He gave her a fleeting, cheeky smile before clapping Ron on the shoulder on his way to the staircase.
He probably shouldn't have said any of that.
Harry had been talking about his brief relationship with Ginny and not his best friends' love life. He knew beforehand that he had no place in his life for anything remotely romantic at the moment. It was a good distraction but thinking of it as such meant he was taking advantage of Ginny's feelings for him. She never fully gave up on her infatuation, and starting a meaningful relationship based on it was not the smartest thing he could have done. Breaking it off before anything damaging could be done was the best thing he could have done.
Maybe after this war, if he was granted the honor to live in this world longer, they could rekindle the flame. And for the time being he could keep her safe. Yeah, they might not have had the long friendship and attraction like Ron and Hermione, but maybe there was a chance at happiness for them together.
His goals were clear: find the horcruxes, kill Voldemort... and Pettigrew... and Bellatrix, then come home to sweep Ginny off her feet, and proceed to have a large family of ladybug-colored children. It was an image that flooded his stomach with liquid warmth. That is until he pictured his children being as spotted as ladybugs. Harry had to chuckle at that.
Ron came into the room asking what was so funny. He went into another round of laughs and told his friends that it was nothing as they settled down to go to bed for the night. They managed to survive 'Day One' no worse for the wear with Thirteen days left. One day at a time, he told himself.
"Good night," he called through the dark of the room not waiting for the responses before rolling towards the wall, immediately passing out.
<(^_^)>
The time spent in that small, muggle house with Hermione and Ron seemed to push the days into nights at a refreshing speed. Harry's days were spent doing the chores from a list, updated daily by Petunia. Hermione would help him in the garden while Ron practiced his stealth skills by following Dudley and his gang. But Ron's utter lack of craftiness made him more that slightly obvious. A man of Ron's statue surely could not believe he could hide behind a common streetlamp, no matter how much he sucked it in. He only seemed to cause the 'D-irty D-eeds' (the name Dudley gave his group of ruffians) to fall prey to acute paranoia.
Ron also developed a habit of leaving the bedroom door open during the day when the other two studied their old textbooks. One would think he did this out of carelessness, however that was not the case. He knew that if he left the door open curious muggles would look in. (The Dursley's were quite known at this point to be nosy.) The redhead would sit on his bed in wait for a snoopy face. Sometimes, he'd send a small array of sparks from the end of his wand. Others, he'd charm a sock to inch and crawl its way to the only entrance. This would always erupt into an amusing round of hysterics from the victim.
Hermione would try fruitlessly to talk to Harry's aunt. The stick-like woman would just would not have it, talking to a freak. Eventually, she gave up. Being an only child to a pair of work-a-holic dentists herself, she had no problems with helping with the housework, and Harry enjoyed her company. They would exchange recipes and experiment with spices together.
The trio started to take their meals after the Dursleys to avoid the discomforting stares. This worked out rather well seeing as the Dursleys woke up early. Hermione, who was always awake before every one else, would already have her head in a book or writing meticulously on a notebook when Harry would wake to start their breakfast. She didn't mind waiting, and Ron wasn't getting up any time soon.
Harry still experienced nightmares at night. Some were of the sadistic pleasure he'd get from punishing Snape for his ultimate betrayal. Most were an endless reel of the events from the night Dumbledore died. On a rare occasion Sirius would make an appearance.
That's how it was on the fourth morning. After what started as a torture session with Sirius on Snape turned to something darker.
Harry had stood over Severus Snape's prone form laying in the grass, his holly wand raised parallel to Sirius' own black birch. The professor was writhing with the affects of the double crucio. Harry could feel himself grinning in sadistic pleasure, eyes twinkling as if it was all good fun. Sirius cackled with vicious mirth in a voice unlike his own, it was that which drew Harry to see the man standing next to him was not his godfather. No, it was Tom Riddle's deranged laughter that came forth.
And when Harry looked back down at his victim it was no longer the man who, at one time, called himself the Half-Blood Prince. Greasy, black hair was traded for long, coarse, white hair. A beard grew rapidly down the man's front and touched the holy ground of the graveyard. Black, soulless eyes suddenly became piercing blue that held no sparkle they were known for. Harry was looking down into the eyes of his mentor, Albus Dumbledore.
His eyes began taking in the broken man hunched before him and a noise erupted from his throat. It had taken a moment for him to realize he was not crying out, but laughing. A sharp, high-pitched laugh that matched Riddle's. Dumbledore looked up with sad, defeated eyes as the men above him became deranged. Harry was aware of what was going on and he knew that his heart should be breaking at the sight of the old man cowarding on the muddy ground, but he was not. He was oddly light, like his laugh that carried over the hills of his memory.
He felt himself being pulled back through the mist, out of the dream.
"Harry? Harry, wake up!"
Harry woke to see the worried eyes of Hermione staring into his. The flannel cloth of his night clothes was sticking to his body with perspiration.
"You were having a nightmare," she stated the obvious.
"It's okay now," he whispered. "Just a dream. You can go back to bed now, 'Mione." Instead of going back to her bed, the girl sat down on the edge of his.
"Well, it's six-twenty now. You have to get up soon anyways."
He nodded, there was no use in trying to go back to bed. Light was just breaking over the horizon. Ron was snoring in the other corner, mumbling about dementors and spiders every so often. There was no other sounds but the birds awakened.
Hopping gingerly from foot to foot, Harry made his way over to the closeted trunks. He pulled out a cold pair of very loose shorts and a large shirt. Hermione stood behind him with asking eyes and he held up the articles of clothing one at a time. The witch shrunk them to a size more ideal for Harry's frame. He gave her a grin in thanks before going across the hall to change.
It was nearly routine for Hermione to shrink down Harry's clothes every day. Just as practically everything they did day-to-day was run on a routine. He possessed just enough outfits for a week straight and they were almost to the last of the bottoms.
When he came out, Hermione was standing by the bathroom door to offer her services in preparing the morning meal with him. He accepted. Having her company would help speed the morning along, and she was a great conversationalist.
He collected the bacon, eggs, sausages, and pancake mix from the refrigerator and lower pantry. She told him about the spells they skipped over in the last 6 years of charms and transfiguration. He heated the frying pan and flat skillet. And he started to scramble eggs with milk for the ham and cheese omlets. She got started on the pancake batter, telling of her theories on why such spells were left out of the curriculum. As facinating as they were, they were just guesses and speculation and that conversation soon ended.
"Harry," Hermione spooned the last of the batter onto the skillet thinly. "What are we going to do about the Horcruxes?"
"What do you mean? We're going to look for them," he said behind a slightly burnt piece of toast, as he waited for the Dursleys to lumber downstairs. Damn tubbies were late for food, for the first time in years.
"Yes, but how are we suppose to do that, oh-great-one?"
Nothing but silence, followed by absolutely dumb sounds. "Uh... Um... Er..."
"We're being a little stupid about this, Harry."
Before Harry could answer, Vernon's mass could be heard bumbling down the stairs. He grumble about bewitched clocks and freaks who must have been the cause. Hermione helped Harry get the food to the table quickly to avoid confrontation with the cranky man.
They decided to have breakfast on the back porch in wait of Ron's lazy carcase, which would soon be slithering towards the smell of buttermilk pancakes and freshly cooked kippers. Hermione placed a stasis spell on the bounty, knowing they would have quite a sum amount of alone time. She prepared her crepe with cream cheese and garden strawberries before going back to their earlier conversation.
"Now, we're going to need books. Lots of books. Lots of old books." She said in between noises of appreciation; whether for the food or the books, Harry did not know. "There shouldn't be anything more to learn about Riddle from a book. No more memories... And we can't exactly go up and ask him where he put his soul."
"I understand. We look into the Founders, see what we can find. I know it won't be easy, Hermione, but I don't have much choice in the matter. If I don't do this, I die." Harry's eyes became earnest, "You and Ron don't need to get involved. You could attend your last year at Hogwarts and help me afterwards. I don't expect this to be something that would only take up a few months. Dumbledore spent years working on his theories."
"Exactly, Harry!" Hermione put down her fork to point at open air, "Dumbledore was the most brilliant wizard around, and it took him forever! We're just children." Her flailing finger stopped his childish protest, "I'm not about to think we'll get blessed by your luck, time and again, to find all horcruxes in record time."
Harry thought about her words. Hermione wasn't only book smart, she was logical and realistic, even if realism is a lost cause in the magical world.
"Okay, then what do you sugg-"
"Hey, did you know I could smell that food from the room!?" Ron had awoken and was making his way towards the table.
Hermione fixed him a big plate, "I left the window open for that reason. Figured it would get you up quicker."
"Thanks," Ron tucked in. "So what did I miss?"
"Not with your mouth open, Ron. Harry and I were just discussing the horcruxes. Like where to start our search, and other things."
"I was just asking Hermione what her suggestion would be, when you came out."
"Well, neither of you are known for your research skills. And I'm only one person. We need help from someone smarter than us. Stop giving me that look, Harry. I'm smart but not enough for this."
Harry stared at his empty plate with a vacant gaze, undoubtedly telling them nothing. Ron, however, gulped down his cup of orange juice and brought voice to his opinion.
"Why doesn't Harry just hire some Velmers kids? Their always looking for a job and Harry's up the wazoo in money."
Harry blinked, he didn't know what the hell a Velmers kid was, but the idea of hiring outside help wasn't that bad. And it was a little strange to hear Ron talk about Harry's inherited wealth without the scathing tone. Hermione seemed to be thinking about it's oddness also because she gave Harry a questioning looked, which he answered with an unknowing shrug.
(1) Remember, it was night time when the Weasely's 'rescued' Harry in 2nd Year.
He wouldn't have gotten a good look around. And in 4th Year the Weasley's
came by floo network, they remained inside the house.
June 21 (Sat.): Hogwarts student ride the express to King's cross for the end of the year.
June 21 - July 5: Harry, Ron, and Hermione stay at the Durleys.
July 6 (Sun.): The trio settle into #12 Grimmauld Place.
July ?: Lupin arrives at #12GP and announces the survival of the Order. He also moves in.
July ?: The three arrange shopping in Diagon Alley and Muggle London. With Lupin, Shacklebolt, & Moody.
July 30 (Wed.): Harry finally has a birthday party. (Make a guest list!!!)
July 31 (Thur.): Harry gains his 'coming of age' powers.
August 1 (Fri.): Draco Malfoy arrives at #12GP and is greeted by Lupin while Harry's in the shower.
::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~::~:
Ideas From 6th Book:
- Hocruxes... Can't be avoided now that it's canon.
- 7 total
- 2 destroyed (Riddle's diary and Slytherin's ring)
- 5 out there:
- 3 known (Slytherin's locket, Hufflepuff's cup, and Voldemort)
- 2 unknown (Something from Gryffindor and/or Ravenclaw (ask Helena - the Grey Lady), Nagini?, or Harry?)
- Burrow after Dursley's for Bill and Fleur's wedding
- Godric's Hollow (low valley) during summer
- Visit Harry's parent's graves in Godric's Hollow
My Ideas:
- Talks
- Explanation of a wand's purpose.
- How pure-blooded families raise their children to ways of magic, old school (Malfoys) and new school (Weasleys).
- Draco's flash dance: Draco tries to apparate to Private Drive but it tapped by Lupin, so he tries to lose
the man by apparating back and forth to many locations. Draco fails to lose him
thus gives up this time.
- Back to Hogwarts!!! Because our golden trio are stupid kids in which only one seems to be able to read!
- Harry hires people to find the last horcrux... Maybe??? Either way, they are going back to school! ... With Draco!
- Conniving Dumbledore... Can't do much since the man is DEAD!
- Memories of Voldie in the form of dreams. Crying child or something of that nature.
- Mental suffocation of Voldie in Harry's head! LOL! Always wanted to torture him this way!
- Power the Dark Lord knows not... Magical creature?? An unusual bonding?? Power... Dunno...
- Truth about Remus and his life mate Sirius... He truly is settling on Tonks. He's twice her elder! Wrong, Lupin's
a rule/law abider! Pervert... Maybe I'll end that...
- Wizarding ways... Lots of thinking here.
- Separation between muggle born & raised and pure-blooded: Schooling and natural reactions to magic.
Muggles will always have some 'awe' factor that will handicap, them as purebloods
are magic conscious and do not hesitate.
- Final, or just one battle/kidnapping at Stonehenge. Voldemort's muggle-raised so he'd have locations of
muggle's tales in mind. Tommy would be that kind of muggle, yeah?
- The truth about the Sorcerer's Stone, also known as Philosopher's Stone. Using elements from Fullmetal
Alchemist: A large group of people, maybe twenty, use in its making. Nicholas Flemmel
was not a wizard but an alchemist; a believer in the balance of magic and all things.
- Dumbledore's nasty truths: He knew the price for a Philosopher's Stone, yet he still went through with it. How
did Dumbledore defeat Grindelwald? Simple, he really didn't. He was a follower, high
ranking, and just happened to be tired of it. Thus shoving the dark wizard into the veiled
arc. He's really a dark wizard who eventually becomes the leader of light after G's 'death'.
Maybe a change of heart; don't want to bash him too much.
- The veil is really a doorway to the realm of the dead. (Limbo, wronged people, murder victims, war victims???)
You do not die just by entering; you are tortured by the dead's memories. Sirius is alive,
but likely insane after over a year in 'death'.
- TRUTH: The veil is called the 'gateway to Nurmengard', a prison created by Grindelwald. Above, engrained
is the words 'FOR THE GREATER GOOD'.
- Dumbledore's betrayal of Gellert Grindelwald: They were lovers, somehow Dumbledore betrayed the love
Grindelwald had for him. (Unknown how just yet.) G.G. loved A.D. but A.D. had yet to return
that love, until years after the final battle in 1945. What does Albus Dumbledore see when
he looks into the mirror of Erised? "I see the man I betrayed in his very best, forgiving me."
- Prophecy Pact: A prophecy was made about the undesired loathing between the families Malfoy and Potter.
When down to only 1 member each to carry the family name during a time of great battle
will both fall at the other's foot. If they refused to change their ways the end of their long
existed families will end in one fell swipe. Thus the pact: Marry off the two sole heirs. Had
Harry's parents lived he would have been enlightened to this arrangement as Draco had.
- Book shopping for information on the founders Gryffindor and Ravenclaw. The (Sovereign) Wizard's Library or
The Wizard's Capital Library
- Coming of Age powers: Strickly for pure-bloods and half-bloods. Most pure-blooded lines practiced intergrating
magical creatures into their blood without tainting the line. Like the Malfoys used veelas to gain
their fair looks. Weasleys used fire nymphs or sprites or pixies (for their mischievious and
cheerful nature. None of the bloodlines have actually mated with a creature of a different being,
that's like breeding a dog with a horse, can't happen. Only Bill and Charlie have inheired the
gift of fire but usually only the eldest gains the gift, thus why Ron got nothing but the usual
wizard's boost. That also explains why Charlie works with dragons; fire-users of a feather.
And why Bill and Fleur would get on well, both with magical background and slightly different.
Kinda want Harry to have fire because I envision a bed aflame, but then I also want to give
it to Draco. Draco because of dragons and fire... but I can't really see fair Malfoys being
fire-users, maybe water or air. But if I have both Harry and Draco both can harness the
power together, Draco already knowing it coming would be a great teacher for Harry.
- Sacraficial Soul - Avada Kadavra protection charm. If a person sacrafices their soul for the life of another (step into
the way of the curse) their life-force is thus thrust upon the protected. It gives them one chance
to defy nature's law of death brought by AK'ing. Proof is left behind in the form of a scar - in
Harry's case, a lightning bolt - nature's sign, nature's blessing. It also might extend one's life
but cases are rare since the AK'er just tries again after the body block, hence no living proof
to the affect left behind. (This would also take away Harry as a Horcrux.)
ancestors:
Matharius, Matharis, Matheus, Mateus, Methuseus, Methusius,,,
Barathrus, Barathius, Bensiatio, Barethes, Barethis, Barithis, Barithan,,,
Dante, Rannex,,,
Octurus, Octurius,,,
Amerson, Amersen, Amersin, Amersan, Amerius, Amos,,,
Clyff Endor Potter,,,
Ambrose, Ambrosius,,,
Dane, Damian(?),,,
Xander, Xvavier, Xavier,,,
Xarian, Sarian, Carian, Karian,,,
Lexian, Lexus, Lexius, Lilien,,,
Shane, Shainius,,,
Edward, William, Henry, Charles, George, Albert, Rupert, John, Arthur,
POTTER: Clyff Endor Potter (Son of Endor -- Potter);
MALFOY:
Antioch Peverell - The Elder Wand // Peverell > ??? Gryffindor!? Maybe...
Cadmus Peverell - The Resurrection Stone < Peverell > Slytherin (950-990's) > Gaunt > Riddle
Ignotus Peverell - The Invisable Cloak \\ Peverell > Potter
- Gryffindor had RED HAIR & GREEN EYES... Lily Evans.
Latin: connexio-BOND, connecto-BIND conjuro-UNITE BY OATH
Unforgivables:
Cruciatus Curse - Crucio
Killing Curse - Avada Kadava
Imperius Curse - Imperio
The Prophecy:
Born of one year... Two ends of families met... Both of war-torn beliefs...
Dark clashed Light in pride... A great war will roll the family trees...
Malfoy... Potter... Perpetual eradication unless lines are one...
Pax pacis ab conjugium an desisto sum fui futurus.
(Truce of wedlock or cease to exist.)
Tune - "Lovely Bunch of Coconuts":
I've got a lovely bunch of Gryffindorks, da-da-da-da
There they are a-standing in a row, bum-bum-bum-bum
The tall one, the short one, the one that gives great head
-smart-
--Draco: OW! Harry! Why'd you hit me!?
- (big ones, small ones, ones that give great head)
- (the dumb one, the smart one, the one that gives great head)
- Slytherin, Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, & Hufflepuff create Hogwarts - before 993, Chamber of Secrets created early 1000s
- L.A.M born in 1954?, enrolled in 1965 [DH]
- Cissa's born 1955, enrolled '66
- S.S., J.P., S.B., R.J.L., P.P., & L.E. enrolled in 1971
- Merope Gaunt born in 1907
- Tom Marvolo Riddle born in Dec.1926
- T.M.R. enrolled in 1938
Harry: You're a murderer.
Draco: [sharply] No more than you, Harry Potter.
H: [shocked, sqeeky] What...?
D: You heard me. I've never killed a man, never held my wand before him and whispered the last words he'd ever hear. But my actions have caused death, to more than one person. For that I may just be a murderer. For that, you too may just be a murderer.
H: I don't know what you're talking about.
D: Why were you so down last year? Why did you allow yourself to become obsessed with what I was doing?
H: That-
D: You allowed yourself to become that weak because you blamed yourself for what happened at the Ministry.