Fatal Errors

Privet Drive was a surprisingly normal place, the last place you'd ever expect anything strange to be going on. But there was something strange, very strange going on on that street at that very moment. Standing tall, in the pitch dark of night, as if he couldn't move, was a person outside one of the many square houses. He wore a black cloak, slightly torn at the bottom, and gloves made of dragon scales. He loved those gloves. Why, he wouldn't tell anyone, but they could tell. He was only 15, considered by many only a boy, but he knew better. He wasn't a boy, he never was. But nobody would understand. No one would understand his curse. No one would understand what it was that made him unique. No one, except the one person he couldn't tell, one living on this exact street. Robert Schaza, as he came to call himself, wasn't normal by any stretch of the imagination. Only three people, however, knew why. And only two knew his name, the other had no idea what had happened to him after he was abandoned. He just stood in front of a house, Number Four to be exact, waiting for the right moment to enter the house. He lifted a gloved hand to the doorknob, but stopped suddenly. He had forgotten something, but he wasn't sure what. Then he remembered. He couldn't use normal magic. He concentrated on the lock, imagining the shadows creeping into it and forming a key. When he heard a click, he was satisfied. It was time he was going to see Harry Potter. He knew that Harry was special, but he wanted to know exactly why. He knew of the prophecy, but he didn't know what it said. He was going to find out, no matter what lengths he had to go to to find out. He was going to help destroy Voldemort in any way possible. He wanted to destroy the one who cursed him so. As he entered the quiet house, his thoughts immediately want to finding Harry and getting the prophecy. When he reached the room he knew belonged to Harry, he opened the locks the same way he opened the front door. He turned the handle and slowly stepped in.

~*~

Harry Potter was not having a good summer. Not by any stretch of the imagination. Everytime he closed his eyes, he could see images from the battle in the Department of Mysteries haunting him. Sirius falling through the veil, Hermione getting hit by that unknown curse. All of that was becoming too much to take. He was beginning to think that he was never going to be happy again. Just as he was going to brace himself for another night of torturous dreams, the door to his room opened. A tall figure wearing a black cloak stood in the doorway. Harry thought it was a dementor until it lowered its hood. It was a boy, it seemed, but there was something about him that Harry could relate with. He saw, in the blue eyes of the stranger, that he too had dealt with far too many things for someone his age. He looked to be about 15, but although Harry's instinct was to attack the stranger, something told him that he could trust him.

"Who are you?" Harry asked simply.

"My name is Robert Schaza. And who are you?" the stranger replied.

Harry was taken aback at that. He thought everyone knew who he was. "I'm Harry Potter."

"I knew that. I was just being polite."

"Why are you here?" Harry asked, becoming a little annoyed by Robert.

"Ah, that's always the hardest question to answer. I am here because I understand you have several demons that you need to get rid of." Harry noticed that he said the word demon a little strangely, but didn't say anything.

"You know the prophecy, don't you." Harry said. It was a statement, not a question.

"Actually, I do not. I only wish to help you with what happened in the Department of Mysteries. I know that it will be hard to talk about, but I know how you're feeling." Robert said.

That last comment set Harry off. "NO YOU DON'T! YOU HAVE NO CLUE WHAT IT'S LIKE BEING ME! YOU HAVEN'T HAD EVERYONE THAT YOU CARE ABOUT KILLED BECAUSE OF YOUR STUPIDITY! YOU DON'T HAVE A CLUE WHAT I'M FEELING!"

"Actually, Harry, I do. I know what you are feeling. Like you, my parents were killed from a young age. Actually, they weren't killed, they abandoned me. I was worthless to them, and things got worse from there. I had to learn to live on my own from a very young age. I have also been cursed since I was born, a curse that will never leave me, one that makes it almost impossible for me to live a normal life. However, I can't tell you what the curse is. That will only endanger the two of us more. I have been living a life where no one has ever cared for me. I believe I can understand what you're going through."

Harry was stunned. This man, who he'd not met more than 10 minutes ago, was telling him things that Harry would never tell anyone if they had happened to him. Harry was confused by this man. He was only 15, yet he seemed, like he himself was, to be more mature than many adults.

"Now Harry," Robert said, cutting into his thoughts, "do you want to talk about that night?"

Harry looked at Robert as if trying to see through him. He noticed his brown hair, as messy as his own, and his eyes that held so much hurt and terror, it was incredible that he was looking at a fellow human. Then, although he didn't want to, Harry started talking, talking about everything that happened that night.

Robert stared at Harry, listening aptly to every word he said. He could feel Harry's emotions about the events. What surprised him was what he felt when Harry was talking about in an office. He heard him talking about a girl, and when Harry said that he thought she was dead, he felt an emotion that he couldn't remember. He'd never felt it in his life, but he could tell that it was a strong and important emotion to Harry. He listened for over a half an hour, just listening to everything Harry said.

Just as Harry was finishing what happened in the ministry, he stopped suddenly.
"What happened next?" Robert asked.
Harry looked suspiciously at Robert. Harry had the sudden suspicion that he was a spy for Voldemort, trying to get a hold of the prophecy. Unwillingly, the thought of the prophecy came to the front of his mind. That was all that Robert needed. He quickly snatched that thought from Harry's mind and memorized the prophecy totally. Harry didn't notice what had happened.

"None of your business," Harry said, malice evident but unwanted in his voice.

"Okay, I know when I've overstepped my duty," Robert said, and went to leave the room. At the door, he turned around and said, "About that girl, Harmony I think you said her name was - "

"Hermione," Harry corrected.

"Hermione," Robert said, "keep her close. She's more important than you think," he said and walked out of the room, leaving Harry confused behind him.