Ah, the first chapter of my first story on Portkey.Org. Good times. I hope my stay here is a pleasant and worthwhile
experience. Any spells you don't recognize are just me using an online English-to-Latin translator, so if you see
something you want to use, don't hesitate to take. Like anyone would want to. I've got a big head
sometimes.
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter. As much as would like to, I don't.
Prologue - The Letter
From the moment I woke up, I knew it. Something was wrong. I couldn't quite place what it was, but there was an ugly feeling in my stomach that just wouldn't go away. Something that screamed at me to do something before it was too late.
But it was already too late.
Filled with a nameless dread, I got up slowly, and proceeded to get dressed for the day, hoping that the feeling was just nerves and nothing else.
But it was the worst day of my life; I just didn't know it yet.
I brushed my bushy hair into something resembling order and slowly exited the girl's dormitories. I spotted Ron waiting down in the common room, pacing back and forth nervously. The youngest Weasley male looked up as I approached. He ran over, a bit frantic.
"Hermione, where's Harry? Have you seen him?"
The feeling in my stomach was no longer nameless as the floor seemed to tilt under me for a second. I thought back to the last time I had seen him, in the library, early the night before.
"Harry, are you still studying?"
I couldn't believe that those words were coming out of my mouth of all people's. But they were. I'll be the first to admit that I probably study a little too much. Better too much than not at all, right? But what Harry had been doing this year was beyond even me. Even I need some time away from books. Harry hadn't been doing anything since we started sixth year but study.
Harry hadn't come to the Burrow, or Grimmauld Place for that matter, this summer, and had gone shopping for school supplies alone against any probable advice. It seemed that Professor Dumbledore had wanted Harry in his Uncle's house and under the protective blood magic as long as possible this summer. Then he had simply vanished the morning that 'Mad-Eye' Moody and his squad of Aurors had gone to pick him up and take him to Hogwarts. Everyone was a bit frantic until he had shown up on the Hogwarts Express, when they all breathed a collective sigh of relief.
Harry was scolded by Professor McGonagall and then released back into the passenger cars of the train. When we found him, he was in an empty car by himself, just reading.
This was the first sign that he was breaking off from us.
When we came in and sat down, he answered all of our questions with short, simple answers and went back to his book. A textbook to be precise. Too bad I didn't realize then that it was a few levels more advanced than where we were supposed to be.
Ron and I attempted to cheer him up and draw him into conversation, but he would just give the same short answers, accompanied by sad smiles this time. At that point, we just thought it was sadness from Sirius's death.
Well, that was part of it at least.
Harry never used to have the Daily Prophet delivered at his Uncle's house. Apparently he had started this summer. One article in particular had caught his attention.
ALBUS DUMBLEDORE AND BOY-WHO-LIVED STAGE HOAX!
LUCIUS MALFOY CLEARED OF ALL CHARGES!
Nothing else really needs to be said on the matter. The contents of the article were easy to guess given Fudge's delusions. The only strange thing was the lack of any legal action taken against Harry and the Headmaster like there was last year. The only reason we found out that Harry knew was that he had for some reason saved the clipping and Ron saw it one afternoon when Harry was getting out his Firebolt for Ron to borrow for the Gryffindor vs. Slytherin match.
The second sign he was shutting himself in.
When Harry quietly approached Professor McGonagall after the sorting feast and left quietly, she just sat there, a disbelieving look on her face. A few days later, Ron was named the new team captain, and was left with some unsettling news. He needed to find a new seeker.
Harry Potter had quit Quiddich, despite the fact that he was being allowed back after his ban the year before.
At that point the third sign became somewhat ridiculous, as if we weren't already worried about him. When we couldn't find Harry in Gryffindor tower, we searched the school without success. Until we looked in the library. Harry was reading and taking notes on potions. Potions of all things!
I knew Harry needed better grades in Professor Snape's class if he wanted to be an Auror, but directly after the sorting feast was a little much even for me.
And Harry kept studying. Nothing could sway him. He studied in all of his breaks between classes. He studied late into the night. He woke up early and was in the library for a few hours before breakfast, reading who knows what. He was always studying advanced things, dangerously advanced. He studied through every Hogsmeade visit, except one. Ron put the twin's newest invention on Harry's plate at dinner on Friday, Snoring Scones. Harry woke up in the Three Broomsticks the next day. He glanced around a bit, and then at his earliest opportunity, he just left.
At least he didn't go back to the castle.
Harry went shopping instead. He needed some more school supplies he said. Apparently he was out of parchment, and was getting close to being out of quills and ink. And he kept studying. He was doing everything right in class without effort this term, but this was contrasted with his attitude. He simply did what he was told and nothing else.
The last sign was when Professor Dumbledore couldn't even pull him out of it. The Professor actually called him out of Transfiguration one day to talk to him, but whatever happened up there, it didn't change Harry's habits at all. It was common gossip that Harry had placed a small cot in the restricted section of the library where it couldn't be seen and simply never left the library at all except for class and meals.
Sometime after that, we couldn't even find him in the library anymore. He would just vanish for long periods of time, making sure that the invisibility cloak and the Marauder's Map were with him at all times so that he couldn't be tracked. Whenever he was asked, he simple said he was 'studying'. Whatever it was he was studying, he obviously didn't want us involved. Ron and I had decided that it was best for now simply to let him have some space.
"Hermione?"
I shook my head clear of my thoughts.
"Hmm? Oh, sorry Ron. The last time I saw Harry was last night. In the library again."
"Again? It's Christmas Hermione! Where the bloody hell is that prat?!"
I frowned.
"Watch your langue Ron! What would Luna think?"
Harry's reclusive behavior aside, life moved on for the rest of us, albeit slowly. Ron and Luna had gotten together against all odds. The weirdest thing about their relationship was that she tolerated Ron referring to her as 'Loony'. Of course, it was different when Ron said it as opposed to everyone else. With Ron, it was more a term of endearment, or a private joke, not a cut down like it was from most people. To the amusement of the rest of us, even Harry cracked a small smile, Ron had to put up with being 'Ronny' or 'Ronnikens'.
Of course, Harry's problems and Ron's love life weren't the only things we had to worry about. Draco Malfoy was another problem entirely. This was, ironically, because he wasn't actually trying to be a problem. He was, in a strange, Slytherin, sort of way, attempting to get on our good sides.
The reason for which became apparent when Colin Creevey came screaming into the common room one day with pictures of him and Ginny making out in a secluded hallway. After that, and after we got Ron to calm down and stop hexing Malfoy on sight, Draco had taken to waiting outside Gryffindor tower every morning to escort Ginny down to breakfast.
"Hermione!"
I blushed. My mind had wandered again.
"Sorry Ron. But what do you mean he's gone? He's probably already at breakfast, like always."
Ron shook his head.
"No Hermione, he's not. I saw him last night. I was still up when he came into the room and laid down. When I was sure he was asleep, I laid down wards, just to make sure he stayed for once! And when I got up…"
I finished for him.
"He was gone."
I paused for a moment and then continued.
"Well, maybe he just snuck out. I mean, who knows what he's been reading and learning this year. Not like we would know."
Ron sighed and nodded.
"I know Hermione. It's just… I have this really bad feeling you know?"
I nodded; a bit more worried this time. I personally think that signs and omens are rubbish, but both of us feeling it was not good at all.
"Well, we won't find anything out standing here. Let's get down to breakfast."
A few minutes later we had Ginny in tow and exited the common room, to find Draco waiting outside, like he usually did during the school year.
But Draco Malfoy was supposed to be at Malfoy Manor this break.
Draco looked at us, an unreadable expression on his face. Dread filled me instantly, and my hand began inching for my wand on instinct. Ginny started to run to him, but he held up a hand to stop her. He spoke a few words, then turned around and left.
"For what it's worth, I'm sorry."
Ron's wand was out in an instant, scanning the hall for attackers. But there were none, and we proceeded down to the breakfast hall, our original destination. The Christmas feast was laid out like always, but there was no sign of either Harry or any of the Professors. I looked at Ron, and he looked back. Ginny was just looking confused from the combination of a missing Harry and Draco's mysterious comments. In the absence of anyone else, I took charge.
"Come on you two. We're going to the Headmaster's Office. I'll bet anything whatever's going on is happening there."
The walk down the corridors and up the stairs was silent. None of us knew what was happening, and none of us wanted to voice an opinion. Soon we stood at the gargoyle and began guessing the password, our words a bit more urgent now that the information, and the accompanying panic, had settled in. After finally getting the password, Ton Tongue Toffee, we rushed up the stairs to Professor Dumbledore's office. We knocked, but I don't think it was heard over the shouting voices inside. Professor McGonagall answered. She looked angry, but her face softened a little when she saw us.
"Oh. You children go have breakfast. The Headmaster will send for you a bit later I'd imagine."
"But Professor…!"
The stern look returned.
"No 'buts' Mr. Weasley. Go down to the Great Hall. Now."
Ginny and I ended up dragging Ron away before he got us all in detention or something, and went back down to breakfast.
"Something's really wrong here."
Ginny looked at Ron with an incredulous look on her face.
"No, really? When'd you figure that one out?!"
Ron rolled his eyes and pouted as we took our seats at the table. It was just a placating gesture, and we all knew it. The tension was thick. Then the morning owls came, and I paid the owl that brought my copy of the Daily Prophet.
BOY-WHO-MURDERED! LUCIUS MALFOY FOUND DEAD!
OTHER BODIES ON SCENE, DEATH TOLL AT 5!
Draco's words were becoming clearer to me as I read the article. The byline wasn't Rita Skeeter, so I knew that the article was at least somewhat factual, if biased against Harry simply because it was the Daily Prophet. According to the article, an insane Harry Potter attacked Malfoy Manor late last night and killed Lucius Malfoy and four others on the pretense that one of the bodies, completely unidentifiable, was Voldemort. There were two witnesses. Narcissa and Draco Malfoy.
With everything else that had happened this morning, it took a moment for it to sink in emotionally. When it did, my mouth went dry and my hands went slack, letting the paper fall to the table. Ron looked over worriedly.
"What?"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Harry sent a letter the next day. Hedwig fluttered down and sat on my shoulder as I unfurled the letter. She then hooted angrily as Minister Fudge ripped it out of my hands. He was one of the screaming voices in the headmaster's office yesterday. Fortunately, he had some sense of manners, since he apparently lacked intelligence, and read out loud.
Dear Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Draco, and whatever Professors and Ministry staff may be present:
I suppose at this point, if you are reading this, you are looking for some sort of justification for what was reported yesterday in the Daily Prophet.
I'd like to keep this short, so I won't go into an incredible amount of detail, both for my safety and the privacy of others. I was woken from my sleep very early Christmas morning by a rather startling vision of Voldemort torturing Draco. I noted, and circumvented, Ron's wards rather easily (If you're interested in stronger ones Ron, I'd suggest Watchful Warding for a start) and slipped out of the room.
With the invisibility cloak and the passage to Honeyduke's, it was a simple matter of using the floo system to get to Malfoy Manor. That's really the problem with Voldemort's schemes I suppose, he expects something sneaky, so he sometimes forgets to block the obvious things. I am, of course, referring to the fact that he forgot to make Crouch spell the portkey in the Tri-Wizard Tournament to be one way instead of two. Or maybe it was just that he didn't expect me to either come to Draco's aid or even believe the vision after what happened last year. Who knows.
In any event, reaching the Manor was relatively easy. The battle that followed was not. I won't bore you with the details, but I will say that though several Death Eaters died at my hand, at no point did I use an unforgivable. Regrettably, they bought Voldemort time to escape, though not before I discovered something rather… disconcerting… about him. It's not important to the story though. After the battle I stayed for several hours, binding both my wounds and those of Draco and Narcissa. I don't think I'll go into too much detail on what happened to either of them. In fact, I really think it's better if say nothing at all.
This letter is being sent because I realize that to come back to Hogwarts is to be given a one-way ticket to Azkaban, and with Voldemort still on the loose I can't afford to have that happen. He will pay eventually, of that I have no doubt.
I imagine Minister Fudge will want to 'freeze my assets' now that I'm officially on the run. I wish him good luck, but I think he will find that I have no assets left to freeze, as the letter Hedwig dropped off before this told them what to do with the money and other things present in both my vault and what I received of Sirius' earlier this year.
As to my things currently in Hogwarts, if the Ministry doesn't confiscate them, I would like the Firebolt to go permanently to Ron. The supply of books that I have bought goes to Hermione, who may keep them or donate to the school library as she pleases. The book with the pictures of my parents goes to Remus Lupin, who above all in my life would appreciate it most. I have instructed Hedwig to remain with Hermione, and not to return, so that I will not be tracked.
I apologize if this seems rather morbid, but it has to be done. As you can well imagine, I cannot be connected with anything of my old life, as even if I am successful in destroying Voldemort, my actions last night make it impossible for me to come back to any of it. Therefore, for all intents and purposes, the boy known as Harry Potter might as well be dead.
I also apologize for not being the friend I should have this year, but in the end I fear it was necessary. I have regretted a great many things in my short life, but none so much as this, I think. I do not regret what I did last night. If I hadn't… I shudder to think of the consequences to Draco and his mother. Of last night I regret only that I missed my chance at Voldemort and that it is quite likely I will never see any of my loved ones again.
With deep regret, and love to those I consider friends and family,
Harry James Potter