Unofficial Portkey Archive

AN: Writer's block...evil evil block....well, my finals are coming up which means...yes. Even more slower updates. I'm sorry =( But finals are finals and they aren't nice, but the good side to things is that summer is coming up and that means lots and lots of time for me to sit around and update =) But as you all can see, this fic is coming to an end and I wonder if I even need until summer to finish this up...hehe, well, enjoy and thank you for reading this story =)

Disclaimer: I don't own any of the original characters in Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling does. The plot and any extra characters belong to me :)

Harry closed his eyes slowly, catching his breath as his chest heaved up and down. He recalled being in that strange place of a world...not his world for sure. Yet he had been James Potter. Living the life of James Potter. Yet it had been an illusion no doubt..

"Ok, Hermione, what happened?" he opened his eyes, realizing that he had rested his head upon her lap, he immediately sat up blushing.

The head girl giggled and opened her hand to reveal a strange necklace of some type with a small vial dangling in the center. Inside of it seemed to be a droplet of...crimson liquid. To Harry, it seemed to be blood.

"The fake Sirius flung this over your neck and pushed me aside when he disapparated. I fell and was dazed until I saw a blinding white light and I knew at once you were gone. Not dead, but gone.." she explained softly. "I just had this feeling that you weren't dead...I don't know how, but I just did. I knew that it wasn't going to be good though, it must've been some part of Voldemort's plan, so I told you to believe in yourself when you faded away. I had little hope that you heard me though.."

"I did Hermione...I did," Harry replied, wide-eyed.

Hermione nodded, a smile forming on her tired features. "So I was alone for a while, I just sat there staring at the spot in which you disappeared. I tried to recall what had happened...I remembered seeing Sirius fling something over your neck, like a necklace. So I sat there thinking and thinking why he would have flung a necklace over your head."

"I couldn't think of anything that would harm you in the form of a necklace. Maybe it was cursed, or a dark ornament but I wasn't sure. But then I remembered learning something about Illusion Necklaces in sixth year...so I clung onto that thought, thinking maybe you were sent into...an illusion of some sort. But of course, I was basically grasping onto straws," she said sheepishly and held up the necklace. "I was feeling rather hopeless because I could do nothing about it but wait. Wait to see if you would come back and fight whatever it was that you had to fight. So I began talking to you. Trying to talk to you..." she blushed scarlet.

"I know, it was a silly thing to do. But what else could I have done?" Hermione bit her lip and glanced at him occasionaly, wondering if he had thought she was crazy.

"No...you did the right thing Hermione..." Harry found himself saying as he squeezed her hand gently. "I heard you...that was the reason I found myself...found out that everything around me wasn't right, that it was just an illusion..."

Hermione's face brightened. "I guess my senseless ramblings did the trick..." she chuckled lightly but her expression became serious once again as she examined the necklace in her hand. "But I was right...it was an Illusion Necklace...it dropped beside you when you came back."

"I don't remember learning about them in sixth year..." Harry pondered out loud.

"Well, it was in some of my extra studying," Hermione explained.

Harry couldn't help but laugh. "Typical."

Hermione swatted him lightly on the arm, making a face while doing so. "Well it seems to me it came in handy!" Hermione declared defensively. "Illusion Necklaces aren't suppose to be used anymore...it was banned twenty years ago by the ministry when they realized it sometimes caused people to go insane. Lost in that world and illusion forever because if it was strong enough, it can cause people to forget who they really are, what their life is suppose to be like."

"...Kind of like a block in your memory and mind?" Harry suggested.

Hermione nodded thoughtfully, "That I'm not sure...but did you experience that?"

Harry nodded numbly. "I couldn't even remember your name...I just knew there was something out of place...something missing."

"At least your will was strong enough, Harry," Hermione grinned. "You believed in yourself and were able to pull through...."

"All because of you," Harry blurted out and turned red, looking away and back at the necklace in her hands. "But...what's with the liquid inside of it."

"Oh," Hermione frowned now, "I personally think it's blood. Voldemort's blood, or one of his followers'. You always need something from the owner of this necklace to be able to control whomever is wearing it. To control the illusion they are sent into....did you understand that?"

He only nodded, staring at the droplet of blood within the vial. Voldemort's blood...his parent's murderer's blood. He felt anger boil inside of himself, an anger he had never felt before. If only he hadn't killed them, what would he be like today? Not a boy deprived of love...no, he would have been loved, cared for...

Harry shook his thoughts away, and Hermione noticed his faraway look. "Are you alright?" She asked in a gentle voice.

He mustered a smile and stood up. "Now what do we do..."

"We could continue following the direction of my wand..." Hermione suggested.

"I guess that's all we can do for now..."

Ron held Ginny close to him, her shivering form and her occasional sobs made him suddenly protective. His big brother persona emerged and he was trying desperately to calm his little sister down.

"What's going to happen, Ron?" Ginny choked out.

"It's ok, we're at Hogsmeade now and we're safe."

"Hermione?" The girl questioned.

"Hermione will be alright..."

"And that boy...Harry?"

Ron sighed, "They'll be ok."

Most of the school had come down to Hogsmeade while some were still down by the lake getting transported to the scarlet steam train. Professor Sprout was trying to get the HufflePuffs to calm themselves, while Professor Snape had stayed behind with Professor McGonagall.

Hagrid sat on a bench with his thick eyebrows knitted together. Ron and Ginny approached the half-giant in worry and confusion. "What's going to happen now Hagrid?"

"Well...I don't think I'm allowed to send ye all 'ome until Dumbledore allows it." he replied ruefully. "Best to wait for Dumbledore."

"And you do not have to wait any longer Rubeus."

The three turned and saw the figure of the headmaster standing straighter and taller than they had ever seen him stand. A grave expression seemed to be on the wise wizard's face as he came closer, sweeping his midnight purple robes along with him.

"He has risen once again," Dumbledore stated. "There was no Christmas Feast at all at Beauxbatons. It was a simple deversion that I was quite stupid to have fallen for..." The headmaster ran a hand down his wispy beard thoughtfully. "Where is Harry?" He suddenly asked.

"He disappeared," Ron answered, "along with Hermione!"

Dumbledore peered down at the red-head in thought. "Both of them...together?"

"Yes," The youngest of the Weasleys uttered.

Dumbledore's face was unreadable but a strange twinkle returned to his eyes. "I think...they will be alright."

He looked at all the bewildered faces that he was given and chuckled. "Yes, indeed...I think the-boy-who-lived will live once again."

He was tired. He didn't like having no idea what would happen, or how much time had gone by. He hated being clueless.

And yet, they continued walking.

She didn't seem tired at all, except for the sweat that was forming on her forehead, and her knitted brows showed her deep concentration on the matter. Her palm lay open, her wand still leading them...and hopefully the way out of the maze they had been thrown into.

Harry glanced at the girl walking beside him, suddenly nervous. His stomach flipped, and a sickening though dawned on him. What if he died? What if she died? What if they both died...

He shook his head, wanting to rid himself of the unpleasant thoughts swimming in his muddled mind. Yet he couldn't help but think they would end up in a sticky situation... "Hermione..."

"Hmm?" She didn't turn to look at him, but just straight ahead.

Harry frowned before running hand through his tangled hair. "You shouldn't be here."

And with that, she turned her head to look at him, her face showed a glimpse of hurt but it quickly washed away with an annoyed expression. "And why shouldn't I be here?"

"...You know why," he swallowed uneasily and kicked the ground. "Voldemort meant for me to be here...alone. Face him alone. Die alone."

She stared at him and stopped walking, shaking her head. "No Harry, you're not going to die and you're most certaintly not facing him alone."

"But you shouldn't be here...if you didn't grab onto me, you could have been safe...back there, with Ron and everyone else..." his shoulders dropped as he eyed her warily. "I'm sorry..."

Hermione looked at his bright green eyes, so dull and weary at the moment that it even made her slightly tired too. She breathed, placing a hand on his shoulder and giving it a light squeeze. "Well, we can't really do anything about that can we? I'm here, and I'm here to stay, until the end." She managed to offer a smile, though she didn't know if it did any good.

Harry placed his own hand overtop of hers, finding himself smiling ever so slightly. "Then I guess it's my responsibility to make sure you don't get hurt."

Hermione opened her mouth to complain, yet Harry placed a finger to her lips, silencing her. "I want to protect you."

She blinked, realizing she was staring a bit too noticeably at his eyes...how his chest kept on falling up and down with each breath he took. Hermione felt a tingling sensation in her body that she couldn't comprehend, but that didn't matter, for Harry was staring back at her too.

Real chocolate never looked sweeter than her eyes. He couldn't really call it brown, for that sounded much too plain. Cinnamon brown...chocolate brown...honey-brown, it was just...Hermione. Hermione's eyes, Hermione brown? He chuckled out loud at his own silly thoughts.

"Why are you laughing?" Her voice came out in a mere whisper.

He let his finger trace her lips without thinking. He could only smile and reply, "Nothing Hermione...nothing at all."

And once again silence consumed them, one lost in their own emotions, while the other didn't realize, but was actually pulling closer. It didn't feel real, not at all. His feet seemed to float at he closed the space between them. He could now smell her hair. Vanilla...that was much too plain too. It was Hermione's smell. Yes, that sounded much better.

She flicked her eyes upwards, her eyes first landing on his scar then back into his emerald eyes. She peered at him curiously, wondering what was happening but knew all too well what indeed was happening. Though she dared not to speak, in case it would break this moment in time.

His fingers left her lips, cupping her chin and drawing the last bit of space between them.

It was weird really. To be in the middle of no where and to feel so much emotion that you had never felt before. She didn't understand it yet, nor did he, but neither pulled back, nor did neither stopped.

Hermione felt the black walls of darkness melt away from her mind, to be replaced with flowers...lillies, roses, every type of flower. With birds and green grass beneath their feet- it was never the darkness she pictured.

Harry did the same. No longer were they in the void of nothingness, they were in a whole new world altogether. Green hills, cloudless skies.

But of course, good things always come to an end.

"My dear boy...what ever are you doing in such a place?"

Good-bye to the blue skies, and the green grass and flowers. Back to reality, back to the dark walls and the dirt floor. And they pulled back, both staring at each other for one final second before turning to the source of that cold chilling voice.

Yet both saw nothing, just blackness still around them as the voice laughed menacingly.

Harry's fists tightened into balls as he glared into the darkness, daring whoever it was to come out. "Why are you hiding?" he found himself saying with eerie calmness.

At first there seemed to be nothing. But finally, through the darkness two red-slit eyes appeared, a cloak as black as the darkness around them, and skin as pale as virgin snow. A nose that you couldn't really say was a nose...and mouth so thin and pale that it seemed to belong to the dead.

Harry knew who this was. Knew at once with a sickening lurch in his stomach and a sudden firey determination erupt inside of him. "Voldemort."

Hermione tensed beside Harry, not wanting to look at the hideous creature in front of them but at the same time she couldn't take her eyes off of it. Voldemort merily laughed, a laugh that seemed empty. "Seventeen years, I longed for this day."

Harry could feel his heart quickening, beating furiously in his chest but he tried in vain not to show his fright. "Oh, same here. I just couldn't wait until this day." Harry found the words coming swiftly off the tip of his tongue.

Hermione glanced at Harry in question. "We're not here to be sarcastic."

Voldemort seemed to take his attention off Harry for a second, finally noticing the girl next to his prey. "Ah, you must be the young lady Wormtail was talking about..."

"Wormtail?"

"Ah yes, in your case, the Sirius Black that you bumped into along the way. Sadly, our first plan didn't seem to work."

Harry glared. "Stop stating the obvious. We know it didn't work."

Voldemort shook a wrinkled finger at him. "Ah boy, let's not get too feisty."

Hermione could almost feel the hate radiating off the boy who stood beside her. Never had she seem him so determined, so tall, so confident, and knowing what he wanted. She knew what he wanted. To kill the person in front of them. To kill the murderer of his parents. She could only hope that he wouldn't get hurt in the process.

"A mudblood..." Voldemort stated casually, waving a finger at her with a look of disgust. "Strange, dear boy, I would think you would have better tastes in women."

Harry frowned, "Seems to me you don't have a girlfriend."

"Funny, very funny," The creature seemingly sneered, but you couldn't really tell for his face was confusing enough. "You know, you took away all I ever had. All the years I had worked to gain all the power that I had...gone. Gone just because of a mere baby. A child that didn't know how to even say mommy. A worthless child. You."

Harry remained silent, not knowing what to do but to hopefully stall time. Maybe the others would come and help, he didn't know. He wanted to hold the girl next to him and just hope that it was all a dream...yet it was too real.

"It was strange, I didn't understand how a baby could do that. I still don't understand it. Do you, Harry Potter?" Voldemort seemed to take one step forward. Harry stayed put. "Do you understand what you did? The damage you caused? You were powerful then, I assume you are powerful now. Though you might not see it, we could be...invincible together."

"Is that an offer?" Harry nearly spat. "To join you?"

"I don't know, is it?"

Harry's eyes narrowed, "You are insane to think I would ever consider joining you. You killed my parents."

"And indeed I did." Voldemort had his wand in his hand now, making Harry's heart and head pound even faster. What to do? What could he do? "But do not worry...it was not a bloody death. No blood at all. Have you ever wondered how it felt?"

Harry managed to stare back at the thing in front of him. "Yes." He answered steadily.

"Ah, poor child. Never knowing what his parents were like..poor, poor child." Voldemort came another step closer, and Harry didn't know why he still stood there.

"Don't pity me..." Harry felt his voice shake. He was scared, though he hated to admit that. He reached for his wand inside of his robes, but a hand as cold as ice suddenly grabbed his. It burned.

Hermione let out a gasp as the wretched creature himself grabbed Harry by the hand, and at once she could see the pain written on the boy's face. She mustered up all the Gryffindor courage and bravery she had as she slammed her fists against the black cloaked figure. "Let go of him! Let go of him!" She gripped her wand tightly, trying to think of a spell when Voldemort turned to face her.

"Hermione Granger isn't it?" Hermione's eyes widened at the fact that he knew her name. "I know all about you...your parents are dentists aren't they? Muggles. Which makes you a mudblood doesn't it? Head girl aren't you? Are you proud?" Voldemort had let go of Harry's hand now, advancing in on her.

Harry finally got a grip on himself as he yanked out his wand furiously. "Get away from her!"

Voldemort turned slightly, smiling at Harry. "Harry Potter, you wouldn't dare hurt me now would you? When I'm right next to your girlfriend here."

"...She's not my girlfriend.." And strange enough he felt a weird desire for it to be the other way around.

"Oh...but what about that little...physical contact you had just moments before I had to interupt." Voldemort was grinning crazily now and Harry couldn't help but shake. "Harry Potter...you took away all I had, and it took me seventeen years to gain it all back."

"You took away my parents!" He hollered.

"Oh, but you didn't have to struggle...didn't have to hide from even the smallest things on earth because you were scared...you made me into nothing, but now I am back." Voldemort had a wild look on his face. His eyes flashing red, his nostrils flaring. "And now I will take away what you have, though it is not worth much."

Harry took a few seconds to process the words, not really understanding what the crazy man had said. He didn't have anything for him to take...what was there to take? He glanced hurridly at Hermione, realizing how close she was to the wretched thing. And suddenly realized it was her.

It was always her...

All along it was always just her.

He didn't realize it until now, but he suddenly thought how cruel life would be if she wasn't there. And Voldemort somehow saw that even before himself.

He cursed silently under his breath, knowing he had to do something.

"You won't take her from me."

Voldemort just grinned even wider. "And how can you stop me when you are much farther away than I am to her?"

"I don't know," Harry answered truthfully while Voldemort broke into a cold and evil laugh.

"Say your last words, mudblood." And with that, Voldemort pointed his wand at Hermione whom he was still gripping onto roughly by the arm.

Harry could see the seconds go by, see the look of fear flash upon her pretty features, see her eyes widen and take one swift look at him. He didn't let all this register in his mind as he sprung forward, pushing all his will and strength in going forward and towards her.

He had to reach her, even when the killing curse rang out in the air, he felt the soft material of her robes under his fingers and her hair in his face.

With all this, bright green light flashed around them and he didn't know what was happening until the solid ground hit him and everything faded away.

"Boy!!"

He found himself waking up groggily, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, he slowly sat from the tattered matress. The shaking of the stairs above told him something. He couldn't quite remember what, until a rather chubby man appeared in the doorway of his room (was it a room though?).

"Boy! How many times do I need to wake you? Breakfast! NOW!" And finally it came to him that this chubby and red-skinned man was Uncle Vernon.

"Yes, uncle," he found his tired voice replying as he got out of bed and stretched.

He proceeded to the washroom and stared blankly at his reflection. Feeling how miserable his life was...but why did this feel so familiar? As if it had all happened before and he was just re-reading the script to a play of some sort. He stared idly into his own tired eyes, bright green.

Just like his mother's.

Mother... He felt a longing ache in his chest as he placed his round-framed glasses on.

"Hurry, Harry dear. Dinner's about to start."

A beautiful and warm voice rang out in the hallway and Harry turned away from the mirror in confusion. "Dinner? Isn't it breakfast mum?" He found himself saying almost without a thought. Mum? He srunched up his brow in confusion and turned back to the mirror, suddenly realizing his appearance was different. His eyes were bright, and joyful, dancing with an innocence he never had. An innocence of a child that had been cared for.

"Hurry up, Harry, your soup is turning cold!" This time it was a deep rich voice of a man.

"Ok dad," Once again his mind seemed to work on its own as he stepped out of the bathroom and realized the hallway was unfamiliar to him...but at the same time, it was very much familiar.

He walked by a framed photograph of three people sitting on a couch and waving merily back. One had messy black hair and wore a pair of glasses, while the other and nice wavy, deep red hair and bright green eyes. In the middle sat a little boy with identicle black hair as his father's and matching green eyes like his mother's. A happy, normal, wizarding family.

He continued onwards, finally reaching the dinner table where two adults sat and met him with bright smiles.

"Finally decided to join us?" The man chuckled.

"Got a bit preoccupied with my thoughts, dad," he replied as he took his seat next to his mother.

His mother sneezed lightly into her hand as his dad mumbled a "Bless you". They continued eating.

This feeling inside of him didn't stop bubbling. It was a feeling he had never felt before..he looked from his dad, to his mother, that feeling growing by the second as he just sat there sipping thoughtfully at his pea soup.

"How about a game of Quidditch after?" His dad suggested with a bright grin.

"Really?" he felt himself grin back. "Smashing!"

"Really James, you're turning the boy into a Quidditch freak."

"Well, you married one yourself darling," his father laughed half-heartedly before returning to his chicken.

He felt his heart flutter at the scene. Though he didn't know why.

His mother suddenly seemed to remember something. "Oh right! Dumbledore is visiting right about now...I do remember him owling about something...I think it's got to do with the Ministry of some sort..."

"Election again? I thought Arthur Weasley already got the position." James Potter commented.

"Oh, I don't know..he just said he'd drop by to talk about something...though I can't remember what..." His mother answered just as a pop resounded in the room.

A wise old looking wizard with a long white beard smiled back at the happy threesome. "Did I interupt anything?"

"Oh not at all Albus, just dinner," His father reassured. "Would you like some chicken?"

"Ah, I'm fine James, just stopped by at Fudge's place and we had some pie," Dumbledore recalled and his eyes finally landed on him. "Ah, Harry. Just the person I needed to see!"

He looked back at the man in question. "What for, professor?"

Albus Dumbledore glanced around the room at his former students. "I would prefer to talk to your son alone...if that isn't a problem."

"That's fine," his mother smiled then glanced at him sternly. "Did he cause any trouble?"

"Oh no, not at all," Dumbledore's eyes twinkled. "Just a little chat."

"Very well then," James stood up and lead his wife out of the dining room, both smiling at each other.

Harry watched them, not really knowing why he felt so entraced with his parent's actions. Not until Dumbledore coughed did he remember the headmaster's presence.

"Oh, sir, I forgot you were there."

"I noticed Harry," Dumbledore chuckled. "But I must tell you, you can gain no knowledge and infact nothing at all with illusions and desires."

Harry stared. "What?"

"Ah, come," Dumbledore lead him to a mirror on the wall. "You see yourself don't you?"

Harry simply nodded. "That's normal enough."

"But you are different here," the headmaster noted and placed a finger on Harry's smooth forehead. "And you are missing a part of you that makes you Harry."

"...What part of me?" Harry glanced at his blank forehead curiously.

"A part of you that you might not like, you might not want to accept it, but it is reality and living in dreams and what you most desire is not going to change the truth." Dumbledore stated calmly, his finger leaving Harry's forehead. "Even if you want to erase it from your mind forever, it will forever be part of you."

Harry scrunched up his brow just as the doorbell rang. He looked over his shoulder, then glanced back at Dumbledore. "I'll be right back.." Harry said as he headed towards the front door.

"Take all the time you need Harry..." The headmaster answered gently.

He reached the door, placing his hand on the knob and turning it. He pulled the door back, and at first he saw no one until his eyes met her's.

"Hello Harry!" The girl greeted cheerfully as she stepped into the house, taking her shoes off and seemingly familiar with the house.

"Hello 'Mione," he felt himself greet the young woman as happiness once again spread through him.

The girl caught sight of Dumbledore. "Oh! Good evening professor! I didn't think I would be bumping into you here!"

"Neither did I, Miss. Granger," Dumbledore answered and smiled at Harry almost knowingly.

Harry peered at the professor thoughtfully. "Mum said you had came here to tell us about something?"

"Ah, I meant to talk to you, but as I see, Miss. Granger has come...so I will not waste your time," Dumbledore said and glanced expectantly at Harry through his half-moon spectacles. "But I must remind you, that you should come back and join us soon. Though it may be hard to leave such a place, you must for your place is not here, but back where you belong, Harry. It is not your time to go yet, and when you return, all will be well."

And with that he disapparated, leaving a confused Harry behind.

"How about some chocolate pudding kids?" James appeared in the kitchen doorway.

"Hello Mr.Potter!" Hermione greeted politely.

"Hello Hermione, it's nice to finally see the girl my son likes." James said in a faraway tone but suddenly smiled and disappeared back into the kitchen.

Harry just watched this with slight confusion in his features before the girl beside him tugged his sleeve gently, leading him into the cozy and lighted kitchen of the Potter's home.

AN: Once again you all must be like "???" Um, I won't say anything, if you completely have no clue, take note of what Dumbledore has said, and take note of what the last thing James says. Hehe ^_^