Nine months. Nine months had past, and Harry had learned all he could about alchemy. After the first horacrux was destroyed using it, he decided that it was better to master this hard technique. Now, though, his attention was diverted from the horacruxes. He needed something else.
He learned all he needed to know to bring back his godfather. It was illegal, it was dangerous and it had never been done. But Harry was going to do it. He knew the transmutation circles like the back of his hand. He had practiced with less complicated circles and each time had been perfect. The transformations were perfect; he had changed lead to oil, a process that was extremely hard to do, as the base elements were similar, but he had come up with more oil than expected, and possibly more energy than he wanted, which was the reason why the oil was lit afire and the room nearly burnt down. Still he was closer.
His friends were worried about him, but Harry was doing fine. He had spent too many sleepless hours worrying about the procedure. He had spent a week locked in a room filled with books and the elements he needed. While transfiguration could get him what he needed, he needed pure elements and sometimes, that wasn't the way for them. So he ordered as much as his room could handle.
McGonagall gave Harry his own room, and while it was meant for research and studying options, he usually fell asleep working on one of his books. Despite his obsession, he didn't allow his grades to slip, which Hermione balked at when he snapped at her. He had priorities right now, even if his friends couldn't see it. They said they were with him, but they weren't. They would never be if they could accept that this is what he needed to do.
And somewhere in his mind, Harry hope that this was the `power he knew not.' Alchemy had the possibility of great things, greater than magic itself. Heck, it even destroyed a horacrux, the epitome of evil. It was ancient and powerful, but magic was easier so alchemy fell out of practice. There weren't many teachers left so Harry taught himself. Eight months were a short time, but when you didn't have anything else, someone else, you did what you had to keep time from crawling and your mind from dying.
Ron had asked Hermione out over the summer, she said yes, of course, being the nice person she was. It seemed the right thing to do. Especially after their episodes during their sixth year. Harry had a hard time understanding it, since he failed at his own romance. Ginny held no interest in his mind. He couldn't put her in any more danger than she was already, so breaking up seemed like the right step. Sadly, his friends failed to inform Harry and when he found them snogging in a cabin car the first day of school, something snapped within him. He then knew that he needed to do this… he needed to talk to Sirius. He needed to be loved.
The night after that… Harry remembered clear as the prophecy that haunted him…
"Harry, please," Hermione begged. He had already locked himself in his room, and didn't plan on leaving. Merlin, he didn't plan on talking to anyone, either. "You have to talk to us."
"No I don't," Harry shouted back. He knew she was in tears, and he could hear Ron trying to comfort her. "Just like you don't have to talk to me about things either."
"Please harry, talk to us." Ron's voice wasn't anger or upset. It was just Ron's.
"No, you said you were going to help me and then you went off and did your own thing. I don't need or want you guys any more." Something exploded at his words, whether from his anger or sadness. Someone whispered reparo and it was fixed, but the pain remained.
Hermione sobbed louder, yet Harry didn't care in his anger. He was their friend; he knew he should be happy. But he couldn't bring himself to be. They were his friends. "Bloody hell, mate, what's gotten into you?" Ron shouted through the door. Sighing, and falling against the door, he closed his eyes and tried to hold back his tears. Sirius was gone and now his friends were gone, off somewhere snogging, no longer caring about him.
Harry sat up from his desk, and smiled at the transmutation circle he created. It was on the paper, and was widely complex, but it would work. With it, he could create a human. The only hard part was the soul, but Harry had thought of a way to work with that. He could try to summon Sirius' soul. It was a long shot, but a soul was impossible to create. No one knew what made exist. Besides, Harry didn't want to duplicate it: he wanted Sirius back.
That was the first law of Alchemy: the Law of Equivalent Exchange, to obtain something of equal value must be lost. To Harry, that was all that mattered. Hedwig, his only friend and owl, came flying in, landing on his shoulder. She had been with him throughout the year, listening to him ramble on. She made sure he ate; yet, she pecked at him to get sleep sometimes. Hedwig was his sister, despite being an owl. He loved her with all his heart.
"Hey there," he said, petting his owl. She pecked at his straggly beard, grown through weeks of uncaring. Harry showered, but he didn't care much about his appearance, especially since he hadn't seen anyone in the past month. He was supposed to be going to class, but McGonagall said his private studies were more important things.
That was the last time he had seen Hermione or Ron. She looked like she was going to burst into tears when he just walked out. But right now, it didn't matter. He was so close that he could taste it.
Around the room stood many figurines and other creations that Harry had made. A mannequin with soft skin stood in the corner. It was life-like, and even Professor McGonagall said she was impressed. It wasn't human and couldn't harbor a human soul, but it was the closest thing to it. Right now, it wore battle armor, another creation of Harry's. Runes were craved into it to give it the hardness of a dragon's skin. Swords, staffs, axes and many other weapons were around him, hanging on their stands. Harry also made many plants, working with a life-filled being was hard, but it just brought him closer.
Hedwig pecked at Harry. "What?" she looked over at the plants. "Fine, in a moment." Harry turned back to his book and began to read again. It was close. "Okay, I'll do it now," he replied, when she pecked at him again. He stood up and grabbed a piece of chalk. He bent down and began to draw circles and triangles upon the floor. It was one of the many he now had memorized. Hermione would be proud at his skills. Occulemency had opened his mind up, allowing him to reach higher peaks of intelligence. He had a few thousand different circles in his mind, along with the data from twenty thousand books. It was wonderful to be able to memorize his books.
"Okay, ready?" Hedwig nodded. Harry slammed his palms together, and then brought them to the edge of the outermost circle. Water shot up into the air, appearing from almost nothing, and then proceed to water each plant with the right amount of liquid. "Perfect every time." He smiled as his owl nuzzled in his long black hair. "It won't be long, a few more days. I need to order all the elements that we need."
Harry looked outside. The snow was thick upon the ground and winter's air hung high about them. It was past Christmas and well into late January. He was surprised to still see snow, but in truth, he didn't care. He hadn't flown in over six months, just dropping out of the Quidditch team one afternoon. He was so close to achieving what people thought was impossible so something as simple as flying didn't matter any more. A few more days and then he would have his Godfather back.
Author's Note: I am not stopping my other story, but rather I have watched the show Fullmetal Alchemist. So I've decided to write a story on it. Harry Potter and the Fullmetal Alchemist isn't mine, but the plot is…. Enjoy.
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