Disclaimer: Harry Potter and its characters belong to J.K. Rowling, her publishers, and whoever else she's given the rights to. That doesn't include me.
Author's Note: This is the first time I've tried writing fanfiction so don't be too hard on it. Reading HBP a second time has made me rethink much of what JKR has been doing with her books. This fic is my projection of the Trio's summer after HBP based on the theories I've developed -- most importantly what some have called my Empath Theory.
I'd like to thank everyone who's responded to my posts on Portkey's HBP Complete board. Many of these theories couldn't have been developed without your help.
Special thanks are due to annearchy for her advice, encouragement, and for agreeing to beta this story for me.
One final note: I'm assuming that Dumbledore's funeral took place in the first full week of June, when exams
would normally occur.
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Chapter 1
Leaving Hogwarts
It was quiet on the grounds of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. An hour before a crowd of humans had been
joined by the merpeople and centaurs to say goodbye to the greatest wizard any of them had ever known. While he was
loved by some, and hated by others, there were few people who could say they didn't respect the man.
They were gone now. Most of the adults had headed for the village of Hogsmeade to catch floo connections, or to apparate to wherever they were going. The students who hadn't already left were in the castle preparing to leave for what many thought would be the last time. Even the table and hundreds of chairs had been magically removed, leaving only the white tomb that had a single figure standing beside it.
It was a tall, slim young man with messy black hair and bright green eyes that looked out through a pair of round glasses. Harry Potter gazed at the name engraved on the top of the newest addition to the Hogwarts grounds as he put his wand away, his mind lost in thought.
Beneath the name was a list of his accomplishments which read like the back of his Chocolate Frog card. Harry knew the old wizard had done all of those things, but felt there was something missing from the description of the man he'd spent so much time with this past year. This feeling had been nagging him during the eulogy, and led him to wonder if the person who gave it ever actually met Professor Dumbledore.
Harry also thought about the task Dumbledore had left him. Lord Voldemort, whose name few wizards could bring themselves to say, had torn his own soul apart in a mad attempt to escape death. Using magic as dark as his spirit, Voldemort encased six of the shards into things of great importance to his twisted mind. These "Horcruxes" as they were called, were hidden away for safe keeping. For if they were destroyed, it would make the Dark Lord mortal once again.
Now with Dumbledore dead at the hands of a wizard that only he really trusted, it fell to Harry to do just that.
The slightest thought of Severus Snape brought the urge to wring the greasy-haired, son-of-a-bitch's neck. Never in a million years would Harry understand why the headmaster bought that bastard's story. Professor McGonagall herself said that many people had doubted Snape's true loyalties, why didn't...
"Harry, the coaches are on their way up. It's time to go."
He was broken out of his trance by the familiar voice of Hermione Granger. The two of them had been friends since their first year at Hogwarts, thanks to a berserk mountain troll. The brown eyed, bushy haired seventeen year-old bookworm was incredibly smart, there was hardly a class she didn't excel in. She was also a stickler for following school rules, unless there was a very good reason not to. Never the less, she always did her best to help -- and had saved him more than once.
Their friendship had been strained over the past year. Since the start of school, they had repeatedly disagreed about what Malfoy was up to and Harry using an old textbook he'd received. Every time either of these subjects came up they'd find themselves yelling at each other. In the end, it turned out they were both partly right in their arguments, but had refused to listen to one another. If not for their own foolish pride, they might have figured out what was going on in time to stop the Death Eater's plot.
Any lingering troubles they might have had were set aside after he told his friends that he was going off to find the Horcruxes alone. Hermione and Ron immediately refused to let him leave by himself. They were going with him, even if it meant not returning for their final year of school. As reluctant as he was to place his friends in danger, Harry couldn't deny how much he appreciated them coming along.
"Thanks Hermione, I just had to do something here. Where's Ron?"
Hermione answered, "He's up at the castle talking to his mum and dad about coming to the Dursleys with us." He looked at her. "Mrs. Weasley didn't look too happy."
That was bad, but not unexpected. If someone tried to make the ultimate expression of a mother, they'd land up with someone very much like Molly Weasley. Normally she was warm and kind, but she also had a serious overprotective streak and was downright scary when she lost her temper. Harry and Ron would never forget that Howler she sent after they took Mr. Weasley's flying car back in second year. Of course, there wasn't much she could do to stop Ron from coming, now that he's an adult in the magical world. Then again, her other children being of age had never stopped her from giving them an earful.
"He didn't mention not coming back to Hogwarts next year, did he?" Harry hoped not, that would put Molly in orbit.
"No," Hermione said with a straight face, "I think he'd prefer to do it from a safe distance. Say...Australia?" They shared a brief laugh before she asked in a curious tone, "Why are you down here anyway?"
A very good question. There were many reasons, most of which he couldn't put into words. His earlier thoughts flashed though his mind again. The most recent being those of that terrible day last week: getting the note, learning that Snape had sent Voldemort after his parents, the cave with the fake Horcrux, the Dark Mark over Hogwarts, Dumbledore trying to convince Malfoy to change sides while Harry was frozen under his invisibility cloak, failing to stop Snape's escape after he killed the headmaster. Perhaps the worst part was the professor's words after they jumped out of the cave. The greatest wizard of modern times said he felt safe because Harry was with him. If only he'd been right.
He looked at the tomb again, wondering how his friend would react to what he'd done. He wondered if she would understand.
"All the stuff they talked about at his funeral...his achievements, wisdom...I don't think any of it really mattered to him. It's like they were talking about this...image everyone had of what he was. But they didn't say anything that -"
"- That sounded like the person we knew," she finished quietly.
Hermione had come up next to him and looked over the inscription on Dumbledore's tomb. Her eyes came to rest on four newly added words at the bottom.
It took a moment for Hermione to respond. Harry recalled the memory of hearing those words back when they first came to Hogwarts with the same mix of emotions he felt earlier today.
Hermione raised her head, and looked at him as if she didn't know if she should laugh or cry.
"I think he would approve, Harry."
***********
The two of them headed towards the castle to catch the carriages. A smaller than usual crowd of students waited by the main doors. They were dressed like Harry and Hermione. They wore grey jumpers over white shirts, with matching trousers for the boys and skirts for the girls, over which they all wore long black robes. The trim of their respective house colors completed the uniforms. The teachers stood around them, apparently watching for something. A handful of thestral-drawn carriages were parked nearby with more coming up the road. A tall redhead spotted them and called out to his friends.
"There you are, I see you found him Hermione. He wasn't going to sneak off on us after all, was he?"
Ron Weasley had been best friends with Harry from their first ride on the Hogwarts Express. They'd hit it off right away and were nearly inseparable. Ron had changed a lot over the past year. Before he was a jealous, insecure, hothead who got them in trouble more then once. Three months ago, on his birthday, Ron had been poisoned and nearly died. Afterwards, he wasn't so sensitive about things anymore. Especially were Hermione was concerned.
Where Harry's friendship with Hermione had been strained this year, the one between Ron and her had been stormy from the beginning. They often bickered, and this bickering repeatedly had erupted into blazing rows. Some of these arguments had gone on for months, like the one they'd had back in November - that one only ended after his near-fatal accident on the first of March. Harry had no idea what happened between them in the hospital wing while Ron was recovering. What he did know was that he hadn't seen them fighting since.
"No, he wasn't," replied Hermione. "He wanted to personally say goodbye to Professor Dumbledore."
Ron's face fell a bit and the light tone in his voice disappeared.
"Sorry mate. I forgot that you two had gotten close lately." With that he changed the subject. "You missed Ginny by the way, Mum took her home. Bill and Fleur went with them."
As much as Ron didn't want to talk about Dumbledore's death, Harry didn't want to talk about Ginny. She was the youngest child and only daughter of the Weasley family. The two of them had dated for the last month, but he broke it off with her just after the funeral. There was too much going on in his life for them to be together any more, no matter how much he liked being with her, so he had ended their relationship. Strangely enough, his feelings for Ginny Weasley had already begun to fade in the short time....
"Oy, Harry...wake up! I hope you weren't having dirty thoughts about my sister, or I may have to hurt you," Ron yelled in a semi-serious tone.
Harry was saved from explaining by the appearance of a glowing silver wolf that trotted up to Professor McGonagall, the acting headmistress of Hogwarts. Tonks' patronus delivered its message and vanished a moment later. The teachers signaled for the crowd to start boarding the carriages.
"Must be what they're waiting for. Hermione, McGonagall told me to tell you to make sure Harry gets in the first carriage."
"Why?" both of them asked.
Ron shrugged. "Don't ask me. I'll see you on the train. They drafted me into helping make sure all the midgets get there okay."
"You're a prefect, it's your job, AND STOP CALLING THEM MIDGETS!" Hermione screamed at Ron's retreating back.
Ron laughed as they went their separate ways.
As she climbed aboard the first carriage, an annoyed Hermione said, "He can be such a prat sometimes."
"He was just joking. Maybe that's what Lavender liked about him." Harry tried to defuse her temper.
"Lavender Brown is an idiot," she shot back, "and don't try to tell me otherwise because I've shared a room with her for six years now! She didn't want a boyfriend, she wanted a bloody life preserver. With everything that's happening, she's scared out of her mind and looked for a boy to cling to. Ron just happened to be the one who got her attention."
Harry had to admit it made sense in a way. But he didn't understand why Hermione was so wound up about this, it wasn't like her. He looked up and carefully said, "I'm sorry, I didn't think it would upset you like that."
Now wearing a puzzled expression she asked, "What are you talking about? I don't care who Ron dates as long as they don't make a public spectacle out of themselves! A prefect is supposed to help maintain the school's decorum, not snog his girlfriend all over the castle. Even you and Ginny have enough sense to find somewhere private. Most of the time."
He stared out the window, it looked like most of the students had boarded the carriages.
"Did the two of you have a fight? She was kind of upset the last time I saw her."
There was no point in avoiding the question. He never had much luck hiding stuff from Hermione when she knew something was wrong. She'd keep nudging him until it came out, and she was very persistent.
"We broke up," he stated matter-of-factly.
Before she had a chance to ask why, the carriage door opened to reveal Minerva McGonagall in her tall, pointed black hat and robes.
"Professor," Harry reached out to help her in while Hermione moved to sit next to him. "are you coming with us?"
"Thank you, Mister Potter. I will be accompanying you to the station, to insure everyone gets there safely. I also wish to speak to you about a few things." Once she sat down and closed the door, the carriage started moving.
Professor McGonagall spoke in her usual business like, no-nonsense manner.
"The board of governors has asked for a complete report on what occurred the day Professor Dumbledore died and the events leading up to it. I am not going to ask you to tell me what the two of you were doing away from school that day. No doubt you'd refuse to speak of it, again."
Harry calmly interrupted, "I gave him my word not to talk about it to anyone he didn't okay, Professor."
McGonagall looked at him over her square glasses. "You are so much like your father sometimes.... In any event, telling them that you were on personal business concerning your coming of age should suffice." She pulled out a scroll and handed it to Harry. "I would like you to go over this and make sure the account is accurate. Much of it is based on what you told us in the hospital wing."
He quickly scanned the parchment covered in the professor's neat writing. The letter was long and detailed, covering all the disturbing events of the past school year: from the attack on Katie Bell to the battle last week. There was something not included though, an incident Harry wished he could forget. Something told him that Hermione, who had leaned over to read the scroll, had noticed it too.
"That seems to cover everything." He said, handing the parchment back. He could sense his friend's glare without even looking at her.
"Very good," the teacher replied, putting the scroll back in her robes. "I would also like to ask you about the altercation that occurred between you and Mister Malfoy last month."
His stomach dropped right through the floor. "Don't smile," Harry told his friend.
"Indeed Miss Granger, this is a most serious matter and I would expect you, of all people, to treat it as such," McGonagall chastised her before looking back at Harry, "In light of recent events, I would like to hear your version of the incident, Mister Potter."
Even a month afterwards, he still felt guilty for what happened that day. But stuck between these two witches there was no way to avoid it. Harry started at the beginning. "You know that I thought Malfoy was up to something..."
From there he described how he started keeping track of his enemy's movements, hoping to find out what he was doing. One day Harry found him crying in a bathroom with Moaning Myrtle. Upon seeing him, Malfoy drew his wand and attacked him. Their duel ended when Harry hit Draco with a curse called Sectumsempra as Malfoy was casting the Cruciatus Curse. He still shuddered at the horrific result.
"I swear Professor, I didn't know it would do that. If I did..."
The old woman cut him off. In her professional tone she said, "I would like to believe you Potter, but how could you know a Dark curse like that one without knowing its effect?" She always had a gift for getting to the heart of the matter.
Hermione gently laid a hand on his arm. "Tell her Harry." Looking up at her, he could see the pained but determined look in her eyes. "If you don't, I will," she added with conviction.
No matter how much he hated to admit it, she was right. He had to come clean about everything.
"It was written in the margin of a textbook Professor Slughorn gave me in our first class. The whole thing was covered with Potions notes and spells. Just before he escaped, Snape told me he wrote them and signed the book with his alias 'The Half Blood Prince'. He recognized the curse that day because he's the one who created the damned thing."
"And where is this book now?" The acting headmistress' question was accompanied by the scratching of a quill. Neither teen had noticed that she was writing down what they said.
"When Snivellus asked..."
"Snivellus?" inquired Hermione, her lip twitching.
McGonagall actually suppressed a snicker. "I'm not going to ask how you learned the old nickname your father used to call Severus Snape," she said just loud enough to be heard.
Harry himself couldn't believe he'd used it. Holding back a grin of his own, he continued.
"Anyway, I stashed it in the Room of Requirement when he demanded to see my books." She didn't have to know about his pathetic attempt to pass Ron's book off as his own. "If you want to find it Professor, the version it's in is a huge room filled with broken junk and...." He suddenly beat his head against the wall behind him.
"Harry,"
"Mister Potter,"
Harry groaned, "I'm so stupid -- I walked right past it!"
Both women were waiting for him to make sense.
"The vanishing cabinet that Malfoy used to sneak the Death Eaters into the school, it's in that room! I was looking for a place to hide the book, like he wanted a place to hide his work, and found the way into his hideout and didn't even realize it. Professor, you have to get rid of that thing now that Voldemort knows what it does. Maybe even clean the place out altogether, I saw some other pretty nasty stuff stashed in there...."
Minerva nodded in agreement. "I'll see to it personally when I return to the castle, Harry." It was one the few times he remembered her using his given name.
"You may wish to know that your story does not match the one told to me by my former colleague. According to him, you attacked Malfoy without provocation and with full knowledge of your actions. He also alluded to your father's apparently groundless hatred towards himself when they attended Hogwarts."
"Making sure no one would believe any evidence I got on the junior Death Eater he was protecting," Harry said before muttering, "I bet Dad saw right through the slime ball."
A moment of silence passed before McGonagall asked, "You said this book had Potions notes in it. Did you use them in class?"
There was a disapproving "Yes" in response.
"Hermione!"
"And how did Professor Slughorn react to you not following the same directions as your classmates?" The head of Gryffindor House ignored his outburst as she continued her inquiry.
"He complemented me on my work." Harry was wondering where these last few questions where going.
A trace of curiosity entered Hermione's tone when she added, "Even when you completely ignored the purpose of the lesson."
"That bezoar saved Ron's life. If I hadn't known about it, he would never have survived his seventeenth birthday." Harry answered defensively.
"I know, you did the right thing," she reluctantly conceded. "I'd hate to lose him too, even when he's an annoying git."
Neither of them noticed a frowning Minerva McGonagall conjure a silver cat from her wand. It headed for another coach in the line passing through the front gates of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
**********
end chapter 1