A/N: sigh! It seems that once again I need to apologize to all of my wonderful fans. It has been a brutal few weeks, but I think I am on track again. I want to thank you for all of your fantastic reviews. It made the fact that I haven't posted even worse. Sorry! Just for being so kind. I am going to post two chapters! (I can hear you cheering!!) This one is a little short, but I felt it was a good place to stop. Thanks once again to my great Beta, Dementor149 for all of his help. Enjoy the chapters!
Here's a little ditty for you:
JK owned the wizard Harry,
It isn't mine, you see,
And even though
I loved him more
She wouldn't give him to me!
Chapter 12
A Visit
Professor McGonagall led Harry down the hall towards Dumbledore's office. A myriad of emotions flitted through Harry's mind: sorrow at the loss of a great man, anger at the betrayal from a supposedly trusted comrade, and curiosity at what Dumbledore's portrait had to say.
"Seeking Snitches," Professor McGonagall said to the gargoyle at the entrance. They moved into the stairway and up to the Headmistress's office. Many of Dumbledore's things were gone. The office was neat and tidy. He saw the former Headmasters on the walls, watching their arrival. The portrait behind the desk was blank. McGonagall went up to the portrait and rapped on the frame.
"Albus? Where are you?"
Harry watched as Professor Dumbledore appeared in the portrait. He looked healthy and happy. He even seemed to have a twinkle in his eye.
"Ah, Minervra! I was just visiting some old friends. Is it time for our meeting already?"
"No, Albus. Mr. Potter is here to see you."
Dumbledore looked over to where Harry was standing.
"Harry! Come in!" Dumbledore waved his wand and looked a little confused. He cleared his throat. "Minervra, if you would be so kind as to get Harry a chair…Ah, thank-you."
Harry sat down in the chair looking up at his old Headmaster. He didn't know what to say or what to think. His thoughts were in turmoil. Professor McGonagall left and quietly closed the door behind her. Dumbledore looked down at Harry, studying him.
"Hello, Harry," he said gently.
Harry swallowed and nodded. "Sir," he said.
"Well, I am glad to see you, and you seem to look fairly well. How are things?"
Harry just stared at him.
How are things?
He wasn't expecting that. He expected words of wisdom, information maybe, but not `How are things?' like nothing of importance had happened, and they were having a chat like visiting friends.
Dumbledore was looking at him expectantly, and Harry looked around bewildered. What was he supposed to say? `Fine sir, the Death Eaters are growing in numbers and there doesn't seem to be any way to stop them since the only one they were afraid of is dead. Oh, and by the way, Bill and Fleur had a lovely wedding, sorry you missed it.' He finally just shook his head. He didn't trust his voice.
"I see," said Dumbledore sitting back and sighing. "Harry, let me say I'm sorry to have put you through this. If there was any other way…"
"Why did you do it?" Harry blurted out, "You could have stopped them. This didn't have to happen. You didn't have to die," he choked as he got up and began to pace.
"Harry," Dumbledore said gently.
"What?" Harry said sharply, turning to look at him. Dumbledore smiled sadly.
"I was already dying, Harry. The potion I drank was attacking me from the inside. I could feel it. I was no longer capable of heal myself."
"You could have got help."
"No, Harry. It was too late. The only thing I could do was save you, and Draco."
"Draco?" He spat. "Draco wanted to kill you!"
"No he didn't, Harry. If he did, he would have done so right away instead of talking to me, and having quite a long conversation I might add," Dumbledore sighed. "I knew the predicament he was in. He had no choice Harry, his family was in danger. If it wasn't for the Unbreakable Vow with Severus-"
"Snape!" Harry said angrily, "I hate him! If I ever see him I will kill him."
"That's Professor Snape to you, and no you won't, Harry. He was acting on my behalf."
Harry looked at him shocked.
"I knew of the Unbreakable Vow, but I was hoping Draco would not have to go through with Tom's plan. I had told Severus that if it came down to it, he had to kill me to save Draco's soul. Unlike Tom, I did not fear the afterlife like he does. I am on my next great adventure."
"I will never trust him! Either of them!" Harry spat out.
"Yes, well that's to be expected with the history that's there. Now then, are we finished with this subject? We have much to discuss."
"I…" Harry stopped, caught off guard by the change of subject. "There should have been a way," he mumbled.
"What's done is done, Harry. It's time to move on. Learn from the past but do not dwell there. So tell me about the locket," he looked excitedly at Harry.
Harry pulled it out of his pocket and held it up. It spun slowly on its chain, catching the light from the window. Dumbledore leaned forward, trying to see it better. Harry walked closer to his portrait and put it in the palm of his hand. He quickly opened it, and heard a sharp intake of breath from Dumbledore. He withdrew the piece of paper and read its contents out loud.
"To the Dark Lord,
I know I will be dead long before you read this but I want you to know it was I who discovered your secret, I have stolen the real Horcrux and intend to destroy it as soon as I can. I face death, in the hope that when you meet your match, you will be mortal once more.
R.A.B.
Dumbledore was quiet for a moment, thinking. Harry sighed, because he was feeling defeated.
"It was all in vain sir. We did all that work, took unnecessary risks for nothing. Who knows where the real locket is. I don't even know who R.A.B. is," he went and sat down again.
"Now Harry, I've never known you to give up that easily. Let's think: it would have to be one of his Death Eaters, someone in his inner circle who knew about what he was going to do. Who are the Death Eaters that we know of?"
"Well, there is Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Lestrange, MacNair, Dolohov, Rookwood, Avery, Greyback…" Harry trained off, not remembering any more names.
"Hmmm…this person was obviously no longer loyal to the Dark Lord. We may need to go back further. It would have to be someone who challenged him, or fell out of his good books, or perhaps was disenchanted with what Voldemort was doing. Someone who has died, since we know what the potion was capable of…" Dumbledore said, tapping his chin.
Harry suddenly had a picture in his head of standing with Sirius, looking at the Black family tree, with the hole where Sirius's name had been, beside his brother…
"Regulus Black!" Harry said suddenly. "Sirius said he was a Death Eater, but that he did something to make Voldemort angry. He had Regulus killed. He might have taken the locket…" Harry's eyes went wide in realization, and then he covered his face with his hand. "We found it. I even tried to open it, but I couldn't. We threw it away. It could be anywhere! Mundungus could have stole it and sold it, or Kretcher-" Harry stopped. He could remember Kretcher sneaking around, stealing items they had thrown out. He remembered seeing his little `nest', but hadn't looked very closely. Could it be in there?
Dumbledore watched him as he processed his thoughts.
Harry finally looked up. "Kretcher may have hidden it in his…uh…den."
"You may have to go back to Grimmauld Place to search. But," Dumbledore held up a finger, "Not yet. There is much you will need to learn about destroying the Horcrux before you attempt to retrieve it. You saw what happened to my hand when I destroyed the ring. We can begin your lessons in a few weeks. There are two more things I need to discuss with you."
Harry looked at him expectantly.
"First, I think it is time to inform Professor McGonagall, Lupin, and Tonks about the Horcruxes." He held up his hands as Harry started to protest. "I know I said keep it quiet, but you may need their help, now that I am not as mobile. It will make it easier for you to come and go as well, which brings me to the second point. I would like you to stay here. I understand, Harry that you think you can look after yourself. Of this, I have every faith in. I would like you to have as much training as possible. The better prepared you are, the better a chance that this war will end positively. If you are here, we can all help you."
Harry realized Dumbledore was right and Hermione had been right as well. He sighed. He was going to have to accept other people's help, even if it went against his nature. He looked up at Dumbledore.
"Hermione said the same thing not too long ago."
Dumbledore looked down over the top of his glasses. "I'm glad she is the voice of your conscience, Harry. You have a good friend in her."
Harry felt his face go hot and averted his eyes. Dumbledore smiled at this, but didn't say anything. He suddenly yawned and stretched.
"I'm sorry, Harry, I find myself tiring easily these days. We will talk some more soon. I expect that your friends will be waiting for you to join them for lunch."
With that, Dumbledore leaned back and closed his eyes. Harry took that to mean he was dismissed. He stood up and quietly left the room.
Harry wandered down the quiet hallway, going over the conversation with Dumbledore in his mind. He wasn't ready to meet with the others yet, so he stayed away from the Great Hall. He found it was soothing to be able to walk the castle in silence. It gave him the chance to collect his thoughts.
He was eager for this whole thing to be over with. He wanted to find the Horcruxes and get on with his life…if he had a life to live. What would he like to do? He had thought about being an Auror, but without finishing his courses, how could he? He supposed he could go back to school afterwards, but would his friends be here? Could he go to school without Ron and Hermione? He sighed. He didn't really have a future, thanks to Voldemort. He had managed to ruin his life just by being a part of it. And what about his friends? They were going to throw their lives away just for him. He didn't like that at all. He realized he couldn't stop them from helping, but it annoyed him just the same. Ron wanted to be an Auror so badly. His mum would be so disappointed.
And Hermione…He wanted the best for her, and he wanted her to live. That was really important to him. He was so scared of losing her. He couldn't imagine a life without her. He had to protect both of his friends at all costs, but especially Hermione. He could feel a sense of panic settle over him at the thought of her being hurt, and that really scared him. He knew he felt strongly for her. He could just feel it. But what was it? Was it the love of just a friend, or was it something more. He was torn. He wanted to be with her, talk to her, kiss her…
Harry stopped dead in the middle of the hallway. Where did that come from? He thought with a shock. But it was true and deep down he knew it. Wanting to get closer to her was beginning to overpower everything else. His mind was beginning to go in circles, but one thing was for sure. He wanted to spend as much time as he possibly could with his best friends, treasure every moment. And it seemed like the best and safest place to do that would be here at Hogwarts. With that finally decided, he turned and headed down to the Great Hall. Besides, he mused, he was hungry.
He found Ron, Hermione, Lupin and Tonks sitting at a table off to the side; they had already begun eating. He smiled and went and sat between Ron and Hermione. Everyone stopped talking and looked at him. Now that he had made his decision, he felt like he had a little power. He looked at them, trying not to break out in a goofy grin.
"What?" he asked innocently.
"Come on, mate!" said Ron as he began to eat again. "What's the verdict? Are we staying or not?"
"What are you waiting for me for? Since when do I make your decisions for you?" Harry replied.
"Since we said we were in this together," snapped Hermione, expected to continue the earlier argument.
Harry frowned at her, knowing it would irk her.
"I don't know if I want to live with the likes of you lot if you can't even make your own decisions," Harry ducked his head as he hid a grin.
Ron snorted as he took a bite of his chicken.
"Harry!" Hermione said angrily.
Harry looked up at her with a mischievous twinkle in his eye. Hermione took one look and couldn't help it. She started to laugh. It was so infectious that pretty soon all three of them were laughing as Lupin and Tonks shook their heads.
"Kids these days," muttered Lupin, which set them off laughing again.
Hermione wiped her eyes and grinned at Harry, overjoyed with relief that he wanted to stay.
"So when do you want to move in?" she asked
Harry shrugged. "We could move in right away. I'm sure Mrs. Weasley would like her house back,"
"Hang on," said Ron, "Come back to school early? Are you nutters?"
Harry turned and smiled at him. "Yeah, I expect I am. That's the only logical explanation for all this don't you think?" and they all started laughing again.
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