a/n: Sorry about the wait, I used to be so good with updating stories, but I've been slacking off with this one. School starts next week, so I really hope I get around to updating in good time. If I don't, write me a review yelling at me.
Responses!
Anime Monster: Haha, yeah, that was pretty smart of him. But who can really expect someone who spent their life on the streets to be responsible? He never had to be on time for much else before.
DebsTheSnapeFanNow: Yeah, really, who wants a saintly hero. I can't even imagine Harry being as good as he is had he really stayed with the Dursley's, like in the book. I would have thought that would make him even more bitter, but it's JKR's book, so she can do what she wants.
CharmsCharlie: Of course! He won't just sit there and let what he believes to be a future-dark-lord-in-the-making get away like he did with Voldemort. He has no idea what kind of person Harry is, and with the way Harry reacts to Dumbledore, he's sure to try to stick his crooked nose in things.
ivan the terrable: To be honest, I haven't thought much about Quirrell. I guess he'll have to eventually stop him, but this story isn't going to follow the track the book took.
Malach: TheSnape-Harry interactions will be different. Harry will be a bit bewildering to Snape, because after all, Snape expects a James Potter mirror image, and well, what he got isn't quite that. I'm not sure if Snape will trigger any of Voldemort's memories, but we'll see!
wolfzmasterz: I haven't decided if he's going to have more. He's bound to have some abilities that we don't all know about yet, but as for multiple animagus forms, we'll just have to see what comes up.
GoddessofDestiny419: I wouldn't go so far as to call Jon nice. He certainly wasn't a mean person, but the reason he decided to help Harry, rather than beat him up, as they had originally planned, was because he saw a bit of himself in Harry. He was sympathetic to his situation, but Jon can be pretty moody and reclusive. He has a lot of secrets… hehe.
ProphecyProtector: Haha, aw, where would you have put him? I mean, I guess I could have done something crazy like put him in Hufflepuff, but he just didn't really fit there. So Slytherin it was.
Karaii: Aw, it isn't the best one out there, trust me, there are a bunch. I guess a lot of the authors haven't gotten very far in the stories, but there are some really well written ones out there. But I'm glad you like mine as much as you do!
Thanks as well to: DesiDudeNever Odd Or eveN, azntgr01, Black Padfoot, lady sakura cosmos, Dumbledork, Manny2003, shazia Born confused, A-man, phoenix catcher, mental.girl.on.sugar, Eowyn23, knuckz, hplver, Sarah R Potter, and HevenSentHellBroken.
Right, here we go!
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Chapter Six:
'Well, that was boring,' Harry thought to himself after listening to Dumbledore's concluding announcements.
The Slytherin prefects asked all first years to follow, but Harry had to wait for Dumbledore. He vaguely wondered how he was going to find his way to his common room, but didn't let it bother him much. If all else failed he could cozy up in a random hallway, he had slept in stranger places before. Of course, it wouldn't do for his classmates to find him snoozing against the wall; he didn't want to stand out too much at first. Though he doubted that was even possible.
Harry was removed from his musings by the presence of Albus Dumbledore standing over his shoulder. Dumbledore slightly cleared his throat, which Harry took as a message to follow. Once Harry stood up, Dumbledore began walking out of the Great Hall. He walked surprisingly fast for a man his age, but Harry easily kept up.
As they walked through the castle, Harry took in his surroundings. It truly was a medieval castle. It was beautiful. The magic was everywhere, seeping through the crevasses between the bricks, swirling around the suits of armor. Harry yearned for some time to himself just to inspect the magic. It was practically alive; there was so much of it. The castle, even without the magic, would be extraordinary. It took all of Harry's self control not to just stop and stare.
Dumbledore kept his gaze straight ahead as he walked towards his office. Harry wondered what questions were milling through the old man's head. He'd soon find out.
The two of them stopped in front of the statue of a gargoyle.
"Fizzing Whisbees," Dumbledore said with all seriousness.
Harry gave the old man a look that clearly said "I don't know what drugs you've been taking, but get it together!" If Dumbledore saw the look, he chose to ignore it.
The gargoyle hopped aside with Dumbledore's strange words and the two of them walked up the stairs and into the strangest room Harry had ever seen. Along with all the curious instruments lying around, there was one of the weirdest looking birds Harry had seen. Somewhere in his head he knew it was a phoenix, creature of the light. No wonder the bird had refrained from trilling when its master walked into the room. Harry was not an epitome of light. While at the same time, he was not a dark wizard, he had no desire to purge the world of those with less "pure" blood.
"Well, Harry," Dumbledore began, "I'm sure you know why I asked you here."
"I'm not quite sure I do," Harry responded cautiously.
"I would like to know why you ran away from the Dursley's and what happened after that point."
"Why I ran away from the Dursley's?" Harry growled.
"That is what they told us," Dumbledore answered.
Harry narrowed his eyes. This conversation was not starting the way he wanted it to, he couldn't afford to lose his temper, he needed to keep up his Occlumency. He was calmed by the a slight hissing by his ear. This did not go unnoticed by Dumbledore, who curiously looked around.
"Why not tell me your version of events, Harry."
"Don't call me Harry," he responded. "That's a name for friends."
"Of course, Mr. Potter," Dumbledore answered, his demeanor dimming slightly.
"They threw me out," Harry answered the previous question. "He dropped me off in an alley and I'm sure the whole family thought good riddance."
"I see," Dumbledore seemed to digest this information. "What did you do after he abandoned you?"
"A family took me in," Harry was now answering in monotone, his emotions were cleared.
"A family, Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore responded dubiously. "It certainly doesn't look like you were in the care of a family."
"Maybe not a traditional family, but they were more family to me than those relatives I was forced to live with."
"I'm sorry you had to deal with all of that, Harry."
Harry didn't answer, he simply yawned.
"Ah, yes," Dumbledore caught himself. "It's quite late; shall I lead you to your common room?"
Harry shook his head, "I asked someone for directions before the feast was over."
Dumbledore nodded, but knew that Harry spoke to no one during the feast.
"Good night, then."
Once Harry was out of Dumbledore's office he was free to think as he wanted. He knew his answers did nothing to assuage Dumbledore's curiosity. Dumbledore would be keeping a close eye on him, perhaps using other people to watch him as well. Or even the castle. Harry looked around at the amount of magic in the walls. The pictures moved, he noticed that on the walk to Dumbledore's office as well.
Once fully out of view of Dumbledore's office he took off the disillusionment charm on the snake. It was a magnificent snake, it was white with yellow markings on it, but its head was black. That, and it was about the same length as Harry was tall; which, at eleven, was about five foot two.
"What is your name?" Harry asked his pet.
"Siobhan," the snake hissed back.
So it was a girl, "that's a pretty name."
The snake curled a little tighter around Harry's neck, but in a comforting way. It wasn't very heavy for a snake its size, but Harry was also surprisingly strong for one so small.
Harry had no idea where he was going; he was wandering through the pitch black castle. With the amount of exploring he did at night, he was able to see his surroundings slightly, but he had no clue where to go for the Slytherin common room.
Harry was stopped at a split in the hallway, there were two different directions, he had no idea where to go and he was getting tired. It had been a long day. He still had to write a letter to Alphard and maybe one to Molls as well, she could use some cheering up, or at least a friend.
Harry's eyes were getting heavy, he blinked a couple times to keep them open. A fog came over him—was he dreaming? No, this was just another memory.
Three boys were walking down the hallway, Harry was in the middle.
"So Tom, what did old Slughorn have to say to you this time?" The broad one on the right asked in an awing voice.
"He was complimenting my essay on vampires," his voice was soft and had a pleasant timbre to it. "He said it brought up points he hadn't heard in a long time."
"Nothing but praise, eh?" The tall one on the left joked.
Tom did nothing but smile, he wasn't going to mention that his essay focused on the power and greatness of vampires and that he wrote that they would be valuable allies and that the Ministry was foolish for condemning them.
The group took a left in the split hallway and stopped not long after at what appeared to be a normal patch of the wall, but with a closer look you could see the outlines of an opening. The broad one mumbled a few words and the wall split open…
Harry shook himself out of it. He followed the hall on the left and stared at the blank wall. He had no idea what to say to get it to open.
Harry sat down next to the door and waited. After about an hour of nearly dozing off there were soft footsteps coming down the hall. Harry squinted into the darkness and saw a tall man with a hooked nose walking down this direction. When the man noticed Harry his eyes widened, but he showed no other shock.
"What are you doing out at this hour?" The man practically spit at him.
"I had a meeting with Dumbledore and I forgot to ask what the password was," Harry answered. He was in no mood to get in an argument with this man; he was just too tired.
"The password is Salazar," the man stated, finding no fault in the story, but he continued to glare at Harry.
The door opened when the man said the password.
"Well…." Harry paused. "Good night."
Harry walked inside without waiting for the man.
'Oh,' Harry thought to himself. 'I don't even know which room to go in.'
Fed up with searching, Harry walked over to a couch and lay down and slept there.
Harry woke up with dawn. Well, he would have been up with the sun if he could have seen the sun in these dungeons. But somehow he just knew it was morning. No one else was awake, but he figured he may as well get up and start exploring anyways. He couldn't find Siobhan, but she could take care of herself. Well, maybe he should worry about everyone else, but his snake would be fine.
Harry took a good look at the common room now that there was light enough to see it. It was gloomy. There were no other words for it. Gray stones, dark green décor, it was just dark and dreary.
The school had to have something better to look at. What he really wanted to do was get outside and take a walk in that forest. Forests always had some sort of allure to Harry. Maybe it was the fact that everything was so wild and uncontrolled; there was a beauty to that.
With that plan, Harry left the common room. The idea that he didn't know how to get out of the castle didn't occur to him. He just started walking by instinct. He knew he had to write a letter to Alphard to get his things, but he'd do that later. Maybe he'd write one to Molls too, after all, she could use a friend right about now.
Before Harry knew it, he was at the front doors of the school with no idea how he got there. Once outside, he took a good look at the forest in the distance. It was dangerous, no doubt about that, he was certain Dumbledore said something about not going into it during the end of the feast, but he hadn't really been listening. The tall trees and ominous darkness were signs enough of what could possibly lay inside, but Harry wasn't scared. Lying before the forest was a cabin, a lake, and an extremely strange looking sports field.
The sun had barely risen, so Harry decided he had a good two or three hours to waste before he'd have to worry about getting to breakfast. With that, he began briskly walking inside the woods.
It was beautiful. How could Dumbledore forbid the students to go inside? Harry marveled at the natural scenery. There were flowers, vines, the tallest trees he'd ever seen, so many plants the he couldn't recognize. He wasn't on any path, he preferred to see nature as it was without being trampled and changed.
All Harry saw of life was small animals and woods. Nothing that looked remotely threatening. But of course, Harry knew that just meant that there was something lurking deeper inside. Not that the thought of danger made him turn around, in fact, it was exhilarating. As Harry walked, he picked up a plant or two, just to have; maybe he'd put a preserving charm on a flower and send it to Molls. She'd like that.
Thinking of Molls made Harry think of Jon. Was he dead? Molls said he was shot, but he was strong, he could still be alive somewhere. After all, Molls didn't expect to live, but there she was. He really wished he could find out if Jon was still out there somewhere. He owed Jon his life. If Jon truly was dead, that would be hanging on his conscience forever. There must be some way to find out.
Harry kept walking, keeping note of how far he'd gone and how high the sun had risen. He'd have to turn around soon. He hadn't yet seen any reason why students shouldn't be allowed in the forest. Maybe it was a night danger. Harry shrugged and turned around.
Harry snagged his coat on a tree branch as he turned around. Aggravated, he tugged it off and got a cut on his hand. Harry looked at the blood dispassionately. He was no stranger to blood, it didn't bother him anymore, whether it was coming from himself or someone else.
As Harry was walking back, he heard something following him. He didn't change his pace or look back; he just kept walking with that awareness that there was something in the distance. As it started getting closer, Harry kept his hands near his daggers. Whatever it was couldn't be violent, otherwise it would have attacked by now.
Harry stopped when he felt that it was only a few paces behind him. When he turned around he almost laughed. It was a thestral—he must have attracted it with his cut. This thestral must have a strong nose, as he had only cut himself lightly.
Harry walked up to it, keeping eye contact. He pat it on the head and thought about the reason he could see them. Death was no stranger to anyone living on the streets. He had seen more than his fair share of the ending of peoples' lives.
He had only been six. He had only been living with Jon and co. for a little over a year. He had been kept away from the fights before then, but he was still given daggers and taught to use them by Jon himself. But this time Harry had been out with Jon, Molls, and Pete and they were cornered. Harry tried to back away and stay out of it, all of the people attacking were so much bigger than him.
Pete, Jon, and Molls were all having a hard time. There were two people for each of them. It was Molls who ran into trouble, one of the guys started making comments at her and the other one grabbed her and she couldn't move. Harry didn't think, he just acted. He took out his daggers and stabbed the guy holding her in the back.
Once released, Molls took care of the other guy, gave Harry a thankful grin, and went to help Pete. For the rest of the fight, Harry just stood and stared at the boy he killed. He couldn't have been older than fourteen; did her deserve to die? Did any of them? He didn't talk to anyone for a week. After that, whenever he killed someone he refused to look at the body afterwards.
The thestral looked at Harry with knowing sad eyes and licked his cut. Harry smiled sadly at it and gave it a final pet and walked back to the school.
When he got inside the Great Hall, it was crowded. People were whispering and pointing at him as he made his way to the Slytherin table. This time, at least, no one scooted away from him. He found himself sitting next to a dark haired girl who held a quiet aristocratic air, but didn't appear to be arrogant.
"Good morning," she said in a polite voice.
"Morning," Harry replied out of respect.
He put some food on his plate and looked up at the head table. Dumbledore was staring at him. Perhaps hoping he'd make a friend? Dumbledore attempted a small smile when he realized Harry was watching him as well, but Harry kept a blank face and looked back down at his food.
Blaise passed him his schedule as it came down the table, but made no further attempts at conversation. Harry was relieved with this, because it left him to his own thoughts.
For one, where was Siobhan? He really hoped she hadn't killed or maimed anyone, after all, that wouldn't help his reputation much. Next he wondered what he was going to do in his classes when he didn't have any of his books. He didn't think his teachers would punish him much, maybe the stricter ones, but it wasn't necessarily his fault. He lost track of time, that was all. Maybe he had time to write Alphard a quick note before his classes started, or a firecall would work…. well, he'd have to get to work quickly. His schedule said that his first class began at eight; it was probably around seven thirty. If he ran, maybe, just maybe, he'd be able to get his things on time.
With that, Harry ran for the first place he could think of with a fire. Back to the Slytherin common room. The directions came easy to him this time, he had no trouble making his way back. Of course, what he didn't expect to see was a blonde boy with slicked back hair lying unconscious under his snake.
'Oh dear, this isn't good,' was what Harry thought to himself.