The Crow, Vengeance

Summary: Harry Potter is brutally murdered; only problem, it looks like he killed himself. Will Harry find the strength within to justify his death before he's gone… forever…?

Disclaimer: Nah Fool, I'm not that creative.

Pairings: Hermione!!

Chapter 2: Life of a Hero

Harry hadn't told Hermione, but he had suspected for some time now that Dumbledore was behind a lot more than he'd ever admitted to. And now, 5th year at Hogwarts, things were beginning to get tricky. Dumbledore was now more malevolent than ever…and never less able to be suspected.

Harry walked down the hall to the dormitories with a heavy heart. He'd just seen Ginny in the hall…and she'd almost caught whiff of his pain.

His…burden.

But it was only his to bear and so he'd quickly put on a smile for her so that she could go about her life blissfully ignorant of all the things that were really wrong in the school…with Dumbledore.

And after what he'd seen…god, what was he supposed to say to her? Dumbledore…and the Dark lord were in league?

Harry sat down hard on his bed and fell back, not feeling safe at all. He was sweating, and not only because he'd run the whole way back after his encounter with Ginny.

What was he supposed to do? The leader of the light side of the wizarding world was probably responsible for the rise of the Dark side of the wizarding world…and none of it made sense. How was it possible that Dumbledore was getting away with it?

Dumbledore had tried to explain to Harry when he'd walked into Dumbledore's office and found them both there, so open about their meeting as if no one would dare question them. He'd been looking for Dumbledore and had gone into his office only to find that he wasn't at his desk where he'd normally be. He'd looked up, expecting Fawkes to come flying down to him and chat when he'd heard voices floating out from behind nothing less than a wall.

Confused, he walked over and found that it wasn't a wall at all but a door. He leaned in closer to hear better, not trying to be nosy but curious, and heard a voice that sent shivers down his spine. A voice that had been haunting his dreams for months…it couldn't be….

Not feeling the least bit sane, and desperate to prove himself hard of hearing, he burst through the door and froze at the sight in front of him. He would have laughed if he weren't so close to fainting and the sheer wrongness of it all.

Albus Dumbledore was in the most intimate of positions with none other than our very own Lord Voldemort. (A/N: Betcha never heard that one before . EWWWW)

And Harry didn't think…a naked Dumbledore would have been enough…but a naked Voldemort as well? MY GOD!! And they weren't exactly YOUNG!!!

With his brain shutting down the way it was he could only gape for the few seconds it took them to realize that they weren't the only ones in the room anymore. Dumbledore's face twisted and Voldemorts eyes narrowed. With a yelp that sounded as though a small puppy had been brutally smacked, Harry turned and fled as fast he could away from the scene of the crime, fleeing as if his life were on the line.

Now that he could really think about it…it probably had been. And what's worse, it probably still was.

Harry looked up at his four poster bed and did the only thing he could think of…he drifted off to sleep, haunted by flashes of naked old men.

What felt like two minutes was actually two hours and Harry shot up wondering what could wake him so easily from such disturbing images. The dormitory was silent, not even the breathing of his classmates could be heard…but somehow Harry was sure they were there. He knew that something was seriously wrong.

He slide off his bed and winced as his bare feet touched ground that was freezing temperatures. It felt like ice. He let out the breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding and for the second time that day froze with shock. The mist that came from his mouth wasn't possible. The fire was lit….

But, looking closer at the fire, it seemed to be frozen. But that also didn't make sense because fire couldn't freeze…could it?

Cocking his head in confusion, he walked closer to the fire and gasped when his feet slide from beneath him and he landed hard on frozen solid stone. He felt a strange wetness seeping into his clothing from his bottom and realized that the floor was iced over in a thick sheet of wet ice.

Harry's heart froze and he lifted his eyes from his legs and swept a long gaze at his dorm mates. They too were covered in ice.

Harry's breathing escalated and he heaved himself off the cold floor, careful to hold onto his frozen bed for support, and tried to figure out what was happening. He'd give his right foot if this didn't have something to do with Dumbledore….

With feelings of dread rising into his stomach, Harry reached back to grab at his wand…and felt only the table he knew he'd last set it on.

And without knowing how he knew, he knew that this was it for him. This was the end. He didn't bother to look on the floor for his wand for he knew he would not find it there…someone had taken it purposely. Someone was going to kill him tonight. Harry straightened and tried to look as defiant as possible while leaning heavily against his bed.

Where would it come from? Who would be the one to be blamed for his death? Who of the two would kill him?

It didn't really matter to Harry, either way he was dead and he knew it. He would take someone down with him though…death be damned! He would not die in vain!

A sharp laugh rose from the depths of Harry side of the room and he turned quickly, almost falling in the process.

"Harry Potter…so you do understand, don't you? It's such a shame…you would be so utterly welcome to join my ranks, such a prized death eater you would make…." The voice echoed, the face never revealed itself but Harry didn't need the face to know who it was.

"And we both know I'd never join you so bugger off and just finish this already so my murder will be looked into!" Harry was shouting, hoping that someone would come…anyone. He knew it was in vain…but he didn't want to die.

"There will be no hero tonight Harry Potter. No one will come to your rescue. I could have killed you long before this, but you were part of a very long list of plans that would enable me and Albums to rain supreme. You should not have interfered…." Voldemorts voice rang in his ears and he very nearly fell back with shock in realization.

"You've been planning this…this whole time. Everything that's happened to everyone…to me…you and Dumbledore…." Harry stopped short, breath quickening and heart racing. What the hell was going on here?

We've all been…betrayed….

Voldemort high pitched laugh was the last thing he heard before the world tilted and a strange buzz settled around him.

The crow swooped down in front of him and tilted its head to the side, studying Harry. Harry looked down at the bird, tears fell as he stood up, and, understanding what needed to be done, he began to walk away from his grave….

Hogwarts was not far from him.