Harry Potter had been missing for two years after the incident at the Triwizard Tournament. Cedric's body had turned up but not Harry's. Some say Harry had died and others say he joined You-Know-Who. The real thing was so much worse then a simple alliance that some believed Harry to be in with the insane megalomaniac.
Sitting from a tree in the Forbidden Forest, Harry watched as his ex-best friends talked and laughed amongst each other. They acted happy and in love, like many young couples who have yet to face the reality and responsibility of a relationship. Harry watched as they forgot he ever existed, or at least tried to do so. Harry knew that at night they dreamed of him; some of the dreams good and some of them bad.
He watched as Neville came to talk to the couple. Neville, Harry knew, had been an actual and true friend. The boy would have never left his side unlike the other two that claimed to be his friend, only to forget about him so quickly. Harry knew that Neville never gave up his hopes that Harry would come back.
Several hours later around five or six, Harry no longer had his watch for it had stopped working during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament, Harry prepared to act on the pre thought out plan.
Since Harry was not of age and never actually quit school he was still technically a student of the school. And because of this he could allow others to enter the school by inviting them in. That's just what he was planning on doing once he did his dramatic little entrance.
Jumping down from the tree and landing silently from two years of training, Harry walked through the now empty courtyard. Term would be starting tonight; Ron, Hermione, Neville, and a few others stayed for extra training during the summer because of the war. It would soon be time for Harry to make his grand entrance.
It wasn't long before it was time. Harry walked right on through the castle with Death Eaters following closely behind him, Harry having already invited them through the wards.
Upon reaching the closed doors to the Great Hall, Harry paused and closed his eyes. Memories rushed through his mind, some bad but many good. It was times like these that he almost regretted joining Voldemort. Almost, but not quite.
Taking a deep breath, Harry pushed open the doors. Everybody's heads turned to see who had just opened the doors. Several gasped when the recognized who it was that had returned. Dumbledore had a look of pure shock on his face.
Harry grinned. Yes, he had changed. His hair was now longer, almost mid back and he no longer wore glasses, not to mention he had each of his ears pierced three times and his nose and eyebrow were pierced. His clothing was also a bit of a shock, Harry noted. Who would expect their precious Boy-Who-Lived to be wearing tight black leather pants and a tight dark green t-shirt? There was a wand holster on his right thigh so he could easily reach his wand when needed. Harry was sure he looked near unrecognizable.
"H-Harry Potter? Is that you my dear boy?" Dumbledore asked, the first to come from their shocked stupor.
"Of course," Harry replied, still grinning at the twisted humor of the situation.
Everybody gasped.
Harry chanced a glance behind him and saw that all the Death Eaters were hidden from view. Good. Everything was going well so far.
"Where have you been, mate?" Ron asked, also recovering from his stupor.
Hermione ran up and hugged him tightly, closely followed by Ginny. Grimacing, Harry tried to push the two off him. Harry heard Voldemort growl angrily in his head causing him to wince.
"Get off me!" Harry finally shouted as the two were ignoring his efforts at removing them from his being.
"What's wrong Harry?" Ginny asked, backing away.
"Oh nothing, except you two were hugging me," Harry growled out.
"Harry, why don't we go to my office and discuss where it is you've been all this time," Dumbledore suggested, though Harry knew it was a command.
"No. I think everybody deserves to hear just where I've been these past two years," Harry said taking a step into the hall. "You see, I was with Voldemort." Most everybody winced at the name.
Harry waited a moment, letting what he just said sink it. Soon many people's eyes became wide and one or two even fainted. Dumbledore sat there and looked at Harry with disappointment shining in his eyes, his infamous twinkle finally gone. Harry noticed that the only ones that weren't affected were the Slytherins that were on the Dark Side and even a couple Ravenclaws that went dark.
Grinning, Harry waited for somebody to speak, figuring that Dumbledore would make a speech or try to lure him back. Sure enough, after the shock wore off Dumbledore spoke.
"It's good to see that you've decided to come back to the Light Side Harry. I am disappointed that you joined the Dark Side in the first place though," Dumbledore said in a grandfatherly sort of voice.
Harry still stood there grinning. "Who the hell said I was coming back to join you? Maybe it was because I wanted to kill you," Harry said.
As soon as Harry finished speaking the hidden Death Eaters rushed out and started to bind or stupefy the students; their orders were to not harm or kill anybody unless absolutely necessary and they were supposed to leave Dumbledore to him and Voldemort.
When the fighting started Harry walked out of the Great Hall, assured that the Death Eaters could handle students and a handful of professors. He was greeted outside the doors by the Dark Lord Voldemort, who occupied the position of not only a Dark Lord, but Harry Potter's lover.
Voldemort kissed Harry on the lips softly before pulling away quickly, not wanting to miss a moment of the fight. They smiled at each other before Harry turned around to face the Great Hall.
There were spells flying all over the place, most stunners. Most of the first years were already stunned or bound and only one of the professors was down. Snape was fighting with the Death Eaters, a detail Dumbledore didn't seem to notice as he was busy trying to stun Death Eaters that were avoiding him. Several students were brave enough to try to hit Harry or Voldemort with a couple stunners but Voldemort easily blocked them.
Voldemort wrapped his arms around Harry's waist. The time would soon come that they would fight Dumbledore. Soon said wizard would die. Soon the world would be perfect, or as perfect as they could make it.
It took about an hour but the last student was stunned. Dumbledore stood there, ceasing his battle against the unresponsive Death Eaters knowing that Voldemort would now be his opponent.
"Hello Tom. Long time no see," Dumbledore said gravely.
"As much as I hate seeing you, I'm afraid we have unsettled business," Voldemort said having released Harry a moment earlier.
Harry was standing in front of the students on the Dark Side; the Death Eaters were dragging unconscious and bound students to the side of the Great Hall. Both Voldemort and Dumbledore got in fighting stance. Harry was confident that the Dark Side would win.
The fighting started immediately. Spells both light and dark flew from both sides of the 'arena' that had been set up. It was hard to say who was winning because it seemed as though neither had been hit. Red, blue, silver, yellow, green. All these colors and more lit up the Great Hall, once used for meals now used as the arena for the Final Battle.
The fighting went on for what seemed like hours when in reality it was less then an hour. Tension was so strong that it almost felt as though you couldn't breath. Everybody's eyes followed the lights. Sometimes it seemed as though the powerful wizards shot two at once.
Harry was getting nervous. The duel was supposed to be finished quickly. But judging by the way both wizards acted, it wasn't going to end soon. One of them had to do something to change the tide of the duel.
Dumbledore realized this.
After setting up a powerful shield Dumbledore did something quite unexpected; he sent an Avada Kedavra curse flying straight towards Harry. Seeing the curse coming, Harry's first response was to wrap his arms around his stomach, a reaction that confused most in the room, including Dumbledore.
Right before the deathly green light hit Harry, Voldemort ran in front of it. It was as though it all played out in slow motion. Harry looked on wide eyed as his lover was hit by the spell and fell to the ground. Raising his wand, Harry prepared to cast the same curse on Dumbledore, but somebody beat him to it.
Dumbledore fell with wide eyes. Behind him stood Severus Snape who had abandoned his calm mask for the first time Harry had ever seen. Hate raged in his eyes as he looked down with a sneer at Dumbledore's corpse.
"That's for getting me into this double agent shit," Snape spat before his face turned calm and his expression unreadable.
Harry rushed to his fallen lover's side. The tears he promised to never shed fell. How could Voldemort fall? It wasn't that he believed the man invisible, he just didn't think he would die just to save him.
Caressing his lover's face, Harry forgot all else. He didn't notice his own anguished sobs and screams, the Death Eaters, or anything. The only thing that registered in his mind was that Voldemort, the man he loved, was dead. How was he going to raise this child on his own?
Eventually one of the Death Eaters thought to run to the infirmary and bring back a calming potion. Once Harry was calmed down enough he stood up. Tears still spilled from his eyes but he ignored them. A Death Eater, Lucius Malfoy it sounded like, led him to Dumbledore's old seat at the Head Table while trying to calm him. With Voldemort gone, he was leader.
It all happened so fast. It seemed like a millennia ago since they started the duel. And now, because of him, Voldemort was dead. The one thing he had set out to do when he entered the Wizarding World turned into the one thing he wouldn't ever do.
Harry sat there, for how long he did not know. He barely registered the comforting words the, now his, Death Eaters, his friends, were whispering. It was as though it was a dream, and a bad one at that. And maybe it was just an illusion. Maybe, just maybe, if he opened his eyes he would wake up in bed with Voldemort's crimson eyes watching him lovingly with a soft smile on his face like everyday. But when Harry clenched his eyes shut and opened them back up, he was still in the nightmare.
The tears returned with renewed vigor. Looking around he noticed everybody in the Great Hall had their eyes on him. The people that were once stunned were now conscious and bound with magical ropes awaiting judgment.
Wiping away his tears roughly, Harry sneered down at the students of Hogwarts. This had been preplanned if Voldemort had died; Harry would take over for him and take over the Ministry and running the Wizarding World. It was not a task Harry really wanted, but he had to be brave for himself, the world, and the little baby growing inside him.
Harry cleared his throat in an effort to get himself talking. It took a moment but Harry finally was able to speak without choking or sobbing.
"Take Voldemort's body and put it on a stretcher. Have a funeral planned. He deserves peace after all he's done for us," Harry finally said.
Several students growled at what Harry had said but the boy paid them no mind.
Addressing the students and teachers he said, "You have a choice. Join me or be auctioned off as slaves.
The students and teachers gasped, unable to believe that the Boy-Who-Lived, their savior, would do any of this. Many contemplated on what to do while the minority sat there with defiant looks planted firmly on their faces.
"What say you?" Harry asked the crowed coldly.
Nobody spoke for several minutes, not really sure what to say or if they should even say anything to this powerful leader.
"What do you stand for?" asked somebody in the crowd.
It was Colin Creevey who spoke.
"I stand for what is right. I will lead without manipulations or threats. I will put competent people in the ministry. I will care about those in the Wizarding World. But, if push comes to shove, I'll shove right on back," Harry said, eyes scanning the crowed below like a hawk.
It was another moment before the same voice of Colin Creevey spoke up again, though this time it wasn't brave but almost… broken. "I'll join you."
"Goo-" Harry started but was interrupted by Ron.
"How could you Colin?! We have to fight them! They killed Dumbledore! How can you forget all the Dark Side has done?!" Ron roared at the now cowering boy.
"There are two sides of every story, Mr. Weasley," came the snide voice of Snape. "There were losses on both sides and both sides had reasons that they believed to be right."
Ron's eyes widened in what Harry guessed to be realization. He hoped that Ron would pick his side. Harry loved his friends dearly but if they chose wrong he would do what must be done.
Hermione's voice rang through the hall next. "But Harry, we're your friends. How could you abandon us like this? And what about your parents? They sacrificed themselves for you!" Hermione pleaded through tears.
There were several nods throughout the hall. They probably thought that would bring Harry around but it didn't. It only made him angry.
"They did no such thing! I you were actually smart as you pretend to be you would know that a dark lord cannot kill another dark lord!" Harry snarled. "My mother gave no sacrifice. In fact, she got out of the way as soon as possible. I've seen Voldemort's memories in a pensive and those don't lie."
Hermione gasped and shook her head slightly. "I'm sorry Harry, but I can't just forget all the death and pain Voldemort brought on the world."
"Fine then by me. It's your life, not mine," Harry said in a monotone voice.
Harry nodded to a couple Death Eaters and they towed Ron and Hermione to the dungeons where they would stay until the auction. Collin was brought to sit at the Slytherin table. It didn't mean he would be a Slytherin, but the others on Harry's side were there. The body binds had been removed from everybody a moment earlier. Harry knew they wouldn't be able to escape.
Then Dennis Creevey got up and wordlessly went to sit next to his brother. Harry crossed his arms and glared challengingly at the rest of those yet to choose. Neville was next to get up, to scared for words he didn't make any kind of speech. He, like Dennis sat without a sound at the Slytherin table.
Others started to make up their minds. Some shouted defiance and were dragged off to the dungeons. Others just gave up and quietly told a nearby Death Eater to take them away. Most made short speeches and sat with at the Slytherin table until it was full, in which case they went to the next table.
Harry was sad to watch his friends go. Ginny, Parvati, Lavender, McGonagall, Flitwick, Dean, Seamus, and about twenty others went to the dungeons with Ron and Hermione. Harry was also sad that Voldemort hadn't gotten to see Hogwarts fall and the old Wizarding World crumble. Harry had to pick up the pieces alone.
After Hogwarts Harry attacked the Ministry of Magic, which was quick enough to surrender itself to Harry. He did the same at the Ministry as he did with Hogwarts. Most joined Harry knowing that they could never win.
Harry didn't go to the auction that was held September 15. He let Lucius run it like planned. Instead, he stayed home and relaxed after all the stress and pain. The hole in his heart was still fresh, and he knew it would never fully heal. There were some wounds that time could not heal.
There were times during the first three months that Harry was so overwhelmed with sadness that he felt he couldn't go on. It was the small bulge forming on his abdomen and the promise he made to his love that kept him going.
It was almost three months to the day since Voldemort's death. The funeral was tomorrow and Harry almost didn't want to go. Nearly everyone in the English Wizarding World was going to be there. So why should he? Because it was, is, his love. He owed it to Voldemort to say a few words, and he owed to himself to accept that his lover and baby's daddy was dead and move on with life.
When Harry arrived the next day he was to have a seat in the front being Voldemort's only remaining family, though he technically was not.
He paid no attention to the word and compliments being paid to Voldemort. Nothing meant anything to him and none of it seemed to describe Voldemort in the least. The funeral was so… meaningless… pointless. Harry wanted to run but he decided against it. He would wait for his turn. Soon it was time for him to be buried. Harry walked up beside the coffin and placed a gentle kiss on Voldemort's cold, cold lips before they nailed the coffin shut. A single tear slipped from his eyes as he witnessed his love disappear from view… forever.
Only in his dreams and pictures did Harry ever see Voldemort, his love, ever again. The rest of his time pregnant was like any normal pregnancy, except it was a ever rare male pregnancy. He had sent Dobby to get Narcissa and Bellatrix as soon as his water broke.
Contractions caused Harry to scream a little. Narcissa and Bellatrix tried to calm him as much as they could, which wasn't much. Harry ended up spending fifteen hours of labor before finally giving birth to a healthy baby boy.
Harry smiled as he looked at his son as he held the babe in his arms. He looked so much like Voldemort except he had Harry's bright green eyes. When the nurse asked him what he wanted to name the boy, Harry happily gave her his answer.
"His name is Tom James Riddle."
It wasn't quite the life he wanted, but it would have to do. The road to recovery would be a hard one that will never truly end, but now with his sweet little babe would help him. It was the last of Voldemort he had besides pictures.
But it would have to do.
Harry fell asleep right after the nurse took his son away, and for the first time in a long time, he slept without nightmares and with a small smile on his face.
A/N: My longest one-shot ever! Yay! I think this turned out really good but why don't you tell me what you think?
Like it, love it, hate it? Please review! Cookies for those who review! Flamers can go flame themselves to ashes or something…