DISCLAIMER: Nothing and no one belongs to me. It all belongs to wonderful Ms. Rowling and her slow careful-working mind. Apparently, due to the definition of a disclaimer, I am supposed to tell you to sue me via email. Good luck with that ;)

[a/n] Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince??? Am I the only one a little disappointed with that title?

Clearing the Mist

Prologue:

I trudge slowly up the steps to the Astronomy Tower. The door opens slowly at the wave of my wand. The room is empty and filled with the cold air of the dying days of winter. A few flakes of snow still rest on the windowsill from the midday flurries. I close the door and walk across the room to the window, my footsteps resounding on the stone floor. I take a seat on the windowsill and look out on the grounds. The night is clear and the faint light of the waning moon creates a shimmer on the sloping lawns of the school. The lake reflects the night sky like a mirror in the absence of wind. The trees look dead, with their branches naked and cloaked with snow. Only at night can I feel like I am part of this world…part of this dead world of winter. Now, as winter comes to a close and spring comes in, I know it is time for my departure. I cannot live on as this world celebrates new life and rejuvenation. I am too dead inside to enjoy life.

I reach inside my bag and draw out a small journal. This will be my last letter to the world.

I want everyone to understand why I did the things I did. I want my memory to live on, not as a scandal, but as a story.

How could a seventeen year old Head Girl allow herself to fall into the clutches of a forty year old Potions Master? That is the question that will always be affiliated with my name.

I want to leave this world with the truth. I will not allow our names to remain tarnished for eternity.

Sitting here in the cold on the edge of a window, I begin to write the story…our story.

The story of how we fell in love.

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[a/n] I know this was short, but it's just a prologue. More to come, and longer, I promise ;)