Disclaimer: If I owned these characters, I wouldn't be writing a disclaimer.
Prologue
Where is She?
'I know,' Harry sighed, 'It's just that she's never been gone this long before.'
'I'm sure she has,' Ron shrugged. 'You tell me all the time she's gone for weeks at a time when you stay with the Dursleys.' Harry nodded, but he still didn't feel any better. He looked out on a starless night, waiting for Hedwig's silhouette to come crashing towards him with a giant parcel, or even a letter. He didn't really care as long as she just came back, and soon.
'If you have to send something that bad, there's nothing wrong with the school owls,' Ron commented as he slid on some tattered old boxers. They were a couple sizes too small for him, and he almost fell into a bedpost as he jumped around squeezing his gigantic foot in a leg hole. Harry smiled weakly and shook his head.
'Ron, that's not the point. D'you think Hedwig is all right out there?' He couldn't hide the urgency in his voice, and for once Ron looked genuinely worried.
'You okay, Harry? You don't look so good. And...yeah, I'm sure Hedwig's fine,' he added as a casual afterthought. But even Ron didn't sound too sure.
'Hedwig can take care of herself,' Hermione pointed out the next morning over breakfast. She slopped a small mountain of baked beans onto her plate and began to eat like she'd been starved for the past week.
'Hermione, if making yourself throw up is supposed to make me feel better, I'll warn you now that it won't,' Harry said, poking his bacon dejectedly. He pushed it away, not really feeling like eating.
'Look, here comes the post now, maybe Hedwig is there,' Hermione said happily, pointing up at the maze of wings and parcels. Harry looked up hopefully, but once again he didn't see a flash of white anywhere. He hung his head back down again and stared at his food.
'Harry, look!' Ron yelled. Harry looked up just in time to see a brawny eagle owl swoop down and offer him a tiny envelope.
'Thanks,' he muttered gruffly, giving the bird a bite of toast before it took off. Harry stared at the letter, wondering what it could be about, until Ron ordered him to open it. Shaking his head, he figured it was probably from Hagrid asking him to visit the hut later. But Hagrid usually didn't use such fancy envelopes...Curiosity got the better of him and Harry tore open the envelope. Something small fluttered out, but no letter. Harry leaned over to examine what had fallen onto the table, and suddenly the hall was filled with a bloodcurdling wail.
A feather, so covered in blood you could barely make out the white, sat there staring up at him.