"Speaking"

'Thinking'

(Story Inserts)

Disclaimer: Don't own Harry Potter, otherwise it never would've been finished. (Or would've taken an eternity and a half.)

The firebird sniffed, turning its nose up at the girl royally. It landed delicately on her head again; mirth flashing through its eyes as she acted as if to knock it off of her head, before chirping its affirmative.

"Mooney feels so protective of her, Pads. She has no real scent, either. It's there, and it's soo familiar, but at the same time it's masked. She smells like she's dead, Sirius! Her smell isn't masked, it's fading!"

It was with but two quick flashes of fire that Harriet found herself left alone in the Headmaster's office. The portraits upon the walls of the room grumbled, roused from their sleep, (the sort that wasn't really sleep, and that only portraits could seem to pull off) before they began to look curiously upon the girl whom had shown up with their successor's familiar.

Harriet ignored their curious stares and plopped down upon the sofa in front of the Headmaster's desk in a practiced move. With her legs curled up in the sofa, she rested her chin on her crossed arms and stared into space. Some of the portrait's called out to her in curiousity, while others murmured with suspicion in their eyes. She ignored their calling and curled in further upon herself.

"Moony. Snuffles. Tonks." Eyes were hidden and her shoulders shook in repressed grief. "Neville." The names were whispered to herself, as if she couldn't stand to say them any louder, as if they and their owners would fall away like shades called to the world by the Resurrection Stone. (And didn't she know how exactly the shades would disappear, leaving her alone again. All alone.) Hazel eyes closed as she took in deep breaths to calm herself. Eventually, Harriet's body slumped, giving into the dark state of unconsciousness.

The portraits whispered among themselves, staring at the crumpled form of the girl below them. Her body rose and fell with every breath she took, and red hair shone in the magic lighting of the room.

"Who's this?" "The phoenix brought her." "Hmmph, a child shouldn't be alone in here." "Oh, do be quiet Phineas. Let the girl sleep, she looks exhausted."

They all silenced as her head snapped up and hazel eyes surveyed the room. She flew from the chair and dove behind the desk just as a figure appeared, clutching a lemon-drop wrapper in his hand tightly. The boy collapsed in the chair that the girl had vacated, tiredly. Green eyes looked neutrally about the office, stopping to stare into nothing, just as the girl had done earlier.

Harriet clutched her wand to her chest, recounting her memories of when she had returned to the Headmaster's office after her own foray in the Department of Ministries. Moving from her position of pressing her back against the drawers of the desk, she turned onto her knees, and peeked up over the table-top.

Hazel eyes locked onto green, and the boy sprang from the chair, brandishing his own Holly wand at her. She remained crouched behind the desk for a moment, only to slowly rise to her feet, wand pointed upwards in a peace offering.

"Who are you?" His voice was rough in his question (read as command) for her name.

"Harriet," She paused, head tilting slightly in consideration "Just Harriet."

The raven's eyes widened, "Oh." He shifted on his feet awkwardly. "Just… Harriet?"

...

She nodded slowly, and watched as he reluctantly lowered his wand. Harry slumped back into the chair behind him, and rubbed at his head. "I'm… sorry." Harriet just shrugged off his apology, stepping closer to the tense boy, before sitting in a chair beside him.

She remained silent, pulling one of her legs onto the seat and allowing the other to hang. Harry struggled for words as he took in the familiar girl beside him. But he found he wouldn't have to struggle for much longer as she was the one to speak.

"I'm not sure what I should say." She stared off, not willing to look at (what had to be) her counterpart. "I hated being left out. Not knowing everything I was involved in, and if I would ever actually be told. Feeling as if I couldn't be trusted with my own future, and the future of those few that I actually cared for. But, Harry…"

She paused, testing the name out in her mouth a few times. "I don't know if what I tell you will end up killing you. Or anyone close to you. Hell, I don't even know what I know, that you don't know. And it's not that I don't trust you."

Her eyes focused before pointedly looking into his.

"If there's anyone that I can trust, it has to be you. I just cannot tell you, but anything that I do tell anyone, you'll already have been told about or know."

Her voice cracked in her incredulity at her own words, and she looked away once again.

"You know," Harry's voice was soft and neutral. "That did not make any bloody sense. But... I'll take it." The girl gazed at her counterpart once again, face relaxing into a gentle smile. "It's more than anyone else has given me."

...

He stared at her again and stated, quietly and hesitantly, like a child waiting for its punishment. "You've promised me."

"I promise." She reassured her counterpart firmly. The two sat in silence for a few moments more, until the fireplace flared in a stroke of fire. Tears came to Harriet's eyes as she stared at her grandfather figure, while her complement did differently and tensed in his chair. His previous calm quickly disappeared and green eyes flashed with rage.

Dumbledore, however, was either oblivious to this or was consciously ignoring the boy and turned towards the girl.

"My boy," even if he was speaking to Harry, he refused to make eye contact with him. "If you would allow me to have moment of time with her-" He was cut off by the girl abruptly standing.

"No," the air seemed to still at the pure authority that emanated from her voice, "Everything I know, he deserves to know; just as does everyone in the Order." She stared down the older man, refusing to budge even against the hesitance shown in his eyes.

"They deserve to know everything. All pieces on the table, old man." He flinched back as she spat out the last words as if they were poison. His will wavered, before he seemed to stone himself into his decision.

"I cannot condone that." He stated, also taking up an authoritative voice accentuated by magic.

"Then I will not be saying anything." She paused to stare searchingly at the older man again. "You can't protect him from only some things and expect him to be able to survive those things you don't do so for."

Harry's magic surged about the room in his aggravation at being spoken about, but not spoken to, once again. Items leapt from their places on shelves and the window panes shook, as if they too needed to move and they too were aggravated beyond compare. He ignored this, jaw clenched as both Dumbledore and Harriet ignored him. His muscles tensed and he jumped to his feet and forward towards Dumbledore, only to be stopped in place by a tight grip of a hand on his arm.

His head snapped towards the girl, mouth opening in a yell before he froze. Hazel eyes weren't soft, and didn't hold the warmth they had held only moments before, but were instead frigid and commanding. They stood out from the girl's face and her own magic rose to combat and calm his.

"Calm down." Fire flashed, not only in the office but also in her eyes. The light made Harry flinch, (at least, that's what he tells himself) and look away from the girl, mindful of the magic that was pressed against his own and the hand that was still wrapped tightly around his bicep.

The phoenix, having appeared again in the fire that had made Harry flinch so, chirped melodiously and landed on the girls' shoulder. Dumbledore stared at his familiar, demeanor softening. "You would agree with her, Fawkes?"

The avian merely nuzzled the girls' face in answer, calming her and causing her to finally release Harry's arm. The boy had also completely calmed by this point, yet he still stood staring at the old man, conflicted.

"Harry," her voice sounded weary and bemused all at once. The magicks surrounding the two fell, calming the objects that they had uprooted in the flurry of anger. It was only then that Harry gave into his exhaustion and allowed himself to sit once more. He slumped into the chair merely looking towards her with tired emerald eyes. Dumbledore took in this scene, blue-eyes slightly twinkling in approval and what seemed to be a hint of pride, then finally nodded his ascent.

"We will go talk to them." His face aged with the statement, turning old in the grief that, if he was right in certain assumptions about the future and Voldemort and six (or seven?) certain objects, would be shared soon.

"Thank you." Harriet turned towards her counterpart in the chair, and extended a hand to him. "Come."

Green eyes locked with Hazel, both pairs tired and wise beyond their years, and a moment of quiet came over the office. "Okay." The two turned to Dumbledore after the boy stood again and the girl smiled with a quirk of her mouth, "It's at the old, murky, and basically drowned in black, Black Estate, right?"

Harry's lip quirked too, while the older man slowly regained the twinkle in his eyes. "Yes, my girl. Come, let's go." Fawkes fled from the girl's shoulder and an old hand took the place in the bird's stead. Dumbledore then turned to Harry, and placed his own hand palm up out. "Harry?" The two male's eyes met, blue apologetic while green were cold but begrudging, before the younger man took the hand. "We'll see, Headmaster. We'll see." The three disappeared from the office with a pop.

- Only to reappear on a dark street corner in muggle London. Dumbledore turned to the red-haired girl with his hand still resting upon her shoulder, "If I am correct in assuming, you know where we are?" His question was both hesitant and knowing and Harriet couldn't help but roll her eyes at the man.

"Well, I can see the house. So I'm going to have to say that's a yes."

Dumbledore's eyebrows rose on his face as Harry merely snorted at the snark she was showing to the grandfatherly man. With a smirk, Harriet motioned the Headmaster forward, and fell in line with her counterpart as they both followed behind the man as they moved forward to Grimmauld Place.

'Home Base, huh? I've almost missed it.'

I'm just going to leave this here... Almost nothing happened too.

Next update will probably be in a conceivable amount of time, (as compared to 2+ years which is utterly miserable), as one of my friends recently read this and is trying to kick my butt into gear. [Not sure about the one after that, however...]

Also, I've (hopefully?) fixed some grammar, spelling, and plot issues in the prologue if anyone feels like reading that. Chapter 1 is exactly the same as it was before.