Chapter XVII: Understanding
(Harry P.O.V)
Harry sat alone in his dormitory, the attack on Hogsmeade had left everyone shaken up, but not him, no Harry wasn't shaken up, Harry was frustrated. He had been reading over every resource he could find about the Patronus charm, but he still wasn't able to figure out what he was doing wrong. He had selected a happy memory, the best he had, and yet when it came to it, he failed. It was the visions, before the dementors, all he had heard was the voice, the voice of his mother screaming. But now, now he saw it. Harry wasn't just trying to fight off the dementors, he felt like he had another presence in his mind. He had tried to fight through it, fight it off with Occlumency, but he was too unskilled in the art. He had tried, he had tried so hard to focus on the happiness, and while he acknowledged he took a step closer to the corporal form, he still failed. The other presence in his mind wouldn't let him feel the happiness that Remus had described the charm needing. If it hadn't been for Tonks, he would have died or worse, lost his soul. He didn't even want to think about what could have happened to Tracey, or Daphne, and the fact that he had received news that he was nearly too late, and that Blaise had been just escaped being kissed and was currently in what Pomfrey had called a "Roaming Soul" state only left him feeling worse.
Harry felt like he wanted to vomit. He wanted to go and see Remus, maybe he could help him, but he didn't think it would. Eventually, however, Harry couldn't take it anymore, and with a new plan in mind, Harry left the dormitory towards the Headmaster's office. Harry knew better than to trust the old man entirely, but his understanding of magic was second to none, and right now, that is what Harry needed.
Exhaustion wasn't anything new to Harry, he had been dealing with it since he was a kid, but every lesson with Dumbledore had left him feeling drained. Still, it had provided him with one great advantage, knowledge of the Headmaster's password. Harry approached the statue, and with confidence, he spoke, "Licorice Wands."
The Gargoyle spun, revealing the long winding staircase that Harry climbed with great haste until he had arrived at the office door. He knocked before he heard a pleasant voice speak, "Come in."
Harry did so, opening the mahogany door which led to the room of oddities and treasures that lined the walls of the Headmaster's office. Dumbledore looked up from his desk, a twinkle in his eyes as he stared at Harry. Slowly, the Headmaster put down his tea before speaking, "Harry, my boy, what can I do for you at this late hour?"
"I'm getting weaker," Harry spoke seriously, he had done a lot of reflecting, and it was something he hadn't noticed before, but the power he had felt upon entering the school and the power he felt know, while not magnitudes less, was still a drop, "Ever since the attack with the dementors, I've been feeling weaker."
"Harry," Dumbledore spoke, "Is this about what happened at Hogsmeade? The Patronus Charm is an extremely difficult spell and-"
"It's more than that," Harry said, "When I tried to do it at Hogsmeade, when I tried to think of the memory, it wasn't just me. I was seeing the visions again, I felt him in my head, I tried to block him out by Occlumency but I wasn't good enough. When I'm trying to do that spell, when I try to focus on my happy thought, I see it, even when I'm not in the presence of the dementors, I see my family dying."
"When you see the visions," Dumbledore asked calmly, "Do you see them through your eyes, or through his."
"His," Harry spoke, "Always his."
"I see," Dumbledore spoke, and for a moment, Harry panicked as Dumbledore had shown a face of genuine concern before it returned to its passive state, "Perhaps we rushed our training too much. You must forgive an old man for trying to stop him before he reaches his full strength, I hadn't even considered this a consequence."
"Professor," Harry spoke, unwanted fear lacing his voice, "What's happening to me?"
"He's become aware of your mental link," Dumbledore spoke, "Just as you feel his misery, he feels your happiness. We rushed our training, and yet, we were too slow."
"Are you telling me we're too late?" Harry said in desperation, "That's he's already inside my head?"
Dumbledore placed his hand on his shoulder as Harry tried to calm himself, "Harry, all is not lost yet, though I fear our plan will have to default back to the original one. Voldemort is still weak, the fact you can still produce a non-corporal Patronus is proof of that. A being like Voldemort cannot understand feelings of happiness and love, it hurts him, this is why you see his murder of your parents when you try to produce your Patronus, it's all he can do in his current strength to interfere with your mind."
"Sirius was right," Harry said tiredly, "I never should have betrayed him."
"Harry," Dumbledore spoke softly, "You made an attempt to sacrifice yourself, your sanity for the greater good. This is nothing to be ashamed of, there is still time, we will increase our lessons to four times a week instead of two, and for three days, we will practice Occlumency, the last we will practice Legilimency."
"I'd like to start now if that's okay." Harry spoke looking down on the ground, guilt encompassing his heart, "I can't let everyone down, I can't."
"Harry," Dumbledore started, "We still have-"
"No, we don't!" Harry shouted, "I failed! Don't you see that! I failed and someone nearly lost their soul! I wanted to protect them, I wanted to protect her, and they almost died because of me!"
"Harry, you are still too young to focus on shouldering the weight of protecting everyone," Dumbledore spoke, in a calm voice trying to relax Harry, but it hadn't worked. Anxiety still bubbled through Harry's body, no matter what kind words were said, Harry couldn't forgive himself.
"I don't have a choice," Harry said grimly as he pointed to his scar, "The prophecy made me the chosen one, it's my job, whether I'm ready or not has nothing to do with it. Please, Professor, I'll do whatever you want, just help me be strong enough to protect my friends. I don't want to feel that helpless ever again."
"Very well," Dumbledore said with a nod after a long pause, "Allow me to find my metronome."
(Dumbledore P.O.V)
There weren't many things that Dumbledore truly loathed. He was touted as a saint, with unparalleled patience, and gifted with magical ability. However, being wrong, that was something he detested. Though part of Dumbledore still felt he had made the right call in teaching Harry the beginnings of legilimency as the boy did seem to grasp the concept well, he had to admit that Sirius was correct, he should have taught Harry Occlumency first.
Yet, Dumbledore did not feel truly responsible for Harry's current situation, in part, he blamed Remus' insubordination. Obviously, Dumbledore couldn't share his now confirmed suspicion that Harry was a Horcrux with the Werewolf, yet he still implored Remus to not teach Harry the Patronus Charm. A spell that is centered around the basis of love and happiness would surely send off signals to Voldemort, a being that could understand neither emotion, who Harry had unknowingly created a connection with due to the Dementors bringing out all of Harry's fear and anger, the emotions in which a Horcrux feeds off.
Why could no one understand that Dumbledore knew what was right? The lives of the many should have always outweighed the life of one, and Harry, though it would most certainly lead to madness, diving into Voldemort's mind to find if anymore Horcruxes had been created and if so where they were located, was more important than anything. Even Harry, the young boy that he was, understood the risk, and yet his guardians had persisted in defying him.
Dumbledore had hoped there was still time for Harry to master legilimency before Voldemort's return, but now, with the fear of Voldemort knowing of the existence of his and Harry's link, Occlumency was of the most important. Under no circumstances could Voldemort discover that Dumbledore was aware of his secret to immortality. If Voldemort found out, the game was lost before it even started.
Pushing that terrifying thought to the backburner, for now, Dumbledore had begun to look through his cluttered mess before he remembered his wand, "Accio Metronome." Like clockwork, his gold-encrusted wooden metronome zoomed to his hand, and a smile grew on his face. Like his trusty Deluminator, his metronome was another one of his creations, one he shared with Grindelwald if he were to be completely accurate.
Before truly understanding the error of his ways, the metronome was developed to create a state of hypnosis and allow a mind to become completely open to Dumbledore's persuasion. While it lacked practical battle applications due to its requirement of complete silence and slow process, it was still a very powerful tool for persuasion if given the chance.
Yet Dumbledore had learned that if forced to do something, a plan will almost always fail. A willing participant will always yield better results, and so, for fear of the metronome falling into the wrong hands, Dumbledore had drawn one rune upon his invention, willingness. His metronome as it was before was no different than the imperious curse, but now, it was a tool, a tool of willing submission.
Dumbledore placed the metronome on his desk before turning to face Harry who looked at the ticking clock in confusion, "Sir, why do we need a metronome?"
"This metronome," Dumbledore said, "Will allow me, with your permission to manipulate your mind. You will feel my presence in your mind almost as naturally as you feel your own. It would be far too overwhelming if you remained awake, so I will need to put you to sleep first. Once I am inside your mind, I will guide you through the process of creating your fortress. You will simply be forced to do as I command, and once your shields have been established, then I shall teach you how to use them."
"You want to hypnotize me to do whatever you want?" Harry asked concern clear in the boy's voice.
Dumbledore nodded, "You told me you'd be willing to do anything, did you not?" Clearly this had struck a chord with Harry, but even so, willingness was of the most importance for Dumbledore, coercion and force was the makings of the Dark Lord, not a Headmaster, and knowing that Harry's willingness would be more beneficial for his grand plan, and deducing that sacrificial protection can only be activated when done willingly, Dumbledore spoke calmly, "You love your Godfather, and Sirius does not trust me." Dumbledore saw Harry looking up to him as Dumbledore continued, "You also lack trust when it comes to me, am I correct in my assumptions?"
"I'm sorry sir," Harry said, "But yes. Sirius is the closest thing I've ever had to a father. The fact he doesn't fully trust you makes me uneasy if I am honest."
"Worry not Harry," Dumbledore spoke, "I am not unaware that throughout my life, I have made my fair share of mistakes. Your honesty is appreciated, which is why I shall be honest with you as well, prior to me entering your mind, I will form an unbreakable vow with you, I will give you my word that my only intent in your mind is to help you master Occlumency as quickly as possible. Do you accept?"
Harry nodded and Dumbledore smiled, while it may slow down his plan, winning the trust of Harry, ever so slowly, would be worth it in the end. As when Harry would learn his death was needed, he needed the boy to trust his word. Hand in hand, Dumbledore began to perform the unbreakable vow and smiled as Harry visibly began to relax. With his grandfatherly tone, Dumbledore spoke, "Shall we begin?"
(Harry P.O.V)
Dumbledore's willingness to make the unbreakable vow had bestowed Harry with confidence and momentary trust in the old man. However, though he hated to admit it, Harry would probably have consented without it. Albus Dumbledore was the only man the Dark Lord feared, he was the greatest wizard to ever live, and if Harry had to give up his freedom to protect his friends, his family, the people who needed him, he would have done it in a heartbeat.
Even with some renewed faith in Dumbledore, Harry's hands trembled slightly as from a slot hanging just to the side of the metronome was a vile filled with a pure-black liquid that looks more like sludge than a potion. The Elixir of Awakening is what Dumbledore had called it, and as he explained it, it would but Harry into a sleep so close to death that it would give Dumbledore free-reign to even the deepest corners of his mind. Still, with the faces of Blaise, Tracey, and Daphne looking as awful as they had due to Harry's inability to perform, he closed his eyes and drank, the only noise he heard was the faint ticking of the metronome seeming to grow ever more distant each second.
Harry's breathing began to slow, the beating of his heart had become less frequent, and his mind was beginning to lose its grasp on his consciousness until eventually, everything went black. However, a drip of water fell onto his face, and instantly, his eyes shot open, but he wasn't in a place he recognized, Harry was somewhere with no outside light, no sound, no breeze, and no people. His body felt wet as he found himself submerged in a thin layer of water resting just at the sides of his face, and most disturbingly of all, he felt naked, only being covered by a glowing white light. Groggily, Harry rose to his feet, the water shifting around him as he called out, "Where am I?"
"This is your mind," Dumbledore called out from behind him, he as wellbeing cloaked in a bright glow, "At its most natural and empty state, in reality, you're near death thanks to the elixir, your consciousness resting in limbo."
"So what do we do now?" Harry asked.
"Look over there," Dumbledore spoke, and Harry did so, unable to disobey due to the hypnosis, and his heart, if this form of himself even had one seemingly stopped. In the corner of Harry's now empty mind, sat a creature of unmatched ugliness, curled on the ground, exposed by the lack of protection in Harry's mind. If Harry were to describe it, it looked like a premature baby on the verge of death. It's limbs where thin, it's skin, a pasty red, and it was crying.
"What the hell is that?" Harry asked in both confusion and disgust.
"The conduit in which Voldemort has access to your mind if I were to hazard a guess," Dumbledore said, though Harry was unsure if that was the whole truth, "Just as I suspected, and as you can clearly see, it's currently in a very weak state."
"So what do I do?" Harry asked still completely lost, he was certainly a much better legilimens than Occlumens and he was unaware of what was to be done next?"
"In the simplest of terms," Dumbledore said calmly, "We will cut him out, and seal him away, far away in your mind."
"Why don't we just use legilimency on him now," Harry spoke desperately, "Won't I be able to see into his mind."
"Yes," Dumbledore nodded, "And due to your current state of near-death, he'll be able to see into not only yours but mine as we are currently sharing your space if you will. It will take time to track down each Horcrux, destroy them, and even then, I am still not certain that Voldemort hasn't done the same thing off sealing that information away just as we are attempting to seal him from your mind. Not to mention, he is aware of your connection now, even while weakened, Voldemort is one of the strongest wizards to walk the earth, we have no idea what safeguards are in place if we truly try and probe now."
"Finally," Dumbledore said, "The longer we remain in this limbo, the less of a chance you have to return, the land of the near-dead is not a welcoming place for the living, even as we speak, we are currently in a race against the clock."
"For now," Dumbledore said with a slight smile, "We focus on your ability to learn and master occlumency, and then, when we are at less of a risk, we will attack his mind." Dumbledore then turned to Harry grit his teeth in preparation, "I want you to contain this conduit, think of something that can be used to store something away. It is always better if the ideas are your own, even if I'm in control."
Harry closed his eyes and imagine the trunk he had scene Moony use to hide the boggart during his first Patronus training and Dumbledore nodded, "Ah I see," he spoke, "Something like this?"
Suddenly the dying-infant was no longer visible, and in its place was a large chest, locked away under tons and tons of chains each requiring a separate key. Harry imagined the chest near a freezing cold lake, remembering his first dip into the Blake Lake, and with a wave of Dumbledore's wand, Harry saw that the chest was now alone on an island surrounded by icy water locked away with the keys resting at the bottom of the dark abyss.
Dumbledore nodded, "Certainly an interesting way of sealing him away, however, we still have much work to do." Harry turned to the professor in confusion as he spoke, "The reason I believe you struggle with Occlumency, is your great ability to feel. It is that ability that makes you able to craft such deep relationships with your friends, it is that ability that pushes you to do whatever it takes to protect those you care about, and it is that ability that makes your personality inept at Occlumency, which requires a detachment from all feelings to be truly effective. It is this reason why Voldemort is such a powerful Occlumens himself, even in a weakened state, he has no ability to love, the only emotion he has is anger, and hate."
"So what do I do?" Harry spoke.
"Instead of clearing your mind," Dumbledore spoke, "I believe that your version of Occlumency should be to overwhelm your invader instead. Unlike my mind, the well-organized library, it is my belief that yours should be a cluttered space that makes looking into your mind difficult and time-consuming, giving you ample opportunity to push an invader out of your mind before they find what they are looking for. Instead of giving invaders a blank canvas, you will give them a wall of insurmountable obstacles that make a successful invasion impossible once you become aware of it."
"How do I do that?" Harry spoke.
"Simply do as I say," Dumbledore said warmly, and with a nod, Harry began.
(Daphne P.O.V)
Daphne had never felt so cold in her life. First, it was screaming, all the screaming, the fight she had with her father, the anger she felt towards her mother for doing nothing, every awful trip back to the Greengrass Manor to see Astoria all floated to her mind. But all those fights, all of the pain, it was nothing compared to the vision the dementors had shown her.
A grave, a simple tombstone with the name Astoria Greengrass 1982-2002 written on it. Twenty years, Daphne had done the math, it was her greatest fear, the thing that had filled her with the most dread, she had failed to save her sister, she had lost, and at that moment, Daphne too wanted to die. She was the only one at the gravesite, she was forced to mourn her sister alone, and the amount of heartache she was feeling was the closest she had ever wanted to get to hell.
But things began to get warmer, she didn't know what was happening, but she was pulled away from her vision, and her stomach was filled with light hints of milk chocolate as she felt cloaked in a warm embrace. It no longer had felt terrifying, she had felt safe, and it was that comfort that had allowed her to drift off to sleep. When she had awoken, it was clearly dark, Daphne would have gauged that it was well past midnight, and her grogginess was overwhelming. She scanned her surroundings and had quickly come to understand that she was currently in the infirmary. Her heart started to face as in the beds just to the left of her, she saw that Tracey and Blaise were there as well.
Daphne was just about to hop out of her bed to check on her friends when she realized she wasn't the only one in it, turning to the side to see Astoria nestled next to her, gripping her tightly in an attempt to heat Daphne's trembling body with her own. She looked down at her sister, and tears of relief began to spill from her eyes as she realized that her vision of her sister's death was just a dream, an awful nightmare.
Feeling guilty, but desperately needing to understand what had happened, she gently nudged her sister whispering, "Astoria, Astoria I need you to wake up."
Slowly, the kaleidoscopic eyes of her sister came into focus, and before Daphne could get a word in, the breath was knocked out of her by the extremely tight hug her sister had engaged her in. Daphne felt the hot tears running down her clothes from Astoria who seemed at a loss for words herself before she spoke, "You're okay, I'm so glad you're okay."
"Astoria," Daphne spoke gently, "What happened?"
"A dementor attack," Astoria said shaking her head, "I was in the Greenhouse with Vane, working on our Herbology project, and all of a sudden, I saw Harry bust through the doors carrying you in his arm as he ran you to the infirmary. I followed him, but when I asked him what happened all he said was that he was sorry before he left."
"Fudge was here earlier too," Astoria continued, "He said that he was unsure why the attacks were happening and that he'd have his Aurors and Unspeakables investigate what's causing the Dementors to go haywire. He claimed he received an anonymous tip saying that Sirius Black was currently hiding in mountains around Hogsmeade and had ordered Aurors and the Dementors to overlook Hogsmeade to make sure that with Harry around, Black wouldn't get away again. For some reason though, instead of staying around the mountains the Dementors disobeyed and attacked the village forcing the Aurors into action."
"Why would Fudge believe an anonymous tip?" Daphne asked in confusion, "Surely even he can't be that inept?"
"He said that the letter was delivered with a memory vial. Fudge claimed it contained evidence that Black is an Animagus, a large black dog to be exact, and the fact that the information of Black's Animagus ability was unknown to even the ministry led Fudge to believe it was a credible tip."
"But who would know that Black is an Animagus?" Daphne pondered, "If he was illegal, it would be unlikely he would share that information outside his group of friends, and from what we know, the only friends he had, he betrayed to the Dark Lord, something isn't adding up here."
"I thought so to," Astoria said, "But I also had other concerns that were more important."
"I'm sorry I made you worry," Daphne said earnestly.
"It's not just you," Astoria said, "First it was Harry, and then you got attacked, and now Harry's acting all weird, plus Tracey hasn't woken up yet, and Blaise, I-," But Astoria stopped herself before she tried again, "Honestly, everything's a complete disaster right now."
"I'm sorry I made you worry Astoria," Daphne said earnestly, "But it's going to be okay, I promise, everything's going to be okay. How are Tracey and Blaise?"
"Tracey's okay," Astoria said, "Madam Pomfrey said she'd wake up soon, but Blaise, he, Blaise is-,"
"Astoria," Daphne spoke anxiously, "What about Blaise?"
"They don't know what's wrong with him," Astoria said quickly, "The Dementors nearly got to him. It was such a close call, even Madam Pomfrey isn't sure if he's going to make it."
"Hey Astoria," Daphne said a lost look on her face, "That isn't funny, Blaise has to be okay, he just has to be. Tracey and I are okay, so it just doesn't make sense. Why are we okay and he isn't?"
"Harry, he," Astoria said, "It's all just rumors I've heard, but Harry only made it to you guys after Blaise had been face to face with a dementor. And then, the Aurors showed up, and I don't know Daphne, I wasn't there, god I want to tell you more, but I don't know."
"He can't be gone," Daphne said. Her relationship with Blaise wasn't the strongest, it wasn't like her relationship with Tracey who she'd known prior to Hogwarts. But Blaise was always around, he was kind and funny, and Daphne despite her cold untrusting demeanor had trusted him. It wasn't just that Blaise was their informant into the male dormitory and Draco, it wasn't just that Blaise was Tracey's boyfriend despite their relationship only starting halfway through the summer, Blaise was important to her, and this news had only made that more clear, "Astoria, he can't be gone."
Astoria rushed and tackled her once more, and Daphne couldn't help but ball her hands into fists as tears streamed down her face. Blaise was her friend, and now her friend could be gone, "Damn it," Daphne said as the memories of Blaise filled her mind, "Damn it all."
Daphne had allowed her Ice Queen walls to fall as her tears began to run wildly and without shame as she turned to look towards her fallen friend. His chest was still moving up and down as he continued to breathe, his face still looked to be full of color. He looked like he was about to wake up any minute now, but Daphne knew the truth now, there was a chance he'd never wake, he'd never be the Blaise she knew again, and while initially, she wanted to scream at the Aurors and Potter for not saving her friend, she knew it wasn't their fault. It was the dementors' fault, it was Fudge's fault, it was whoever sent the anonymous tip's fault for being incorrect, and yet knowing who was at fault didn't help her at all. Painfully, she turned to her best-friend who too was sound asleep, and with a painful whisper she spoke, "Oh god, what am I going to tell Tracey?"
Before she could hear any response, the doors of the infirmary opened, and Madam Pomfrey entered the hospital wing in a rush, clearly, the charm to alert her that Daphne had awoken had gone off and within seconds Madam Pomfrey was by her bedside, "Good to see you've woken up Miss Greengrass. How are you feeling?"
"Blaise," Daphne spoke tiredly, 'Do you really not know what's going on with him?"
A grim look overtook Madam Pomfrey's face as she nodded and the sinking feeling in her chest doubled, "What's going to happen to him?"
"The Headmaster's already sent word to his mother," Madam Pomfrey spoke, "She'll be the medical proxy moving forward regarding Mr. Zabini's condition." Pomfrey then drew her wand as she spoke, "Now please, I know this is hard for you, but I need to run some tests."
Daphne felt too cold to respond, instead, she simply nodded as her body limped back onto the bed, staring at her dark-skinned friend, a pained look in her eyes as Pomfrey began to check her vitals. It had taken a few minutes, but eventually, Pomfrey spoke, "It seems like you're going to make a full recovery Miss Greengrass. There are grief counselors available to you at any time should you want to seek out help. For now, I can only leave you with this," She said as she pulled out a purple potion, "Potion of Dreamless Sleep."
Daphne looked at the bottle and took it from the Matron's hand. I just need the hurt to stop, Daphne thought to herself looking at the potion, Just for a little bit. She uncorked the vial, and Madam Pomfrey spoke quietly, "I'll keep you under evaluation tonight. And Miss Greengrass, I'm sorry, I wish there was more I can do, but I've never seen anything quite like this before."
Daphne nodded, as she stared at Blaise the vial near her lips, "I'm sorry too," and then, she drank. Just for a little, she wanted her life to be less cruel, just for a little she wanted to sleep, just for a little, she wanted to forget.
(Harry P.O.V)
Harry found himself sitting alone at the Astronomy Tower the next morning. He hadn't been able to sleep despite his exhaustion, and his frustration had only grown as while Dumbledore had assisted him in creating a mind-space for occlumency, his aptitude for it was still much lower than his skill in legilimency. His mental fortress was based on the Winchester Home, a place Sirius had taken Harry to visit one time during his summer vacation.
Sarah Winchester, the lady who had built the house was believed to be crazy by muggles, who claimed she had built the insane house with the fear that ghosts were out to get her. But Sirius had informed him that while Winchester was mad, in reality, she was a seer, and while muggles couldn't see them, Harry certainly saw all the ghosts that wandered the halls of the home. Harry had used the lady's house as inspiration for his own mind-space, a large house filled with stairways that led to nothing, trap doors, paths that led only to useless information and would buy Harry enough time for if someone had invaded his mind to push them out. However, just as Dumbledore had helped him craft it, he needed his help implementing it, and despite his unrelenting tenacity, Dumbledore had called it a night early as he was still able to push through Harry's mind-barrier with ease. The only bright side was that he felt confident that the Voldemort conduit wouldn't be a problem anymore.
For a moment, he had wanted to try a Patronus Charm to see if it would work, but the way Harry was feeling, he didn't feel able to think of a happy memory. In fact, the only emotion Harry had felt was guilt. He had relieved the situation over and over in his head. Blaise was already face to face with a dementor by the time he arrived, he was as good as gone before Harry even got there, and yet, Harry couldn't stop feeling guilty. Had he just been a little faster, had he noticed just a little sooner, had he been able to fight off the other presence and summon a Corporeal Patronus, maybe Blaise wouldn't be in the state he currently was in.
Blaise was her friend, hers and Tracey, and while he had heard that Daphne was released from the hospital wing on his way to the Astronomy Tower, Harry couldn't bear the thought of facing her. For a while, Harry was convinced it was just a fun crush, and he didn't care if Daphne didn't like, he'd survive. But now, the thought of Daphne blaming him, hating him for not being able to save Blaise if he never woke filled him with dread. Harry gripped the copy of the Daily Prophet that he had knicked from some unaware Ravenclaw girl and the headline made Harry sick:
Harry Potter, Hogsmeade Hero.
As I'm sure we all know, just yesterday due to an anonymous tip received by Minister for Magic Cornelius Fudge, stating that he had strong evidence that Sirius Black, the villain partially responsible for the Deaths of our Hero's Parent's Lily and James Potter was in the area. This tip was further corroborated by the fact the source revealed the fact that Sirius Black is an unregistered Animagus of a large Black Dog through a memory vial, (See figure 2).
While the ministry stands in agreement with Fudge about taking the correct action, the dementors for reasons unknown to the Ministry and are being investigated with, "Great scrutiny and priority," according to Minister Fudge attacked the small village of Hogsmeade During the Student's Halloween Hogsmeade Weekend.
This reporter, feels, as she imagines you all do as well, horrified that children had to face such a terrifying experience. Thankfully, for the panicked crowd, a few brave students answered the call of duty before the Auror's arrived on the scene, helping to keep damages to a minimum. Memory vials taking from witnesses of the events show that Ravenclaw Third Year, and Hufflepuff Third Year, Michael Henry Corner and Neville Frank Longbottom, were instrumental in assisting Harry Potter in their attempts to save their fellow students (Figure 3.) As seen in the photo below, Mr. Corner and Mr. Longbottom each were accurately remembered taking students to safety, in Mr. Corner's arms, one Blaise Zabini, and leaning against Mr. Longbottom, one Tracey Davis.
However, while the efforts of Misters Corner and Longbottom were certainly heroic and worthy of praise, the main sight to behold is the heroic actions of the Boy-Who-Lived himself, Harry Potter. As everyone knows, Harry Potter became our hero following his miraculous defeat of the Dark Lord himself in his infancy. This reporter always believed that this showed Mr. Potter to be an incredible wizard, and I am proud to say I was correct in my belief, as Harry Potter, seen in Figure 1. Conjured the Patronus Charm, a skill beyond the N.E.W.T level in order to hold off, three, yes three dementors at once.
It is thanks to Mr. Potter's heroic efforts that the damage was not as bad as it could have been, as shortly after Mr. Potter's magically stunning display, Auror's arrived on the scene led by our very own Alastor Moody and sent the Dementors reeling back to where they belong, outside the limits of Hogwarts and its nearby village.
But not only did we learn of Harry's talent, a possible glimpse of the young man's love life was also put on full display, as while it was reported that Mr. Potter had attended Hogsmeade unaccompanied, this display of Hogwarts Third-Year Slytherin Daphne Greengrass gripping tightly to Harry's neck as he bridal carried her away from soul-snatching danger is surely something that will be making the cover of Witch Weekly Magazine (figure 4).
All this reporter has to say is that for all the young ladies who were pining after the Boy-Who-Lived, it's time to act fast, as while there is no confirmation about the two third-year's relationship, it doesn't take a seer to see the writing on the wall.
Harry looked down at the report in disgust. Not only had they falsely painted Harry as this hero instead of the failure he felt he was, but there also was not a single mention of the fact that Blaise had not made it through the event unscathed. There was no semblance of regret, no discussion of the Zabini family, no information regarding what exactly Fudge had planned for something like this not to happen again. Instead of focusing on the events that truly mattered, the report spoke of the relationship he was quite sure he'd never have with Daphne instead.
He put his wand to the paper, lighting it on fire as he watched the black and white press burn away. A pang of sadness once again filled his heart, but as he heard the climbing of footsteps, Harry lifted his wand, readying himself before he heard a voice call out, "Wotcher Harry. You can put the wand away."
"Tonks?" Harry called out in confusion as from the hall, his older sister entered the room, a slight smile on his face, "Why are you here?"
"Why do you think?" Tonks asked softly as she walked towards him.
"If you're going to ask how I'm feeling," Harry said with a sigh, "I'm fine."
"No you're not," Tonks said now sitting beside him.
"I'm fine Tonks, it wasn't like what happened to Blaise was my fault anyway," Harry said trying to keep up his non-emotional façade.
"And yet you're blaming yourself," Tonks said, "I'm not some random stranger kid, I watched you grow up, I know you're not okay."
"How am I supposed to be okay," Harry relented knowing the jig was up, "A kid's in a coma because of me Tonks, because I wasn't fast enough, because I wasn't strong enough."
"No Harry," Tonks spoke honestly, "A kid's in a coma because me and my department didn't do our job fast enough. It has nothing to do with you."
"It sure felt like it had to do with me," Harry said, "I failed Tonks, I couldn't save him."
"Harry, you didn't do anything wrong," Tonks spoke.
"Of course I did something wrong!" Harry shouted his emotions bubbling, "If I hadn't done anything wrong a kid wouldn't be in the infirmary clinging onto life!"
"You're a kid!" Tonks shouted back gripping his shoulders tightly, "You're the most powerful Thirteen-year-old kid I know, but you're still a kid. The blame doesn't rest on you, you're not responsible for his loss."
"It's not the same Tonks," Harry said defeatedly, "I'm the chosen one, I have to be better than this, I have to be."
"And you will be," Tonks said firmly.
"It won't change the fact that I failed to save Blaise from the dementor," Harry said with no energy left.
"People die, Harry. People get hurt," Tonks said as calmly as possible, "It happens all the time, and sometimes it's not anyone's fault. On my first mission out of the academy, five of us Aurors went after this wizard named Greyfallon, I was the only one to come back. I know it hurts Harry, I know you feel guilty, but you have to forgive yourself because what you did was more than anyone could ask from you. You didn't fail, and even if you feel you did, you think moping around here is going to make anything better."
"You have friends Harry," Tonks said, "People that are there for you. You have my mom, my dad, Padfoot, Remus, me, you're not alone Harry. Don't isolate yourself from the world. Even if you think you failed, you need to get back on your feet and go fail again, and again, and again, no matter how many times it takes until you get it right. You're a member of the new House of Black, we don't quit, no matter what. Do you understand?"
Harry looked up at her older sister, and with the grit of his teeth, he nodded as Tonks reached down to help him up, to which Harry accepted, "Good, now let's go get you something to eat, you look like shit."
A small grin appeared on Harry's face for the first time since Hogsmeade and Harry spoke slowly, "Hey Tonks, thanks."
"You're my little brother Harry," Tonks said with a soft smile, "I love you kid, always."