Chapter 158 : The Unseen Path

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His mind battled with all the possible scenarios, one idea darker than the next. Voldemort coming back could only mean one thing; war. He had heard the stories of what it was like back at the first war against the Dark Lord. If he was supposed to come back stronger than he ever was, he couldn't dare to think what would happen this time around. His mind remained immersed in dark thoughts for the next couple of hours as he looked at the sum move outside the window. It was noon before he knew it and soon he was supposed to go to the Great Hall for lunch. Not that he felt like it, but he had to eat. Well, he thought without making an effort to move, there's always dinner. Neville didn't move from the couch either and Harry took some comfort from his best friend's presence.

It wasn't until after the first students started returning from the Great Hall and Hogsmead that his mind was able to move past the shock and realise what was wrong with this whole picture. He rose from his spot, his heart picking up speed again; he looked at the faces around the common room. All familiar of course, but not the one he was looking for. Where the hell was his brother? Harry jumped up and approached Ginny who was studying on a desk next to the fireplace.

"Ginny, have you seen my brother?" The girl looked at his troubled expression and decided to skip pleasantries.

"Not since breakfast." She said and watched in fear as the usually pale teen blanched even more. "Why?" Harry opened his mouth to speak when two cheerful voices called him from the entrance. Fred and George had returned from Hogsmeade with their hands filled with tricks from Zonko's and their faces flushed.

"Hey Harry!" George called him, dropping his staff on a desk, a little further away. Harry moved closer to them; he might as well ask them to. But before he could utter a word, Fred leaned in and whispered conspiratorially;

"Back already?" Harry's eyes widened in surprise.

"Back from where?" He asked. George and Fred shared a roguish look.

"Of course." George stated as if Harry's question had settled everything. "If someone asks you were here all morning. Gotcha!" The green eyed teen looked at them infuriated; he really didn't have time for this.

"What are you talking about?" The twins looked at him surprised. They looked at each other again and then at back at Harry; the look on his face seemed to make something click in their minds.

"But…" Fred looked at Harry confused. "Weren't you in Hogsmeade? With Adrian? Didn't he take you along?" Green eyes opened wide and his heart skipped a beat. Adrian was in Hogsmeade? Right now? Today of all days?

"What?" He spat shocked.

"He didn't tell you?" George asked. "Blimey Harry, we thought that after we gave him… we thought that he would share!" Harry tried to process what he had just heard; the twins seemed to have given something to Adrian that allowed him to leave the castle at will; they easily could do that as he had seen them bringing things sold at Hogsmeade more than once. They had suspected he would share that something but he obviously didn't. Well, he thought bitterly as he looked back at the hushed conversations with Ron, his brother hadn't shared it with him.

"Listen carefully." Harry began, his voice dark. "Tell me what you gave my brother that could lead him out of the castle. Tell me now." His voice never rose, but the icy tone he had used made the twins talk faster than a shouting mach would have.

"It's a map we found at Filch's office, a map of the school." Fred explained as Harry's heart fell. It couldn't be…

"It marks the exits from the school, secret passages and stuff." George added.

"Adrian looked so down, we thought it would cheer him up and…"

"You gave him the Marauders' Map?" Harry asked, interrupting a confused Fred.

"You know about it? But Adrian hasn't shown it to you?" Harry didn't even spare them another look. He completely ignored their calls; he simply cursed in Gobbledegook and ran out the common room again only sparing one backwards glance towards Neville who nodded in understanding. He headed back to the Headmaster's office, reaching it in lightning speed and shouting the password at the entrance; he entered the office without even knocking. Severus, his parents, Sirius and Remus as well as the Headmaster were there, all looking grave and shocked at the youngest Potter twin's sudden entrance.

"Adrian went to Hogsmeade! He's not in the school!" He gasped out. "And he hasn't come back yet!"

"What?" James asked stunned. "Harry, what are you talking about?"

"Fred and George Weasley had the Marauders' Map, they got it from Filch's office somehow and gave it to Adrian a few days ago." Harry explained hastily as realisation dawned into everyone's faces; even Severus had heard of the map through Harry. "I just met them in the common room and they asked me if I had returned from Hogsmeade already; they said that Adrian had gone and they had expected me to be with him."

"Merlin!" Lily exclaimed, covering her face with her hands and falling down on a chair.

"Are you sure, Harry?" Dumbledore asked.

"I didn't even know the Weasley twins had the map, let alone that Adrian had it but I haven't seen him since breakfast." Harry stated. The Headmaster nodded and sprang into action.

"We must look for him immediately." He stated. He turned to his phoenix. "Fawkes, inform the staff." The phoenix trilled and disappeared in flames. "The protocol dictates all students should gather in the front gates of the castle in cases of emergence. We shall go there first and look… not for Adrian but for Mr. Weasley and Miss Granger as it's likely the boy has the cloak with him. There's no time to lose, I fear." They all nodded and left, leaving Harry back in the office alone with a disbelieving potions master.

"I can't believe they just left me here!" The boy seethed at Severus.

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