Harry Potter 1. When he ran under the moonlight

**Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the other characters I might add in this fic.**

**This is a fic I've had on my computer for a while now and I quite like it. Now, you reader may not like it, for whatever reason, but that does not mean you are allowed to be rude about it. If you wish to tell me this fic is crappy and that you hate it, please hint at it in a constructive criticism. And don't even think about telling Harry is a Mary Sue because he is supposed to be better than a human, even though that doesn't make him perfect.**

**If you like this fic you are, of course, allowed to say it. So send loads of reviews ^^**

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_The ashes under his feet were cold; the air felt like it was burning against his skin. There was no wind, no plants. There wasn't even a sun, not a single breathing being. There was just the burning sky and the ground covered in ashes. Because there was nothing else to do, he walked. Each of his steps dug a hole in the ashes, but it was quickly filled again, so that once again the sea of ashes would be endless and undisturbed. The left was identical to the right and the back to the front. There was only the burning sky and the ground covered in ashes. He walked on…_

Harry woke up in a start. The summer air was warm and sweat covered his body. Sitting up in his bed, he looked around him, his left hand absent-mindedly rubbing on his scar, though for once the nightmare had not been accompanied by the searing pain in his forehead which he had become used to. The room was dark and Harry could hear Ron snoring loudly on the other side of the room. He sighed heavily. Something about the night air made him feel restless. Careful not to wake Ron, the raven-haired boy got out of bed. He lightly walked across the room and opened the door. He stopped reflexively when it creaked. The raven haired boy stood for a few moments, listening intently. Thankfully, it seemed that nobody had heard it. He slipped through the door and closed it behind him.

The Burrow was empty at this time of the night. Harry usually didn't mind the dark much; courtesy of living in a cupboard for ten years. But now he felt that the lurking shadows were oppressive. As he reached the stairs he finally gave in to his fears and murmured _Lumos_. He told himself that it was better that way as it would not have been good if had fallen down the stairs which would surely have resulted in the whole house being woken up. The downside to this was that if someone came up now it would be difficult for them not to notice that he didn't have his wand with him.

Under the comforting ball of white light he had just cast, Harry walked down the stairs. The wooden staircase creaked quite a lot and each time it seemed to fill the night with noise equivalent to the roar of a dragon. Yet, nobody seemed to hear or wake up at the dreadful noise. Well, it probably wasn't that dreadful, Harry admonished himself, it just sounded dreadful to him because of this silence surrounding him. Perhaps the tension had something to do with it as well.

Harry reached the ground floor and stopped. Where was he going? He peered at the room that was faintly lit by the _Lumos_. The sofas and beat up armchairs which usually looked comfortable and welcoming, appeared cold and forbidding in the relative darkness. The fireplace was empty as it hadn't been used in a few months. Harry hesitantly took a few steps into the room before deciding to go in the kitchen. Normally he didn't go there much. It was Mrs Weasley's kingdom and children were usually not welcomed in it unless it was for chores. His attention was immediately drawn to the large window that occupied a large part of the wall in front of him. The garden was dark, only lit by the moon. Tonight was the last full moon. Tomorrow, it would start to wane. Tomorrow he would be sixteen.

He was sweating profusely now. In a corner of his mind, a little voice told him that maybe he should go and change out of his wet shirt. The voice felt distant though, and Harry found that he couldn't tear his eyes away from the white orb. His green eyes were fixed on the circle of dim light that seemed to simply float in the night sky. He stood there transfixed by the beauty of the milky light. Somewhere in the sitting room a clock stroke midnight_. Happy birthday, Harry_. As the thought crossed his mind he felt an overhelming pain all over his body. His body arched in pain. He gasped as he fell to his knees. His bones felt like they were melting. His muscles were screaming and his head felt like it had been filled with stone. And all the while the moon shone indifferently as the boy rolled in pain on the kitchen floor.

As the pain in his body subsided, the raven haired boy felt his left flank ache more violently than the rest of his body. His flesh was burning, following a thin line of fire. The pain spread from just over his waist line to the bottom of his rib-cage. He clasped his hand on the painful area, in an attempt to cool down the flesh. He gasped as the burning intensified.

All of a sudden it stopped. Harry lied on the floor, panting as if he had just run a marathon. He couldn't feel any pain anymore but the memory of it was still vivid. He got up slowly, grabbing the furniture for help. At last, he was on his feet. Once again, his eyes went to look at the moon. As he gazed upwards his restlessness grew. He wanted to go out there. He wanted to run and let the air ruffle his fur. The raven-haired boy didn't stop to think that he did not have a fur. In fact, he couldn't think properly, his mind a messy bundle of thoughts.

Harry got to the front door before he even knew he was on his way. The urge was becoming stronger with each step he took. He unconsciously held his breath as he opened the door. He inhaled deeply as he felt the air change about him. He could hear the ground under his feet humming joyfully and the summer breeze sliding along the trees. He could feel the magic pulsing around him. Exhilaration washed over him as the power of his surroundings echoed with his own. And then he knew. The change took him swiftly. It was quicker than he had thought possible and surprisingly painless. Overcome with the joy, the freedom of his new body, he leapt forward. He ran. Ran until his head was clear, ran until the urge had dimmed. He felt whole and free as he raced under the moon. It felt right; it was something he had always wished for, deep down in his heart. It had been buried so deeply he hadn't even known he had had those feelings. But now, it couldn't be clearer.

He slowed down as he neared a small lake. Well, it wasn't much of a lake anymore, more of a pond. The extremely hot summer they had had was responsible for the little water that was left. Harry trotted until his front paws were in the water. He lowered his eyes and looked at his reflection. The faint light of the moon seemed as bright as the sunlight to his canine eyes. He could see quite clearly the shape of the tall pitch black wolf standing in his place. His eyes were still the same emerald green and his fur was as messy as his hair had been. He smiled a wolf smile: jaws slightly parted and tongue sticking out.

He messed in the water for a little while. Rolling and yapping happily, engrossed in a game only the young wolf understood. He suddenly shot out of the water and ran. Never in his life had he been so happy. He halted brusquely and sticking his nose in the air howled his joy.


	2. When everything falls apart

**I'm feeling incredibly rebellious so I've decided I wouldn't write the disclaimer with every new chapter. If you want to see it, go to chapter 1.**

**Also my computer is being mean to me so you'll have to forgive me if you find any mistakes or oddities...**

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Harry woke up, the exhilaration of the night still fresh. How he had gotten in bed was a mystery, though. He couldn't remember going back to the Burrow. But then, it didn't matter that much. He stretched his human limbs. They felt weak and slow compared to his wolf body. He jumped of his bed and went to pick some clothes in his suitcase. He looked at himself in the small mirror stuck in the lid of the case. His green eyes shone brightly, they looked much greener without the glasses in between_. _It suddenly struck him that he was, indeed, not wearing his glasses. Yet he could see perfectly well. The raven-haired boy decided it was a side effect of what had happened the night before and left the matter aside.

As he stripped from his pyjama shirt, his eyes fell on a tattoo on his left flank. Odd, he was sure he hadn't had a tattoo yesterday…He suddenly remembered how that very area had burned the previous night. His fingers traced the intricate pattern of the black lines. The lines twisted around each other, forming Celtic-like patterns. And the various forms and runes hidden in them assembled into a sun in all its glory. It was beautiful; even though it was completely black it gave the impression of burning with hot red flames.

Harry finally looked away and put on a green shirt, effectively hiding the tattoo from view. He then took his bottom pyjama off and slipped on black jeans, throwing the sweaty pyjamas on the floor. Ron was still sleeping in the next bed so Harry left the room quietly shutting the door after him. He stopped for a second behind the door. Should he say anything about the tattoo or his transformation? He wanted to trust the Weasleys, but this felt too intimate to talk about. No, he decided, he wouldn't tell, at least not for now.

He appeared in the living room and greeted Mrs Weasley. The red-haired woman was the only one up and had been cooking breakfast. The rest of the family joined them soon after, Ron a noticeable last and the twins already pranking everyone. The day was spent playing Quidditch with Ginny, Ron, Fred and Georges, as well as Charlie. Hermione joined them in the garden after lunch, when she arrived. She didn't play with them and they soon stopped in order to spend some time with her, especially since Sirius and Remus had arrived as well. They had both come to celebrate Harry's birthday. Sirius had arrived as a dog but had turned back into himself as soon as he had reached the safety of the Burrow's wards.

The afternoon passed quickly, Harry and the Weasley children listening to Sirius' tale of the Marauder's time at Hogwarts and Hermione engaging in a conversation about dragons with a passionate Charlie and a distracted Remus. The werewolf darted furtive glances at Harry from time to time, paying little attention to the conversation. His cub's smell had changed since the last time he had seen him. The wolf inside him was growling sensing a powerful and potential enemy in the boy.

Dinner was as joyful as the afternoon had been. Remus was still glancing awkwardly at Harry. Sirius seemed to notice his discomfort and raised an eyebrow at him in a silent questioning. The werewolf just shrugged signalling his lack of knowledge on the matter. The black haired man didn't enquire further about it as Harry began opening his presents. There were a green knitted jumper from Mrs Weasley, books from Hermione, boxes of sweets from Ron, trick products from the twins, a knife which could open every lock from Sirius and a photo album with photos of his parents from Remus. When he opened the album, Harry smiled brightly and went to hug the werewolf tightly. The gesture surprised the man a little. He returned the hug with a big grin on his face.

Harry thanked everybody again for all the presents, which he put away to free some space for the cake that was now being cut by Mr Weasley. Remus decided not to dwell on the strange smell emanating from his cub too much and started discussing the Quidditch season with Ron and Sirius.

* * *

During the following weeks, Harry began to feel changes. They were very slight changes and he doubted that anybody else would notice. He had started to react upon instincts he never knew he had. Thankfully, he managed to control them which saved him from attacking the twins after they had suddenly Apparated behind him in order to surprise him. He also got surprisingly better at Wizard's chess; it shocked not only him but also Ron when he beat the red haired. He figured it was some kind of analysing ability that was growing in him, because he was getting better at judging people from their behaviours and words. He found that he could tell when the twins were lying or about to play a prank from their slight change in attitude. However what surprised him the most was when he discovered that he had seemingly developed a perfect memory. After that discovery, he eagerly started reading all the schoolbooks he owned, from the first year ones to the ones he had used the year before. He managed to surprise Hermione a few times with his new knowledge.

He was careful not to abuse the use of his recent skills, though. After he had won a game of Wizard's chess against Ron, he had made sure not to anymore. He managed to make it look like a fluke quite convincingly, by losing five times in row, to Ron's delight. As for Hermione, he only quoted_ Hogwarts a history_ a few times, knowing that the bushy haired girl would only see it as proof that he actually listened to her when she talked, which wasn't always true. He didn't really know why, but he felt compelled to hide his recent changes. He was wary of his friends' reactions. He kept telling himself that it was ridiculous and that if he couldn't trust Hermione and Ron, then he couldn't trust anyone. Yet, every time he tried to talk to them he found a convenient excuse to back out at the last minute.

Two weeks passed by and Harry had yet to tell his best friends about his new 'condition' and tattoo. He vaguely felt that it was better that way and wasn't remotely trying to change the situation. It was during the third week after Harry's birthday, that Mrs Weasley decided to make a trip to Diagon Alley in order to buy their school things. She had been delighted when Hermione and Ron had been made prefects. Harry was a bit jealous of his friends, but more than that he felt left out. He had had the feeling that his friends were growing more distant during the summer. Before his birthday, when he had been staying with the Dursleys, they had barely written to him. When he had arrived in Grimmauld Place, a day before they went back to The Burrow, he had learnt that both Hermione and Ron had been staying there and were well informed of the activities of a group led by Dumbledore called 'The Order of the Phoenix' which fought against Voldemort. After he'd realised just how much his friends had been hiding from him, he had felt extremely annoyed and had to restrain himself not to burst in anger. He had successfully managed to hide his annoyance and his anger had subsided as he spent the rest of the summer with them.

The whole Weasley family, Hermione and Harry, had assembled in front of the sitting room's fireplace. One by one they took a handful of Floo powder from the jar Mrs Weasley was holding, stepped in the fireplace, and disappeared in green flames after saying 'Diagon Alley' while releasing the powder. When they had all gotten to their destination they separated. Harry had managed to convince the Weasleys to let him shop on his own, since he needed to go to Gringotts to retrieve some money first anyway. He had to plead and beg, and promise that he would be extremely careful, but Mrs Weasley finally let him do as he wanted. He wasted no time and marched, without a glance to his friends, towards Gringotts. He felt the tension of the past weeks leave him as he separated from the group. Lately, he'd found that being near Ron and Hermione was increasingly difficult.

He walked in the Great Bank and approached one of the Goblins.

"Good morning." he said at the small creature perched on top of his desk. "I would like to take some money out of my vault."

The Goblin watched him carefully, his eyes flicking to the boy's forehead where the scar was faintly visible amidst the raven hair.

"May I see your key?"

Harry passed the small golden key to the Goblin and waited patiently as the creature examined it.

"Very well, Mister Potter, Gornuk will take you to your vault." said the goblin motioning to another.

The second Goblin stepped forward and took the key from his colleague.

"This way please." he called to Harry.

Gornuk led him to the carts and they both mounted one of them. The ride was as fast as Harry remembered it to be. Unlike Hagrid, Harry enjoyed the speed and crazy turns and didn't feel sick in the slightest. This earned him an appreciative glance from the Goblin as they stepped out of the cart.

"Vault 687." announced the Goblin.

He then inserted the little golden key inside a tiny keyhole placed at Goblin-height, which approximately at Harry's waist. There was a click as the key turned in the lock, followed by the sound of many devices uninstalling themselves before the door opened. Harry passed in front of the Goblin and entered the vault. He marched towards the closest pile of gold and gathered enough galleons to take care of his shopping and food expenses on the train. He placed the money in a pouch which he placed in his robe s' pocket and left the vault. The Goblin closed the vault's door and handed him back the key before taking the raven haired boy back to the surface.

After Gringotts, Harry decided to go to Madam Malkins to get new robes. He bought a few to replace those that had become too small and left for Flourish and Blotts. He spent some time in the bookshop looking at the titles and picked a few extra books that looked promising. He chose: _Powers You Never Knew You Had and What To Do With Them Now You've Wised Up, _which somehow reminded him of his own situation, and _Spellman's Syllabary_. After paying for his books, he went to pick Potions supplies and some owl treats for Hedwig. His last stop was, of course, Quidditch Quality Supplies. Harry examined all the new products of the shop, purposefully taking his time. It was with great regret that he left to meet up with the others.

When he joined the group, Ron started complaining about Harry having left, while Hermione watched him suspiciously. Feeling his usual discomfort settling in, Harry followed in silence, barely listening to the red hair's rambling. Remus and Sirius were supposed to come for dinner that evening. It was to be a full moon and they were to stay for dinner and then Apparate in an empty location for Remus' transformation.

The two men arrived soon after they had Flooed back from Diagon Alley. Mrs Weasley had immediately retreated to the kitchen while everyone else went to lounge on the sofas. Harry was quiet all through the evening. He wasn't the only one to be distracted though; Remus was also silent fiddling absent-mindedly with his battered shirt. The werewolf was unnerved by that unknown smell coming from his cub. It could smell it more strongly now, as the full moon approached. He didn't really understand what it was. It felt ancient somehow, similarly to how unicorns smelt ancient. Most races who had been around for a very long time gave that feeling. More recent races like werewolves smelled younger. Those rules, however, only applied to magical creatures; which Harry wasn't. Or was he? Remus was grateful for the distraction when Mrs Weasley called them to the table.

* * *

After dinner they went back to the sitting room. As the sun started to set and the moon to appear, Remus became more and more restless. He wasn't the only one however. Harry was also aware of the moon's closeness. He could feel it, the ripple of the air on his skin, the slight change of the wind, the light dimming, and more than anything the intense wilderness. He felt it in his flesh, his bones and all the way down to his soul. It was calling with such power that Harry didn't know how he could have missed it before. When the sun had completely set, the raven-haired boy couldn't fight the overwhelming power anymore and got to his feet. The sudden movement didn't go unnoticed.

"Are you alright Harry?" asked Sirius his voice full of concern.

The werewolf who had been distracted for a while now was called back to reality by the sudden silence and the concern in his friend's voice. He looked at Harry who had been sitting on an armchair on his right. The boy was standing. He was looking in the distance. Looking at the door, Remus realised. There was something horribly wrong here. Harry's eyes were distant, unfocused, his gaze never leaving the door. His eyes seemed a deeper green but that, Remus thought, was probably because he wasn't wearing his glasses.

"Cub?" called Remus worriedly, slowly rising from the sofa he'd been sitting on.

The raven-haired boy didn't seem to hear him. Without looking back he went to the door and walked out. Remus followed immediately. The others were left in a stunned silence until realisation hit them and they all hurriedly followed Harry and Remus. Harry hadn't stopped walking and he was now a little distance from the Burrow, Remus following after him while sending worried glances at the moon that was already high in the night sky. All of a sudden, Harry stopped. Remus stopped a few steps behind him. He was about to ask the boy what was wrong, when all of a sudden the boy's body started changing. It wasn't like a werewolf's transformation. There were no bones cracking or cries of pain; it was as if Harry's skin, flesh and bones were rearranging themselves into a new shape. The man watched as his best friend's son changed from a human child to a young black wolf with piercing green eyes.

Remus had watched the change with a kind of fascinated horror. He couldn't avert his gaze as the tall wolf turned around to face him. The emerald eyes peered into the brown ones. Then, the wolf extended his throat towards the sky and howled. It was a deep melodious howl which Remus immediately recognised as an invitation.

A sudden pain in his body brought the werewolf back to the harsh reality. He was changing. He fell down on his knees with a stifled groan. The pain was unbearable and soon he was crying in pain. The others, who had stayed back when they had seen Harry stop, had watched with a growing fear as the boy transformed. Their fear was now as it highest point as they watched the werewolf transform in a cacophony of cracking bones and cries of pain. The change lasted only a few minutes during which, Sirius who was more accustomed to this than the others, had changed into a black hound and stepped closer to his lycan friend.

As the pain faded and his wolf instincts took over, Mooney lifted his eyes to the black wolf who had been watching patiently as he had changed. The green eyes were not fearful but expressed a delight at seeing another wolf. The young wolf, which the werewolf could easily see was barely older than a cub, sprang forward yelping happily at Remus. The young adult ran around the brown wolf a few times before darting towards the trees. With a joyful bark and an inviting glance at the hound, the werewolf followed in the steps of his new pack brother.


	3. When he was challenged by a toad

Harry stood on the platform 9 and ¾. Remus and Sirius were with him. The first was giving a stream of recommendations, while the second was under his dog form and stood by his side. As Harry absent-mindedly nodded his head at whatever Remus had been telling him he caught the eye of the black dog. Padfoot attempted to roll his eye which resulted in him having a funny expression on his face. The raven haired boy quickly looked away in an attempt to repress the laugh that was rising in him.

His eyes fell on the Weasleys. They were a little further away and were saying goodbye. Hermione was with them. The girl caught his eye for an instant before she quickly turned away a fearful look on her face. Harry's smile vanished. It had been like that ever since they had witnessed his transformation. He hadn't thought they would react that badly, but it seemed that they didn't care anymore that he was the same Harry they had always known. They could only see a monster in him now. Hermione and Ron were scared of him. He had seen it in their eyes. In Hermione's there was guilt and in Ron's disgust. Mr and Mrs Weasley had feared for their children and rejected him. Harry could understand that. He knew what overwhelming instinct felt like and he also knew that all races had the instinct to protect their cubs. It was natural: cubs were the future of the pack, killing them was annihilating that future. Of course it hadn't been Harry's intention to kill any of them, but they had perceived his power and felt the potential danger he could represent. Ron and Hermione's fear had hurt more. It felt like betrayal.

Ginny and the twins seemed to be unsure as to where they stood. For lack of better knowledge, they had followed their parent's will and had avoided Harry to the best of their ability. The only Weasley whose reaction had been different was Charlie. The young man had left the day after Harry's birthday, but for the little Harry had seen him after his transformation, he had only smelled curiosity seeping from the red-haired. Harry wasn't quite sure if he was surprised or not. On one hand, he was surprised that Charlie didn't seem to fear him. On the other hand, he had known that Charlie was mad about Magical Creatures and he understood he was now one of them.

Seeing his dark look, Remus, who had seemingly finished with his recommendations, pulled Harry in a quick hug.

"Don't mind them. They'll come round eventually." He said gently.

Harry turned to him and smiled sadly.

"Thanks Remus." He replied. "And Padfoot." He added caressing the dog's head.

Remus' eyebrows rose in incomprehension.

"What for?" asked the werewolf.

"For sticking with me even though I've changed. I really don't know what I'd have done if you hadn't."

Remus' face darkened and Harry anxiously starting thinking about how he had offended the man. Noticing his fretful eyes the lycan showed a reassuring smile.

"It's okay I'm not angry. But Harry you should know we would always stick by you no matter what. You know that don't you, cub?"

Harry smiled. Remus had taken to calling him cub more often. It was nice in a way.

"I know thanks."

With one last hug to Remus and a lick from Padfoot, Harry climbed into the Hogwarts Express. He set out to find an empty compartment. He knew he wouldn't have to worry about his…disagreement with Hermione and Ron being made public just yet as the both of them had been made prefects this year. As such they would be in the prefect's compartment so nobody would find it strange that Harry wasn't with them. Harry was thankful for that. He was pretty sure that Ron would start spreading nasty rumours about his former friend as soon as he could. He was grateful that he could at least enjoy a quiet train ride before things started getting hectic.

He noticed Neville and Luna in one carriage and was going to ask if he could sit with them when he spotted Ginny. The red haired girl met his eyes and turned away blushing. Harry could smell her fear, and from her obvious discomfort as well as the staring from Neville and Luna, it seemed she had already told them everything. Harry's face turned into a cold mask. With a stiff nod to the three of them he left. As he walked away from their compartment he heard Neville calling his name but he didn't stop walking.

When at last, he found an empty compartment, at the far end of the last carriage, he collapsed on the seat. He buried his face in his hands and allowed himself to break. He hadn't thought that Ginny and the twins might tell anyone about his transformation. He didn't know how he was going to deal with all this. People were going to react badly. Of course they would. Humans are afraid of what they don't understand and they wouldn't understand what he was. Hell, HE didn't understand what he was. Sirius and Remus had accepted him because their animal instincts had convinced them that he was trustworthy and they had accepted him as part of their pack. Well, at least he knew he wasn't dangerous. But the others wouldn't know that. And if they reacted like the Weasleys then even if they were told the truth they wouldn't want to hear it and insist that he was dangerous.

He lifted his tearless eyes towards the window. No he really didn't know how he was going to deal with this. Maybe he should talk to Dumbledore. The old headmaster would surely be able to give him some advice. Maybe he even knew what Harry was. The thought cheered him up a little. If anyone knew, it had to be Dumbledore. Sometimes Harry thought the old man knew everything, surely he would know about this too.

* * *

Harry watched glumly as ten first years were sorted in Gryffindor. He was sitting at the far end of the table next to the first years. Nobody had seemed to want him near them. Neville had sat next to him but hadn't said a word. Probably because Harry was doing his best to ignore him, as he was ignoring the glances and whispers of the other Gryffindors. Even some Hufflepuffs and Ravenclaws seemed to have heard the rumours and were spreading it into their one house. Harry sat through this, a cold expression firmly set on his face. As he glanced across the hall where his long time enemy sat at the Slytherin table, he couldn't help but notice how similar his current expression must have been to the glum one he saw on Malfoy's face.

The raven haired boy shrugged internally. Why should he care anyway? It didn't matter what anyone thought, not anymore. He flicked his green gaze to the staff table. Snape was staring at a woman Harry had never seen before who sat on the other side of the table. His contempt was clear. He had the kind of expression he usually reserved for Harry. The boy examined the woman who had caught the Potions master's attention. She was a small, chubby woman, with small black eyes. She had a disgustingly sweet smile etched on her face and she seemed to have a passion for pink, as it was the only colour she was wearing. Harry suddenly felt the urge to growl. This woman was bad news.

He turned to Dumbledore in the hope of getting an answer to his silent questioning. However, the old headmaster seemed to purposefully avoid his gaze. The gesture made Harry frown. So Dumbledore was abandoning him as well. The green eyes narrowed as Harry bared his teeth. He must've had a beastly expression because all the nearest students, save Neville (who still looked extremely uncomfortable), backed away with fearful shrieks. Harry turned to them, increasingly annoyed. As the scent of fear filled his surroundings he felt anger rise in him. This was absolutely ridiculous! With this thought in mind, and anger filling his eyes, he proceeded to stare them down.

Harry missed the first part of the headmaster's opening speech. In fact, he didn't realise it had started at all until a high pitch cough sent shivers down his spine. He turned to the staff table. The smallish woman had stood (which didn't make much of a difference height-wise) and was walking to the front where Dumbledore stood.

"Thank you headmaster for those kind words of welcome." She started in a girlish voice. "And how lovely to see all your bright happy faces smiling at me." Harry turned to look around. As he had thought, none of the students were smiling at her, and the happy faces had been ruined by the news about Harry Potter becoming a blood thirsty monster. "I'm sure we will all be good, very good friends." Harry heard the Weasley twins mutter 'Not likely', which made quite a few Gryffindors laugh. "The ministry of magic," continued the woman. "has always considered the education of young wizards and witches to be of vital importance. Although each headmaster has brought something new to this school, progress for the sake of progress must be discouraged. Let us preserve what must be preserved, perfect what can be perfected and prohibit practices that ought to be prohibited."

On these last words, she laughed girlishly and went back to sit behind the staff table leaving the Great Hall in stunned silence. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw Hermione saying something to Ron. No doubt, the young witch had understood the meaning of the woman's words. She was going to interfere with Hogwarts in the name of the ministry. Harry felt cool fury wash over him. How dare she interfere on his territory? She had no right and he would make sure she understood that! _But it's not my territory and she's from the ministry. _Harry's inner voice told him. He forced himself to calm down. Eyes still fixed on the toad-like woman he addressed Neville, his voice as cold and sharp as a blade.

"What did he say her name was?"

"U-Umbridge. Dolores Umbridge." said the boy, shivering under the anger exuding the emerald eyes.

Harry gave no sign of having heard the reply and he continued staring at the woman for a while even after the food had appeared on the tables.

* * *

Tensed silence met Harry when he marched through the Gryffindor common room that morning. He had spent the last two days glaring intensely at whoever was whispering at him or drawing back when he came close. Thus, most of the students didn't dare so much as move when he was around. Some of them swore that when he had glared at them his eyes had changed into an animal's eye. Of course, there was a possibility that it did happen; after all, Harry didn't have a mirror in front of him whenever he glared at someone, so he couldn't be sure. It didn't matter though, as the whole school was buzzing with rumours about him anyway, no one would be able to tell if it was true or not.

Harry walked through the corridors gazing coldly at his surroundings. In the two days he had been at Hogwarts, he could not remember a time when he hadn't had his cold mask on. Strangely enough he had grown accustomed to it. It was also very effective. In fact, The Slytherins were the only students who weren't affected by it. But then again, they didn't bother with the rumours.

Today was to be his first class with Dolores Umbridge. Harry surprised himself by looking forward to it. He was pretty sure that he would hate the woman. However, he was also sure they would have an argument some way or another and then Harry would be able to release some of the anger that had been piling up.

The class was completely silent as they entered the classroom, which reminded Harry of her speech in the Great Hall. Umbridge was already there, in her pink cardigan and a black velvet bow on top of her head. For a few seconds Harry thought she was a pink toad with a great fly perched on its head. As he made his way to a far corner of the classroom, he speculated on the chances of him just having a prophetic vision.

"Well, good afternoon!" she said, when finally the whole class had sat down.

A few people mumbled 'good afternoon' in reply, with very unconvinced voice. Harry just stared at her.

"Tut, tut." said professor Umbridge making Harry feel a sudden urge to slap her. "**That** won't do, now, will it?" Harry couldn't see why: he felt it was perfectly normal that nobody would want to say 'good afternoon' to an overgrown pink toad. "I should like you, please, to reply 'Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge'. One more time, please. Good afternoon, class!"

"Good afternoon, Professor Umbridge." chanted the class.

Harry was firmly reminded of his primary school years.

"There, now." said Professor Umbridge in a sweet voice which caused Harry to feel slightly sick. "That wasn't too difficult, was it?" The raven haired boy wanted to tell her it had caused a deep pain in his very soul but thought it would be better to observe a little longer. "Wands away and quills out, please."

Many of the class exchanged gloomy looks; the order 'wands away' had never yet been followed by a lesson they had found interesting. Harry frowned but complied. He shoved his wand inside his bag and pulled out quill, ink and parchment. Professor Umbridge opened her handbag, which was a very ugly knitted bag, needless to say, pink, and extracted her own wand. The wand was very similar to its owner: unusually short. She tapped the blackboard sharply with it; words appeared on the board at once:

_Defence Against the Dark Arts_

_A Return to Basic Principles_

"Well now, your teaching in this subject has been rather disrupted and fragmented hasn't it?" stated Professor Umbridge, turning to face the class with her hands clasped neatly in front of her. "The constant changing of teachers, many of whom do not seem to have followed any Ministry-approved curriculum, has unfortunately resulted in your being far below the standard we would expect to see in your OWL year.

You will be pleased to know, however, that these problems are now to be rectified. We will be following a carefully structured, theory-centred, Ministry-approved course of defensive magic this year. Copy down the following, please."

She rapped the blackboard again; the first message vanished and was replaced by the 'Course Aims'.

_Understanding the principles underlying defensive magic._

_Learning to recognise situations in which defensive magic can legally be used._

_Placing the use of defensive magic in a context for practical use._

As the room started to fill with the sound of scratching quills on parchment, Harry raised his hand.

"Yes, Mister Potter?" said Professor Umbridge.

"I was just wondering," started the green eyed boy in a seemingly interested voice. "When you say 'theory-oriented', does it mean we will not be performing any magic in class?" he asked.

"That is exact, Mister Potter. We shall be focusing on the sole theory of the spells. I hope you will not raise any objections?" she said sweetly.

Harry recognised the trap for what it was. She was trying to make him angry; instead he plastered a big smile on his face.

"Oh no, not at all!" he replied joyously. "I was simply checking that 'Ministry-approved', indeed meant 'striving to be incompetent'."

He then started dutifully noting the Courses Aims, leaving the Professor gaping at him with pure shock written on her face. Harry heard the distinctive sound of stifled laughter around the room. Professor Umbridge soon recovered from the shock and chose to ignore the insult.

"Has everyone got their copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?" she asked, her voice having lost its initial sweetness.

Silence met her question.

"I think we'll try that again." said Professor Umbridge. "When I ask you a question, I should like to reply, 'Yes Professor Umbridge' or 'No, Professor Umbridge'. So: has everyone got a copy of _Defensive Magical Theory_ by Wilbert Slinkhard?"

"Yes, Professor Umbridge." rang through the room.

"Good." said Professor Umbridge. "I should like you to turn to page five and read 'Chapter One, Basic for Beginners'. There will be no need to talk."

Of course, Harry thought there WAS a need to talk. He was about to raise his hand to make a comment when he noticed Hermione's hand already in the air. The girl hadn't even bothered opening her book which was rare; she usually obeyed the teacher's orders. Professor Umbridge was resolutely looking in another direction, so Harry decided to feign concentrating on the reading. It was desperately dull, quite as bad as listening to Professor Binns. At least, Harry thought, once he would have read the chapter he wouldn't need to ever look at it again.

Seeing that half the class was now looking at Hermione's silent attempt to catch her attention, Professor Umbridge seemed to decide that she couldn't ignore the situation any longer.

"Did you want to ask a question about the chapter, dear?" she asked as if she just noticed her.

"Not about the chapter, no." said Hermione.

"Well, we're reading just now." said Professor Umbridge, showing her small pointed teeth. "If you have other queries we can deal with them at the end of the class."

"I've got a query about your course aims" said Hermione.

Professor Umbridge raised her eyebrows.

"And your name is?"

"Hermione Granger." said Hermione.

"Well, Miss Granger, I think the course aims are perfectly clear if you read them through carefully." said the woman in a voice of determined sweetness.

"Well I don't. Is there any reason that we shouldn't be practising the spells?" asked Hermione her voice rising.

"Using defensive spells?" laughed Professor Umbridge. "Why, I can't imagine any situation arising in my classroom that would require you to use a defensive spell, Miss Granger. You surely aren't expecting to be attacked during class?"

"But surely, the whole point of Defence Against the Dark Arts is to practise defensive spells?" continued Hermione.

"Are you a Ministry-trained educational expert, Miss Granger? Because if you're not, I'm afraid you are not qualified to decide what 'the whole point' of my class is. You are going to be taught in a secure risk-free way…"

"Surely, you realise that they are trying to prepare us for the future, Hermione?" cut in Harry with the edge of a snicker in his voice.

Hermione as well as the other students stared at him, not sure how they should react. Professor Umbridge also seemed stunned for a few minutes. She had probably noticed the irony behind his words, but as it hadn't been obvious she couldn't say anything.

"I do not wish to criticise the way things have been run in this school." she said trying hard to regain her authority. "But you have been exposed to some very irresponsible wizards in this school, very irresponsible indeed – not to mention extremely dangerous half-breeds." she finished with a nasty laugh.

Harry felt anger boil inside him. His magic rose like a cold fire around him and his eyes hardened.

"If you mean Professor Lupin, he was the best teacher we ever had." said Harry in a deathly silent voice.

A collective shiver ran through the room as the temperature seemed to fall. Umbridge gulped but quickly regained her composure and attacked.

"You have been introduced to spells that have been complex, inappropriate for your age group and potentially lethal. You have been frightened into believing that you are likely to meet Dark attacks every other day…"

"As we are." cut in Harry coldly.

Professor Umbridge made to retort but a glance at the emerald steel of the boy's eyes shut her up.

"Professor Lupin, unlike the cowards of the Ministry, had the courage to consider the possibility of Voldermort's return. He has taught us spells that will be of great help when we are faced with the harsh reality of the world."

Harry's gaze had not left the professor's pale face. His icy voice carried through the room. All the other students seemed transfixed into a kind of fascinated terror.

"Voldemort has returned. War is coming. We will not survive it with theory only."

The silence hung in the room for a while; then Umbridge broke it.

"You have been informed, that a certain dark wizard was at large once again. _This is a lie_." she said breathing heavily and purposefully avoiding Harry's stare.

"Of course, it is." said Harry causing shock amongst his fellow students. "Cedric Diggory just dropped dead of his own accord."

The raven haired boy watched the toad-like woman who was watching him, deep loathing in her eyes and lips tightly pressed together.

"Oh, no! That's not it, is it?" continued Harry, his voice falsely sweet. "I was the one who killed him wasn't I? Of course it was. After all, it could only be me, the Big-bad-dangerous-half-breed!"

The room gasped and Umbridge turned slightly green. Harry offered her a predatory smirk and leaned back in his chair.

"Twenty points from Gryffindor, Mister Potter. And you will serve detention with me for a month." said Professor Umbridge.

At that moment, the enchanted bell rang, signalling the end of the class. All the students fled the room. Harry soon was the only one left. He slowly put his things back inside his bag, feeling the insistent glare of the Ministry official on his back. He slung his bag on his shoulder and walked towards Professor Umbridge. He ignored the woman's flinch and stopped in front of her.

"With all due respect, Professor; if you ever talk badly of my pack brother again or any other magical creature for that matter; I will make you regret you were ever born." he said quietly.

"Is this a threat, Mister Potter?" asked Professor Umbridge in a shaky voice.

"Yes. It is." said Harry matter-of-factly. "Goodbye Professor." he said as he walked away.

"You're late, Potter!" said Professor Snape as Harry entered the Potions classroom. "I dare say that will earn you a detention." spat the elder man.

"I'm sorry Professor." replied the raven haired boy with all the politeness he could muster. "Professor Umbridge already gave me detention for the month."

Snape raised an eyebrow.

"And why would that be?" he asked.

Harry smirked.

"I contested her opinion concerning Voldemort's return, Sir. Unfortunately, she seems to dislike me." he said a hint of evilness in his eyes.

Snape narrowed his eyes.

"I see. Well that is truly unfortunate, I'm sure." drawled the Potions Master. "Five points from Gryffindor. You may go to your seat, Potter."

Harry raised an eyebrow in silent astonishment. He would have thought Snape would take more points than that and possibly give him detention for the following month. In fact, it was the first time he had seen Snape take less than ten points from a student.

"Thank you, Sir." said Harry.

Maybe they would be able to reach a truce thanks to their common hatred for the Defence Professor. This year might be more interesting than he had expected.


	4. When dreams changed

The air was cold, as the green-eyed boy made his way around the lake. As soon as the classes had ended he had decided to take a walk outside. His walk had guided him to the nearby lake, and he was now gazing at the dark waters, deep in thoughts. He watched silently as the sun slowly glided down and the sky darkened. Before the sun had completely set and he was left in the dark, Harry walked back to the castle. He was reluctant to go back to the Gryffindor common room as he still had an hour before dinner. Also, he didn't have any homework, since it was Friday and he could very well do it during the next two days. As he wandered the corridors, he started thinking about his recent change.

Ever since he had first turned into a wolf he had felt his body change. He had grown taller, not that much, but he definitely had gained a few centimetres. He was stronger as well; both physically and magically. He had noticed immediately that he had gained physical strength. He had always been rather scrawny and had never been that muscular, though Quidditch had helped a bit. Since his birthday he had been able to lift heavier things without effort and could run faster and longer even in his human body. It had taken a bit longer to notice the magical changes. Firstly, because Harry had had to wait until he was back at Hogwarts to be able to cast spells; secondly, because it was a less obvious change. He hadn't really noticed anything until they had practiced _Incendio_ in Charms. He had been able to cast the spell before but when he had cast it to burn the feather he had been given to practice, the thing had flared into a gigantic flame that had ended up burning the whole table. After that, Harry had been a lot more careful about the amount of magic he put into his spells.

Not really knowing how he got there Harry found himself in the dungeons. He was about to go back, when he heard a whimper and other voices, sounding more than a little threatening. Harry, as a true Gryffindor, immediately went to see what was happening. Making sure he couldn't be seen, he watched as three fifth year Ravenclaws cornered a lone Slytherin first year. The smaller student was obviously terrified and couldn't help but whimper as one of the Ravenclaws, a blond boy, lifted his wand towards him.

"Stop." Harry's voice echoed through the corridors as he stepped forward.

The Ravenclaws immediately turned around to face him and raised their wands.

"What do you want Potter?" spat the blond boy who seemed to recognise him, though Harry was pretty sure he'd never seen him before.

"Well, I just wanted to share my thoughts with you. You see I think it is highly cowardly to pick on smaller than yourself." Harry replied calmly, stepping forward.

"Typical Gryffindor." snorted the blond.

Harry raised an eyebrow but didn't say anything (because he also thought so) as he finally halted a few steps away from the three Ravenclaws.

"Anyway, this doesn't concern you. It's not like you even have a reason to help a Snake." added the Ravenclaw haughtily.

"Do I need one?" asked the green-eyed boy quietly.

"What?" the blond seemed taken aback by the question.

"Do I need a reason to help someone who is in need of it?" repeated Harry, his voice just a bit louder.

The Ravenclaws started to panic as Harry started moving forward once again. The blond boy sent a stunning spell, which was quickly countered by Harry as he took his own wand in hand.

"Expelliarmus." he said pointing to one the blonde's friend.

Harry then used a Flippendo on the other Ravenclaw which sent him crashing against a nearby wall. As his friend passed out from the shock, the blond Ravenclaw sent a Stupefy towards Harry who calmly sent it back with a Protego. The remaining, wandless, Ravenclaw took his chance to flee and Harry was left with the shivering Slytherin.

"You're okay?" asked Harry trying to sound as kind as possible.

The younger boy just nodded his head. He still seemed wary as his brown eyes flicked from the passed out Ravenclaws to the Gryffindor in front of him. He seemed to calm down a little though seeing that Harry wasn't attempting to harm him. As he calmed down he regained his composure and the typical Slytherin demeanour. He raised his head pushing back his chocolate brown hair out of his face and eyed Harry haughtily.

"Why would a Lion go out of his way to help me?" he asked the older teen.

Harry smiled; the boy looked exactly like a younger version of Malfoy when he did that. Were all Slytherins like that? Probably; since nearly all of them came from rich or pureblood families.

"Like I said before, do I need a reason to help someone?" Harry replied amused.

The boy seemed to lose a bit of his haughtiness when he heard the answer.

"Well, just between you and me, I wouldn't have helped if it had been Malfoy." continued the Gryffindor with a slight grin.

The young Slytherin laughed at that remark and abandoned his airs.

"I'm Evan Thatcher. Nice to meet you Mr Potter." said the boy, now smiling broadly.

"Nice to meet you too, Evan. But I'd rather you dropped the Mr and just called me Harry."

The young boy nodded.

"Now I think I'd better accompany you back to your dorms since I'm not entirely sure these three…" he jerked his head at the Ravenclaws "…were alone."

The young Slytherin nodded once again, and placing himself next to the Gryffindor, started walking further into the dungeons. The two didn't speak much during the few minutes they took to arrive near the Slytherin common room. Once the crack in the wall signalling the entrance's location was in sight, Harry stopped.

"I think I'd better stop here." he said turning to his younger companion.

"Oh. All right then."

Evan advanced a few steps and then looked back over his shoulder at Harry.

"Er… Harry, can I talk to you again, later?" he sounded hesitant as if he expected the Gryffindor to bluntly refuse.

"You'd better. And do come tell me if you ever are in trouble of any sort." said Harry with an encouraging smile.

"O-okay, I will. And thanks. For helping me I mean." Evan flushed as he muttered his thanks and then darted towards the portrait.

The young boy didn't have time to say the password because the portrait slid open and Malfoy appeared accompanied by his two self-appointed bodyguards: Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe. Deciding he didn't need to get in a fight with Malfoy just in front of the rival house's common room, turned around and left.

* * *

_The burning sky was above his head, the desert of ashes under his feet. He walked on, because there was nothing else to do. He walked and walked in this infinity of ash and flaming sky. Before he knew it was there, he found himself in front of a door. A gigantic black door, that looked like it had been made of coal, stood in the middle of the desert of ash. Rusty chains were circling it as if they were trying to stop it from opening. He never stopped walking and touched the door with his hand. It was surprisingly warm. As soon as he made contact with the hard surface, the chains broke in a loud clatter and fell to the ground. As if the ground was alive, the ashes covered the chains and soon there was no trace of them. The door creaked open and he walked on…_

Harry woke up in a start. He rubbed his sweaty forehead with his pyjama's sleeve and sat up in his bed. What was this all about? These dreams didn't make any sense. Such a desolate place didn't exist and why did he keep dreaming of it? This time the dream had been slightly different though, he didn't remember ever seeing a door before…

The raven haired boy flung his legs over the side of the bed and opened the curtains. He picked up his wand and robes and went to the bathroom. Before, he wouldn't have bothered taking his wand but ever since his transformation he had learnt that he was no longer safe even around Gryffindors. Ron was especially dangerous the way Harry saw it. The red haired boy was a great friend to have but he was also tenacious enemy.

After a quick shower, Harry went down to breakfast. There weren't many Gryffindors at this time of the morning which enabled Harry to have a relatively quiet breakfast. It helped that Ron wasn't a few seats away, insulting him. The raven haired boy was halfway through breakfast when someone slumped in the seat opposite him.

"Hi, Harry."

The raven haired boy looked up and smiled at Evan. The boy was smiling as well, not as widely as he had before, of course. He was, after all, a Slytherin and had an image to keep in public. The green eyes flicked to the other two first years behind Evan. They were both Slytherins and looked torn between curiosity and unease. Harry smiled warmly at them and motioned them to seat. They obliged and sat on either side of their friend.

"Good morning, Evan." he said to the younger boy before turning towards the others. "I'm Harry Potter. I take it that you're Evan's friends."

"Yes, this is Nicolas Wright." said Evan motioning to the dark skinned boy on his left. "And this is Lisa Turner." this time he showed the small blond girl on his right.

"It's nice to meet you." said Harry with a grin.

The boy, Nicolas flashed a smile while Lisa turned a bright shade of red.

"So, I hope you haven't gotten into more trouble since yesterday." said Harry casually.

Evan shrugged.

"I didn't really have time too. That guy from Ravenclaw has been sending you nasty looks though." said the brown eyed boy.

"Which one?" asked Harry turning around to see the Ravenclaw table.

"The blond one."

The raven haired boy scanned the table and finally found the boy he had seen the day before. He caught the other boy's eye and grinned evilly. The Ravenclaw hastily turned away.

"Weakling." snorted Harry as he turned back to his Slytherin friends. "Anyway, if he ever bothers you, which I doubt he will but you never know, come to me." he told Evan regaining a serious expression. "It counts for all three of you. If anyone tries to bully you let me know." he said his gaze flicking to Lisa and Nicolas.

"Oh, we wouldn't want to bother you!" said Lisa flushing yet again.

"No problem. I need to relieve some stress anyway." said the older boy, only half-jokingly.

The three first years grinned at him. Harry noticed his dorm mates entering the Hall. He groaned, nowadays Ron only meant trouble.

"Sorry guys, but it looks like you'll have to go back to your own table." he told the first years.

The Slytherins had apparently noticed the arrival of more Gryffindors because they nodded and left without a word. Ron and the others seemed to have noticed though. Harry could see the boy's eyes narrowing as he looked at the retreating first years. The raven haired boy glared at his ex-friend threateningly, silently telling him he had better not cause trouble for the younger students. Once he was sure the other boy had gotten the message, he finished his breakfast and left the table.

He went back to the common room to grab his bag and left again towards the dungeon. He had double Potions first which wasn't exactly something that he was looking forward to. He still hated Potions and the fact that they had Potions with the Slytherins didn't help. Now, on top of having Malfoy's sneers to cope with he had to deal with a mass of hostile lions.

He was entering the classroom when he felt a burning sensation. It was mild at first and was concentrated in his stomach, but it spread and became and became stronger until the raven haired boy felt like he was in the middle of a blazing fire. It stopped as suddenly as it had started and Harry was left standing in the doorway, dazed.

"Potter, are you going to move or not?" came a drawl in his back.

He turned to face the blond Slytherins and his goons.

"Malfoy, can you not let people delight in entering their favourite classroom?" adopting the sarcasm that was usually the blonde's trademark.

"And here I thought you were moping on your breakup with Weasley!" sneered the Slytherin.

"No that would be a waste of my time." replied the Gryffindor with a snort.

While, he was having this fascinating conversation with the blond prat, the classroom had filled with students. Harry looked around and found the only free seat to be by Neville. He shrugged, well, that was probably not the worst, though he would have to watch for explosions and melting cauldrons. Neville didn't seem to register that Harry had sit on the vacant chair. He was nervously watching his book. His eyes sometimes darted towards the cauldron as if he expected it to explode any minute.

The lesson started and they set up making the draught of peace. Harry went to gather the ingredients and instructed Neville to crush the moonstones into powder while he set up the cauldron. Once the moonstones were turned into fine powder, a very relieved Neville handed it to Harry who added it into the cauldron. He watched as the Potion turned green and started stirring. The potion turned blue and Harry added more Moonstone powder. He waited until the potion turned purple before stirring again until the mixture turned pink. Harry then took the syrup of Hellebore that Neville had managed to prepare without mishap. The potion turned turquoise. They let it simmer until it turned purple. They took that time to shake the powdered porcupine quills which they then added. The potion turned red. Stir until it turns orange. Add more porcupine quills until it turns purple. Allow it to simmer…

After two intense hours of making sure Neville didn't add some unneeded ingredient and that the Potion was indeed the right colour, Harry handed Professor Snape a vial of potion of a satisfactory turquoise. Harry noticed that his vial was a bit darker than Hermione's which probably meant he had messed up somewhere. Well, at least it was turquoise and not a suspicious yellow like Crabbe's. It was with a feeling of great satisfaction that Harry left the dungeons, his mind prepared for his History of Magic class with Professor Binns; a well-earned naptime.

* * *

Harry was sitting in the Gryffindor common room. He was attempting to read _Spellman's Syllabary_ but found the environing noise infuriating. He finally snapped the book shot and left the room, banging the door behind him. How it was possible to make that much noise when you were supposed to do your homework, Harry really couldn't imagine. He was already in a bad mood thanks to the prospect of having detention with Umbridge. He didn't need to add to it by spending time around people who were suffering from a severe lack of ability to be silent. _Morons_.

The raven haired boy walked out of the castle-like school. He still had about an hour before his detention and he **was** going to start reading that book. He had already finished _Powers You Never Knew You Had and What To Do With Them Now You've Wised Up_ and found it quite enjoyable. He had been a bit disappointed that his particular situation wasn't described in the book, but he had been able to gain knowledge on quite a few gifts that a wizard could have such as Parseltongue, Metarmorphmagi, Animagi, and even gifts he had never heard of before such as Enchanting. Also, the author of the book obviously had a sense of humour and Harry had had a good laugh while reading the book. The raven haired boy found a spot under a tree near the lake and started his reading.

Forty minutes later, Harry got up with a sigh. He tucked his book under his arm and made his way back to his dormitory to retrieve his school bag. He then, went to Umbridge's office for his detention. He knocked and hearing the woman's voice inviting him inside he opened the door and stepped in the room. It was quite atrocious really; the walls were pink and plates adorned with moving kittens hung on it. Umbridge was sitting in her desk in pink garment and a sweet smile on her face. At that moment Harry knew: he had arrived in hell. He walked towards the small table facing the toad's desk, trying to recall when exactly he had passed away.

"I should like you to write lines for me." said Professor Umbridge as Harry sat.

Parchment had already been placed on the table. Harry grabbed his bag to take out his quill and ink.

"Oh no! You don't need to take anything out, dear! You will be using a rather special quill of mine." said Professor Umbridge in a sugary voice.

Harry dropped his bag back on the floor. The woman seemed far too pleased with herself, it was suspicious. The toad-like woman walked to her desk and carefully lifted a pitch black quill which she gave to Harry with a girlish giggle.

"Now I would like you to right: I must not tell lies." she said.

The boy lifted the quill and looked at it warily. It stunk of dark magic and pain; and even more than that, he could smell blood. He had an idea of what it did but he asked anyway.

"You didn't give me any ink, Professor." he said.

"You want need any ink, dear." said Professor Umbridge.

"How many times should I right it?" asked Harry.

"Let's say for as long as it takes for the message to sink in." she giggled once again.

Harry tentatively started to write the first words. They appeared in deep red ink which Harry knew was his own blood. Sure enough, as soon as he finished writing the first line, a painful itch attacked the back of his left hand. He showed no reaction to the pain so as to not give the woman any satisfaction, and glanced at his hand. 'I must not tell lies' was slowly forming in his flesh as he wrote the words down on the parchment. Harry gritted his teeth and carried on writing, the pain cutting in his hand at each word he wrote.

After two hours of torture, Umbridge examined his hand. The words were now clearly cut there.

"That will be all for tonight." she announced joyfully. "I will be expecting you back here tomorrow."

Ignoring the pain, Harry forced a bright smile on his lips.

"Of course, Professor. It's always a pleasure to be able to spend more time with you." he said with false sincerity.

That wiped the smile of her face and she glared at him as he left. As soon as the door closed behind him, his smile fell and he allowed the pain to show on his face. Clutching his hand he made his way back towards Gryffindor Common room. As he turned at the end of the corridor he came face to face with Snape. Harry forced his blank mask into place not wanting to show the man any weakness. The Potions Master took one look at the hand he still clutched and turned on his heels.

"Follow me Potter." he said coldly.

Harry followed the professor down to the dungeons and into Snape's office. He stood at the doorway while the older man opened a cabinet and began searching it. After a few minutes, he took out a small box and shoved it into Harry's arms.

"Murtlap essence. It should help with the pain." he said curtly. "Now leave."

Harry was happy to oblige and rushed back up to his common room. He stopped in front of the Fat Lady and applied some Murtlap essence on his hand. The greasy pomade eased the pain almost immediately. Harry breathed a sigh of relief and quickly cast a bandaging spell on his hand. He then tucked the box in his pocket and murmured _Lux Aeterna _to the portrait. The Fat Lady slid aside and he slipped inside.


	5. When the wolf bared its fangs

**Buzzy Bee:****Thank you very much for all those compliments and I'll try my best to finish this fic, because I also like it a lot and I've got a pretty good idea of what is going to happen. I just won't promise I'll be quick about it ^^**

**You will get a few more chapters before it becomes slow because they are already written.**

**Ex Mentis: Your comment piqued my interest, what's a Dire Wolf? Now that I think about it, I can just look it up myself *.***

**Arisophalma: Just because you're my friend doesn't mean you can get away with writing only one word! (Everyone, don't copy her, she's a very bad girl!)**

* * *

_On the other side of the door was a clearing, growing in the middle of the desert of ashes. It was a curious sight, a ring of trees surrounding a grassy clearing, growing in the middle of a burning hell. It resembled an oasis in the desert. He walked on, taking a step on the humid grass. In front of him was a small black wolf cub, seemingly trying to catch an invisible butterfly. He was soon joined by a silver cub that sprang out of the line of trees and jumped on his dark friend. They rolled across the grass barking happily as they did. He walked on leaving the cubs and the clearing behind him. He was walking on the ashes again, now. He walked on, never turning back. Soon a door appeared before him, identical to the first. Coal black and covered in rusty chains. He extended his hand, felt the warmth on his skin and the chains fell to the ground, immediately disappearing under the ashes. Once again the door opened and he walked on…_

Harry woke up and swore. His hand was bleeding again. Over the last few days, the words 'I must not tell lies' had carved themselves deeper in his flesh. He got up to his feet and took the Murtlap Essence out of his suitcase. He applied it to the wound. Sighing he grabbed his wand and clothes and left towards the bathroom. Once he had gotten dressed he bandaged his hand and got out of the room. In a matter of minutes he was in the Great Hall, eating breakfast. It wasn't long until the rest of the Gryffindors arrived. Harry ignored the others' sneers which wasn't difficult as he had brought a book with him. He only lifted his head when Hedwig landed in front of him, a letter attached to her leg.

"Thanks, girl." he said as he detached the parchment and offered the snowy owl a treat.

He opened it and read the letter.

'_Dear Harry,_

_I hope it's not too difficult for you at school. I suppose that the others are making things difficult. Just remember that you can still talk to me and Snuffles about it. _

_We're doing rather well at home. Snuffles is still whining because he's not allowed to go out but otherwise he's well behaved. We're still cleaning around the house and we have managed to clear a room upstairs. We've decorated a bit and it now looks pretty much habitable. It can be your room when you come back. _

_Try and write to us soon Cub._

_Lovingly,_

_Moony and Snuffles'_

The raven haired boy smiled and folded the letter carefully before putting it in his book. He would have to reply to it later, maybe before he went to his detention.

"Good morning, Harry."

"Morning Evan." said Harry looking at the smaller boy as he approached the Gryffindor table with his two friends. "Morning Lisa, Nicolas." added Harry smiling at the two others.

"Can you help me with my homework?" asked Nicolas showing his Transfiguration book.

"Sure."

Harry took the book pushing his unruly black hair out of his eyes. The three first years sat around him prepared to listen attentively.

"What's the part you need help on?" asked Harry after scanning the text.

"Well, I don't understand the…" Nicolas was interrupted by a loud clatter.

Ron followed by Seamus and Dean was approaching them with a dark look.

"What the hell are they doing here?" spat the red haired boy pointing at the three Slytherins.

"They're asking a friend for help with their homework, Weasley." said Harry coldly. "I don't recall any rule forbidding it."

"They're Slytherins!" said Ron venomously.

"No really, I had no idea!" snapped Harry getting to his feet.

"You can't just invite them to our table!"

"I can do whatever I want and so can they!"

The Hall had gotten silent and the students were forming a circle around them. The Slytherins, having noticed their housemates involved in the fight, had risen from their seats and were standing a bit apart from the other students.

"Just because you're not human doesn't mean you can just betray your house and fraternise with the enemy." said Ron glaring at the first years.

"Funny, it had appeared to me that Gryffindor had betrayed me first." remarked Harry icily. "And the last time I checked the enemy wasn't Slytherin but Voldermort and his Death Eaters."

The crowd flinched at the name and some Slytherins looked a bit taken aback by Harry's statement. Ron glared at the raven haired boy and suddenly he grabbed his wand and pointed it on Harry.

"_Reducto_." cried the red haired boy.

Harry took out his own wand and muttered a _Protego_. Before he had time to retaliate, Ron had cast another curse, except this time it was aimed at Lisa. Without thinking Harry dropped his wand and rushed forward. He shifted in an instant and leaped in front of the small girl who was petrified with fear. The curse hit his flank. Pain shot into his side and he heard a few ribs cracking. The wolf bared his fang in a beastly snarl. Its green eyes were flashing with hatred. Harry lowered himself in a hunting stance, protecting the three first years with his body. Around him, people were gasping in horror and murmurs were filling the Hall. The black wolf approached his prey with low growl. He launched himself on the red haired. Just as he was about to bite the boy's throat, amongst the many scream he heard someone calling his name. He didn't recognize the voice but it sounded familiar, one he had known for a long time.

The wolf released his prey and leapt back to the children. Ron was still lying on the floor, pale and trembling. The green orbs didn't leave the red haired boy as the wolf pushed his three cubs to the door, his body still placed between them and Ron. The wolf encouraged the children to walk quickly away from the Hall towards the dungeons. He didn't stop until they had arrived in front of the Slytherin common room. There he seemed to hesitate. His instinct told him this was the safest place for his cubs, but somewhere in a corner of his mind a little voice told him he shouldn't go in there. He stood there looking hesitantly at the wall in front of him. Evan, Lisa and Nicolas were glancing at each other not really knowing what they were supposed to do. They didn't quite understand what had just happened. They only knew that Harry had protected them.

Hurried footsteps resounded in the corridor leading to the Great Hall. In a flash, the black wolf had placed himself in front of his cubs. As the sound approached he starting growling warningly. A blond boy with mouldy silver eyes turned the corner and marched towards them. The wolf stopped growling but didn't lower his guard. He sniffed trying to catch the intruder's smell. The boy smelled of soap and of the forest. The latter was faint but to a sensitive nose like the wolf's it was still discernible. Little by little, the wolf got closer to the blond boy who had stopped a little distance away. The smell intrigued him, it was familiar. At last, he took the last step that separated him from the boy. The wolf's nose brushed against the pale hand. The blond boy tensed at the touch but seeing that the animal wasn't going to harm him he relaxed. After he had sniffed the hand and wrist for some time, the wolf licked it and let out a joyous bark. The boy frowned; he seemed surprised by the reaction.

Again footsteps approached them, there were more this time. The wolf pushed the blond boy towards the three cubs and took back his offensive position to await this new set of intruders. However a hand grabbed him around the neck willing him not to attack. The wolf growled in frustration but didn't try to get away. The hand was warm, kind and so familiar…If the blond boy thought he shouldn't attack, then he would trust him.

A group of Slytherin's rounded the corner. They stopped when they saw the growling wolf. When they saw that the animal was being restrained by their Prince they walked cautiously closer.

"What exactly is going on, here?" asked Blaise Zabini who was leading the group.

"It seems his wolf instincts took over." explained Draco Malfoy who was still holding the wolf by its neck, though the animal wasn't resisting anymore. "He doesn't trust you, that's why he's growling. I don't think he'll attack unless you make a move first, though."

"And he trusts **you**?" asked Zabini with a doubtful expression. "No offence mate, but I don't think that Harry Potter would trust you that much."

Malfoy shrugged, showing his own incomprehension, and turned towards the crack.

"Pureblood." he muttered.

The crack opened and he motioned the three first years inside. Then he released the wolf, who had stopped growling and stepped inside. The wolf stood in front of the wall, watching intently. Malfoy turned around to look at the beast.

" Aren't you coming inside?" he asked raising an eyebrow.

The question seemed to agitate the wolf and he started to trot back and forth glancing at the opening hesitantly. The blond Slytherin watched with an almost imperceptible amusement.

"It's alright to come in. No one will harm you." he told the wolf.

The wolf stopped and gazed at the blond boy. He took a reluctant step forward and stopped again. The green eyes fixed themselves in the moldy silver. Suddenly, he leapt forward and landed inside the Slytherin common room. As soon as he was inside he turned around, looking warily at the entrance and the Slytherins. Seeing that nothing or nobody was attacking him, he trotted inside and joined his cubs. He sat on the floor, as the three first years sat on the green sofas, still looking at his surroundings for any sign of danger.

As the wolf felt the safety of the room, the instincts started withdrawing and his human thoughts which had been held back resurfaced. It was a while, before Harry could think completely like a human again. He took his time before turning back into his human body. He knew he was in Slytherin common room. Evan, Lisa and Nicolas were sitting on the sofa next to him and Malfoy and Zabini were sitting in the sofa opposite them. The other Slytherins were occupying the remaining seats or the floor, in the case of a group of second years. Most of the students weren't really doing anything and Harry supposed they were waiting for him to turn back or move. He sighed internally. Well, he couldn't stay like that forever…

He got to his feet and stepped backwards to have more space when he transformed. His movement had attracted the attention of everyone in the room. Under the fascinated stares of the Slytherins Harry shifted back. Once he was back on two legs, exhaustion hit him. He staggered a bit and had to grab an armchair to stop himself from falling.

"Are you alright Harry?" cried Evan in alarm rushing to his help.

"I'm fine." mumbled the raven haired boy. "Just a bit tired."

He slumped into the armchair under Evan's worried stare.

"I'm fine, really." said Harry shifting a bit to face the younger boy.

He winced when pain shot in his side. He'd forgotten about his ribs. He placed a hand to his side and grimaced. There was a few that were broken.

"Potter?" it was Malfoy this time.

The blond had gotten up and was watching the Gryffindor attentively.

"Broken ribs." gasped the green eyed boy. "Forgot about it."

The blond raised an eyebrow, as if he meant to ask how one could possibly forget about broken ribs, but didn't comment. Instead, he turned to Zabini.

"Blaise, go and fetch Madam Pomfrey." he ordered.

The Italian boy nodded and made for the door.

"NO!" yelled the raven haired boy.

He was still clutching his side trying in vain to make the pain subside.

"Don't…" he choked. "I can't…can't be seen…"

The Slytherins looked at him perplexed. Blaise seemed uncertain as to what he should be doing and was sending questioning glances to Malfoy. The blond boy however didn't notice as his gaze didn't leave the raven haired boy.

"Fine. Who, then?" asked Malfoy finally.

The raven haired boy thought quickly. Who? Who could he trust? But his mind remained empty. There was no one. He couldn't allow anyone to see his tattoo, a mark which he knew was important. It couldn't be seen no matter what!

He was starting to feel faint. Already, his younger friend's voices were becoming more distant and his vision was blurry. Then just before he fell into darkness, the tattoo started burning. And as if echoing the sun's blaze, the pain in Harry's other side became more intense. With a helpless howl of pain he passed out.

* * *

**This chapter is a bit shorter but I wanted to make you suffer with the cliffhanger, niark niark ^^**


	6. When he found a pack

**Not my best chapter, I'll admit that much, but it's necessary. Just so you know, the next chapters will be the ones i'm rewriting or simply writing so it might take a while for them to be posted.**

**Reviews are welcome ^^**

* * *

Harry woke up to find that he was lying in a foreign bed, in an unknown room. The hangings around him were green and the furniture was made of dark wood. The green and silver theme of the room informed his he was in the Slytherin dorms. For a moment, the raven haired boy felt panicky as he wondered why on Earth he was in a Slytherin room of all places. Then he remembered how he had fainted due to his broken ribs. Calmer, he sat up and patted his side testily. He couldn't feel any pain. Someone must have healed him, meaning they saw his tattoo. He swung his legs over the side of the bed and was about to get up when the door opened. Malfoy was standing in the doorway, his schoolbag slung on his shoulder. Harry had another moment of utter astonishment and maybe a small amount of horror as he realized that he'd been sleeping in his sworn enemy's bed. But Malfoy had helped him, he admonished himself, and being civil once in a while couldn't hurt, could it?

"Er, hi." said Harry tentatively.

The blond looked at him as if he had just said something incredibly stupid.

"Yes, hello Potter." he replied after a moment of silence. "It seems your ribs healed on their own after you passed out." said the blond as he dropped his bag near the table facing the bed.

Harry sighed in relief. It was a mystery how he had been healed but at least no one had seen his mark.

"Right. How long was I out?" asked the raven haired boy.

"All day. Classes have just ended." said the blond his back turned to him as he rummaged in the wardrobe.

"Oh." said Harry staring at his rival. "Am I…Am I in trouble?"

"No idea. Professor Snape came by and said you were to go and see the Headmaster as soon as you woke up. And for the meantime you're not supposed to go anywhere near the Gryffindor common room."

Malfoy finally closed his wardrobe and turned around to face him. They fell silent as their gazes met. Harry turned away first.

"Right. Well, I'd better go see Dumbledore then." he said getting up.

He stepped forward and nearly fell down. In fact, he would have fallen if Malfoy hadn't caught him around the waist.

"What are you doing, Potter?" asked the blond his eyes narrowing.

"I was trying to walk." replied Harry impatiently. "I just lost my balance because I walked as if I had four legs instead of two."

The Slytherin released him and he took a few tentative steps towards the door. Seeing that he was able to walk properly, now that he had rectified his movement, he opened the door…and froze. It seemed the whole house had assembled there, and they all turned to him when they heard the door opening. Briefly, Harry felt the urge to slam the door shut and go back to bed, but that was obviously not happening…

"Potter, are you going to stand in the doorway forever?" said an irate voice in his back.

Harry mumbled a response and walked in the common room. He didn't walk very far before he was nearly knocked down by Evan and Nicolas. Lisa was there as well, it seemed she was just too shy to jump in his arms like the boys had done.

"Are you feeling better now, Harry?" asked Nicolas.

"Yeah, loads. But it would help if you didn't shove me on Malfoy, I feel a slightly threatening aura emanating from him." said Harry grinning at his friends.

They returned his smile.

"You didn't get hurt did you Lisa?" asked the raven haired boy, looking at the blond girl.

The girl blushed and shook her head violently.

"Oh, that's good then." said Harry relieved. "I can't believe that bastard would attack you." he added in a growl, his eyes becoming beastly.

The room tensed noticeably. Harry quickly realized and forced himself to relax, reassuring his three young friends with a brief grin. Then before things turned to the worse, Harry announced it was time for him to go to Dumbledore's office. After saying his goodbyes to the three first years and thanking Malfoy who replied with a curt nod, Harry left the dungeons and climbed all the way up to the seventh floor. His footsteps got considerably slower as he approached the gargoyle guarding the Headmaster's office. He stopped in front of the gargoyle and sighed deeply. He stood there not daring to take another step when Dumbledore's voice made him jump.

"You may enter, Harry."

The raven haired boy looked around wildly. Seeing that, as he had suspected, there was nobody there, he assumed it was some kind of spell. The gargoyle slid aside, revealing the staircase leading to Dumbledore's office. Harry sighed again and climbed the stairs. The Headmaster was apparently waiting for him, seated at his desk. On the left side of the room was Fawkes' perch and the phoenix trilled softly in greeting when Harry entered. The weirdest part of it all was that Harry actually understood the phoenix's greeting. He didn't have time to dwell on it, though, as the headmaster addressed him almost immediately.

"Take a seat my dear boy." said the elder man motioning towards the chair in front of him. "Now, I have witnessed the incident you were part of this morning."

Harry felt his heart clench. He had attacked Ron; he had nearly killed the boy. He was going to be expelled, he was sure of it.

"Now, it seems that you reacted along instincts that you do not know how to control. Of course, I cannot ignore the incident but most of the staff agreed that Mister Weasley was also at fault. Mister Weasley will serve detention for a week. As for you Harry, I am afraid that I cannot let you stay in Gryffindor." Harry closed his eyes. "Your housemates have become quite hostile towards you I'm afraid." the old wizard sighed. "I think it would be best to stay in the Slytherin dormitories as you seem to have made friends there, if I trust the protectiveness you showed towards the younger students this morning." Dumbledore was smiling and his bright blue eyes were glinting.

Harry gaped.

"Y-you're not expelling me?" he asked in disbelief.

"No. After all, no harm was done and I do believe that it was beyond your control." said the old man. "Now, it would be best for you to go back to the Slytherin Common Room."

Harry nodded and left the headmaster's office in a daze. His feet brought him back to the green and silver Common Room without him even realizing it. It was only upon seeing the crack in the wall that the situation finally became clear to him. He hadn't been expelled and he was going to stay in Slytherin. The raven haired boy didn't really know what to think about that last point. The year before he would have found it horrible, but now…Now, he didn't know what to think of it. He shrugged; he would have to see how it went…It should be alright, after all, Evan, Nicolas and Lisa would be there.

He looked at the crack realizing he didn't know the password. He stood there in uncertainty for a while. He suddenly remembered hearing Malfoy say the password before.

"Pureblood." he said and to his relief the crack opened.

He took a tentative step inside. With a deep breath he entered the Common Room. Many students looked at him in surprise; they had obviously not been awaiting his return. Harry looked around him uncertainly. He was relieved to see Malfoy. Not because it was Malfoy, obviously, he hated the prick…He was just relieved to see a familiar face. He cleared his throat.

"Erm, I, er…It looks like I'll be staying for a while." he said trying not to sound to uncertain.

Malfoy raised an eyebrow, silently asking for an explanation.

"The headmaster believes that it could be dangerous for everyone if I went back to Gryffindor." he shrugged. "So I'm afraid you'll have to bear with me for a while."

He hadn't expected the smiles and welcoming expressions that appeared on the Slytherins' faces. Before he could react he was knocked over by three over excited first years. He fell on the floor laughing with Lisa, Evan and Nicolas hugging and laughing along with him. Harry couldn't remember feeling this happy in a while.

* * *

Harry slipped out of his bed as moonlight streamed into the room. He caught sight of the green tie resting on the chair near his desk and smiled fondly. The Slytherins had helped him transfigure his tie and uniform to the Slytherin colors the day after he had been told by the Headmaster to stay with them. He had been in Slytherin house for a week now, and he could say that he was glad he had been sent there. All the students of the snake house had adopted him as one of their own and even the teachers and other houses now saw him as a Slytherin.

He had to admit he hadn't expected to be welcomed so warmly, but even though some of the older students weren't too keen on suddenly becoming friendly with him, most of the younger ones were over-joyed to be so close to the Famous Harry Potter Who Had Become A Blood-Thirsty Monster. Well, only the first part really, because no one seemed to think of him as some monstrous being that should be feared by all, rather some gave the impression that they didn't the difference between a wolf and a puppy…

He put on the Invisibility cloak and grabbed his map from his bedside table. He sneaked out of the room soundlessly. As it was nearing twelve o' clock on a Thursday night, he was pretty sure there would be no one in the common room. His assumptions were right and he got into the corridor without trouble. He murmured '_Lumos_' and the tip of his wand glowed with a white light. He looked at his map and murmured the sentence to unlock it.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Black lines appeared on the parchment. Harry peered at the dots showing people. The 'Argus Filch' and 'Mrs Norris' dots were currently moving around the second floor. Satisfied, Harry tucked the map in his robes and set off towards the entrance. He was soon running to his heart's content in the Forbidden Forest. It was amazing how good it felt to run without restraint. He ran around the forest for a long time before he finally collapsed in a clearing. He lied on the ground panting heavily and simply enjoying the smell of the forest and the night wind ruffling his fur. His ears twitched as the sound of hooves approached the clearing. He was up on his paws in an instant, ready to attack if need was. A unicorn appeared, its golden hooves nearly flying above the earth in its speed. The white horse whose forehead was adorned with a golden horn, stopped a little distance away from the black wolf.

"_Greetings youngling_." neighed the unicorn.

Harry was slightly taken aback; he hadn't expected the unicorn to talk to him, much less to understand it.

"Greetings." he replied with a deep rumble.

"_It is rare to see your kind, nowadays_." continued the unicorn with a graceful shake of its mane.

"Which kind may that be?" enquired the wolf with a curious bark.

"_Do you not know what you are?_"

"No."

Once again the sound of hooves filled the air. This time, however, they seemed heavier and more numerous. The wolf sniffed the air. _Centaurs_, he realised.

"_I must go_." snorted the unicorn urgently.

"Wait. Tell me what I am?" barked the wolf as the white horse turned away.

"_Athrù_." came the reply before the unicorn galloped away.

Deciding that he didn't need more excitement for the night, Harry followed the unicorn's example and left the clearing, putting as much distance as he could between him and the centaurs. He managed to avoid an encounter with them and ran back to the castle. He shifted back to his human form before slipping inside covered by the Invisibility cloak. Once he was back in the warmth of his bed he allowed his thoughts to wander to the unicorn's words. She had said he was an Athrù, whatever that was. At least now he had a clue, he thought as he slowly drifted into sleep.


	7. When he remembers Her

**A short chapter, but a lot happens so don't resent me!**

**Ex Mentis:**** You're really knowledgeable aren't you? Thanks to you I learned a whole lot about wolf legends ^^ I already knew Loup Garou though, (is very proud of herself) because I'm French! **

**I stole the idea of Evan, Lisa and Nicolas being Harry's 'siblings', I hope you don't mind *.***

* * *

_Athrù_. The foreign name was blazing like a torch in his mind when Harry woke up that morning. Finally, he had a clue as to what he was! He was in an excellent mood as he joined Evan, Lisa and Nicolas for breakfast. He was growing quite attached to the three first years. They reminded him of the siblings he never had. The best part of it all was that Lisa wasn't going all Ginny-Weasley on him. Because that had been a blow: when Ginny had started acting like he was a demi-god after he had saved her from the Chamber. Until then, he had been quite content to treat her as a younger sister, but it had become slightly harder when she had started looking at him with sparkling eyes. Lisa on the other hand treated him normally, relied on him when she had problems and was quite happy to spend time just chatting about trivial things while they watched Evan and Nicolas doing stupid things.

The raven haired boy had already been sitting at the Slytherin table for twenty minutes when he started feeling a gaze on his back. Frowning, he turned around to look at the three other tables which he had his back against but as many people often glanced at him fearfully, as if they expected him to go on a killing spree any minute, it was difficult to determine who had been staring at him. Harry quickly gobbled up a last sausage before rising from his seat, saying he had some homework to finish before classes started.

He had just left the Great Hall when footsteps resounded behind him.

"Harry!" called Neville who was apparently hurrying after him.

Harry's blood ran cold and he reflexively pretended he hadn't heard the Gryffindor, while making his strides a tad longer. Whether he noticed Harry's attempt at escaping from him or not, Neville took no notice and continued following the raven haired boy, trying his best to catch up to him. Unfortunately, Harry was quite fast.

"Harry!" called Neville again.

It had reached the point where Harry couldn't pretend he hadn't heard anymore and he was about to turn around, when Pansy came from the corridor on his right.

"Harry!" exclaimed the girl. "I was wondering where you'd gone."

The dark haired girl grabbed his arm and started walking forward without a single look for the Gryffindor who had stopped in his tracks at a distance.

Harry was rather baffled by the closeness of the Slytherin girl since they weren't exactly friends despite the few conversations they had had since Harry had moved into the Snake dormitories. However, with Neville behind, the raven haired teen reckoned he might as well go along with her and escape while he had the chance.

"Are you going back to the Common Room?" asked Pansy conversationally, with a bright smile on her face.

"Yeah…I have some homework to finish." said Harry. "Sorry I didn't wait for you."

Pansy smiled again. To someone else it might have appeared friendly and casual but Harry could see it was actually an approving smile. Pansy was satisfied by his act. The raven haired boy felt rather proud of having gained the approval of a member of his new house.

"That's alright." replied Pansy cheerfully as they rounded the corner. "We can always eat together tomorrow."

They continued chatting in such a way for a few more minutes, even though Neville had stopped following them right away. Once they had ascertained that the Gryffindor had given up and that they were sufficiently far, Pansy let go of Harry's arm and took a step away from him.

"Thanks." said the boy simply.

"No problem." replied the girl looking at him sideways.

Harry glanced at her trying to read her expression but the girl was wearing her 'Slytherin mask' and he couldn't tell what she was thinking at all.

"How did you know I needed help?" he asked after a moment of silence.

The girl gave a trademark Slytherin smirk.

"I heard him calling you and since you didn't stop right away it was quite obvious that you didn't actually want to talk to him." she explained with a triumphant look. "So, what did he do? You're not avoiding him just because he's a Gryffindor."

The last sentence wasn't a question. The raven haired boy was slightly impressed that the girl could observe that much from such a short interaction.

As for why he was avoiding Neville…well…He couldn't forget the look on Neville's face when they had been on the train, and that overwhelming sent of fear…

"You're afraid aren't you?" said Pansy.

Harry snapped out of his daze and looked at her stunned. The girl had a smug expression on her face which showed she thought she had discovered everything there was to discover.

"Afraid?" repeated Harry.

"That's right." said the girl with a nod, wiping the smugness off her face. "Afraid that he'll turn his back on you like the others. You are, aren't you?" she asked gently.

The raven haired boy nodded slowly. Somehow Parkinson reminded him of Hermione though the dark haired girl would be probably not be happy being compared to the bushy haired Gryffindor.

"I don't think he would though." she told him, as they entered the dungeons. "From what I've seen Longbottom is the loyal kind and I can't imagine him judging people on their differences."

"Maybe." said Harry uncertainly.

"Well, it's alright to be afraid." Harry looked at her, surprised. "It proves you're human." said the girl with a smile.

The raven haired boy knew Pansy had meant well, by saying this but it instead of reassuring it reminded him that he was no longer a human, if he had ever been one.

He plastered a fake smile on his face and hid his true emotions from his eyes. He was also a Slytherin, and he was quite capable of wearing a mask too when he needed it.

"Thank you." he said as they reached the entrance to the Slytherin Common Room. "I'm glad we got to talk about it."

The dark haired girl returned the smile though she seemed to realize he wasn't being entirely truthful, before joining a group of girls sitting at the far end of the room.

The raven haired boy went back to his room and threw himself on his bed. He lay on his back, watching the green canopy above. Maybe he should have listened to what Neville had had to say…There was no way the Gryffindor would try and talk to him just to tell him he hated him, after all. And that horrible stench he had smelt on the train could have very well been the smell of his own fear, though it was most likely combined with Ginny's…

* * *

_There was a child with dark hair and green eyes. There was a woman, with long platinum blonde hair and a beautiful smile. Her kind blue eyes were looking at the dark haired boy. She laughed and his heart skipped a beat. The child smiled and laughed with her. The woman hugged the child and kissed his forehead…_

_The dark haired boy was crying bitterly as he held his stomach. The woman held him in her arms, softly singing a lullaby to ease his pain. Little by little, the memory of the beating and the pain of his bruised body became easier to bear…_

_They were walking hand in hand chatting merrily as they went. The woman's hand was warm and her smile was kind. The boy was happy, so happy he couldn't help but smile…_

_A child, maybe nine or ten years old, grabbing someone's arm, and yelling 'Wait!'. The person turned around. It was a woman. A beautiful woman with long platinum blonde hair and kind blue eyes; her skin was pale and her features had an aristocratic elegance. The woman smiled at him sadly, as tears ran down her cheeks, and placed her free hand on his head._

"_I'm sorry." she murmured. "I'm sorry."_

"_Mom!" sobbed the child._

"_I'm sorry." repeated the woman as darkness enveloped him._

"_I love you."_

Harry's eyelids flew open. His emerald eyes were wide as they stared at the canopy and tears were streaming down from them. He lifted himself in a sitting position and raised a shaking hand to his wet cheek. A sob shook his body. He buried his face in his hands, letting the deep sorrow flow in the shape of tears.

After a while, he calmed down. He lazily cast a _Tempus_, which told him that it was way too late for him to go to his classes now. He fell back on his bed and replayed the scenes in his mind, carving every detail of the woman's face in his memory and repeating the single 'Mom' over and over in his mind, until he got sick of it.

As the process repeated itself for the umpteenth time, his left flank started burning and a sudden throb in his head nearly knocked him out. A whine escaped his lips and he curled up, holding his head with one hand and his waist with the other. As the burning in his side and his headache intensified his slowly lost consciousness.


	8. When true friends are found

**Ex Mentis :**** Thanks for the idea but I don't think I'll use it ^^ Sorry. But I'll be sure to keep it in mind, just in case. Anyway, first I have to write 'Of Future and Dark Lords' or I'll be murdered *.***

**Arisophalma:**** Sheesh! You have no imagination! Obviously somebody picked up his wand for him (probably one of the kids) and Hogwarts is a ****magical**** castle with super-duper-dandy-handy little things called 'house elves' who can conveniently gather Harry's stuff and magically send it to the other end of the castle. And I know you're just trying to make me look bad! But it won't work! (Don't be like her people she's a very very bad girl!)**

**Adenoid:**** Just a question you don't have to answer if you don't want to: are you French by any chance? I'm just asking because of the way you call Umbridge 'Ombrage' ^^ (I'm not criticising! Just curious! Unhealthily so!)**

**And yes, or rather no, Lily isn't blond, but the woman isn't Lily. Because Lily died before Harry could have a chance to remember her.**

**So I take it it's not that obvious after all, who the blond woman is!**

* * *

_The door opened and he stepped inside. This time he couldn't see the burning sky or the ashes. He was in the Dursley's house, standing in the kitchen. There was a younger version of himself there and his Uncle Vernon sitting at the table. The young boy lifted a frying pan from the fire and carefully brought it to the table. Dudley came in running at that moment and knocked into the younger Harry. The raven haired boy dropped the frying pan and the sausages fell to the floor._

'_Stupid boy!' roared Uncle Vernon._

_The beefy man raised his hand and slapped the boy. Then he grabbed his nephew's arm and dragged him in the sitting room. There, he threw Harry to the floor and kicked him repeatedly. At some point, he hit Harry's right arm so hard it cracked sinisterly._

_He walked on and left the house so that he was now standing in the park near his relatives' house. There was no one there, apart from his younger self who was crying silently while nursing his broken arm. The slap had left a dark bruise on the boy's cheek. _

_He watched his younger self sitting against a tree and gently cradling his injured arm. The tears fell silently down the boy's cheeks as he watched the bruised limb and especially the part where the skin had turned an ugly blue._

'_Are you alright?'_

_The younger Harry raised his head to look at the person who had addressed him. A beautiful woman was bending over him. She had long blond hair that fell in locks around her angelic face. Eyes like sapphires were set in ivory skin and a warm hand came to caress his cheek._

'_What's your name?' asked the woman._

'_Harry.' said the boy._

_The hand gently lifted his black fringe and a look of surprise passed briefly on the beautiful features._

'_Harry, it's a beautiful name isn't it?' a smile broke on the woman's face. "Harry, will you let me see your arm?' she asked gently._

_The boy nodded wordlessly and carefully presented her his arm. The beautiful woman examined it frowning. Then she took out a short stick of dark wood and pointed it towards the boy's arm._

'_Episkey' said the woman and warmth enveloped Harry's arm. 'You can move it now.' said the woman putting the stick away. 'Now tell me Harry, how old are you?'_

'_I'm eight.' said the boy smiling for the first time._

_The woman smiled. Her lips moved as if she was saying something but he couldn't hear what she had said as he walked on and on…_

Harry woke up sweating and panting as he usually did these days. Briefly he wondered if he would ever get used to this I-just-ran-a-marathon way of waking up. With this sarcastic thought came the realisation that his head felt a lot clearer than the day before. He couldn't quite put his finger on it but if he had to explain it he would say that it felt like the fog had lifted. Memories he never he had were coming back to him, as clearly as if they were from the day before. Unfortunately, most were memories of abuse he had suffered from the Dursleys and it wasn't really something he liked thinking about…

It was after he thought about the mysteries of the world for a good five minutes, lost in the fascinating contemplation of the canopy overhead, that he finally remembered the horrendous pain he had felt before he had passed out. He sat brusquely and started patting his left flank, where the tattoo was. He examined every single spot thoroughly before he was convinced that there was no remaining pain.

He sat there for a few more minutes in a daze, thinking about all that had happened to him in the past few days. Then the door opened and Blaise Zabini entered. The Italian was one of the few Slytherins Harry truly got along with. Years of being a Gryffindor had left the raven haired boy with the impression that most Slytherins had a hidden agenda, which they probably had. It disturbed Harry greatly and kept him from forging true friendships with Slytherins other than Evan, Lisa and Nicolas. Even Blaise wasn't quite a 'true friend' yet.

"Good Morning, O Lazy One!" called Blaise cheerfully, inviting himself inside.

Harry gave him a falsely offended scowl, as the other boy sat on the bed.

"I came to check up on you since I didn't see you in class." said the Italian after quickly examining Harry.

If he noticed the abnormal amount of sweat, he didn't comment on it.

"Oh yeah!" said Harry suddenly realizing what time it probably was. "I fell asleep."

Blaise gave him a quizzical look but didn't insist.

"By the way, I heard from Pansy you were running away from Longbottom."

Harry blushed, feeling slightly ashamed of himself all of a sudden.

"I was thinking of going to see him actually." he said hastily. "Right now, as a matter of fact!"

With that, a light blush still on his cheeks, Harry sped out of the room, under Blaise's amused gaze.

* * *

Neville Longbottom had just come out of Transfiguration class and was wondering what he should do to get Harry to listen to him. The day before when he had tried to talk to the raven haired boy, he had run away. Well, not literally, but it was quite obvious that he had avoided him. He had planned to ambush him after class, but Harry hadn't even been in class, so that plan had been abandoned.

Neville sighed heavily as he rounded the corner…and nearly bumped into Luna Lovegood.

"Luna!" he exclaimed as he caught sight of the blond girl.

"Oh hello, Neville." replied the girl with a dreamy smile. "There are a lot of Wrackspurts gathering around you today."

The boy looked at her blankly for a few seconds before he remembered what Wrackspurts were. If memory served Luna meant that he looked worried…or something.

"Er, yeah…I've had a lot on my mind. You know about Harry…" he said.

Luna's eyes widened in understanding.

"Have you talked to him yet?" she asked.

"I've been trying too! But he runs away from me every time!" complained the Gryffindor.

"Yes he would, wouldn't he?" remarked the girl dreamily.

Neville looked at her baffled.

"What? Why?"

"Well, you know what Harry's like. He's probably afraid you'll react like the other Gryffindors." said the Ravenclaw showing surprising insight.

Neville could only nod. He swore this girl never failed to surprise him. She could say the most absurd things one moment and be really sensible the next.

"But what do I do then?" asked Neville, hoping Luna's sensible side was still active.

"You could try and trap him." suggested Luna. "And force him to listen to you."

The boy looked at the younger girl quizzically for a moment, trying to determine whether she was serious or not. When he realized she was, he starting considering her suggestion. It wasn't such a bad idea, he supposed. At least, he was sure Harry would listen to what he had to say.

With mischievous smiles the two started plotting.

* * *

After leaving, the Slytherin Common Room Harry started walking up the stairs. He had reached the second floor when he realized he had no idea where Neville was. He blamed Blaise for this! Making him leave in a hurry without taking the Marauders' Map with him. Well, too late now. With no other choice, the raven haired boy started wandering the corridors aimlessly.

After ten minutes of fruitless search, Harry finally came to terms with the fact that Neville was unlikely to just conveniently pop out in front of him. Deciding he should start searching more efficiently, he turned back towards the stairs. He didn't get very far, before he heard Blaise calling him. He turned around and saw the Italian boy hurrying towards him, with a half-excited half-worried look on his face.

"What's up?" asked Harry frowning slightly at his friend's agitation.

"Y-You have to see this!" said Blaise panting slightly from running.

Without another word, the Italian grabbed Harry by the arm and ran off dragging the raven haired boy along. Blaise led him at top speed to a third floor corridor and came to a sudden halt in front of an unused classroom.

"W-What the hell's going on?" asked Harry trying to regain his breath.

Blaise didn't reply but instead pointed to the door.

"Inside." he said.

"What?"

"Just…Just look, I can't explain." said the Italian waving his hands, showing an obvious confusion as to what the problem was.

Harry frowned suddenly feeling very suspicious. He took a precautious step towards the door and peeked inside when he felt someone push him roughly inside. He ungracefully fell forward, letting out a grunt of pain when he hit the stone floor. Before he had time to recover he was attacked by two people hiding in the shadows. A long struggle ensued during which Harry was pushed and poked and tied up.

Once he was finally able to, Harry looked at his attackers. His eyes widened as he recognised the three students who were wearing Cheshire grins.

"Neville! Luna! And…Blaise!" the last name had been a cry of outrage which only served to make the Italian's grin wider. "What is this all about?" asked Harry angrily his eyes flashing with anger.

Neville had the decency to look guilty.

"Well you wouldn't talk to me so…" he offered uneasily.

"But I was going to talk to you! I was looking for you just know!" he turned to look accusingly at Blaise. "You knew that!"

The Italian boy exploded into fits of laughter under the raven haired boy's furious glare.

"What?" said Neville baffled. "Then why did you help us?" he asked the Italian who was trying very hard to stop laughing.

"I-It sounded fun so…" with that he was overcome by laughter and had to lean against a wall while clutching his sides.

"S-Sorry, Harry." said Neville, embarrassment making him stutter.

"Not your fault." muttered Harry. "It's his!" he added jerking his head towards the laughing Slytherin.

Neville and Luna glanced at their accomplice and smiled.

"Anyway, me and Luna wanted to tell you that we didn't think any different of you." said Neville turning back to his captive. "I personally disagree with the rest of the house. I think it wasn't fair treating you that way all of a sudden. In fact, quite a lot of people are regretting it now. Angelina for one. She's been inconsolable ever since you left, what's with Quidditch and everything…" Neville gave Harry an apologetic smile. "The twins have been unnaturally tame since the start of the year and I think Hermione is feeling very guilty over it all."

Harry nodded. A lump had settled in his throat and he didn't trust himself to speak. Blaise had finally stopped laughing and was looking at them solemnly.

"Well, just to say that…well…" Neville glanced at Luna nervously.

The blonde Ravenclaw smiled and continued for him.

"We'd like to be friends with you again, if that's alright with you?"

Harry nodded vehemently, trying hard not to start crying. Really, he thought to himself, he was becoming such a girl!


	9. When pain cannot be avoided

**Thank you very much for your kind reviews and I hope you will like this chapter as much as the others, especially since there is a special surprise (and a cliff hanger) at the end ^^**

**Enjoy!**

* * *

'_Dear Moony and Snuffles,_

_These past days haven't been so bad. The Gryffindors are still being absolute gits about it all, especially Ron, but I have Neville, Luna and Blaise with me now, so it's alright. And of course there's Evan, Nicolas and Lisa! I wish you could meet them they're really adorable! I have a lot of fun with them. Lisa is quite shy but she's very caring and serious when it matters. The boys are a little rowdier and often get into trouble. _

_I've been talking with Pansy Parkinson as well. She's a nice girl, very smart too. She reminds me of Hermione…_

_Malfoy is still a git though…I still get into fights with him at least once a week and we can't have a decent conversation. I suppose it's good I have at least one constant in my life!_

_I wish I could see you soon; there's so much I want to tell you! There a questions I want answers too as well, but I'm not sure you would know them…_

_I miss you both,_

_Pronglets'_

The raven haired boy watched as the snowy owl flew off from the Owlery's window, until Hedwig was but a tiny dot in the horizon. He then proceeded to walk down the stairs. It had been a week since he, Neville and Luna had started hanging out again. So caught up had he been with making up for lost time with his friends that Harry had completely forgotten about the first Quidditch match of the season. It would be Slytherin against Gryffindor and for the first time since he had arrived at Hogwarts he wouldn't be playing. Quite frankly, he wasn't sure how he felt about it. He loved Quidditch, it was his passion, and just a few months ago he couldn't have imagined his life without it. It had been as vital as Hogwarts itself, as necessary as having Remus and Sirius by his side. But it was no longer his one joy in life. Now he had the forest, the thrill of running and hunting as a wolf. Yet, he couldn't say he didn't miss Quidditch.

As he approached a window, Harry gazed out at the Quidditch Pitch. He could see the tiny red dots of Gryfindor players flying over it. He couldn't see their faces from so far away, but he could easily guess who was who by the way they flew and their position. Over there were the two Beaters, Fred and George Weasley, flying towards the goalpost while passing each other the Quaffle were Angelina Johnson, Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnet. In the goal post was Ron Weasley, Harry added bitterly. And finally, flying higher than any of them was…not him obviously. Harry felt a small pang of sadness and nostalgia as he caught sight of the silhouette of the new Gryffindor Seeker. It was probably Ginny Weasley, the red haired girl had been a reserve after all…

Feeling slightly down, the raven haired boy turned away from the window and hurried down the stairs. Maybe he did miss Quidditch more than he had originally thought but there was nothing he could about it. He was in Slytherin now…but was he a true Slytherin? He had never heard of anyone changing houses before and wasn't sure whether he was allowed in the Slytherin team. And even if he was, he doubted his old Quidditch rivals would welcome him with open arms. Truly doubtful.

Tomorrow he would be sitting in the stands and that was that. A lump settled in his throat. Maybe he wouldn't go. There was no point in going if he wasn't going to play, after all. Not to mention, it would feel weird cheering Slytherin instead of Gryffindor.

He arrived at the bottom of the stairs and wondered briefly if he should go back to the dorms or go out. The chance of running in the damp forest before dinner was rather tempting and Harry let himself be charmed by the offer. He walked through the door and started walking down the path towards the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Just as he came to the intersection with the path leading to the Quidditch Pitch, the three Gryffindor Chasers and the two Beaters nearly walked into him. The loud jokes and laughter suddenly stopped when they noticed the green-eyed boy. It was then that Harry realized he hadn't talked to them at all since the start of the school year.

The Gryffindors looked uneasy as they glanced between themselves and then back at Harry, seemingly at a loss as of what to say. Not feeling up to a conversation with people who had so promptly abandoned him, the raven haired boy made to leave but one of the twins grabbed his arm.

"Wait Harry!" the tone was nearly pleading.

The green eyes fixed themselves on the red haired Beater, his face not betraying any emotion he might be feeling. The blue eyed boy opened his mouth to speak but at that moment the two youngest Weasleys arrived. Harry's heart clenched as he held Ron's hatred-filled gaze. Ginny was looking at him as if she had just seen a ghost. Sighing internally, Harry slipped away from the older boy's grip and marched off.

"Harry!" called the Beater once again.

But Harry swiftly changed into his wolf form and in one leap he disappeared under the cover of the forest. Had he been in human form, the raven haired boy was quite sure he would be crying by now. But wolves didn't cry. So it was with his eyes dry that he raced between the trees. He ran and ran without stopping to think about where he was going. At some point he realized he was running upwards and picked up some speed until he arrived at the top of the hill. He halted in the middle of the clearing which was at the very top of the hill, raised his nose in the air and howled. It was a low howl that spoke of sadness and betrayal, of pain and nostalgia.

During his days as a wolf, Harry had come to understand that wolves did not simply howl: they chanted and told a story. He was doing that now, chanting his grief in those melodious deep notes that only wolves could produce. Recounting a story of what his heart had gone through since his transformation. And as his song got carried away by the wind, Harry in wolf mind knew that they would hear him, and perhaps somehow understand. Maybe at this very moment, tears were rolling down their cheeks as they would have if he had been human. But wolves did not cry so instead they howled and sang their sorrows, letting it all go.

Once his 'song' had ended, the black wolf inhaled the fresh air deeply, his heart feeling much lighter than it had a few minutes before. He took in the smell of recently fallen leaves, of damp earth and rain soon to fall. With a delighted bark he ran down the hill, racing between the trees, this time towards Hogwarts.

* * *

_He could feel the ashes under his feet as he walked towards the mass of trees he could see in the distance. He walked and eventually reached the first trees. Soon, he was deep in the forest still walking. A black cub ran past him, soon followed by a white one. The two raced enthusiastically sometimes stopping for a make-believe fight before bolting off again. A woman came walking much more calmly, though her pace was rather fast as she needed to keep up with the two wolf cubs. Her platinum blonde hair was floating behind her by the action of the wind he could not feel. Her lips were parted in a smile as she watched the cubs fight amicably. Suddenly the three of them heard some kind of sound that he did not perceive and turned warily to a spot at their left. A man was standing there brandishing shotgun and aiming at the white cub. In a flash, the black wolf jumped between the gun and his companion, the man pulled the trigger, and the woman screamed silently, her beautiful features distorting in a horror filled expression. As if in slow-motion the black cub fell to the ground, blood already gushing from the wound in his left flank…_

The pain was unbearable when Harry woke up. The memory of the pain he had felt when he had been shot had come back to him and he was now reliving through the agony. Tears streamed down his cheeks, as he clutched his side, gasping for air. His reminiscing lasted a few minutes, after which he was able to regain his calm. As soon as he felt he would be able to stand on his two feet, he rushed in the adjoining bathroom, strip of his pyjamas and climbed into the shower.

Twenty minutes later, he was dressed in jeans and casual shirt and stepped into the common room. He spotted his three 'cubs' and practically jumped on them, engulfing them in a massive group hug. The three first years gasped in surprise but quickly realised who it was, and started giggling at his childish attitude.

"What's gotten into you?" asked Evan who had his back to Harry.

"M'in lack of affection." mumbled Harry, burying his face in the younger boy's shoulder.

A few more giggles later and the four them decided it was time to go and eat breakfast. Evan, Lisa and Nicolas were looking forward to the Quidditch match later that morning and they had no intention of missing it.

When the raven haired boy released the children from his grasp and lifted himself back up, he noticed Malfoy watching them from a corner of the room. The blond boy noticed the green eyes on him and smirked disdainfully. With that the 'Slytherin Prince' walked out of the Common Room. Harry stood gaping for a while before finally shaking himself under the insistence of the three younger students.

"Come on Harry! If you don't hurry up there'll be nothing left for us." called Evan from the doorway.

The raven haired boy mumbled a response in which some words sounded suspiciously similar to 'stupid Blondie'.

The small group finally managed to exit the Common Room, Evan and Nicolas trotting on ahead and Harry following a little more slowly behind with Lisa by his side. He smiled at the small girl and she beamed back at him. With a new spring in his step the green eyed teen stepped into the Entrance Hall and froze.

A few feet away, at the entrance stood Malfoy. The boy had his back to Harry and was talking to a person in front of him which was the cause of Harry's astonishment. A woman who was still beautiful despite the fact that she had to be around forty years old was standing in the doorway. She had long blond hair that fell in locks around her angelic face. Eyes like sapphires were set in ivory skin and a warm smile graced her features as she smiled at her son…


	10. When the truth is told

**vernieklein:**** So it was obvious to someone else! I have to admit it was tricky in the sense that it could have been an OC. But I'm not really the type to write OCs…**

**MAFITA:**** You know I was actually wondering if Harry would make up with them or not…I might ask everyone else…**

**Samuel Wheeler:**** I know I've disappointed you but what can I say? I've gotten addicted to video games, went on a class trip and just couldn't gather enough imagination to write the chapter ^^**

**misteeirene:**** It's true that I used the book for the third chapter but I hate Umbridge so much that I couldn't bring myself to think of something myself -_- Though I did add a few things!**

**I probably won't do it again, since I'm already very far from the cannon story. I might use some elements of the original storyline but I doubt I'll be using it that much again.**

**adenoide:****Most likely a hunter, I might add a twist with it but I don't think I will. Anyway for now just take it that man was a hunter and came upon the wolves and got scared (if you'd like he can also be a psychotic cub killer ^^).**

**mizzrazz72:**** I somehow don't think he would though…And even if he did what would he say?**

**Goshikku Hime wa Yami-san:**** I was wondering if anyone had guessed. It seemed pretty obvious to me but since I'm the one writing the story it doesn't say much…^^**

**And thanks to all my other reviewers and readers! I really appreciate your support and you can't imagine how much I boast t Arisophalma with the reviews I get and the number of f/f I get ^^ That's how proud of you all I am!**

**Now before I finally let you read this story, I have a few questions to ask:**

**1. Do you think Harry should make up with his old Quidditch Team (does not include Ginny and Ron)?**

**2. Do you think Harry should make up with all the other Weasleys or at least some of them?**

**3. Should Harry join the Slytherin Quidditch Team?**

**Obviously I'm not forcing you to voice your opinion and whatever the results are I might not use them in the end. However, I would like to get the opinions of other people as I'm still hesitating on these issues. I hope you'll help me out!**

**Now for the chapter…**

* * *

_A few feet away, at the entrance stood Malfoy. The boy had his back to Harry and was talking to a person in front of him which was the cause of Harry's astonishment. A woman who was still beautiful despite the fact that she had to be around forty years old was standing in the doorway. She had long blond hair that fell in locks around her angelic face. Eyes like sapphires were set in ivory skin and a warm smile graced her features as she smiled at her son…_

His mother was Narcissa Malfoy…Wait, she wasn't his mother! Lily Potter was his mother, Narcissa Malfoy was Malfoy's, that was to say Draco's, mother. But…but…

As he stared at the blond woman a few meters away, Harry's brain went haywire. His mom had appeared but somehow he couldn't believe it was really her. However, unless Mom had a twin, a doppelganger or even, why not, a clone, this had to be her. But why did it have to be Narcissa Malfoy of all people? As the raven haired boy recovered from his shock and started to calm down he began to feel an urge to talk to the woman and understand why she had done what she did to him.

He bit back the call that threatened to escape and resolutely turned to face the other way. Contrary to popular belief he wasn't dim-witted and had some strategy knowledge. At least enough to know that the Boy-Who-Lived could not know Narcissa Malfoy, much less call her Mother. Therefore the ex-Gryffindor marched off after Nicolas and Evan, who had already entered the Great Hall, his blank mask not revealing any of his inner turmoil. By his side Lisa was sending him slightly confused looks. He had no trouble ignoring them since he barely noticed them.

The food did not seem as appetizing as usual that morning, but the green eyed boy forced himself to eat a few sausages and toast so that no one would notice that there was something wrong with him. His mind was still on Narcissa Malfoy, but was now exploring a new aspect of the problem. Harry had decided he would confront the woman about his memories, what she did, etc. Because they couldn't do that in public he would have to corner her somewhere they wouldn't be disturbed. That wouldn't be easy as she would probably stay with her son as much as she could. So his chances would be mostly right before the Quidditch match, during the match or right after it. No choice then, he would have to go to the match; unless he could see her before in which case he would be able to escape the torture.

His decision made, Harry tried to pay attention to the excited chatter of the three first years while absent-mindedly toying with his silver spoon. He quickly discovered that such a feat was not easily achieved as his mind seemed set on the 'Narcissa is my Mom' track and would stubbornly refuse to deviate. In time, his three first year friends finished eating and Harry dragged himself out of the Great Hall, trailing lazily behind them. As soon as they arrived in the Common Room, Harry collapsed in an armchair as if his legs couldn't support his weight any longer.

"Getting old?" asked an amused voice behind him.

The green eyes turned to look at the tall Italian boy who was gracefully sitting opposite the raven haired.

"Yeah, something like that." Harry mumbled before turning to gaze at the fire burning in the chimney.

Of course, it wasn't anything like that; unless you counted that kind of situation in the ordeals of growing up and being a teenager. But did Blaise need to know that? No he didn't, ignorance is bliss. He had just proved that.

"So, what's on your mind?" asked the tanned Slytherin with something akin to concern (but really Harry could never tell what those Snakes were thinking).

The raven haired boy sighed heavily and sank a little deeper in his chair.

"Oh you know this and that…" he replied vaguely making some abstract wave with his hand.

"This and that, uh?" repeated Blaise lifting an eyebrow as if to say: 'I'm not completely stupid you know'.

Harry nodded absent-mindedly still not abandoning his contemplation of the fireplace. A minute passed in silence, Harry oblivious to his surroundings and Blaise observing him quizzically. As the Italian opened his mouth to break the silence, Evan and co arrived.

"Harry! Let's go! If we go now, we'll have the best seats!" practically yelled the brown haired boy.

"Yeah, yeah." said Harry with as much enthusiasm as he could muster which wasn't a lot.

He got to his feet looking like an old man and followed the trio after grabbing his winter cloak. Blaise fell in step behind him. As they crossed the Great Hall, the three first years were racing ahead, leaving the older boys walking behind at a slower pace.

"You realize it's all thanks to you they can talk about having the best seats, don't you?" asked Blaise all of a sudden.

The raven haired boy looked at him uncomprehending. Blaise laughed lightly as he noticed his friend's ignorance.

"Normally, whether they're first or not, the most powerful student in the house will get the best seats. First years get the worst." explained Blaise with a hint of seriousness. "Because you're considered more powerful than any student in the school, maybe even some teachers, you are automatically given some privileges. This also goes for your friends."

The emerald eyed boy listened in silence. That explained a lot. Most Slytherins were probably afraid of him as well, he just thought they didn't because they had so much more control over their emotions than the other Houses. Quite frankly, he had known deep down that they didn't accept him out of kindness. Maybe they were more willing to welcome him now that he was an outcast much like them but he knew it was above all due to his power that he had gotten a place in Slytherin right away. Nicolas, Evan and Lisa probably didn't realize this but there wasn't anybody in his right mind who would challenge Harry after the stories of his transformation had been spread.

The green eyes riveted on Blaise and his pupil narrowed, soon becoming a wolf's eye. Blaise had known of course. This was why he had become friends with Harry. Pansy Parkinson had also acted in a manner which enabled her to get in the boy's good books.

The Italian seemed to know what was going on in Harry's head and gazed back at him not giving in to the green fire of the boy's eyes.

They had stopped walking and were standing just outside the Great Hall, the cold wind blowing around them, ruffling their hair and attacking them relentlessly, in an effort to make them feel the cold. However the boys didn't take any notice of it as they went on with their silent challenge.

Surprisingly it was Harry who turned away first. He gazed away from the dark eyes and began to walk once again towards the Quidditch Pitch. Fighting back a sigh of relief, Blaise followed him silently.

"I think I knew." said Harry after a few seconds of deathly silence. "I was aware of it to a certain extent; the reason why Evan, Nicolas and Lisa weren't bullied anymore and your motivations for becoming friends with me." he paused and bit his lip. "But I didn't want to admit it. It would have been admitting that people couldn't see me as just Harry anymore. I didn't want that."

The green eyes lingered on the trees ahead of them, absent-mindedly. The raven haired boy's gaze didn't go unnoticed. Blaise saw his 'friend's' untold desire for the forest and his heart clenched. The Italian wasn't used to having friends who were just friends. His friends were useful friends, just like his mother's husbands were always rich and close to death, whether they knew it or not. Even Draco, to a certain extent, was a 'business friend', though Draco was a bit special…

Therefore, Blaise couldn't remember feeling so scared of losing a friend. But there it was that horrible feeling that he might lose something important, that feeling that caught in his throat and made him unable to think properly.

Harry's eyes had become distant and even a fool would have known that the raven haired boy was experiencing the 'call of the forest' as he sometimes called it: the urge to turn his back on the wizarding world to run amongst the trees with his fellow beasts. The Italian boy grabbed the emerald eyed teen's arm, his long fingers clenching tightly around the muscular limb.

"You can't go." he said almost hysterically. "You can't go."

Harry who had turned to look at him, blinked a few times, obviously surprised by the Slytherin's strong reaction to…nothing he could think of…As he saw the dark eyes widened in panic, and smelled the intense anxiety and dread emanating from the tanned boy, Harry decided the reason didn't matter much.

"I'm not going anywhere." he said kindly. "I'm not leaving."

And even as he said that, he realized with no small amount of guilt that he had been about to. Chasing away the nasty feeling, he raised a hand to pat the other boy's head as he did to his first year friends sometimes to calm them down. The hand that held his arm relaxed a little and the boy's anxiety diminished. After a few moments of Harry patting the Italian's head while repeating kind words softly, the tanned hand finally released his arm.

"Sorry." said Blaise in a barely audible murmur.

The patting hand froze for a second. Harry had to wonder if he had been a victim of a hallucination. Blaise never apologized. Yet, hadn't he just done so? Oh well it didn't matter, though Harry as he ruffled the other boy's hair.

"Oy!" exclaimed the Italian suddenly back to his normal self. "Don't mess it all up!"

Harry smiled as he got the desired reaction.

"Come on Casanova, those seats won't wait for us." he called jokingly as he set off towards the Quidditch Pitch again.

"Who's Casanova?" asked the Italian with a hint of interest as hurried to walk by the other boy's side.

As the two boys walked away chatting animatedly, Narcissa Malfoy stepped out of the Great Hall. A cold gust of wind gushed passed her and she clenched her warm cloak. The sapphire-like eyes trailed on the grounds ahead and stopped briefly on the two boys who were quickly approaching the Pitch. Her lips stretched into a sad smile. As a horde of students left the Great Hall behind her she shook herself and walked away briskly. She had better get to the stands soon or she would have nowhere to sit.


End file.

Harry Potter, Adventure, Romance