Fragile

Chapter 1

Harry Potter stood in front of the Gargoyle statue guarding the entrance to Headmaster Dumbledore's office and couldn't help the thick knot of dreading forming in his stomach. Even though he had been delighted at first that he didn't have to return to the Dursleys for the summer holidays preceding his final school year and would therefore be able to practice magic all summer, Dumbledore's sudden willingness to let him stay at Hogwarts made him suspicious. An invitation to the old wizard's office a day into the holidays did nothing to alleviate his fears.

"Well, standing here any longer won't make it any easier," he said to himself. He gave the stone guardian the password and climbed up the now-familiar stairs. Before he even had time to knock, the heavy wooden door at the top of the staircase opened and Dumbledore beckoned him into his office. Harry was not overly surprised to find his Potions Professor, Severus Snape, sitting in front of Dumbledore's desk. Snape was one of the few teachers who stayed at the school all summer. He glared at Harry in his usual manner from the moment the young man entered the room.

Ignoring Snape, Harry took a seat while Dumbledore offered his two guests the usual cup of tea, which both men knew better than to decline. But once the headmaster had settled behind his desk, his expression became serious.

"Harry, I am sure you have been wondering why I have allowed you to remain at Hogwarts this summer," he started. Harry nodded, looking expectantly at the older wizard.

"I assume you remember the prophecy about you and Voldemort?" Dumbledore continued. "Over the past year, I have found a few interesting details about this prophecy. When I told you about it this time last year, I assumed that the death of either you or Voldemort at the other's hands would automatically kill you both. Now, I know exactly how this would happen."

Harry's face showed pretty much what he thought about the usefulness of that particular knowledge but Dumbledore didn't seem to notice. "I have also found a way to counter it." The headmaster beamed at his guests, his eyes twinkling.

"You mean I don't necessarily have to die if I kill Voldemort?" Harry asked slowly, reluctant to get his hopes up.

"Indeed," Dumbledore answered. "It won't be easy but I believe we stand a good chance of defeating Voldemort without putting your life at stake."

Harry practically jumped out of his seat in excitement. He didn't care how hard it would be if only he could get rid of Voldemort without killing himself in the process. Snape on the other hand remained completely calm. He only pronounced one word at Dumbledore's news.

"How?"

"Ah, thank you for asking that my dear boy," the headmaster smiled. "As we have established before, Voldemort created a link between himself and Harry that fateful night long ago. However, what I only understood very recently is the true nature of this bond: it is Harry's very soul that is connected to the Dark Lord's. If he were killed, he would be able to use Harry's soul as an anchor to keep his soul from crossing over to wherever the soul goes after the body dies. Unlike a ghost, his soul would however not be able to survive without a physical vessel and he would try to possess Harry. Tthe human body is not made to contain two souls so Harry would die from the strain of having to bear Voldemort's presence. The same, of course, would happen the other way. However, this soul anchoring only works over a very short distance, as the soul is still bound to the rules of the physical realm."

"So how are we going to keep Voldemort from doing just that?" Harry asked. "Is there a way of severing the bond between our souls?"

"It's not only about severing the bond, Harry. You could imagine your and Voldemort's souls as two people connected by a rope, standing on a very narrow ridge. You'd only have one single chance to cut that rope. The very hard yank necessary could send you off balance and make you fall off the ridge into the abyss. In other words, from the force of the separation your soul could actually leave your body and, now devoid of anchoring, drift around for eternity, unable to find its way back to its body."

Before Harry could interrupt him, Dumbledore lifted a hand, indicating that his student should bear with him a little longer. "In order to avoid this "loss of balance", you would need someone to support you, someone you could use as an anchor."

Harry looked confused. "Wouldn't that kind of keep the problem up? I mean, sure, my soul wouldn't be bound to that of my worst enemy anymore but the problem about dying would remain the same."

"Actually, Potter, it would not, if the headmaster plans what I think," Snape interjected at this point. Dumbledore looked rather pleased about the clue.

"In old times," he started to explain, "some witches and wizards who loved each other chose to go a step further than marriage. They wouldn't only vow each other eternal love and faithfulness but they would also bind their souls together. These bondings are almost completely out of use nowadays as they require a degree of commitment most people seem unwilling to take. The bond enables the couple to touch each other's souls, to share their magic, including particular talents and abilities. The bond cannot be undone but unlike your bond to Voldemort, the death of one partner does not kill the other."

Eyes wide with shock, Harry managed to choke out: "You want me to get married?!" Dumbledore shook his head.

"For our purpose here, a marriage as such wouldn't exactly be required. You wouldn't have to take your bond mate as spouse because the soul bond itself is not legally binding according to present-day laws and you would be free to marry someone else. The bonding only requires a short ritual involving a spell cast by a person other than the two partners. Then the two partners have to fulfil the spiritual bond by a physical one." At these words, the headmaster blushed.

It took Harry a moment to understand the meaning of these words. "But I don't know anyone who I could bind myself to. I'm not involved with anyone."

Harry uncomfortably stared at the floor, unsure how to vocalise the realisation he had come to some time during the last school year. Finally, he muttered. "I know how desperate the situation is and I don't want to die but I don't really want to be that... ummm... that close to a woman in that way." Snape sneered at the boy's confession.

"The Gryffindor Golden Boy is gay. Now who would have guessed that?" He would have said more but Dumbledore silenced him with a stern look. Then he turned to Harry with a sad smile.

"Harry, as much as I wish I didn't have to do this to you, I can't let you choose the person you should be bonded to. As I said, you would be able to draw from your partner's magic and use his special abilities. You will need a lot of strength to defeat Voldemort, so your bond mate ought to be a powerful wizard. Furthermore, you could do with additional support in Occlumency and Defence against the Dark Arts, so those should be some of your partner's qualities. I am however relieved to hear that at least my choice does not go against your sexual preferences. I had feared I would increase the ordeal for you by bonding you to a wizard instead of a witch." Harry's head was still spinning from these announcements but a small wave of relief washed over him.

"Who did you choose then? Remus Lupin maybe?" he asked expectantly. But the older wizard quickly crushed his hopes.

"While Remus surely would be a powerful enough wizard, his lycanthropy makes a soul bond dangerous as part of his wolf personality would be transferred to you and you would be incapacitated at every full moon." Trying not to look too disappointed, Harry went through all the wizards he knew that could possible fulfil all the criteria.

"Bill Weasley then? Or maybe Shaklebolt? Someone else from the Order?" When Dumbledore kept shaking his head at every name, Harry grew confused. "Do I actually know him?" he asked. Dumbledore let his intense gaze rest on Harry.

"I would have thought it was obvious by now." His eyes darted to the man next to Harry whose eyes widened in realisation.

The man Harry was supposed to be bonded to was none other than Severus Snape. He felt as if he had been knocked over by a Bludger. He had trouble breathing and felt physically sick. An ice cold pool of dread seemed to expand in his stomach.

But when he turned his head to Professor Snape, he saw that the Potions master had clearly not seen this coming either and that he was even more shocked than Harry. All blood had drained from the older man's face and his look was one of utter terror. His hands were clawing into the armrests of his chair and his entire body was shaking violently. He opened his mouth repeatedly but no sound came out. When he finally managed to speak, his voice was a mere croak.

"Albus... No... Impossible... Can't." To Harry's great shock, tears started streaming down the man's face. Unable to even form a complete sentence, Snape fled from the room in total panic.

Whatever Dumbledore had expected, this reaction seemed to have taken him completely by surprise. Harry had never seen his headmaster look so utterly lost. If it hadn't been for the dread he was feeling himself, he would almost have found it amusing. It took the old wizard an entire minute to regain his composure.

"I really had not expected Severus to be particularly happy about this announcement. I was prepared for a long and violent argument but this? I have hardly ever seen a person as terrified as Severus just was." His eyes came to rest on Harry again.

"I know that there is a lot you want to think about. If you have any questions, please come and ask me straight away. I will see what I can do for Professor Snape."

Harry stood up in a daze. At least a hundred questions were swirling around in his mind like a maelstrom, threatening to drown him, but he couldn't bring himself to ask even a single one at that moment. He left the headmaster's office and made his way to Gryffindor tower without even noticing where he was going.