What He Never Had

Prologue

***

Uncle Vernon grumbled as he pulled up in front of the train station. "Be quick about it," he ordered, glancing about nervously. "I don't want to be seen and recognized with you."

"Going, going..." Harry said, pacifying him. Well, I wasn't expecting a goodbye, was I? See then, it's not so bad, just...don't think about your 'family', and everything will be fine. You have a better family anyway- Ron, and Hermione- Harry stopped that train of thought. Sometimes, he found himself wishing his parents were there. Wishing him off, and telling him they'll be expecting him at Christmas, have fun, and try not to get into too much trouble before you learn something useful- see? He was doing it again. Uncle Vernon opened the boot and Harry hauled out his stuff, carefully removing Hedwig, his owl, from the backseat.

Uncle Vernon got back into the car and sped away, glad to be rid of his nephew. Harry grabbed a trolley and headed in. Leaning casually against the wall between platforms nine and ten, he slipped onto the hidden wizard platform, nine and three quarters. This is where I belong, alone, or not.

Craning his neck, he didn't catch a glimpse of either Ron or Hermione in the busting crowd. I'll just find a compartment on the train and find them later, he thought and climbed onto the Hogwarts Express.

A minute later he was standing back out watching for his friends -ah, there they are. Ron and Hermione had come through together, and were squeezing their way through. Hermione, catching sight of Harry, grabbed Ron's arm and pulled him along.

Hermione gave him a big hug, and Ron, who was currently without his family, grinned. "Come on, I already have a compartment for us." There was much heaving as they all helped each other get their trunks onto the train, and then they settled down.

"Did the muggles treat you all right this summer, Harry?" Ron asked.

"Okay, I guess. They just ignored me." Hermione nodded in understanding. The train started moving and Harry smiled at his friends. "Thanks for the gifts though, they really brightened up my summer."

"Well, we weren't going to send you old socks for your birthday, were we, Ron?" Hermione said slyly.

"I'm so glad," Harry replied. Hermione grinned, she knew that once Harry had received a pair of Uncle Vernon's old socks. Harry exclaimed. "Hey - look what Sirius gave me-"

Harry Potter.

He dropped the lid of his trunk, and it snapped shut. A voice spoke softly in his head- it was deep and masculine, and smooth in a hypnotizing way.

Harry froze, trying to comprehend what had just happened. He looked around the compartment, but it was empty besides his friends and their combined possessions.

Harry Potter. You have places to go.

The voice echoed through his head again. "Did you hear-?" He could tell by the bewildered looks on their faces that they hadn't- not freaked out bewildered, just confused. They wouldn't- it resounded through his skull, temporarily blocking out all sound. His vision dimmed, and the ground tilted slightly as he leaned to one side, unbalanced. Something was wrong, but he couldn't quite grasp it . . .

"Harry, what's wrong?" He couldn't figure out who had asked him- he couldn't seem to make himself concentrate on the sound of the voice. It was as if something was partially taking him over, or he wasn't quite in control of his own mind and body anymore.

Far, far, far, to go, to go, go, go-

Harry stumbled forward, and ran into something- no, it was a someone. Hands grabbed at him, steadying his feet as he fell.

COME.

At that word, Harry Potter blacked out completely.

***
Back at Hogwarts...

Madame Pomfrey, Dumbledore, Ron, Hermione, and almost all of the professors were crowded around the still form of Harry Potter lying motionless on a bed in the infirmary. The feast and sorting was over, none of them had gone.

"Now, calm down. And tell me exactly what happened," Dumbledore said sternly. Hermione had tears in her eyes, and Ron was shifting nervously from foot to foot.

"Everything was normal, we met Harry by Hogwarts Express, and we went inside. We were talking, and Harry started to say something, but then he started to fall. We grabbed at him, but he didn't seem to know we were there. Then he just stopped, and tilted his head to the side, and his eyes went wider than I've ever seen them, and he passed out."

Hermione nodded.

Madame Pomfrey looked distressed. "I can't find anything wrong with him, he's just not there," she explained, flipping through a potions book. "As far as I know, nothing like this has ever happened before . . ."

***

Harry was cold. Air brushed over him, and he shivered.

Hey, what happened? You there- stupid voice, where am I?

Then, suddenly, he was warmer than he had ever been in his life. Warmth rushed into his soul, and it was strangely comforting. He snuggled up against the warmth, it was extremely cozy. A different part of his brain seemed to surface. It joined with him without thought, some inner instinct told him everything was fine. He relaxed, trusting it for some reason.

Then he heard a loud, muffled, and somehow strange and deeply familiar voice.

"- Here, Harry's moving again, James-"