Harry Potter and the Siren's Song

***

"They're gone!" Harry repeated, swaying slightly. He could still hear the screaming echoing inside his head. The frigid cold sensation, a souvenir from the Dementors' presence, permeated his flesh as if a thousand sharp knives were cutting at his skin.

"My God, you're shaking like a leaf! Come on, I'm taking you home!" Ginny exclaimed, her arm tight around his waist as she began leading him down the hill and towards the village.

Harry would never remember exactly how Ginny got him back into Hogsmeade. He had needed to lean on her a bit more than he would have liked, and although she wasn't complaining, their progress was understandably slow. More than once, he'd almost collapsed as a fresh wave of cold hit him. Ginny had reached up to touch his face one of these times, and had turned very pale when she realized how clammy his skin was.

When they reached the village, Ginny forced Harry to sit on a bench while she ran to get Ron and Hermione. He leaned his head back, staring at the now gray sky. Gray sky, like the sky he had just seen in his vision. Had it been a premonition? He'd had disturbing shots of events in time before, but always in his dreams, never while he was awake. He looked down at his still bleeding finger and sucked the bright drops of vitae away. The taste was harsh copper in his mouth, and made his stomach lurch. It took all of his efforts not to give into his nausea and be violently ill in the street.

In a matter of minutes that seemed like an eternity, Ginny returned with Ron and Hermione. Ron looked terrified as he knelt in front of Harry. "Harry! You look awful! What is it?"

Hermione looked as pale as Ginny as she took in his colourless face and wide emerald eyes. Ginny had taken another look at him and practically flown up the street in the direction of the Three Broomsticks.

Hermione, however, had noticed his bleeding finger and had quickly ripped off a section of her robe's lining to wrap it up. Harry didn't protest. "What happened, Harry?" she asked, tying the scrap of cloth tightly around his wounded finger. "Ginny said you went rigid all of the sudden and then fell down. She said when you came to you looked like death and kept saying 'They're gone'. Who's gone?"

"The Dementors," Harry managed to get out, feeling the cold worse then ever, and wishing he'd brought his own cloak.

Hermione and Ron shared a meaningful look over his head. "The Dementors have been gone for two years, Harry-" Ron began but quickly broke off at the sight of Ginny running towards them, Professor Velange right behind her.

"H-here!" Ginny held out two Chocolate Frogs to Harry, while Velange reached over to brush his damp hair back from his forehead. She seemed to be staring at his scar, as if searching for answers.

The sight of chocolate made his stomach lurch again. "Ginny, I don't think-"

"Eat it!" she insisted, looking as if she might force-feed the candy to him if he didn't give in.

Sighing, he shoved both frogs into his mouth at once, and focused on having them actually make their way down his throat and into his stomach. Within a few seconds, he felt much better. The cold seemed to recede, and everything came into better focus. Hermione was standing and watching Velange's every move like an extremely protective mother hen, Ron was talking to Ginny in a low voice and Velange…her hand was cool as she gently touched his scar, as if testing something.

"Come on, Harry - back to the castle," she murmured at last, apparently satisfied with her examination.

"I, um, I don't think I can walk that far just yet," he muttered. "I need a second, please?"

Ginny took his hand in hers, and squeezed it. "Can't it wait a minute, Professor?" she asked anxiously.

"No, Ginny, it really can't…I want him to see Poppy Pomfrey right away," Velange said.

"He just said he can't walk that far!" Ron snapped. "What difference is a few minutes going to make if he collapses along the way?"

"I never said anything about him walking, Ron," Velange said gently. She looked at Harry. "The Headmaster gave us all a pouch of Disapparation Dust at the start of term. Do you feel up to using that?"

"Disapparation Dust?" Hermione repeated faintly. "What's Disapparation Dust?" But Velange ignored her, and kept her eyes on Harry.

"Harry?" she asked, and he got to his feet.

"Yeah. I can do that," he said, feeling Ginny's arm around his waist again. "Can Ginny come through with me?"

Velange shook her head. "One at a time, Harry - otherwise you might be splinched together." Ron winced and Hermione looked taken aback.

"Why don't I send Ginny ahead of you? After you've gone I'll send Ron and Hermione," Velange suggested.

"What about you?" Hermione asked.

"I'll be along right behind you two," Velange smiled slightly at her apprehension. "If you could please take Harry right up to the infirmary as soon as you get there…I'll be up shortly after." Her hand had already scooped into a velvet pouch and she had the strange glittering powder in her hand. "Ginny?" she asked.

Giving Harry's hand an extra squeeze, she stood and walked to where Velange had thrown the circle of shining Disapparation Dust on the ground. Velange told her to step inside the ring of powder and in a second, she had vanished.

"Whoah!" Ron whistled.

"Harry?" she said next, and Hermione hurried over to help him to his feet.

"Ron and I will be right behind you," she whispered.

"I know," Harry said, trying to give them a smile but failing. He stepped into the circle and felt the tug on his spine and the rush of colours before he felt his feet hit the ground. Ginny was waiting for him, and caught him by the arms to keep him from falling.

"This is pitiful," Harry grimaced. "Nice boyfriend I am, collapsing on you every two seconds."

She smiled, the first smile he had seen since he had collapsed. "I prefer to think of it as job security," she said lightly. Ron popped into view, followed shortly by Hermione.

"Let's go," Ron said without preamble. With the three of them hovering around him, Harry was really starting to feel somewhat silly as they made their way up to Madam Pomfrey's. "Um, guys - I can walk," he started.

"And you could fall and crack your head open, but we'd prefer you not demonstrate those skills just now," Hermione said evenly. She knocked on the infirmary door. There was no answer.

"That's odd," Ron said. "She's always in." He pulled out his wand and pointed it at the knob. "Alohomora!" The knob sprang open, and Ron turned to see Harry, Ginny and Hermione looking at him, stunned. "What? I take the same classes as you lot, you think I don't know how to use any of it?"

"It's just that I expected you to try pounding on the door first," Hermione smiled weakly.

"Guess you're rubbing off on me," Ron grinned at her. "Inside, Harry, come on."

Inside the infirmary, Madam Pomfrey's office was dark, and there was no sign of its dauntless mistress. Harry's eyes grew accustomed to the dim light as he made his way over to a bed, and sprawled out on top of it. Ginny sat next to him, and propped up the pillows behind his head. "Just rest, Harry," she said while Hermione looked around for some water. Ron stood with his hands in his pockets, watching his best friend and his sister and not speaking.

Just as Hermione located the water pitcher the door swung open again, revealing a distraught-looking Madam Pomfrey, with Professor Velange and Professor Dumbledore behind her. Ginny rose quickly to her feet. "How on earth did you lot get in here?" Madam Pomfrey barked at them.

"Alohomora charm," Ron said, looking surprised by her anger.

"I mustn't have sealed the door correctly," Madam Pomfrey sniffed, looking at Dumbledore. "My apologies, Headmaster."

"Quite all right, Poppy." Dumbledore came and sat on the bedside in the spot Ginny had vacated. "Harry?" he asked, his voice very kind. "Professor Velange said that you had a vision."

"I saw…something, Professor," Harry said, wishing they would all just go away and let him sleep. "I saw the Dementors; saw them abandoning Azkaban." Madam Pomfrey gasped. Harry went on, feeling it best to tell everything. "That's not all. I think they freed Voldemort's supporters when they left, and-" he couldn't continue, remembering the screams.

"And the other prisoners?" Velange asked weakly.

"I think - I think they're dead," he finished quietly.

There was a nasty silence, during which time Professor Velange got quietly to her feet and left the room. Dumbledore's eyes held none of their usual sparkle as he looked at Harry. "Very well, Harry. I think you're due for some rest. Poppy, if you could see to it that he has some chocolate before he sleeps?"

"I already had some," Harry said quickly, not sure if he could swallow any more, the way his stomach was churning. "Ginny gave me some as soon as we reached the village."

"Did she now?" Dumbledore's eyes shot to Ginny, who hung back, blushing. "Miss Weasley, I am impressed - quite impressed - with your quick thinking. Professor Moody will be delighted to know how much you've learned from his classes." He stood. "Get some rest, Harry…we'll talk more later."

"Professor, may we stay with him?" Hermione asked, while Ron crossed his arms and looked unwilling to move a muscle.

"Of course, so long as you allow him to sleep."

"Headmaster! This child needs care, not a slumber party-" Madam Pomfrey began.

"They won't exactly be swinging from the chandeliers, Poppy," Dumbledore said calmly. "I'll be back to check on you in a few hours, Harry." With that, he left.

Madam Pomfrey disappeared back into her office, muttering under breath, while Hermione, Ron and Ginny gathered around Harry's bed. "You actually saw the Dementors, Harry?" Ron asked, looking stricken. "You saw them leave Azkaban?"

"Yes," Harry answered, feeling as if even that one word was an effort.

"How did you know to give him chocolate, Ginny?" Hermione asked, sounding impressed herself.

"I remembered how Harry looked that time on the train, when the Dementors came aboard," Ginny explained. "And I played a hunch."

"Hell of a hunch," Ron muttered, looking at his sister as though they'd only just met.

Madam Pomfrey returned, carrying a large glass. "Drink this," she said, setting it firmly into Harry's hand.

"What is it?" he asked, looking at the brown liquid.

"Oh something very sinister, Mr. Potter," she answered, looking exasperated. "It's chocolate milk mixed with a sleeping draft."

Harry drank it without further comment. The chocolate milk was ice cold, and was surprisingly soothing. He felt a wave of drowsiness sweep over him, and then he was asleep.

His dreams were anything but peaceful:

"Shhh…" a gentle hand on his arm made Harry awake with a start. The room was very dark and fuzzy: someone had removed his glasses. His throat felt dry, and he reached blindly for the glass of water he could just make out on the bedstand.

"I'll get it, Harry - you just close your eyes and try to relax." Velange's voice pierced his disoriented world. She placed the glass of water in his shaking hands, and he felt the bed dip slightly as she sat down next to him.

Harry swallowed the water in two gulps, and croaked out "More." She refilled his glass from the silver pitcher and he quickly drank it dry.

"You were screaming," Velange said, her hands cool on his cheeks as she neatly replaced his glasses. "It sounded like quite a terrifying dream."

"Yeah," Harry said, opening his eyes and blinking at her. "Why is it so dark in here?"

"I wanted to make sure that you managed to sleep undisturbed - you've had quite a shock today." With a wave of her wand, Velange lit the candles in the infirmary and Harry got a good look at his professor.

Her eyes were faintly red, as if she had been crying, and she looked very pale. But her smile was as warm as ever as she plucked the empty glass from his hands and filled it once more with another wave of her wand.

"How - how long have I been asleep?" Harry asked, looking around. The infirmary was deserted except for the two of them. Where was Madam Pomfrey? It wasn't like her not to be swooping down on him the minute he woke up.

"Several hours. I sent Ron, Hermione and Ginny down to the kitchens to eat." Her smile widened. "You have some incredibly loyal friends, Harry - I hope you know that…they refused to go to the Halloween feast, not wanting to leave you alone."

A soft knock at the door made them both jump. Professor Dumbledore entered, and he looked very grave. "Ahh, good. You're awake." Without preamble, he drew up a chair next to Harry's bed and began speaking in an oddly tense voice that Harry had never heard him use before.

"As you already know, the Dementors did indeed abandon Azkaban earlier today. My owl to the Ministry warning them of your premonition had not been gone but a quarter hour when I received one stating that the events you described had occurred."

"And the prisoners?" Harry asked, knowing what he was about to hear but unable to stop himself from asking the question.

"Those who were loyal to Voldemort have vanished without a trace, and the others were left behind."

"Dead?" Harry asked, scarcely daring to believe that it was true.

"Worse than dead," Dumbledore confirmed. "It would seem that the Dementors allowed themselves something of a feast prior to their departure." Professor Velange blanched. Harry looked down at his hands. There was no cut on his left palm, but it tingled weirdly, as if he had somehow cut off its circulation and had just now restored it.

"Harry, have you ever had a premonition like this before? Not one in your dreams, but a true vision?" Dumbledore asked, his blue eyes somber.

"No, sir," Harry answered.

"How did you feel before it occurred?" Dumbledore pressed on.

"Cold, sir." Where was Dumbledore going with all of this?

"I see," Dumbledore said slowly. "Well, well - it would seem that Professor Trelawney was quite right in her assumptions."

"Sorry?" Harry asked, confused.

"You have the Sight, Harry. How much, I cannot say. It is not unusual for most wizards to on occasion catch a glimpse or two of the future, but for it to make itself so plainly known is most extraordinary." Dumbledore looked thoughtful.

"Perhaps it was only this once?" Velange asked. "Harry's link to Voldemort might have enabled him to see this event as it happened."

"As to that, I cannot say. It is possible, of course, that the scar that links Harry to Voldemort might have somehow focused its energies on this new threat." He stood. "All things being equal however, the simplest explanation tends to be the correct one…Harry, I will arrange for you to meet with Madame Vicarro. She heads the Divination Department at the Ministry, and will be able to answer any questions you might have on this. For now, I would suggest that you try and get some rest. You will rejoin your classmates Monday morning." He nodded to Professor Velange, and swept out.

Harry felt wide-awake now. He had no interest in sleep; he didn't want to see anything more horrific than a field of bunnies at the moment, and feared he might go mad if he was forced to wrestle with another nightmare. Professor Velange gave him a sympathetic smile. "I'll wait until your friends return, Harry. No doubt you'll want some privacy so you can talk."

He nodded, then asked suddenly "How can it possibly be linked to Voldemort? My vision, I mean. Any other time that something like this has happened, my scar hurt so badly it felt like it was on fire."

She looked troubled. "I don't know, Harry. But if anyone can explain it, Madam Vicarro can…she's the best researcher of Divination and its disciplines that the Ministry has. And despite the Ministry's attitude about everything associated with Dumbledore at the moment, Vicarro can be trusted. I believe she was among the first that Arthur Weasley contacted last summer after Voldemort's resurrection."

The Ministry's attitude…Fudge's attitude. He lay back, and watched Velange intently. "Fudge isn't going to be able to keep this quiet, is he?"

"No, he's not," Velange answered him matter-of-factly. "He'll try, no doubt, but I've no idea how else he'd be able to explain the spotting of the Dark Mark floating over Azkaban. And when people find out he's kept Voldemort's return quiet for months, well, he's going to have a lot more questions to answer."

"Like Mrs. Figg and those two Unspeakables disappearing," Harry muttered. "I'd like to see how he keeps that hush-hush after this."

"How did you know about that?" Velange asked him, stunned.

"Ron's dad works for the Ministry," Harry said quickly. "I sort of heard about it from his mum." It wasn't a complete lie - he had heard about it from Sirius, who had heard it from Molly Weasley. So in a really convoluted way, he had heard about it from her….via another person…one who wasn't supposed to exist in his life…

He swallowed, not looking away from Velange's eyes. "People are going to panic," Harry said. It wasn't a question, merely a statement of fact. "It'll be worse then it was the last time, won't it?"

She gave him a penetrating stare. "Would you prefer them not to know the truth, Harry? At least now they'll know to be on their guard. And lies won't protect them from what's likely to happen." She smoothed his bedcovers with her hand, and smiled at the sound of Ron, Hermione and Ginny's voices floating up the corridor. "I'll leave you now." Her smile didn't reach her eyes, which he noticed were oddly bright. "I'll be back to check on you in the morning."

Harry nodded, and sighed as the door opened, admitting Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Madam Pomfrey. The nurse, he noticed, gave Professor Velange a very cold look as she passed. What was that about? he wondered. And how on earth had Professor Velange managed to talk Madam Pomfrey into leaving the sanctity of her infirmary, even for a few minutes?

"We brought you some food," Ron said as soon as he reached Harry's bedside. "Sausages and mashed potatoes."

"And some éclairs," Ginny added. "Dobby made them for you himself."

Madam Pomfrey swept into her office without a word, and Harry breathed a sigh of relief. He felt odd enough about the events of the day, without having the school nurse hovering about as she always did. He reached eagerly for the plate of food Ron was holding, and began eating, realizing as he did so just how hungry he was.

Hermione had yet to say a word, but her eyes never left his face as he finished his dinner. Harry raised an eyebrow at her. "What?"

"It's nothing," she said nervously, before she seemed to steel herself and plunged on. "Harry, you know what this means, don't you?"

"Yeah, Voldemort's building his army," Harry said, reaching for an éclair. "Not exactly a shock, though, is it?"

"Not just that." Hermione's face was very anxious. "If you could see that, then maybe you can see what else he has planned."

"Get serious," Ron said, waving an impatient hand. "Snape said we can't even be sure that Harry does really have the Sight."

"You talked to Snape?" Harry asked, stunned.

"Yeah, he met us down in the kitchens." Ron answered, reaching over for one of Harry's éclairs.

Ginny slapped at his hand. "You just had three down in the kitchens! Talk about a bottomless pit!"

"Why was Snape in the kitchens?" Harry asked Hermione, ignoring the two siblings.

"I think he was getting some food for Velange," Hermione said hesitantly. " She didn't come down to the feast or anything. She was really worried about you, Harry…she barely left your side once."

"Of course she did," Harry frowned. "Right after I told Dumbledore what I saw, remember?"

"No, Harry, she was just outside the door, talking to Snape. We saw her," Ginny's eyes looked worried. "She was crying, and looked pretty upset."

"Snape was tryin' to comfo't her," Ron put in, his mouth full of éclair. "It wa' kind o' disturbin'," he swallowed. "He looked almost human; he was holding her and patting her on the back. And here I thought she had some sort of taste level - imagine letting Snape be your rock of support?"

Harry frowned. He remembered how friendly Snape had been to Velange before their first lesson, and how he had definitely seemed to be more then just an acquaintance to Lauren. He started to get out of bed, just as Madam Pomfrey returned.

"And where exactly do you think you're going?" she asked, icily.

"Need to send an owl," Harry said by way of explanation, knowing as he did so he would never get past her tonight.

"I'm sure whatever it is about can wait until morning," Madam Pomfrey said imperiously. "And now, you three need to clear off - this young man needs his rest!"

They stood and nodded politely to the nurse, although it was clear from their expressions that none of them were happy about her command. "We'll see you in the morning," Ginny whispered, bending to drop a quick kiss on his lips . Ron nodded to him, and followed his sister out the door. Hermione turned to leave, but Harry caught her by the wrist.

"Do me a favor, Hermione," he whispered. "I want to start looking through old copies of the Daily Prophet tomorrow. Get as many copies as you can from October 1981 through February 1982." Hermione looked startled, but nodded and quickly left after Ron and Ginny.

Harry lay back and looked at the ceiling. He had to find her, and see to it that she was safe - before Voldemort started his next move.

***

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