Forever a Secret

Scene XXIII - The Reunion

An antique chandelier was the last relic from a time when the empty ballroom had been the stage of the most elegant and exclusive Balls in the Wizarding World. The marble floor, which had once been host to only the most important and pure sorcerers of the Wizarding Society, was now covered in dust.

The chandelier began to quiver; the crystals clattering together with the resonance building in the empty room.

Suddenly, the chandelier fell down, shattering on the marble floor and raising a cloud of dust as tiny shards of crystal tinkled as they bounced and flew everywhere. An orange vortex was now in the place of the chandelier in the ceiling. Three shadows were expelled by the vortex which immediately disappeared.

The three shadows were a Muggleborn witch, an elf and a book.

"Miss? Miss?" Dobby shook an unconscious Hermione.

HERMIONE...

She opened her eyes, startled. She sat abruptly, her breathing was unsteady and so was her heartbeat. She was looking for something, someone....

"Miss?"

Eyebrows raised, she turned to find Dobby's worried eyes staring at her. "Dobby? What are you --" A pause. A very long pause as all the last events flashed on her mind. "Oh My God..." She got up in a flash and said, "Take me back, Dobby. You have to take me back. I need to help them. I need to --" She was hyperventilating. "Oh My God...Please, Dobby. If something happens to them I'll never forgive myself."

"Dobby can't, Miss." The elf lowered his head.

"No. No. I know you can. You apparated there earlier. You can still do magic. Please, Dobby, I beg you. It's not them they are after, it's me. They are not a part of this."

"They are a part of this, Miss. All your kind is."

She stopped. She stared at the Elf. "What do you mean by this?"

The elf just stared back at her, after a moment of tension the elf finally said, "Don't worry about your family, Hermione. The Guardian is going to protect them."

"The Guardian? You mean Crookshanks?" Hermione asked uncertainly, though deep down she already knew the answer.

The Elf nodded.

"This doesn't make any sense. My cat can't be a guardian," she said, letting herself fall on the ground beside the book, sitting in Indian style and covering her face on her hands. "I always knew there was something special about Crookshanks, but I would never imagine this - this is too much." The elf patted her shoulders consolingly. She vainly tried to present a reassured front to the game little elf. "Are you sure my family is safe?"

"Yes. For now," he said offering her a hand up.

Hermione accepted his help, "Do you have any idea where we are?"

Before the elf could move a muscle of his mouth to answer her, someone came running into the room.

"Hermione!"

Like anyone would be

I am flattered by your fascination with me

And before Hermione could move a muscle, she was being tightly embraced by Draco Malfoy.

"I thought you were dead," he whispered softly, stepping back and continuing to hold her hand.

Like any hot-blooded woman

I have simply wanted an object to crave

She stared at him bemused for a moment, then looked down at their entwined hands.

But you, you're not allowed

You're uninvited

An unfortunate slight

She slowly let her hand slip from his grasp.

Must be strangely exciting

To watch the stoic squirm

Must be somewhat hard telling

To watch them burn me shepherd

He stared into her eyes and smiled sadly at her. She didn't return the gesture and an uncomfortable silence grew in the room.

But you you're not allowed

You're uninvited

An unfortunate slight

"Miss, your book." Dobby broke the silence, handing the tome in question to Hermione.

Draco looked down, noticing the elf's presence for the first time and he seemed most unhappy with it. "Wait.. What is this thing doing here?"

Dobby, who besides all the changes in his life, still remembered his long and torturous past with the Malfoy family, ran behind Hermione's legs, looking for a shelter.

Hermione rolled her eyes at Dobby's action and then gave Draco a stern look. "You just have to do that, don't you?"

"What? I didn't do anything to this stupid house-elf."

Hermione glared at him. "He is an elf, Draco. And don't call him stupid."

"Whatever."

"Come on, Dobby. You don't need to fear him. Draco is..." she paused, pondering what to say, "a friend, sort of."

"Miss used to have better taste when it came to friends," stated the elf.

Like any uncharted territory

I must seem greatly intriguing

You speak of my love like

You have experienced love like mine before

Draco was fuming. If Hermione had not been present, he would have strangled the stupid elf, but if he had tried to kill the elf, Draco might have been interrupted by the loud noise that announced the presence of...

CRASH

... Or by loud and furious shouting that followed the crashing.

"LET ME GO, YOU EVIL PIECE OF --"

"Oh, crap," murmured Draco, running in the direction of the noise. Hermione and Dobby followed him, expecting the worst...

It was really surprising when they saw themselves in a room full of boiling caldrons, and a large table with strange equipments and colorful bottles.

It was even more strange seeing Virginia Weasley throwing all this equipment at Hogwarts Potions' Master; Severus Snape.

"What is going on here?" Hermione asked, stupefied.

Ginny stopped as she recognized Hermione's voice, her arm up with the next bottle ready to be launched at Snape's head. She turned and asked in a shocked tone, "Ah, Hermione. Don't tell me they got you, too?"

Draco ran to the side of his former professor, whose hair had returned to a dead black from it's former brilliant green shade.

"The potion wore off," Snape informed Draco snidely.

"Yeah, I see that." Draco looked at Ginny. "All right, Weasley. You did your little show. Now, just put down the bottle before you end up blowing us and the lab into very small pieces." Draco approached her slowly, one careful step at a time.

"Stay back, Malfoy, or I swear you are going to regret it," Ginny menacingly hissed through her teeth.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake," Hermione exclaimed, truly annoyed by now. She pushed Draco out of the way and faced Ginny, with her hand extended. "Just give me the bottle, Ginny."

"But Hermione, they --"

"GINNY." Hermione's tone was demanding.

"All right." She handed her the bottle.

"Well done, Ginny. Now, can anyone tell what the HELL is going on HERE?" She turned to Snape and Draco.

"Well, it is a long story."

"So, make it short. What is Ginny doing here?"

"Err, her? Yeah, well, you see..."

"DRACO."

"We kind of kidnapped her."

"You what? Why in the Merlin's name you would do that?" She threw her arms up exasperation.

Draco crossed his arms and grinned at her. "Well, you know me. I never seem to resist the chance to kidnap Potter's girls."

But this is not allowed

You're uninvited

An unfortunate slight

Hermione fumed at that. Ginny stepped away from her as the bottle on Hermione's hand, turned into a ball of energy. Ron's little sister wondered how Hermione did that, when Ginny couldn't even cast simple spells against Snape.

"Just give a good reason not to use this," Hermione told Draco shortly.

"Hey. Wait, Hermione, you know I was just kidding --"

Ginny looked back and forth between the two, confused, as she tried to grasp exactly what was going on. Why was Hermione hesitating? Why didn't she just end Malfoy for once and all? And while she was wondering, since when were Malfoy and Hermione on a first name basis? Why did she feel that Hermione was not another prisoner here? And what of Dobby's role? What was he doing there? Wait, was Dobby actually cleaning the room?

"Sorry, but you chose the wrong day to joke with me. I didn't think it was funny, at all, Draco." The energy ball increased.

Malfoy's eyes widened. "Oh, come on, Hermione, let's not cross this road again, I'm your friend remember, I'm here to help you..."

"Help me? How? By kidnapping my friends?"

"She was at the Chamber of Secrets." Snape said, glancing at them sharply in annoyance as he resumed collecting his equipment. "And stop this playacting, Miss Granger, you are only wasting energy. And as of right now, I don't think any of us can afford to do that."

Hermione closed her hand and the energy ball evaporated. Ginny couldn't believe what she was seeing. "Hermione what are doing? Finish with them, so we can find a way out of here."

Hermione stared at Ginny. "You were in the Chamber of Secrets?"

Ginny nodded. "Yeah, but that's beside the point. We need to get out --"

Hermione cut her off. "Were you under You-Know-Who's control again? Was that why you opened the Chamber?"

"I didn't open it. It was already opened. And what do you mean with me being under Voldemort's control again? I mean that's impossible, right? He's dead. Right?"

I don't think you unworthy

I need a moment to deliberate

Hermione winced. Then, she chose to ignore Ginny's question. "What were you doing there, Ginny?"

But Ginny considered her silence in the matter as an obvious answer. "Oh Goddess, I knew it. Voldemort is alive."

Hermione winced again. "Stop saying his name and just tell me what you were doing there, Ginny?"

Ginny frowned at Hermione's stubborn attitude. "I was looking for Harry."

"Hold on a second, Harry was at the Chamber of Secrets?" Hermione asked, worried.

"I don't know. I didn't see him. These two brought me here, by force, I might add, before I could find him."

"We wouldn't have to use force if you had just cooperated, Weasley."

"Cooperate? With you? A Death Eater? Right. I would rather die than have anything to do with you, Draco Malfoy!"

"I should have just let you die. You are just as annoying as your brothers..."

Hermione slowly stepped back, leaving the two to argue alone, and joined Snape.

"It's happening, isn't it? I'm losing the battle," she said softly, almost in a whisper.

Severus Snape, who was trying to fix a very strange piece that looked like a windmill, stopped and looked at the young woman wearing only her smoke stained pajamas and a look of desolation.

And it happened - one of those rare moments when Snape was showed caring.. He placed a hand on her shoulder and looked in her into the eye. "It's not over, not yet."

"What if it is? Perhaps it should have ended three years ago."

Snape didn't have a reply to that statement. He turned his eyes and his attention back at his equipments.

"JUST WAIT TILL HARRY AND RON FIND OUT YOU GOT ME AND HERMIONE..."

"OW, HOW SWEET. YOU ARE WAITING FOR YOUR KNIGHTS IN SHINING ARMOR. TOO BAD THEY WON'T COME..."

Hermione glanced at Draco and Ginny. "They seemed to be getting along well..." She looked at the Corner and saw Dobby using a broom to take way the spider webs from the ceiling. And she turned back to her former professor, who now had his eyes fixed on his instruments, mixing some ingredients.

She sighed. Apparently, there was nothing wrong with the scene displayed before her eyes. Snape was doing some potions, which was very common considering he was a Potion Master. Dobby was doing the cleaning, which after all those years enslaved, had become some kind of second nature to him. And Ginny and Draco were acting like mortal enemies...No, nothing unusual here.

Her family had been attacked by dragons. Her cat was a supreme being and she had no idea what was going on with her ex or present or future or whatever someday-I-will remember-you boyfriend.

Yeah, right. Nothing unusual.

Her life had just become a puzzle and she knew that she had better get started collecting the pieces.

"Okay, you two", she called Ginny and Draco, "stop it already! Dobby, please, we have a bigger mess to deal with right now. And Severus, you can play with your toys later." She crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at the four of them. "I want answers.. And I want them now. "

**********************************************

Scene XXIV - Far From Heaven

"Harry?"

"Mmm?"

"Are we dead?"

"I don't think so, Ron."

"Are you sure? Then why is so dark in here?"

"It might be because your eyes are still closed. Come on, Ron, you can open them now."

Too cautiously, Ron opened on eye, then the other. And he stared in a ware at the view: a vast blue sky above their heads and a horizon of an endless carpet of green grass below their feet and nothing else into vision.

Would you know my name if I saw you in heaven?

Would it be the same if I saw you in heaven?

I must be strong and carry on,

'Cause I know I don't belong

here in heaven.

"Ow, Harry. What did you do this time? How do you - Where the hell are we?"

"Oh, no. Don't look at me like this. I didn't do anything - I mean, I don't think I did."

"I think you did, mate. Because the last time I checked, we were at the Chamber of Secrets and you were fighting a basilisk. Do you think this is Heaven? Oh, man...I can't believe that you lost to that thing...you are the only one who can look at it in the eye and you had already vanquished the thing twice...How could you get us killed this time?"

Harry rolled his eyes at his friend's outburst. "I didn't get us killed. I haven't even got the chance to fight the basilisk."

"What does that mean?"

"It means that before I had the chance to kill the damn snake again, the Chamber of Secrets just glowed."

"Glowed? I don't remember seeing that."

"Because your eyes were shut, genius! But you must have felt it. It was really intense. Very powerful magic."

"Oh, that. Yes, I felt it. But I thought that was you, killing the basilisk."

"No. It wasn't me. It was a yellow aura. It just covered the Chamber of the Secrets and then...Then we came here, wherever here is."

"Are you sure that wasn't your doing, Harry?"

"I told you it was a yellow aura."

"And?"

"And I usually go with a green one."

"Well, maybe you decided to change a little."

"I beg your pardon?"

"Yeah, you know. Like you are so sad that your aura turned yellow to express how you are feeling, you know."

"Or maybe I should have listened to Hermione because she was right: You are crazy."

"What? It makes sense."

"Ron. Let's just drop it, okay. We don't have time to discuss how colorful is my aura this week. Look around you! We have big problems now, like finding out where we are and how to get out of here."

"And don't forget that after that, we still have to save the world," Ron mocked, placing his hands on his hips.

Despite of himself, Harry laughed at his friend. "Yeah, let's try not to forget that one either."

"Ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free," a third voice was heard behind them.

Would you hold my hand if I saw you in heaven?

Would you help me stand if I saw you in heaven?

I'll find my way through night and day,

'Cause I know I just can't stay

here in heaven.

Startled, both wizards turned. Harry and Ron were stupefied by the sight of the figure before them.

"Ahhh!" Ron yelled, hiding himself behind Harry. "Harry, man, I have just figured out where we are. This must be Hell."

"It's good to see you, too, Ronald," said the person before them; a girl with dirty blonde hair and a permanently surprised look on her face. "Hello to you, too, Harry Potter," she smiled.

"Luna?" Harry said quietly, still so stupefied by fact that she had appeared from nowhere in the middle of that nowhere they were in, that he didn't even bother with Ron's little drama-queen-show.. "Hold on a second. I remember Ginny telling me you were in the Himalayas. You sent her a postcard... Oh, please, don't tell me we are in the Himalayas - although would I have to wonder where all the mountains have gone to."

"We are not in the Himalayas," replied Luna Lovegood. "I was there, though - had been there for the last few months trying to find the Yeti to see if I could get an exclusive interview for the magazine."

"The Yeti?" Harry raised his eyebrow. "You mean the Abominable Snowman?"

"Yeah, do you know him?"

Harry gave her a funny look. "No, why would I?"

"Why wouldn't you?"

"Don't listen to her, Harry. She is loony," whispered Ron.

"Well, I'm not the one hiding behind Harry, Ronald," the blonde girl stuck her tongue out at him.

Ron glared at her as Harry told his friend, "She has a point there. Do you mind, Ron? You are both adults now."

"Okay. Okay. Just as long as she doesn't try anything," Ron said, stepping forward.

"You are assuming that I would want anything to do with you, Ronald. Events in the past may be roughly divided into those which probably never happened and those which do not matter."

"You are such a loony."

"And you are such an idiot. How is darling Hermione, by the way? Are you still trying to convince her to marry you?"

"Oh, you little --"

"Alright, kids. That's enough." Harry intervened before things could degenerate any farther between the two. "Does 'the end of the world is near' ring any bells here? Can you two just focus, please?" As both of his friends calmed down, Harry turned to Luna. "You don't know where we are, do you?"

"Nope. Sorry, Harry."

"Do you know how you get here?"

"Hum...All I remember was that I was freezing on the Everest...I couldn't do any magic for some unknown reason...and then some snow demons appeared... next was that yellow light and before I knew I was here."

"Yellow light?"

"Yes, why?"

Ron and Harry shared a knowing look.

"We were all brought here by the same magical aura." A forth voice.

"A pale tone of yellow." A fourth voice.

"Very powerful though." And a fifth and sixth one that had a strange echoing tone..

"Bill?"

"Fred? George?"

"Where did you guys come from?"

"Well, we've been here for quite some time. You just didn't notice us before now."

Ron and Harry shared a confused look. But when they looked back to the others, they began to see a crowd was standing around them...hundreds, thousands, possibly millions of people.

Time can bring you down, time can bend your knees.

Time can break your heart, have you begging please,

begging please.

"Quite a crowd, huh?" Seeing the awed confusion in their eyes, Bill added, "Don't worry. I still don't understand myself. This is a very strange place."

"Who are all of these people?" asked Harry, still not believing in his eyes.

"Most of them are Muggles," Bill replied.

"From all kinds of different places. I just ran into a group of Chinese folk. Didn't understand a word they were saying," commented George.

"What the hell is going on here?"

"Ease, ickle Ronnie...Apparently we were all in bad situation -- George and I were fighting some vampires and Bill was having some problems with some mummies, there's some people who met dragons, water demons..."

"But in the end we were all rescued by this 'Yellow Light'."

"Yeah, I mean I don't think rescued is the proper word; most of the people here believe they are dead. The Muggles are saying that the 'Yellow Light' was God."

"Do you think they are right?"

"I don't know. What do you think, Harry?"

"I --"

But before Harry could let his thought out, someone grabbed him.

"My daughter....Where is my daughter? What did you do to her?"

The Weasleys brothers and Luna stared puzzled at the scene taking place before their eyes. They knew very well the man who was grabbing Harry by his collar.

Harry froze as he met Hermione's father haunted eyes.

Beyond the door there's peace I'm sure,

And I know there'll be no more

tears in heaven.

"Albert! What are you doing? Let him go. He didn't do anything. It's not his fault." Harry watched as the woman he recognized as Hermione's mother pulled her anguished husband away from him. Harry felt frozen inside as well as physically, unable to react as his mind struggled to grasp what could be happening. He felt as if he was watching the scene but he was not a real part of it.

"She was screaming for him...she was calling his name..."

Harry felt an ache, deep in his chest.

"Albert, don't..."

"I don't understand, Helen. What is going on? Where are we? Why is she not here with us? Where is my baby?" The man collapsed in her wife's arms, unable to restrain his tears any longer.

Inside Harry, a weak voice was becoming stronger. This was not supposed to happen. She should be protected. The ancient's charms should have protected her...

He was numb...he was lost...

Would you know my name if I saw you in heaven?

Would it be the same if I saw you in heaven?

I must be strong and carry on,

'Cause I know I don't belong

here in heaven.

Slowly, all the people were vanishing into thin air. The view was the same from the time he first arrived in this place. Only the blue sky and the green grass that never ended. And he was alone, complete alone...but not for long.

************************

Scene XXV - IT

Doing everything that I believe in
Going by the rules that I've been taught
More understanding of what's around me
And protected from the walls of love

"Okay, let me see if I understood this right. Peter Pettigrew is Mr. IT," said Hermione, her eyebrows raised in a questioning way. Draco and Snape nodded at her. "Are you sure? Because the last I remember he was DEAD. Sirius killed him after he killed Remus and Tonks."

"I do remember, Miss Granger. Don't forget that I was there, too," Snape replied.

"Right, so how do you expect me to believe that Peter Pettigrew is alive?"

All that you see is me

And all I truly believe

"He is not alive. But he was not dead either. Someone resurrected him, and now he is something in the between, something that shouldn't even exist, that's why we can't see him. He is just IT."

"And how did you find that out?"

Draco jumped in. "I told you. Because he came after me. Because he said that he knew I was a traitor, that I was no longer a Death Eater. He offered to spare me, in memory of my father and the life he dedicated to the Dark Lord, if I could deliver you to them."

"And how do I know that that is not exactly what you are planning, Draco? To hand me over to them."

That I was born to try

I've learned to love

Be understanding

And believe in life

But you've got to make choices

Be wrong or right

Sometimes you've got to sacrifice the things you like

Draco stared at her, not believing what she had just accused him of plotting. "Because you should know by now that I couldn't, wouldn't, do that. When are you going to trust me, Hermione? Do you have any idea of what I have had to pass through in these last twenty-four hours? Snape and I tried everything we knew to stop the Death Eaters...But when we finally figured out their plan, it was already too late...They were set to attack your train... and damn, I saw the damn train exploding...Until you mysteriously appeared in my ballroom, I believed you were dead."

But I was born to try

Hermione was stupefied. "But nothing happened in the train..."

"Yes, it did," assured Dobby. "The guardian protected you, Miss. He changed the reality, created an illusion so the Death Eaters saw what they thought they would see...But Mr. Malfoy and Professor Snape probably didn't stay long enough or they would have seen what happened next."

No point in talking what should have been

And regretting the things that went on

Life's full of mistakes, destinies and fate

Remove the clouds, look at the bigger picture

"What happened next, elf?" asked Snape.

"The magical balance that was already in jeopardy received one more blow...the world's environment suffered deeply...we could feel it from the Nadir Gates...He was calling for her...But something stopped him."

And all that you see is me

And all I truly believe

"The rose. Dumbledore destroyed it. Harry was about to break the spell and Dumbledore stopped him," Hermione said sadly.

Dobby nodded, "This has weakened the guardian. It exposed him. In the end, the illusion was down and he had to attack the Death Eaters... You were saved, but the enemy became aware that you were still alive and knew you had a guardian protecting you...And the only way to stop a guardian is another guardian..."

"That's why they sent the Dragon."

"Yes."

That I was born to try

I've learned to love

Be understanding

And believe in life

Snape and Draco looked at each other in confusion, unable to understand the conversation. Ginny just stayed quiet as she had been since the beginning.

"Okay, can you go back to the rose part, because I have to confess I'm a little lost here," requested Draco.

But you've got to make choices

Be wrong or right

Sometimes you've got to sacrifice the things you like

*************************

Scene XXVI - Master and Commander: The Far Side Of The World

A shadow was slowly approaching him.

"Hermione?"

One more day down

Everybody has those days

Where one soft sweet song's

Just enough to clear my head

"No, Harry. It's me; Neville." Harry was confused. His head was aching. His scar was hurting. "Neville, where did everybody else go?"

"Oh, they are here...somewhere. It's a really big box."

"Box?" The pain was getting bigger.

Fall on real life

Is anybody left there sane?

If we slide on over and accept fate

Then it's bound to be a powerful thing

"Yes, remember that box you received a time ago -- the one no one could figure out what it was - Well, we are inside it."

"This is not funny, Neville." A stabbing pain in his chest came and went.

"I wish I was joking, Harry, but I'm not. Believe me or not, we are inside the box."

"The HP box?" Harry asked, his throat becoming dry; his vision blurred.

"Actually I think the box was upside down. I guess it was actually a dH for dimensional Hole."

"Dimensional Hole?" Harry's headache was stealing his concentration and focus and he fought desperately to regain control.

"Yes, you see, humans aren't allowed to go to --"

Harry collapsed on his knees.

"Harry!" Neville ran to help him.

If it's just that you're weak

Can we talk about it

It's gettin' so damn creepy

Just nursing this ghost of chance

The fiction, the romance

And the Technicolor dreams

Of black and white people

Harry was panting, drops of sweat glistened on his face. "Hermione?" He grabbed Neville's cloak, pulling him close. "Is she here? Where is she?"

Neville stared at his long time friend, not knowing what to say or how to act in the face of Harry's weakness...

The earth trembled below the two Gryffindor boys, and a shining yellow aura emanated from a spot before them. Quickly the yellow aura became brighter and brighter, forming a large ball of energy and then it exploded, blinding Neville and Harry for a moment before they were able to see again. Harry couldn't believe what he saw now before him.

A turtle, surrounded by the yellow aura, and whose size would make even giants look like dwarfs, smiled down at him.

And well, just to make things a little more bizarre, the turtle spoke, "IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME, WARRIOR."

The Turtle's voice reverberated in Harry's ears.

"STAND UP, WARRIOR. DOWN THERE IS NOT YOUR PLACE, BECAUSE FOR YOU IS MEANT ONLY THE HIGHEST."

"Come on, Harry. I'll help you," said Neville as he helped him to stand. Harry could only feel the pain that felt like he was being crushed alive by an invisible force. The pain was so intense that he could barely process what was happening. Was a giant turtle talking with them?

One boy head strong

Thinks that living here's just plain

He's pushed down so hard

You can hear him start to sink

Watching Harry's difficult to stand, the turtle smiles faded. "NOW I SEE WHAT SHE SEES. YOU ARE WEAK. THESE HUMANS EMOTIONS MAKE YOU WEAK. YOU CAN'T CONTROL YOUR POWERS AND THIS HUMAN BODY IS TOO FRAGILE TO WITHSTAND ALL OF IT."

Not understanding anything anymore Harry used the last of his strength to ask the question it was throbbing in his head. "Who are you?"

"I'M NOT WHO. I'M NOT A PERSON."

The yellow aura was slowly diminishing.

"I'M ONE OF THE SEVEN."

The turtle was getting smaller and smaller as the energy lowered its level.

"I'M A GUARDIAN OF THIS WORLD. I'M A GUARDIAN OF THIS LIFE."

The turtles morphed into a tall bald Oriental man, in yellow traditional Chinese robes.

"And I'm here at your service, Oh Great Warrior." The man bowed at them.

Harry leaned more heavily on Neville as his legs weren't able to fully support his own weight anymore. He looked down at the man who bowed before them and up at Neville. "Are you this Great Warrior he is talking about?"

"No, I am not, Harry," replied Neville, a distant look in his eyes.

And it's one last round of petty conversation

You hold on boy 'cuz

You won't go down like this?

Just roll over

Lay down till it's more than you can take

"Well, neither am I." Harry said, closing his eyes and pushing back the pain. He could no longer waste his time. He had to find Hermione. He looked at the man who was still down in one of his knees before them. "Look, Mr....Turtle, I'm sorry but you see he's Neville Longbottom. - a really great guy and a really good fighter against evil, but no Great Warrior. And me, I'm Harry Potter, I'm the Boy-Who-Lived, Heir of Gryffindor and a very powerful wizard, but nope, definitely no Great Warrior. So I think you in the wrong story here. So, if you could just tell me where is the exit out of this place..."

The man stood up, looking Harry in the eye. "I'm not in the wrong story; you are. You are not the Boy-Who-Lived." he said, looking then at Neville. "He is. Or at least he should have been. It was his destiny. And you changed it."

Harry was taken aback with those words. However, he knew that idea was absurd. He knew Neville could have been the Boy-Who-Lived. Dumbledore had told that to him years ago but still in the end, he was the chosen one. He looked up at Neville and to his surprise he saw that Neville was not even a bit surprised - like he already knew.

The Boy, or better, the man who was always losing his toad, smiled weakly at Harry. "I have to thank you, Harry. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you."

Confused, Harry stared at Neville. The turtle-man approached him. "You have the power to change all their destinies, but yet you can't change your own."

Harry faced him. "I don't know what you are talking about."

"You will, in time. ... Do you mind?" asked the man, already taking away Harry's glasses.

"Hey, my glasses --" Harry began to protest, but as soon as his glasses left his face the pain he had been fighting back surfaced again.

If it's just that you're weak

Can we talk about it

It's gettin' so damn creepy

Just nursing this ghost of chance

The fiction, the romance

And the Technicolor dreams

Of black and white people

The mysterious man played with Harry's glasses in his fingers. "It's a really nice piece of work, don't you think? It was not an easy choice. We thought about a medallion first or a ring, but that was used many times before - it was just too obvious. Then we tried a watch, but that didn't work out either... Oh yes, you made things very difficult for us. In the end the glasses were the perfect choice. The glasses prevented you from seeing the real extent of your powers; it prevented you from unleashing them again."

There was now a humming in Harry's head.

So one more day down

And everybody's changin'

One soft sweet sound

Is just enough to clear my head

The man held the glasses tightly in his hand. "In this pair of glasses flows the power of the five remnant Guardians. It cost us dearly -- more than any human can understand -- but we had to protect you from yourself..."

Thousands of voices began echoing in his mind. Millions of hearts were beating with Harry's.

"Or perhaps, that was our first mistake," said the man, suddenly smashing Harry's glasses. Five different auras were released...Harry's trademarks glasses puffed into thin air.

"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!" Harry screamed in agony, a wave of energy exploding out from within him.

Neville stood back. Harry's body levitated in the air. Green light bolts were coming out of his eyes.

"AHHHHHHH!!!"

If it's just that you're weak

Can we talk about it

It's gettin' so damn creepy

Just nursing this ghost of chance

The fiction, the romance

And the Technicolor dreams

Of black and white people

Neville winced, seeing Harry in pain. "You have to do something," he turned to the man who kept a calm face through all of this, just as Dumbledore would. "It's killing him."

"Don't be stupid. He can't die. He shouldn't even be alive in the first place."

"Wow. Right," Neville soothed a little.

"But he better start controlling it or he is going to kill all of us."

"Sorry?" Neville turned to the man, flabbergasted.

The man, guardian, turtle or whatever he was, grinned as they were blinded by a green light, a powerful, tender and at the same time destructive aura that was expanding, covering everything ...

We are black and white people

We are black and white people

We are black and white people

Should that be the end?

Aren't you tired of this story that makes no sense at all?

*************************************

Scene XXVII - The Silence of the Lambs

"Let me see, we have Evil Dumbledore back, a destroyed rose, a cat which is not a cat, a keeper, a warrior, dragons and demons making a party in our garden, cowardly magical creatures running to the paradise and a few billion of humans totally screwed up...Am I forgetting something, elf?" Draco asked sarcastically.

can anybody fly this thing?
before my head explodes
before my head starts to ring
we've been living life inside a bubble
we've been living life inside a bubble

"The magical creatures are not cowards. The elves and other creatures have been here on this earth for centuries before the appearance of the first human, the first wizard. We know magic; true magic. We don't need wands and staffs like your kind do. Your rules don't apply to us. They never did. That's why even with magic unbalanced we can still manage to do a little of magic. That's how Dobby apparated to help Miss. Dobby knew the Dark Guardian was coming to get her. And although this was not my race's fight, this is Dobby friend's fight, which made it Dobby's fight..." Dobby paused, lowering his head. "Magical creatures not cowards. They are just answering the calling of the guardians..."

"And why would you answer their calling? What did they do to help you and your kind when my kind enslaved you? They didn't call you then, did they?" Malfoy asked angrily.

this comfiness in you
this comfiness in me
this comfiness in a high speed
in high speed

Dobby stared at Malfoy. "They did call us. They are always calling us. It was us that forgot how to listen to them..."

Malfoy eyed Dobby. "And now you can listen to them again."

can anybody stop this thing?
before my head explodes
before my head starts to ring
you've been living life inside a bubble
you've been living life inside a bubble

"Yes, we can. They warned us about the danger that was coming; they told us about the spell and about Harry Potter, helped us remember what was longer forgotten. They told us about the power of the enemy."

"I get the impression that when you talk about the enemy you are not talking about Pettigrew."

this comfiness in you
this comfiness in me
this comfiness in a high speed
in high speed

"No. Dobby is talking about the one who resurrected him; the one who wants to bring Voldemort back."

"The woman I saw at the Chamber?" Ginny opened her mouth for the first time.

Dobby shook his head. "She is not a woman. She is One of the Seven. But you also know her as Nagini."

***************************************

Scene XXVIII - The Neverending Story

Come on hold my hand

I wanna contact the living

Not sure I understand

This role I've been given

He saw the symbols. And this time he recognized them. He heard the story although no one was talking with him. There were no words. An unspoken language. A silent melody. The breath of Earth.

I sit and talk to God

And he just laughs at my plans

My head speaks a language

I don't understand

He was starting to understand... to remember the truth...to remember his true destiny.

It was too much...too many lives... too many souls...too many hearts... too many feelings...

But there was something more. Something that was calling to him. Something diverting his attention from all those symbols... Something he was trying to reach...

I just wanna feel real love

Fill the home that I live in

'Cause I got too much life

Running through my veins

Going to waste

The green aura was quickly sucked to its place of origin: Harry.

His feet touched the ground again and slowly he opened his eyes.

His eyes were dull. They were the reflection of his inner sorrow.

The Chinese man shared the same look as Harry. Neville stayed quietly at his side.

"What happened? What was -- my glasses?" Harry said his hands automatically going to his face. He realized his wearing any glasses, which was strange because he could now see Neville's and Mr. Guardian Man face's with a clarity he had never before. "I don't need them..."

"You never did." The man turned to Neville . "Give it to him."

Neville fingered his pocked, looking for something. He took a small red velvet box from it, handing it to Harry.

I don't wanna die

But I ain't keen on living either

Before I fall in love

I'm preparing to leave her

"What is this?" Harry asked, looking curiously at the small box in Neville's hand.

"Whatever it is, I hope it's worth it, I almost became Dragon's dessert because of it."

Harry didn't take the box; instead he looked at the Guardian for an answer, who smiled enigmatically. "I'm giving you what you always wanted. I'm giving you a choice."

"A choice? About what?" Harry asked

"About the truth."

"The truth? The truth about what?"

The man smiled at Harry again, a mysterious twinkle in his eyes. "In this small box is the key to the truth you have been seeking."

Neville handed the box to Harry again. This time he took it.

The Guardian went on with his speech, "You have two choices. You can open the box and find out what is in your heart and live an eternity knowing what you can't have. Or you can choose to ignore the truth, never open the box, living in an eternal bliss, never knowing what you are missing."

Harry frowned. "This doesn't seem like a choice to me. Either way I lose."

I Scare myself to death

That's why I keep on running

Before I've arrived

I can see myself coming

"Oh, no. It is a choice. You have a choice. It's just that sometimes, in life, the choices we make really make no difference to our fates."

"I don't believe in this. I believe the choices we make always count."

The man shook his head thoughtfully. "You surely have become too much a human."

"I am human. I am Harry Potter. I am the son of Lily and James Potter. I studied at Hogwarts. I'm a wizard and I am a teacher. I love Quidditch and I love to fly. I have the two most wonderful best friends in the entire world.. I don't care what you say or do; nothing is going to change that. That is the Truth. I'm not this warrior or whatever you think I am. I'm Harry, okay? Just Harry."

The man shook his head again. "You keep fighting your destiny. Even without your glasses you don't see it, you don't want to see it, and you deny it. Why? I never understood why you wish to be like them; why you want to be human."

I just wanna feel real love

Fill the home that I live in

'Cause I got too much life

Running through my veins

Going to waste

And I need to feel real love

And a life ever after

I cannot give it up

Harry clenched the little box on his palm. A twilight in his soul chilled his thoughts.

I just wanna feel real love

Fill the home that I live in

I got too much love

Running through my veins

To go to waste

The Guardian sighed, "All these emotions... all these human feelings. It's a Gift and at the same time, a Curse. I just hope you make the right choice, for our sake and theirs..." The man turned and started walking away.. "Although there's no right choice here..."

I just wanna feel real love

In the life ever after

There's a hole in my soul

You can see it in my face

It's a real big place

The enigmatic man was engulfed by the yellow aura again and in a blink of an eye the figure of the man changed back to the form of the giant turtle.

Soon the aura increased covering everything, including Harry and Neville.

Teary

Since that day

Forever

Feel

"JUST REMEMBER THIS. WHAT YOU THINK IS PAST IS FUTURE ALTHOUGH THE FUTURE IS ALREADY PAST," the Turtle's voice echoed for one last time.

Come and hold my hand

I wanna contact the living

Not sure I understand

This role I've been given

Not sure I understand

Not sure I understand

Not sure I understand

Not sure I understand

*******************************

Scene XXIX - Mission Impossible

Come to me now

And lay your hands over me

Even if it's a lie

Say it will be alright

And I shall believe

"So what are we going to do now? How..."

I'm broken in two

And I know you're on to me

That I only come home

When I'm so all alone

But I do believe

"How can we fight something like that?" Draco's words echoed in the room..

That not everything is gonna be the way

You think it ought to be

It seems like every time I try to make it right

It all comes down on me

Please say honestly you won't give up on me

And I shall believe

And I shall believe

Silence proceeded to cover the chamber as the echoes died, broken only by the soft bubbling of cauldrons.

Open the door

And show me your face tonight

I know it's true

No one heals me like you

And you hold the key

Draco looked at Dobby, who looked at Snape, who looked at Ginny, who looked at Hermione...

Never again

would I turn away from you

I'm so heavy tonight

But your love is alright

And I do believe

Hermione didn't look at anyone. She wore a distant look and then whispered. "I don't know. I really don't know. But we have to find a way."

That not everything is gonna be the way

You think it ought to be

It seems like every time I try to make it right

It all comes down on me

Please say honestly

You won't give up on me

And I shall believe

I shall believe

********************************

Scene XXX - The Man Who Wasn't There

Welcome to the planet

Welcome to existence

Everyone's here

Everyone's here

Everybody's watching you now

Everybody waits for you now

What happens next

What happens next

"Harry? What are you waiting for? Haven't you been listening? We must find a way out of here. We have to find Ginny and Hermione."

Harry blinked. In front of him were Ron, his brothers, Luna, Hermione's parents and family.

Was it all in his imagination what had just occurred?

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

Like today never happened

Today never happened before

"Harry? What happened with your glasses?" asked Bill Weasley. "Weren't you just wearing them a minute ago?"

"I was walking down the street wearing glasses when the prescription ran out," sung Luna.

Or maybe it had been real...

Welcome to the fallout

Welcome to resistance

The tension is here

The tension is here

Between who you are and who you could be

Between how it is and how it should be

"What is that in your hand?" asked Ron eyeing him suspiciously.

He felt something at the palm of his hand. He looked down. The red velvet box the Guardian had given to him.

Or maybe there's no difference between reality and imagination...

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

I dare you to lift yourself up off the floor

I dare you to move

I dare you to move

Like today never happened

Today never happened before

"Life is like a box of chocolates... you never know what you're gonna get." Luna grinned at him.

"Can't you just shut up!" Ron yelled at her, turning again to his friend. "Harry? Are you--"

Ron stopped when he saw Harry unsheathing the Gryffindor sword. There was an strange twinkle in Harry's eyes and the sword glowed and with only one blow, a fissure opened that seemed like a slit in a cardboard was visible to all their eyes. They could all see the stone walls of Hogwarts' Forbidden Room at the other side.

"Harry, wait!" Ron called as his friend crossed the fissure. He was about to follow him when someone grabbed his arm.

"Let him go."

Ron and all the others turned to face this newcomer.

"Neville?"

The fissure disappeared.

Maybe redemption has stories to tell

Maybe forgiveness is right where you fell

Where can you run to escape from yourself?

Where you gonna go?

Where you gonna go?

Salvation is here

***************************************

Scene XXXI -Titanic ( because when the perfect "ship" is broken, eventually the separated "parts" sink)

He was sat on the windowsill of one of the Astronomy Tower windows' -- looking intensely at the little box in his hands.

The night becomes the dawn

To prove that love goes on

It's written in the stars and in my heart of hearts

With you is where I still belong

She was sat at a table in one of the Malfoy Manor's balcony -- looking though the HRH book.

Through every page we turn

Each lesson that we've learned

Will finally set us free or bring us to our knees

But love is right and never wrong

He sighed.

We know we can say we gave it all

We gave it all for love

Each step of the way we gave our soul

We gave it all for love. All for love

She sighed.

In silent prayers I pray

What words could never say

To reach into your heart

No matter where you are

To promise we will find a way

Angry, she threw the book and all her parchments away.

To walk the road we've known

The road that leads us home

A million dreams

I've dreamed in every one I've seen

The face of you and you alone

His frustration released waves of energy, blowing up all the telescopes.

We know we can say we gave it all

We gave it all for love

Each step of the way we gave our soul

We gave it all for love. All for love

She sighed.

A lifetime goes by so fast

For the secrets that remain

Soon the future becomes the past

When I hold you again.

I'm gonna hold you forever

He sighed.

In silent prayers I pray

What words could never say

To reach you through the dark

To reach deep into your heart

And promise we will find a way

She learned on the stone wall of the balcony contemplating the first rays of sun.

As night becomes the dawn

To prove that love goes on

He looked trough the window - the first lights from the sun illuminating his features.

Through every page we turn

Each lesson that we've learned

She noticed a figure approaching the manor -- An Unicorn.

Will finally set us free or bring us to our knees

But love is right and never wrong

He opened the box.

We give it all for love

********************************************************************