The Greatest Power

Chapter 13: O.W.L.s

The first day of the last week of summer was brilliantly bright and hot, not that Harry really noticed - he had not been outside of Number 12, Grimmauld Place since his arrival over a month before. Up until today, he hadn't really minded. He had Ron, Hermione, and Ginny to keep him occupied, Moony to talk to, and the interest of trying to listen in on several Order meetings. This had become even more difficult, as Fred and George were now full members of the Order, and with their newfound sense of responsibility, they had refused to lend the others a set of Extendable Ears and would not tell them what happened in the meetings. Surprisingly, the business-savvy twins had even declined Harry's offer to buy sets of them for himself, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. "Sorry, mate," George had insisted. "Order rules, you know. We're not even selling them in the shop...imagine if Draco Malfoy got hold of a set."

Harry was in a rather bad mood this morning. Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Molly were all going to Diagon Alley today to buy their new school things. Despite his persistent nagging and offers to go under his Invisibility Cloak, Remus and Dumbledore had denied Harry's request that he be allowed to go with the others. All of his friends had offered to stay, but he told them that there was no reason they should be cooped up just because he had to be. Strangely, Ginny had seemed almost disappointed.

"Harry, hold still, dear," Molly said distractedly as she supervised a tape measure that was taking Harry's measurements for some new school robes.

"It would be much easier if you would just let me go," Harry began.

Remus broke in, "Harry, I'm sorry, but we've been through this, and our answer is final. It is just not safe for you at the moment, and it would be less safe for everyone if you went." He felt bad about appealing to Harry's need to protect his friends, but he was afraid that his charge would do something rash, and as Harry's guardian, he felt the responsibility to keep him safe even more than he had before. "Besides, you won't be alone. I'll be staying here with you, and we can have a nice time on our own for a change. I've been dying to show you some of the defense books in the library here, and to talk with you about your plans for the DA this year."

Lupin had said the magic words when he had mentioned Harry's friends, and although Harry was not happy about it, he stood still while Mrs. Weasley finished measuring him, only muttering a bit under his breath, words that sounded remarkably like "unfair" and "not a baby."

Molly and Remus exchanged amused smiles behind Harry's back. Even though they felt bad that he could not go with the rest of his friends, his stubborn arguments and mutterings were just one more bit of proof that Harry was indeed returning to normal, or as normal as he ever was, in any case.

Just as Molly was putting away her tape measure, Hermione came rushing into the room, followed closely by Ron and Ginny. "Harry, they're here! The O.W.L. results are finally here!" She handed Harry a large parchment envelope addressed in Professor McGonagall's distinctively spiky handwriting and signature green ink.

"It's about time, too," Molly commented, smiling at the looks of nervous anticipation on Ron, Hermione, and Harry's faces as they held their letters, hardly daring to open them. "Minerva promised me they would be here this morning, before we left for Diagon Alley. They've taken longer this year because so many of the professors are working for the Order, I suppose."

Ron and Hermione cast sympathetic looks at Harry at the mention of the day's outing, but Ginny did not even seem to notice her mother's words. She was examining her envelope. Even though hers would not contain O.W.L. results, of course, she felt a strange sense of anticipation, and she couldn't put her finger on why the letter was making her so nervous.

"OK, you three...what are you waiting for? Ronald, I certainly hope you have done better than your brothers!" Mrs. Weasley was almost as nervous as the sixth years. She always wanted her children to do well, and she also hoped that this would be one more accomplishment that Harry could be proud of.

Ron, Harry, and Hermione ripped open their envelopes in unison, and for a few moments, there was silence but for the crinkling of parchment as they read their results.

"Well?" Molly prompted. Slowly, Harry, Ron, and Hermione looked up. She looked into their faces. Hermione, of course, looked ecstatic. They had all expected her to do very well, of course. Ron had a smile on his face, too, but Harry looked befuddled.

Ron gave his mother his results, and it seemed for a moment as if she were going to jump up and down in delight. "Oh, Ronnie! How wonderful! Eight O.W.L.s! Oh, I'm so proud of you!" It was immediately evident that Mrs. Weasley had been rather worried that Ron would not perform well on his O.W.L.s, and she was immensely pleased that, out of nine O.W.L.s taken, Ron had passed eight.

Harry looked down at his parchment again, convinced that something would have changed since a moment before.

Dear Mr. Potter,

We are pleased to inform you of the results of your O.W.L. examinations taken in June at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please remember the scoring standard as you read your results:

O - Outstanding

E - Exceeds Expectations

A - Acceptable

P - Poor

D - Dreadful

Scores of O, E, and A constitute a pass on each exam.

Scores for Harry James Potter, Number 4, Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey, are as follows:

Transfiguration: E

Defense Against the Dark Arts: O

Herbology: E

Care of Magical Creatures: O

Potions: O

Astronomy: A

Charms: O

Divination: P

History of Magic: A

Congratulations on your achievement of 8 O.W.L.s, Mr. Potter, with an overall score of Exceeds Expectations.

Sincerely,

Griselda Marchbanks

Also enclosed was Harry's annual school letter and booklist. Surprisingly enough, however, the book list was completely blank. The reason for this was revealed as he read his letter from Professor McGonagall.

Dear Mr. Potter,

Enclosed please find the results of your O.W.L examinations. Please choose which six N.E.W.T.-level classes you wish to take in your sixth term at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and indicate them on the checklist of classes available to you below.

As always, the Hogwarts Express will be leaving Kings Cross Station, Platform 9 ¾, at precisely 11 a.m. on September 1. I trust the remainder of your holiday has gone well, and look forward to seeing you at the start-of-term feast.

Sincerely,

Professor M. McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

"Which classes are you going to take, mate?" asked Ron. "I can only drop one - I only scored an 'E' on Potions, so that class isn't listed on my checklist. Did you make it?"

Harry nodded, not quite sure how he had achieved an "O" on his potions exam. Had Dumbledore had anything to do with these scores? He checked the list again, sure he had read it incorrectly. Harry remembered how much easier it had been to perform well on his Potions exam without Snake hovering over him, insulting him, criticizing his every move, and he reckoned that must have made the difference.

"What are you going to drop, then?" he asked Ron.

"Well, I didn't pass Divination -"

"Me either." Harry interrupted, the small traces of grin on his face. "So that's out."

"So I guess I'll drop History of Magic. Pretty useless class, anyway," Ron finished, and Harry nodded his agreement.

"I'll drop Binns as well," he decided. "Only, I have to drop one more. What do you think, Hermione?"

Hermione was staring at her checklist. "Six?" she exclaimed incredulously. "Only six?" I've got 12 O.W.L.s! How in the world am I to choose only six? I'll be needing to talk to Professor McGonagall, of course, she couldn't possibly expect..."

"Hermione," Ron protested, "N.E.W.T.-level classes are really difficult...and they are all double periods. Remember what happened third year."

Hermione glared at him and did not answer. She did not like to be reminded of the stress she had caused herself by using a time-turner and taking way too many classes.

Just as Harry had decided that he was going to drop Astronomy to make sure that he took all of the courses required to become an Auror, and that he would still be able to take Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid, he heard another squeal from Mrs. Weasley and quickly looked up from his booklist, which had magically listed the required texts for his chosen classes as he had checked them off the list.

Ginny, in addition to holding her school letter, was holding a red and gold prefect's badge in her right hand. She was smiling, but looked flabbergasted all the same. She had forgotten about the prefect's badge in the face of the difficulties Harry had been having, but she supposed that was why she had felt nervous when she had gotten her letter. Being the youngest of seven children, four of whom had already been made prefects, she felt a considerable amount of pressure to live up to her older brothers. She knew Fred and George would tease her mercilessly, but she was happy with her achievement all the same.

Mrs. Weasley was beaming more brightly than she had since Ron had made prefect the year before. "Look at all of you! Ron and Harry with 8 O.W.L.s apiece, Hermione with 12, and Ginny a prefect! Oh, this is such wonderful news! Of course, we'll have a celebration tonight, after we get back!"

Remus was smiling too as he shook Ron's hand, congratulated Hermione and Ginny, and clapped Harry proudly on the shoulder. "That's excellent, you four."

"Oh, we have to get going!" Mrs. Weasley exclaimed suddenly. "Ron, Hermione, Ginny...if we're going to do all of our shopping and get back in time to plan a celebratory dinner, then we need to leave now! And I need to send Errol to tell Arthur!"

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all looked sadly at Harry, seeing that his smile as he had finally realized that he had gotten the O.W.L.s he needed to become and Auror was fading.

"Listen, mate," Ron began. "Mum can do our shopping - she has in the past. How about we all just stay here and have some chess..." Harry could tell Ron was trying to help, but he could see that the prospect of staying at headquarters for the day was not one that Ron enjoyed.

"No, it's alright," he muttered, and then looked up, trying to smile at them. "But I fully expect you to tell me all about Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, and bring me back some ice cream from Florean Fortescue's, and tell me if there's a new broomstick out at Quality Quidditch Supplies..." he trailed off. He wanted to make his friends feel better about going, so he had made his voice as casual as possible, but listing all of the things he would miss made him wish all the more that he could go.

"Harry..." Ginny started.

"No, really, guys," he said, smiling a smile he didn't feel. "Go on. You've been cooped up here with me long enough! I think I can manage for one day, and besides, Moony will be here with me." Because of course I can't ever be alone, he thought bitterly. His bad mood, which had lifted when he got the O.W.L. results, had quite returned.

With sympathetic glances back at Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all followed Mrs. Weasley out the door and down to the kitchen to head to Diagon Alley. After the sound of their footsteps on the stairs had died down, he left the drawing room to return to his bedroom. Suddenly he didn't feel like doing anything but lying in bed and staring at the ceiling.

After waiting a few more moments, Moony quietly followed him down the hall, but he did not go into Harry's bedroom. Sensing correctly that Harry would resent his presence right then, but unwilling to leave the boy completely alone, Remus sat on the floor outside the bedroom door, pulled a small leather-bound book from his pocket, and began to read, keeping his ears open for anything amiss in the room behind him.

* * *

Harry closed the bedroom door, hoping that Moony would take the hint and not follow him in, and flopped onto his back on the bed. It felt very strange to be alone, as he'd had constant company since his arrival at Headquarters. Strange as it was, though, Harry was glad to have some time to think. Part of him wished he had held the others to their offers to stay here with him, but he didn't want to spoil everyone's fun, and besides, they were safer without him. For the first time in awhile, Harry found himself going over the prophecy once again.

"For neither can live while the other survives..."

Harry knew that it was highly unlikely that he would survive the final battle with Voldemort, a duel that was prophesied to end in one of their deaths. Voldemort was so much more powerful than he, Harry, was. He had been a wizard for more than half a century, and Harry had only five short years of training. Harry chuckled, but it was not a mirthful sound. It was hard, and bitter, and very unlike him. How could anyone think that he would be able to take down the Dark Lord?

'All I'm good for,' Harry thought, 'is putting the people I care for in danger. That's it. There's just nothing else for it.'

Thoughts of Sirius filled his head as he looked at the ceiling of his godfather's old bedroom. 'This is where Sirius grew up,' he thought. He knew that Sirius' childhood had been, in its own way, as miserable as his own. And because of Harry, Sirius had lost his best friend, the only family he had, and then had lost his own life.

Harry's eyes welled up with tears. After the attack on his sixteenth birthday, he had shown very little real emotion. He was just too drained to feel, sometimes. Keeping himself distracted had been fairly easy, but alone for the first time in weeks, the despair that he had felt while on Privet Drive returned to him.

"It's you, Harry. It's always been you. I died because of it. I died because of you."

No matter what Moony and Mrs. Weasley said, Harry still felt crushing guilt when he thought of his godfather. And now that he knew about the prophecy, he knew that the people around him would constantly be in danger. They always had been, but now, knowing that he was a marked man, Harry finally understood the reality of the situation. This was war, and he was right in the center of it.

"Your godfather won't be the last to die..."

Visions of Sirius falling through the veil and flashes of the dead faces of his friends overwhelmed him once again. Voldemort was not doing this to him. This was Harry's mind, Harry's fear, Harry's guilt - not all negative emotions came from He Who Must Not Be Named. Harry and the others had been concentrating so hard on keeping Voldemort out of his mind that they had all but forgotten that Harry had issues of his own to deal with as well.

'How am I going to do it?' Harry thought desperately. 'I couldn't even perform the Cruciatus Curse on Bellatrix Lestrange right after Sirius died. How am I going to perform a killing curse?' The weight of the world was on his shoulders.

For the first time since his birthday, Harry began to sob quietly. He wished they would all just leave him alone, stay out of his life, because to be near him was to be marked for death, or worse.

* * *

Remus sat outside the room, his reading forgotten, wondering what Harry was thinking about, or if he had simply gone to sleep. He had known that the day without his friends was going to be hard for Harry. They had been the only ones who could distract him from his troubles, who could make him smile. Harry and Moony had become closer in the past few weeks than they had ever been, but Remus was not a teenager, and he knew that Harry needed their jokes, their teasing, and their antics to make him feel normal, even happy.

Remus sat for a few more minutes, and had just decided to run downstairs to get a cup of tea and the chess set for himself and for Harry when he heard the quiet sobs coming from inside the bedroom. He knew Harry was not being attacked - these were not the violent sounds that accompanied that. Should he go to him, or let him have this time to himself, which was clearly what he wanted?

'No,' Remus thought decisively. 'Harry may think he wants to be alone, but he should not be alone right now. He needs to talk this out, or it is going to eat away at him until there is nothing left.' He stood up, brushed the dust off his robes, and quietly knocked on the door.

"Harry?" he called. "It's me, it's Moony. May I come in?"

"Just leave me alone, Moony," Harry answered roughly, his voice broken by sobs.

Of course, asking permission to come in had only been a formality, and Remus opened the door softly. "Sorry, Harry, I won't do that."

Harry sat up on the bed and glared at Moony through the tears that were still streaming down his face. "Lupin," he said, his voice hoarse but fierce. "I don't want you here. I want to be left alone. Can't you people give me five minutes of peace?"

The older man noticed that Harry had called him "Lupin" and not "Moony" as he had become accustomed to, and he was slightly stung, but he understood immediately what Harry was trying to do. "Is this peace, Harry?" he asked gently. "Are you really feeling peaceful right now?" He moved towards the bed and made to touch Harry's shoulder, but Harry jerked away, refusing to look at his guardian.

"Harry," Remus sighed, sitting down in the familiar armchair next to the bed. "I think you need to - "

"To talk?" Harry interrupted rudely. "You always think I need to talk."

"Harry, this is going to eat away at you if you don't talk about it."

"And what, exactly, do you think you know about it?" Harry's response was hard and unfeeling, and his tears had quite stopped as his desperation had turned to anger.

Remus closed his eyes for a moment, unable to look at the unmasked pain on Harry's face. He had hoped that the boy would tell him about the prophecy, that he would not have to reveal that he already knew. He hadn't wanted Harry to feel that Dumbledore had betrayed his trust, but now, clearly, Harry needed to know that there was someone he could talk to about it, that there was someone else who knew.

"Harry, I know," Remus said softly, his voice full of implied meaning.

Harry's eyes widened slightly behind his glasses, which had fogged slightly from his tears. "You...know?" Surely, Moony was not referring to the prophecy. He probably meant that he knew what Harry was feeling about Sirius.

As if reading his mind, Lupin placed his hand on Harry's forearm, and this time, Harry did not pull away. "Yes, Harry, I know about the prophecy. Dumbledore told me after I was made your guardian and you were brought back here to stay with us." His words were gentle, almost whispered, as he searched Harry's face for his reaction.

Instead of the anger he had expected, Harry's eyes became sad once again. "Then you know why it is so dangerous to be my friend, Moony. You know what I have to do."

"Yes, Harry, I know what you have to do."

"Then why are you still here? You should be as far away from me as you can be, Moony. I won't let anything happen to you, I won't lose anyone else! It's me, it's always been me, and there is nothing you can do about it, so stop putting yourself in danger trying to protect me! Voldemort is going to kill me, it's the only way this can end, don't you see that?" Harry's voice rose in pitch as he finally put words to the thoughts that had been in the back of his mind since the beginning of summer.

"Harry," Remus spoke urgently, very alarmed at the thoughts that had been running through his charge's head all this time. He had suspected that this was how Harry had been feeling, but to hear Harry, himself, say that he was going to die at Voldemort's hand was more than Remus could bear. "You say you can't lose anyone else, Harry? Well, neither can I. You are all I have left, and you can be damn sure that I am going to do everything in my power to protect you. You are not alone. I will be there with you every step of the way." Moony's words came out in a torrent as he tried desperately to make Harry realize that he would not be pushed away.

"But Moony," Harry said, his voice growing softer once again, "it's me. You heard the prophecy. I have to do it alone. It's always been me. Sirius said..." his voice trailed off.

"Sirius said what, Harry?"

"He said that he died because of it, that my parents died because of it. They all died because of me. And I won't let that happen to you, Moony. Or to Ron, or Hermione, or Ginny, or anyone else!"

Remus knew, of course, that Harry could not have talked to Sirius since he had died. He must be referring to the nightmares he had been having all summer. "Harry, Sirius didn't say that. That was your mind putting words into Sirius' mouth. It's how dreams work. You know that."

Harry nodded. 'I must sound so stupid,' he thought, 'talking about a dream as if it were real.'

"Harry, listen to me, please," Remus began, searching desperately for the right words. "It may well be your destiny to be the one who defeats Voldemort, but that doesn't mean that we won't be right next to you, fighting with you. You don't have to bear this alone. You can't bear it alone. No one could."

Harry didn't say anything. He wanted to believe Moony, he wanted to know that he wasn't alone in this, but his need to protect the people he loved was too strong for him to allow himself to hope for help from his friends.

"I know what you are thinking, Harry," Remus said softly. "And, as I have told you before, you are not going to be able to stop us fighting for you, fighting with you. And we will succeed, Harry. You will succeed. You are one of the most powerful wizards I have ever known."

Harry laughed hoarsely. "Me?" he asked incredulously. "Voldemort would have killed me in the Department of Mysteries if Dumbledore hadn't gotten involved. I'm no match for him."

"That's what you don't understand," Remus replied. "If you are going to accept the part of the prophecy that says that either you, or Voldemort, will have to die at the hands of the other, then you have to accept the rest of it, the part that says you do have the power to vanquish him."

Harry had never considered it from this angle before. He had to admit that it made some sense, but he still could not think of what power he had that made him the one who would kill Voldemort. "But I don't know how," he whispered.

"And that is what we are here for, Harry. Not only will we fight alongside you, but we are going to prepare you for your fight as well. The power within you, once harnessed, will be more than enough to do what you have to do. I've seen your power, Harry, and even before I knew the prophecy, I knew just how strong a wizard you were. And we will not let you fight that fight until you are ready."

"I don't want anyone else to die," Harry said brokenly, voicing his final and most important concern.

"Harry, I can't promise you that no one else is going to die. This is a war, and in a war there are casualties. But none of us will go quietly. All of us will fight. That is the best that I can say, and for all of us, it has to be enough."

Despite himself, Harry was starting to feel, if not better, then at least calmer about his fate. He searched his guardian's eyes, and saw in them only love, and concern, and pride. No pity showed itself on Lupin's face, and it was that, if nothing else, that convinced Harry to try his hardest to learn what he needed to know. He started to feel some of the crushing weight come off his shoulders.

Lupin smiled at the determination that came over Harry's face. The boy sat up a bit straighter, and even managed a small smile. "Thank you, Moony," Harry said quietly.

"Don't thank me, Harry. Just know that if you need me, for anything, all you have to do is ask," Remus replied, hoping upon hope that this charge would finally allow himself to trust him, to rely on him. Harry needed someone, an adult, who he could confide in, who he could trust. Sirius had been that for him, and Moony thought that Harry might finally be ready to let someone else come in, not to take Sirius' place, but to pick up where he had left off.

Harry surprised Moony greatly by doing something he had never done before, not even with Sirius. He turned, and opened his arms to his guardian, hugging the man the way he imagined that he would have hugged his father, the way he had seen the Weasley boys hug theirs.

Moony's eyes misted a bit as he returned the hug, but he allowed them to dry before he broke away and looked at Harry. "Now, what do you say we go on downstairs and have lunch? I'm not much on cooking...but maybe some sandwiches and butterbeer?"

Harry grinned; for the first time in a long time, he felt hungry. He got out of bed and followed Moony out of the room, but he could not have possibly prepared himself for what his guardian would say as they were tromping down the stairs.

"So, Harry," Moony said with the faintest trace of amusement in his voice. "About Ginny..."