Book of Memories

HARRY POTTER AND THE BOOK OF MEMORIES (DRAFTING)

-1. The Trap*

-2. The Boy Who Lived

-3. Order Of Merlin

-4. One Last Gift

-5. Michelle And Thantanos

-6. The Best Birthday

-7. Chasing The Puffskein

-8. Ron's Prediction

-9. Girl Trouble

-10. The Patient

-11. Finding Peace

-12. Cho

-13. Pettigrew's Plea

-14. Four-way Fight

-15. Dumbledore's Mistake

-16. A Bad Christmas

-17. A Decision Solidified

-18. The Conversation

-19. Some New Hope

-20. The Revival

-21. Fluffy And The Phoenix Bracelet

-22. Harry's Dream

-23. Horrible Prospects

-24. Dumbledore's Other Mistake

-25. Resilience

Not all chapters available. Those included have an asterisk (*).

Chapter 1: THE TRAP

"RUN!"

Something screamed at Harry at the top of its lungs from behind a tree. His eyes opened. There was not much choice so he scrambled to his feet and ran for it. Not a clue in his mind could explain how he survived the Killing Curse only moments ago. The pain in his body, except for the sharp stings in his back, was completely gone but he was now stranded in the forest, no one anywhere in sight to help him get out. His legs carried him with lightning speed. Eerie sounds of the forest didn't hold him back.

Immediate thoughts were of hopelessness but the voice screamed again, "KEEP RUNNING! YOU'LL MAKE IT!" For a minute, he realized why he was running. A deep, loud cry echoed through the forest with the owner having to be quite the deadly one and nearby. He dashed headlong through trees, branches, low hung thorns and vines and nearly tripped on an outstretched branch from a low tree. Harry gripped his wand tight, waiting for a moment where he might be forced to use it. The forest seemed to never end just as the other forest did. How long would he keep running? Minutes? Hours? Days? His legs were not tiring but a great feeling of desperacy crossed his heart more than once. Trapped in this bleak, dark forest, darker than the forbidden forest near Hogwarts, he thought, as the pattern of trees, branches and echoes looked to never end.

It did not take much longer before he fell to the ground suddenly in a cold sweat. "You're out," said the voice, now very calm. "Good."

Harry's eyes blinked and opened once more. That was just a dream. He was sopping wet and his back was squishy, probably covered in mud. Harry's back was still aching, a reminder that he probably did break a bone or two. The cuts on his hands healed and his scarlet Quidditch robes looked quite nasty. What was that voice? More importantly, how was he going to get out now? Maybe he could get his Dragonback.

"Accio Dragonback!" Harry screamed as loud as he could, laying on the ground.

He waited several minutesm hoping it would come, seeing it fly towards him in his head, but there was no sign of the Dragonback. It was stupid to think he could summon it from so far away, not even knowing where it could be.

He took a look at his surroundings. Trees were scorched to the stump like there had been a huge forest fire. Branches hung loose coupled with the smell of burnt wood piercing his nose. One tree was singed down to it's roots and the grass all around him was black as night. He could not have been out long... unless the damage to the forest was a lot worse than what he was seeing now.

Some hunger pains from his stomach made him realize he must have been out for a long time. He sat up and took a quick glance around. Nothing looked edible. Harry then stood up, shaking his head to get some of the mud out, plainly feeling like Voldemort should had succeeded because he was going to die of hunger anyway. He walked for about ten minutes, all the while looking for something that could be safe to stick in his mouth.

Berries lined the ground but they were covered in moss. The thought made him feel sick. Something hard fell on his head and as he scratched it, he looked down to see an apple. Strange, he thought, but nonetheless he took off the Quidditch gauntlets, picked the apple up, wiped the dirt with a sleeve and sniffed it. The smell was more than pleasant and with a final thought of "It's safe," he took a big, glorious bite.

He took a squishy seat on the ground. An indication of it having previously rain was the soggy ground and moist air. The stickiness didn't bother him at the moment because he was glad to be alive. Harry slowly finished the apple as a renewed sense of life rushed through him. That wasn't enough, though, and it left him hungry for more but the berries weren't all that inviting, to be truthful...

Harry continued his hopeless walk before sitting on a tree stump. He pulled off the ruddy cloak and tossed it angrily on the ground in front of him sitting quietly, thinking, dreaming of some way to get himself out.

A blank stare, fighting off hunger, was all he could manage for a few hours before becoming tired again. No amount of light shined through the towering tree tops and there was no way to tell if it was day or night. Hope came in the form of a powerful feeling of wanting to sleep. Harry crawled off the tree stump and held his cloak high, pointed his wand at it and said, "Ablutum!" which washed the cloak clean with a light spray of water. He repeated the process, pulling the disgusting shirt off his back, before pointing the wand at each of his legs and saying it again.

He didn't particularly want to lay on the disgusting ground but his current situtation didn't leave him with much choice. Feeling at least a little more well-kept, he searched for a spot that might be a little better to lay down on and he put his cloak on a particularly dry spot to lay his upper body on (including his head). He ignored the spiders that walked across the ground; Harry had much experience with six legged pets in his ten years not knowing he was a wizard.

Life continued when his eyes reopened. After some desperate walking to find something else to eat, Harry came across a tree that was sprouting apples. Something must have been carrying one and accidently dropped it over his head yesterday. Surviving off apples wasn't his idea of a good diet. He supposed he would have to kill an animal and cook it himself. Disgusted at the mere thought, he pondered over whether that was a very good idea. This forest was very likely to be home to brutes and beasts the likes of which he would rather not see.

Just before he finished convincing himself, something rustled the bushes behind him.

"Who's there?" he whispered, brandishing his wand and turning around fast. The bush rustled once more before a mutation between a rabbit with fangs and an elephant leapt out of the bushes and scrambled away. "Lacarnum inflamare!" he shouted. The rabbit-elephant was caught ablaze and fell limp. Harry stepped cautiously over to it and put out the fire with a water charm ("Aquor!"). The animal was surely dead but it wasn't very inviting to just take a bite out of it. He turned away and walked back to the apple tree, taking down three and eating them all in a few minutes.

Later that day, he got the idea of tossing the apple in the air, setting it on fire and then quickly putting it out. This gave them a slightly different taste and he figured he could last a few more days on them. Feeling tired again, and quite cold, he put the gauntlets back on, engorged the cloak, wrapping it around himself twice and lay down again on a relatively dry spot on the ground. A few beetles came by to say goodnight.

When he awoke, something white, soft and fluffy was sitting on his face.

"Hedwig!"

He blew some air at her and she fluttered off. Harry scrambled to his feet. The only thought he had was that they let Hedwig go out of his honor and she found him. Hedwig was in great condition, her feathers thick and fluffy, very refreshed and lively as she bounced around the ground pecking at anything that moved.

Almost immediately, Harry thought of finding something to write on and sending her back but immediately after, he had to ask himself, "What could I write on?" It was obvious, after all, to notify someone, anyone, that he was alive. Hedwig carried nothing and the only possible way would be to prick his finger with something and write with blood but as the forest didn't have anything very sharp - or clean for that matter - he'd rather not get sick and die.

That thought torn asunder, he said, "Come on, Hedwig," picking her up off the ground. "It's not very pleasant, but it's all we have at the moment." He made sure to spend all his time at the apple tree and not walk out of sight of it. Hedwig grudgingly ate one but she rather enjoyed the worm that crawled out of it. Harry would be sure to check for worms in future meals.

Night fell again and the two of them survived a heavy downpour, Harry's back still aching. He floated a concotion of a bunch of leaves just above another one, setting the bottom one on fire so as to not have the rest of the forest catch fire. The warmth heated Harry very nicely and he let it burn, throwing on more leaves and branches.

New immediate thoughts were of renewed hope. He had a companion now, at least, and was no longer fully alone. Loneliness was a feeling he had to bare for ten hard years and was not about to relive it. He would not spend the rest of his days trapped in a forest.

"I'm getting out of here!" he shouted. Harry put the fire out and fell asleep, Hedwig resting on a tuft of branches and leaves next to him.

Several more days of hopeless moping resulted in a thick feeling of depression setting in. He took to running back and forth stupidly to tire himself out so he could simply sleep the days away.

When he awoke one morning, three centaurs were staring down at him.

"Harry Potter," called one of them, like he was out of breath trying to find him, "if you remember, I am Bane. This is Ronan and Firenze. We heard what happened immediately. The planets bring word quickly. Such were the readings of Mars when you had survived again."

Harry propped himself up on his hands and gazed at them cluelessly.

"What?"

"You must get out of here and back to Hogwarts. It has been two months that you lie unconscious in this very spot."

"I've been up and about for the past few days..."

"The skies tell us that the wizarding world considers you dead," said Bane. This came to Harry as no surprise given what he just learned and has been doing his past days. "It took us two months to find you in this forest and it will probably take just as long to get out --"

"Two months!?" cried Harry, getting to his feet. "I don't know if I could last two more days."

"It is against the will of centaurs, but we will allow you to ride on our backs. That way, you might get out faster. It appears Voldemort was thrown out of power once again such like what happened fourteen years ago. His body is weak but he proclaims you have died. The planets did not read as such as I immediately set out search for you."

"So glad we are, Mr. Potter, to find you alive," said Firenze.

"No one's happier than I am to have someone find me," said Harry flatly. "Trust me." He would surely go insane and try to find ways of killing himself painlessly.

"Quickly," said Firenze, "climb on and hold tight." Harry snatched Hedwig, climbed on to Firenze's back and held Hedwig tight in one arm.

It was no broomstick. Firenze charged through the forest, bucking Harry up and down, Bane and Ronan following closely. Through thick trees, bouncing up and down and avoiding low tree branches they went... all until they came across the Balrog that had finished off Dumbledore and the others.

"Back!" barked Bane. "BACK!"

"No," said Harry sternly. "That thing killed Albus Dumbledore." The balrog made a slash at Harry's head, cleanly missing. "You three stay out of trouble. I'm killing it or going to die trying."

The centaurs seemed to have no objections. It was their opinion, Harry knew, not to interfere with another's decision. If Harry should die, they would let it happen.

"Stupid wizard," roared the balrog.

"YOU'LL DIE!" screamed Harry, not intimidated by the beast that had at least fifty feet worth of height on him.

The balrog roared and slashed at several nearby trees, uprooting them and sending them crashing into more nearby trees. Harry brandished his wand like a weapon of mass destruction, pointed it up at the balrog and bellowed, "AVADA KEDAVRA!" Green light tore out of the tip of his wand and burrowed within the balrog.

It did not fall dead and merely looked annoyed.

"You should have told me normal magic doesn't work against these things," he called out to Bane nervously.

"It is not our place to alter the planet's predictions," said Bane calmly.

"Forget you," barked Harry. "I'm getting myself out of here." Harry ducked as the stupid balrog made a pathetic slash at him.

"We are fated to help you out, Harry --"

"IF YOU'RE SO FATED THEN KILL THIS THING!" Harry thundered.

Bane, Firenze and Ronan all walked to each other, standing in circle. Bane pulled Harry in the middle of them. They all began chanting very familiar words.

"Parcere meus vita, parcere meus anima," chanted the three of them. "Accio potentia caeles intus veneficus adfirmo. Adiumentum meus via. Parcere meus vita, parcere meus anima. Addere ultimus clades ad parcere nullus altera!"

The forest turned dark, so dark Harry could no longer see anything. White blobs filled the air and a rumbling noise shook the ground. The balrog roared once more and a brilliant flash of fire indicated it's death. The darkness was lifted, Harry could see again and the centaurs look like they had just picked apples.

"Come quickly," said Firenze. Harry climbed back on and off they went.

The centaurs took Harry a fair way before stopping.

"We will rest here tonight," said Bane. "The forest, especially this forest," -- and Harry wondered what this forest is... -- "is deadly at night. Step off, Harry Potter, and go inside that hut."

Clearly through some trees, there was a hut made of wood. It was sparkling and Harry figured he could not be harmed inside. That was very comforting given the noises this part of the forest was making.

"Stay here tonight, Harry Potter. You will be safe."

This turn of events didn't exactly leave him with much choice. So in he walked. The centaurs brought real food (it was only some meat, bread and water but anything is better than apples and their juice at this point). The hut was about as big as Hagrid's, complete with a wolf skin rug on the floor where he would sleep, one very small window and a battered fireplace.

Harry sat on the rug, mindlessly stroking Hedwig. She enjoyed it all the same. He sat up, staring at the sky, which he could finally see, through a small hole in the roof. He longed to be back at Hogwarts or even back with the Dursleys but currently it all seemed like a faded dream, trapped in a forest with a bunch of crazy centaurs. Hedwig fluttered to the window and perched onto a loose wooden board.

Harry heaved a great sigh, feeling almost to tears. The sight of Lily and James he knew would stick with him all night. He wished he still had the crystal ball, the mark of ancients and the Mirror of Erised. Even if they couldn't get him out alive, he would be happy. One tear slid down a cheek, a sad reminder of the graveness of the current situation.

"I'm getting out of here!" he shouted again, before he cuddled up with the soft rug.

In the morning, Harry's throat hit the sogged floor at the sight, or lack thereof, of the centaurs. Bane, Firenze and Ronan were gone, leaving him to fend for himself once again. He kicked a tree with all his might, achieving nothing but a sharp sting in his big toe. It appeared, however, that the centaurs took the time to tend to his wounds and Harry's back no longer hurt him.

"You and me, Hedwig," he said as he rolled the food into the rug, sealed it and floated it behind him. "We're in this together. We'll make it through somehow." By the sound of her hoot, Harry could tell Hedwig nearly had enough. He was determined to not give up and on he would walk.

Were it not for the will to see someone, anyone, Harry might have already given up. Another thunderstorm rolled around, winter must be ending. He held his cloak over his head, which wasn't very good protection considering the water just leaked through it. At least they hadn't run into any more nasties since that balrog. He wondered what could have possibly happened to Bane, Ronan and Firenze... or did they just run off again. Funny that, he thought, thinking the centaurs would help him get out.

With a very welcome giggle, Harry set off again into the forest, Hedwig on his shoulder.

Before long, Harry was in familiar ground. Spiders were far more common than anywhere else and that could only mean one thing: Aragog. Aragog was a blind, very large spider that Hagrid had grown while he was at Hogwarts. Should Harry go and find Aragog? Or should be go look for the car that he and Ron smashed into the Whomping Willow and get himself out of here as fast as possible? There wasn't much thought that had to be put into it. The trail was nearby but he wasn't sure he could find it so he walked aimlessly.

After a few minutes, the path he didn't wish to take was the one he ended up taking and in front of him stood the nest of Aragog and said spiders. The huge spiders, with their hairy legs and pincers, clicked madly as he stood only partially frozen this time. He had escaped becoming a meal for Aragog and friends and no doubt they would not be happy to see him again. Harry pulled out his wand as the spiders closed in. Aragog scuttled out from behind a vast web.

"And what are you doing here again?" The fear that he had last time he was here was on vacation and Harry was almost perfectly calm, were it not for the terrible feeling that he might become breakfast.

"I'm lost," said Harry flatly. At first, he was standing ready to fight but he now relaxed that position and stood willing to talk peacefully. Clicks from various spiders around him were none to appealing.

"Lost?" croaked Aragog. "Tell me, human, what is your name?" A small grin crossed Harry's face.

"Harry Potter," he said calmly. Aragog looked ready to faint but instead he called on another spider to close in on Harry and lifted his bangs with a pincer, causing Harry to become very aware of his fast and deep breaths. The spider scuttled back to Aragog and whispered something to him.

"You do not lie," clicked Aragog. "How is it that you are lost?" Aragog moved away, clinging to the huge web. He called off the remaining spiders and they went back to various parts of the forest.

Harry quickly explained the entire situation, the removal of the mark of ancients, how Voldemort had obtained it, how he had Apparated Harry and himself into the forest, how he attempted to kill Harry again with the Killing Curse and about the centaurs and their arrival and most mysterious disappearance. Harry could tell of a small sense of concern amidst Aragog's questions about how he managed to survive so far.

"I want out," demanded Harry, "so I can see my friends again."

"Tell me, Harry Potter, what ever happened to the creature in the Chamber of Secrets?"

"It kidnapped a friend of mine so I went after it. While down there, a phoenix gouged its damn eyes out and I killed it." Aragog looked almost impressed.

"So - so the castle is safe?" asked the spider cautiously, clearly trying to hide the fact that he was grateful.

"Yes," snapped Harry. "Now will you help me or should I run now?"

"No," said Aragog. He fell back to the ground and advanced on Harry again, who wondered what this "no" meant. "I have heard of your good deeds. Hagrid has told me how you freed a house-elf, stopped He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, now twice, and rescued Sirius Black from wrongful imprisonment."

"Voldemort-" started Harry, but...

"SILENCE!" roared Aragog. "You shall not speak the name of that creature either."

"Fine," said Harry stubbornly. "You-Know-Who is still alive and is probably trying to find something to help himself, if he even is weak, get back to power. Help me now," he added, wondering whether he should finish the sentence, "or I'll kill you where you stand."

Aragog was taken aback by this threat. Harry didn't know whether he could actually kill the whole mess of spiders but desperacy had found it's way back to the front of his mind. He thought once more of simply falling dead asleep on his comfy bed in Gryffindor Tower, out for days on end; or running up to Cho (hoping she felt the same) and hugging her; and the biggest wish of all: being with the ones he loves. The forest was beginning to take a hit and for the second time in his life, Harry realized there was at least one person he could confide in. The cherished thought was beaten down when he remembered the state Sirius was to be in for the rest of his days.

"What are you waiting for, Harry Potter-"

"Please," interrupted Harry, "just call me Harry."

"Do you wish me to grab you or would you like to climb on my back?"

"The last time your henchmen grabbed me," said Harry feeling the animosity from their first visit, "I would have fainted had I not been held upside down. I'll take your back, thanks."

Aragog bent down, laying as flat as he could, for Harry to climb on. The back of the spider was an extremely eerie feeling: furry yet able to disgust him at the same time. Better to move faster, Harry thought, because he might lose last night's dinner after all.

Aragog did move very fast, about as fast as Harry imagined a spider of this size moving if it wanted to run. He was able to knock down loose branches with one whack of his pincers. The forest's trees forest became thinner and thinner.

At last, at so very long last, there was a heart-breaking familiar sight ahead of them: Hagrid's hut.

"Here you are, Harry," croaked Aragog. "May you succeed in killing He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named," he added hastily as he scuttled back into the forest.

Whether it was tiredness, or utter shock at finally getting out of the forest, Harry once again felt limp on the grounds inside the forbidden forest.

"I'm out," he said vaguely as his body began to fail him. "Good." Muddy, but happy, Harry's head hit the ground.

Half expecting to be laying inside the hospital wing, Harry's eyes opened when he felt consciousness creep back into him. He was still in the forest and the beautiful sight of Hagrid's hut, and Hedwig on the ground next to him, was still there as well. Harry scrambled to his feet, broke into a run to the hut and banged maniacally on the door.

There was no answer. Strange? No, he reasoned, because Hagrid could simply be up at the castle. He ran at the very same speed to the castle doors and opened them with a charm because they were clearly locked. Not caring about that either, he ran through the corridors straight to the Great Hall to find it,

"Empty," said Harry faintly. No surprise, really. Harry walked calmly, hiding the sudden feeling that all wasn't right, to Gryffindor Tower. The Fat Lady's picture was missing, as were all the other pictures he noticed, leaving the hole to the commons wide open. Had everyone been sent home and the school shut down upon word of his death?

"Come on, Hedwig," he said, "we're going to find something so you can get a letter to someone."

The closest office he knew of was Professor McGonagall's. He again ran to it, finding it was locked, then proceeded to simply break the door down. On her desk sat a quill, an ink bottle and several sheets of parchment. Harry perched Hedwig on the floor and wrote on the topmost piece of parchment feverishly. The look on everyone's faces when they knew he was alive flashed quickly across his eyes. He wrote:

Whoever gets this first,

I'm not dead, but for the first few days I wished I was. I woke up in a forest a lot scarier than the forbidden forest near Hogwarts. Don't ask me how I managed to get out, but after what had to have been at least a week, right now I'm at Hogwarts. Someone better come get me before I start climbing the walls.

Harry Potter

A small rubber band sat at a corner of the desk and a convenient piece of string stuck out of one of the drawers. Harry attached the mess to Hedwig's leg and thought for a moment who to send it to.

The Dursleys? No way, they would leave him to rot in the forest and would be caught dead entering platform nine and three-quarters. Dumbledore? Ron? Hermione? McGonagall? He saw the balrog kill them. There's no telling if their parents moved and if the Weasleys or Grangers would ever believe Harry's letter. Trelawney? Fudge? Hedwig could spend weeks finding them. Sirius? Hedwig many never find him. Lupin? Snape?

Dispirited, Harry pulled the letters off Hedwig's legs and slumped against a wall holding his legs to himself, head buried in his hands. Hogwarts is better than the forest, he told himself. He elbowed the wall hard, doing nothing but creating an excruciating pain in his elbow and relieving minimal amounts of stress. Harry sat there, sobbing in his hands, for several minutes.

Gaining some resolution, he walked back to where the Fat Lady's portrait should be and walked inside the glorious Gryffindor common room. Absolutely relieved to be where he called home, he trotted up to his dormitory.

The room was fully intact and all of his belongings were still there except the drawers had been emptied. His trunk had everything in it and was still sitting at the foot of his bed. It was probably Fudge's idea to not move it. He blushed at the thought of this room becoming a museum. Harry cleaned his clothing again as best he could (the stains were deep by now) because there was no telling how long he would spend here, if he would ever get out.

He set the gauntlets down on top of his trunk, pulled the cloak off, flung it across the room and took off the now-gross sweater. The pants would have to make do as it was chilly enough without a shirt. Mud stains all over his cloak, pants and shirt were much worse now that he had a good look at it.

Harry sat, home at last, on his own bed.

He simply laid down with no other alternatives at the moment, hands folded behind his head, legs crossed, staring at the ceiling and in total glee to be safe. There was no escaping from the horrible truth that he had no one to contact.

But it was then that the obvious hit him.

"HOGSMEADE!" he bellowed so loud that Hedwig fell off the window ledge. Harry snatched his Dragonback. "Hedwig," he added, "you'll have to stay here. I'll come back for you." She hooted and stuck an apprehensive tail up at him about how long she might have to wait.

Harry flew the Dragonback all the way out of the castle and headed towards the Hogwarts Express. He peered down. It was a gorgeous bird's eye view of the entire village of Hogsmeade. He hovered for a moment, staring down at all the fingers pointing up at him then landed in front of the Three Broomsticks.

"Look!" cried one witch before he barely walked a foot. "Doris, look! I can't believe my eyes!" A witch he barely recognized from four years ago ran up to him and started shaking his hand.

"Doris Crockford, Mr. Potter. Do you remember me?"

"No," he lied.

"He survived the Dark Lord once again!" cried a wizard from down the block, obviously staring at him. Harry felt exactly like he did when Hagrid first brought him to the Leaky Cauldron: embarassed, happy and sad all at the same time from the attention. "This day must be cherished! Cherished forever!"

Harry turned away after the maniacal wizard was done speaking and spotted something familiar. There was no mistaking the owner of that moleskin overcoat, especially considering the owner was several feet taller than everyone else.

"HAGRID!" he roared over the crowd, running over. Quite a few heads turned and he ignored all the eyes that were now staring at him.

"Harry!" he roared back. "Yer all right!" Hagrid pushed and shoved his way over to Harry, nearly knocking a few people down. "What happened?" Harry could see tears leaking out of Hagrid's beetle black eyes, disappearing in his tangled beard.

"I don't know. One minute I was in a forest with Volde " - and Hagrid gave him a glare - "You-Know-Who and casted the Killing Curse on me and I woke up in the forest... Wait a minute," added Harry, "I thought that balrog killed you?"

"Nope," said Hagrid, beaming. "Dumbledore managed to kill it before it got ter do the same ter us."

"So he's alive?" asked Harry now with heavy breath, half smiling, half in tears. "Ron? Hermione? They're all alive?"

"O' course!" Harry immediately remounted his Dragonback.

"Hey!" called Hagrid. "Where ya goin'! Where -" but Harry was out of earshot. He was going to send Hedwig off to Ron and Hermione with the letters immediately.

Hedwig swooped down to Harry's bed and he reattached the letters.

"Hurry, Hedwig." She charged out the window and Harry lay on the bed again, staring up at the ceiling, waiting to fall asleep so Hedwig would arrive sooner.

Harry was awoken some time later to find Hedwig slapping him with a wing. She brought back two letters with her. Harry peeled off one and began reading.

Percy found mom out cold on the floor with your letter in her hand. We can't get there until tomorrow, the Hogwarts Express was shut down, too. You have no idea how happy we are to know that you're okay.

Ron

Harry put down Ron's letter and opened the other.

OH MY GOD!

Hermione

Hermione's writing was so messy she must have written it quickly and then headed straight out the door. Relieved and tired, Harry put his shirt back on in case Ginny comes, put the letters on his dresser and went to laying in bed, waiting to fall asleep, dreaming about tomorrow.

The very next morning, Harry woke up on his own at a very early time in the morning. Cursing the sun in his eye, he leapt out of bed and figured he would just sit at the train station in Hogsmeade. He took out his Dragonback from underneath his bed.

Looking up, the skies seemed to be celebrating this day, too. The sun shined brightly overhead and a light breeze rustled his hair. After the short trip, Hedwig at his side, Harry simply sat where the train arrives and waited.