Mark of Ancients

Chapter 3: NO WAY OUT

    "I've been expelled, isn't it great?" Vernon stood still listening. "Would you like to see the spell I cast that did it? It's over five thousand years old and very dangerous!" Harry made his skin glow white. Uncle Vernon slammed the door shut. Harry felt like disappearing never to be seen again. This was worse than getting killed. He was going to live with the Dursleys for an eternity.

    Minutes turned into hours. Hours turned into long days. There was no word from anyone Harry knew and he did little more than eat, sleep and cry himself to sleep. He didn't have any way to contact Sirius - he left Hedwig at Hogwarts and had no way of contacting anyone else. Harry didn't feel like Apparating anywhere, he would rather the whole dream of being a wizard fade into the night. It only took two weeks into his fifth year and he had gotten expelled. He hadn't seen much of the Dursleys the past five years and it came as no surprise they had next to completely forgotten what he liked... or was that on purpose? He was forced to eat food he hated and listen to constant badgering by Aunt Petunia about his hair that would never lay flat. Those long days turned into dry and uneventful weeks. Dry except for the fact that the left side of his pillow had become slightly wet from all the tears.

    There were a few things he did enjoy. There was no Malfoy to badger him or Snape to take horrific amounts of points from Gryffindor. The days when he worried about Voldemort coming after him were gone. He had to worry about the Dursleys driving him insane before Voldemort could reach him. His bloodlust attitude ever since that first duel stayed with him and got him in trouble many times. He went without breakfast and dinner after threatening Dudley with snake shoes. The only way the Dursleys could control Harry was to get in touch with the Ministry of Magic and threaten to send him to Azkaban.

    One night Harry woke up from a dream involving his mom. She was taking him to platform nine and three-quarters for his first year at Hogwarts. The thought made his lips quiver with sadness. Without thinking, he opened a drawer next to him. Inside it was a book he distinctly remembered taking to Hogwarts and leaving there when he left, but there it was. Hagrid gave him, at the end of his first year, a photo album, and there it was, sitting alone in a drawer all by itself. On the very first page a beautiful witch and handsome wizard waved at him carrying a baby between them. Harry had hair exactly like the wizard and his eyes were replicas of the witch. Lily and James Potter would be the only two people Harry would think of for the next several weeks. Harry climbed back into bed, rested his head on his slightly wet pillow and gazed at the book which he kept open and fell asleep staring into.

    The next morning he was awoken by loud yelling coming from the kitchen. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were arguing loudly over something. Harry looked over to the clock next to him: 9:37 A.M. He hadn't woken up before noon lately. He picked up his glasses, put them on and started down the stairs to see what the commotion was.

    Uncle Vernon's yelling made him hide behind a door and listen in.

    "Yes, he went for four years!" Uncle Vernon screamed. "What are we going to do, sign him up for high school when he NEVER - EVEN - WENT - TO - MIDDLE - SCHOOL!" Aunt Petunia sat in a chair.

    "He has to go back," she said.

    "He will not be going back. We gave him up --"

    "The cover up is over Vernon," she said crying. "What are we going to do... beat him over the head with frying pans and tell him magic still doesn't exist? Harry's been exposed to it for four years. We can't send him to any other school, he's far too old. I'm not spending all that useless money to send him to a private school and Hogwarts took him for free! FOR - FREE!" Uncle Vernon started muttering something Harry was sure no one could make out. Aunt Petunia continued. "You got a letter from his owl MINUTES AFTER HE CAME HOME!" She gave a big sniff and added, "How come you didn't show it to him?" Her crying became louder and she stood up pacing. Their voices seemed to fade away for a few moments as Harry's thoughts drifted over to Hedwig. She came minutes after he left? How is she, where is he and was she carrying anything?

    "I - refuse," Uncle Vernon said stiffly.

    "You can't refuse it any longer, Vernon. Hagrid will come back for him if Harry wants them to." She sniffed again and said in a faint voice, "you know that..."

    "Let him come. They are under the impression Harry never wants to go back, remember?"

    Suddenly Harry felt sick. He remembered his words to Dumbledore, "I'm expelled and I'm leaving. Don't ask me back if someone changes their mind." He wished he hadn't said that, but it seems someone did change their mind. Harry had changed his mind. Their voices faded as he started to remember all the good times at school. The classes, the discovery, the talks with Ron and Hermione... being accepted, not being called a freak...

    "At least open the letter, Vernon! You've had it since that day, three weeks ago, and never opened it?"

    "Fine." He sat on a chair and tore the envelope open. Harry listened more closely. "Dear Mr. and Mrs. Dursley.

    "We regret to inform you that Mr. Harry Potter has been expelled from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The reason of expulsion is life endangerment of fellow classmates and faculty members. Under normal circumstances and due to the spell in question, the student in question would be considered for a term in Azkaban Wizard and Witch Prison." Harry's stomach dropped out of his body. No, they wouldn't send him there... would they? "Only for one week would this sentence take place. We dare not send students for long because as it is known, many inhabitants go insane after several weeks. Full admission to Hogwarts with normal privileges would be allowed afterwards." Uncle Vernon took his eyes off the letter. "What is this... this Azkaban?"

    "I don't know," said a twitchy Aunt Petunia.

    "I'm sure both of you would like to see me go there," said Harry, stepping out from behind the wall. "I heard all of it, everything." Uncle Vernon's eyes became the familiar slits of rage. His pink face turned an unheard of shade of red. Harry couldn't be scared of him, Azkaban was far more frightening. "With the thought of Azkaban fresh in my mind, you can't scare me. Put the color back in your face because it's rather revolting." Harry then told his uncle to go do something rather naughty.

    "GO - TO - YOUR - ROOM!" howled Uncle Vernon.

    "No," said Harry softly. "Finish reading the letter or give it to me and I will." Uncle Vernon slapped it against Harry's chest knocking him back a little. Harry grabbed it before it fell.

    "Read it aloud so we can hear it," his uncle scowled.

    "As an alternative to Azkaban, another punishment has been thought of. The student would be allowed to reattend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry under certain conditions. One being academic probation. That is, the student in question will not be allowed to go to Hogsmeade, will not be allowed outside the castle except for class activities and will not be allowed past his or her House common room for one full term. The other condition for readmission is a term-long study pertaining to wizard and witches falling to the Dark side. See Professor Severus Snape for full details."

    "It's settled then," said Uncle Vernon. "You're going to Azkaban."

    "WHAT?" shouted Harry. "You're insane. I'm not going there. No one can make me."

    "Oh, yes you are." Harry walked back to the door and gave a menacing look.

    "Azkaban is guarded by guards called dementors," he said coldly. "You can't see them because you're just a stupid Muggle. You can feel them but they don't affect you, you would just think you are having a bad day. You can't think anything happy and you constantly think of what you hate when you're around them. I'M NOT GOING!" Uncle Vernon tried to speak but Harry interrupted him. "Every time I was around them I fainted. I heard my parents' screaming in my head and then I fainted. Do you have any idea what that's like? I AM NOT GOING!" Harry stormed up the stairs, stomping his feet and slammed the door shut almost breaking it. He didn't come out for breakfast or lunch.

    Dinner was quiet that night. The letter from Hogwarts was sitting on top of the refrigerator. Dudley tried to turn on the television but Aunt Petunia barked "Off," at him. Uncle Vernon simply ordered two full pizza pies and two dozen garlic knots. After two slices and three knots, Harry grabbed the letter and went up to his room. He had never finished reading it.

    "The decision is up to the guardian of the student. Further CONTACT MUST BE MADE WITHIN TWO WEEKS or it will be assumed that the student and/or guardians have no interest in readmission Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Sincerely, Albus Dumbledore

Headmaster"

    Harry's heart nearly stopped. It was Uncle Vernon's fault. He wished his heart did stop, because it seemed hopeless. Harry crawled into his bed, still in his pajamas that he wore a week ago. He has not showered for two weeks because he didn't feel like doing much of anything and Uncle Vernon would only complain he was wasting water. He sat in bed thinking, dreaming, wondering and hoping beyond hope something would come to his rescue. Azkaban didn't look that bad right now. He wanted to be left alone, all alone... and he was alone and with no one by his side. There was no Sirius to talk himself dry to and speak his heart out to, no Dumbledore to express his concerns with and the Weasleys could at least provide the comforts of a real home. It was the worst feeling anyone could ever experience.

    It was a long night and Harry woke up frequently with scenes of previous years fresh in his mind. Painfully happy memories passed including the end of year banquets and the start of each new year. The most painful memories were the times he saw his parents even if they were just a memory. Harry didn't get much sleep. The thought of returning to Hogwarts started to build and he couldn't let go. There has to be a way to get back, there just has to. Would he pay Dumbledore a visit and explain the situation? How, though? They would clearly not be happy to see him if he just Apparates.

    Breakfast the next morning was awkward. All three Dursleys had already started eating when Harry strolled in bleary-eyed.

    "Make yourself something and try not to make a mess," snarled Aunt Petunia. Harry grunted at her. "Vernon, dear, have you heard anything from your boss about that new job you may be changing to?"

    "New job?" asked Harry. "Oooh, did you do something really bad this time?" Uncle Vernon made a threatening face but Harry put a finger up and said, "Don't - touch - me. Now that Hogwarts has no control over me they won't know what I do." Uncle Vernon's face became a nice shade of purple and Dudley grabbed his backside. Hagrid, the Hogwarts gamekeeper, had given Dudley a pig's tail picking Harry up for school for the first time and Dudley had been scared about it ever since.

    Harry grabbed two slices of bread and a stick of butter from the fridge. He put them into the toaster and waited impatiently. The room was filled with a wrenching silence except for the clatter of teeth, crunching of food and swallowing of drink. Dudley broke the tension by getting up and turning the television in the next room on. Uncle Vernon walked over and lowered it to the point it almost couldn't be heard. A muffled metal clanking coming from the cupboard under the stairs broke more silence.

    "What's that?" asked Harry.

    "Must be bugs," said Uncle Vernon trying to sound innocent.

    "Bugs?" Harry asked. "Bugs don't make sounds that loud and they don't sound like metal."

    "No need to worry," said Aunt Petunia nervously. Harry's toast popped and he buttered it with a plastic knife. He took Dudley's empty seat and after one bite, the muffled noise was now something heavy banging into a wall. Harry got up but Aunt Petunia motioned him to sit down.

    "Why don't you finish eating, dear, and then you can go back to your room?" she said nervously.

    Harry took a bite of his toast and took out his wand he hid inside the pajamas. What were they playing at?

    "HARRY-"

    "Alohomora," he said calmly, pointing it at the cupboard. The door burst open and Hedwig's cage hovered about the top. "Hedwig!" Harry cried as he ran over to her. It was most definitely the best feeling he felt in three weeks. She looked rather thin and unkempt. He opened the cage and tried to wrestle Uncle Vernon as he tried to close it. "Wingardium Leviosa!" he said pointing his wand at Uncle Vernon who rose up and out of the cupboard and landed with a thud on the kitchen table. Hedwig perched herself on Harry's shoulder and he walked into the kitchen. Uncle Vernon had stood up and Aunt Petunia sat with a piece of pancake sticking out of her front teeth.

    "You had her all this time," said Harry in disgust, "and you didn't tell me?" Harry turned his head to look at her. She gave a low hoot of hunger. "What have you been feeding her, nothing?" He picked one piece of his toast, put her on the table and let her nibble it. "No, don't tell me." He rubbed Hedwig's front with his arm and she climbed on. He picked up the toast with the other hand and kept it near her beak so she could eat it and went back to his room. Harry finished the piece he started eating as he drudged up the stairs and slammed his door shut at the approaching Uncle Vernon, but not before giving him a naughty sign with his hands. Uncle Vernon banged on the door heavily. Harry summoned a Patronus (an anti-dementor) knowing it would fly through the door and scare him - and it was fully successful. Uncle Vernon screamed ear-piercingly loud and tumbled down the stairs. Hedwig sat at the foot of his bed. Harry plopped down in the middle.

    Now that he had some reasonable way of contacting someone, now what? He decided it be best to flatly tell to Dumbledore what happened with no frills or ridiculous stories. He grabbed a Muggle pen, ripped a blank page from the Sunday newspaper and began to write.

Professor Dumbledore:

I have quite a situation and I have no idea what I'm doing these days. I'll just tell it as it comes because I don't know where to start. My uncle hid the letter you sent us from me for three weeks. I woke up this morning to hear them yelling. Uncle Vernon finally opened it. He's keen on sending me to Azkaban but there's no way I would stay even if you told me to. So now I'm stuck regretting I said I never wanted to come back.

Good thing I found Hedwig. They had her locked up in the cupboard under the stairs. Please have someone look at her when she arrives, she looks ill.

    Harry tried to think of what else to write, but no words came, only one drop of a tear. He ended it with his signature."Come Hedwig," he said. She fluttered onto his knee and lifted a foot so Harry could tie the letter to it. Harry found a thin string on the floor that suited the job. "Hurry, Hedwig, please!" he said pleadingly. She flew onto his arm and he opened the window. She flew out of it faster than Harry ever saw and she was out of sight after he blinked.

    Harry utterly refused to speak to anyone for the rest of the day. All food from lunch and dinner went up with him to his room where he had started to read a book entitled "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring" he snatched from Aunt Petunia. Harry could see the nervous twitching she made every time he was around her. It wasn't clear to anyone if it was worry over what he would do next, or if she was actually hoping he'd get to go back to Hogwarts. Of course, he also didn't know if she wanted him to go back just to get rid of him or to go back because she knew he was terribly lonely... and full of hate. Indeed, Harry's heart never hung lower, his pride never ran so thin and his temper was never shorter. He had amounted a stack of empty dishes and cups leaving them near the door hoping someone would trip on them. He crawled into bed when the clock hit 1:54 A.M. Harry dreamed, but it wasn't like the others in recent weeks.

    He flew in the air and Hogwarts slowly came into view. It was dead of night and the forbidden forest looked even worse from this angle. He was a lot smaller than usual and attempted to land on a window on one of the towers. Instead, he barreled into the floor and bumped into the far wall. Dazed, he got up and fluttered over to the shoulder of an old man standing up. He lifted his leg, which looked a lot like one of Hedwig's, and the old man, Professor Dumbledore, still awake, took the note attached to it and sat down beginning to read. He watched as Dumbledore's lips moved with every word.

    "I have quite a situation and I have no idea what I'm doing these days. I'll just tell it as it comes because I don't know where to start. My uncle hid the letter you sent us from me for three weeks. I woke up this morning to hear them yelling. Uncle Vernon finally opened it. He's keen on sending me to Azkaban but there's no way I would stay even if you told me to. So now..." Dumbledore paused and put a worried hand over his mouth as he gazed at the final words. "...I'm stuck regretting I said I never wanted to come back," he said in disbelief.

    Dumbledore looked very worried and concerned. He nearly stepped on Harry as he fell off his shoulder when he jerked to stand up. Dumbledore placed the letter in front of him on his desk and stared at it. Harry flew onto Dumbledore's shoulder again and Dumbledore brought him out of his office. The dream faded to black.

    The next morning Harry awoke to find himself on his side facing left. He opened his eyes. Hedwig was cuddled up against Harry's left arm. He moved his arm and she immediately woke up and fluttered around, stumbling to balance herself. She looked a lot healthier than she did just one day ago. Harry sat up bleary eyed. Hedwig flew onto his shoulder and rested her head on her back, she looked very tired. Harry opened his door, walked downstairs and again found the Dursleys eating before him.

    As soon as Harry stepped in, Uncle Vernon turned his attention to him.

    "Harry, got another letter from your school. Might wanna read this."

    "Accio," said Harry, staring at the letter, and it flew into his hand. Uncle Vernon looked rather displeased with that. Harry sat down and read it in silence. It appeared to be directly from Dumbledore.

Dear Mr. Potter

I received your letter and attended to the task of putting Hedwig in better health. There is, unfortunately, nothing I can do about readmitting you into Hogwarts. Rules are rules, Harry, and Professor McGonagall and I have decided to not bend rules to see if the Ministry of Magic would step in (I sent a copy of your letter to them as soon as Hedwig could leave). It does, unfortunately, look grim. I cannot guarantee you anything and in fact it may be safe to say you should try life as a Muggle.

I tried, Harry. I do not know why you cast that spell.

    Dumbledore didn't know why? Falder tried to use the Killing Curse on him! That's good enough reason as any but why was the light red instead of green? Harry quickly remembered a lesson in Professor Lupin's class where he mentioned a spell's color can change but that it is very rare. He didn't imagine the color, did he? He decided it would be best to not push the thought, Dumbledore might start to think Harry was losing it.

    Harry was losing it. During lunchtime, Aunt Petunia asked Harry to pass her the ketchup. The bottle was empty and so instead he passed her the refrigerator., ripping the plug right out of the wall and opened the door so she could grab another bottle. During dinner that night, Harry didn't feel like eating meatloaf and rice so he turned the meat loaf into a hamburger and the rice into fries. When Dudley asked Harry if he would do the same for him, Dudley instead had his meatloaf turned into spinach and his rice became string beans. Harry stormed away as Dudley passed his food straight into the garbage. Dudley didn't eat dinner that night. It would do Dudley good - after all, everyone could plainly see his was wider than he was tall. Harry started to call Dudley "Wideley" when they were alone that same night and threatened to give him a pig snout if he squealed.

    Two mornings later, Uncle Vernon overheard Harry talking to Wide, er, excuse me, Dudley. Uncle Vernon yelled so loudly and blew so much air at Harry that his hair looked like he stuck his finger into a socket. Harry brought his toast up to his room (he made three pieces behind Aunt Petunia's back), let Hedwig have some orange juice and fed her one of the three pieces. Harry began to brainstorm of ways to get out, or, better yet - find a way to get back to Hogwarts. Hedwig walked wherever Harry went, she was always on his shoulder. Occasionally she did laps around the living room. This started to make everyone else nervous but Harry reminded them it was either that, her crying at night and them getting no sleep. Hedwig was always remarkably tame, but that afternoon, Dudley went to the bathroom and Hedwig had been eating his lunch (Uncle Vernon was at work and Aunt Petunia was busy doing laundry). When Dudley went after Hedwig, he found himself getting a barrage of pecks on the head. Harry realized this was so he didn't have to feed her whatever horrible dinner Aunt Petunia would make that night.

    He couldn't take much more of this. All Harry did during his spare time was reread Lord of the Rings and plot ways of escaping. It had been four weeks since he was expelled now. It just turned 1:00 A.M. and like every night since four weeks ago, he sat in bed bored, thinking, dreaming... Life looked dismal. The only joy he could think of were the looks on the Dursleys' faces every time he used magic but there was much to hate. Salvation had to come soon because he just might go looking for Voldemort.

    Harry took out the photo album again and flipped through it. There was only one picture of Sirius Black, Harry's godfather. It was him who he thought he would be spending the rest of his days with. Sirius, a father figure, a wizard with whom he could talk to endlessly and not be badgered about being strange and unusual. He had talked himself empty to Sirius once before and now was another time he wished he could do it again. Hedwig sat on the windowsill facing in. Harry crawled into bed propping himself up on pillows staring dreamily into the picture of Sirius and his parents at their wedding day.

    A soft pop broke the silence. Hedwig gave a hoot of worry and Harry bolted upright onto his feet. What was that? Could it be someone trying to come in by Floo powder? Wizards can travel by fireplace using powder. It was Harry's least favorite form of transportation. He pushed his door open just enough to sneak through. The sound came again, it was coming from the living room. Harry slowly descended the creaking stairs. He reached the bottom and heard the pop again. Harry turned into the kitchen. There was nothing there.

    "Ok, then. Back upstairs, Harry," something said inside his head.

    The owner of the voice could not be made out. He didn't listen right away. Harry looked at the fireplace but it was fine. In fact, it was boarded up. No one would try to come through their fireplace. Before Harry knew he was a wizard, a flurry of letters came bursting out of it, all letters telling him he was accepted to Hogwarts. Uncle Vernon boarded it up. In his fourth year at Hogwarts, the Weasleys found themselves stuck inside and burst through it. Uncle Vernon boarded it up again.

    "Upstairs, Harry! Up! Now!" said a different voice.

    Harry didn't have much choice. He was certifiably insane now... Harry had heard voices before only he could hear, but they were psychotic voices, voices from a deadly monster. He drudged up the stairs, down the short hallway and snuck back into his room. There were two people, both dressed in a black cloak and robes. One sat on his bed. The other was standing near Hedwig. Harry recognized them immediately.

    Sirius Black and Severus Snape. Harry shut his door and backed against it not believing his eyes. He put his hands over his mouth and tried not to scream. Sirius approached him and pulled both Harry's hands down.

    "Harry, you know why we're here," he said. Harry swallowed twice before he could reply.

    "You, maybe... but... Snape?" Snape was sitting on the bed and didn't get up as he spoke.

    "You know I wouldn't be here unless I had a very good reason, Potter." What was he talking about? "You should tell him, Black. I don't think I can."

    "Tell me what?" Harry said, still clearly shocked about their sudden arrival. Thoughts raced through his head. What are they doing here, what do they have to say and most importantly... what took them so damn long?

    "The mark, Harry. You feel it, I know you do. You're not acting yourself and it's not just the Dursleys." Sirius lit his wand and put it near Harry's hands. "Look at your hands. They're glittering and it's not golden, it's black." He was right. Harry took a long look at his hands, flipping them over. The mark was glittering black like a smoky-quartz rock off the light. It looked exactly like a shiny black rock reflecting back more sunlight than there was hitting it. It glittered too brightly for the feeble amount of light around them. Suddenly the black glitter turned golden again. A slight feeling of relief swept over Harry.

    "Voldemort," said Snape coldly. Harry felt his feet inch forward and his back slid down the door while still looking at his hands. The name still brings chills. He wasn't acting himself. Harry was feeling far more angry with himself and others around him than usual. Something gripped his throat. Something was making him angrier than usual and it was all painfully obvious. "Tell me, Potter. Why did you cast that spell on Falder?"

    "I," he started but choked and swallowed the next word. "I heard him cast the Killing Curse. He aimed it at me... w-why wouldn't I try to defend myself," he said in a high pitched squeal. Snape and Sirius exchanged confused looks.

    Sirius looked at Harry like he had three heads. "Harry, Falder cast a reduction charm."

    "Reduc - what, no. I heard it, Avada Kedavra!" said Harry, pointing out the window. Snape gave Hedwig a hard push and she fell out the window. The green light shot out from Harry's hand and burst upon the wall of the next house. Hedwig fluttered upwards and gave Harry and unmistakable look of disgust then flew onto the next roof. Something hit Harry like a tidal wave of realization. He did see the red light, but he distinctly heard the chant of the Killing Curse.

    "Potter, the real reason I took fifty points from Slytherin and only five from Gryffindor was because I suspected it then," said Snape worriedly (and that was a tone Snape never took around Harry). Snape nodded at Sirius, who nodded back, as if he just confirmed something to himself. "Something's influencing your actions."

    "What? Suspected what?"

    "THE MARK, POTTER!" he thundered. This was not a good time to be screaming.

    "Snape!" snapped Sirius. They all knew what was coming. A door swung open, the hallway light turned on and Uncle Vernon banged on Harry's door. Harry sat frozen, maybe if he sat there Uncle Vernon would just go away. He pushed again, this time sending Harry over to the side. The door flung open. Uncle Vernon stood there with a bat in his hand but with the expression on his face, he had no intention of using it.

    "OUT YOU FREAKS! OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUT!" His eyes were about to pop from his face, which if turned any more red, blood might just start leaking out. His face swelled. Harry didn't waste any time calling for Hedwig, stuffing her in her cage, holding his trunk, pulling Sirius and Snape next to him and Apparating the lot to the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade.

    Harry stood on his feet for a fleeting moment before staggering and taking a seat on a nearby chair. Every heard turned, as it was still quite full. Not one person did not have their attention turned to Harry and all conversations stopped. He felt sick. Something was wrong, Sirius was right. He had been feeling something ever since the game of Fire Quidditch. He didn't feel much more until he had Snape in a body bind. Harry put his arms down on the table and hid his head inside them.

    "Someone better explain what's going on," he said softly.

    "Four butterbeers," Sirius called to the bartender.

    "Four?" the bar tender asked. "There's only three of you?"

    "Yes, one for Snape and I and two for Harry." Harry lifted his head up and a disfigured smile was visible. He rested his chin on his hands. This was going to be a long talk and the more butterbeer the better.

    "The Fire Quidditch game, you didn't want to play, but you did anyway. Why?"

    "I don't know," Harry replied softly. "Ron said a few things to me and... and then I just felt like playing." Sirius put his butterbeer to his lips and drank what could only be half the goblet.

    "It didn't seem... odd... that you didn't want to play for several weeks claiming you'd get yourself killed, which mind you, you almost did, and out of one minute's thought you were playing? Then, at the inter-school dueling tournament, you would usually never ask for such limelight. You must not remember hearing Dumbledore say many, many people have accidentally died due to failed potions or a barrage of spells that caused the potion to finally give up. You were sleeping. Hermione told me. But you weren't tired she said. Someone put you out and that's what worries me." Harry's face turned red. That must have been the part he missed during the explanation of rules the night before the first duel. Sirius put his butterbeer down... it was indeed half empty.

    Sirius continued. "When you put Snape in a full body bind, he came right to me and told me what happened. Dumbledore and him hadn't decided that he would never get the job of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, that was just to fool you. Snape is teaching Dark Arts Defense because Dumbledore suspected something back at the Fire Quidditch game. Snape's got more experience in the Dark Arts than the rest of us, his judgement call would be best. In fact, the school has been shut down in your absence." Harry's eyebrows arched. What is going on?

    "What is going on?" he repeated out loud. Harry picked his head up and sat upright.

    "The Mark of Ancients," started Snape, "comes from ancient wizards as you know. It's been known to disappear and never come back, like you also know. What we didn't tell you, because we feared it would happen sooner, is that it can be used against the bearer." He grabbed Harry's hand and held it between both of his. "Make it glow white," he ordered. Harry did so. The gold glitter faded to black and the black turned into a white glow. Snape's skin started to glitter gold. To Harry's utter disbelief, the gold became black and Snape let off a distinct black glow. "This look familiar, Potter?" He saw this before, Irenicus Falder's skin glittered a grayish then glowed a solid black.

    "Falder-"

    "Yes," said Sirius interrupting him. Snape's butterbeer, too, was now half empty. There was a few moments silence. All eyes were still peering at the three of them.

    "The other worrying part is we can only guess who is involved. We don't have answers and there's only one guess we can agree on."

    "Oh, when is Voldemort going to give up!" said Harry, rubbing his eyes. Everyone heard and Harry distinctly saw a few people shudder at the name. "Yes, Voldemort," he repeated, looking around. "IF HE'S BEEN AFTER YOU FOR FOURTEEN YEARS," he shouted ignoring Sirius', "Shh!" and continued on, "YOU GET SICK OF CALLING HIM You-Know-Who or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!" he said doing a fake imitation of people saying the nicknames and flailing his arms in disgust. Harry hid his beat-red face in his arms again. His skin glowed, but not white. It was black. He picked his head up just enough to look around. He peered at everyone in the room. "Look at someone else!" he said in a helpless teared voice. He turned to Sirius. "Help me," he said softly, then started to sob and put his head back into his arms. Harry excited himself into tears and there was no explanation other than anxiety... anxiety over what Ron, Hermione and Dumbledore would have to tell him.

    "It's a lot to take in for one night," Sirius said calmly to Snape. "That and he's not himself. Be ready for sudden breakdowns, it's common when a wizard is trying to fight off a controlled mark. Rapid mood swings are also common."

    "I think another question is when are the Azkaban guards going to be arriving," Snape reminded him.

    Their mouths falling open, the three of them completely forgot Sirius was supposed to be in hiding. Sirius Disapparated and Harry was left with just Snape. Great turn of events, Harry thought to himself. Being left alone with the Dursleys is bad enough, but Snape, that's another nightmare. The sickening worry of Sirius getting the Dementor's Kiss was another thing that now would burden him. A dementor's kiss is not only very putrid but it sucks the soul out of the victim, leaving them as a mindless, thoughtless and emotionless nothing. Harry had once been kissed by a dementor. He was, however, miraculously saved.

    "Come on, Potter," Snape continued. "I'll put aside my distaste because there are more pressing matters." Snape muttered something under his breath and everyone went back to talking to amongst themselves... it must have been a memory charm. "You haven't touched your butterbeer."

    "You can have one, I don't want both." Harry picked his head up and drank one entire goblet with one gulp. Snape raised an eyebrow. Harry took the other one but took two gulps to drink the entire thing this time.

    "Dumbledore said to return you to Hogwarts should anything else happen other than what we intended..." Harry looked up at him. "And we didn't intend for you to try and kill Hedwig," Snape said flatly. Harry's spirits livened. Finally, he was going to back to Hogwarts. "We will Apparate to Hogsmeade in the morning and take a train to Hogwarts. Albus is waiting to tell you something and it is good news, for a change." He licked his lips and stood up. "In the mean time I suggest you get some sleep... you're drooling on yourself."

    Harry's mouth was wide open and a small amount of drool had dropped down his shirt. Snape opened Hedwig's cage and she landed on Harry's shoulder like usual. The three of them Apparated into The Leaky Cauldron. Snape checked Harry and himself into separate rooms.

    Harry felt like he was resting on clouds amidst all the bad news. His head was clearer than it had been these past four weeks. Hedwig had returned to full health. Despite the news of his mark, he could feel nothing but happy for finally being out of the Dursley house and the thought of going back to Hogwarts amongst all his friends only brought him closer to cloud nine. Harry slept well that night. He had nothing to worry about. Everything was going to be just fine.