Simon says...

Teaser:
Torn by shadows and darkness. Pierced by a burning desire - his longing - for respect and acceptance.
Two, bound by trust - though not by blood - now separated by acts of treachery. Murderer and creator combined in the one, his sacrifice will unleash new powers in the other, stronger than before. Once united, they will become enemies to death.
There he is, trapped between heaven and hell - now and in eternity - trying to defy his never-ending thirst, until rescued by the love of a woman, freed from his torture ...- two - ... bound by trust... - ...but divided by betrayal... - ...between heaven and hell ...- ...his thirst will never decease ...

After his return to Privet Drive for the summer holidays, Harry noticed no changes whatsoever. Aunt Petunia tended to the house and garden as usual, leaving the kitchen and living room as spotless as if they were not in use at all. Only the room that Dudley occupied gave the impression that someone actually lived in that house. Harry's room, on the other hand, looked as if it had been turned into a junk room. Here, you could find Dudley's old furniture, the former and now broken bathroom mirror, and many boxes containing unknown things, all stacked up near the wall or scattered across the floor.

This summer's weather was dominated by cloudy skies and a great deal of rain. The sun hardly ever appeared, but when it did, it grew warm for a change. Harry used these opportunities to go swimming and take walks in a close-by park. Even though Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon and Dudley treated him in an unusually friendly manner, he spent most of his time away from them, up in his room, terribly bored.

***

Time passed, and one Saturday in the middle of July, the weather promised to clear up for a whole, sunny day. No clouds could be detected at all. The Dursleys woke up early that morning to go shopping in London. Harry was allowed to stay at home on his own for a change. He even received a key, so that he could lock the door if he left the house.

As soon as he heard his relatives leave their home and the gravel protesting under a car pulling out of the driveway, Harry jumped out of bed and went down to the kitchen. Still in his pyjamas, he prepared his breakfast and started reading the morning paper his uncle had left behind. He flipped through it, but nothing unusual had happened.

A little disappointed he put the newspaper aside, and was just making his way to the bathroom when he noticed a soft knocking on the window. He discovered a small owl, which was trying to get his attention. Harry opened the window and the small bird flew onto the table and delivered a letter, obviously from Hogwarts, which it had been holding in his beak. Harry took the letter, fed some left-over crumbs to the owl and let it take off again.

Harry sat down, looking intensely at the letter. It was from Professor McGonagall, his Head of House at Hogwarts. What could she possibly want? As soon as he opened the letter, he remembered: it contained the results of his O.W.L.s. He hadn't expected them to come so early. Cautiously, he unfolded the parchment.

Dear Mr Potter,

I am informing you that you have passed your O.W.L.-examinations.
Regarding your choice of profession, I would like you to note that it is possible to apply for a re-examination in the subject of Potions to improve your result(s). The form must be sent to the appropriate teacher no later then September sixth. All re-examinations will take place in November.
An application form with your desired subjects for next term must be submitted by the end of this month.
Have a nice remainder of your holiday.

Yours sincerely,
Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress

Enclosed:
O.W.L Certificate
Application form Schedule
Application form Re-examination

Harry re-read the letter twice, and then turned to the next page. The form regarding his subjects in his sixth year stated that he could choose up to five subjects to sit N.E.W.T.s in at the end of his seventh year at Hogwarts. Finally, he turned to his certificate.

CERTIFICATE - O.W.L.
Mr. Harry James Potter
Achieved the following results at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Charms
Theory: Exceeds Expectations
Praxis: Exceeds Expectations

Transfiguration
Theory: Exceeds Expectations
Praxis: Exceeds Expectations

Herbology
Theory: Exceeds Expectations
Praxis: Exceeds Expectations

Defence against the Dark Arts
Theory: Outstanding
Praxis: Outstanding

Potions
Theory: Acceptable
Praxis: Acceptable

Astronomy
Theory: Exceeds Expectations
Praxis: Poor

History of Magic
Theory: Poor

Care of Magical Creatures
Theory: Exceeds Expectations
Praxis: Outstanding

Divination
Praxis: Poor

The Committee acknowledges six O.W.L.(s) to Mister Harry Potter.

Harry was surprised that he had passed his exams with such good results. Only those in Potions didn't suit him at all. He needed one part of the examination to be graded with "outstanding" to make it into the N.E.W.T.-class. To apply for a re-examination was a ridiculous idea. He would never do much better, and the chances that Snape would make an exception - no, there was no point even thinking about it. He simply would have to choose another career, one that didn't require Potions. But he would think about that later. Harry pocketed the letter and went upstairs to get dressed.

As the sun was particularly warm today, Harry packed his bag to go for a swim. But just as he was about to leave the house, the phone rang. Harry never ever answered the phone. Usually, it would be Dudley's friends calling, business partners of Mr. Dursley, or a neighbour, exchanging the latest rumours with Aunt Petunia. Harry stopped and waited; surely it would stop ringing! But the longer the phone rang, the more curious he became. There was only one person, who could be calling him...He closed the front door and slowly approached the phone. He picked up the receiver.

"Yes, hello?" he asked shyly.

"Harry, is that you?" It was Hermione.

"Hermione! So great to hear from you! How come you're calling me?"

"I received my results today, and was wondering if you'd gotten yours, too?"

"This morning," Harry answered. Typical Hermione, school's always first.

"So..." Hermione seemed nervous. "Did you pass Potions?"

"Well, McGonagall recommended sitting the re-examination. Both parts are Acceptable."

"Oh." Hermione sounded disappointed. "Didn't you say you were confident that the result wouldn't be too bad?"

"Depends on how you define 'not bad', but do I have to remind you of the way Snape usually treats me?"

A short silence followed - then Hermione burst out, "Well, I got an O for almost all subjects, except Arithmancy, but I knew I had made a mistake, anyway, I still received an E ..."

"Erm, Hermione?" Harry interrupted her.

"What?"

"Did you just call me to tell me how well you've done?" His mood changed rapidly from cheerful to bad, "I BET YOU ARE TOP OF THE YEAR, RIGHT?"

With Hermione's certificate he would have no trouble getting into Auror-Training. But with his own - no way....

"Harry, what's up?" Hermione sounded worried.

"Ah, nothing." Harry replied a little too fast. He was annoyed with himself. Why was it that he was so sensitive lately?

"So..." Hermione interrupted his thoughts, "I was wondering if you would like to meet us in Diagon Alley for your birthday. We could also get our school equipment. The Weasleys would be very happy if you could come along. We could pick you up in the morning and take you back at night."

"Why can't I come to the Burrow?"

"No idea, that's how Dumbledore wants it."

"WHAT'S DUMBLEDORE GOT TO DO WITH THIS?"

"I don't know. I'm just telling you what Mrs. Weasley told me." Hermione tried to calm him down.

"You are at the Burrow, RIGHT NOW? AND I AM STUCK HERE, SETTING A RECORD IN BEING BORED?"

"Yes, I'm in a phone box right now, but that's no reason to yell at me like that. Would you rather talk to Ron?"

"No, THANK YOU!" Harry replied annoyed, "I AM GOING SWIMMING!" He threw the receiver back onto the phone, grabbed his bag and left the house.

Later, while he was swimming his laps in the pool, Harry regretted his rudeness. He had no idea why he had acted like that. All he had wanted was to meet up with his friends. Maybe he was simply disappointed that it should only happen on this one day. Probably because he was angry that he was stuck at Privet Drive while Hermione and Ron could be together. But Harry was aware of another, more serious reason: guilty feelings, self-doubt and fear had been growing inside him ever since that fateful day. And while thinking about it, the tormenting thoughts caught up with him once more, as they had on all those other days and nights.

He thought about the final three weeks of his last school-term. So many things had happened. Sirius was dead. The guilty feelings that came to the surface, when he thought about the events at the Ministry rushed through him once more ... he had easily jeopardized his friends' lives. All of them could have died. The Prophecy that Dumbledore had revealed to him shortly afterwards, didn't help much either. He wished he had never heard it at all. It made everything worse. He, the Chosen One was being forced to act. Harry couldn't imagine how he would be able to kill Lord Voldemort. He was so powerful. Sure, there was Avada Kedavra, an Unforgivable. The only time he had ever used one, hadn't quite turned out the way he had intended to. It took more than just speaking out the words and some amateur wand-waving.

So far, he had not told Ron or Hermione about the prophecy. This was something between him and Lord Voldemort. He imagined how they would react: Hermione would probably be horrified and urge him to learn and study even harder for school, which was not unwise. Ron, on the other hand, would take his time to understand the meaning until he would reach the state of being horrified, and maybe even scared. But then: that was the natural reaction, wasn't it?

He, Harry, was the one who had to risk his life, not them. But the more his friends would find out, the more they would try to support him, and possibly get themselves into another dangerous situation. No, he would not ease the weight of this burden by telling them about it.

He climbed out of the pool. He sensed he should apologize to Hermione. After all, it wasn't her fault that Dumbledore, and surely half the Order, thought it better and safer for him to stay with the Dursleys. After towelling and dressing, Harry went straight back to Privet Drive and started a letter to Hermione and Ron.

Hello Hermione, Hi Ron,
I'm sorry that I got so angry. At the moment, I'm very unbalanced and ...

Harry tore the paper apart. It sounded stupid. "No," he thought, "I don't have to explain myself to them."

Hello Hermione and Ron, Sorry that I got so angry. I would be happy to go to Diagon Alley with you. I could use a change of scenery. Harry.

Yep, that sounded better. He rolled up the parchment and tied it to Hedwig's leg. He followed her flight, until he couldn't see her shape any longer. Then he flopped onto his bed and read the letter from Hogwarts once again.

If he could somehow make it through another exam in Potions, he would still be able to follow his former plans of becoming an Auror. He only had to ask Hermione to tutor him. He had another look at the form for his N.E.W.T.-courses and chose those he needed to become an Auror as well: Defence against the Dark Arts, Transfiguration, Charms and Potions. His fifth subject became Herbology. He wasn't particularly good at this one, but it seemed more important to him than Care of Magical Creatures. Astronomy and History of Magic were still obligatory, but he was able to drop Divination. It didn't seem necessary or appropriate to continue.

After filling out the forms correctly, he pulled his Potions book out of his trunk. If he was going to sit the re-examination, he might as well do the whole thing properly, and start now. After skipping through the pages without being able to concentrate long enough on one herb to understand its functions, Harry gave up. He threw the book back into his trunk and left his room. He definitely would have to look for another job-opportunity.

***

Two days later Hedwig returned with good news. He would be going to Diagon Alley to meet his friends, spend one night in London and then return to Privet Drive. He sent Hedwig straight away to McGonagall to deliver his new schedule, although, the form for the re-sit stayed in Privet Drive for now.

Looking forward to the London trip, Harry found it a lot easier to endure the coming days. A quick note from Pig had told him that the Weasleys, Tonks and Moody would pick him up at seven a.m.. Unfortunately, Lupin wouldn't be able to join them, due to his 'disease'.

Nevertheless, he still had these nightmares. It was always a bizarre version of his encounter with the Death Eaters at the Ministry. He was standing between two shelves, clasping the Prophecy in his hands; his friends close by, surrounded by a dozen hooded figures. The prophecies started to talk and confuse Harry and the others...they were running in circles. Constantly, he watched Bellatrix and Lucius, how they killed them one by one: first Ginny - Hermione - Neville - Luna - Ron - until only Harry was left, surrounded by Death Eater, who all possessed baby-sized heads, talking in an abnormal baby-language. Then Voldemort appeared, just having killed Sirius and intending to proceed to Harry next.... Every time Voldemort raised his wand, Harry woke up screaming. And every time, Harry thought consciously how lucky they all had been - except Sirius. It was his fault, no matter what Dumbledore had said.

***

On his birthday, he once again roused from one of his nightmares. It was only half past three, but he didn't dare to go back to sleep; instead he sat on the edge of his bed and stared out into the night sky. The full moon was bright and clear; only occasionally a cloud covered it for a few moments. He sat there for a long time, thinking, until he finally got up to dress. He sat back by the window. He had no idea what he was waiting for. Who else would be wandering around at five a.m.? Then he noticed the owl. It brought his booklist for the next school year. While skimming through it, he detected a book that didn't belong there: Introduction to the Daily Life of Muggles by Martin Settler. But hey, he wasn't taking Muggle Studies! Harry turned to the attached short letter.

Dear Mr. Potter,
Enclosed you will find the book list for your next school year. Please note that all students will be required to take Muggle Studies this term. Further, there will be some restructuring at Hogwarts, but you will be given more information on this matter at the beginning of the term.

Yours Sincerely,
Prof. Minerva McGonagall; Deputy Headmistress

So, all students would have to take it. Harry imagined Malfoy struggling with Muggle items and grinned mischievously: this year promised to be fun already.

At a few minutes to seven, someone rang the door. Harry hastened to open it. Moody greeted him with a friendly smile. Back in the driveway, Harry recognized a car with several people standing around it.

"Who's disturbing us this early in the morning?" Uncle Vernon yelled, swaggering out of the bedroom. As soon as he realized who had just wished him a "Good Morning", he became silent and eyed Moody nervously. Harry had not mentioned the trip to the Dursleys as of yet.

"Did Harry complain?" Uncle Vernon asked, uncertainty wavering in his voice.

"Should he have?" Moody grinned, obviously enjoying his chance to taunt the Muggle in front of him, "No, I'm just picking him up to buy his school things. He'll be back tomorrow afternoon. Ready, Potter?" Harry nodded and followed Moody to the car, where the Weasleys, Hermione and Tonks, who didn't sport her usual cheerful appearance, but was wearing dark-brown hair and suitable clothes, were waiting for them.

***

Diagon Alley appeared colourful and busy as usual. Harry bought his new books, some parchment rolls, and a new quill. While walking down the street, Hermione suddenly nudged him in the ribs. "Look, over there!" Harry followed her pointing finger and saw a small shop decorated in vivid colours. On a wooden sign he could make out the words Weasleys' Wizarding Wheezes. He had forgotten that the twins were now running their own joke shop in Diagon Alley. Automatically, he turned and led the group into the tiny store.

"Hey, Fred, we've got rare visitors!" George called through the shop upon recognizing the new customers. Fred emerged from a room behind the counter and greeted them. Hermione looked around, a stunned expression on her face. Harry examined a glass containing several spiders, which changed their body size every once in a while. "Eh, like our scary spiders? They're very popular, especially with people who intend to play a trick on someone suffering from Arachnophobia," George explained sheepishly to Harry. "But be careful, don't put them into Ron's bed, he almost killed me when I tried," he added in a whisper.

"Did you develop all these things by yourself?" Hermione intervened. "I mean it certainly requires a great deal of magical skills, and this looks like a rather complicated spell." She pointed at some sort of dragon, which was floating above them.

George nodded. "Yup. Come on, I'll show you something we've been working on."

She followed him into the room behind the counter. Harry kept looking around and noticed Moody, who was standing close by the window, gazing out onto the street. "We shouldn't stay too long in here," he whispered to Mrs. Weasley. She nodded and tried to usher the kids out of the shop. Harry looked out as well, but couldn't make out anything unusual or suspicious. But then he noticed Malfoy, who came down the street accompanied by a few fellow students. Malfoy didn't appear to be in good shape, and Harry knew too well why. Thanks to him, Draco's father was currently imprisoned in Azkaban. Fortunately, the group vanished around a corner, the moment Harry and the others stepped outside. After everyone had purchased the necessary school supplies and a relaxing Butterbeer in the Leaky Cauldron, the group marched back to the car.

"Where are we going?" Harry asked surprised. He had believed they would stay in the Leaky Cauldron.

"To the Headquarters ..." Tonks replied, as if it was the most normal thing to do.

Harry's stomach cramped. They were still using Sirius' house?

Sirius was dead ...

Yet, they drove to Grimmauld Place and entered the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix. Harry didn't like being back here. Everything reminded him of Sirius. Even the curtains covering the picture of Sirius' mother, the elves on the wall... Before, the house had been filled with life and laughter, and meetings still took place here, but now Harry somehow felt as if he shouldn't be here. He abandoned his bags near the entrance-door and entered the kitchen. It looked different, brighter, more friendly. The old, broken table had been replaced with a new one.

"Sirius had one wish: that you should inherit the house, should anything ever happen to him," Moody said with a soft voice. He poured Harry a glass of pumpkin juice.

"I don't want it," Harry replied immediately with a trembling voice.

"Well, you might find a use for it later. As long as you're not of age, it will be ..."

"I DON'T WANT IT!" Harry jumped up and glared angrily at Moody, "DUMBLEDORE CAN OPEN HIS NEW OFFICE HERE, I DON'T CARE! SO LEAVE ME ALONE!" Harry run out of the room, determined to leave the house, when someone held him back by putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You can't just leave." Harry turned around, resolute to hit or yell some more, and looked directly into Lupin's sad eyes. He looked a lot worse than usual. His face was very pale, the dark shades under his eyes deeper than ever. A wound on his right cheek seemed to have healed, but only very recently. Harry was shocked about his desolate appearance and his anger immediately decreased.

"What happened to you?" he asked worried.

"Oh, that's nothing. I had a little quarrel last night with a few wizards. I wasn't able to take Wolfsbane so I ended up running around London - as a werewolf. I think they tried to catch me."

"But they weren't successful."

Lupin nodded. "True, but something a lot more dangerous could have happened."

Mrs. Weasley entered the room and joined them. "Harry, how about you go and check upstairs? Ron, Ginny and Hermione prepared a little surprise for your birthday." Harry, looking a tiny bit embarrassed, let Mrs. Weasley lead him upstairs. He entered the room he had slept in during his last holiday. On the floor, huge letters read Happy Birthday, Harry, while continuously changing their colour. All around, he could make out a few cards and packages. Harry first opened a card from Hagrid that sang songs when petted. But it never got one tone right, so he stopped pretty soon. Hagrid wrote that Grawp had made progress but Dumbledore nonetheless had asked him to move his brother.

"At least one person can make him see reason. If Umbridge had heard about Grawp..." Hermione started.

Ron had given him a huge box of Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Beans, and the twins had sent him a set of Weasleys' Wild-Fire Whiz-Bangs. Lastly, he opened a package that must have been Hermione's. 'Another book ....' Harry thought annoyed. But when he read the title, his mood changed drastically, to anger: Tricks and Tips for Quidditch-player, Version: Seeker.

"Hermione, you do remember that I've been given a life-long ban?" But Hermione grinned. "You're allowed to play next year. Dumbledore dismissed all educational degrees as well as your punishment!" Harry felt like jumping. He was allowed to play Quidditch again! Then he uncertainly glanced over to Ginny.

"It's okay," she said, "I was just a temporary substitute. Anyway, I think I'll try out for Chaser now, I'd like that better." Harry felt the best he had in ages.

The next day, Tonks and Lupin took him back to the Dursleys. He probably could have stayed longer in Grimmauld Place, it was the third-safest-hide-out after all, but the memories of Sirius were simply too much for him to cope with. Nevertheless, he would await the first day of school longingly.

TBC