Harry Potter and the Return to Hogwarts

"This story is about truth, beauty, freedom; but above all things, this story is about love."- Moulin Rouge

Prologue

November 11^th, 2000.

Everything would to be all right again. After several decades of living in fear of Death Eaters, Dark Marks and spies, people could now breathe more freely. They no longer needed to be careful of what they said, who they were friends with or whom they fell in love with. The survivors would live life like they'd never had the chance to before. For many of them it was new and exciting life that they vaguely could see the contours of in a future not too distant. Most of them had never lived during anything besides Lord Voldemort's terror reign.

There had been several years when hope had grown in them all that he was vanquished for good. But even as they had celebrated most of them hadn't dared to believe it. Now they knew for certain that he was gone for good.

It had been a long war. Most of the survivors had lost friends, family members or colleagues. The casualties had been extremely high, so high that every family in the wizarding world would have at least one empty seat at their dining table, for good. In some cases whole houses were empty, because the inhabitants never returned home again.

The year after the World Cup Voldemort officially rose again, the battles began not long after. Now, when the final battle, today on November 11^th, 2000 was won the magical people of the world had been fighting battles for five years. Some of which had been lost, some of which had been won.

Hogwarts had been closed down. It used to be the safest place for the children to be, but the professors simply didn't have the time to teach or protect them anymore. The professors were needed in the war, as counsellors, trainers, leaders, nurses, potions makers or strategists. Every child had to be home-schooled if they were going to learn anything. Now, there were too few teachers left to re-open it straight away. The only survivors of Hogwarts were Professor Sinistra and Dumbledore. Other than the two of them, and Professor Binns, everybody had sacrificed their lives for a new and better tomorrow.

Harry Potter stood alone in thoughts on the battlefield. Everywhere around him people were hurrying around trying to find people that had only been wounded, and still were alive to be rescued. 'I can't take this anymore. After this day, and the duel I've just fought people are going to want a piece of me more than ever. I want to be left in peace. I don't want the kind of hero-worshipping I know they'll be throwing over me. I have lived with that all my magical life. I don't need any medals or honours; I want to live a normal life. Be a normal man and do what a normal man would do. I am no longer the Boy-Who-Lived; I am a man of 20 years and I need some time to think things through.'

He had just beaten Voldemort; just like in those books he had read at school, before he went to Hogwarts, about Narnia, he had known that a duel was the only possible way to solve this conflict. Just like Peter he had defeated Voldemort in a duel and saved an uncountable number of lives. 'Only too bad that Voldemort and I couldn't have taken the duel ages ago and saved most of the lives of the people who died. I've lost my best friend, several others of my friends and their relatives. Unknown people have died for making this world a better place to live in. They didn't want children to grow up like they did, constantly worrying about Voldemort.' But now they were free. The children were free to grow up in peace without too many worries. He was free. He could do whatever he wanted to, and he wanted time. Time to think things through. Time to do all the things he hadn't been able to do because he had to save the world along with the rest of the Order of the Phoenix.

He looked about him. People were still busy. The ones who would usually hurry to take care of him were either among the busiest or among the ones grieving. Hermione was grieving the loss of Ron. Mr. Weasley and Mrs. Weasley were grieving for Bill, Percy and Ron. Sirius and Dumbledore were trying to arrange proper funerals for the dead and punish Voldemort's supporters in a way that would benefit the world.

Harry had noticed the leaves that still were hanging onto the branches of the trees, before the duel that had been the one comforting thought in his head. The leaves had turned yellow and red, but were still hanging on. They weren't dead yet, and neither was he. When the leaves left the tree, new ones would grow out the next spring. If he died he wouldn't pop magically up the next spring. He'd had to succeed. People had faith in him. Their future hopes were based on his success. And he had succeeded. He had won. People now had a future to look forward to.

So what was he going to do? Stay here and be bullied by the journalists, when they'd managed to re-start the newspapers? Go away and live a solitary life and try to think out what he was going to do next? Harry looked up in the sky. It had been dreary all day, slight hint of fog and rain. Now the sun was sending its rays through the clouds, he even thought he spotted a rainbow up there somewhere.

Harry James Potter took one step in the right direction.

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