The Prophesy: Silent Shells

Chapter 9

They sat just looking at him, waiting for a sign. After half an hour, Dumbledore stood up.

'Well that's that then. Sorry Hermione, it was worth a try Severus.'

They all turned to leave. Hermione was the last to leave. She turned away from Harry, tears sliding down her face. She had been so sure that it would work.

'Goodbye Harry Potter. I love you.'

She was half out the door listening to the already brewing fight between Severus and Sirius.

'Bye 'Mione.'

She just continued out the door before she registered what had just happened.

She turned back half fearful and let out a scream.

'Professor, Remus, SIRIUS...dammit... PROFESSOR DUMBLEDORE, PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL, SNAPE, REMUS, SIRIUS, MADAM POMFREY!'

'What is it child?' Dumbledore came running back.

'He spoke to me, he's alive.'

'Are you sure?' asked Dumbledore doubtfully. 'He hasn't moved.

Sirius and Snape entered, followed closely by the others.

'She says he spoke to her. But he doesn't appear to have moved.'

'Of course I haven't moved, I'm in to much bloody pain aren't I?'

'Harry?' Sirius's voice was incredulous.

'No, Sirius, it's the ghost of Christmas Past come to haunt you. What the hell am I doing here? What day is it. Why is Mione looking so thin? Why are you crying Professor?'

'Harry, you killed yourself. You have been dead for a month and Severus found a potion that brought you back to life.'

'Oh, is that all, and I thought something serious had happened. Give me a break Sirius.' Harry replied sarcastically.

'No, Harry, he is telling the truth. Don't you remember?'

'Um, no. I mean I remember potions, and Snape leaving, and...oh shit Cedric...um I mean then Malfoy said something about...oh Merlin - Petunia... then I left and went... oh fuck, I did try to kill myself. Are you saying that I succeeded and that it is now a month later?'

The others looked at him helplessly and Hermione whispered something to McGonagall before slipping out of the room.

'Well...?' he looked at Dumbledore beseechingly. 'Professor, did I die?'

'Yes, Harry, you did.'

What ever reaction they were expecting they didn't get it.

'SO WHY THE FUCK AM I HERE? WHY ARENT I STILL DEAD?'

'Harry, calm down.'

'NO, REMUS. I'M NOT GOING TO CALM DOWN. I ACTUALLY MANAGED TO KILL MYSELF AND YOU GUYS JUST THOUGHT YOU WOULD TAKE IT UPON YOURSELVES TO BRING ME BACK? I WANTED TO DIE YOU DUMBASSES. I WANTED TOO. Why...' he whimpered to himself. 'Why did you do something so stupid?'

'Harry!?!? You're alive? I thought Hermione had gone mad! But how...?' Ron came running into the room, pale but grinning.

'Um, Mr Weasley, this isn't the right time, Miss Granger can you two please leave.'

The pair looked from Harry's furious face to the shocked faces of Dumbledore and Remus, to the tears running down McGonagall's face, to a white faced Sirius, a stunned Flitwick and the emotionless expression on Snape's face. Madam Pomfrey had left for a sedative.

They left without another word.

'Albus, Minerva, could you all leave me and Harry together?' Snape expected to see some sort opposition from Sirius, but he was standing stunned. Remus put his hands on his shoulders and guided him from the room with the rest of the teachers.

////////////////////

'Well Harry, this isn't quite how we expected you to react.' Snape began cautiously.

'How the bloody hell did you expect me to react? I have been slitting my wrists for 5 years, I have just managed get away from the guilt, and you bring me back to everything that I was trying to leave.

And now it is going to be even worse since, if it has been a month like you said, then the whole world will know that The Boy Who Lived tried to kill himself and now I am going to have to deal with that too. Gee, I'm so sorry for sounding so brassed off.'

'Five years? You have been cutting yourself for 5 years? And no one noticed?'

'Yes,' Harry muttered looking away. He hadn't meant to let that slip out.

'How did you keep it from everyone at school and the muggles that you live with?'

'I just wore long sleeved robes. And when I didn't, all the clothes that I owned were Dudley's old ones so I didn't bother shrinking them. Every one got so used to seeing them on me that no one ever questioned it.'

'Dudley?'

'He's my cousin, I always had to wear his hand-me-downs because my uncle and aunt didn't like me, because of what I am. He is really fat, his school cant make uniforms in his size anymore because he is so big.

I was locked in a cupboard under the stairs for most of my life until they thought that if they moved me out of the cupboard, the letters that I was getting from Hogwarts that were addressed to my cupboard would stop being sent.

They starved me and barred the windows of my bedroom at the end of my first year, to try and stop me coming back here, the Weasley twins had to rescue me with Ron in their fathers flying car, the one that Ron and I crashed into the Whomping Willow. They hardly ever acknowledged that I existed so it wasn't hard for me to hide the fact that I was cutting my wrists. Not that they would have cared anyway.'

'They treated you like that and Dumbledore let you live there?'

'Yeah, something to do with some protection while I was living with my family or some crap like that.' He gave a hollow laugh. 'I could have done with some protection from them'

'Why would you need protecting from them? They didn't hit you.' Snape suddenly looked at him closely. 'Or did they?'

Harry looked away.

'Harry?'

'Yeah, after Cedric died I was kind of always off in my own world and Uncle Vernon was having trouble at work, so he would take it out on me because I wasn't paying attention to him or whatever.

I think he would have beaten me to death if it hadn't been that he thought my godfather was a wanted murderer. He would have starved me to death, but Petunia would feed me when he wasn't home.

I think Dudley told him because he started hitting her.

She found out that I was cutting myself towards the end of the holidays, because she found a sheet covered in blood under my bed. Then she got the letter from Hogwarts about Cedric and she became sympathetic.

Then when I came back here and Vernon's company went broke and he and Dudley took all their stress out on her because I wasn't there anymore.

She killed herself because of me. All my blood relatives that I have ever known died because of me. And every person I know has had to suffer because of me.' A tear slid down Harry's face.

'That's not true, Harry.' Snape said roughly.

'Yes it is.' Harry was sobbing into his pillow now.

'My parents died trying to save me I can hear them when the Dementors get to close to me, I can hear my mother screaming at Voldemort to spare my life and take hers instead.

Do you know what that's like? Hearing your mum dying, because she wanted you to live?

Do you know what it's like hearing your dad telling your mum to get out of the house with me while he tried to hold of the most powerful dark wizard of all time?'

Snape looked away, trying to bite back the tears that were threatening to spill over his cheeks as he looked at the distraught boy.

'Nah, I didn't think so. You don't have a clue.

Even my relatives that either are repulsed by me or pity me have died because of me. My Aunt killed herself because her husband and son beat her up because I was no longer around.

She even got the idea of slitting her wrists from me. She never would have thought of it otherwise.

I can't even be friends with someone without them suffering. I told Cedric to take the cup with me, trying to be nice, and he died because of it. Cho is now scared of me and thinks I murdered her boyfriend.

If Voldemort hadn't been trying to get back at me then the diary wouldn't have got into my best friends, little sisters hands.

Sirius was stuck in Azkaban for 12 years because people thought he was my parents secret keeper when they were killed trying to protect me.

Remus Lupin had to suffer for 12 years because he thought that two of his best friends were dead and the third one had killed them or had them killed because of me.

And now anyone who I haven't hurt already, is going to be hurt because it was my blood who brought Voldemort back to life, and I was the only one who had any definite power against him but because he has my blood, my mothers protection is in him so I don't have any defences ready.

The people in my dreams were right. It is all my fault. My parents shouldn't have bothered, I have just disgraced them and hurt the people that I care most about in the process. I'm just a failure.

And now I have told you all this you will have even more excuses to torment me in class.

And you will have even more ammunition to give to your precious Slytherins so that they can hassle the shit out of me.

Why didn't you just let me die?

It was the first thing I had ever done right and now you have undone it all.

It had to be you didn't it.' Harry added, laughing humourlessly.

'You just had to bring me back so that you could torture me even more. Well don't bother trying, you have successfully found the best way to torment me.

And you get the fame and recognition that you deserve.

You, Professor Severus Snape, in the process of making your most hated enemy unhappy have made the first potion ever to bring people back from the dead.

Is this better than the Order of Merlin that you were going to receive for having caught an innocent man?

Well at least your victim this time deserved what he got.

Just fuck off Snape, you have done all that you set out to do, have any feelings under that slimy, cruel exterior then you will leave me alone.'

////////////////

'We should have left him Dumbledore, I should never have interfered. That poor boy.

He thinks that his Aunts death was entirely his fault because he left her with this Vernon character and he beat her up because Harry wasn't around to beat up instead.

Did you know, Albus, they locked him under the stairs for 10 years and half starved him.

When they did move him to a room of his own, they fitted bars to the windows so that he couldn't come back here and he had to be rescued by the Weasley Twins.

He believes that all his family have died because of him.

He thinks that Cedric's death is his fault.

He likes that Cho girl that was Cedric's girlfriend but is convinced that she thinks he is a murderer.

He thinks that I brought him back to life so that I could torment him and that the fame I would receive is just an extra.

He even believes that I would tell all the things that he told me to my Slytherins so that they could torment him to.

He is afraid that if he stays friends with anyone that they will get hurt, just being associated with him.

He thinks that it is his fault that the mutt was stuck in Azkaban and that the werewolf had to suffer for twelve years because of him.

He also mentioned people in some dreams that he has been having. Something about how they were right, and that it is his fault and that he is a disgrace to his parents or something.

That boy is so miserable and none of us knew.

I feel so terrible for all the years that I picked on him. I just thought he was a spoilt brat.'

Dumbledore just sat staring at the papers on his desk.

'Did he say anything else?'

'Well he blathered on about how I had undone the best thing that he had ever done in his life.

I want to help him Dumbledore, but what can we do? We can't kill him and if we leave him to kill himself then it will look like negligence, which it is.'

'Thank you Severus, there is nothing more that we can do tonight. Poppy will give him a dreamless sleep potion and he will be put in restraints. I'll try and talk to him tomorrow.'

After Snape left the room Dumbledore stared up at the ceiling. Then he shook himself.

'Well, did you hear it all? There is no need to stay in there, you can come out.'

A cupboard door swung open and a flushing Minerva McGonagall stepped out. She was followed by Remus, Sirius and Flitwick.

They all stared at their feet ashamedly.

'There is no need to be embarrassed, you aren't the only ones. Come on children, show yourself.'

Ron, Hermione and Draco suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Hermione was folding up some shimmery material, they stared at the headmaster.

'And the rest of you.'

Everyone looked around with comical looks of surprise on their faces as Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan and the Weasley Twins all crawled out of different hiding places.

Rons ears went scarlet as Hermione stared at him accusingly.

'Well I couldn't not tell them. I didn't no what the situation was and you told me that they were going to be told anyway.' He defended himself.

'Do not worry yourself, Mr Weasley. Miss Granger here also has some thing to tell you.'

Hermione looked at her feet as Dumbledore got to his and opened the door to his office.

There was a high pitched squeal as Neville Longbottom and Ginny Weasley fell into the room.

'Well,' said Dumbledore looking around his crowded office. 'this certainly saves me many explanations.'

He threw some powder into the fire and called into it. 'Poppy and Severus could you join us up here please.'

The people in the room stood back as first Madam Pomfrey and then Professor Snape, muttering about headmasters who couldn't make up their minds where they wanted a person, stepped into the room.

Snape jumped as he saw the room full of people.

'Well that was quick Albus. Did you zoom them here with a summoning charm or something?'

'Well actually they were here the whole time, they had concealed themselves in many different areas of the room.'

Severus looked around the room, taking in the many open cupboards and the rumpled clothing of teachers and students alike. Then he did something that no one would have expected him to.

He laughed. He quickly stopped looking ashamed of himself and turned to the wall to compose himself.

Neville's look of relief was absolutely comical.

Dumbledore waited for everyone to recover and pay attention to him before he started to speak.

'Well since you are all here I will only make this speech once.

Harry has been brought back to life by a potion made by professor Snape that I am assuming you all contributed to.' Dumbledore looked around the room to make sure that Draco had nodded amongst the others.

'Good. Now I don't know if you were able to hear all the details that Severus gave me, whilst you were crouched in cupboards, under invisibility cloaks, and listening with your ear to the key hole,' the different people had the grace to blush at the right time.

'Well I think we can't truthfully say that any of us expected this to be Harry's reaction.

You younger ones weren't in the room when he first woke up, except for Miss Granger, and she left to find Mr Weasley before Harry got too distraught.

His exact words were:

"No, Remus. I'm not going to calm down. I actually managed to kill myself and you guys just thought you would take it upon yourselves to bring me back? I wanted to die you dumbasses. I wanted too. Why? Why did you do something so stupid?" .

He also said other things with so many expletives that I will not repeat it here. I am sure that he will express himself to many of you in no uncertain terms.

Once he knows that all of you know about the potion he will most probably take a lot of anger out on you.

I do not whether the anger will only be verbal, or whether his actions on others will become violent.

Not to single you out or anything, Mr Malfoy, but I think you should be extra careful around him.'

Draco nodded, 'I always have to be anyway.'

'Good. Now I am afraid that Harry has been placed in restraints and when they eventually come off, he will have to be watched twenty four hours a day.

His behaviour makes this part impossible to overlook.

But here comes the parts I need you all to play.

I don't want any of you bringing up his guilty feelings, unless he brings it up or unless I authorise it.

If he brings it up, then listen to what he has to say, do not interrupt. And then tell him calmly what you think.

There is no need to start a yelling match to express your opinions.

I am appointing Severus Snape, to talk to him and to try and council him, as the muggles would call it.'

At once a volley of voices started berating the Headmaster.

'What? Sir, you can't be serious, that greasy git hates Harry. He has spent the last four and a half years making Harry's life miserable.' Ron yelled furiously.

He was backed up by Hermione.

'Sir, I don't think, Harry will appreciate having to talk about all this to a person who has tormented Harry for so many years. Harry compares Professor Snape to his muggle relatives, he dislikes him so much.'

She was going to say more but she was cut off by Sirius. 'Dumbledore, I am his godfather. He can talk to me, or Remus, or Minerva, she is head of his house, or anyone but him. Think what you are saying for Merlins sake.'

Even Professor McGonagall was looking extremely doubtful.

Snape was flushed red with anger and embarrassment at the obvious dissent at the choice of him, but he too, looked as if he didn't think he was the right choice.

'No, Severus is the only candidate. He is someone who will evaluate from a respected distance. If it was many of you, you would argue as soon as your name came into the conversation. Then Harry would clam up and not talk to you at all.

Also, Harry can express his reservations to Severus about being brought back to life a lot easier than you others. He can just be telling Severus how annoyed he is, and it will automatically come out why.

Harry might also not want to talk to anyone to close to him for fear of hurting their feelings.

I have thought about this and Severus is the only option.'

Dumbledore gazed around the room, he noticed that while many people accepted what he said, there were still a few who looked extremely doubtful, and Sirius was trembling with rage.

'I must also ask that Harry is not disturbed by anyone until Severus or I see fit.'

If it was possible, Sirius's face went even darker.

Ginny was thinking desperately, trying to find away to get the focus off who could see Harry when, when she was struck with a thought.

'Professor Dumbledore, are you going to tell the school that Harry is alive? I mean it's going to look pretty suspicious if Harry's closest friends suddenly start acting as if nothings wrong.'

Dumbledore looked at her thoughtfully.

'I think I am going to have to tell them. I will call a special assembly to announce it. The only problem is the amount of doubt amongst the students and the confusion. Then they will be writing to their parents and I will have to notify the rest of the wizarding world. People may not believe that he is alive again or that he died at all. Some may think that it is a publicity stunt. Also the security on Harry's room will have to extremely strong. I think that we are going to have to put wards on the door that will only admit certain people.'

Draco suddenly jerked as he was hit by a consideration. 'Professor, you and Professor Snape say he is angry at being brought back.

What happens if he tries to top himself again?

What if he succeeds? Do we bring him back?

And what do we tell the rest of the world? We can't just keep telling them that he has died and then come back to life.'

The suicide attempt isn't public knowledge, so how do we explain that he has died for a second time.

We can't tell them it was suicide, because then they won't believe that his soul still had the will to live and that wrecks the whole story.

But the rest of the school knows that Harry committed suicide, so we cant say that he didn't. '

Dumbledore sighed 'These thoughts are many that have been troubling me ever since I saw Harry's reaction.

I think that the fact that it was suicide will have to be publicised, even if we say that he got cursed and the curse drove him mad.

If he does it again, then we will say that he committed suicide the second time, for reasons unknown, or that he was so weak, he died anyway. If we are really stuck then a death eater attack be invented or a mystery disease will suddenly strike him down.'

'When will the spell be cast Professor?' asked Ron.

I think I will cast it now, and later on Harry when he is asleep. I will re-apply it when he knows everything and on you all, if new developments arrive.'

Dumbledore picked up his wand and said 'Clandestina.'

Every person felt a slight tingling in their throats and the whole room erupted in coughing.

'Well I believe that that is all for now. Dinner will be beginning soon. Minerva, I won't be at dinner tonight, I will be to busy, so could you get the house elves to send something up, and would you all kindly inform everyone that I am holding a special assembly at ten thirty am tomorrow. Good evening.'

Everyone turned and left the room.

////////////////

When they finally got out of Dumbledore's office and were standing in the corridor the students just stood looking at the ground for five minutes after the other teachers had walked away.

The Fred broke the silence, 'We had better move, every one is going to be coming down for dinner soon. Does anyone really feel like going to the Great Hall?'

The others shook their heads.

'Right, well you just go back to the common room, and George and I will go get some food from the kitchens.'

The others nodded blankly before starting to walk off down the corridor.

Ron turned and called back, 'We'll be in our dorm,' he said, indicating himself, Seamus, Dean and Neville. 'Make sure you get enough food. I bloody hungry.'

George grinned back, the first real smile any of them had given that afternoon.

As the boys ran away Hermione turned to Ron with a glare. 'Is that all you can think about, your stomach?'

'Well yes, when I'm hungry.'

Hermione began ranting and raving as the others grinned in relief at the knowledge that they could still act normal in light of all that had happened.

When they got back to the dorm Ron called to Dean and Seamus over to where he and Draco had been talking. 'Come here, I've got a plan.'

He started whispering to them, and after a few startled looks, they nodded.

Ron turned to Hermione 'We're just going for a walk, we won't be long. Don't start eating without us.'

He went to his trunk and pulled out the Marauders Map and Harry's invisibility cloak.

'Ron!' Hermione began, then she slumped down onto a bed. 'Oh well, I 'spose it doesn't matter. Just don't get caught.'

Ron grinned at her before slipping under the cloak with Dean, Seamus and Draco and the door seemed to open by itself and then close.

'Where are they going?' Ginny asked.

'You'll find out. They won't be long. They'll be in deep shit if they get caught though.'

Ginny glanced at Neville who shrugged and they sat in silence for half an hour or so before the Weasley Twins came back with a sack full of food each.

'Sorry, we took so long. McGonagall was their telling the elves to take some up to Dumbledore and she caught us. We had to convince her to let us eat up here.'

Just then the door opened and the other three boys appeared out of nowhere.

'Where have you been?' asked Fred.

Ron just smiled and he, Seamus and Dean emptied their pockets which appeared to be full of tiny bottles, Draco smiled and emptied his as well.

Ron took out his want and uttered a spell and they all shot up to they're original size.

'Ron, you're a bloody genius,' said George. 'Did you need any help from Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs?'

Ron nodded looking angry as he muttered. 'Yeah, the wonderful Marauders, too bad that it's Wormtail's fault that we are in this bloody mess.'

'Huh? Do you know them?'

'Yeah, and you know two of them as well. And the son of one of them.'

He grabbed a bottle of some amber liquid, and pulled the lid off, gulping down a few mouthfuls before shuddering and passing it to Neville, who took a tentative sip before coughing and spluttering.

'Hermione can explain.'

As Hermione began explaining the whole story everyone's eyes got rounder and rounder. Then amazed gasps began to fill the room as they all got steadily drunker.

When she came to a slurry finish, an hour later, there was dead silence before Fred raised an unsteady glass.

'A toasht, to the Marouldersh, Mootail, Wormfoot, Paddy and Prongsh, no I meansh not Wormfootsh, er tailsh, well to the loyol free. Who shtood against da evil Lordsh of Darknesh. May them jokesh nedda grow lesh funnies.'

'Heehee, hic, oppsh pardon, Fedsh drunken too much. Heehee.' Hermione giggled.

No one noticed a small pop, as Sirius Black's head vanished from the fire.

He stood in his room chuckling grimly to himself. 'Ah well, there'll be some sore heads tomorrow. Let them have their precious moments of drunken oblivion, Remus. They're gonna need it before they have to experience what they are going too in the days to come.'

Remus looked doubtful and a voice interrupted his thoughts as Minerva spoke from the doorway.

'Yes, let them. The amount of times I let you four get away with things like that when you were their age. And they do have a better reason too, than you boys did.'

Remus nodded.

'Well until tomorrow,' Snape said, entering the DADA room, 'let us follow their example. At least we have a hangover cure.' He was carrying four bottles of different drinks.

They settled down by the fire and opened the bottles.

'Well, we have better quality booze than them,' said Sirius looking at the labels on the bottle. 'These are excellent labels. And very hard to get.'

'Never did I think that I would be wasting good whisky on you, Black. Oh and if a get to intoxicated, you two will not play stupid pranks or force me to say things I shouldn't or I will hex you into the next life.'

Remus chuckled as he summoned some glasses from a draw in is desk.

'Even Hermione was nearly legless. What is the world coming to? Well cheers.'

Up in his office Dumbledore poured himself a glass and raised it in a salute to Fawkes.

'Well, Fawkes, I wont be drinking as much as some students and Professors tonight, but I'll be damned if I don't have one or two.'

Up in the Gryffindor Tower, Ron sat on his bed, his arms wrapped around Hermione as they looked out the window.

The room was filled with the sounds of the boys heavy, drunken snores and Ginny's whimpers as she curled up in the corner trying to fight the waves of nausea that threatened to engulf her in her semiconscious state.

They looked out at the stars and Hermione's shoulders shook as tears trickled down her face.

Ron was singing softly to her. 'Hush now, don't you cry, wipe away that teardrop from

your eye.

You're lying safe in bed, it was all a bad dream spinning

in your head.

Your mind tricked you to feel the pain of someone close

to you leaving the game of life. So here it is, another

chance.

Wide-awake you face the day.

Your dream is over... or has it just begun?'

Hermione sniffed and snuggled in to his arms as he lay back on the bed.

'That song 'minds me of Harry,'

Ron sighed into her hair. 'It's gonna be ok 'Mione, Harry'll be fine.'

'Ron,'

'Hmmmm?'

'I love you,'

'Me too 'Mione.'

'Ron?'

...

Hermione sighed as she snuggled into the arms of her sleeping best friend.