"Dudley."
"What?"
"Dudley, I need you to get behind me."
"What, so you can get the drop on me? Yeah right Freak. Why don't you come over here?"
"Dudley, can you feel it getting colder?"
"Yeah, so?"
"You know that little club I'm a part of?"
"I-it's not-"
"It is. And I need you to get behind me right now, or else I can't guarantee your safety."
"I don't need saving from a little Freak like you."
"Well, do you want to hold off a dragon by yourself without a weapon?"
"It's a dragon?!"
"No Dudley, but it's even worse."
Dudley backed against one of the alley walls and grabbed Harry roughly by the arm, spinning the small boy in front of his blubbery body in a demented form of a human shield.
"Alright, whatever you do, stay behind me."
"Not if you die."
"Of course Dudley."
A few moments later, two black cloaks billowed ominously as skeletal hands appeared in the shadows of the alley. Harry splayed out his right hand, grit his teeth, and forced his best memory forward amidst the cold and feelings of helplessness.
"Expecto Patronum!"

-

"Good morning class."
Silence fell in the room as the students looked at their new Defense against the Dark Arts Professor.
"Hem hem, Good morning class."
A few people said good morning in reply, but many of the students simply looked at their teacher oddly.
"Well, this just won't do. When I say 'good morning class', you respond with 'good morning Professor Umbridge'. Good morning class."
"Good morning Professor Umbridge."

-

"We're not learning anything in Defense. How does Umbridge expect us to pass our NEWTs if she won't allow us to practice?"
"Well we're practicing right now, aren't we?"
"But what if students can't do it, and can't figure out why it won't cast?"
"You're right... We could start a study club if you wanted?"
"That'd be perfect! Something like what we do here, but with a lot of people. I bet we could easily get Mr. Flitwick to sign off on it."
"Alright, do you want to write it up, or me?"

-

"All scheduled meetings of three or more people are now against school rules? What rubbish is this?"
"It's the new decree. Umbridge doesn't seem to like the idea of our study club very much."
"Well, what do we do?"
"I have an idea."

-

Two girls giggled quietly as they walked into the library before checking the clock to make sure they were on time.
Walking around one of the bookshelves near the back, Hannah Abbot nearly slammed into Padma.
"Oh my gosh! Are you okay Padma? I'm so sorry!"
"Yeah, I'm fine. What're you guys doing back here?"
"Oh, we just wanted to do some studying, do you mind if we join you?"
"Of course not. Harry, this is Hannah Abbot and Susan Bones."
"Hiya Hannah, Susan. I'm Harry. What seems to be the problem?"

-

Harry gasped as he jerked awake, heart pounding and hands shaking. He could still taste the blood on his tongue as he sunk his fangs into Amos Diggory. The man had been walking from his office in the Department of the Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures when Nagini had caught him, which reminded Harry...
Lunging out of his bed, Harry tore out of his room like a bat out of hell and quickly ran to the prefects' rooms.
"Cedric! Cedric, wake up!"
A door was thrown open and a disgruntled Hufflepuff prefect looked down at the little black-haired kid that had woken him up in the middle of the night.
"What?"
"It's your dad! He's in trouble!"
Cedric's eyes went wide as he woke right up, now identifying the little boy as his friend and co-Triwizard Champion, Harry Potter.
"H-how? What happened? How do you know?"
"It doesn't matter- we need to get to the Ministry!"
"Right, follow me."

-

"You're really quite lucky Mr. Diggory, had your father been left alone for even a few more minutes our antidote wouldn't have been able to stop the effects of the venom. Just where did your father get hold of such a dangerous snake?"
A shaken, withdrawn, and tired Cedric looked up at the medi-wizard with huge eyes.
"I don't know. I didn't even know he was working late tonight."
"Well then, as I said. He was lucky. You did a good job young man."
Right then and there, Cedric realized that Harry was a little angel sent down from Heaven. He was no Christian, but there simply was no denying it. The boy had had a dream and managed to save his father from an agonizing death. Cedric would do anything to fulfill the life debt he now owed Harry.

-

Dear Sirius,
I know this may be an odd letter to send, but please don't go to the Ministry tomorrow. Voldemort is going to try to lure you there, and then kill you. I can't have you dying, okay? You only just got free, and I need my godfather. I need someone to rely on. Can I depend on you?

-

THE DARK LORD IS BACK! MINISTRY LEFT REELING!
In a series of unfortunate events, Sirius Black is left dead after helping a vigilante group, the Order of the Phoenix, lead by Albus Dumbledore, defeat a surprise raid by Death Eaters and You-Know-Who himself! Minister Fudge is...
An owl winged in a few minutes after the news of the Prophet, and Harry almost didn't have the energy to look at it, until he saw the writing he was all-too-familiar with.
Grabbing the letter, Harry ran out of the Great Hall to keep himself from bursting into tears in front of everyone.

-

"Harry, please, sit down. I'm so glad we can finally talk. How have you been, my boy?"
"As well as can be expected. How have you been?"
"Ah, quite busy, I'm afraid. But I called you here to help me with something. Can you tell me exactly what happened when you grabbed the cup your fourth year?"
"Grabbed? No sir, Cedric and I had both refused to grab it, and he used magic to flick the cup at me."
"Oh, I'm sorry."
"No, it's no problem. I wish Cedric had taken it though, I didn't need all that money, nor the fame that came with it."
"But, Harry, my dear boy, what happened when you were portkeyed?"
"I landed in a graveyard, and was roped into resurrecting Voldemort, literally. I escaped when he initiated a duel with me. I dodged spells and backed up until I could roll and grab the cup. Luckily, it was spelled to portkey back to the original location when touched again."
"I see. Did he call his followers to him? Were there any Death Eaters there when you arrived?"
Harry shrugged, frowning lightly as he felt a migraine coming on. There had been a man, tall and lanky, but Harry didn't know who he was specifically.
"I'm guessing they were all wearing their masks?"
In his memory, a few flashes of names being called out played, but Harry knew they were all wearing their masks.
"Yes, sir."
"I see. Have you received any dreams of these people? Or maybe simply of Voldemort himself? I know of when you saw Mr. Diggory's father, but you never explained how you knew it was real."
Harry shrugged again, his eyes narrowing slightly on the twinkling blue, finally realizing why his migraine had come on so strongly.
"You see Harry, Voldemort has a special connection with you. The reason he went to the Ministry of Magic all those months ago was in order to hear a prophecy. One made sixteen years ago, about a boy destined to defeat him. That boy is you, Harry."

-

"I'm destined to destroy Voldemort? There really is no way to save him?"
Harry sighed quietly to himself as he raked his large mind for any way to reverse Horcruxes. Tom had never bothered with trying to find out himself, but the way the books Tom had read spoke of them, there was no other way than death. It was the only information Harry had, and he knew Tom had burned all the books with information on Horcruxes that he could get. There was no way Harry would be able to get his hands on one to figure it out.
Harry walked up to his dorm with a heavy heart, sneaking in and out without anyone noticing him under his wonderful invisibility cloak. The only way for Tom's redemption was through his death.
"Open."
Sliding down the old pipes, Harry came to a stop on top of the familiar pile of bones, grimacing at the sounds of crunching bones.

-

Tom.
Yes, Harry?
There's been a prophecy.
About you?
Us. It says I'm destined to kill your older self.
This is farewell then?
Tears slowly dripped onto Tom's pages, and he knew his answer.
You always were a bleeding heart. Harry, do me a favor- never change.
Choked tears mixed with blood as Harry stabbed a basilisk fang into the center of the diary.

-

"Harry, my dear boy, how are you?"
"I'm well, and you, sir?"
"Perfectly good, thank you, my boy. Do you know why I called you here?"
"I would assume that this has something to do with the prophecy?"
"Indeed, you see, it seems Voldemort has a bit deeper of a connection with you than either of us believed. I have been researching the ways in which he may have survived the rebound of a killing curse, and, in turn, your survival, but I have only found one possible answer. I would like to request your research abilities to help me find more answers. I trust this will be kept in complete confidence?"
"I believe you are correct sir."
"Pardon?"
"You are thinking of Horcruxes, no?"
"How do you know of them, my boy?"
"Easy Headmaster. I am one."
Without pause, Harry met Dumbledore's eyes, and the man dove forward into the little 'puff's mind. Fighting back with equal force, Harry sent Dumbledore to his darkest memories, swallowing the man up with his anger.
Cutting the connection mere seconds later, Harry abruptly stood up and left the office, leaving his disoriented headmaster slumped on his desk.

-

"Professor Snape."
"Yes, Potter?"
"If I may talk to you in private?"
"If you have something to say to me, it can be said here."
Wards immediately flew up around the potions classroom as Harry wished for secrecy.
"I can't allow the Dark Lord to mark the Slytherins, but I also know that they would never accept anything from me. Will you help me keep them out of his hands?"
Snape sneered at the boy who was no better than his father. "Even if I thought you capable of tricking such an intelligent man, I would stand by the Slytherins as their Head of House. It is my duty."
Harry nodded seriously, and Snape had a difficult time trying to find any lies in his expression.
"I have a mental connection to him, and thus, have the ability to warp his thoughts. I never have before, as I believed I could help return him to the courageous and bright man he was when you bowed to him."
Snape's attention snapped wholly to the small boy in front of him as the son of his worst enemy continued.
"The prophecy was revealed to me in full, and I now know that that hope was false. Tell the Slytherins that they have full war asylum from the house of Potter. They may move their families to Potter Castle if need be. I am not using it, though I have had the wards updated and house elves employed to its care. The goblins at Gringotts know of what I intend and they will know what to do should any of them request the castle's location."
The spy was speechless, as he had never thought this boy could make such a stupid but ration plan. Offering one war asylum was similar to saying that the house would do all it could to keep those in asylum safe, dying for them, if need be.
"Why would you do this, boy?"
"I cannot allow the Dark Lord to have a grip on our community's future, but I also cannot have him gaining access to Hogwarts through anyone else."
"Your message will be relayed."
"Thank you."

-

"Come, drink from me... I can offer you anything... whatever you wish, will be yours... come closer... touch me... grant me YOUR MAGIC!"
Dumbledore steeled his emotions and flicked his wand, moments passed and nothing happened.
"GIVE IT TO ME! SURRENDER YOUR SOUL TO M-"
Dumbledore whipped out a different wand from his left sleeve and cast a controlled incendio on the goblet sitting innocuously on a shelf, oozing dark magic as if bathed in it.
The cup went up in flames, shrieking in mind-bending pain, but relief and confusion were the only emotions known to the old man.
Harry woke up in a sweat, pain and grim determination steeling his jaw. It was for the best, Voldemort could not be saved. He did this to himself.

-

Harry, come see me in my office.
The Hufflepuff ignored the Headmaster's gaze and banished the paper.
"Who was that Harry?"
"It's nothing Nev, just another silly love note."
"Honestly, I thought you got enough of those on Valentine's Day!"
Harry giggled as he laid his head against his taller friend, remembering the disgruntled 'cherubs' that had brought him so many letters and singing grams on Valentine's.

-

Labored breathes sang in the quiet of the large room. An old man with a blackened chest slept under soft sheets. A Phoenix sat on the bedside, sitting quietly, watching.
The older man's eyebrows furrowed as he shifted in his sleep. He choked on air for a second, then another, his heart sputtering and failing before the wizard went completely silent and still in his bed.
The Phoenix sang a soft note before disappearing in a flash of flames. The curse had finally taken its hold.

-

YOU-KNOW-WHO ATTACKS IN WAKE OF HEADMASTER'S DEATH!
With the death of Albus Dumbledore on June 30th, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named ordered his Death Eaters to launch an attack on Hogsmeade, the small village on Hogwarts' borders. It is obvious that You-Know-Who is getting bolder with his attacks, now that his greatest foe is dead. We now depend on Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, to keep Dumbledore's legacy alive. With the panic of the attack on Hogsmeade, where many were injured, but luckily none were killed, Cornelius Fudge was kicked out of office, and the date of elections are yet to be determined...

-

"Another year, gone. And we only have one left?"
"Yeah, I can't believe it's flown by so fast. It feels like just yesterday we were being sorted."
"And I was worried about finding Trevor."
"Speaking of, where is Trevor?"
"He finally escaped to the Black Lake a couple days ago, I decided to leave him be rather than take him back to his cage for summer."
"That's probably for the best. I'm sorry for your loss though. I know how much he meant to you."
"It's no problem Harry, he had to go eventually."
"And so will we! Aren't you excited to be almost done with school guys?"
Harry cast an uneasy glance at Padma and Neville from his place laying against Justin.
"What? What's going on that I don't know about?"
Harry shifted off of his friend to look at him sadly and imploringly.
"About that Justin... Padma, Neville, and I aren't going back next year."
"What do you mean 'you're not going back'?"
"Voldemort... He- well, I need to stop him, and for that to happen, I can't be holed up in the school."
"But- Harry, you can't be expected to beat him! He's got years of experience on you, and he's a Dark Lord. Dumbledore couldn't even defeat him!"
"I know Justin, but I have to try. You saw the Prophet a few days ago, I'm the only one who can do it now. Britain's last line of defense."
"Now you believe those sniveling liars? Wouldn't we always say that the Prophet was no good? What's gotten into you, Harry? Why would you want to try something so dangerous? It's a suicide misssion! And you! Neville, how could you let him? Didn't we promise to protect our little 'puff against anything and everything back in third year?"
Neville looked down in shame as Harry hugged Justin tightly, burrowing his head into the taller boy's chest.
"Justin, please don't be mad at Neville. He tried to talk me out of this too. The problem is that it has been foretold that I defeat Voldemort. The night he killed my parents, a prophecy was put into motion. It says that both of us cannot remain alive, one of us has to die."
"Padma, isn't there a way around prophecies? Maybe Harry is just thinking of it wrong? He doesn't have to die, does he?"
A sad shake of the head was his answer, tears gathering in the ravenclaw's eyes.
"It's alright Justin, I'm willing to die if need be. But," Justin closed his mouth, scowling lightly at Harry's acceptance of death, "I won't be going down without a fight. I plan on tracking Voldemort down and catching him unaware. I know I'm no match for him in a full-on duel. I'm going to need your help though."
"Anything, Harry. Just say the word, and I'll be there."
A special Map was passed, and a plan was hatched.