Shattered Memories

Chapter Five

The Meeting

He walked the dreary halls with much amounted excitement and nerves. What was it that Dumbledore wanted him for? He passed a run-down bathroom, hearing gurgling sounds from inside, briefly wondering if that was the toilet with the ghoul inside, before remembering that toilet was upstairs. He continued across the threadbare carpet, his mind wandering to the summer before, when Sirius was there with him. As he entered the Drawing Room, his eyes glanced to the hanging curtains across the room, remembering the Doxy infestation they had to remove last year.

The headmaster was seated behind a scratched wooden desk, sitting on a purple armchair. He smiled when Harry took a green chair on the other side of the table and conjured a bottle of Butterbeer for him. Harry thanked him when he took the drink, his mind once more buzzing with anticipation.

"Are you sure your okay, Harry?" there was a strange look of sadness in Dumbledore's eyes that Harry found slightly disconcerting.

"I'm-!" he was about to say fine but he knew the old man would see through his emotional barriers. "I'm coping," he said softly and truthfully. Dumbledore nodded slowly and sighed.

"Yes, but that is the first step in healing. You have to accept what has happened first before being able to move on from it. I'm glad to see you happy and smiling once more," the old man said, his blue eyes faintly twinkling.

"Erm - what was it you wanted to see me about?" he asked nervously. With these words, Harry noticed years build on his aged features and immediately felt fear. What ever was making Dumbledore this worried and sad must be bad!

"I have come to speak to you today regarding a few topics. The first is: are you planning on telling your friends about the prophecy?" he asked. Harry froze at these words. He had not really thought about discussing the prophecy with anyone other than his own mind. The truth was that these words had been running through his head all summer. He had been trying to deal with his own fate and come to a decision about it. He was slowly starting to accept what had to be done and his role in it; but that didn't make it all the easier to talk about.

"I-I'm not sure," Harry stammered. He knew what their reactions would be. Ron would just sit there, gaping at a loss for words. Hermione would try to say it wasn't true and that Trelawney was a fake before crying then running to the library to read up on prophecies. And they both would pity him and that was something he did not want.

"Well, think about it. It is better for one to confide in those he feels safe with, so they can share the burden with you. It would not do well to keep it to yourself, because eventually it will get the best of you." Once more, the old man's wisdom had taken over, leaving Harry to sit and brood on the cause of all his problems.

"Now that I have that matter out of the way, I had some more news that could be taken as good or bad." Harry looked up at his headmaster and spotted an unreadable expression in his blue eyes.

"I have arranged for a few Order Members to spend time with you each day and help you develop your skills better in Defence, duelling and other useful practices. It will test your abilities to the max and it will be challenging. You will have to work hard, if you accept this opportunity, and you will be expected to try your hardest. Do you wish to learn more and advance your knowledge?" asked Dumbledore, his gaze serious. Harry thought about it for a second before nodding eagerly.

"Yes, if I am to destroy Voldemort, I want to be ready." He said strongly, watching that trademark twinkle light up once more.

"Very well," Dumbledore said watching Harry intently.

"Who will be my teachers?" Harry asked.

"Remus Lupin will teach you Advanced Defence, Nymphadora Tonks will teach you Auror Tactics and strategies and Kingsley Shacklebolt will teach you Advanced Duelling. Be warned, these three will not go easy on you." Dumbledore said seriously.

Harry nodded, "I wouldn't expect them to," he said, smiling slightly.

"Now we come to the bad news," Dumbledore said sombrely, sighing as he took of his half-moon spectacles and polished them with his robe. Once they were placed upon his long, crooked nose, he gazed at Harry with a look dripping with sorrow. Harry felt as if icy claws were stretching across his heart as he waited for the news to fall.

"Sirius left a will when he died, Harry. He asked me to read it for him when the time came and gave me names of the people he wished to be present." If Harry was expecting anything, it wasn't that.

"Sirius had a will?" he asked dumbly. The headmaster nodded slowly his eyes never leaving Harry's.

"Yes, Harry, he did. It states for you to be there, including others. It will be read on the seventh of August at Gringotts Bank at 2:35pm." Harry hardly heard the words he was speaking. He was numb. It was finally happening. Sirius's will was as if his godfather's death was final.

"I - do - does he - I mean...Is he having a funeral or memorial service?" Harry asked quietly, his voice shaking. Dumbledore shook his head a sad look on his face.

"Since the Ministry still believes that Sirius is guilty, they will not allow him to have a service until we prove that he is innocent," said Dumbledore watching Harry's face flush with anger.

"But he is innocent! We've told them he is and they chose not to believe me!" Harry said angrily, his shoulders shaking with fury. "We have given them proof that he isn't guilty and they have heard about Wormtail! Sirius should be recognized for the hero he is! I mean - was!" Harry yelled as his Butterbeer bottle shattered, sending shards of glass and a spray of drink everywhere.

"Harry! Calm down; do not let your emotions weaken your shield. Voldemort has an easier way of accessing your mind when it is weakened by a strong emotion. Sirius is innocent and a hero; he will continue being a hero in our hearts even when he is gone from us. But he will be waiting for you on the other side, with your parents. And until that day, they will be watching you," said Dumbledore calmly, staring at him through his clear spectacles. Harry immediately felt his anger reside but the pain was still there, lingering inside him like a shadow after light.

"Sorry, it's just - lately my temper has been very short and I can't help getting angry!" Harry said softly, staring at the thread-care carpet. He felt Dumbledore's eyes on the back of his head but refused to look up.

"I understand, Harry. I have heard about your outburst earlier and have received word about other forms of magic being performed at your relative's home," said Dumbledore. Harry looked up at this.

"How -?" he asked. Dumbledore merely smiled and tapped his nose with a smile.

"I know a lot of things, dear boy, and one of those is that Mr Weasley is now standing outside this very door. That will be all for now, Harry. Oh, and next time, warn me before exploding a bottle of Butterbeer, then I might not have worn my good robes!" Dumbledore said humorously, wiping away the tiny droplets of drink from his sleeve. Harry smiled, slightly embarrassed.

"Yes, sir, I will, and thank you." Harry said, following his headmaster across the room. Ron jumped when the door opened and they appeared and pretended to be searching for his sock. Harry just smirked at him and walked beside his friend towards the front door.

Before Dumbledore left the house, he turned to Harry and said lightly, "Oh, and your training begins tomorrow, so please be ready at seven o'clock!" With that, he shut the scratched wooden door and the many locks slid shut behind him.

"Training? What training?" said Ron the moment the door shut. Harry turned to him and frowned.

"I'm getting extra training before school starts," he answered. This time Ron was the one to frown.

"Why?" he asked. Harry sighed, not knowing what to say.

"Because - Dumbledore thinks Voldemort might try something again this year and he wants me to be ready," Harry said quickly, smiling inwardly at how fast he had come up with that lie. It was partially true it's just that he didn't want his friends to know about the prophecy yet. He would tell them later, when the time was right.

Ron bought the lie and nodded slowly. "Hey? Do you think he would let us train as well? It might be good if we were ready to fight with you if Voldemort attacked?" Ron said, unable to keep the excitement from his voice. Harry shrugged.

"Even though I wouldn't want you to fight, it would be good to know you would be prepared. I'll ask Lupin tomorrow. But it should be fine!" Harry said.

"I hope so," said Ron as they walked towards the kitchen. "I want to be able to be able to do some of the spells you did last year!" Harry turned to him and raised an eyebrow.

"What spells did I do that you couldn't do?"

"Well, the Patronus Charm for one, I still haven't been able to get that one and you mastered it almost three years ago!" Ron said turning left down the stone stairs leading to the kitchen.

"You almost had it last year, just a bit more practice and you will have it!" Harry said, sitting down next to Tonks at the long kitchen table. Mrs Weasley had just served a delicious smelling dinner that soon ended their conversation. The meal past delightedly slow, as Harry was enjoying himself immensely. He hadn't smiled so much in weeks, and even laughed hard enough to get stitches in his sides when Tonks changed her appearance to match a female Snape's, causing Ron to snort with laughter and send pumpkin juice through his nostrils.

As he laughed at a joke George had just told, he didn't notice the warm stare that many people were giving him. When he laughed, Harry felt as though Sirius was there laughing with him. He could almost hear his godfather's barking laughter, ringing through the old house. Unbidden, he felt tears sprout at the corners of his eyes. Luckily, Fred had just flicked a pea at Bill where it landed in his mouth as he went for another mouthful. Harry was laughing along with the rest of the table, and his tears of sadness soon turned to ones of mirth.

"Harry, do you want to test one of our new pranks?" asked George as the main dishes were just being removed and the sweets were being placed before them. Harry grinned and shook his head.

"NO, I think I'll pass on that one, though I'm sure Ron will want to!" Harry said, looking at his red haired friend as he shovelled Treacle Tart into his mouth as if it was going to disappear any second. Harry watched Fred and George's eyes light up and identical evil grins form on their mouths.

Ron was still spooning the dessert into his mouth when Fred and George pulled something from their pockets and sat watching their younger brother, waiting for a moment to attack. Harry, wanting to see what would happen, said, "Hey, Ron? What was that Chudley Cannon's player's name who recently quit the team?" Harry had just heard from Charlie that Ron had been talking about the latest resignation from his favourite Quidditch team all summer.

Ron's head shot up and turned to Harry, who was sitting across from him and to the left. "OH! His name was Bronte Montgomery! I can't believe he would just quit like that! I mean, he had everything, the only reason he left was because the new Chaser, Jessup, took his right-hand position!" As Ron ranted on about Quidditch, Harry motioned for the twins to make their move. They quickly took a small sack out onto the table, took a pinch of the substance inside, and sprinkled it over Ron's half-eaten dessert.

They stashed the evidence back in their pockets and placed innocent expressions on their faces. Harry was grinning like mad, as Ron took a break from speaking and put his spoon back into his Treacle Tart. Half the table watched as Ron lifted the wobbling spoonful to his mouth; remnants of the powder scattered across the top. Harry sucked in his breath when Ron placed the spoon in his mouth and started chewing. The boy was oblivious to all the stares he was receiving and continued to eat his food.

Soon, it became too much for Ginny, as she dissolved into giggling fits. That was all it took for the whole table to be full out laughing, except for Mrs Weasley who was looking sternly at her sons, but a small smile was tugging at her lips. As they all laughed, Ron paused while eating the dessert and looked around at them all in confusion. He dropped his spoon to his plate and rubbed his face with his hands.

"What? Do I have something on my face?" he asked, continuing to run a hand over his mouth and cheeks. Everyone continued to laugh at his as he ran a hand over his hair, where two, oddly shaped ears had sprouted. His face went pale as he grabbed the pitcher of water from the table and looked at his reflection in the glass.

Ron's face had gone completely blue and large red spots had appeared all over his body. It clashed horribly with his hair and the two long donkey's ears poking out from his orange head. His face soon grew a bit darker as he rounded on the twins. Fred was rolling around on the floor, clutching his sides while George had collapsed onto the table and was banging it with his fists.

"What-did-you-do!" he yelled, trying to yank the ears from his head. This only managed to make them longer and increase the laughter around the room. It took a good ten minutes before the twins were able to make coherent speech.

"They - Spotted Donkey - it will wear off - half an hour -!" Fred managed after taking another look at Ron and bursting out laughing again. Ron was not very impressed with, as he had to wait another fifteen minutes before he would return to normal.

A little later on, Mrs Weasley ushered them off to bed, saying Harry needed his rest for the next day. Harry vaguely wondered how she new what was happening tomorrow when he heard laughter from his side. He looked to see Ginny sprouting two drooping donkey's ears. Her face had gone bright green with purple spots appearing in place of her freckles. Ron was laughing hysterically, keeping himself up with the banister. Harry began laughing before Ginny swore loudly and ran off back to the kitchen, fuming about getting Fred and George.

"They - are - dead!" Ron managed between snorts of laughter as they ascended the staircase. They entered their room from the previous year and were just making themselves comfortable on Harry's bed with the chessboard when the door opened. Ginny came in, a smug look on her lime green face and her long ears flapping wildly.

"What did you do?" asked Harry grinning. She only smiled at him before seating herself to watch them play. Harry was just watching Ginny and Ron play after he had lost, when there were two loud cracks and Fred and George appeared. Both Harry and Ron couldn't contain their laughter. Both Fred and George were supporting two pairs of donkey's ears each and were each a shade of bright pink with blue and green spots. They were wearing slightly put off looks and were eyeing Ginny with something between anger and pride.

"How did you end up like that?" Ron asked, heaving with laughter.

"Well, said Fred, "Our darling little sister decided that we were missing out on the fun having donkey's ears and just insisted that we eat the Spotted Donkey powder -!" he said in a fake cheery voice.

"- then she decided that we needed help with it, so she sort of - kind of -!"

"- shoved it down your throats?" Ginny added sweetly, stroking one of her dangling ears. Harry and Ron began laughing once more, before both the twins and Ginny were looking at Harry with a look he didn't like at all.

"And what, may I ask, are you looking at, Mr Potter?" said Ginny innocently. Harry immediately stopped laughing and his eyes grew wide when he spotted the small brown sack that Fred was throwing up and down.

"Oh - no!" he said, before they attacked.

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"That was so not funny!" Harry said twenty minutes later when he and Ron were both in their own beds. Harry still had a pair of long ears attached to his skull and his skin was yellow with black dots scattered about it. It wouldn't wear off for another ten minutes and he hoped he would be asleep by that time.

Ron snorted from across the room. "It was hilarious. Anyway, you're now part of the Spotted Ass club, you can't go back now!" Ron mumbled into his pillow. Harry chuckled and sank down deeper into his blankets. Just what he always wanted. To be part of the Spotted Ass club.