Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Family Means More Than Blood	By : WingsofaDream Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 59826 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 7
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and its associated characters are property of J K Rowling, not me. This story is not being written for profit, just for the lols.

Chapter List
- 35
- 36
- 37
19th December 1993: Morning

Harry paused when he reached the portrait which blocked him off from Severus's rooms. He needed to get himself in the right frame of mind, he needed to make sure that he looked sweet and innocent, enough to make the Potions Master's usually cold heart melt at the very sight of him. His hair was loose and adjusted in a way that gave him a definite feminine quality which was why he usually avoided it like the plague. His father liked his hair that way though, said it reminded him of Harry's grandmother, so he hoped it would help him in the upcoming situation so he made the sacrifice just this one time.

Feeling as prepared as he probably ever would, Harry squared his shoulders confidently and stepped the one pace needed to put him directly in front of the portrait. "Half-blood prince." He spoke and the portrait swung inwards, allowing him entrance. Butterflies of anticipation began to flutter in his stomach and he fought to keep a nervous grin off of his face. Stepping through the newly created gap in the wall, his eyes immediately fell onto the form of Severus sitting at the desk in the top corner of the left hand side of the room. Harry's face finally gave way to his grin as he stepped the rest of the way into the room and approached the man. "Father?" He asked in an innocently sly way.

"Hmm?" The reply came, sounding mostly distracted.

"You love me don't you?" Harry asked in the same way, gliding up behind his father and wrapping his arms around the man's shoulders.

"What do you want?" Severus asked in his usual clipped tone though the fact he had not shrugged his son off or even told him to go away was a very good sign.

"Nothing really." The boy murmured, resting his chin on the man's shoulder as his arms lowered but still surrounding him. "I just wondered if I could go to Hogsmeade today." He said quickly, ending the sentence with a peck to his father's cheek.

"Haryon..."

"Oh please Father." Harry begged, tightening his hold so that the professor would be unable to break away unless he tried with quite a bit of force. "I only want to get everyone's Christmas presents. There's less than a week until Christmas Day and I don't have a single present for anyone, not even you. Please Father, just for this afternoon, just for as long as it takes me to buy something for everyone."

For a while, Severus remained silent and still as did Harry, both keeping their positions. For every second the silence stretched on, Harry's confidence grew. If Severus was going to say no, he would not be taking so long about it. It was encouraging that the silence was dragging on as it was. When Severus shifted, Harry knew he was about to get his answer. He released his father's shoulders and moved to the side in order to look at him.

After another second or two of just staring at each other, Severus finally spoke: "You may not go to Hogsmeade."

Harry's heart sank and his jaw dropped; WHAT? "But Father..." He instantly began to protest but stopped when the man held up a hand for silence.

"Going to Hogsmeade on your own is still something I am uncomfortable with..."

"Then let me go with someone else! Draco maybe, or you, even another teacher!"

"Do not interrupt me." His father scolded with a frown and Harry's mouth clicked shut again. "As I was saying, you going out on your own is something that makes me acutely uncomfortable at this moment in time. Going with someone else with you is acceptable. This in mind, merely going to Hogsmeade seems a bit wasteful. Therefore, you are more than welcome to accompany Lucius and myself when we go out for a few last minute presents this afternoon."

Harry's eyes lit up when he heard that and he gave a happy squeal, the memory of which would later make him cringe in embarrassment, as he launched himself into Severus' arms. "Oh thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You're welcome, brat." Severus replied affectionately, leaning down to kiss the top of Harry's head. "Of course, you will have to keep your hair like this when you come." He murmured, lifting a few strands and running his fingers through them.

"What?" Harry asked, aghast. "Why?"

"Call it punishment for trying to wrap me around your little finger in such a way." His father smirked with only amusement in his tone. "Now, away with you." He ordered with a wave of his hand. "I have essays I want to get out of the way. We'll be leaving right after lunch so make sure you're ready by then."

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19th December 1993: Midday

"Bye for now, Harry!" George called as he, Fred, Ginny, and Percy walked further away from the entrance into the school. Harry, dressed in his out-door winter clothes in preparation for shopping with Severus and Lucius, stood in the threshold and waved them off with a cheery smile on his face.

"See you in the new year!" Fred added next, getting further and further away.

"See you again soon." Harry smiled just before they were out of earshot.

They all gave each other one final burst of waving before the pack of Weasleys turned around and began to walk normally. Harry allowed his arm to drop to his side then and contented himself with watching them shrink into the distance where the dots of far off carriages were.

"Harry, there you are." The familiar voice of Hermione came from behind him. He turned around to look back into the school to see the frizzy haired Third Year hurrying towards him, dragging her trunk after her and being followed by the two Potter siblings. "I checked the Great Hall and when you weren't there I was afraid I wouldn't get the chance to wish you a merry Christmas." She told him as she reached him and pulled him into a hug.

"Merry Christmas to you too." He smiled, giving her back a few pats before they separated. "I'm sorry I can't give you your gift now but I haven't been able to buy anything yet. I'll send it to you with Hedwig the first moment I get."

"Oh Harry, don't be silly, you don't have to get me anything."

"No, I don't have to but I want to if only to say thank you for being such a good friend." Harry told her and the hidden meaning behind those words was recognised.

Hermione gave him a soft, sympathetic smile before pulling him into her arms again.

"May the Goddess bless you and your loved ones for the kindness you've shown me." He whispered in her ear.

"Merlin Granger, let him breathe." Violet muttered as she stalked past them, a dark scowl on her face.

Hermione and Harry pulled back in order to watch the younger girl walk out of the school. "Quite a temper she's got really." Harry said rather weakly, trying to make light of the situation.

Hermione gave him a pointed look which said numerous things without words.

"You'd better get going or they'll leave without you. Have a wonderful Christmas." Harry wished her before looking over to the two other boys who were standing at the side waiting for their friend patiently. "Same goes to you too, Potter, I suppose."

"Oh wow, the Boy Who Lived wished me a merry Christmas." Potter muttered as he started forward, heading in the direction his sister had just gone. "Well that's just made my year."

Harry smiled in slight amusement at the boy's attitude and watched him go for a second before looking back to Hermione. She looked irritated, no doubt with Potter's attitude. Harry was not bothered though. Potter's comments were pretty harmless and he now mostly just ignored the boy what with their biological relationship a known fact to the older of the boys.

With a few last parting goodbyes and wishes of happy Christmas, Hermione went after Potter, Harry watching her go and waving her off. He did not mind goodbyes too much when he knew he was definitely going to see the people he was saying goodbye to again. It was when they were final goodbyes that he hated because they never led to anything good. Abandonment and death; those were what forever goodbyes were for.

Having now thoroughly depressed himself with those thoughts, Harry sighed and turned, intending on going down to the dungeons to meet his father in time to go Christmas shopping with him and Lucius. However, when he turned, he was confronted with the sight of Draco, Bethany Zabini, and that Spari guy all standing there watching him. The Gryffindor boy blinked in slight surprise, not expecting to find such a gathering staring at him and unsure of what to make of it. So, in the end, he did the only thing he could think of which would allow this to pass without interaction; he turned to the left in order to avoid walking anywhere near them. It would mean a bit of a detour on the way to the dungeons but it was better than having to confront Zabini and Spari even if Draco was there with them.

"Harry?" Draco's voice stopped the Gryffindor mid-step and he turned to look at the blond. "Why are you wearing your out-door cloak?"

"I'm going Christmas shopping with Father and Uncle Lucius in a few minutes." Harry told him before he started to carry on, all the while hoping that the two other Slytherins did not decide to join this conversation.

"I thought you were still under school-arrest to protect you from Pettigrew."

"I am, that's why I'm going with them, for protection." He answered as he stopped again and turned to look at his best friend. He was intent on ignoring both of the other Slytherins either side of him and he offered a smile. "Why don't you come with us? Even if you've got nothing else to buy it'd be nice to spend some time all together again."

"Draco can't go, he's got to stay and help us prepare for the party." Bethany instantly protested, noticeably tightening her grip on the blond's arm much to his disgust.

Harry was not going to ask "what party?" because he knew that was exactly what the girl wanted so she could no doubt brag about it so he just smiled at Draco again. "Oh well, it was only a suggestion. If you already have plans it's no big deal, I'll just see you later." Once again, he turned and began to walk off.

"Oi Snape?" That was a boy's voice so Harry guessed it was Spari. "Nice hair."

Harry cringed slightly at that and the mocking laughter from him and Bethany afterwards but he did not turn and he did not reply, he just kept going. After a few seconds of nothing, he figured he was actually being allowed to go this time without being stopped by someone saying something and he was grateful and not just because it was annoying. Curiously, his heart felt heavy and a small lump had formed in his throat when Draco had apparently chosen his other friends over him, first by not accepting his invite to join him and Severus and Lucius but also when the blond had failed to defend him from Spari's obviously malicious comment. It was unfair, though, for Harry to ask or even expect Draco to drop previous plans just to spend time with him and it was good practice for when Draco found his mate...

That thought only made him feel worse and then beginnings of tears began to sting the backs of his eyes. He mentally frowned at himself for being such an emotional baby and stubbornly swallowed back the lump. He was the one being weird now. Why did the thought of Draco not wanting to spend time with him in favour of being with his mate make him hurt so much? The two of them were just friends, nothing more, yet the thought...Was there something he was missing about himself? Was Draco still just a close friend to him? Or was it more?

Harry blinked a couple of times as the tears continued to try and break free. He lowered his head to hide his eyes as they were no doubt getting a little blood-shot now but it was because of that, that when he turned a corner, he did not see the on-coming person in order to avoid them. It was not a bad collision as neither of them had been going very fast but a hand came down to his shoulder to steady him nonetheless. Harry lifted his head to find it was Professor Lupin who he had bumped into and relief instantly rushed through him; he was unsure how he would be able to handle himself around anyone else in the state he was in at that moment.

"Are you all right, Harry? You're eyes are a little red." The tired looking man noted gently, his hand not leaving Harry's shoulder.

"It's nothing." Harry insisted easily, trying to hide the slight quiver in his voice. "Really it isn't."

"Well something must've started it." Lupin said reasonably in a kind voice which only made Harry tear up more.

Harry gave a small laugh and bowed his head again. "Please don't be nice to me at the moment, Sir." He said, tears now more than a little evident in his voice.

"Don't be silly, Harry, of course I'm going to be nice to you, especially when you're upset even if it makes you more upset." Lupin said as he pulled Harry a little closer but did not embrace him, just kept his hand on Harry's shoulder firmly as his other rooted around in his pocket for a handkerchief. "You shouldn't bottle everything up if you feel like crying. Fell free to, I'm hardly going to tell anyone." He assured as he finally freed the handkerchief and handed it to Harry.

"Thanks." Harry sniffed, using the square of cotton to dab at his eyes under his glasses. He gave another tearful laugh. "Merlin, this is so embarrassing. I feel like some kind of over-emotional girl. I don't even know why I'm crying really, it's ridiculous." He sighed then and gave another sniff before his shoulders sagged and he leaned forward slightly, resting his forehead against his DADA professor's chest, just underneath his shoulder. "I don't want him to leave me alone." He whispered sadly, his eyes closing slowly.

"Who?" Lupin asked gently, his voice almost as quiet as Harry's.

"Draco."

"It is something more than friendship then?"

Was it? Could he be...? Did he want...? Was Draco more...? "I don't know." Harry whispered, a few more tears falling from his eyes and rolling down his cheeks slowly.

It was then that the hand on Harry's shoulder slid around them so that he was in a very loose, one-armed hold, one he could easily pull away from if he wanted. It was comforting though and Harry felt no real desire to move away. Yes, he would probably look back at this moment and cringe in complete embarrassment later on when he was feeling more normal but for now he was just thankful for the comfort.

Neither of them were sure how much time passed with them both just standing there, Lupin offering silent support and Harry absorbing it like a sponge. Then, the peace they had created was shattered with the call of Harry's name from Severus. Neither looked in the direction the call had come from but Lupin's arm dropped instantly, not rushed as though he was embarrassed but simply because it was the smartest course of action. Harry stepped back a small pace so that there was some air separating him from his professor again.

Harry kept his head down, his loose hair falling around his face and hiding it from view. "Thank you, Professor." He murmured as he held out the handkerchief for the man in front of him to accept again. "I'm sorry to have troubled you."

"It wasn't any trouble, Harry." Lupin assured him gently, taking the square of cotton back. "If you ever need to talk to someone again, you know my door is always open to you."

Harry raised his head and offered a small, watery smile. "Thanks." He said one last time before lowering his head again and walking away, over to where Severus and Lucius were watching the whole interaction angrily and curiously respectively.

"Do you mind telling me exactly what that was?" Severus demanded to his son the moment the teenager was in range to hear the hissed words and to be grabbed and yanked towards him.

"Severus, careful." Lucius warned quietly, noting that not only was Lupin still watching but Draco had now joined the audience off to one side as well.

Severus ignored the other man and glared down at his son. Harry said nothing, only simply lifted his head and looked up at his father with his slightly red eyes and dampened cheeks, clear signs that he had been crying for quite a while.

The hard look on Severus's face vanished and was replaced with one of pure concern. "Haryon?"

Still, Harry said nothing. He just bowed his head again and leaned forward, pressing his face against his father's chest and bringing his arms up to lightly grip the front of the man's black out-door cloak. Severus shared a brief look with Lucius as he brought his arms around his son and the blond man broke it first, looking over to where Lupin was still watching them. Then, his grey eyes flickered over to where Draco was standing. The younger Malfoy's eyes met with his father's and a small spark of realisation came at the back of the elder's mind. He gave his son a small nod which was obviously a sign of something only the two of them were aware of before he returned his attention to Harry, resting his hand on his godson's shoulder and giving it a comforting squeeze.

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25th December 1993: Morning

A soft smile of happiness played across Harry's lips as he sat up on the edge of his bed and stretched his arms and back lazily. Once he had reached over for his glasses and slipped them onto his nose, it did not take him long to notice the small pile of presents by the window he had left open the night before to allow the owls from his friends to enter. He would not open them immediately, he would take them down to Severus's rooms and open them with the presents he would receive from his family. However, before he headed down to his father, he had his own, religious ritual to do.

The next few minutes were spent cleaning up, waking up and then getting dressed in his priest robes. For once, he was glad that his other four dorm mates had gone back home for Christmas. It meant he could do what needed to be done in the room instead of having to either wait (which hardly proper), or wander around and find somewhere else to do it (which wasted time and delayed him).

It did not take long for Harry to set everything up accordingly and in the space of three minutes, Harry had the alter assembled and all his tools at hand. What with having done this ritual every Christmas day for ten years, he was able to do everything swiftly and precisely, speaking the Elvish prayer without hesitation or mistake while his hands were busy creating the mixture of oils which would end up being very flammable and then lit at the end. Harry thought it was quite a fun way to pray. He was all for the everyday prayers which were simply kneeling and speaking but he quite liked the prayers for special occasions which required actually doing something, mixing something and then lighting it on fire.

Once the small dish of mixed oils was completed, Harry reached to the side to take one of the Wizard match-sticks he kept for the sake of convenience. He gave the simple command for the match-stick to light and the small stick instantly gained a flame at the tip. With infinite care, Harry lowered the flame to the oil-filled dish and touched it lightly to the surface, just enough for the fire to catch and spread across the oil. Unexpectedly, when he did this, his surroundings darkened in the familiar way it did when he was about to have a vision:

It was freezing cold and it was snowing which, common sense told Him, meant He was outside. He could not see that He was outside though, all He could see was the darkness.

Suddenly, coming from everywhere and nowhere all at once, the was a horrible bang, a lot like heavy wood colliding with something at a great speed. He stood from where he was kneeling and looked around slightly frantically. There was nothing in sight though.

He lowered His head and closed His eyes while taking in a deep breath to calm Himself. Around Him it was silent again and the snow continued to fall, frequently falling onto Him and chilling His skin. After a few moments, He opened His eyes again without raising His head and gasped at the sight of His hands; they were stained with thick trickles of some black and viscous substance.

Harry only just managed to keep hold of the still lit match between his fingers when he returned to reality and he quickly shook the flame out so that he did not have to worry about it anymore. He stared down at the peacefully burning oil in the dish and wondered over the meaning of what he had just seen. Not that he had seen a lot though. The only thing that had meant anything to him in the entire scene had been the black stuff he had seen on his hands right at the end. There was no doubt in his mind that had been black rain on his hands what with the sound of rain around him throughout the whole thing as well. And if his experience was anything to go by, black rain meant Voldemort.

His shoulders sagged dejectedly as he stared sadly at the burning oil in front of him on the alter. How was he supposed to enjoy his Christmas and Nirhy Day with the worry of an up and coming Voldemort attack?

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29th December 1993: Night

Harry's footsteps padded lightly on the carpeted floor as he slowly walked down the length of a corridor, his eyes down on the book he was holding in his hands. He appeared to be completely oblivious of his surroundings but it was obviously not the case when he stopped upon hearing a strange sound. Frowning lightly, he held his breath in order to try and identify the noise which, although remaining extremely quiet, was getting a little louder. With the cry of a cat, the dark haired young man quickly turned to look over his shoulder just in time to see Elincia come running around the last corner he had turned. For a few mere seconds, Harry simply assumed it was Draco's cat which had been making the noise, but then he saw the smaller form running in front of the white cat, running for its life.

A rat.

Could it possibly be Pettigrew? The Gryffindor's heart began to race a mile a minute as the two animals passed him by in a mere blink of an eye. He immediately turned to watch them go and then allowed a second to pass before he took off after them, running as fast as his legs could possibly allow him to go.

It was a completely mad dash, with Harry following the animals blindly, having no idea where they were actually going. He never quite managed to catch up to Elincia but he did a rather good job simply keeping up, always keeping her white form in sight, not once losing her. But then, suddenly, the cat made a long pounce, there was a terrified squeak and then all the running stopped.

Harry skidded to a halt as soon as he could and simply watched Elincia who was several feet ahead of him. Now that she had caught her prey and had a bit of a play, she was no longer interested in the rat and almost instantly got bored. The white cat wandered away in a rather nonchalant manner before walking off back down the corridor as though she had not just had a marathon of a run after a rat. As she left however, Harry approached and his heart felt as though it was in his throat as he approached the still form of the rat.

Upon reaching the creature, it soon became obvious to Harry that the creature was dead (well anything with its guts spilling out from a rip in its stomach would have to be dead) and, although he felt acutely guilty for it, he had to admit he was glad. If the rat had simply been injured but on the way to dying, Harry would have had a dilemma. He could have healed the rat and run the risk of healing Pettigrew accidently or he could have left the rat and run the risk of abandoning an innocent creature to death. But it did not matter either way because the rat was dead and just a little bit of the Gryffindor hoped that the creature was, indeed, Peter Pettigrew.

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6th January 1993: Evening

Weeks had passed since Christmas Day and the night with the rat and the first day back at school after the new year had all but ended. And, much to Harry's worry, the vision he had had on Christmas Day had not yet happened. It only confused him. Usually, when he had a vision, it came true within a matter of days afterwards, the most a week. He wondered if it was like the dreams he had had the previous year about the Basilisk, where the detail built up over the months, but then he reasoned that those dreams had been more of a warning rather than a prediction of what was actually due to come. He was unsure why, but the vision he had seen on Christmas Day had not felt like a warning, it had felt like a prediction.

Now that school had started, Harry was finding himself very distracted by these thoughts and it had put him off his work all day. At that moment, in the evening, after dinner, Harry was in the DADA classroom with Professor Lupin, supposedly to learn how to defend himself against Dementors. But, of course, Harry was still struggling to concentrate so they were not actually getting very far. In fact, they had just tried it and the teenager had barely managed to speak the incantation before he was on his knees feeling bitterly lonely. He could not concentrate on a happy memory when the worry of his vision was right at the front of his mind.

"All right, up you come, easy does it." Professor Lupin encouraged his student as he helped the teenager back onto his feet. "Don't feel bad, I didn't expect you to get it first time, that would've been incredible." He smiled as he brought out a bar of chocolate and handed the whole thing to Harry.

"I hate Dementors." Harry moaned slightly pathetically as he was released and allowed to sag against a nearby wall.

"Oh no Harry, that wasn't a Dementor, it was a boggart. You're not ready for the real thing yet." Lupin corrected as he moved over to sit on the edge of a desk. "Just out of curiosity, what memory did you decide on?"

"The first time I was reunited with my father after I'd defeated Voldemort."

Professor Lupin frowned lightly. "That's odd, that should have been enough. How was your concentration do you think?"

"It...Um...It could have been better I suppose." Harry mumbled, embarrassed, as he broke off a piece of chocolate and began to nibble on it carefully.

"I see. Anything you'd like to talk about?"

Harry glanced up at him for a second before allowing his gaze to fall again. He moved over to a desk and sat down on the seat in front of it carefully, the bar of chocolate resting on his lap and his hands folding just next to it. "Well, you see, well..." He stammered, not really knowing where to begin. "Um, do you know that I'm prone to the odd...Vision?"

"Yes, I had been made aware of it. All the teachers are, just in case something happens in class."

Oh great, that was so embarrassing, professors having to actually be warned when they joined the staff. "Well, you see, I had one on Christmas Day and usually, the ones that are more predicting than warning come true within about a week of me having it."

"And this one hasn't?"

Harry nodded, still not looking up. "It's probably nothing to worry about. I mean, it's not uncommon for years to pass before visions become realities..."

"But you're worried nonetheless." The worn man summarised, standing up and going over to the teenager.

Harry nodded glumly, feeling a combination of embarrassment for worry over what was probably nothing, guilt for burdening the man with his problems and frustration with himself that he was not strong enough to keep it to himself and function normally.

"Well, as much as I wish I could help and tell you it's all going to be fine, Divination has never been one of my strong points. Have to considered going to Professor Trelawney?"

"I, uh, I usually go to my High Priest in situations such as this. I only see him on Sundays during the school year though so I haven't seen him since before the Christmas holidays. I did think of writing to him about it but I didn't want to disrupt him or burden him like I am you at the moment."

"You're not being a burden to me, Harry." Lupin assured him with a gentle firmness. "I'm pleased you feel you can come to me for help, even if it turns out I can't offer a lot of help. Someone like you, Harry, who is so special in so many different ways, can't be expected to handle everything on their own perfectly and that's why the people who care about you will always be happy to help you. I know for a fact your father would gladly give up everything if it would help you in any way. He's worried about you, you know? Even went so far as to asking me if I thought there was anything wrong this afternoon after classes."

"Really?" Harry asked, immediately feeling really guilty for making Severus worry.

Lupin nodded despite the fact Harry was not looking at him. "You haven't told him anything about your vision then?"

"I usually don't bother him with them, no." The teenager admitted, refusing to look anywhere near his teacher.

"Harry, do you have any idea how much that must worry him? Never knowing if there's something wrong with you or not?" The man asked with a small sigh, looking intently at the boy next to him.

Harry said nothing.

"I think you should tell him. Even if he can't help you figure anything out or solve the problem completely, he can be there to support you and reassure you if ever you get scared or something. Who knows, he might even be able to bring himself to hug you." He grinned, thinking he was making a joke.

Harry finally looked at him finally and gave him an amused smile. "Actually, Father needs very little incentive to hug me, he's quite happy to for any little reason."

"You don't say?" Lupin chuckled lightly. "My, of all the people in the world to think of being like that, Severus Snape was the last one who would have come into my mind. He really has no qualms about that sort of thing?"

"Nope. Sometimes I think he needs the occasional cuddle more than me." Harry admitted with a light smile playing across his lips, turning to stare at the front of the classroom as he brought a hand up to rest his chin on.

"I'm also surprised you're still willing to provide. Johnathan's two years younger than you and he's been refusing his mother's attentions for a couple of years now." Professor Lupin smiled, joining Harry in looked across the room.

"Yes, well, why doesn't it shock me that Johnathan Potter of all people is like that?"

"Not a fan of Johnathan's then, hmm?"

"The feeling's mutual I assure you. It's not as bad as it was the first year and a half. After what happened half way through last year, he's mostly left me alone. I think he's worried my fragile psyche is going to shatter beyond repair if he bugs me like he used to."

"Lily managed to get some sense into him then." Lupin mused, mostly to himself. Then, he gave a long sigh and stood up straight. "It's getting late, you should be getting back to the Tower before curfew."

"Alright." Harry agreed as he too stood and moved over to where he had settled his bag upon arrival. Scooping it up, he headed towards the classroom door. "Thank you for listening, Professor." He smiled, turning to look at the kind man when he reached the door.

"You're welcome, Harry. Good night."

"Good night, Professor." The teenager returned before turning and walking out of the classroom, pulling the door shut behind him with a soft click.

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4th February 1993: Afternoon

"A map?" Harry asked unsurely as he looked at what had been stretched across the length of Dumbledore's desk. It was once again time for his weekly lesson with Sephiran, only this time it had all started with getting him rather confused as the Elvish man had immediately rolled out a large map of the British Isles. "Why do we need a map?"

"A map," the High Priest answered easily. "Is necessary for today's lesson, Haryon, because we will be discussing the other Havanist communities."

Harry did not really know what to say about that. He knew there were other communities beside the Community of Saint Gwenifwar but he had never really acknowledged them, so to speak. They had never been of any interest to him due to the fact they had never played a part in his life. Oh, sure, Sephiran often chatted to him about the decisions of the Council (made up of all of the High Priestesses and Sephiran as he was currently the only High Priest in the world) but still, the Gryffindor had never really made a significant connection to them.

"Now," Sephiran started. "As you are aware, our community is here." He gestured to the correct position on the map. "And there are another two communities. Do you have any idea what they may be called?"

"Well, considering ours is named after Saint Gwenifwar, I'd assume that the other two are named after the other two saints; Saint Morcedai and Saint Nirhy."

The High Priest smiled. "Correct. The Community of Saint Morcedai is here, in Northern Ireland," he gestured to the map accordingly. "And the Community of Saint Nirhy is here in Wales." Again, he gestured. "It is said that with the coming of each Messiah, a new community will be created, most probably somewhere in Scotland this time as that is the only part of the British Isles that is currently not home to a community."

"How will the Messiah be recognised?" Harry enquired curiously, having heard the prediction before but never knowing any real details about it. "I mean, there must be some kind of proof that they'll have otherwise the claim could be made by any random fraudster."

"There are several theories as to how the next Messiah will make themselves known. It has been suggested that it will be the first child born to a member of the Council. Another prediction is that it will be a complete unknown stranger who arrives at one of the communities at a time of great crisis. My High Priestess, the one who I was Apprenticed under, she was always adamant that we would all be nonethewiser until the Messiah had destroyed the world's evil."

"How do you think it will happen?"

Sephiran was quiet for some time, though whether it was because he was thinking of what he was about to say or whatever was unclear. Finally, he answered, speaking very slowly, as though thinking about it before he said each word. "I think that High Priestess Ameryst was correct, I don't think we will know who the Messiah is until they have defeated the evil and I believe we will be able to identify them because their hair will have turned pure white, as did the hair of the Saints gone by, from the touch of our Great Lady. True, other Elders have dismissed that possibility as too fantastic and laughed at the idea that anyone, even the Messiah, is worthy enough to recieve the Goddess's touch, but I truly believe that is what will happen."

Silence settled then as Harry was left to digest that answer. It all sounded so important and fantastic and he found himself wishing, hoping, that the Messiah would come during his life time. Although to live to see such evil would be a terrible thing, to live through the Messiah's arrival and triumph would make up for it ten-thousand-fold.
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Family Means More Than Blood