I don’t own anything in the Potter Universe.
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“What sort of mess has this young man gotten himself into now?” Madam Pomfrey exclaimed. Judging by the very close proximity of her voice, Harry thought that she must be examining him. His left arm was numb, but he could distinctly smell the odor of burnt flesh. His stomach turned over and he thought he might be sick. Finally, he opened his eyes.
“Oh, you’re awake. Mr. Potter, what on earth happened to your arm?” Madam Pomfrey questioned.
Harry just looked at her, not knowing how to explain what had happened without giving away too much about where he had been. His eyes went wide with shock. The cup, where is the cup? Harry thought.
“Mr. Potter, I can’t help you unless I know the source of these burns. They are not natural, and if I heal them without knowing more about them, you may lose that arm.”
“It was a magical ball of fire. I tried a Flame Freezing Charm on it, but I still got burned. I don’t know if the Charm worked or not,” Harry finally answered. “What about my pack?”
“Where in the…Oh, never mind. I don’t think I want to know,” Madam Pomfrey declared in exasperation. “Minerva told me to expect you. Your pack is in your room. I suppose it was Dark magic that caused this?”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Madam Pomfrey left the bedside, which had a curtain drawn around it, and was back again in a couple of minutes with three vials of potion.
“Mr. Potter, please drink this. It should stop the burning of your arm and it will probably make you a bit drowsy,” Madam Pomfrey commented, handing him a dull grey potion.
Harry drank it, made a disgusted face, and then looked back at the Hogwarts nurse questioningly. “What do you mean it will stop the burning? I can’t even feel my arm.”
“Of course you cannot feel it. I placed a Numbing Charm on it the moment you got here.” Madam Pomfrey handed him a vial of reddish liquid. “This will start the process of restoring the damaged nerve endings in your arm.”
Harry swallowed the potion, grimaced and put it aside. “How did I get here then?”
“A house-elf popped in and brought you with him. I have no idea where he found you.” She explained.
“Which house-elf was it?” Harry inquired. He had a feeling he knew but wanted to make sure.
“How should I know, Mr. Potter, the all look the same to me. He did keep muttering something about helping the great Harry Potter, but I didn’t ask for identity. I was too concerned with you taking care of your wounded arm.” Madam Pomfrey handed him the final vial of potion. This one was a light tan. “This potion will help to restore the lost skin and muscle.”
Harry cringed. The potions were doing nothing to help his nausea. He swallowed the last potion and gagged, but managed to keep the contents of his stomach in place. Madam Pomfrey bustled out of the enclosed space again, muttering under her breath. “First Miss Granger and now Mr. Potter. I guess Mr. Weasley will be in here soon as well.”
She returned several minutes later with five more vials of potion. They were a sickly green. “Mr. Potter, you must take one of these every four hours for the next day. It will keep infection from setting in.” She placed the vials on the nightstand.
“Thank you, Madam Pomfrey, for all you have done for me,” Harry remarked. Madam Pomfrey immediately softened.
“It is the least I can do, Mr. Potter.”
“You said a minute ago that Hermione was here?”
“Why yes, just before the Halloween Feast. The ceremony was about to start and she just fainted right there on the stage. Well, we got her up here just as quickly as we could. She was unconscious, and I went to see about getting some Pepperup Potion. She took it and half an hour later she was feeling up to leaving. She said she wanted to get back to the feast but I would not hear of it. Obviously, the excitement of the feast was just too much for the poor girl. I sent her back to the common room. Mr. Weasley said he would make sure she did not attempt to go down to the feast.” She handed him the first of the green potions.
He took the potion, wondering why Hermione had gotten so nervous and fainted. He did not think she had ever suffered from nervousness in front of people before. He could not wrap his brain around the inconsistency, however, because the effects of the first potion were making him a bit loopy. He swallowed the green potion and was amazed that this particular potion tasted nicely of fresh mint. He smiled in surprise.
Madam Pomfrey must have noticed the look, for she commented, “Well they can’t all taste horrible, now can they?” She smiled and stepped out of the enclosure.
Within minutes, Harry heard the Hospital Wing door open. “Madam Pomfrey,” came the quiet voice of Ginny. “Is Harry awake yet?”
“Yes, dear, but I am afraid you all must come back tomorrow. He has a lot of healing to do this evening,” the school nurse responded kindly.
“Madam Pomfrey, could I see them for a second?” Harry asked.
“Well, all right, just a couple of minutes. Probably save Mr. Weasley from sneaking down here in the night anyway,” she answered, as she pulled back the curtain from around Harry’s bed. Harry saw that Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville and Luna all stood at the door. All of a sudden he felt very self-conscious about his blackened arm. He moved to hide it under the sheet, and in doing so noticed the charred part of his arm had grown, from just around his hand to just past his elbow. That was what she meant about the burning needing to be stopped, Harry thought.
His friends gathered around the bed. They looked very concerned for him. Even Luna had a serious, instead of dreamy, look in her eyes.
“Harry…,” Hermione started tentatively.
“I’m fine, Hermione. I just had a harder time with…things than I figured,” Harry expressed, attempting to avoid yawning, his eyes beginning to grow heavy. “How about you? Madam Pomfrey said you fainted?”
Hermione blushed, Ron scowled, and the others looked away. “Yeah, well, I guess my nerves must have gotten to me.”
“More likely those fifth years you caught trying to turn Filch’s cat into a duck a few weeks ago slipped you a Fainting Fancy, in your drink or something,” Ron growled, accusingly. “You know I saw them with a Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes catalogue the other day.”
“Well, that would explain it, Ron, but we don’t have any proof so just drop it, okay?” Hermione stated, testily. Harry could see her cheeks burning and thought that Hermione must be extremely embarrassed about the whole thing.
“What happened, Harry?” Neville asked. “How did you get hurt?”
“Did Dobby bring my pack into the common room?” Harry inquired, seemingly ignoring Neville.
“Yeah, he put it in our dorm room,” Ron answered. “Did you get it?”
“I did,” Harry smiled, more broadly than he intended. The potions’ effects were getting worse. “Although I don’t want to talk about it here. Neville, I will”what did you ask me?” Harry asked, his brow furrowed in concentration.
“I asked about what you did, how you got hurt,” Neville stated, looking agitated.
Harry eyes began to close and he leaned back on his pillow. “That’s what I thought you said.” His breathing slowed and it did not take long for everyone to see he was asleep.
“Everyone out, it has been more than just a couple of minutes,” Madam Pomfrey announced quietly. They all got up to leave and Harry changed positions on the bed. The sheet covering his arm pulled away and they saw for the first time how badly he had been hurt. They all quietly left the room, Hermione a little shaky at the sight of Harry’s arm.
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The next day was Saturday. The vast majority of the school had ventured down to the Quidditch Pitch for a match between Slytherin and Hufflepuff, which wasn’t expected to be terribly close. Slytherin had most of its players back, although they had a new Seeker. Hufflepuff had lost a couple of good seventh-year players to graduation, and some who had been expected to help this year had not come back to school.
Harry, Ron, Ginny, Hermione, Neville and Luna all sat at a large round table in the Room of Requirement. The room was silent, as if they all were waiting for Harry to begin the discussion. Sitting in the middle of the table was an ornately carved golden goblet. It shined brightly, despite its age. A large “H” and a badger were engraved in three places on the side, with two handles on each side. Harry, his walls raised and his mind focused, could see the dark magic radiating from it, the blood-red light shimmering and pulsing in rhythm like a heart beat.
Harry was feeling uncomfortable. His arm, while doing a remarkable job of healing, was still very red, like a bad sunburn, and sensitive to the touch.
Along with the others, he sat, contemplating the cup. He thought back to the events of the previous night, wondering if he could draw any conclusion. On the one hand, he was successful. He had figured out how to retrieve the cup and had returned to Hogwarts without getting attacked by Death Eaters or Voldemort. On the other hand, it had been a failure. He was injured badly for his efforts, almost losing his arm, and if he had not made it to Hogwarts then the burning may have continued until it did cost him his life. He still did not know how Dobby had managed to find him and take him to the Hospital Wing but thought he must have called to him without realizing it. It was a success, but I could have used some more help, Harry finally thought. He caught sight of Neville shifting in his seat and decided it was time to talk.
“This was where I was last night,” Harry finally spoke, pointing at the cup. “I went to London to get this cup.”
“Why, what’s so special about the cup?” Neville asked.
“It’s not the cup so much as what the cup is,” Harry declared. He went on to explain about the Horcruxes, and the mission that Dumbledore had given him. He did not mention the prophecy. Harry watched as recognition revealed itself on Neville’s face. Luna, on the other hand looked to be just barely listening to the explanation.
“So, this cup has a bit of Voldemort in it. We have to destroy all the little bits before anyone can finally defeat him,” Harry finished.
“So that is what Dumbledore wanted us to help you with?” Neville questioned. “That night, with the will, he said he wanted us to help you get ready, to get ready for something really important. He said the mission he had sent you on was a secret mission and that you would tell us about it when you were ready, but that we should just help you get ready any way you wanted us to. So, he wanted us to help you destroy these Horcrux things?”
“I suppose so, Neville,” Harry answered. “I didn’t hear that part of the will.”
Neville was silent for a moment. Harry was glad he had not asked the next logical question: Why had Harry not let them go with him if that was what they were training to do?
“So how many of these things are there?” Neville inquired.
“It’s hard to say. Dumbledore believed there were seven in total. Six in objects and the one that is still in Voldemort,” Harry replied. He noticed with some satisfaction that no one at the table shuddered at the name anymore. “This cup is one, and Voldemort’s pet snake was one, but Ron and I took care of that,” Harry commented with a smile. He noticed Ron’s chest swell with pride, even as his ears turned slightly pink.
“Dumbledore destroyed a ring that belonged to Salazar Slytherin last year before he died, and there was a diary that I destroyed in the Chamber of Secrets in second year.” Harry saw Ginny shiver and knew she was remembering that horrible time in her first year.
“There is a locket, which also belonged to Slytherin, but we didn’t find it in the cave last year. We found a fake, and a note. That just leaves one last Horcrux and then Voldemort himself.”
“What if Dumbledore is wrong?” Luna commented. Everyone just stared at her. “How do we know there are only seven?”
“Dumbledore based that on a memory of Tom before he became Voldemort,” Hermione explained, seemingly annoyed. Harry had shown her and Ron all the memories when they were at Grimmauld Place during the summer.
“But why seven? Why not ten or something?” Neville put in.
“Two reasons,” Hermione answered. “First, every time you make a Horcrux it splits your soul. I imagine you can only do that so many times before you just stop existing. Secondly, seven is a very important number in Wizarding numerology. Voldemort would want the most powerful number for the number of Horcruxes he would want to create.”
This explanation seemed to satisfy Luna, who once again took on her normal dreamy expression. Harry knew it was a ruse. He had spent a lot of time with Luna during his training. He’d found out that her mind worked almost as quickly as Hermione’s but that she tended to think in a different way than others did. The dreamy expression was”at least in part”there to get people to think she wasn’t really paying attention.
“We still don’t know how to destroy the things,” Ron piped up. “Hermione, what do you think?”
Hermione sat there for a few minutes thinking. Harry raised the walls in his mind and focused on the cup, trying to raise the answer in his head. He could hear Hermione begin speaking again.
“A potion might work, something to dissolve the gold, but I’m not sure. When Harry destroyed the diary he poisoned it with the fang of the Basilisk.” Hermione shuddered. “Professor Dumbledore didn’t explain how he destroyed the ring, and the snake, well, you and Harry just killed it.”
Harry looked at Hermione. “I thought you had an idea about how to destroy the things.”
“I did, but I don’t know how to do the spell. I found a spell in one of Professor Dumbledore’s old books. The incantation is Singulus Substantia, but I can’t figure out how to cast the spell,” Hermione explained.
“How would you even practice that spell though?” Ron interjected. “You don’t have any Horcruxes lying around to practice on do you?”
“Of course not, Ron, but”I couldn’t even”well I tried it, but nothing ever happened. I just assumed I was doing something wrong.”
“Hermione, focus on the wand movements and the incantation. I want to try something,” Harry stated. He focused on Hermione again.
Singulus Substantia,” he heard her exclaim. He saw an image of gold light flash but then dissipate quickly. He opened his eyes and noticed Hermione grinning slightly but shaking her head.
“It didn’t work, did it?” Harry asked, feeling excited.
“No, but this time I did get a flash of gold and the cup moved. I think we may have the right spell,” Hermione announced.
“We do, Hermione. It is not a question of your doing right or not. I think it is a question of power.” The others looked at him, confused. “Okay, I’ll explain. Hermione is brilliant right?” Everyone nodded and Hermione blushed. “She had the brains to figure out how to do this, but I don’t think she has the magical power to do it.” Ron seemed like he was about to protest and defend the magical strength of his girlfriend.
Harry cut him off. “Ron, that isn’t an insult, but she just isn’t as strong as you or I are.”
“That makes sense,” Hermione interjected. Harry was relieved that she hadn’t been insulted. “I can do most of the spells in Defense Against the Dark Arts, but they are never as powerful as yours or Harry’s.”
“Right…so, Ron, give it a try.” Ron nodded
Harry focused his mind on Ron and again saw a flash of gold, stronger this time, but it still faded. Harry looked at Ron and saw he seemed very disgruntled. The cup was lying on its side but no other damage had been done.
“It’s all right, Ron, I don’t really think any of us, by ourselves, could destroy this thing,” Harry explained. “So here is what I want us to do. Everyone step behind me. Concentrate on the cup and destroying the Horcrux. I’ll try it.”
Harry focused on the Horcrux sitting in front of him. He allowed the image of each of his friends to enter his mind and felt their strengths enter his head.
Singulus Substantia! he shouted. The gold light erupted from his wand and encased the cup in a golden sphere. Bright white light began to erupt from the cup as large lightning-shaped cracks formed along the sides. The walls of the Room of Requirement shook and it seemed to Harry like a rushing wind began to blow.
The cup exploded, in the sphere, in a burst of white brilliance. The light faded and the golden sphere dissipated. The cup fell with a clatter back onto the table. It had broken into several pieces.
Harry was panting by the end of the spell. He dropped to his knees and his formerly burned arm ached. Ron and Neville quickly picked him up and helped him to a chair.
“It worked,” he croaked with a weary grin. “I think we went a bit overboard with it though”the ring only cracked when Dumbledore destroyed it. We broke the cup into pieces.”
The group took their respective seats around the table, staring at the remains of Hufflepuff’s cup.
“Harry, how did you know?” Ginny broke the silence.
“I don’t understand it all, but Abe told me that I have a connection to you all. Something that allows your various strengths to help me,” Harry explained. “That’s why when we duel, we fight so well together. I guess you are all helping me and I am helping you. We are strengthening each other.”
“So you do need our help,” Ginny stated with a glare.
“Ginny, I never said…,” Harry started, not wanting another argument. “Yeah, I suppose I do.”
“Well why don’t you ask for it then?” Ginny huffed. Harry could see the hurt in her eyes at not being allowed to come with him the night before. His heart gave a lurch, as if fighting with itself. He knew he needed them, especially at the end, but that would mean all of them facing Voldemort, and he didn’t even know how they would win that fight. He was torn from his musings when Neville spoke up.
“Hey, it is almost time for lunch,” Neville interjected. “I missed breakfast this morning. Let’s go eat.”
They left the Room of Requirement and started down to the first floor. They were met by a large group of Hufflepuffs, all of whom seemed to be in very high spirits.
“We won,” shouted a sixth-year girl as she caught sight of the group walking down the stairs.
“What was the final score?” Ron asked, seemingly much more interested anyone else.
“230 to 190!” exclaimed a third year. “Ernie got the snitch just before Zabini.”
The doors burst open and several more Hufflepuffs entered the castle, Ernie Macmillan being carried on the shoulders of five of his house mates. Harry watched as they let him down. Ernie made straight for Ginny who was heading for the door to the Great Hall.
“Ginny, a word, if you don’t mind?” Ernie shouted.
Harry watched her turn and walk slowly towards him. His shoulders slumped a bit as he walked into the Great Hall for lunch. He, Ron, Hermione, and Neville wandered past the other house tables and sat at the Gryffindor table.
The conversation during lunch was light for most of the Gryffindors and rambled from subject to subject. Hermione’s fainting spell was brought up as several people came to see how she was doing. There was a rumor going around that the next issue of the Quibbler was going to have photos of a black bear roaming the streets of London, but no one seemed to give it much notice. There had been another Death Eater attack, this time in Greenwich, which was discussed quickly, but most didn’t want to dwell on negative things. The following week’s match between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw was also much discussed.
Finally Harry got up to leave, his heart still heavy since Ginny and Ernie had never made into the Great Hall. He turned to Hermione and Ron, who were discussing going for a walk. “Would you two come with me to my next Occlumency lesson?” Harry asked, trying to sound more cheerful than he felt.
“Of course,” Hermione answered. “Why?”
“I want to talk with Abe about the connections we have. I think there is more to it than what he is telling me,” Harry explained.
“What makes you say that?” Ron asked.
“Just a feeling. See you guys later, have fun on your walk.” Harry turned to go.
He went to the library. Just before he entered, he noticed Ernie and Ginny leaving an empty classroom. His beast snarled as he flung the door open and went to study. It’s your own fault, Potter. You pushed her away, he thought as he sat down and spent the rest of his Saturday working on various homework assignments.
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It was Wednesday before Harry, Ron and Hermione could meet together with Abe Dumbledore. They all had a free period that afternoon. The trio arrived at the Room of Requirement a few minutes early and found Abe talking to Charlie Weasley.
“Hi, you lot,” Charlie called merrily. “Haven’t seen any of you much this term.”
Harry and Hermione shifted uncomfortably. They hadn’t made it down to see Hagrid or Charlie during the year.
“Well I grew up with you, so I think I have seen enough of you,” Ron chided back at Charlie, his smirk showing the joking intent of his words. “So what are you doing here anyway…don’t you have fertilizer to shovel or something?”
“Ron, be nice!” Hermione scolded. “Charlie, it is nice to see you. Sorry we haven’t been down, how are you, and Hagrid?”
“Oh, fine”he shovels most of the fertilizer.” Charlie smiled back at Hermione and then shot a mock glare Ron. “He wanted me to tell you all that he’s coming to the Quidditch match Saturday if he is not…away.”
Harry knew that meant Hagrid may be going on a mission for the Order this week. His stomach twisted thinking of his friend being in danger.
“All right, now that the pleasantries are over, why don’t you tell me why you wanted to see me today with Ron and Hermione,” Abe cut in.
“Well, um, Abe, I wanted to ask about the connections.”
The “Dumbledore Twinkle””for that was now what Harry called it”danced in Abe’s eyes. “So, you have figured out how much help your friends can actually provide for you then.”
“Yeah, they helped me with a … a spell the other day. It was like I could feel their magic flowing through me,” Harry tried to explain. He was not entirely sure he was making sense. He noted the look of bewilderment on Charlie’s face and did not see this as a good sign.
“Harry, that is pretty much what happened. When you are connected, mentally, with your friends, when you focus on them through Occlumency, their strength becomes yours. Their love for you strengthens you and makes you much more powerful. Your love for them makes the connection stronger and intensifies the bond you share.”
“A power the Dark Lord knows not,” Harry muttered to himself.
“What was that?” Abe questioned. Harry was startled that he had said that out loud.
“Nothing, just talking to myself,” Harry answered quickly.
Abe gave a knowing grin but left it at that.
Ron’s brow was furrowed in thought. “So if Harry were to duel with someone while he was connected with us, then we could strengthen him and help him fight?” Ron asked very slowly, trying to put the pieces together.
“Yes, Ron, that would be the case, but remember that Harry is not the only one with this capability. Voldemort also has this power”he too has connections, and to far more people,” Abe responded. Harry thought the twinkle in his eyes grew as Ron was speaking.
Harry looked over at Charlie and saw a very confused look on the older Weasley. There was really nothing to be done about it. Charlie did not know what the prophecy was and Harry was beginning to wonder why he was even here.
“So Voldemort has the ability to connect with people too?” Ron exclaimed.
“Harry has to fight You-Know-Who?” Charlie coughed out. Harry, Ron, and Hermione rolled their eyes at the fact that Charlie didn’t use the real name.
“Yes, Charlie, it seems that Voldemort wants Harry dead, so he will probably have to face him,” Hermione explained, providing information without compromising the truth about the prophecy.
“But Voldemort doesn’t love anyone, does he?” Harry asked, frustration starting to creep into his mind. He thought they had found the way to defeat the Dark Lord.
“No, Harry, Voldemort doesn’t love anyone, except himself. He feeds off of their fear. Fear and love are two very powerful emotions, as you well know. Fear can make you do things that seem impossible. Fear can drive you to greater lengths than you dreamed possible. It is the fear that the Death Eaters have for Voldemort that gives him his greatest strength.”
“So I don’t have a greater power than he has. I only have five connections…he must have a hundred or more,” Harry stated dejectedly.
“Not exactly, Harry. Remember I said that both fear and love are powerful emotions. By far love is the greater of the two. Fear makes you do things you did not think possible. Love allows you to willingly do things that you do not believe are possible. Love allows people to give of themselves freely. Out of fear one may sacrifice himself, but out of love one will freely give himself up, as you have seen on numerous occasions. If you break the connections that Voldemort has with his Death Eaters, break his mind, and he will be utterly alone and not nearly as powerful as he seems,” Dumbledore explained.
“So how does Harry break his connection?” Hermione queried.
“Harry, tell me about the dream you had the night you forgot to practice your Occlumency,” Abe said.
Harry was caught off guard by this request. “Oh, well, I”I was on the Quidditch pitch,” he started. He hadn’t told the details of the dream to anyone since having it. “I saw Voldemort”I was standing directly in front of him. Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Luna and Neville were all with me and he just started killing them. He showed me the people that he had killed”the ones who have died because of me”and then he started killing my friends.”
Harry was visibly shaken at the memory. Ron placed a bracing hand on his shoulder. Hermione seemed on the verge of tears.
“What happened when you woke up?” Abe questioned.
Harry shook his head. “I don’t remember much until I got to the common room. McGonagall was taking me to the hospital wing and I just came to.”
Ron turned to Harry. “You lost it, mate. You were crying and tucked into a ball. No one was able to get you to respond. You just kept shaking and muttering about how you killed them. Then all of sudden you snapped out of it.”
“It wasn’t all of a sudden,” Hermione proclaimed. “It was Ginny…when you looked at Ginny, you started to calm down. I didn’t really think about it, but she must have somehow calmed you down.” Hermione had that look in her eye that she always got when she figured out a particularly hard puzzle.
“It was her love, her ability to provide a safe and peaceful place for your mind, Harry, that probably saved you from a lifetime of insanity,” Abe declared.
“How do you mean?” Harry asked, surprised by the barman’s bluntness.
“Your mind probably reached out to her because of the exceptionally strong feelings you have for her. She provides comfort for you that none of your other friends provide, correct?” Harry nodded shyly.
“Voldemort, I believe, knows that you have gotten better at Occlumency so he knows that he may have a stronger opponent than he once thought. He was trying something that night, although I don’t know what. When he got in, however, he discovered the connections you had made with your friends. He tried to use that information to break your mind, to drive you insane so that you would no longer be a threat to him.”
“So why didn’t it work?” Hermione questioned. “Voldemort is a stronger Legilimens than Harry, so why didn’t Harry go insane?” He shuddered.
“Once again, Voldemort did not count on the love of Harry’s friends. He underestimated it in the Ministry, in the Potter’s house, and he did that night. He attacked Harry but failed because he simply doesn’t understand the power that love has to offer.”
“This is perfectly interesting but how does it help Harry destroy Voldemort?” Ron exclaimed.
“It makes sense now”Harry can do the same thing to Voldemort,” Hermione announced. “He can break the connections with his followers by using his mind, but how? Voldemort won’t care if his followers are killed. What sort of weapon can we use?”
“We use the love we all share,” Harry piped up. “I don’t attack him with images of hate or fear. I attack with images of hope, peace and love”things that he has never experienced and cannot possibly understand.”
“Then, once he is alone, and the connections are gone, then we can destroy him,” Ron finished Harry’s thought.
Harry was truly excited. “How?”
“That is where Charlie comes in.” The room was silent and all the occupants stared at Dumbledore, confused. “Harry, it is time for you to learn Legilimency. It will not be terribly difficult now that you know the basics. In fact, you have been doing it to a degree with your friends anyway.”
“What am I supposed to do, Abe?” Charlie questioned. He had been remarkably quiet during the entire meeting. Harry presumed that Charlie, unlike some of his younger brothers, spent more time listening than flying off the handle or reacting.
“Charlie, you are going to be a test subject.” Abe motioned him to a chair that had materialized in the center of the room. “Harry will not harm you in the least.”
Charlie sat in the chair. Harry sat across from him, with Ron and Hermione standing behind him.
“Okay, Harry, look directly into Charlie’s eyes and as you do so, I want you to think of the happiest moments of your life”the sort of things that you would think of while casting a Patronus. Then once you have, I want you to project them into Charlie’s mind. Charlie, since I am assuming you are capable of love and actually have loved at some point, this should not hurt you. In fact it may be quite pleasant.”
Harry and Charlie both swallowed hard, attempting to calm themselves. Harry closed his eyes for a few moments. He thought of flying and winning the Quidditch cup; those were safe thoughts that had nothing to do with Ginny. The thought of projecting something about her into her older brother’s mind made him very nervous indeed.
He opened his eyes and stared into the wide blue eyes of Charlie Weasley. “Legilimens,” he almost whispered pointing his wand at him.
He watched as Charlie’s face briefly took on a pained expression as if someone was trying to pry his hand away from something. Then as quickly as it appeared it vanished and was replaced by a look that Harry could only believe was euphoria. Charlie’s eyes widened as a large smile broke out on his face. He began to laugh a bit and squirm in his chair.
Finally, after about a minute, Harry broke the connection. He collapsed back into his chair, breathing heavily, exhaustion washing over him. Charlie had also collapsed into his chair, the smile having faded.
“Harry, that was really incredible. I could see you flying, but it was both of us, and I could feel the joy you have when you fly. Wow, that was just amazing!” Charlie exclaimed.
“Okay, is this creeping anyone else out?” Ron muttered. Hermione smacked him on the arm.
“Very good, Harry. That was better than I expected. I wanted it to be someone you didn’t have a connection with because that would make it more difficult to enter his mind. Voldemort will surely figure out what you are doing and try to push you out and enter your mind instead. You will need to build up your stamina if you are going to defeat him.”
“He isn’t going to be practicing on me anymore, is he? It was a little creepy,” Charlie remarked. “No offense, Harry.”
“No, we can find others that are willing to be practice partners for him,” Abe commented. “Oh, look at the time…if I don’t get back to the Hog’s Head, my wife will boil me in my own pudding.”
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A/N: Now things should be getting clearer. I truly hope you enjoyed this chapter. Thanks as always to my pre-betas cablebuysmom and Kerrbear. A huge thanks needs to go out to my beta JenC for helping make this chapter clearer and easier to understand. Thanks also to all of you who have been reviewing this story. Your reviews truly help me when I am fighting writer’s block or fatigue from watching my new daughter. Thanks for your thoughts and keep up the wonderful reviews.
Singulus Substania Roughly means Separate Substance.
Coming next, Quidditch and a message from a long lost character. Enjoy!