Harry was sitting on his bed, just finished packing for his return to Hogwarts, as he stared at the pin in the shape of a P which signifies his new status as a Gryffindor Prefect. When it came in the post yesterday, Harry was rather confused since he had showed no interest in holding the position before, but then he realized that this was likely another ploy by Dumbledore to get him reintegrated back into Gryffindor House. Granted, considering the other choices included Dean, Seamus, and Ron, he and Neville really were the only choices and Neville was too shy and meek to confront anybody. At first, he was going to refuse the position since he thought it a waste of time, but after talking with Remus, he realized that this would allow him to wander around the castle without arousing any suspicion since he knew McGonagall will demand he return to Gryffindor Tower, so he decided to go through with it for now.
"Still worrying about your new job, luv?", Harry looked up to see Tonks in the doorway.
Harry shook his head, "Worry? No, just wondering if doing it is worth the potential headache it could cause? We have more important things we should be focusing on."
Tonks sat down and put her head on his shoulder, "You told us to think about a future after this whole mess ends, and being prefect will open a lot of doors in the future for you. Besides, think of all the little shits you get to boss around."
Harry sighed with an exhausted smile and said, "I don't think that's how a Prefect acts, Tonks."
Tonks just laughed, "No, it's what a cool Prefect does; especially, one married to me."
"Oh, really, Tonks? Because a Prefect married to me will honor his duties correctly. Right?", Harry and Tonks turned to see a stern Penny looking at them.
Harry gulped, "Of course, sweetheart. Wouldn't dream of it."
Tonks mumbled 'whipped' under her breath and Penny slapped her arm as his last wife Fleur walked in the room, "All finished, mon amor? The Weazley's are dragging their feet, so we have a few minutez alone."
Harry nodded, "Yeah…I'm ready."
The three girls picked up on his hesitant tone and Penny asked, "What's wrong, honey?"
Harry just looked down, "It's nothing, just you three won't be with me this year, and my fellow peer's treatment of me is bound to get worse with all the 'news' being said about me, not to mention all the stuff with Voldemort. I guess, I just have no desire to return."
The girls just adopted sad smiles until Tonks bear hugged him, "Hey, now, we can still pop into the chamber whenever we want, or you call us and ignore what those wankers say. Besides, you still have a few friends at that school, remember? I know for a fact Amelia's niece misses you."
Harry smiled at that, he did indeed miss Susan, Tracey, Su, and the others, much more than he thought he would. He supposed that if they still believed in him, the year wouldn't be so bad with them at his side. Still, he was getting that awful feeling in his gut that something bad awaited him at that school, but what else is new?
Harry got up and looked at his wives fondly, "Well, I suppose you're right. I am still going to hate having to go back without you, but I've survived worse. I'll see if I can find any information on where Riddle might have stashed his other Horcruxes while he was at school, while you three see if you can find anything out there."
Penny walked over and kissed him softly, "We'll see each other soon, my love. Just watch your back and don't do anything crazy."
Tonks smirked, "Yeah, and if you do, at least invite us first."
Fleur sighed, "Tonks, really?"
Harry chuckled and held onto each of his wives tightly in a group hug for a few minutes and whispered how much he loved them as they did the same, until finally they separated. Harry grabbed his things and went downstairs where he waited very patiently for the Weasley's to finish their annual routine of waiting until the last minute to get ready next to Hermione. It was still very awkward around her and Ron, ever since he became aware he was in a love triangle he didn't want to be a part of, but he just did his best to ignore them, which he could tell hurt Hermione and even Ron, to a lesser extent. Finally, the Weasley's were ready and the large group, also consisting of Moody and Tonks who were guards, headed to King's Cross Station.
An hour later, Harry and the others arrived at the station and were walking towards the platform when Harry and the others heard barking. They turned around and were slightly shocked to Sirius in his Animagus form walking past them.
"Padfoot! Are barking mad!? You'll blow the entire operation!", Moody whispered harshly.
Sirius seemingly ignored the Ex-Auror and went down the stairs and went into a side room, and Harry (after a nod from Tonks) went in after him. He walked in and saw Sirius in a furry black coat with a large grin on his face.
"Sirius, what are you doing here? If somebody sees you…", Harry pleaded.
Sirius smiled and sat down, "I had to see you off, didn't I? What's life without risk?"
Harry looked down, "I don't want to see you get chucked back in Azkaban."
Sirius shook his head, "Don't worry about me, and I wanted you to have this. The Original Order of the Pheonix."
Sirius handed him an old photograph that showed a large group, members of the Order both past and present, and Harry recognized a few of them. Sirius, Hagrid, Remus, Pettigrew, Dumbledore, and his parents in the center. Sirius pointed out a few others he didn't recognize and were no longer members, like a women named McKinnon whose family was wiped by Voldemort, and Frank and Alice Longbottom, Neville's parents, who he knew were permanent residents at St. Mungo's.
Sirius had a bitter smile when he looked at the last couple, "It's been 14 years, and not a day goes by that I don't miss your dad."
Harry smiled slightly, "I know there's another war coming Sirius, if it's not already here, but I'm not sure I can protect everyone I love. I don't want them to end up like my parents or the other people in this photo."
Sirius had a mischievous glint in his eye, "Are you referring to little old me, or your three little girlfriends?"
Harry went wide-eyed, "What are talking about?"
Sirius scoffed, "Oh please, you look at them the same exact way your father looked at Lily, and you hide it about as well as he did. It's amazing no one else realizes yet."
Harry sighed, "That's kind of the idea, Sirius. Promise me you won't say anything?"
"I cross my heart, pup. I'm so damned proud of you, though. Three women, all drop-dead gorgeous. Your mother would, of course, flail you alive and probably me, thinking I corrupted you.", laughed Sirius.
Harry shrugged with a smirk, "Not my fault you can't get laid old man."
Sirius chuckled, "Yeah, I'll get back to my old ways eventually. Don't worry about the war effort too much, Harry. You're gonna have enough on your plate as is. You're the young ones now, though, so the fighting will come soon enough. Until it does, do your best to live life to the fullest with the people you love. Keep the picture as a reminder of that."
Godson and Godfather hugged and said their goodbyes as Harry joined the others to walk through the portal and stepped onto Platform 9 ¾ and saw the brilliantly beautiful Hogwarts Express. Harry loaded his trunk and stepped onto the train to begin the next year at school, and likely a new adventure.
An hour later, sitting alone in his own compartment toward the back, Harry was reading some texts from the Black Library that he had taken with him, still hard at work trying to learn all he can about Horcruxes until he heard the door slide open. He looked up to see the grinning face of one Tracey Davis and her best friend, Daphne Greengrass.
"Well, if it isn't my favorite criminal. You know, Harry, the next time you break the law, at least make it a cool crime.", teased Tracey as she and Daphne sat down across from him.
Harry rolled his eyes, "Thanks for the support, Tracey. Remind me never to call you as a character witness at my next trial."
Daphne snorted, "You might as well give a full confession, you'll have a better chance at a shorter sentence."
Tracey pouted, "I'm feeling a little attacked."
Harry chuckled, "Don't worry, Trace, we still love you."
Tracey went wide-eyed and blushed, before looking away, something Daphne noticed. Tracey quickly regained her composure and adopted a more serious look and asked, "Are you okay, though, really?"
Harry shrugged, "As good as I can be. It helps knowing there are actually some people standing with you and being supportive. I'm more worried about you two, though. Are the Malfoy's and those other Death Eater tossers bothering you still?"
Daphne genuinely smiled, "It hasn't been all bad, our parents are definitely worried, and my father even had Tracey and her parents move in, since our wards are some of the best in the country. We'll be alright, so don't worry about us, I imagine you have enough to worry about."
Harry frowned, "You two are my friends, if something is wrong, I want to help."
Tracey smiled brightly, "Ever the hero, huh? You know what, I say we show those bastards we won't be intimidated by a bunch of mustache-twirling cartoon villains. We shouldn't have to hide to hang out anymore, so no more hiding in the library three times a week to talk away from prying eyes. That is…if you w-want to s-spend more time with us?"
Harry was slightly shocked, "Are you sure, doing that now might bring more trouble than it's worth? The Slytherin's especially would make your lives miserable."
Daphne shook her head, "My father might have told us to stay away from you, but Tracey is right, you are our friend, and you'll need all the help you can get. This year, we look out for each other, and no one is going to stop us."
Harry blinked and eventually smiled, "You know, you two could be mistaken for Gryffindors."
Both girls blushed until Tracey said, "Hey, we're still far more cunning than brave, we'll still leave all that rule breaking to you."
Harry shook his head good naturally, "Okay, we'll hang out more in the open, including classes. I have to get ready for the Prefect meeting in the front compartment now, though, I would much rather hang out with two beautiful women. I'll catch up with you girls later."
Harry got up, uniform in hand, and left the compartment, missing the two Slytherin beauties blushing madly. He went to the Men's bathroom and got changed into his new robes, which he had to get thanks to his growth spurt. After changing, he made his way to the front of the train and entered the Prefect side room and saw his other fellow fifth-year counterparts. Gryffindor was represented by himself and Hermione, Ravenclaw had Terry Boot and his friend Su Li, Hufflepuff had Zacharias Smith and Susan Bones, and the Slytherin prefects were Malfoy and Pansy Parkinson. Hermione already knew he was a prefect, so she wasn't surprised when he walked in, while Smith and Boot looked annoyed, and Malfoy looked sickly as Harry could see that his mind was somewhere else. His attention, however, was on the last three occupants as Susan and Su blushed and smiled brightly, which kind of confused Harry, but he chalked it up to his new appearance, and he finally looked at Pansy to see her look at him with trepidation and wariness, which concerned Harry.
He sat down on one side of the compartment as Pansy took the left side of him by the window, Susan took his right side, and Su sat next Susan. The other four Prefects took their seats across from them, though Hermione looked miffed at not sitting next to Harry and waited for the Head Boy and Girl to arrive. Boot and Smith were engaging in conversation, Malfoy was staring out the window, and Hermione had her face in a book, so Harry decided to speak to the girls in a hushed conversation while they waited.
"So how has everything been? You girls have a nice summer?", he asked.
Su smiled shyly, "Mine was pretty good, lots of research that I got to do, but my father and his stupid parties really started to grate my nerves."
Susan chuckled, "I know how that feels, Su. My summer was boring, my aunt really put me through the ringer with physical training and…looking after Hannah."
Harry winced slightly, "How is she?"
Susan sighed tiredly, "As well as you can expect, but I think she's getting worse. She's so withdrawn and she's blaming herself for what happened to her mum. Would you talk with her when you can? She might benefit from some of that Gryffindor courage."
Harry nodded, "Sure, I'll go see her soon. Pansy, how are you?"
Pansy flinched, "I've…been better. My father died a few months ago and I'm still not sure how to feel about him being gone. We never got along, but now I'm all alone."
Harry closed his eyes in slight regret, 'I'm sorry."
Pansy cautiously whispered so the two Su's couldn't hear, "Sorry for what exactly? Harry…I have a vague idea of what happened, but my grandfather still wasn't very forthcoming with the details. Harry did you-?"
"Yes…it was technically an accident, but I still caused his death, but he was the one who answered Voldemort's call. I'm sorry for you, though, I didn't mean to hurt you.", he answered.
Pansy closed her eyes and breathed heavily, "Did he suffer?"
Harry shook his head, "No."
"Did he hurt you?", she asked.
"No, that was all Voldemort and his other lackey's.", he said.
She nodded, "I guess this was bound to happen one way or another, with the Dark Lord returning. I believe you, by the way, you're far too Gryffindor to lie about that."
"Thanks, you'll probably be one of the few who do. Anything else happen this summer?", he asked.
Pansy adopted a small smile, "Well, with my father gone, no one can force me to marry Draco anymore, until his father forces the issue through the Ministry."
Harry raised an eyebrow, "Is that why he's being eerily quiet?"
Pansy shook her head, "No, from what I heard ever since his return, the Death Eater children (mostly Slytherins) have been brought before Voldemort to receive a preview about what is expected of them. I can only imagine what he's put them through."
Harry nodded grimly as she continued, "I guess I won't be the Queen of Slytherin anymore, probably even have a target on my back until I fall in line."
Harry frowned, "Hey if things get worse, I'll be there. You know, Daphne and Tracey earlier told me they don't want to hide our friendship anymore, and if you want, you can stay close to me too."
Pansy smirked, "Why Harry, I didn't know you so forward. At least buy a lady dinner first."
Harry sputtered as Pansy, as well as Susan and Su who heard that last bit, burst out giggling, but Pansy agreed to be more public friends when they stopped making fun of him. The group of four talked a little bit more about more mundane topics like the upcoming term and the OWL Exams, though Harry inwardly became slightly worried when Susan mentioned that her aunt warned her about the new DADA professor. Considering that three of the four Defense instructors he has had at Hogwarts have tried to harm him, his danger sense was telling him he was in for a long year.
Eventually, the Head Boy and Head Girl showed up and went through the basics of what their expected duties entail, mostly working to aid the first years in any way and looking out for any suspicious activity while out on patrol. Eventually, the meeting ended, and Pansy and Su went to complete the first set of patrols with Malfoy and Boot, while Susan led him toward a different compartment where he finally saw Hannah Abbott. At first glance, Hannah didn't seem different, but then Harry saw her face and he had to keep the concern and surprise off his face when he saw how pale she was, the very dark bags under her eyes, her hair wild and not in her usual twin ponytails, but what truly shocked Harry was the dead eyes she possessed.
Susan dragged both of them into the seat across from Hannah and said, "Hannah, I ran into Harry at the Prefect meeting, he wanted to see you."
Hannah gave him a sideways glance, "Come to see me at my worst, Harry? I don't blame you."
Harry frowned, "No, Hannah, Susan told me what happened to your mother. I'm so sorry."
Hannah nodded, "Thank you. You shouldn't be sorry for me, though. Be sorry for my mom, she was the innocent one who got killed because of me."
Harry was confused, "What do you mean?"
Hannah's face gained a pitiful smile, "My mother disappeared only a few months after Ernie's assault on me and I break off all ideas of signing that marriage contract and then, a month after she's been found murdered, he tells me that I either sign and cease all rebellious actions or there would be more accidents."
Harry's eyes widened as he quickly caught, "I see. Even still, Hannah, your mother wouldn't want you to fall into despair over this."
Hannah narrowed her eyes, "What do you know about my mother? You never met her."
Harry sighed, "I saw her…the night of the Third Task when Voldemort returned."
Both girls' eyes widened, and Hannah asked, "W-what?"
Harry smiled slightly, "There was a moment when we were fighting and the ghosts of some of the people Voldemort killed appeared, including my parents and your mother. It was thanks to them distracting the Death Eaters that I managed to escape, and I didn't realize till later that your mother was one of them."
Hannah looked ready to cry as Harry continued, "I didn't know your mum Hannah, but I'm willing to bet she was a kind woman who would done anything for her child, even give her life. Just like my mum did."
Hannah, overwhelmed by the emotions, just leapt over to Harry and grabbed onto him tightly as she cried and wailed harder than she did all summer. Susan smiled and gave Harry a quick kiss on the cheek and mumbled a 'Thank you' as she embraced Hannah too. They stayed like that for a while until it was time for Harry and Susan to their Prefect runs up and down the train, which lasted until they finally arrived at Hogsmeade Station.
Now sitting in the Great Hall, Harry realizes just how much of a pariah he has become, as there was a six-foot distance between him and the nearest Gryffindor at the House table as the entire school looked at him with hatred, fear, or indifference. He noticed his friends from the other houses (Daphne, Tracey, Pansy, Susan, Hannah, and Su) were all looking at him in concern, but he waved them off with a smile, he was unfortunately used to this. He also saw the girl he met earlier, a quirky soul named Luna Lovegood, giving him a large smile in an attempt to cheer him up; he had met her earlier, waiting for a carriage with Neville, and had told him about the creatures pulling the carriage and how he was as just as sane as her. "She's a bit strange, but she kind of reminds me of myself.", he thought amused.
Harry was brought out of his thoughts when he saw someone sit down directly next to him and saw his Quidditch teammate Katie Bell, who was giving him a small, supportive smile. Before he could ask what, she was doing, he turned to see the other two Chasers, Angelina Johnson and Alicia Spinnet, were sitting across from them and both were also wearing large smiles. He looked around to see the rest of Gryffindor was shocked at what they were doing, minus Neville, and most of the school looked shocked as well.
Harry came out of his stupor and asked, "What are you guys doing?"
Katie had an innocent look on her face, "Sitting down and eating, silly."
"I meant why are you sitting next to me? You know it's only going to cause you problems.", he said.
Alicia smiled slightly, "Teammates don't abandon each other when they need each other. We made that mistake last year; we're not doing it again when you need us most."
Angelina grabbed his hand, "You can't get rid of us if you try, Potter. We're here and anyone who doesn't like can fuck right off."
Harry studied each of the three girls' carefully, seeing their determined faces and Gryffindor bravery practically leaking through, and finally sighed and smiled, "Thank you."
The three girls beamed at him, and they continued to have pleasant small talk as the Sorting Ceremony took place and Dumbledore's usual announcements. At the end of his speech, the old man introduced the new DADA professor and Harry was both shocked and concerned when he saw Fudge's right-hand woman, Dolores Umbridge as he recalled, stand up and approach the podium. He couldn't exactly tell what her deal was, but he had very rarely ever felt such a sense of danger when he looked at her.
Umbridge got the podium and started her speech, "Thank you, Headmaster, for those kind words of welcome. It pleases greatly to see all your bright faces smiling up at me, and I'm sure we're all going to be good friends."
The Chaser Trio scoffed, and the rest of the school looked annoyed as Umbridge continued, "The Ministry of Magic has always considered the education of young witches and wizards to be of the upmost importance. Although each Headmaster has brought something new to this historic school, progress for the sake of progress must be discouraged. Let us preserve what must be preserved, perfect what can be perfected, and prune practices that ought to be prohibited. *giggle*".
Dumbledore and Filch (surprisingly) clapped enthusiastically, while a few others clapped politely and everyone else just looked around confused. Hermione had whispered something about the Ministry interfering at Hogwarts, and Harry couldn't help but agree, but he had a feeling they were going to do a lot more than just interfere here and there. Change was coming, and unfortunately, things were about to get a whole lot worse before they got better.
Eventually, dinner had come to an end, and it was time to return to the dormitory as Harry and Hermione had to lead the first years inside before everyone else. The first years saw him, and all looked rather scared of him, which made him feel like crap and Hermione saw it based on how sad she looked. Eventually, they made their way to Gryffindor Tower and for the first time in ten months, Harry entered the common room and despite how felt about the people in his House, he was still as proud as ever to represent Gryffindor. The next ten minutes, while the older students filtered in, was spent informing the new lions about the rules of the House, Tower, and Hogwarts in general until, finally, Harry and Hermione dismissed them. He noticed that the rest of the common room was filled up with familiar faces, all of whom were looking at him with suspicion and fear, so he decided to head to bed.
Before he got to the stairs, he heard Seamus speak, "Not going to say anything, Harry?"
Harry stopped walking and faced him, "Say what, exactly?"
Seamus narrowed his eyes as all eyes turned towards them, "My mum didn't want me to come back this year, you know."
Harry raised an uncaring eyebrow, "Why's that?"
Seamus clicked his tongue, "Why else, because of you. The Daily Prophet's been saying a lot of stuff about you Harry, and about Dumbledore as well."
"And you and your mum believe them?", he asked.
Seamus rolled his eyes, "Well, considering how crazy you've been sounding since the night of the Third Task about the Dark Lord coming back from the dead, which last I checked is impossible, then yes, we believe facts instead of nonsense. Also, considering your relationship with those girls, everyone in this room thinks you've finally snapped."
Harry's face darkened, "I beg your pardon?"
Seamus scoffed, "Don't be dense, everyone saw you with that Veela and the crazy girl from the Black Family. I asked my mum about them, and she said they're dark and probably seduced you over to their side-."
Seamus was cut off from his rambling when the fireplace suddenly erupted, scaring everyone in the room and were confused until they saw Harry's menacing glowing emerald eyes, glaring at Seamus. For a second, everyone thought Harry was going to attack, until the fire stopped, and his eyes returned to normal; however, everyone was still breathing heavily in fear.
Harry glared at Seamus, "Careful with whom you insult, it might be a fatal mistake."
It was then the Chaser Trio walked in and Katie asked, "What's going on?"
Seamus turned toward them, "He's mad is what's going on! Can you believe the rubbish he's spewing about You-Know-Who?"
The girls glared at the room and Angelina spoke, "Yes, we do. Does anyone else have a problem with Harry, because then you have a problem with us, got it?"
No one seemed brave enough to answer that, so Seamus and the others backed down. Harry was already sick of being back here and just excused himself, saying thanks and goodnight to the girls. Harry sat on his bed, thinking about the good and the bad about today and what it meant for the future, and he couldn't help but only think one thing.
"This is going to be a long fucking year."