The Boys Who Lived

Rating: Pretty mild, Pg-13, mostly just angst and a bit of swearing.
A/N: I am moving along with the plot a bit more now… I will be following somewhat of the plot from OoTP but, I am trying to make it my own. Hope you enjoy! Reviews are greatly appreciated!

Chapter 6: The Order & a Slimy Git of a Minister

It was now the early August and Harry found himself standing in an old depressingly dark house by the name of Grimmauld Place. He looked around, wondering how anyone would voluntarily live in such a horrible place like this. However, he hadn’t actually volunteered had he? He and everyone else here had been led here practically kicking and screaming. The events that led to said arrival had all started one week ago.

The day after his birthday, Harry had been awoken by Hermione and Ron whispering across the bedroom. Clearing they were trying to make as little noise as possible, but from the subject matter, it was impossible.

“I knew something like this would happen, the Minister has been very vocal about Harry and Cedric’s claim of Voldemort’s return… I just wish they hadn’t chosen to take the slander this far!” Hermione whispered harshly, her voice had a hard edge to it, one Harry rarely heard. A quietly crackling of a paper could be heard in the background.

“Yeah, mum about fainted when she saw the front page. Now, she can’t stop crying, not to mention how angry she is. I’m surprised she hasn’t flooed over to the Ministry and start hexing people left and right, with how furious she is.” Ron replied a soft empty laugh followed it. “Harry’s not going to take this well…”

“Then there’s Cedric, do you think his family knows?” Hermione wondered quietly.

“Probably not, I think his father would have a problem with it… something about a scandal years ago…” Ron mused.

The two were quiet for a while, both lost in thought.

Harry laid there on the bed and listened. He wasn’t sure but, he thought he had an idea of what was wrong. Something in the Prophet about Cedric and him… obviously it wasn’t good. Bolstering up his courage, Harry sat up in bed looking at his two best friends and prepared to face the problem head on. Sighing, he said, “Let me see it.”

Hermione and Ron stared at each other for a moment and then both resigned to the fact that their best friend was going to see it sooner or later, handed the paper over.
Harry frowned as he took in the picture of Cedric and him standing in front of the theatre. Their lips locked in a heated kiss, Harry’s hand running through Cedric’s hair and Cedric cupped Harry’s arse with his hands. The photo repeated every ten seconds or so, showing the motions of the two lovers again and again. Below it was an article written by none other than Rita Skeeter…

The-Boys-Who-Lived: More Than Just Friends?
By Rita Skeeter

Several days ago, a source of mine came across a most disturbing sight. As pictured above, Harry Potter and Cedric Diggory, The-Boys-Who-Lived, were caught in a heated encounter on the streets of muggle London. The flaunting of their unnatural relationship, in open public, does not come as a surprise. Both boys have tried on numerous occasions to garner attention and fame through their voicing of the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The reassurance by the Minstry that this is untrue, have come from Minister of Magic, Cornelius Fudge himself.

“I want to assure wizard kind, that the rumors of the return of You-Know-Who are completely false. The Ministry is dedicated to making sure that the public is kept safe, if the rumors were true, they would be the first to know. As for Mr. Potter, he is being closely observed by the Ministry, as the dear boy is showing signs of mental instability. These latest incidents bring it to the forefront even more. I have been saying for some time now, that Harry Potter has been put through a great deal and cannot always be expected to deal with his issues rationally. He has come to depend on the fame and attention given to him as the Boy-Who-Lived. Now, he is trying desperately through lies and his perverse relationship with Mr. Diggory, to get the public’s attention once again. It is truly sad, that the Savior-of-the-Wizarding-World has fallen so far.”~Minister of Magic, Cornelius Oswald Fudge

After some in dept research, it has come to my attention that the home life of Harry Potter is not as happy as one would suppose. Mr. Potter is often seen at the beginning of each year to be malnourished and shows signs of abuse. Furthermore, it is believed, that the Boy-Who-Lived, has a terrible temper and is quick to retaliate to any offense to him. Several fellow students, who shall remain nameless, have attested to his unstable mind and his formidable anger.

“There have been many times were I have seen Harry lose his temper and my fellow students and i have taken the brunt of that anger. Headmaster Dumbledore, though he is a great headmaster, chooses to ignore these dangers. I think he makes allowances because he is the Boy-Who-Lived. But, one of these days Harry will go too far and the death of an innocent student may be on his hands!”~Unnamed student currently attending Hogwarts

The Daily Prophet and I would like to ask the public not to judge too harshly of Mr. Potter’s actions. Instead of acting in anger, we should give this boy our pity. The loss of his parents at such a young age and the subsequent events involved, have not helped his issues. Though, we would like to beseech the Ministry to take action as Mr. Potter is a danger to both his fellow students and the wizarding world as a whole.

Keep looking to Daily prophet for more updates on these troubling issues.

Harry sat in a shocked state after reading the article. They made him seem as if he could fly off the handle at any moment, killing many in his wake… As the thought settled in his mind, anger bubbled to the surface.

“Bloody fucking hell! They make me sound like I am a barmy loon, dangerous to anyone who gets in my way. Like I’m some insane killer just waiting to explode… they make me sound like they did Sirius!” Harry yelled, jumping up from the bed and pacing back and forth, the anger and betrayal festering in him. “That idiot Fudge and the Ministry have been waiting for an opportunity like this since the end of the school year. Waiting to drag me through the mud!”

“Harry, it will be alright, they’ve done this before… well, maybe not quite so bad but, you have been talked about before and eventually it will die down, things will return to normal.” Hermione assured him.

“Normal? When has my life ever been normal?!” Harry exclaimed, running his hand through his already messy hair, making it spike in every which direction. “And what about Cedric… oh my god, his father is going to disown him! He hates gays! He’s going to hate me for his secret coming out!”

Hermione and Ron just sat there watching as their best friend had a mini meltdown. Jumping from ranting and raving, to fear and loathing of himself and what Cedric was thinking about Harry. He was right; his life had never been normal and would likely never be; he was Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived, after all.

“Why can’t they just leave me alone? I never asked to be their hero, I didn’t ask to have a raving mad man come after me and try to kill me! Stupid people want to parade around me, praising me as the Savior of the Wizarding world one minute, the next they are saying I am mentally unstable and a danger to their children! I hate this!” Harry roared as he flopped down onto the bed he had previously occupied, putting his head in his hands.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

After the article came out, the next few days had been especially hard. When Harry had sent an owl to Cedric asking how he was, he had received a short note telling him Cedric needed to think and that he would talk to him soon. The one sentence note made him cry for two days straight, the hope that he had felt when they had gotten together fading as he read it.

It seemed like every day another story came out, talking about Harry’s problems and what a danger he was. What a liar and pervert he was, that people were worried he would accost his fellow students once returning to Hogwarts. When reading that he had a momentary laugh, it was funny that in his four years at Hogwarts he had never even thought about any student in a sexual way, save Cedric. He was more worried about his fellow students accosting him! Since starting there, he had been propositioned by more girls each year, some in very aggressive ways.

He was glad in some ways though, once his sexuality came out, he found out who were truly his friends and his adopted family. The Weasley’s had, like always, accepted him with open arms and making it clear they had no problem with him being gay. Hadgrid had firecalled Harry, telling him he didn’t care and if he could he would “rip tha’ ninny Fudge apart, fer doin’ tha’ to ya!” Dumbledore, of course just smiled with the ever present twinkle in his eyes, as if he knew all along. Sirius and Remus had taken to hovering around him, trying to keep his mind off of all that was going on.

It was shortly after that, that Sirius had volunteered his family’s home Grimmauld Place, as a headquarters for something called the Order of the Phoenix. He said he wasn’t doing anything with it and it was the perfect place, as it was under the fidelius charm and unplottable. A more private reason for both he and Remus, was that they would be able to be with Harry when he needed them.

So now, one week after the “incident” as some were calling it, the Weasley’s, Hermione and Harry, were standing just inside the front door with a mixture of dread, fear, disbelief and confusion on their faces. The house was dark and dusting, cold and damp, and smelled like dirty feet.

Sirius came into view and started laughing; no doubt their alarmed faces were the cause. As soon as he did so, curtains to the left of them flew open, revealing an old painting of a sour looking woman and a shrill screeching filled the air.

“You! Treacherous blood traitor, bain of my loins, allowing these filthy muggle lovers and mudbloods into the Noble and Most Ancient House of Black. How dare you-”

“I would burn this dilapidated, festering cesspool down to its foundation if I could, you old evil hag!” Sirius yelled after walking to the painting, he then slammed the curtains closed, cutting off the shrill voice in its tracks.

Holding up a hand to stop any questions, he motioned them to walk down the hall and down into the basement which was the house’s kitchen. After closing the kitchen door, Sirius turned around and smiled at his guests.

“Sorry ‘bout that. That my friends, was Walburga Black, my dear loving mother.”

They stood there gaping at Sirius, jaws dropping to the floor.

Sirius laughed and said “I was a great disappointment to my mother. Being a Gryffindor in a house filled with Slytherins. Also, a blood traitor, as she said. I couldn’t wait to get out of this place when I was a kid. She’s not much for love and motherly affection, that one!”

“Come on, I’ll show you to wear you all will be staying.” He said as he headed to the door, just before opening it, he added. “Oh, and in case you missed it, you might want to be as quiet as possible going through the front room. She can hear a pin drop in a crowd of Hippogriffs and she likes to make her disapproval well known, as you could see.”

The group all nodded their heads in understanding, then quietly exited the kitchen and made their way up the stairs to the bedrooms above.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The next two and a half weeks seemed to drag by; every passing day something new and worse came along. Each one without word from Cedric made Harry feel just a little shoddier. The papers were still filled with stories about Harry, each no better than the first. The Ministry, at the moment let Harry be, content in the fact that they had undermined Harry’s popularity and in effect his declaring that Voldemort had returned. It also seemed that Dumbledore’s appeal to reason with those in charge in the Ministry was not welcomed and he was made to step down as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.

The only saving grace, were those who lived with him at Grimmauld place. Everyone seemed to try their best not to talk about Harry’s problems unless it became necessary. Instead they focused on cleaning over fifteen years worth of dust and grime, creature infestations and dark magic from the house. Every new room they started to clean seemed worse, dirtier and filled with more dangerous things than the last. They worked diligently as Mrs. Weasley kept a watchful eye on them, making sure they did their part. The first day they had arrived, she had worked herself into a cleaning frenzy, saying they were not going to live in such filth!

About a week into moving into the house, the Weasley children, Harry and Hermione finally found out what the Order of the Phoenix was. That night after dinner, Mrs. Weasley had ushered the children away as people started to show up. Some they knew, such as Mad-Eye Moody(the real one of course), Hadgrid, Professor McGonagall and Dumbledore. As well as those living in the house, like Sirius, Remus and Mr. & Mrs. Weasley. But, there were also a fair amount of people they didn’t know. The most disturbing of all, had to have been when the Greasy Git, a.k.a. Severus Snape arrived. They all stared in bafflement as he sailed by them, gifting them with a look of utter disdain as he swept into the kitchen, his robes billowing behind him. Once everyone arrived, Mrs. Weasley with a sweeping look to see there were not prying eyes, closed the door to the kitchen.

The twins, in their infinite genius, created extendable ears. Little flesh coloured ears that could stretch far distances and relay conversations back to the other side. Once everyone had one, they quieted down to listen in.

“Good evening everyone, I trust your night is going well.” Dumbledore greeted them. “Thank you all for meeting tonight. There are a few items to be discussed, such as my stepping down from the Wizengamot. It seems that my heralding of the news of Voldemort’s return was not appreciated and I was asked, not so nicely, to step down. However, I have still have some contacts within the Ministry and hopefully they will prove useful in the future. Now, I believe Severus has a little to share as well. Severus?”

“The Dark Lord is quietly recruiting his army in many parts of Europe. He is very pleased that the Ministry has chosen to deny his return and is using this time to prepare his followers. Also, he seems to have used the Ministry’s attempts to spread the seed of doubt in Potter. From what I have gathered, he has several followers placed within the Daily Prophet and other news sources and has used them to influence the public’s loss of faith in their Savior. He feels this will help him gain an advantage, as Potter’s loss of support will hinder the war on the side of Light.” Snape paused for a moment, no doubt to sneer at someone and then continued. “He also, though he has not informed me who they are, has followers in the Ministry that we have been previously unaware of. I believe several are high ranking officials.”

“Well, that’s not much of a surprise there, Snivellus. He would need those for his goals of taking over the bloody wizarding world!” Sirius said sarcastically.
Ron snorted in laughter at the comment as the twins snickered. Sirius was his usual obnoxious self.

“Now, boys, do refrain from acting like children.” Dumbledore said merrily. “The Ministry moles are not a surprise, though it would be useful to find out who they are. I trust you will work on this, Severus?”

There was a pause, probably a non-verbal response from Snape and then he continued, “As for Harry, I believe there is nothing we can do about the slander in the papers. Thought it pains me to say this, he may have to except these things, as he has done with many other events in his life.”

Harry felt everyone glance at him; their pity was palpable in the silence. With a shrug and a roll of his eyes he continued listening, hoping they would as well.

“The nerve of those people, saying poor Harry is mentally unstable; anyone who knows him knows the truth! He is just a child! I have half a mind to pay a visit to Cornelius Fudge and give him a talking to!” Mrs. Weasley ranted as some of the others in the room agreed with her.

Smiling he couldn’t help but be happy at the confidence and protectiveness they showed for him. Sometimes he wondered if those around him felt the same as the papers said about him. He worried that he was a burden them, a worthless freak like he uncle told him. His life was constantly in turmoil, filled with problems and complications, thought that maybe he was more trouble than he was worth.

His relationship with Cedric was perfect example of him being more trouble than he was worth. Cedric had wanted to keep his sexuality private, away from the judging eyes of his father and now, because of Harry he was outed without his choosing. He hoped that Cedric might be able accept that being with him came with a certain amount of public scrutiny; he wished that Cedric would decide he was worth it in the end.

Most days he was able to not think about Cedric very often, too busy with cleaning for his mind to think about too much. Though at night, when he laid awake in his bed, there was nothing to keep his mind from going there. Remembering the small amount of time they had together, the safety and security he felt in Cedric’s arms. He remembered the fire that raced through his body whenever they touched. At night, his heart ached as the hope he had harbored in Cedric slowly died.

Harry felt a hand take his, taking him out of his thoughts. Looking down he saw Hermione’s hand hold his and as he looked at her face, he knew she had known what he was thinking. She squeezed his hand reassuringly.

The meeting in the kitchen slowly began to end and as the people started to leave the kitchen, Harry, Hermione and the Weasley’s crept quietly up the stairs to Ron and Harry’s bedroom.

Once they had all sat down, they began to consider what they had heard.

“Well, now we know that the Order of the Phoenix is a secret organization helping to fight in the war against Voldemort.” Hermione stated, Harry and she rolled their eyes as the Weasleys all flinched a bit at the name. “I think Dumbledore is the leader.”

“Well, at least some people are actively preparing for the war. The Ministry’s got their heads so far up their collective arses they wouldn’t be able to spot Voldemort even if he told them who he was.” Harry retorted.

Everyone laughed and the slight tension from the news about Harry eased. They continued to talk for another hour or two and then slowly made their way to bed for the night.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

At the end of August, just before they returned to Howarts, the children made their customary trip to Diagon Alley for school supplies. Along with them were Mrs. Weasley and two Order members by the names of Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks.
Upon arriving at Diagon Alley, the group made their way to Gringotts to visit their vaults. The small, annoyed looking goblin lead them to the carts that would take them through the massive underground vault structure. The cart sped along the tracks, passing vault after vault, going further down into the earth. With a quick jolt, the cart came to a stop at Harry’s vault. Both the goblin and Harry walked to the door and opened it. Quickly, Harry grabbed a handful of gold and shoved the coins into his money pouch, trying to hurrying as much as possible.

He always felt embarrassed each year as he was lead to his vault, where more gold than he could ever go through in a lifetime sat. Then they would make the trek to the Weasley’s vault and he would sit and watch as Mrs. Weasley walked into the family’s nearly empty vault, grabbing what meager coins were left. He didn’t know how many times he had thought about giving the Weasley some of his money, he had inherited an obscene amount of gold from the Potter vault. However, he knew the Weasley’s were too proud to take charity and so each year, he just sat and wished it could be over quickly.
Once they took care of the money issue, they made their way to Madam Malkin’s Robes for All Occassions. Everyone had grown since the beginning of last year and was in need of new sets. Ron had grown the most, as he now stood a six foot, his robes a good three inches too short. Harry had grown the least; he would be surprised if he had grown an inch since last summer.

It was times like this that he hated the Dursleys even more. Years of abuse and starvation had turned what should have been a tall, healthy teenager, into a small painfully thin man-child. His height was the most embarrassing for him; at five foot three he was four inches shorter than any of his other male year mates. For the girls, it was just as bad, as he was shorter than most of his female year mates as well. He felt small, like a child and had been teased since as long as he could remember about his body.

The group spent about an hour inside the shop, trying on robes and having them fitted. They purchased their items and then moved onto Flourish and Blott’s for the books they needed. Hermione as usual perused the selection, buying not only her require texts but, several more tomes for “a little light reading.” Each of the children, once the purchases were made, waited patiently while Mrs. Weasley used her wand to shrink the books to more manageable sizes.

Next on the list was the Apothecary, the trip was made quickly and without delay, as the shop had a foul smell, a mixture of bad eggs and rotten cabbage. Then a quick stop at the stationery store for quills, parchment and such. Lastly, they went to the Magical Menagerie for treats for Hedwig and Crookshanks.

It was on their way back to the Leaky Cauldron that they ran into no other the Draco Malfoy, nuisance to every Gryffindor he met.

“Ahh, Potty, I see you, the Weasel and the mudblood are returning to Hogwarts. I had hoped that the Ministry would take the safety of my fellow students and I into consideration and expel such a dangerous unstable student as yourself!” Malfoy said as he sneered at the group before him.

“Malfoy, why don’t you go crawl back in the hole you came out of!” Harry said in an exasperated voice.

“But why would I do that, when I have the famed Golden Trio to keep me company?” Malfoy replied, his tone at saying ‘Golden Trio’ made it clear he used it mockingly.

“Shove off, Malfoy!” Ron barked as he glared at the blond.

Malfoy, as usual, looked as perfectly groomed as ever; not a strand of his pale blond hair was out of place. His robes, made of the finest fabrics and tailored by the most prestigious seamstresses, hung precisely on his tall, lithe figure. Harry admitted, if only to himself, that Malfoy would be devastatingly beautiful if the evil sneer was not ingrained into his facial features. As he was, he was a distressing example of the elitist view of many of the pureblood families. A pale, sad, mindless drone, doing only what he was trained to do… which was to mock and belittle those he saw as beneath him.

“Malfoy, just go away, you’re making a huge git of yourself, as usual!” Harry exclaimed.
The blond narrowed his eyes in anger and pulled his wand from his robes, undoubtedly to curse Harry. Just as he was about speak the spell; he felt the tip of a wand press into windpipe, jabbing into the delicate skin beneath it.

“I would think twice before you speak, Mr. Malfoy.” Kingsley Shacklebolt stated with a deathly calm tone in his voice. The trained Auror was good at what he did.
Malfoy squeaked in fear and then quickly dashed away before he was hexed.

“Better run fast, Ferret Face, he’s right behind you!” Ron laughed out as he and the rest of the group watched as the not so dignified Malfoy Heir picked up his speed only to knock into a women coming out of a nearby shop. The boy was knocked down, faced first, into a small puddle and came up sputtering.

“Aww, the joys of…” Fred began.

“…a well timed…” George cut in.

“…fear induced comment…”

“… it makes us all tingly inside!”

The children laughed, as Mrs. Weasley glared at the twins and then ushered them back to Grimmauld Place.

o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o

The night before they were to leave for Hogwarts, Ron, Hermione and Harry, sat talking in the drawing room of the large house.

“So are you ready to head back to Hogwarts, Harry?” Ron questioned with a concerned look in his eyes.

“Sort of, it’s Hogwarts after all. For me, it’s the closest thing to a home I’ve ever had. But now with the ‘incident,’ I know it’s going to be hard.” Harry replied, a frown on his face. “The Ministry is sure to cause problems for me; Fudge has made it clear he wants to ruin me. Then there’s the fact that I am sure to be mocked and teased for my claim of Voldemort return. Not to mention the whole gay thing…”

“Harry, it will be fine. We will deal with this as we have everything else, together!” Hermione told him, a forced smile on her face. “What are you going to do about Cedric?”
Harry sat there for a while, the question echoing in his mind. What was he going to do about Cedric? He was anxious to see him, he was sure of that. But, he also was dreading it as well. What if Cedric just walked right by him? Not even acknowledging him anymore? He couldn’t truly blame the older boy, Cedric was in a hard place and Harry had put him there. Maybe not personally but, the simple act of being in a relationship with Harry, put him there.

He wanted so much to have Cedric walk up to him and tell him it didn’t matter, that he wanted to be with him anyways. He wanted to feel those strong arms wrap around him, sheltering him from the hurtful words and dangers constantly surrounding him.

“I don’t know… I miss him so much and I hope he can accept the problems that come with being with me. But, if he doesn’t, I am just going to try and make it as easy for him as possible. He didn’t make the choice to have his world turned upside down, it happened because of me.”

“Harry, it wasn’t like you planned to expose the fact that you were both gay and in a relationship, it wasn’t your fault.” Hermione told him, trying to make him understand that he wasn’t to blame for happened.

“Whether I planned it or not, he had his biggest fear come to life and it was all because he was my boyfriend. It’s the truth; it wouldn’t have happened if he wasn’t with me.”Harry declared, his eyes filled with pain and despair.
Ron and Hermione looked at each other, a silent conversation shared between them, before they both stood up and each sat down on either side of their best friend.

“He’ll probably take one look at you when he gets to Hogwarts and realized what a git he’s been about the whole thing and come begging to have you back, mate.” Ron stated an arm wrapped around Harry’s back in comfort.

“Ron’s right, he probably feels like that right now and just doesn’t know how to get you back…” Hermione spoke, grabbing Harry’s hand and giving it a squeeze.
The three teens sat there in the silence for a bit, each caught up in their own worries about the coming school year. Whatever may come, it was clear that their fifth year would be eventful.