Bonds of Affection

When Severus was still asleep, the healer kicked Harry out of the ward unceremoniously, and told him not to be back until six hours had passed. Harry nodded, and went into the waiting room. He spent an hour waiting, doing nothing, until finally his restlessness grew to the point of being unbearable, and he walked out of the hospital, right into the street of Muggle London. He roamed the street aimlessly, killing time, until he bumped into two tall men, wearing Muggle clothing, but with Auror badges attached to their shoulders. He recognized the first man as Kingsley Shacklebot. The second man was unfamiliar. Next to them, stood purple-haired Nymphadora Tonks.



“Hello, Harry,” said Tonks. “Do you mind if we go... for a coffee and talk?”



His hand was already on his wand.



“How do I know you are Tonks?” he asked reasonably. She chuckled, and her hair changed pink, and her nose momentarily acquired the beak-like shape, causing Harry to smirk.



“Fine,” he said sheepishly. “Sorry. Guess I\'m still a bit jumpy.”



“Understandable,” Tonks said reasonably. “Harry, you\'ve already met Kingsley Shacklebot, I am sure. And this is James Williamson, also from the Auror office of the Ministry of Magic.”



“Nice to meet you,” Harry said politely.



“Likewise,” Williamson muttered, clearly uncomfortable.



“Well,” Tonks said finally. “Let\'s go sit down somewhere. Maybe we can get some hot chocolate or something.”



They found a Muggle coffee shop, and placed their orders. Harry sat down first, with a cup of tea, and the rest of them joined him shortly. He felt oddly nervous, around the three of them.



“Look, if this is about me casting an Unforgivable on Nagini...” Harry started saying, but Kingsley shook his head.



“Not at all, Harry,” he said calmly. “You haven\'t done anything wrong.”



The anxiety should have receded them, but instead, it only intensified.



“Well.. what is it then?” he asked.



Williamson looked at him thoughtfully. “Mr. Potter – it\'s not about what you did. It\'s about what you are.”



Harry bowed his head, and stared into the teacup. For some reason, he heard Trelawney\'s voice in his mind, ringing with her final prophecy:



Seven times born, once he shall die.



“I am Voldemort\'s Horcrux,” Harry said firmly. “I need to die... so that Voldemort can be dead, once and for all. Is that it?”



Silence answered him, and Harry smiled bitterly. He sipped his tea and found it both scolding and revolting. There was a lump in his throat again, and he wanted to scream from frustration. Just when he had come to believe that he might actually have something resembling a normal life – this caught up with him.



He wondered idly who had informed the Ministry. The only people who knew were the Dumbledore\'s Army, the members of the Order of the Phoenix, and the Death Eaters. The Death Eaters would not tell anything, Harry was sure – him being a Horcrux was their last chance of bringing Voldemort back. He was quite certain that no member of Dumbledore\'s Army would tell anyone either.



Harry glanced at Tonks, whose face was a little paler than usual. “You told them?” Harry asked. He couldn\'t blame her, not at all. Remus Lupin had died destroying one of the Horcruxes. It would not surprise him if she had not wanted his death to be in vain. But when he looked at her, she shook her head.



“No, Harry,” she said quietly. “My loyalty to the Order takes precedence even over my loyalty to the Ministry of Magic. I have told nothing. But once they knew, I have been asked to... mediate... and see if we could reach an agreement.”



“Agreement,” Harry repeated. “What do you have in mind?”



Tonks took a deep breath. “Some Death Eaters have escaped from the Warringtons Castle,” she said quietly. “We are certain that they will attempt to bring Voldemort back sooner, rather than later. We are not sure how much time we have – we are trying to track them, but...”



Harry nodded slowly. “What\'s the timeline?” he asked almost calmly.



“A couple of days,” Tonks said. “Not more than that, really.”



Harry looked at her. “So what\'s the plan? Two days form now, you just expect me to show up at the Ministry Office and turn myself in? Or do you want me to just go jump under a Muggle train to save the world?”



“Actually,” Williamson said coolly, “What we would really like is for you to come with us right now. The Minister is ready to issue a warrant for your arrest, and...”



“Arrest,” Harry repeated pointedly. “You just said I haven\'t done anything wrong.” He was not even sure why he was arguing anymore, but he still was, just out of habit.



“That\'s right,” Williamson said bluntly. “We will be authorized to use any force necessary to bring you in, for the safety of the...”



“Enough!” Tonks snapped. “You try and force him, and I will fight you myself. I\'ve told you – I will not support anything that Harry himself does not choose to do. If you think you and Kingsley can take the two of us on – I invite you to try.”



The Muggle barista was casting dubious looks at them, and Tonks lowered her voice again:



“Harry,” she said softly. “You need to decide what you want to do about this. You have a choice. You have plenty of choices. You can fight this legally. You can leave now, and go to Dumbledore - he might have some ideas. Or perhaps there are some other options that I am not seeing...”



Harry nodded mutely, staring into his teacup again. He lifted it to his lips and sipped again – this time, the tea was almost bearable.



“What\'s the plan if I come with you?” he asked finally. “Are you just going to cast Avada Kedavra on me, or... what?”



Tonks took a deep breath. “Harry – the truth is, we don\'t know exactly. The DADA researchers have been experimenting with modifying a fiendfyre spell – in hopes that it could simply destroy the Dark piece of the soul, and leave the rest of the ... receptacle... intact. But – I don\'t know how far along they are, and whether or not it will be successful.”



Harry nodded quietly, not at all reassured that his body was now thought of as \'receptacle\'. But he knew no other options of destroying the last Horcrux either. “Alright,” he said. “It\'s.. fine. I\'ll come with you. On my own.”



“Good,” Kingsley said peacefully. “Harry – we will do everything in our power to ... attempt to preserve your life while...”



“...destroying the Horcrux,” Harry finished his sentence for him. “Yeah, I know. Can I call my friends... to say goodbye?”



“No,” Williamson said instantly.



Tonks shot him a venomous look.



“Yes, Harry, of course you can,” she said softly. “Do you think you should?”



Harry thought about it for a minute.



“No,” he admitted finally. “They\'ll .. .freak... and just want to rescue me. Or talk me out of this. Best if they just don\'t know.”



He finished his tea unhurriedly, and thought of Hermione and Ron, who had gone to so much trouble to save him. He thought of Dumbledore and McGonagall, tied into a relationship that they would have never chosen, if not for Voldemort\'s designs on him.. He thought of Severus, sleeping alone in the hospital bed. Harry felt an instant pang of guilt at abandoning him, and breaking his promise to be there when he woke. But then, Harry reasoned, this was important. More important than Hermione\'s car, more important than Dumbledore\'s dignity, and even more important than Severus\' happiness.



He stood up sharply and straightened his shirt. “Fine. I am ready,” he said calmly. “Let\'s just go.”



To Be Continued....