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Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.
I own nothing but the original characters I make.
"Dialogue"
'Thoughts'
-Author notes-
Chapter 71: Visit
"You could have come through the door. I left it open for you." Dumbledore said when he saw Harry entering through the window.
"I wasn't sure if there were any professors still around," said Harry.
"Other than the groundskeeper and Mister Filch, there is currently only me," Dumbledore responded. His eyes moved to the hat on Harry's head. "Has he returned to normal after the… incident?"
"As normal as a talking hat can be," V told him.
Dumbledore nodded. "Glad to hear. You can take a seat if you want."
Harry walked around the Headmaster's desk, but instead of sitting down, he began to pace back and forth. "How is the Weasley family doing? Did you speak to them?"
"I have. I also claimed responsibility for everything that happened last night. I told them it was all part of my plan and that everything was under control. Their latest memories, before you used that sleeping spell on them, are very fuzzy, which certainly helped them believe my explanation."
"You put them all to sleep?" V asked.
Harry could feel the judgmental stares on him. "They wouldn't listen to me. It would have taken hours before they decided to take the necessary action. And by then, another attack could have occurred. I was in no shape to protect them, and the wards I had set up were out of magic."
"About these wards… you do realize that lethal protections are not allowed, right?" Dumbledore commented.
"They aren't exactly lethal. Unless you were to fall flat on top of them." Harry shrugged. "So… you have been there already."
"Of course," Dumbledore said. "Someone had to clean the mess you left behind, and we can't exactly trust the Ministry at this moment."
"I'm surprised you don't have anything harsher to say to me," Harry said.
"Harsher?" Dumbledore asked.
"I killed five people."
"Four," V corrected him. "Lord Nott was killed by his Master."
"Harry… I have been in two wars before. And while it's true that I prefer to avoid taking people's lives, I do understand that sometimes it's a necessary thing, so I won't judge you for it. But if something is bothering you, we can talk about it."
"No… I'm fine not talking about that." Harry sounded uncomfortable, but also a bit relieved.
"Very well. Then perhaps we can talk about the massive hole left in the fields next to the Weasley property. It's a bit too big for me to fill… it must have been quite the spell that you used." Dumbledore said with a knowing look on his face.
"Oh… right. I'll get that filled as soon as I can." Harry stopped. "Then…"
"Do you wish to tell me about what happened with Voldemort?" Dumbledore asked. "Last night you were too excited to explain things properly. All I got is that you destroyed his new body… I presume it was with that large spell."
Harry gave him a proper summary of what transpired. From the moment he tried to read Lord Nott's mind and was interrupted by the activation of the soul brand, until the moment he called upon one of his ultimate sorceries to kill him.
He avoided mentioning the incident related to V, not wishing to cause any unnecessary concerns about the hat.
The Headmaster was already wary of him.
"So he died again, but his horcruxes are still intact," Dumbledore said.
"Even if I had destroyed the ones in my possession, he still has one more we haven't been able to find. As long as a single one remains."
"Yes. You are very correct, Harry." Dumbledore nodded. "And we can presume that this time, his return will not take that long. He must have made preparations."
"I'll find him," Harry promised. "The next time, h—"
"No." Dumbledore held his hand up. "I believe that we need a more subtle approach after this. Rushing into a fight without even understanding what he is planning or what he has prepared for you… would be incredibly dangerous. Voldemort's biggest strength does not lie in his magical skills, but in his cunning and ruthlessness. He will stop at nothing to win."
"I already told him that," V said.
"Then what am I supposed to do? Sit back and wait?" Harry didn't sound too pleased with a passive approach.
"Not for long. Just give me a few days. Perhaps Severus can learn something that could help us. He still hasn't returned from his last call," Dumbledore suggested. "And you have at least a couple of things to take care of." The Headmaster pointed at his arms.
Harry looked down at his robes… or what little was left of them after being burned down during last night's confrontation.
"Right… I can make some better ones." He had a lot of basilisk skin stored away. He may as well use it.
"Fine, I'll wait. Keep me informed." Harry began to walk towards the window.
"You know, you can leave through the door now," Dumbledore told him.
"This is quicker." Harry stopped in front of the window. "Send me a message if something comes up."
"I will—" Dumbledore's eyes suddenly opened widely, and he appeared to freeze in place before he could finish the sentence.
"Hmm?" Harry glanced at the Headmaster with confusion, wondering what had happened. "Are you alright?"
Dumbledore flinched a few times.
"Professor?" Harry was about to get closer when the older man raised his hand.
"I'm f-fine." His expression returned to normal, but he still appeared somewhat shaken by whatever he had experienced. "I'm fine now, Harry."
"What was that? Are you feeling ill?" Harry asked.
"No, that was just… it was nothing of importance. I just remembered some important paperwork that I forgot to turn in," Dumbledore responded.
Harry could immediately tell that it was a lie, but didn't want to dig deeper. He trusted that if it was something truly important, Dumbledore would tell him about it.
"Then… I'll take my leave."
After saying that, Harry flew out of the window at great speed.
Dumbledore sighed and leaned back in his chair. "He could have been a bit more gentle… breaking through all my mental protections in such a violent manner… urgg, what a headache."
'Old man… listen carefully and don't forget about what I'm about to tell you. Because everyone's future may depend on it.'
The words of V still resounded inside his mind.
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