7 The Mirror of Erised

AN: once again thank you for the votes the book.

The Mirror of Erised

The most basic form of Occlumency, involves clearing one's mind — making it "blank and empty" — in order to prevent a Legilimens from perceiving one's emotions and thoughts. More advanced Occlumency involves suppressing only the thoughts, emotions, and memories that would contradict whatever it is an Occlumens wishes a Legilimens to believe; hence, it is not obvious that Occlumency is being used even if the person is lying. It requires a great deal of will power, as with resisting the Imperius Curse, as well as a high degree of mental and emotional discipline. It is also one method of resisting the influence of Veritaserum. Occlumency is one of the hardest forms of magic to master and is therefore not taught at Hogwarts or at Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. Though rumours that Durmstrang Institute teaches the art to its students have cropped up over the years, this however has neither been denied nor confirmed by anyone at the school.

Masters of Occlumency are able to build shields around their minds and thoughts, thus making it harder for a Legilimens to penetrate into their mind. Master's who have shields around their minds can also throw off the Imperius curse faster than they could if they were a master in the art yet did not have shields around their minds, this is also true for Veritaserum and other Potions such as Amortentia the most powerful love Potion to date and the potion of rage, which sends the drinker into a hate filled rage, destroying everyone and everything in their paths.

It was early Christmas morning and Harry Potter sat at his desk in the bedroom at the Davis home which he was using. The desk which he sat at was placed in front of the window of the room, which looked out onto the snow covered fields that surrounded the home. If he took the time and looked carefully, Harry would have been able to spot the tracks in the snow he had made that morning as he went for his usual run.

Unlike children the world over his age, Harry Potter did not care that it was Christmas morning and that presents were to be opened soon. He had never received a present that he could remember; he supposed his mother and father probably bought him presents on his first Christmas. However since the Dursley's had never bought him a present in his life he saw no reason to get excited on Christmas morning. He had of course bought a present for each of the Davis's as a thank you for allowing him to spend Christmas with them and he had also bought Daphne and her younger sister one also.

Therefore on that cold December morning, instead of bouncing excitably around the house, Harry sat at the desk in the room he was using, studying the mind art, Occlumency. He knew that one day Voldemort would return to restart his war on the Wizarding world and Harry would be the centre of his attention, thus been able to protect his mind would be a great advantage to Harry.

This was how Tracy found him some two hours later, still sat at the desk pouring over his book on the mind arts.

"Merry Christmas Harry." Tracy spoke to him happily as she bounced into his room, a large bright smile on her young face.

"Merry Christmas Ms. Davis." Harry replied not even looking up from his book as he continued to read.

"Come on downstairs, presents are going to be opened soon and Daphne and her family will be here in ten minutes." Tracy informed him in a fast voice due to her excitement. Ever since she could remember she and Daphne had spent Christmas day together either here or at Daphne's family home.

"You go ahead Ms. Davis, I wish to continue studying." Harry replied in a flat polite tone still not looking up from his book.

"Don't you want to join us?" Tracy asked in confusion wondering why Harry would rather be up here studying instead of downstairs opening presents.

"No." Harry answered simply. Truth was he did not wish to sit downstairs watching as everyone opened their presents like a third wheel. He knew he had no presents to open so what was the point in going down and burdening the families with his presence as they opened their presents.

"Ok, well if you're sure." Tracy replied in slightly sad tone as she realised that Harry had probably never had a reason to celebrate Christmas and therefore saw no reason to join them downstairs opening presents.

Turning round, Tracy quietly left the room closing the door behind her before she slowly made her way downstairs all the while wondering just what kind of life Harry Potter had led up till now. As she entered the family room she noticed that Daphne and her family had arrived for the present opening that took place every year before a large Christmas breakfast.

"Merry Christmas Tracy." Daphne called to her being the first to spot the quietly thinking girl causing everyone's attention to turn to her. "Where's Harry?" she asked as she realised that Tracy was alone.

"He's in his room." Tracy replied in quiet, distant voice.

"Is he not coming to join us?" Her father Michael asked with a confused look on his face.

"He said that he wants to continue studying." Tracy answered in that same distant voice.

"Studying, but does he not want to open his presents and celebrate Christmas?" Her mother Annabel asked also in confusion wondering why an 11 year old boy would rather be studying alone instead of opening presents on Christmas morning.

"Oh mum I don't think he's had a reason to celebrate Christmas in the last 10 years." Tracy cried as she rushed into her mother's arms, sobbing for the life in which her friend had led so far.

"No reason to celebrate Christmas, what makes you think that?" Alexander Greengrass asked his eyes narrowed in thought. Alexander was a tall, powerfully built man, standing a little less than 6"3 and broad in the chest and shoulder areas. His jet black hair was slightly curly and cut short, his black eyes were sharp and calculating.

"Because before I invited him to spend Christmas here I asked him what he was doing for Christmas." Tracy sniffed in a muffled voice as she was still wrapped in her mothers' arms.

"What did he say?" Her mother asked in a gentle voice as she lightly rocked her daughter trying to sooth her.

"That he was spending Christmas alone at the castle." Tracy answered with a hiccup.

"So why does that mean he's not had a reason to celebrate Christmas in the last 10 years?" Patricia Greengrass asked her in a quiet tone. Patricia was the double of her daughters Daphne and Astoria or rather they were the double of her, long silky jet black hair with violet eyes.

"Because he said that he'd spent the last 10 Christmases alone and that another would not kill him." Tracy answered as she pulled away from her mothers' arms to look at everyone in the room. Every face in the room seemed to be sad or in the case of the men, slowly turning to scowling.

"He lives with his aunt and uncle does he not?" Her father asked in hard tone.

"Yes." Tracy and Daphne answered in unison.

"And yet the boy has spent every Christmas and I'm assuming birthday alone." Michael mused before turning to look at Alex who nodded and the two began moving towards the fireplace.

"Where are you going?" Annabel and Patricia asked their respective husbands.

"To see Dumbledore and find out just why in the hell Potter has spent Christmas alone in the past when he lives with his family." Michael answered before he and Alex vanished through the fire both with hard determined looks on their faces as they went.

"I'm going to talk to Harry." Annabel informed them before she left the room.

Hogwarts great hall

The professors and students staying at the castle for the Christmas holidays were just sitting down to breakfast when the doors burst open and two very angry looking men came striding through into the great hall. The two men looked around the hall before their eyes locked onto the headmaster who they began making a beeline towards.

"Merry Christmas Lord's Greengrass and Davis." Dumbledore smiled as he stood from his seat to greet the two angry men.

"You, me, talk NOW." Michael snarled angrily as he pointed towards a door to the side of the hall.

"Of course." Dumbledore answered slightly surprised at the rage in the man's tone. He had an idea who this was about, though not what. He began leading them towards the door silently.

"Perhaps you should come along Professor Snape as this involves one of your students." Alex said to the man as they passed him on their way to the door. Silently the four men left the great hall as the professors and remaining students watched them go wondering what this was all about.

"Now how may I help you gentlemen?" Dumbledore asked the two in his kind grandfather voice hoping to defuse their anger slightly, if not entirely.

"You can start by telling us just why Harry Potter has spent the last 10 Christmases alone when he lives with his aunt and uncle." Michael spat at the headmaster. His eyes were burning with rage as he glared at the old Headmaster.

"Perhaps if you start at the beginning and how you came to be here." Dumbledore requested of them with his eyes closed. He wanted to know everything about their accusation before he made a decision in what to do. For the next five minutes the two men explained everything that Tracy had told them about Harry wishing to study in his room alone instead of joining in the Christmas celebration with them all. How Harry had originally planned to spend the holiday alone like he had for the last ten years.

"They made him spend Christmas alone." Dumbledore moaned sadly too himself before falling silent for a few minutes as he decided what the best option to take was.

"I think it is time to begin investigations into the Dursley's treatment of young Harry." Dumbledore spoke up after thinking it over. It was really the only thing to do and should have been started long before now.

"Good and I shall begin proceedings into adopting Harry into my family and if you try and stop me I will make you wish Voldemort and Grindelwald were still running around." Michael informed the headmaster with a hard edge in his voice, to which Dumbledore paled slightly. It was tone of voice and implications that made him pale, not the fact that Michael wanted to adopt Harry.

"Rest assured I will not stand in your way as you try to gain custardy of young Harry, in fact I will support your case in front of the Wizengamot." Dumbledore replied with a smile. He had been looking into finding Harry alternate living arrangements for the summer holidays and here one had fallen into his lap so to speak. So far he had only been able to get the Weasley parents to agree to take young Harry into their home. However, as he suspected that Harry was the one to attack Ronald Weasley, though he knew he could never prove that, he knew that those two under the same roof was asking for trouble. Well for Ronald anyway, he knew Harry could handle himself well enough, taking out a full grown troll proved that fact.

"Good, well if you will excuse me I have to get back to my family." Michael said before he and Alex left the chamber silently. As they left they could hear Snape begin to lay into the old Headmaster with his own unique, harsh words. They waited until they were walking across the grounds before speaking.

"He caved very quickly." Alex mused referring to how fast Dumbledore had agreed with Michael.

"Indeed, I would bet my bottom Galleon that he knew how Harry was been treated in the past or at the very least he suspected." Michael replied with a shake of his head. Even if he only suspected, the headmaster should have opened investigations into Harry's past treatment much sooner than he had.

"I wonder how Anna and Tracy will react when you inform them you're going to try and adopt Potter." Alex mused with a laugh as they continued down the grounds towards the gates.

"They'll be thrilled; Anna has always wanted a son and Tracy a brother. Potter is the one who worries me." Michael replied as they passed through the gates.

"How do you mean?" Alex asked as they prepared to Apparate back to the Davis home.

"There is something dangerous about Harry Potter lurking beneath the surface, as though making an enemy of him could end up being the last mistake you ever make." Michael replied in a quiet tone as he looked off into the distance.

"If you think he's dark then why do you want to adopt him?" Alex asked his old friend in confusion.

"I think he's dark, very dark in fact but not evil." Michael began as he turned to face Alex. "If the boy were evil he would not have saved Daphne and Tracy from those three thugs on the train nor would he have saved those two girls from the troll on Halloween but I also think that when he's older making an enemy of him will be very, very dangerous." He explained as Alex nodded in agreement. Though he had not yet met Harry, Alex had heard enough about Harry Potter to know he was very powerful for his young age.

"I understand what you're saying old friend, shall we get back." Alex asked with a smile on his face. He was looking forward to his Daughter's faces as they opened their presents. That was his real Christmas present, seeing the joy on his families faces.

"Yes, let's get back before they send out a search party."Michael said with a laugh before the two Apparated away quietly.

"What happened?" Anna asked them the moment they appeared in the family room. The first thing the two noticed was Harry sitting on one of the couches between Daphne and Tracy with Astoria next to her sister. His face was blank but Alex and Michael could see the surprise in the young boy's eyes, no doubt surprised he had presents to open for the first time in ten years.

"What we had hoped." Michael replied before he turned to Harry. "The headmaster is going to begin investigating your aunt and uncles treatment of you." He informed the lad who nodded his understanding.

"Good maybe they will pay for their sins." Harry spoke so quietly that they had to strain their ears to hear him. He then turned and looked Michael in the eyes for a full minute before he spoke again.

"You have something more on your mind Lord Davis, something that is making you a little nervous." Harry said in a smooth tone and a light smirk on his face as he watched Michael gulp slightly.

"How did you know that?" Michael asked impressed with how easily Harry had read him and yet nervous at the same time.

"Your eyes gave away your nervousness for a split second, had I not been looking I would not have known, plus you gulped as I spoke that and now you're wiping your hands on your clothes, indicating sweaty palms." Harry spoke in a quiet voice smirking the entire time, playing with Michaels mind a little for his own amusement. Though he had no ill will towards the man, he enjoyed playing with people's mind for his own fun.

"I see what you mean; he scares the shit out of me." Alex muttered in his friends ear as quietly as his could. "Are you sure you want to do this?" he asked once more, however Michael nodded before standing straighter and beginning to speak.

"I also informed Dumbledore that I am going to start proceedings into adopting you into our family." Michael spoke in a strong voice. He heard his wife and daughter gasp in surprise but he did not take his eyes off of Harry's icy ones.

"Why?" Harry asked in a quiet voice that nonetheless demanded nothing but the truth.

"Because nobody deserves the life you have led, I, of course know nothing off your life but you spending the last ten Christmases alone tells' me you have not had a pleasant one thus far." Michael answered truthfully his eyes never moving from Harry's. Something told him that if he lost eye contact with Harry, the boy would believe him to be lying.

"Answer me this, are you doing this out of kindness or a publicity stunt covered up as a kind gesture?" Harry asked in that same quiet tone even as Tracy all but vibrated in excitement beside him.

"I am doing this out of kindness nothing more." Michael answered simply, truthfully.

"Thank you sir." Harry spoke after a full minute's silence. He could not believe it; very soon he could have the one thing he'd always wanted as a child, a family. On that cold December morning Harry James Potter began to believe that there were people in the world who wanted him in their lives as something more than a cook, cleaner and punching bag.

Harry unexpectedly found himself in a bone-crushing hug from Tracy, at first he froze but after a moment he relaxed and hugged the petite girl back gently. For now he would keep the Prophecy to himself, they did not need to know that one day in the future he would be fighting a war against Lord Voldemort.

"Damn Harry you seem to be made off rock." Tracy said with a watery laugh as she poked Harry in the chest. "I always wanted a little brother." She laughed as she pulled him back for another hug.

"Little, I think you'll find that I'm quite a lot taller than you." Harry said with a small, yet true smile. His first true smile in years.

"That maybe but you are still a month younger than me; hence you're my little brother." Tracy replied with a bright smile. The adoption process had not even started yet but Tracy saw Harry as her brother and hopefully soon it would be official.

"Welcome to the family Harry." Annabel smiled widely as she passed him a wrapped present.

Opening the present Harry found a plain black beanie-hat and woolly gloves along with a photo album that had the Potter family crest on the front cover. Looking through the album, he saw pictures of who could only be his parents throughout their years at Hogwarts. On the first page was a boy who looked so much like him that if he didn't know better he would have sworn it was him, the only difference between them was their eye colour and the fact that Harry was a head taller than the 11 year old James in the photograph.

On the page next to James was a photo of a young pretty girl, with thick dark red hair that fell to her shoulders and bright green almond-shaped eyes, the same eyes as Harry's. As he looked upon the two photos, Harry realised that this was the first time he had ever laid eyes on his parents' faces. As he continued looking through the album Harry saw pictures of his parents throughout their entire life at Hogwarts and beyond. The one thing Harry noticed was that they always seemed to be surrounded by friends and they were smiling in every picture, which made Harry smile, especially every time he looked at his mothers' bright, smiling face.

For the rest of the morning Harry and the Davis's and Greengrass's continued opening presents, from Daphne he received an emerald green hooded jumper, across the front read the words "Halfblood and Proud." In large silver letters; across the back read the words "Slytherin's Prince." Also in large silver letters. Astoria passed him a present whilst blushing brightly as he took it with a smile and a thank you, opening the gift Harry found an assortment of wizard sweets. From Michael, he received a jet-black dragon hide trench coat that fell down to his ankles and was charmed to grow with him, so, as long as he took care of it he could wear the coat for the next twenty years if he so wished. The coat was also charmed to repel minor jinxes and hexes and to be self cleaning and repairing. However it was his last gift that had Harry smirking once more

"Wow, I know what that is." Tracy said loudly in excitement as she looked upon the fluid, silvery gray and gleaming from the light in the room. Everyone in the room turned to look at the pair, the four adults gasped as they laid eyes upon the cloak in Harry's hands.

"What is it?" Harry asked as he held the cloak in his hands, it was strange to the touch, like water woven into material.

"It's an invisibility cloak," said Tracy, a look of awe on her face. "I'm sure it is - try it on." Harry threw the cloak around his shoulders and Daphne across the room gave a yell of surprise as Astoria looked at Harry, her jaw hanging open.

"It is! Look down!" Harry looked down at his feet, but they were gone. As it sunk in that he had a cloak that rendered him invisible, he began to smirk widely. He could sneak into the restricted section of the library and get book on more advanced magic not taught at Hogwarts and not just the dark arts either.

"There's a note!" said Tracy suddenly. "A note fell out of it!" Harry pulled off the cloak and seized the letter. Written in narrow, loopy writing he had never seen before were the following words:

Your father left this in my possession before he died.

It is time it was returned to you. Use it well.

A Very Merry Christmas to you.

There was no signature. Harry stared at the note, for a full minute before he passed it over to Tracy who read the note before passing it to her mother. Soon the note had been passed round the room.

"Dumbledore." Michael and Alex said in unison. "I'd recognise his handwriting anywhere." Michael continued as Alex nodded his agreement. Only Michael and Alex seemed to see Harry's eyes become calculating as he looked at the cloak once more.

All in all this was the best Christmas of Harry's young life. For dinner they had two fat, roast turkeys; mountains of roast and boiled potatoes; platters of chipolatas; tureens of buttered peas, silver boats of thick, rich gravy and cranberry sauce - and stacks of wizard crackers every few feet along the table. These fantastic party favours were nothing like the feeble Muggle ones the Dursley's usually bought, with their little plastic toys and their flimsy paper hats inside. Harry pulled a wizard cracker with Astoria and it didn't just bang, it went off with a cannon like blast and engulfed them all in a cloud of blue smoke, while from the inside exploded a real admiral's hat and several live, white mice. Flaming Christmas puddings followed the turkey. Alex nearly broke his teeth on a silver sickle embedded in his slice. When Harry finally left the table, he was laden down with a stack of things out of the crackers, including a pack of non-explodable, luminous balloons, a Grow-Your-Own-Warts kit, and his own new wizard chess set.

The white mice had disappeared and Harry had a feeling they were going to end up as Hedwig's Christmas dinner. If they hadn't already, his owl was fast after-all.

Harry, Daphne, Tracy and Astoria spent a happy afternoon having a furious snowball fight on the grounds. Then, cold, wet, and gasping for breath, they returned to the fire in the family room, where Harry broke in his new chess set by losing spectacularly to Daphne. He suspected he wouldn't have lost so badly if Tracy hadn't tried to help him so much.

After a meal of turkey sandwiches, crumpets, trifle, and Christmas cake, everyone felt too full and sleepy to do much before bed except sit and watch Astoria chase Daphne and Tracy all over the room because they'd stolen her Barbie-doll that Harry had gotten her, she was 7 after all and would not join them at Hogwarts until Harry, Daphne and Tracy were starting their fourth year.

It had been Harry's best Christmas day ever. Full of turkey and cake and with nothing mysterious to bother him, fell asleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

Hogwarts two months later

The Restricted Section was right at the back of the library. Stepping carefully over the rope that separated these books from the rest of the library, he held up his lamp to read the titles. They didn't tell him much. Their peeling faded gold letters spelled words in languages Harry couldn't understand. Some had no title at all. One book had a dark stain on it that looked like blood. Maybe he was imagining it, maybe not, but he thought a faint whispering was coming from the books, as though they knew someone was there who shouldn't be.

He had to start somewhere. Setting the lamp down carefully on the floor, he looked along the bottom shelf for an interesting looking book. A large black and silver volume caught his eye. He pulled it out with difficulty, because it was very heavy, and, balancing it on his knee, let it fall open.

A piercing, bloodcurdling shriek split the silence - the book was screaming! Harry snapped it shut, but the shriek went on and on, one high, unbroken, ear-splitting note. He froze as he heard footsteps coming. Quickly he put the book back and turned off the lamp. He ran for it, knowing he'd be in big trouble if he were caught out in the castle past curfew. He passed Filch in the doorway; Filch's pale, wild eyes looked straight through him, and Harry slipped under Filch's outstretched arm and streaked off up the corridor, the book's shrieks still ringing in his ears.

He came to a sudden halt in front of a tall suit of armour. He had been so busy getting away from the library; he hadn't paid attention to where he was going. Perhaps because it was dark, he didn't recognize where he was at all. There was a suit of armour near the kitchens, he knew, but he must be five floors above there.

"You asked me to come directly to you, Professor, if anyone was wandering around at night, and somebody's been in the library's Restricted Section." Harry felt the blood drain out of his face. Wherever he was, Filch must know a shortcut, because his soft, greasy voice was getting nearer, and to his horror, it was Snape who replied.

"The Restricted Section. Well, they can't be far, we'll catch them." Harry stood rooted to the spot as Filch and Snape came around the corner ahead. Harry knew his head of house would be disappointed in him if he were caught now. They couldn't see him, of course, but it was a narrow corridor and if they came much nearer they'd knock right into him - the cloak didn't stop him from being solid.

He backed away as quietly as he could. A door stood ajar to his left. It was his only hope. He squeezed through it, holding his breath, trying not to move it, and to his relief he managed to get inside the room without their noticing anything. They walked straight past, and Harry leaned against the wall, breathing deeply, listening to their footsteps dying away. That had been close, very close. It was a few seconds before he noticed anything about the room he had hidden in.

It looked like an unused classroom. The dark shapes of desks and chairs were piled against the walls, and there was an upturned wastepaper basket - but propped against the wall facing him was something that didn't look as if it belonged there, something that looked as if someone had just put it there to keep it out of the way.

It was a magnificent mirror, as high as the ceiling, with an ornate gold frame, standing on two clawed feet. There was an inscription carved around the top: "Erised stra ehru oyt ube cafru oyt on wohsi"

"I show not your face but your heart's desire." Harry spoke aloud as he read the writing backwards. He moved nearer to the mirror, wanting to look at himself but see no reflection again.

He stepped in front of it.

There he was, reflected in it, white and scared-looking, and there, reflected behind him, were at least ten others. Harry looked over his shoulder - but, no one was there.

A woman standing right behind his reflection was smiling at him and waving. She was a very pretty woman. She had dark red hair and her eyes were just like his own except where hers were smiling, his were icy. It was his mother Lily he knew. But then he noticed that she was crying; smiling, but crying at the same time as she gazed lovingly at him.

The tall, thin, black-haired man standing next to her put his arm around her. He wore glasses, and his hair was very untidy. It stuck up all over his head, just as Harry's did. As he looked up into their loving faces, Harry began to feel a powerful emotion buried deep within him stir.

"I will avenge you." Harry said to his parents in the mirror in a voice full of emotion. "If it's the last thing I ever do I will take Voldemort's life for taking you away from me." He continued to gaze into their faces not even looking at the other people behind his mother and father.

The Potters smiled and waved at Harry and he stared hungrily back at them, his hands pressed flat against the glass as though he was hoping to fall right through it and reach them. He had a powerful burning fire of revenge inside him and the more he looked into his mother and fathers' faces the more his fire of revenge grew.

How long he stood there, he didn't know. The reflections did not fade and he looked and looked until a distant noise brought him back to his senses. He couldn't stay here; he had to find his way back to bed. Glancing out of the window showed that the sun was beginning to rise; he'd been there all night.

He looked back into his mother's face. "I'll come back tonight." and hurried from the room.

Over the next three weeks, Tracy, Daphne and Theodore saw a change in Harry. Before they thought he was mastering spells fast, but now he seemed to master them twice as quickly as he had. He always had his nose in a book or practising spells in his dorm. They had found out about his duelling lessons with Flint and went to watch them on occasion, as the weeks went on, Harry was getting closer and closer to beating the 7th year boy in a duel.

In the three weeks since he had first seen his parents, Harry had managed to master all of the unforgivable curses, the skull crushing curse and the bone-breaker, along with other offensive curses used in duels. All the while his burning fire of revenge grew larger every night when he went to see his mother and father for a few hours. All in all, Lord Voldemort had made the biggest mistake of his life when he killed Harry's mother and father on Halloween all those years ago.

And there were his mother and father smiling at him again, and one of his grandfathers nodding happily. Harry sank down to sit on the floor in front of the mirror. There was nothing to stop him from staying here all night with his family. Nothing at all.

Except:

"So - back again, Harry." Harry felt as though his insides had turned to ice. He looked behind him. Sitting on one of the desks by the wall was none other than Albus Dumbledore. Harry must have walked straight past him, so desperate to get to the mirror he hadn't noticed him.

"I didn't see you there sir."

"Strange how nearsighted being invisible can make you," said Dumbledore, and Harry was relieved to see that he was smiling. Maybe he could keep his perfect record of not losing house-points or getting a detention.

"So," said Dumbledore, slipping off the desk to sit on the floor with Harry, "you, like hundreds before you, have discovered the delights of the Mirror of Erised."

"Yes sir." Harry replied as he turned back to the mirror.

I expect you've realized by now what it does." The headmaster asked him but Harry didn't reply as he continued to gaze into his mothers eyes.

"Can you think what the Mirror of Erised shows us all?" Harry shook his head. He knew what the mirror did but he had forgotten over the last three weeks in his thirst to master more spells and magic.

"Let me explain. The happiest man on earth would be able to use the Mirror of Erised like a normal mirror that is; he would look into it and see himself exactly as he is. Does that help?" Dumbledore asked in a soft voice as he continued to look at Harry who was still gazing into his mother's eyes.

Harry thought. Then he said slowly, "It shows us what we want... whatever we want..."

"Yes and no," said Dumbledore quietly. "It shows us nothing more or less than the deepest, most desperate desire of our hearts. You, who have never known your family, see them standing around you. However, this mirror will give us neither knowledge or truth. Men have wasted away before it, entranced by what they have seen, or been driven mad, not knowing if what it shows is real or even possible." He finished in quiet warning tone.

"But I'm not wasting away nor am I being driven mad, this mirror showing me my Mother and father is helping me become stronger." Harry spoke softly after awhile still not looking away from the mirror.

"What do you mean Harry?" Dumbledore asked in that same soft tone as he too turned to look in the mirror.

"Every time I see their faces my desire for revenge upon Lord Voldemort grows by the day, I know he will return one day and he will set his sights on me. When that day comes I will be ready and I will show him that attacking my family all those years ago and taking my parents from me was his biggest mistake."

For the longest time the pair were silent. Dumbledore was happy that Harry was so set against Voldemort that he no longer had to worry if Harry would have joined the Dark Lord when he one day returned. He did not know how Harry knew that Voldemort would return one day, but really he didn't care. It seemed as though Harry was preparing himself for his eventual showdown with the evil being known as Lord Voldemort.

"The Mirror will be moved to a new home tomorrow, Harry, and I ask you not to go looking for it again. If you ever do run across it, you will now be prepared. It does not do to dwell on dreams and forget to live, remember that. Now, why don't you put that admirable cloak back on and get off to bed." Harry stood up and left the room heading back to his dorm with only a nod and a goodnight to the old headmaster.

June 9th

Harry lay on his bed in his dormitory relaxing after completing his final end of year exam, history of magic. Last week, he and the rest of the Slytherin Quidditch team had absolutely slaughtered the Hufflepuff team to win the Quidditch cup. Neither team had caught the Snitch as the 500-0 mercy rule had been invoked. Basically if one team managed to score 500 points and the other team scored nothing, then the mercy rule was applied and the team who scored 500 points won the game automatically. The mercy rule had not been called at Hogwarts for more than a hundred years but thanks to Harry's 40 goals and Pucey and Flint's five goals apiece, Madam Hooch had had no choice but call the mercy rule.

As he lay on his bed watching as the sun began to set, listening to a band on the Wizarding wireless network (WWN) Theodore entered the room. "Hey Harry, an owl just came for you in the common room." He then passed over a jet black envelope to Harry who nodded his thanks.

Harry sat up on his bed as Theodore went over to his own bed. Opening the envelope, he pulled out blood red parchment that had jet-black writing. Unfolding the letter, it read:

Potter

How does it feel to know that you failed all those years ago?

Failed to kill me and that I still live. That all your fame is undeserved.

I have your two friends Ms. Davis and Ms. Greengrass, if you wish for

them to live I suggest you meet me at the end of the forbidden corridor

on the third floor. Come alone! You have one hour to get here or one of

these pretty girls dies.

Lord Voldemort

AN: I'll end it here as this seems a good place for a cliff-hanger (Smirks evilly) how was it? Please review.