Chapter 6
Harry relaxed by the great lake, watching the clouds as they passed by in the sky. He had been feeding the squid in the lake some stuff he got from the kitchen before deciding to just lay down by the water.
It had been a long week for the Boy-who-lived. Dumbledore had seemed determined to get the boy alone, for gods knows what, but Slenderman had been keeping the man at bay.
Footsteps sounded in the grass, approaching the killer as he looked over, spotting Neville with a blonde, walking over. “Hey, Nev, who’s this?” He asked, curiously looking at the girl. She seemed a bit aloof and not all there. Judging on the fact he hadn’t seen her before, she was probably in another year than them as well.
“This is Luna, she’s in a year below us. I met her a little while ago and figured you two would be really good friends once you got to know her.” Neville told him, gesturing to the girl, who looked at Harry with wide blue eyes curiously.
“Hello, Harry. I see there are several wacksprites around you. Is something the matter?” Luna said, tilting her head curiously.
Harry blinked, looking at her confused. “What are wacksprites?” He asked, ignoring the second question for now.
She just smiled back, shrugging her shoulders lightly. “They fly around someone when their head is full of thoughts. What is yours filled with?” She replied lightly. Harry blinked before realizing she was a Seer.
Slenderman had told him a few things about Seers. One was that they could see things that others could not, only if they were from a line of Seers. Nontraditional Seers, like Professor Trelawney, couldn’t see these things, however. Those of a Seer line but not a seer had a chance to see these things as well.
“I guess I’m just missing home right now.” He told her, and he did miss the mansion. It was the home he had never had growing up and Harry now had a family that cared for him.
“Do not worry Harry. You will see the faceless man soon.” Luna told him with a smile, before turning from the boys, leaving them. Neville just looked confused by what she had said while Harry blinked, realizing she knew because of her visions but could tell she wouldn’t tell anyone.
He wondered what she meant by that, however.
Harry groaned in annoyance as Professor Flitwick handed him the note, Dumbledore requesting him to his office once again.
This was the third time since the first meeting that the Headmaster had called him to his office and he was tired of it.
Harry packed away his things, clutching the small pendant in his hand as he did so. He was so tired of dealing with Dumbledore, not to mention that the other schools were arriving tomorrow for the tri-wizard cup. Harry was already wondering how he will be roped into that.
Grumbling up the stairs to Dumbledore’s office, he said the password to the Gargoyle before knocking. Once he was called inside, he walked in. “You needed me, sir-?” He cut himself off as he saw the glamoured form of Slender in a chair, a grim look on his face.
“I am sorry to interrupt your studies Harry, but there has been an emergency back home and I am taking you out for a week because of it,” Slender said grimly, making Harry’s eyes widen as he nodded numbly.
What had happened? Was everyone okay?
“I’m sure everything will be okay Harry, why don’t you two head off to your room and get your things?” Dumbledore asked, making Slender nod as he took Harry by the shoulder and led him out of the room.
Harry looked up at the entity, worry etched into his face. “Is everyone alright?” He asked once they were down the hallway.
The entity looked at him and nodded. “Everyone is alright. I just had to say that to get permission to take you home. I could tell that you were increasingly getting more and more stressed with the Dumbledore situation and I wanted to get you somewhere where you could relax before the tournament that is supposed to be starting in a few days. You will be gone during the entire time that students have a chance to turn in their names and when they call out the names.” Slender told him, making Harry sigh in relief as they walked into his room.
“That won’t stop me somehow being put into the tournament. I am always pulled into something that could kill me each year. First-year, I ended up fighting the dude that killed my parents, who I’ve killed twice now funnily enough. Second-year, I fought a Horcrux and a basilisk, including actually being bit by the said basilisk and being healed by phoenix tears, just to save my friend’s sister who has a major crush on me. Third-year, it has been the safest so far with my godfather, who allegedly betrayed my parents, broke out of the most secure prison ever and has been the first to do so. In doing so, the minister decided to put dementors around the school, who tried to suck out my soul multiple times during the year. Then my other godfather, who is a werewolf and I had never known until last year cause Dumbledore is an idiot, ended up turning and forgot to take his potion and almost killed me and my friends. So yeah, kinda betting on the tournament is the way I’m almost killed at school this year.” Harry confessed, packing up his things and walking down to the gates with the faceless entity, as they needed to be seen leaving the school before Slender could teleport them away.
“That is… Deeply concerning that they let a child do this and do not question it. Those are things that an adult would struggle to survive in. I will have to lookup more about these situations.” Slender told him, teleporting the two away to the mansion as soon as they were away from the gates. “You have a mission in two days so relax until then.” And with that, the entity disappeared.
Harry smiled and walked into the mansion, curious as to where everyone was, when he was tackled by a small ghost, followed behind by a Hoodie. “Harry! You’re home!” Sally yelled happily, making Harry smile as he hugged the small girl.
“Yep, I’ll be here all week,” Harry told her, waving at Hoodie, who waved back, as he sat on the couch with the girl in his lap.
“Yay! I’ll go tell everyone!” Sally told him, popping off to who knows where. Harry shook his head with a smile.
Hoodie sat beside him, flicking on the tv as he laid back on the couch, relaxing now that the young ghost had gone to bother someone else. Harry smiled and leaned back as well, closing his eyes, enjoying the peace.
“Harry!” Well, a moment of peace. Harry turned his head towards the sound of the voice, seeing Ben walking his way. “Come on, we need another player and I want to know everything about what’s happened so far. You’ve had to call Slender three times now after all!” Ben told him.
Harry snorted, getting up. “Alright alright. I’m coming.” He told the cybernetic ghost, following him to the Mansion’s Gameroom. Harry could hear Hoodie get up and follow, probably curious as to everything that had happened as well.
The three walked inside of the gaming room, seeing Toby, Jeff, LJ, EJ, and Masky already in the room. Jeff and LJ already had controllers in their hands, while the others look like they came to just watch.
“Spill it. What’s been happening at that school of yours?” Jeff said as soon as they walked into the room, making Harry roll his eyes, sitting down and taking one of the controllers in hand as Ben took another one, Hoodie leaning against the wall with Masky.
“Well, you see Dumbledore called me to his office literally right after the opening ceremony…”
Harry panted in exhaustion as he dodged another swipe of Jeff’s blade, before swinging his own towards the smiling killer. Jeff knocked away the knife, jabbing Harry in the stomach with his elbow before tripping him, knocking him on the ground and going to stab him. Harry quickly rolled out of the way, before grabbing Jeff’s arm and bending it behind his back, trying to pin him down. Jeff was quick to flip the positions however, pinning Harry to the ground below him, smirking as he held the knife to the younger male’s neck. “Nice try but I don’t bottom Harry,” Jeff told him, letting him go and letting the wizard get up.
Harry blushed slightly, rolling his eyes as he panted lightly, getting up. “Do you have to make those kinds of jokes when you have a knife to my neck?” Harry asked, looking at the killer.
Jeff chuckled, slipping his knife into his hoodie, shrugging. Eyeless snorted from the spot he had been watching. “Jeff, you really shouldn’t tell lies like that,” Jack said, grinning slightly as he checked Harry over for wounds. Jeff blushed, a sight Harry thought he would never see, and glared at the eyeless demon.
“Shut it EJ!” The Glasgow killer said, storming out, making Harry confused. EJ just laughed, patching up the small cut on Harry’s cheek.
“Don’t worry about it, you’ll find out when you’re older.” He told the wizard, who just rolled his eyes and nodded.
“Whatever. Who am I going to kill with tonight?” Harry asked him, making EJ think for a moment.
“It’s a group mission and it’ll take the majority of the night to complete. I think you are going with me, Ben, and Liu on this one. We have to take out a cult who is trying to summon a demon.” Ej growled out the word ‘cult.’ “They are getting close to succeeding and we can’t have that happen and let them let the thing go rampant, so we have to stop it,” Eyeless told him, making Harry nod in understanding.
“Alright, I’m going to go get ready then. See you at six?” Harry asked, looking at the demon.
Jack nodded, heading out to go get ready as well. “It’s a date!” He joked, making Harry roll his eyes as he went to his room.
… And dodged a bucket of who knows what, making the young wizard glare at the monochrome clown that had tried pouring it on him from on top of the staircase. LJ looked back innocently, grinning at him. “What? I just needed to dump out my bucket.” He said innocently, making Harry sigh.
“On the top of the stairs just as I was coming by? Instead of doing it outside? Nice try LJ. I’ve dealt with the twins longer than dealing with you and know how to dodge mystery substances.” Harry told the clown, going up the stairs past him, heading to his room. “You should clean that before Slender sees though, he will flip.” He told him, hearing the clown teleport to get something to clean it up before the faceless entity saw the mess.
Harry sat down on his bed and sighed. He ruffled Hedwig’s feathers, who had flown there the night before, before looking outside. The wizard debated on taking a shower before going but figured that there would be no point in doing it now when he would just need one right after, as he would be covered in blood, sweat, and dirt then.
A nap wasn’t a bad idea, however.
With that thought in mind, Harry laid down, kicking off his shoes and yawned, closing his eyes and letting sleep take him away.
“No! No! Leave him alone! He’s just a baby!” A woman’s voice called out, Harry’s sight too blurry to see anything beyond the red hair.
“Move out of the way woman!” Another voice, Voldemort’s, told her.
“No! Leave him alone-!” She was cut off with a scream, as a flash of green hit her and made her hit the floor.
“Finally. Now, AVADA KEDAVRA!” A flash of green came with the yell. But as the light was about to hit Harry, the scene suddenly changed.
Harry now sat in a room, unable to move, as he saw his parents come up to him.
“How could you Harry?! How could you kill my sister and her family?!” Lily yelled out to him, tears in her eyes as she glared at him.
“No son of mine would be a murderer! Why couldn’t you be a good child!? We sacrificed ourselves for nothing it seems like!” James told him with a frown, hatred in his eyes.
Harry struggled to get free of his invisible restraints, to tell them of all the pain and suffering that they had put him through. More figures started to come up though, those that Harry recognized as his friends at the mansion.
“You’re not good enough to be one of us,” Jeff growled out, glaring at Harry. “You should have just been killed off by Slender.”
“I don’t know why we took pity on you,” Masky said, mask on as Hoodie and Toby both stood with him, nodding in agreement.
“You shouldn’t even be here,” Eyeless told him, black goo dripping down his mask as he stared at Harry.
At this point, Harry was crying, wanting to just get away from their hateful words. Harry looked at Ben, wondering what he was going to say.
Suddenly, another Ben ran in, stopping the first from talking. “Harry! This is a dream! Wake up!” The second Ben yelled, going to Harry and shaking him. Harry let the tears stream down his face, shutting his eyes, just waiting for the words of how much he hated Harry to come out.
“Harry! Wake UP!” Ben yelled, and Harry was suddenly jerking up, panting as cold sweat poured down his face. He could feel the tears streaming down his face as Hedwig hooted at him from her perch, worried for her owner.
Ben ran into his room, frowning as he went over to Harry. “Are you alright? We could all hear you crying and struggling into your sleep. What was that nightmare even about?” He asked, and Harry noticed that his friends were in the room.
Harry sighed shakily, trying to catch his breath but was unable to as he hugged his legs to his chest. He felt weak and vulnerable right now, the hurtful words ringing through his mind as clear as day.
A cup of water appeared in his face, making Harry look up as he saw EJ was the one that was holding it. “Here, it’ll help you calm down. Deep breaths okay?” He told him, making Harry shakily nod as he took the cup, gulping it down.
Toby was by his side already, hugging him gently. “Nightmares suck. I get them all the time.” He muttered to the younger boy.
“Y-yeah,” Harry replied shakily, relaxing into the male’s arm.
“Hey. No matter what your brain is trying to lie about to you, we do care about you and you are wanted here. Alright?” Ben told him, making the members of the room look at Harry, realizing what the dream had been about now.
Harry smiled softly, nodding at the cybernetic ghost.
“I can truly see that now. Thank you.”