Chapter 1 – The Birthday

Harry Potter and the Valeru

By Lady Urquentha

PG – 13

Disclaimer: All characters belong to J. K Rowling, the exception being any OC characters that might wander in. The plot is my own, and even that may have been influenced by stories I have read in the past. Any resemblance to real events or places is entirely accidental.

Chapter 1

It was a dark, dreary night, and the rain was pounding on the window. The full moon was hidden by the dark storm clouds that covered the night sky, and poured their unrelenting tears of anger down upon the earth. It had been raining for hours, as though in tune with the mood of a young boy nearby. In Number 4 Privet Drive, the smallest bedroom on the second floor, a scrawny boy who looked to be about age 14, was lying on his bed, an old leather book open before him, with a piece of parchment atop another book and quill between his teeth. It was July 30th, 11:55 pm, and Harry James Potter was doing his homework while waiting for midnight, when he would be turning 16.

His normally messy hair had grown longer, as it hadn't been cut in a while. His emerald eyes were dull and lifeless, a side-effect of the last year's stress, his subsequent imprisonment in the Dursleys and the dreams of Voldemort he had every night. He wore old, baggy hand-me-downs from Dudley, and he was extremely skinny. His appetite had gone down since he returned to Privet Drive, as he was doing much exercise, and the lightning scar on his forehead was very dark, and bled often during the dark hours of night. It showed up very easily against his pale skin. He often awoke after only a few hours of sleep, and now spent most nights lying awake in bed. Staring out the window for hours on end into the darkness lost its appeal after the first couple of nights, it got very boring, especially as Privet Drive was not a very exciting place to be even during the day. So he'd turned to reading to keep him occupied, and he'd managed to read and memorize all his books from first through to fourth year, and was amazed at how much easier everything seemed now that he understood the basics. He was even beginning to understand why Hermione loved reading so much, when you took the time to try to understand it, it was very rewarding. Harry's knowledge of spells and curses had almost doubled from re-reading his books, and he was annoyed at himself, if he'd read these earlier he would have had a far wider choice of spells for the duels he kept landing in each year.

Harry sighed and rolled his neck, he was on his final essay, his Potions one, it was on truth potions, and was to be concentrated on Veritiseum. Even though they'd just had exams at the end of last year, they'd still been given homework. Harry was finding the homework a lot easier then he had in the past, and devoutly wished he'd done read all these books before, as he had a sinking feeling that he hadn't done very well on his O.W.L.S, especially his Astronomy and History of Magic. He'd even read his Divination books, although that didn't help him much, and Harry still thought he'd only get a P at best for that one even now.

Harry's scar gave a sharp pain, and he clapped a hand to it. Voldermort was feeling angry about something, and Harry wasn't looking forward to going to sleep, knowing he'd be observing whatever punishment the Death Eaters would receive. Each night since he left Hogwarts, he'd had very little sleep, and what he did have was filled with visions of Voldermort and the Death Eaters or Sirius's death. Vernon, after the first two nights, had reluctantly paid for large boards of cork, which were placed against the wall to keep the sound it. Cork was very good at insulating sound, and it was comparatively cheap. Vernon didn't dare hit Harry or risk being on the receiving end of some curse from the Order of the Phoenix members. Harry's changes in appearance didn't help things with his family much. To Vernon, Harry's lifeless eyes looked like Harry could have killed a person without so much a blinking an eye.

Dudley hadn't dared speak or even look at Harry at all; he was far too frightened of what might happen to him. While it was a welcome respite from being used as a punching bag, it was getting rather boring with no human contact at all, the only time Harry used his voice was when he was talking to Hedwig. He knew that Order members kept an eye on the house, he often heard whispered conversations outside hid window, or the sound of apparating as the shifts changed. Tonks seemed to be very often on duty, whether it was because she was new or because she wanted to, Harry wasn't quite sure. But from the discussions he'd overheard, it seemed to be a little bit of both. As the newest member, she had to take on jobs that weren't quite so dangerous, and she also seemed to genuinely like him.

He looked up sharply as he heard pecking on the window. He saw ten drenched owls struggling to remain flying. He leaped to the window and shoved it open. The owls tumbled in, dripping water all over the floor. One by one, they fluttered to land on bed posts, desks and bookshelves. The only one who didn't was Pig, who was flapping around Harry's head, dropping water on the bedspread. Harry winced, Aunt Petunia would not be happy about this. Pushing the problem aside for the moment, he took the parcel that Hedwig had brought him, and handed his owl an owl treat. He opened the envelope, to reveal a letter from Hermione inside.

Dear Harry,

Happy Birthday! Your gift I got for you because we always seem to talk about it for one reason or another, and I thought you could finally read it and so I wouldn't have to explain it all the time.

I hope your relatives are treating you well. Remember that if they are mistreating you, you just have to tell the Order, and they'll come around. And do remember the one owl per three days request, Dumbledore does want to know you are okay.

Anyway, Harry, I'm going to the Burrow in a week's time, hopefully I'll see you there some time, if not we'll meet in Diagon Alley.

Hermione

P.S how did you do in your O.W.Ls? I got 13 O.W.Ls!

Harry grinned, as he opened the package. Of course she'd get top marks, an O.W.L per subject, and probably all Os as well. The gift she'd gotten him was 'Hogwarts; A History', Harry had known she'd get him a book, and of course it'd be one that wouldn't particularly help him a lot in the upcoming battle. Hermione was very good at buying books, they just didn't happen to be very interesting to Harry. Shaking his head in amusement, Harry put the book aside and caught Pigwidgeon, who was still flapping around. He opened the letter and unfolded it, to read;

Dear Harry,

Hey, mate! How are you holding up? Are the Dursleys treating you all right? Mum says that if you need any food, clothes etc. just owl us and she'll send some over. Happy Birthday by the way, and I hope you like your gift. I think it'll come in handy, especially give your ability to get into fights and that sort of trouble. Don't feel sad about the Ministry thing, there was nothing you could do to stop it, Snuffles made his own choices, and he did it because he loved you.

Ron

P.S. how did you do in your O.W.Ls? I got 8 of them, although I failed Divination and Astronomy, mum is really pleased.

P.P.S. Dumbledore says you can't come over yet, don't know why though, but we'll see you in Diagon Alley.

Harry grinned, he didn't actually need more food or clothes, his relatives fed him enough, and he had all of Dudley's old stuff to wear, but it was a nice thought. The reminder about Snuffles was painful though, he still felt the guilt of luring his god-father to his death. Harry slowly opened Ron's package, and his eyes widened. Inside was a thick leather-bound book, which was surprising for Ron, as he didn't like books. After one glance at the title, Harry realised why Ron had bought it. It was titled 'Magical Duelling', and Harry had to admit he needed to learn how to duel properly. Harry flipped it open, and scanned the contents page. It looked interesting, and would come in handy, considering Harry's destiny to fight Voldermort.

The next owl Harry turned to was from Mrs Weasley, who had simply sent two birthday cakes, pumpkin pasties, and all his favourite foods from the Burrow, enough to feed an army for a year. Harry pounced on the pasties immediately, his supply had long since vanished, and he hungered for wizarding food. He crammed two into his mouth and sighed with delight, as he put the rest of the food away in his secret hiding place under the floorboard.

Harry turned the third package, which was very big. He opened the letter, and read;

Dear silent benefactor,

Harry Birthday! Hopefully you're surviving at the Dursleys. Our gift is something we think you might like to have, in order to cause some er...havoc at your current residence. Be sure to give your cousin a Ton-tongue toffee from us.

Gred and Forge Weasley

Harry smirked, as he ripped open the package from the twins. In a brilliant red and gold box, adorned with engravings of Gryffindor lions, was a large array of pranking jokes and items. Canary creams, ton-tongue toffees, Skiving Snack boxes, fake wands, fireworks, coloured glue, coloured string, smoke cans were all packed densely among other items. Harry's eyes sparkled; this would be very useful to play with Dudley. He could toss a wand out, and cause the big cry-baby to scream and run, or leave out a canary cream and what for the inevitable change. Harry turned to the next package, which turned out to be from Remus.

Dear Harry,

Happy Birthday!! I hope the Dursleys aren't treating you too badly; you can give us a shout if they do, and please remember to owl us every three days, to let us know you are alive.

I hope you aren't blaming yourself for Sirius's death. Sirius always hoped he die in battle; he said he wanted to go down fighting like a man. Sirius knew the risks when he left the house, but he still chose to do so. He knew he could die at any moment, but he still chose to join the fight, he wanted to help and he did. Saying that if you'd waited to think about it you should have known is complete rubbish, You-Know-Who would not have allowed you to; he was controlling your mind at that point. No-one could have known that Sirius was safe, unless you checked the house from top to bottom and inside out. You did what you thought you had to; you went to save a friend. I think that if Sirius had received the same dream, except about you, he would have gone without checking as well, so don't blame yourself.

Your gift is something you may like to know, in light of the upcoming fight against You-Know-Who. There is no way you'll manage to stay out of it, so you may as well be prepared and know how to use the different things that may come in handy. I want you to study as hard as you can, be prepared for the fight. Sirius wouldn't have, but then, that's why you face You-Know-Who, not him.

From,

Remus

Harry sighed, guilt plaguing him once more at the mention of Sirius's name. His guilt was still fresh, he knew that there had to be some way that he could have saved Sirius, he just hadn't thought about it. Harry picked up the package that had accompanied Remus's gift, and opened it. An old thick, leather bound book lay in his lap, titled 'Magical Aids' by Syberth Harlem. Harry flicked through it briefly, eyebrows rising. It might come in handy, if he knew about this stuff, but he wasn't quite sure how it would help him in battle. He shrugged, and turned to the next owl. Harry's next parcel was from his half-giant friend Hagrid.

Harry,

Happy 16th Birthday! I found this in some old antique shop.

Hagrid

It was short and to the point, he was obviously doing something for Dumbledore or something, so he couldn't write much. Harry opened the gift that accompanied it, and found a long silver box. He opened it nervously; unsure of what could be inside. Inside lay a pair of daggers; the hilts was made of silver, with emeralds embedded in them, and the blades was made of some type of shadowy metal that seemed to avoid the light, and didn't seem to be quite there. The hilts both had a raised silver snake coiled around it. The silver sheathes had a number of runes engraved into it. Harry regarded them warily, not only were they weapons and Slytherin colors, the blades didn't seem quite right. Harry replaced the cover without touching them, he'd ask Hermione when he saw her next. Also in a white box, there was a large chocolate cake that looked similar to the one Harry had gotten from Hagrid in his first year. Harry was going to be careful about eating it, he'd had more then enough experiences with Hagrid's cooking skills before.

Harry turned to the next owl, and picked up the letter and parcel.

Dear Harry,

Happy Birthday! We don't really know each other that well, we're in different grades and I'm your best friend's little sister. But I went with you to the Department of Mysteries, and I know what happened there. I'm rather worried frankly, I'm not one of your close friends, so I can see you more objectively then my brother or mother. I can tell that you're feeling the guilt of Cedric's and your god-father's death, and I just want to say that I don't think it was your fault. You had nothing to do with his death, you cannot stop someone who is trying to help you, it would be an insult if you had. If you think you could have saved Sirius and Cedric, I have to say that you have a serious hero problem. You must think yourself great indeed, to believe there was a way to save them.

Anyway, just to cheer you up a bit, I've gotten you a present. It's something that'll come in handy during the fight, but I personally made it for you, with some help from my mother, father and Professor Dumbledore, I hope you like it.

Ginny

Harry smiled, this was the first time someone had gotten him something made directly for him, except for Weasley jumpers. Ginny's rather blunt words had also managed to jolt him back to senses, now that he thought about it, it did seem rather stupid for Harry to blame himself. If there was one thing Harry did not think, it was that he was more powerful then others. There were others more suited to the task, such as Hermione, who had more brains and Dumbledore who was more powerful. Although he still wished Sirius had survived.

Harry opened the package that had accompanied Ginny's letter, and gasped. Wrapped in some sort of red material was a wand-holster. It was a red tube for Harry to slide his wand in that would hang on his waist. It was embroidered in gold thread with lions, stags, big dogs, wolves and phoenixes. The lion was clearly a reference to Gryffindor house, the stags were for his father, the dogs for Sirius, the wolves for Remus and the phoenixes could stand for either Dumbledore or the Order. He spotted a note attached to it, and turned it over to read;

P.S. Don't worry, it's completely safe and it works, Moody tested it. It's got charms so that the wand can't be summoned when they're in it, it repels dirt, wear and tear, and you can call it to you from anywhere with your thoughts.

He lifted it out, knowing it'd be safe if Moody and Dumbledore had had something to do with it. He slid his wand into it and set it by his bed. He turned to the rest of the package. A large box of chocolates was also there, with a small note attached,

I thought you might like something sweet to eat, because if I know my mum, she sent you mainly healthy things.

Harry grinned, Ginny knew her mother very well. He turned now to the next owl.

Harry gasped as he realized who it was from, this was the first time Nymphrada Tonks had sent him anything.

Dear Harry,

I heard from Minerva that you want to be an Auror, and so I thought I get you this. It should come in handy, I'm sorry I can't get you the actual Auror's Guide, but we're forbidden to give it away.

Tonks

Harry opened the package and found a leather bound book titled 'An Aspiring Auror's Guide'. Grinning, he flipped through it briefly, and then set it aside, turning to the second-to-last owl.

Potter,

I thought this might come in handy. It has a tracking charm, to let us know where you are.

Moody

Harry opened the package curiously, and his jaw dropped. A small gold lion engraving hung on the end of a gold chain. He looked at it for a moment, and then clasped it around his neck.

Now it was time for the final owl. This owl was obviously from Hogwarts, it had the almost regal bearing that all Hogwarts owls somehow had. Not to mention the thick letter it carried had the Hogwarts seal on it.

Harry accepted the letter, and broke the seal to open the parchment.

Dear Mr. Potter,

It is my pleasure to inform you that this year's term starts on September 1st, and that the Hogwarts Express will depart from Platform 9 ¾ at 10:00 am. Please find enclosed a list of the necessary books and equipment for your sixth year at this school, as well as your O.W.L results. Please send your House Head a list of your desired N.E.W.T subjects by no later then July 31.

Please be aware that because of the return of Lord Voldermort, it has been decided that aurors will patrol the Hogwarts Express. Please be at the train no later then 9:30, to ensure you have enough time to pass security and get on board.

Mr. Potter, Professor Dumbledore will be teaching you Occulmancy this year, so please buy the necessary books in the enclosed list for that subject as well. Your life ban on Quidditch has also been lifted, and you have been reinstated as Seeker, and been placed as Captain of the team.

Professor McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Harry shook his head in exasperation; did they really think that checking IDs or whatever they were going to do would make the Hogwarts Express any safer? IDs could be faked, not to mention that Harry had no idea what a wizarding ID was. Harry tipped the shiny Quidditch badge into his hand and frowned, what would Ron say? Would he be jealous?

Sighing, Harry turned resolutely to the next piece of parchment, which was his books list. Harry scanned the list of necessary books, and whistled softly. They were extremely heavy on the spell subjects, especially the Defense part, four books just for DADA. Subjects like Transfiguration and Charms also had two or three books, whereas ones like Potions and Herbology only had one. They were trying to train students to defend themselves more. Harry also had to buy three different books on Occulmancy. And then the clothing, Harry frowned, why did they want battle robes? And comfortable muggle clothing?

Shrugging, Harry turned now to the final piece of parchment, his O.W.L scores. Gulping he lowered his eyes to the parchment and began to read;

Potions Theory: Exceeds Expectations

Potions Practical: Outstanding

Potions Overall: Outstanding

Transfiguration Theory: Exceeds Expectations

Transfiguration Practical: Exceeds Expectations

Transfigurations Overall: Exceeds Expectations

Astronomy Theory: Acceptable

Astronomy Practical: Poor

Astronomy Overall: Poor

History of Magic Overall: Poor

Charms Theory: Exceeds Expectations

Charms Practical: Exceeds Expectations

Charms Overall: Exceeds Expecations

Herbology Theory: Acceptable

Herbology Practical: Exceeds Expectations

Herbology Overall: Exceeds Expectations

Defense Against the Dark Arts Theory: Outstanding

Defense Against the Dark Arts Practical: Outstanding

Defense Against the Dark Arts Overall: Outstanding

Divination Theory: Dreadful

Divination Practical: Dreadful

Divination Overall: Dreadful

Care of Magical Creatures Theory: Outstanding

Care of Magical Creatures Practical: Exceeds Expectations

Care of Magical Creatures Overall: Exceeds Expectations

Extra Credit: Outstanding

Total: 7 O.W.Ls. 3 Os, 4 Es, 2 P, 1D

For your NEWT subjects, you can choose no less then three of the classes you have qualified for, and no more then ten. The NEWT classes that you have qualified for have been listed below.

Potions

Transfiguration

Astronomy

Charms

Herbology

DADA

COMC

Dueling Club (new class)

You may take classes in other subjects if you did not get the required grade, but you will not do your N.E.W.T in that class. You will do yearly tests, but it will not count towards your N.E.W.Ts. Please indicate if you would like to take extra classes by 31st July.

Harry gasped, how he could he have managed an O in Potions? He passed 7 O.W.Ls, four of which were Os! He had expected the fail in Divination, History of Magic and Astronomy, but he'd also thought he'd failed Potions. But he'd passed it, and passed it high enough to get himself into NEWT Potions! He had the right classes to get into the Auror Program! He absently noted the rain stopping, and the clouds beginning to clear.

He grinned, now Snape couldn't stop him getting into Potions, and then into applying to be an Auror. He smirked, thinking of Snape's face when he walked into N.E.W.T potions, that would be an amusing five minutes, even if Snape made his life hell for the rest of the year.

Harry grabbed a piece of parchment and quickly wrote down his choices.

N.E.W.T classes:

Potions

Transfiguration

Herbology

Charms

DADA

COMC

Dueling Club

Harry decided not to take any other electives, thinking he'd have a full enough schedule, what with the seven classes, the D.A, Occulmency and the Quidditch team.

"Hey, girl, come here," Harry said to the only owl still in the room, his own owl Hedwig. Obediently, the owl fluttered over to his arm.

"Take this to Professor McGonagall," Harry stroked her feathers gently as he spoke, "okay?" Hedwig rubbed her head against Harry's for a moment and then took off, soaring out into the night sky.

Harry smiled, as he set all of his new birthday gifts under the loose floor board. He glanced at the digital clock beside his bed, and was surprised to see it reading 1:18 am. He had been 16 for an hour and eighteen minutes without realizing it. Harry flipped back the covers on his bed, and climbed in. As he made himself comfortable, he reached up and flicked the light off. Removing his glasses, he set them on the bed-side table. Within moments he was fast asleep, a contented smile on his lips.

Only a few moments after his breathing evened out, two cloaked and hooded figures appeared by his bed. One of them reached out with a tender hand and traced the scar on his forehead, before carefully unclasping the necklace around his neck.

"Harry James Potter," a feminine voice whispered, as the figure laid the necklace on the bed-side table. The other reached out and placed something on Harry's chest. He pointed his hand at the black object, and tapped something on his lower left arm. Harry vanished with a soft sound, and the two hooded figures soon followed.

A/N: So, what do you think? Now don't be too bad on me, I mean I tried my best. The pairings will be told later but you can put up ideas! Tell me in a review. Please, flames aren't particularly appreciated unless they are constructive flames.

A/N: BIG thanks to my BETA reader, Hells Tenshi!