Christmas had never been that important to Harry. Even after his relationship with Vanessa had taken off. It just wasn't a time of year that he put much stock into celebrating. So of course that hadn't changed this time around either.
Sitting in the Great Hall with the other Hogwarts students that hadn't gone home for Christmas, along with the teachers, didn't exactly do much for Harry's mood. Of course it didn't matter that much to him since he was just fine with what had been going on since the meeting at Gringotts. They had steadily been tracking some of the Horcruxes and where soon ready to move on some of them.
Only there was a different dilemma that Harry had been working on in his free time. He had been trying to come back into contact with the people responsible for giving him a second chance at life. Safe to say his attempts had proven rather futile. He had lend a thought to asking Amorpha or someone else from the Ashwoods, but thought better of it in the end.
His thoughts circled back to Vanessa and small grin spread over his face. Though it might have been in an awkward way and done more in a sense of political maneuvering than actual feeling, they had still gotten engaged.
"If I didn't know you better, Mr. Potter, I'd say that smile was that of a man in love" Dumbledore's grandfatherly voice rolled through his ears and brought his attention back to the present.
"I am only human, Albus" Harry replied with a grin.
"Twice if you will" Dumbledore replied with a twinkle in his eye.
It took Harry a second to get the joke and a chuckle rose from his chest.
"So, Albus, what are your plans for the coming years?" Harry asked as he reached out to grab himself a bit more breakfast, the bacon was quite addictive.
"Harry my boy… I cannot be more happy to say I don't know" Dumbledore began as he himself reached out to snatch some pudding that seemed to have been forgotten in the center of the table "If everything goes as we have envisioned these coming months… I quite like to think I will retire from the Wizengamot and focus solely on Hogwarts"
"Enjoy your twilight years guiding the young minds?" Harry teased with a sentence that his Dumbledore had been very fond of.
"Quite. I've been thinking of reintroducing some of the old classes to the curriculum. Enchanting and Dueling were once very popular electives" Dumbledore explained with a nostalgic twinkle.
"Dueling, sir? I thought that was part of Defense?" Harry inquired as he leaned forward in interest.
"Ohh it wasn't so always. As the war took its toll on the magical population we couldn't afford to keep as many classes, so much of it was combined into new ones. Defense used to be focused a lot more on studying the various dark arts and how to properly counter them. These days the public would not stand for such a class, their children studying the dark arts? Preposterous!" Dumbledore exclaimed, a fake high pitch voice adding to the joke.
"And Dueling must then have been teaching how to fight another Wizard or Witch I guess?" Harry asked
"Indeed. Filius used to love teaching that class. Eight times Dueling Champion of the World. Marvelous watching him duel, I tell you Harry" Dumbledore replied
"I believe you, sir" Harry replied with a slightly dazed tone as his thoughts ran back to his dilemma.
"What seems to be the problem, Harry? You've had your head in the clouds most of the morning" Dumbledore inquired after a few minutes of silence.
"Well, sir. You said that you had tried to come into contact with… you know" Harry began and at Dumbledore's nod, continued "I'm trying to do much the same. I have some questions that need answering and it would seem they are not to be found on this side of life"
"I might have something to help along with that endeavor. Back when I did my own investigation I came across a few items that were said to help in contacting the other side. Perhaps you will have more luck than I" Dumbledore explained with a small grin as he snatched a sausage away from Fawkes, moments before the greedy bird swallowed another.
"That would be amazing, sir. Can I come by and get it after breakfast?" Harry asked.
"Of course. Better finish up soon before Fawkes decides to steal the rest" Dumbledore replied with an amused grin leveled at his faithful companion.
Fawkes just thrilled a little in response.
"So what is this supposed to do, sir?" Harry asked as he looked over the small device that Dumbledore had handed him.
It was a small sphere made out of a metal he didn't recognize. For the most part it held da resemblance to iron in strength and feeling, but at the same time it was almost lighter than a feather. He was honestly convinced that should he throw it into the air, it might not come down again.
"That, Harry, is said to be a relic of Merlin himself. Supposedly it was used by him to contact the other side when he needed guidance from those that came before him, whomever they were" Dumbledore explained as he looked over some of the other devices in his possession. The old wizard's eyebrows scrounged together when he started seeing random junk thrown amidst important artifacts… was he turning into a hoarder?
"Really?" Harry asked in wide eyed wonder "How does it work?"
"No one knows. It has passed from person to person with no one ever figuring out how it worked. Alas I never get very close to figuring it out either, at first I assumed it was as simple as pushing a bit of magic into it and focusing. But there must be something a bit more to it." Dumbledore replied as he began pulling items out of his shelf.
"What happened when you poured magic into it?" Harry inquired as he inspected the sphere closer, hoping to find a marking of some kind.
"It glows slightly with a reddish tint when one pours magic into its core. Beyond that I sadly could not pull anymore information." Dumbledore continued removing, moving and replacing objects as if he had suddenly gotten an idea.
"Hmm…" was all the sound that came from Harry as he continued studying the object "Mind if I take this with me? I have an idea" Harry asked
"Yes, yes…" Dumbledore agreed, though he seemed to be paying little mind "Just bring it back when you finish" the old wizard then waved him away as his newest project seemed to engulf him.
Harry left the office and stared at the gargoyle guarding the entrance for a moment before muttering to himself "I think the age is finally getting to him…" he grumbled as he made a line for the stairs leading to the seventh floor and a certain room.
"So turn three times and think of the place you need… while pouring magic into this…" Harry grumbled to himself as he stared at the blank piece of wall in front of him.
Taking a breath he began pouring as much magic as he felt feasible into the object and took a turn three times. What appeared wasn't the door he knew to appear, this wasn't a large wooden door with metallic bindings. This was a small, person sized, white wooden carved door. It held a striking resemblance to some of the more horrific looking vacation homes he had seen his aunt Petunia look through years ago.
"Here goes nothing" he muttered as he pushed the door open to reveal…!
White.
Nothing Else.
Just White.
A lot of White.
"Hallo?" Harry called as he turned to look at the door, only to find it missing "Well fuck…" he grumbled as he began walking forward. Oddly enough though the entire place was consistently white, he felt like he could make out where the walls were, so he had something to guide him along.
No matter how long he walked, he couldn't shake the feeling that someone was watching him constantly. Like someone was breathing right down his neck and looking directly over his shoulder. It was disturbing to say the least. And coming from a professional killer, that is saying something.
Finally he saw something in the distance, a small bit of green. It turned out to be a door, leading out to a large green field the seemed to span into eternity.
"Welcome to G… Harry Potter?" a strange ethereal voice rang out behind Harry.
He whirled around just in time to see something manifest from thin air. It was a woman, or at least that's the shape it ended up taking. This mass of gold seemed to twist and turn until the vague shape of a human woman stood in it's place. Two white glowing eyes appeared on what could only be her head and pure white light flowed from the top of her head to form hair reaching all the way down to the grass.
Then came the wings, by the goddess, the wings!
Large feathery wings extruded from her back in a violent explosion of feathers, her entire golden body soon wrapped in the comfort of six large wings, three from each side. She landed on the grass and flowers sprouted through ground in small flames.
To Harry… it felt as if all the love he had ever known in his life was multiplied tenfold as he felt to his knees, crying. He felt something touch his cheek and guide his face upwards, it was her hand. It was warm, like a mother comforting her child for the first time in years.
"Please, Harry Potter, do not cry" the being's ethereal voice rang out as her six massive wings opened and enveloped Harry, the arms of the being pulling him into a warm, gentle hug like he had never known before.
Harry maintained the hug as he got his emotions under control. Finally breaking the embrace he took a few steps back and watched as the wings slowly enveloped the golden beings body once more.
"W-what are you?" he asked with a slight hitch in his tone.
"I am a Seraph, a caretaker of God's throne" the Seraph explained.
"Did I die?" Harry asked with fear in his voice.
The Seraph shook its head slightly "No, young one you didn't die. You came to us, you passed the gates and somehow entered God's home" the Seraph explained as its head titled slightly to the left in a sign of confusion.
"I used this" Harry explained as he held up the sphere "I poured magic into it and then walked through an enchanted doorway… it led me to a long white hallway that then led out here"
The Seraph nodded at his explanation before looking towards the sky for a moment, Harry thought it was so wonderfully blue "You carry a stone from the River Jordan, the place where God's son was baptized. So very few of them remain in the human world" the Seraph said as her eyes lowered once more to Harry "They are keys to heaven. You used it to enter Purgatory and from there it guided you here, to God's home. Tell me, Harry Potter, what do you seek so badly that it would bring you here?"
Harry almost dropped the stone when he heard what it was, but wisely chose to gently place it on the ground. He feared he would drop it with how much he was shaking, this was all so terribly much to take it right now.
"I came seeking answers…" Harry began before silence seemed to claim his thoughts.
"Many seek God in their quest for answers, young one. There is something else, something deeper that has driven you to stand here before me." The Seraph stated.
Harry thought for what felt like eternity to him before a small thought passed through his head and he realized just what could have driven him so far.
"I wanted to know why…" he began as he fell to his knees once more and stared at the rock that had brought him here "Why did I get sent back? Why would they do it? For one measly soul? Could someone else not have done it? Could there not have been sent someone to simply destroy the stone which I had forced Tom's soul into?"
"Young one, you wonder why you were chosen for this gift?" the Seraph asked and at Harry's nod he thought for a moment he saw the Seraph smile "For you are a child of prophecy. Through someone else, God's plan was revealed and spoken" Harry looked ready to protest but the Seraph silenced him with a finger over his lips "No human could possibly truly understand God's design. How the message is interpreted changes from human to human." Harry looked ready to cry again at his point "Do not worry, young one. As God's beloved creations, he would never take from you that which was his greatest gift. Free Will. Your destiny is your own to make, do not let the Soul Domain tell you otherwise. Go, Harry Potter, and live your life as you wish it."
Harry looked up as the finger was removed and a question fell from his lips "So because I'm a child of prophecy I got sent back because it was not completed?"
This time he didn't doubt that the Seraph smiled, especially not when he heard the heavenly laugh that seemed to echo out into eternity "Cleverness always were one of humanity's strongest points. Prophecies are a part of the gift of magic. Once it has been spoken it must come to fruition. No one is allowed to live forever, young one. So of course since your actions led to Tom's soul never finding rest you were sent back to correct your action"
"Are you telling me that had I simply killed Tom as the prophecy stated, I would have died when Hermione blew herself up to kill me and Vanessa?" Harry asked
"Indeed. Had you done as the prophecy stated you were supposed to have gone to hell for your sins and served for eternity. But you yet had a part to play… and due to the interference of her , we could not have punished you had we so wished it either" the Seraph spoke and her ethereal voice turned hard and cold as she spoke of this other woman.
' My Goddess?' Harry wondered privately to himself, at least he thought it was private until the Seraph's eyes snapped to him
"Yes, Harry Potter, Your Goddess . As you have said it yourself, you are one of her subjects and as such your soul is hers to claim when you die" the Seraph nearly spat out the words.
"Then what about all the changes, why is everything so different now that I was sent back?" Harry asked as he suddenly felt a boost of confidence, like he wasn't in danger any longer.
"That, Harry Potter, is simple. Powerful as God is, it is not possible to throw a soul back through time without causing a ripple to go out through the entirety of time. You remember the world you came from and have to adjust to the new one, such is the price for your second life. Vanessa Weaver… her memories returned because of your Soul Bond" the Seraph's eyes softened greatly at the mention of the soul bond.
"So it's true then? Vanessa and I… we are?" Harry said but couldn't quite get the question out.
"Yes, young one. In each other you found the same spark of love that God used to create mankind. Through this you are bound forever more to one another. Not even God could tear you apart" the Seraph explained as her entire body seemed to radiate warmth and protection once more.
"So all the changes have nothing to do with Dumbledore being like me?" Harry asked
The Seraph shook her head "No. Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore had no effect on the changes. He caused his own when he was sent back long ago, as you now have caused yours. One day, the world will change again and you will not realize it"
"When another like us gets sent back?" Harry tried
The Seraph nodded "Yes"
"Thank you for answering my questions. I guess I just have one more…" Harry looked decidedly uncomfortable talking all of a sudden.
The Seraph laughed slightly as she placed a gentle hand on his cheek and spoke "God will never hate anyone. For the murder of his great-grandchild was rectified when you were sent back. She will be alive and well in a few years time. All is forgiven, Harry Potter"
The Seraph lowered her head and Harry felt a kiss get planted on his forehead as a wave of tiredness washed over him. He locked eyes with the Seraph and he felt a smile creep unto his face as he spoke "Did God create the dinosaurs?"
The Seraph laughed once more and just before Harry felt tiredness claim him, he heard her speak "I shall give you clue, Harry Potter. Earth is older than God" then tiredness washed over him and darkness was all he knew for a few moments. Through the dark he heard a voice "I'll look forward to your answer, Harry Potter" just before he felt his back impact with something hard and his eyes snapped open to stare into the ceiling of Hogwarts.
"Okay, no more trips to the afterlife or anywhere else. Clearly I'm getting way over my head here…" Harry grumbled as he rose from the floor, only to realize the door gone and the sphere Dumbledore had given him along with it.
Then his thoughts fell one the last thing the Seraph said to him "Earth is older than God? Why do I suddenly feel like I'm participating in a bad quiz show?" Harry grumbled as he turned and began heading towards Dumbledore's office. He had so much to explain.