Harry's POV:

Harry's life from the time he was born up until about six and a half months ago was the equivalent of shitty roller coaster that went from a little hill of happiness, to a steep drop down a ravine of horribleness. It had gotten better though at about nine and a half months ago when he cut off all connection to the British Wizarding World but it wasn't until about six and a half months ago when he met a girl a year older than him named Ciri. It was short for Cirilla as he found out later but she would punch his arm painfully when he called her it.

Ciri was...he didn't even know how to properly describe her. Every time he saw her it was like coming out of stuffy abandoned mine to the top of a mountain. She was more than just a breath of fresh air but was like taking a big swing of a rejuvenation potion. She was so similar to him in so many ways yet completely different in others. It only made sense that they had become fast friends. He had taken to doing everything with her, and she seemed to return the favor by hanging around him any time she could. After being cooped up in the house for two months, he had taken her to go see some of the muggle world. She had absolutely loved it. She loved seeing the skyscrapers and all the cars that drove around. She had asked him if he had a car, which he replied that he didn't. She seemed sad about that so that night he had gone to Gringotts inconspicuously and had them convert some galleons to 300,000 euros. He had then taken that money and went to a car dealership where he bought a 1988 Ferrari Testarossa for 80,000 euros. He had to use some charms to get past the dealer's questions like how a young kid such as himself was going to pay for such a car and where his driver's license was. Nonetheless he had bought the car with some liberal use of memory charms and spent an extra 10,000 euros to get it delivered to his house that morning. Getting the muggles though the wards was a hassle and he felt pretty bad for all the charms he applied so they would forget where he lived so he made sure to give them a nice tip for their troubles.

Ciri had woken up and almost screamed in excitement when she saw the car in front of the makeshift driveway Harry had made towards their house since it was ¾ of a mile from the nearest road. It was an entire process learning how to drive the thing since neither of them had ever drove before and this wasn't exactly the best first car to have but the eventually had gotten the hang of it.

"It's even better than racing on a horse." Ciri had said with excitement as the speedometer said she just passed 257 kmh(160 mph). Harry, on the other hand, was holding on for dear life with his eyes firmly had laughed at him for a week after that.

After that, the next adventure they had taken was to France where they explored the more magical side of things. France's government was much less racist than the British one, and the politicians who were racists made sure to keep it to themselves. This lead to Ciri seeing a multitude of different humans and other creatures. She also seemed to love magical versions of food and now had a sweet tooth that could only be satisfied with treacle tart which, according to her, was much tastier than the muggle counterpart. Harry had just rolled his eyes at that. It was in the middle of that argument when Fleur had spotted them and had come over.

" 'Arry! It iz so good to zee you again". Fleur said as she came up and hugged him which surprised the hell out of him. Ciri had just watched calmly the whole time though Harry could tell she was uncomfortable.

"Hello Fleur. It's good to see you too. How have you been? How's your sister doing?" Harry asked politely. It seemed her english had improved and she could pronounce most of the words with her heavy accent. The French girl beamed at him.

"I am well and so iz my sister though you should be careful. She recently hit puberty and you are target to sink her claws into. You know her crush on you only got worse after the tournament." Fleur said back to him. Harry shifted uncomfortably at the thought. He had no doubt that Gabriella would be as beautiful as her sister but he doubted he would ever see her as anything more than the little girl he had know her as.

"Ah. Maybe I should stay away from France for the time being then." Harry mused. "Anyways. Fleur this is Ciri. Ciri this is Fleur. Ciri is a friend of mine who I have been showing around. I wanted her to see some more magical land points that aren't in Britain." Harry said giving Fleur a slight look to let her know that he had not told Ciri about the British situation. Fleur seemed to understand,

"Hello Ciri. It iz so nice to meet another friend of Harry's." Fleur said as she shook Ciri's hand politely but with some energeticness to it.

"It is nice to meet you as well. I had the impression that Harry didn't have any other friends. Must be hiding in Britain with the rest of his secrets." Ciri said snarkily as she shot a glare at Harry letting him now that she knew he was hiding stuff from her.

"Oh my. Quite the new friend you have here Harry. I like her already! Maybe she can actually reign you in. It would be quite a feat but she looks up to the task." Fleur said as she looked Ciri with approval in her gaze, Both Harry and Ciri's face lit up red at the comment.

"Yes well we're more of just good friends really. Right Ciri?" He said looking at the ashen haired girl to back him up.

"Yes very much so thank you very much. Good friends is all." She responded earnestly. Fleur covered her mouth as she was very clearly laughing at them

"You two are so a like it's uncanny. Why don't you join me for lunch. It's been awhile and we need to catch up!" Fleur said as she pushed them to the nearest cafe despite their protest. The lunch was actually very nice and peaceful he occasionally saw some reporter out of the corner of his eye snapping pictures of them, but he ignored it. Fleur was very good at keeping Ciri involved with the conversation and seemed to enjoy telling the girl about some of Harry's 4th year exploits which Ciri seemed to think were terribly impressive for a 14 year old.

"I can't believe you had to go up against a dragon. At 14! That's ludicrous!" Ciri said. Fleur nodded in agreement as Harry tried to downplay it.

"I didn't do much. I just flew away from it to be honest." Harry grumbled.

"He says as if it were natural to outfly a dragon." Fleur commented with amusement. Ciri seemed to be quite amused to.

"Honestly Harry. It's okay to feel some pride in your accomplishments. You don't have to be so modest about EVERYTHING!" Ciri exclaimed. Harry just rolled his eyes.

"I here you got into quite a few adventures before your fourth year as well. Something about a basilisk when you were 12 I believe?" Fleur said innocently. Harry glared as the older girl added fuel to the fire that was Ciri.

"A Basilisk? What's with you and going up against draconids you suicidal imbecile." Ciri said as she punched his arm for his stupidity.

"Ouch! Hey, I didn't have a choice. The damn thing took my friend. Plus you're thinking about the Basilisks of legends that were flying reptiles with a rooster's head. The Basilisk here is a large snake that can grow up to 80 feet in length and 7-10 feet in height. Harry said Ciri's eyes bulged at that.

"And you attacked it?!" She almost yelled. Harry had long since had to put up a silencing ward around their table so they wouldn't get anymore weird looks than they were.

"Well, like I said, it had my friend." Harry said.

"If I remember my history correctly. Basilisk are infamous for having the strongest poison in the magical world next to the Nundu as well as a gaze that can kill you if you make eye contact with it." Fleur added innocently once more. Harry's glare could melt iron with how hot it was as he glared at Fleur.

"Fleur!" He yelled. Fleur just looked at him with innocence. Harry palmed his face. Ciri was just looking gobsmacked at him before horror crossed her face.

"That big scar on your arm. You said you got it from a snake bite." Ciri said in horror. Fleur's face also devolved into horror. Harry gulped at that.

"Yeah that would have been from the Basilisk, but before you say anything, a phoenix healed me with their tears so I'm all good now." Harry said to the horror filled woman. That was 5 minutes ago. They had yet to stop hitting and kicking him over and over while calling him an idiot.

"Ouch! Ladies come on I get the point. Won't do it again, I promise, please stop I feel blood!" Harry yelled. They probably would have continued if a phoenix had not flamed directly onto their table. All sounds of violence and complaints of said violence had stopped. Fawkes was looking directly at Harry and Harry was doing everything not to glare at the bird. He saw the letter the phoenix was carrying in it's mouth.

"Take it back. I don't want it." Harry told the bird as calmly as possible. Fawkes just kept looking at him.

"Even if you leave it with me I won't read it. I could care less what the man has to say. I will not return." Harry told Fawkes. Fawkes dropped the letter on the table in front of him, gave him one last meaningful look, and then disappeared in a ball of flame. Harry glared at the note in silence. He then took out the note and then lit it on fire with a low powered incendio.

"You're really not going to read it? What if it says something important?" Ciri asked.

"It doesn't, just the usual guilt trip in trying me come back." Harry said darkly. Fleur looked at him with an uncharacteristic seriousness in her eyes.

"Harry, I am and always will be your friend but you cannot run from this forever." Fleur said.

"I'm not running. I just am not participating in it. I don't see why I should help the sheep when they were so willing to throw me out to the wolves when I tried to warn them. Now that I'm suddenly proven right they jump back on my bandwagon. Screw them! I will not put my life on the line for people who aren't worth it." Harry replied angrily.

"Whether you want to stay out of it or not, HE won't stop until you're dead. You know that Harry. You know that one day you will have to face him. You doing everything in your power to avoid that is running away whether you like it or not." Fleur said seriously. Harry idly noticed she said that sentence in, almost, perfect English which only showed how serious she was.

"We can agree to disagree on this." Harry said.

They had parted not much longer after the words were said. Fleur had apologized for her words and expressed how she hoped it wouldn't affect their friendship. Harry had assured her it wouldn't affect it and gave her a hug goodbye to reinforce the fact. Fleur had smiled and returned just as he and Ciri did through Floo. Ciri had asked about that conversation almost everyday for the next month. She was stubborn about finding out. Harry found it both annoying and endearing at the same time. Eventually he finally sat her down and told her of his life and trials. She had understood and in return had told him about her life as well. How she too was the subject of a prophecy which was why the Wild Hunt was chasing her in the first place. They wanted her blood to stop their world from being destroyed. They wanted to kill her to do so though, which Harry disapproved heavily of. Still, it was another thing that brought Harry and Ciri close together.

Ciri had one day decided to start using her sword again lest she fall out of practice.

"Have you ever used a sword before?" she asked as she walked into the training room Harry had made her.

"Yes. I killed the Basilisk with a sword. That was the first and last time I used one." Harry told her. She got a look like she wanted to hit him again but decided against it.

"I could teach you if you're interested." she said. Harry looked at her.

"Are you trying to convince me to let you hit me with a metal pointy stick?" Harry asked. She had smiled and nodded. He sighed.

"Fine. I'll go get a sword then." Harry said as he went to Gringotts and pulled one from the Potter vault. It was a well made sword but not anything special, which suited his needs perfectly.

Ciri had told him he was a natural with a blade yet that didn't seem to ever stop him from walking out of the training room covered in bruises.

Yes it had been a wonderful 6 and a half months. The best of Harry's life if he were to be completely honest with himself. Yet he had a terrible feeling that it was coming to an end. He had noticed Ciri staring off into space a lot and looking sad. He suspected that she missed her home. Harry tried to make sure that she wanted for nothing, but he knew more than anything that nothing could ever replace somewhere that you willingly called home. If anyone deserved to go home it was Ciri. It was these thoughts he was having as he walked into the living room to see staring into the lit fireplace deep in thought. Harry moved to sit next to her. She briefly registered his presence before going back into her thoughts. They sat like that for a good 20 minutes.

"You're leaving soon." Harry said. He had meant to say it as a question but they both knew it was a statement of fact. She looked him in the eyes then looked down sadly and nodded.

"How long?" he asked her.

"A week, maybe two." she said to him. Harry nodded.

"Well...I suppose we should start making preparations." Harry mumbled as he moved to get up and leave so she would not see how distraught he truly was. As soon as he tried to move though Ciri jumped at him. She wrapped her arms around him tightly and buried her face into the crook of his neck. He could feel her tears on his neck. He slowly wrapped one arm around her waist around her torso and held her to him just as tightly. He laid his head gently on top of hers trying to make sure he memorized everything about her in the short time they would have. She smelled like the wild to him. A smell he never knew could be so intoxicating. They stayed that way for the rest of the night.

Two weeks later. February 1st

Harry was helping Ciri pack the remaining clothes she would bring with her into a trunk. He had put a very simple rune on the trunk that would shrink and expand it if you channeled magic into it. Something that Ciri had in spades as he had found out.

"Do you have everything. Boots, blouses? Undergarments?" Harry asked as she finished packing and shrunk the trunk. She put it on a necklace around her neck for easy carrying.

"I'm sure I have everything, though if you want to go digging through my undergarments to make sure, feel free." She said sarcastically. Harry blushed at the idea but still smiled in amusement.

"No thanks, I like my balls intact thank you very much." Harry responded. Ciri walked in front of him.

"How do I look?" she asked as she did a twirl. She wore the same clothes she had first arrived in. a white blouse and light brown trousers, with her familiar sword attached to her back. Harry smiled at her.

"Perfect." he told her as he smiled hoping he was doing a good enough job to cover his sadness. She smiled at him reassuringly before taking his hand and walking slowly through the house for the last time. It was such a nice a peaceful experience that Harry almost forgot that this would be the first, and last time they ever did this. They reached the front door and Harry had to fight every cell in his body telling him not to open it, but he did because he knew that as much as it hurt to let her go. It would hurt infinitely times more if he forced her to stay. The door opened and beautiful sunlight came through. Harry felt a little upset that it was such a beautiful day on what he would probably consider one of the worst days of his life for a long time. They both stepped outside the house and simply stood there. Harry didn't know how long he just stood there holding her hand and trying to soak in her presence. All he knew was that it didn't last long enough. She released his hand and looked at him.

"I suppose I should be on my way." she said quietly. Harry didn't know what he said so he said the first thing that came to his mind.

"I'll never forget you, you know. I will never forget the time I got to share with you." Harry said. She smiled at his words and it seemed that they made her happy.

"I hope you know it's the same for me as well. You gave me many months of bliss. Of not having to worry about people's expectations. Of not having to be hunted down like an animal. It was nice to be normal for awhile... I want to give you something." she said as she reached around her neck. Harry briefly thought she was taking off the trunk necklace to give back to him. He was about to protest until she pulled the chain off to reveal a silver, snarling, wolf head on the end. Harry's heart skipped a beat. He of course had seen the necklace before and knew the significance.

"Ciri, I can't-"

"Shush. Take it. Something to remember me by. Seems only fair with all you have given me.

"But you said that your father-"

"When I see him again he will understand." Ciri said. She was giving a hard look that told him she wouldn't be moved on this. Despite himself he couldn't help but smile at her stubbornness. God, he was going to miss her. Harry took the chain and wrapped it around his neck and attached it. He put the wolf head under his shirt and was surprised how warm it was despite being metal. He briefly remembered that it was constantly pressed against Ciri's own skin which had kept if from cooling. He marveled at the sensation before looking back at Ciri. She smiled at him.

"One more thing to remember me by…" she said with a sly grin. Harry looked at with a confusion.

"What do you me-MMPH!" He said as he was interrupted as she grabbed his shirt and pulled him towards her hard and smashed her lips onto his. Harry didn't care who knew it, he felt in that one moment like he was melting to goo. He was finally cognizant enough to return the kiss with full force. It was a few moments before Ciri pulled away. She smiled at him.

"You better remember that or I'll come back and beat you black and blue." she said as she backed up a few seconds.

"Oh I will remember that for as long as I live. That I can guarantee." Harry said with a smile that wouldn't take itself off his face. Her grin got bigger.

"I'm glad to have met you Harry James Potter." She called to him.

"And I you, Cirilla Fiona Riannon," He called back to her.

"Remember Harry only we can change our fate. No one else can do it for us. Don't be a slave to yours." She said before disappearing in a bright blue flash. Harry was not sure how he stood out there looking at where she disappeared. All he knew was that it was dark out when he finally went back into his manor. A mirror near the entrance revealed dry tear streaks. He summoned Kreature to bring him a moist hand cloth to wipe his face. He then went to sit down at his dining table to eat a meal alone for the first time in months. He spent the entirety of it thinking of Ciri. He would need to master occlumency and soon. He never wanted to forget her face let alone all the memories they made together.

'Remember Harry only we can change our fate. No one else can do it for us. Don't be a slave to yours.'

Those were the last words she had ever said to him.

"Alright Ciri. For you, I'll confront my destiny. Even if it leads to my death.

Hogwarts, The next day

General POV:

It was a normal day for the Hogwarts crowd. This year was surprisingly quiet and easy going despite the dark lord running rampant. Of course that could also have to do with the fact that a certain Golden Boy wasn't there. No one in Britain had seen Harry Potter in months. He had shown up in France a few months ago eating lunch with two girls but had not been spotted since. Rumors were running rampant. Some said he was out hunting the dark followers of Lord Voldemort while others said he was running and hiding from the powerful dark lord. Some said he was dead. No matter what the rumors were, no matter if you liked or disliked him, no one had expected for Harry Potter to randomly walk into the Great Hall that morning for breakfast as if he hadn't been missing for almost a year. No one expected him to sit down and start eating some eggs and bacon while not paying a single ounce of attention to anyone around him. Yet that is exactly what happened that cold February morning. The hall was completely silent as all movements came to a halt. The Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, stood up and looked at the boy in what many thought was amazement.

"Harry Potter." He called out voice booming and all. Harry paused from eating and looked up at the old man with a bored expression.

"What?" he asked quietly yet his voice was heard throughout the Great Hall. Everyone was holding onto their breath.

"May I speak privately with you please?" Dumbledore asked clearly wanting to take this away from the hundreds of students who were watching intently. Harry shrugged nonchalantly.

"After I'm done eating." Harry said as he went back to eating his eggs.

"Why you insolent-" Snape had started before Dumbledore silenced him with a glare. Dumbledore looked back at Harry.

"As you wish, but no later than that please." Dumbledore said. Harry didn't grace him with a response. It was then that everyone burst into talking and starting up new rumors about Harry Potter once more. It was only a few more moments before a shriek was heard throughout the hall.

"HARRY!" someone yelled at the entrance hall. Harry turned to look and was immediately smashed into by one of his best friends.

"Where have you been!?" Hermione yelled at him while trying to squeeze the literal life out of him. Harry did his best to shrug

"On vacation." he said nonchalantly.

"Harry, Summer vacation ended ages ago!" she said. Harry nodded.

"Yeah I noticed when it got cold and then later started snowing a few months back." Harry said.

"So what were you doing then?" Hermione asked again.

"I was still on vacation." Harry told her. She didn't seem happy about that.

"You mean you willingly skipped school so you could do nothing and relax?" She said getting angry.

"Yeah that sounds about right." Harry said as he looked at Ron. Ron took that as his cue to greet him.

"Hey mate. Glad to see you in one piece and everything. Was getting worried there." Ron said as he patted Harry on the back. Harry nodded and gave his friend a smile.

"Yeah it's good to see you guys too." he said to them both. In truth he had missed them both but most of his time had been hanging out with Ciri.

"Ron did you not hear him? He ditched school to go on vacation!" Hermione said still flabbergasted. Ron looked at Harry smiled.

"Yeah I heard. Gotta say I'm jealous mate. All that time to just relax and not have Snape and McGonagall breathing down your neck. Must have been nice, but why didn't you tell us?" Ron asked. Hermione finally calmed down so she could hear the answer. Harry sighed.

"I just didn't feel like talking or having to explain myself. Let's just drop it alright. I'm here now and that's what matters. How are your guys classes going." Harry asked

"Well you know me, if it wasn't for Hermione I would've failed years ago I tell you."Ron said. Hermione blushed at the praise

"You would be fine if you actually tried to do your homework without being forced." Hermione said back. Ron smiled back.

"Ahh who has the time for that honestly." Ron said. Harry squinted at the two but said nothing. Harry wiped his mouth as he finished his meal and stood up.

"Well I have to go to talk to Dumbledore." Harry said as he prepared to leave.

"Alright but come meet up with us after you're done we have a lot to catch up on." Ron said and Hermione said her agreement with the statement. Harry nodded and left the hall.

Harry's POV:

Harry pushed open the door to the headmaster's office without even bothering to knock. It looked all neat and tidy again. Not like the destroyed mess he had turned it into.

"Dumbledore. You wanted to speak to me." Harry said. Dumbledore just stared at him for a few minutes.

"Harry I want to confess my apologies to you." He said softly. Harry squinted his eyes in suspicion at the man. Was he trying to win him back under his wing.

"I want you to know that everything I have done was to try protect you and to make sure you came out of the other end of this conflict alive. I see now that I perhaps pushed you to hard and did not tell you things that I should have a long time ago. Although many think me infallible Harry I am not. There are more days where I fully feel my age than I have ever felt before. I want you to know I truly did what I thought was best to help you Harry. I don't know if I was right or wrong to do it but it doesn't matter because in the end I hurt you and your trust in me. I am sorry you felt the need to take an extended leave of absence to right yourself. I take full responsibility for the trials you have gone through my boy. I'm so sorry." Dumbledore said. Harry could clearly see the tears in eyes. He truly meant what he said.

"It's fine. I forgive you." Harry stated simply but truthfully. He could understand where Dumbledore was coming from. Sometimes all you could do was your best but it wasn't always enough.

"It warms my heart to hear that. Nevertheless I am sorry." Dumbledore said. Harry shook his head.

"I didn't leave because of you. To me, you were at most a symptom but not my main problem. I left because I was angry and frustrated. I was mad because after a year of trying to tear me down in every way they could, after watching my godfather die for them, I could no longer stand the British Wizarding populace. They treated me like garbage yet expected me to just forgive their stupidity and throw myself in the way of a dark lord that they were too scared to go against. In a way I think I despise them more than I do Voldemort. I also don't think that will ever change." Harry said. Dumbledore looked saddened to hear about Harry's opinion on the Wizarding World but could not fault him for it.

"If I may ask, why did you come back then? I could not find even a trace of you despite my best efforts and I know Voldemort couldn't either otherwise you would be dead." Dumbledore asked. Harry didn't say anything for second as he thought of Ciri. His beautiful Ciri.

"Someone I loved told me that only I had the power to change my fate. That I could run all I wanted but I just would be a slave to it. I am here to fight against my fate because no else can do it for me. That is all." Harry said. Dumbledore nodded at him.

"This person sounds very wise." he commented. Harry couldn't help but smile.

"She would like to think herself so I'm sure." Harry said as he once again thought of her. His face turned serious though.

"Enough of this sappy stuff. Where is the dark lord? I have a score to settle with him."