It's not my time

Chapter Three

Coping with the facts

' Before we all have breakfast I have some important news to announce to all of you.' Dumbledore started.

'Is it that Snapes been sacked?" Ron whispered excitedly to Hermione. Hermione signaled Ron to be quiet.

' Today among us with have a new student. She is from Liverpool and only just found out that she was a witch after a tragic event. Please do not hassle her about this. She will be joining the 6 years along with their studies for the o.w.l.s. this year. This morning before us she will be sorted into her house. Her name is Lucia Andrecchio. You can come forward now to be sorted Lucia.' Dumbledore announced.

Myrtle walked forward towards the front of the Great Hall nervously. Eyes stared at her as she walked quickly to be sorted. She had done this once before, hopefully she'd be able to do this again. She sat herself on the stool that lay in front and put the sorting hat on. Slowly but surely the old, torn hat began to speak to her.

Ha…you don't seem to be as dumb as I thought you were. You seem to have an awful lot of knowledge for a person who just only found out they were a witch…you yet seem so familiar but I can't quite place it when I've seen you before…ahhh…yes…you are Myrtle. I sorted you into Ravenclaw…but you mustn't like it there to come back here and be sorted again? I thought I reconised you from some where…now where to put you this time. Hufflepuff…no your way beyond there…Ravenclaw again? No..no..you don't seem that quick witted why I put you in that house before I do not know. So which shall it be? Slytherin or Gryffindor? I could put you in Slytherin but I don't think you would fit in that well…oh well better be GRYFFINDOR!

Myrtle jumped off the stool happily knowing that she was in a house with people she knew like Hermione, Ron and and Harry….. What happened to Harry anyway? I wonder what he's doing now?

Harry looked at his surroundings…Bed…Bedside table…nurse…yada yada yada…Harry was alone, bored and well feeling dead you could say. Yet Harry had all the time in the world to think about what mattered to him or what did matter to him before he wound up in this mess. His friends…Ron and Hermione…would they ever come to see him? Were they allowed? His family and relatives (other than the Dursley's) and that stupid bastard that killed them. Because of him Harry would never see the people that mattered to him the very most. His mother, father and Sirius…all dead.

Harry sighed. He wished he could see them again…but he knew he couldn't. One they were dead, Two he was…he was dead too! He was a ghost though…his parents and Sirius weren't… but maybe there was some way of seeing them again…he could ask Nick…yeah that was a great idea!

' Hello again Harry! You look extremely bored don't you? Lucky for you Professor Snape has made some progress in finding out what went wrong. It seems that you forgot to stir the potion before adding the boomslang skin. That was the easy part…now all we need to do is find an antidote. It could take weeks just to find out how to make the proper antidote and then another month just to brew it up. So I can see you spending most of you time here, in the hospital wing.' Dumbledore announced.

' Yeah I know all that already. It's not like I haven't thought about it before with all this loose time on my hands. How come Hermione and Ron haven't come to see me? I mean I'm pretty sure they've had time to come and see me'

' I'm sorry to say this Harry but there not allowed to see you. They don't exactly know what the full effect of the potion was anyway and it would be too difficult to explain to them either…this is way beyond the extent of my knowledge too.'

' So they can still come to see me it's not as if I've actually died you know! Let them see me I can't just stay here all the time! You know I still exist.' Harry yelled with rage.

' Harry, Harry calm down as much as I would like them to come and see you I just can't let them…I can't let any one come and see except a few teachers and myself. The school already is dealing with a new student and they are finding it a bit strange that I have just let this girl come into our school and start in the middle of the year at 6th year level….'

' What? You mean to say you let myrtle start in 6th year again? Is she there to replace me or something?! Aren't people going to notice when I don't turn up to classes and she 's there taking my classes!'

' Harry, we haven't replaced. It's just…well you can't expect Myrtle to sit around all day now can you? She's been dead for just over 50 years and the chance to get back in her body is just a thrill for her. But to be sitting around all day in that body doing nothing is just…well would be torture.' Dumbledore tried to explain.

' So! What do you think I'm doing now…I'm sitting around doing nothing. What am I meant to do all day? Count how many cracks there are in the ceiling?' Harry was frustrated. It was one thing to be dead, but it was another thing to be replaced by someone who was dead and him, Harry just sitting around watching it happen.

' Look Harry, I'm trying to organize something for you to do but right now I need your patience. Please can you give me that?' Dumbledore was tired. This was one of the times where he didn't know what to do, the last thing he could do was probably to reassure the boy that he could come up with an answer, he would have to. Harry couldn't stay like this forever.