Chapter 19 - Resolutions

                                        

                                              
Resolutions
                              
They class left with exuberance. For the next few weeks, it was the only thing people were talking about. McGonagall lifted the whole school's spirit by just announcing the ball. People were asking other people out. There were rumors about who was going with who, and what people were wearing for the ball. Harry was not interested in the conversation, as he was not really interested in anyone. Ron was acting very strange though, but he would not say anything. This time, Ron was keeping a secret from him. Hermione did not really seem all there, either, but Harry did not feel like pushing any conversation. 
                              
Harry was having trouble sleeping lately, again. Not a night went by that he did not dream about Sirius, and Voldemort came at least every other night. Apparently, he slept with Harry's sleep schedule. Harry woke up almost every morning with his scar hurting. He started sleeping less and less. Sometimes, he would go down by the fire, and slept by it. Crookshanks kept him company. He would pet him and make him purr. He remembered that Crookshanks was ready to die for his godfather in his third year. 
                              
Harry became more secluded, mostly because he was tired. He was having problems paying attention in class, again, and Ron and Hermione seemed preoccupied to pay attention to his problems. Harry did not understand what was up with them. He did not have anywhere to turn. He had no one to talk to about it. He was getting more and more depressed. The Ball did little to raise his spirits. He was not going with anyone, besides Ron and Hermione, and they would be going alone, too, if they did not find anyone soon. 
                              
Whenever they walked around the castle, Harry decided to stick with Ron or Hermione whenever possible, in case anyone would ask him if he would go with him to the Ball. 
                              
Ginny, for some reason, was not going with anybody, at least that he knew. A few nights before, he had heard Hermione ask her if she was going to the ball with anyone. She said no, but after that, she got shifty and left. Everyone was acting strangely around him. He was baffled by their behavior, but shrugged it off. He went to sleep that night and found himself in the Death Chamber again. 
                              
Sirius said, "You can do better than that!" Then the red blast hit him in the chest, and he slowly fell through the curtain and disappeared. Harry did not move. He was tired of running to him only to be stopped by Lupin. He knew that he was dreaming. It was not worth the effort to try anymore. He suddenly felt a white, sharp knife drive into his skull. He grabbed his head, and when it stopped hurting, he looked around. Lord Voldemort was standing in his usually position, right behind him. 
                              
"I grow tired of waiting, Potter! Show me what I want to see!" he yelled and another stab of pain hit him.
                              
"No," Harry said, defiantly. "I'll never tell you! I don't have to stay here! I can wake up now if I want, Voldemort!"
                              
"You dare speak my name?" he sneered, staring dangerously at Harry.
                              
"Would you rather I call you Tom?" Harry said, recklessly. He was not going to give Voldemort any satisfaction. 
                              
"You..." Voldemort spat at him.
                              
"See you tomorrow night," Harry said, with as much acid in his voice as he could muster, and he woke up to another flash of pain. 
                              
Keep trying, I dare you. I'm ready for you, he thought, vengefully. However, he started to regret taunting Voldemort when he was periodically shocked awake by intense jolts of pain from Voldemort's anger over the next hour. He had a feeling that Voldemort was not going to let that insult go by, but he took precautions. He did not leave the tower without Ron or Hermione and did not go outside except for Quidditch and class. However, after he slept three nights in a row without an intrusion, he started to feel uneasy.