`Ev.ryone.knows.yeh.ve.bin.tellin..the.truth.now,.Harry,..said.Hagrid.softly.and.unexpectedly..He.was.watching.Harry.closely..`Tha.s.gotta.be.better,.hasn..it?..
Harry.shrugged..
`Look…..Hagrid.leaned.towards.him.across.the.table,.`I.knew.Sirius.longer..n.yeh.did….he.died.in.battle,.an..tha.s.the.way.he.d.ve.wanted.ter.go.=.
`He.didn.t.want.to.go.at.all!..said.Harry.angrily.
.Hagrid.bowed.his.great.shaggy.head….
`Nah,.I.don..reckon.he.did,..he.said.quietly..`But.still,.Harry….he.was.never.one.ter.sit.aroun..at.home.an..let.other.people.do.the.fightin...He.couldn.ve.lived.with.himself.if.he.hadn..gone.ter.help.=.
Harry.leapt.up..
`I.ve.got.to.go.and.visit.Ron.and.Hermione.in.the.hospital.wing,..he.said.mechanically..
`Oh,..said.Hagrid,.looking.rather.upset..`Oh….all.righ..then,.Harry….take.care.o.
.yerself.then,.an..drop.back.in.if.yeh.ve.got.a.
.`Yeah….right…..
Harry.crossed.to.the.door.as.fast.as.he.could.and.pulled.it.open;.he.was.out.in.the.sunshine.again.before.Hagrid.had.finished.saying.goodbye,.and.walking.away.across.the.lawn..Once.again,.people.called.out.to.him.as.he.passed..He.closed.his.eyes.for.a.few.moments,.wishing.they.would.all.vanish,.that.he.could.open.his.eyes.and.find.himself.alone.in.the.grounds….
A.few.days.ago,.before.his.exams.had.finished.and.he.had.seen.754.HARRY.PO‐1‐1.ER.THE.SECOND.WAR.BEGINS.75:.
the.vision.Voldemort.had.planted.in.his.mind,.he.would.have.given.almost.anything.for.the.wizarding.world.to.know.he.had.been.telling.the.truth,.for.them.to.believe.that.Voldemort.was.back,.and.to.know.that.he.was.neither.a.liar.nor.mad..Now,.however….
He.walked.a.short.way.around.the.lake,.sat.down.on.its.bank,.sheltered.from.the.gaze.of.passers‐by.behind.a.tangle.of.shrubs,.and.stared.out.over.the.gleaming.water,.thinking….
Perhaps.the.reason.he.wanted.to.be.alone.was.because.he.had.felt.isolated.from.everybody.since.his.talk.with.Dumbledore..An.invisible.barrier.separated.him.from.the.rest.of.the.world..He.was.‐.he.had.always.been.‐.a.marked.man..It.was.just.that.he.had.never.really.understood.what.that.meant….
And.yet.sitting.here.on.the.edge.of.the.lake,.with.the.terriblc.weight.of.grief.dragging.at.him,.with.the.loss.of.Sirius.so.raw.and.fresh.inside,.he.could.not.muster.any.great.sense.of.fear..It.was.sunny,.and.the.grounds.around.him.were.full.of.laughing.people,.and.even.though.he.felt.as.distant.from.them.as.though.he.belonged.to.a.different.race,.it.was.still.very.hard.to.believe.as.he.sat.here.that.his.life.must.include,.or.end.in,.murder….
He.sat.there.for.a.long.time,.gazing.out.at.the.water,.trying.not.to.think.about.his.godfather.or.to.remember.that.it.was.directl.t.across.from.here,.on.the.opposite.bank,.that.Sirius.had.once.collapsed.trying.to.fend.off.a.hundred.Dementors….
The.sun.had.set.before.he.realised.he.was.cold..He.got.up.and.returned.to.the.castle,.wiping.his.face.on.his.sleeve.as.he.went..
Ron.and.Hermione.left.the.hospital.wing.completely.cured.three.days.before.the.end.of.term..Hermione.kept.showing.signs.of.wanting.to.talk.about.Sirius,.but.Ron.tended.to.make.`hushing.noises.every.time.she.mentioned.his.name..Harry.was.still.not.sure.whether.or.not.he.wanted.to.talk.about.his.godfather.yet;.his.wishes.varied.with.his.mood..He.knew.one.thing,.though:.unhappy.as.he.felt.at.the.moment,.he.would.greatly.miss.Hogwarts.in.a.few.days..time.when.he.was.back.at.number.four,.Privet.Drive..Even.though.he.now.understood.exactly.why.he.had.to.return.there.every.summer,.he.did.not.feel.any.better.about.it..Indeed,