Afterlife by Clockwork Crow

7/28/2019 Afterlife by Clockwork Crow

1/19

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Prologue: (Harry's or Suguru's POV)

Voldemort is dead. He died when I was 15, in a battle that had nothing to do with me. I

pretty much sat in the sidelines and watched the Aurors do their job.

After I had faked my own death, I escaped halfway round the world to Japan to resume

my studies as a muggle. Not magical studies, but high school studies. You know,mathematics, science, social sciences, etc. etc.

It's been about a year since I've been a part of Bad Luck, which, surprisingly is stilltogether, still doing strong, still popular, still as insane as we've first started, still . . .

maybe I should start this over.

Konnichiwa minna-san.

Ore wa Suguru Fuijisaki.

I'm seventeen with silky black/green hair, brown eyes. This is called 'going native.' I tried

several different looks before deciding to only change my eye color using contacts.

Magic can be traced afterall. Besides, that disfiguring but famous scar had disappearedthe moment Voldemort died.

At present, I play the synthesizer in a band called 'Bad Luck', in which I might add,forced to join by my adopted cousin Tohma Seguchi.

My band members are Shindo Shuichi (vocals) and Hiroshi Nagano (electric guitar). The

first being much psychologically unbalanced than the second. But overall, they're talentedpeople to work with.

This is my new life.

This is my afterlife.

I'm Suguru Fujisaki.

And Harry Potter is dead.

Let the dead lie.

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Chapter 1: Headache Pains

Uh. . . headache . . . not the Voldemort headaches. Those were long gone. But bad enough

that I itch to make a dreamless and painless potion . . . if I had supplies.

At present, my source of this particular mammoth-sized migraine came in the form of a

pink, screeching, loud, fluff ball wailing about how 'Yuki the meanie' had kicked him outof the house yet again. Apparently, the singer had tried to cook a romantic dinner but

ended up destroying the kitchen.

Heck, I'm not surprised.

It's amazing how long that stoic author could stand that overly energetic ball of fluff,especially when he tries to cook.

But who the hell am I to judge? As K said, and I quote, 'Anything that sales." And I tend

to agree. Living alone by yourself can create a tendency to put money on the top . . . but Idigress . . . all these thoughts are not helping with my headache.

And I thought headaches would be a thing of the past too, with Voldemort gone and all. Imean, here I am, halfway around the world, starting a new life, in an unknown city using

an unknown language. Hoping that this is the pain-free, memory-free, magic-free and

most of all headache-free heaven I was looking for. I got the first three. The last neverhappened.

So, maybe heaven or haven should I say, is not as perfect as it seems. But then, I've neverbeen to heaven . . .

"Hiro!!! How could you say that?!" Shuichi bailed at his best friend, fists punching at

Hiro's chest ineffectively. "How can you say that about Yuki!!!"

His best friend looked exasperatedly into angry, puffed violet eyes. "You said Yuki is

mean. I'm just restating that."

"Yuki is NOT mean!!!"

Shuichi's mind is like a box of chocolate. You never know what you're gonna get. Theonly thing you can be sure of is the chocolate, or in my case, a migraine the size of

Jupiter. I gritted my teeth at the string of accusations coming from the middle of the

room. God, I'm giving up!

I slammed both my hands onto the table. "If we're not doing anything then I'm leaving.

Tell K." I stated quietly, glaring the whimpering, pink puppy. Argh . . . my head hurts.


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Luckily Sakano, our overly stressed producer, was not there to stop me as I stalked out of

the door, intent on swallowing at least 2 or 3 aspirins before I resumed my studies. I'm

confusing you aren't I? Well, I want a high school diploma since I never really hadgraduated from high school technically. I had escaped from the wizarding hellhole before

graduation. The muggle exams start next week and I really DON'T need a grown man

sprouting tears and fainting whenever I state something as obvious and reasonable asstudying. Wouldn't Herminone be surprised?

Or maybe I should rest a while before I study. Damn headache is not showing signs ofleaving.

Even Voldemort doesn't give me as many headaches as them!

Heck! I had defeated Voldemort at 15! I know what evil and destruction! I've seen enough

murder, torture and rape! I've seen enough to give me nightmares for the rest of my life!

And they don't give me as many problems as the pink-haired furball, Shindo Shuichi!

ARRGGHHHHH!!!

I blinked, suddenly noticed a man standing rather behind me looking rather flustered. His

dark eyes looked nervously down at me.

"What?" I snarled, not in a particularly good mood at the moment. Well, I rarely am when

I'm at the studio with my bandmates.

"Sorry to interrupt you, Suguru-san." He began. Drats. Did I scream out loud? Lucky the

press didn't notice me having a mental breakdown. "Someone's waiting for you at the

entrance hall. They say it's urgent." I could see the man backing off from my glare.

"Did they say who they are?" I snapped. The man backed off further. The Snape glare is

very effective against both wizards and muggles alike.

"No Suguru-san. They merely stated they know you and that they are from the Ministry."

"Oh." I sighed mentally. Might be from the Board of Education. I knew I shouldn't haveK help me enroll for the high-school diploma exams. The trigger-happy manager

probably had blackmailed them and now they're suing me. This is becoming a really bad

day for me.

"Thank you. I'll go meet them right now." I stared, amused at the way the man scuttled

away, intimidated by a boy less than half his age. I would have smirked if I had theenergy but this whole mess is turning the Jupiter-sized migraine into a milky-way-sized

one.

I rubbed my temples trying to ease the thundering echoes for my own heartbeat as I


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strolled into the entrance hall. I really, really, really NEEDED aspirin. This is turning out

to be the worse day of my existence. Wait, scratch that. Meeting with Shindo-san was the

worst day of my existence.

Even thinking about him hurts!

ARRRGGGHHHHHHHH!!!

No. That silent scream was not from man driven mad by a certain pop singer, but a manwho suddenly found that he was haunted by the ghosts of his past.

Mind you, I would have screamed that out loud if it weren't for Hermione and Ron both

squeezing me in their arms, literally choking me to my death.

And I assure you, being shorter than both of them made me feel very uncomfortable,

physically and mentally. And, spying that Hermione's hand has a rather large diamond

engagement ring on, I really don't think her husband would appreciate her smothering meon her breast.

"Harry! Thank God you're still alive!" Hermione squealed, attracting attention from all

four corners of the room.

I struggled out of their crushing embrace and glared at them. Ron, his flaming red hair

and now six feet four frame, towered over me, his eyes shone with relief and anger. The

same look reflected in Hermione's brown eyes as her eyebrows furrowed to a shape

somewhat akin to Prof. McGonagall's severe look. "Do you know how worried everyoneis Harry? How can you just leave like that with no letter for two whole years?!"

I quickly decided the best way out of this unwilling confrontation. "Who's Harry? Whothe hell are you?"

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Chapter 2 Misunderstandings

Ron flared, he was always very passionate when hes certain hes right, which was most

of the time. "You know what we are talking aboutHarry Potter." He snarled.

I glared at him, muttered something that sounded like baka and stalked back into thestudio. Maybe I could ask Sakano for some aspirin. He certainly acts like he needs it all

the time.

"Damn you! Do you think you can just run away like that?! Again?!" Ron grabbed my

right arm painfully. "Youre so selfish, Harry! You dont care about anyone but yourself!"

I gritted my teeth. "Im not Harry." I stated again, hoping that theyll leave me alone.

Harry Potter is dead. Hes not coming back, even if the whole wizarding world is


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hollering after him.

"Finite Incantatum." Hermione waved her wooden stick determinedly at me. I almostsmirked when she saw that my appearance didnt change, but managed to look confuse

instead. Sometimes I do think Slytherin is the right house for me.

Their faces fell when they realized nothing had happened. Ron blushed a matching colorwith his hair and mumbled his apologies as Hermione stammered hers. Gryffindors.

Always acting before they think.

I glared at them for a while more before shrugging off Rons tight grip on my arm andstalked off inside the building, not feeling repentant for leaving my former best friends

like that. I dont want to see them every again! Ive severed all ties with my past and

burned them happily like firecrackers. I like my life the way it is! They have no right todrag me back to that hellhole!

Still fuming I stalked back to the elevator and back out again, realizing that I was

supposed to be leaving the studio. Why the hell are they here? My minds already messedup already!

Stupid headache!

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The next morning started fine, dressed in my regular cream-colored shirt, black jeans and

cap, I walked to NG studios. I should have known something bad was going to happen.You know that feeling when something is just too perfect to be reality. Well, its that kind

of morning. Those damn sparrows were singing, hopping around for crumbs thrown by

the same old lady I pass every morning. It was just before nine oclock, meaning that Imissed all those squealing, cooing (and blushing, depending on their age) high school

girls. Hence, a quiet walk from the small apartment I lived in, to the train station.

Stepping out of the busy train station wasnt that bad either, nobody was interested in ashrimpy, seventeen-year-old with baseball cap pulled down so half his face was covered.

It seems so normal, too normal on a Wednesday after something abnormal happened the

day before.

Hence, I should have known the moment I stepped into NG studios. Should have

prepared myself for some blonde, very male,person to fling himself on me. Naturally, the

force of the taller, heavier person plus the force of gravity equals a Suguru Fuijisakitumbling onto the ground, pinned underneath a very heavy, blonde, male, someone in a

very compromising position. And, as Murphys law indicated, just when you think it cant

get any worse, it will.

Shindo Shuichi, the source of my massive migraine yesterday and the day before . . .

come to think about, most of my headaches are caused by him, stepped in. Just the personto shout it all over the studio that two of the three Bad Luck members are gay! Great!This band really is Bad Luck for the girls! Were nearly all gay! Well, Hiroshi is bi . . .

But, back to the present uncomfortable situation. Shuichi blinked at us, before turning

around slowly and almost mechanically into the elevator. Thats odd. No shoutinghallelujah Fujisaki finally got laid? Really odd. Well, crisis in evaded, sort of, considering

Im still underneath the damnably heavy man.


6/19

"Get OFF me!" I squirmed around trying to somehow crawl my way out without crushing

my ribs. "Youre crushing me!"

The stranger jumped up hastily, offering me a hand as I gingerly tried massaging my poor

dead arms. That, I never got a chance, I suddenly found myself in the third crushing hug

in the front entrance hall of the NG studio.

"Damn it! Get OFF me! Are you deaf??" I howled, kicking the strangers knees.

"Harry! Its me!" Eh? The voice sounded strangely familiar. Oh. Drats. Of all people,

what the hell was Dumbledore thinking sending the Malfoy ferret here? "Im so glad Ifound you! Ive been waiting and waiting and "

I smacked my hand over his mouth, cursing the Dursleys under my breath for keeping me

in the cupboard and starving me every summer. Combined with Voldemort-sizedheadaches during the night, its no wonder I didnt grow an inch since I was thirteen. Its

hard to threaten people when youre more than a head shorter than them. "Im not Harry

Potter! I dont know who the hell he is! Its the second time Ive been accused of beinghim and I have no idea who the hell he is! Just back off and leave me alone!"

"Harry . . ." Malfoy looked back calmly at me with his silver eyes in a pure Malfoyish

style, the complete opposite of what he was acting moments before. "You may fool theworld but I can see through your disguise." His hands gripped my shoulders tightly, I

mentally noted to check on my shoulders for severe bruising.

I squirmed around and stared down at him, something that I have managed to become

quite adept in, despite of being shorter than nearly all the people I tried to stare down.

"Look hereMister. I dont know what you are talking about and frankly if you are so

desperate to meet this Mister Potter, I suggest the yellow pages."

"Harry." Malfoy shook my shoulders gently, his gray eyes staring pleadingly into my own

brown ones. Never thought Ill see the day when a Malfoy will plead a Potter. I smirked

inwardly.

"Harry . . . what happened to your scar? Dont you remember me? I know you do."

"Get your hands OFF me!"

"Listen to me Harry! Stop struggling!"

"I dont want to listen, you psycho! GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME!!!"

"Listen Harry. Im going to get Dumbledore and Snape. You stay right here ok? Maybe

they "

"K!!!" I screamed in desperation. The trigger-happy manager, always popping up in the

most inappropriate places, was no where in sight, but screaming out his name should grab

his attention. Hes very obsessive about his job, thus very protective of us. Now that Ithink about it, I think hes obsessive about his job because he could legally carry the gunand legally make homicidal threats.

"K~~~~~~~!!!!"

K came skidding through the glass entrance doors with a donut in one hand and his

precious magnum pointing at me. "What?" His gun waved around the room, the now

empty room. Damn Malfoy. Must have apparated. Now, I look stupid shouting for help


7/19

for invisible ghosts.

"Erm . . .Good morning K!" I smiled politely. I can feel my cheeks reddened under Ksgaze.

"You screamed my name like a slaughtered pig just to say good morning?" K raised his

eyebrow.

I smiled innocently in a very Harry Potter-ish way. The same kind of smile I give to

Hermione whenever Ron and I skipped down the road of rule-breaking.

Ks narrowed eyes peered at me suspiciously, but knowing my nature in this life, he

simply ruffled my already tousled hair affectionately. "Cold Fires Koji is sick today. I

want you to stand in for him."

"But I got "

Ks magnum greeted me on the forehead.

"Okay." I squeaked out, knowing that K would not hesitate to threaten or strangle or

torture or any other forms of blackmail, to get me stand in.

"Good." Magnum disappeared into Ks shoulder holster. "I want the song finished today.Hopefully Shuichi will be in a better mood today. He should be." Ks eyes gleamed

insanely and I wondered what the poor writer had to go through yesterday due to Ks

overzealous gun use.

But apparently, Ks blackmail had failed, which was very surprising. We had stepped into

the recording studio to find Shuichi sobbing hysterically on a drenched Hiro. Sakano was,

likewise, doing the same thing, except he kept mumbling between sobs, how Seguchi-sanwould kill him for not doing his job properly. I could feel the vibes of an impending

headache about to strike.

K, never failing to loose his calm in situations like this, fired a couple of shots in the air

with delight. I cringed from the noise, but at least the two sprinklers were momentarilyshocked into silence.

"Shindo, mop up and warm up in front of the microphone. Nagano, get a dried shirt.Suguru, check the equipment. Sakano, shut up." You can always trust K to bark out

effective orders while waving his precious Magnum in the air.

For once, however, his gun threats lost its effectiveness. The day just gets weirder doesntit?

Shuichi stood up hastily, violet eyes puffed and scowling at me. "How COULD you!" Hescreamed at me, right fist clenched as though he OOF!

Right. I should have expected that. I gingerly touched my bruised left cheek where the

pink fluffball punched me. Didnt know he could actually pack a pretty good punch. Atthis rate, Ill have more bruises staying here than at the Deatheaters lodge of torture.

"How COULD you!" Shuichi screamed again, his violet eyes glaring into my confused,

chocolate, brown ones as I landed on my buttocks.

"What the ?!" I managed. What the hell is Shuichi on this time?

"You and Yuki! I saw you! In public!! Kissing!" The singer spluttered indignantly


8/19

between sobs.

"WHAT?!" Me kissing Yuki?????" What was this guy on? Crack? Worst still, sugar andcaffeine?

"Is that why you hate me so much! How long as this been going on huh? Why did - " My

seekers reflexes helped me dodge another one of Shuichis clumsy punches.

"Where did you get that crazy idea?" I asked calmly, brushing myself off the floor and

evading Shuichis fists at the same time. All those hellish Quidditch morning practices

sure paid off. Wind, sleet, rain or snow, the seeker must remain the calm eye in the storm.

" you! I HATE you! I QUIT!!" The crazed singer finally ran out of the room screaming

and crying hysterically, closely followed by Hiro, after he throw a death glare at me.

K likewise, was giving me a similar death glare. "Fess up Fujisaki-kun." The American

drawled as Magnum greeted me with an air shot, synchronized with the thump of Sakano

fainting on the floor, yet again. "Whats this thingbetween you and Yuki?"

I shrugged. "I honestly think hes on crack." I replied calmly.

K glared back at me.

Mentally sighing, I opted for the half-truth. Well, I might need him later, maybe he can

shoot the Malfoy ferret down for me. "Some crazed, blond, male someone jumped me on

my way here. Thats why I shouted for you this morning. Mr. blond stranger clung ontome like a starved leech when Shindo-san walked in. He must have mistaken that crazed

fan as Yuki."

The American glared at me a while more before putting away his precious gun. Good, hebelieved me. Luckily, he has more sense than Shuichi, hopefully Ill get protection from

him. K with magnum is as protective as an Hungarian Horntail guarding her eggs. "Fine.

But you go clear up this mess with Shuichi and I wantthe song finished by the end of the

day. Otherwise . . . " Ks maniacal glint reappeared in his clear, blue eyes. I took it mycue to leave as K started firing random shots in the air, missing my forehead by only a

couple millimeters. That American is as obsessive with shooting as Dumbledore is with

his lemon drops.

I half ran out of the studio and shut the door, berating myself on how I always seem to

attract trouble to me like a magnet. Growling at myself, I followed the path of tears

Shuichi had left on the floor, which lead me up several flights of stairs. Typical of Shuichito end up on the roof.

I gritted my teeth, dashing up the stairs, hoping he wouldnt do anything too drastic. Idont want anything death added to my already mile-long list of casualties I have caused.

Dimly, I wonder if Hiro was chasing after Shuichi too. Maybe he will be able to stop

Shuichi before he did anything irreversible.

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Several minutes later, I found myself on the roof. Hiro had graciously offered me to

comfort Shuichi first. That bastard. Wasnt he Shuichis best friend? Shouldnt he be theone to go up there first and calm the fluffball down before I step in?

Shuichi was sobbing hysterically against the wall. I sighed and approached my doom


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cautiously, acknowledging the fact that Bad Lucks vocal is as unpredictable as a drunk

Sakuma Ryuichi.

"Shindo-san." I began, mustering as much Gryffindor bravado and bluntness as I could.

The guy did look kind of pathetic.

"What the HELL do you want?! Have you come to gloat at me now?!?!?!" Violet eyesturned inky black with fury, glared heatedly back, pink lips parted for another scream.

"I dont have time for that." I cut in quickly.

"Of course you dont. Cant wait to get back downstairs to screw with Y-" Shuichi burst

into noisy tears again. Guess the whole thing really did break his heart.

"It wasnt Yuki downstairs! Hes Ma-" The words slipped back into my mouth before Igave away too much. I probably already gave away enough. I dont want to go back

being Harry Perfect Potter. "Hes my former "

Theres quiet but an audible pop.

Shit.

The person I least wanted to see, the person I least liked, the person I least wanted toknow, was standing in between us, in the form of a certain greasy haired Potions

Professor. I quickly replaced the look of disgust and fear into one of surprise.

"Who are you?! Cant you tell were in the middle of a discussion?"

Snape smirked back at me. I really tried hard not to hate him during the war, since he did

help me on several occasions but I still cant stand the git.

"What the hell do you want?"

"You." Snape drawled, withdrawing his wand from some inner pocket of his frilly shirt.

Shuichis jaw dropped. "Y-You . . ." Fists clenched and I waited with anticipation to

dodge the incoming punch. "Y-you. Slut! First Yuki! Now him!" a trembling fingerpointed accusingly at Snape. "Whos next?! Hiro? Sakano?! RYUICHI?!?!?!"

ARGHHH!!! Nude Snape! Bad image!!! I tried to ignore Shuichi as he raved on but that

didnt seem to help. Another migraine had anchored in the center of my brain. Stupid

Snape wasnt helping either. He just stood there, like a rock, smirking.

This has to be one of the worse days of my life.

I was jilted out of my thoughts suddenly. The pink fluffball keeled over like a bowling

pin. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Snape grumble irritably under his breath aboutstupid pink muggles.

I tried to look convincingly shocked. "What did you do to him?! Release him or Ill callsecurity!"

"Shut it Potter. Quit your playacting. Start acting your age."

I started shaking the hapless singer, brown eyes wide with panic and fear. "Release him!"

"Fine." Snape snarled. "Hold this while I get my wand." A brown muggle briefcase flew

straight at my face. Why are people so intent of bruising my face today? I got a gig

tonight. I need my face. I found out later, I didnt need to worry about that.


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Just like the idiot Gryffindor I am, I failed to observe several important things:

- Snape already has his wand out. So why do I need to hold onto his briefcase?

- Snapes wearing leather, biker gloves.

- Snapes frilly dress shirt looks like something that should belong to a museum.

Ok, so the last one was kind of useless. Well, back to reality, I was hit on the face with theblasted briefcase. Cursing, I caught it before the heavy thing plummeted down onto my

toe. Then I realized that perhaps I dont have to worry about tonights gig afterall.

I felt the tug on the navel as I portkeyed with the damn briefcase into the unknown.

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Chapter 3 - Interview with the Dumbly

"Have a seat Harry, or should I say Fujisaki-kun?"

I'm glad Dumbledore's not beating around the bush this time. With just one sentence hemanaged to trap me back into the blackhole of my past.

I slumped onto the seat opposite Dumbledore. "I'm not Harry." I glared at the old mandefiantly. Fawkes, the phoenix, turned its beaded eyes at the sound of my voice and

trilled a happy, melodic tune.

The headmaster's hand stilled. "No. You're not." Dumbledore admitted. A tea set appearedmagically on the desk, compliments of Dobby, I suspected. It had my favorite lemon

cream biscuits by my plate.

"Tea? Fujisaki-kun?"

"Yes please."

Tea magically appeared in the cup, steaming slightly in the cool night air. I drank itsilently, my eyes scowling at the old man and the phoenix now and then. Dobby really

did overdo himself. The tea had exactly the right amount of milk and honey I preferred.

"I suppose I should get to the point." Dumbledore finally said after felt like severalredwood tree's lifetimes of uncomfortable fidgeting and nibbling on my part. God the old

man was infuriating. So was Fawkes. The damn bird kept eyeing me like he just ate

several triple chocolate and peanut butter cookies from my hidden stash without the myknowledge. "It has come to my attention that you have been put under the Augeo Magus

charm." [1]

"The what?!" I asked impatiently.

The old headmaster sighed, looking worriedly back at me. Voldemort's dead and gone

already. Why was he looking so worried about? "It was a precaution before the wars,

Fujisaki-kun." I wish he would stop stressing my name with that annoying twinkle in hiseyes. Yes. I get it. I know you know who I am. You don't have to repeatedly say it out

loud! "At that time, we needed someone with adequate magical strength to defeat

Voldemort. The Augeo Magus charm is a strengthening charm. The basic idea is toincrease the amount of magical reserves that can exist in your body, by doing so, increase


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your magical power. During that time, the Order did not have much information on this

and your mother didn't have enough time to continue the research before Voldemort

found out about it." Dumbledore took another sip of his tea. I was feeling veryuncomfortable by now, wondering exactly what this is coming to.

"Then she was unable to. Fortunately, Lily kept all her records in the Headquarters and

we were able to cast the charm on you before completely destroying all the field research.Unfortunately, the side effects were not really examined properly. We really had no idea

what they will be, except that they were not harmful. But a year ago, Mrs. Weasley finally

made the break through."

Wait. What did that Dumbledore just say?! "On me?!" I tried not to look too undignified.

I'm Suguru afterall, not Harry Potter. "On me?!?!" So that was why I was their 'savior'.

Because of some bloody charm that had, again, nothing to do with me. Just like BaldyVoldie's death. Trouble really must have a crush on me.

"And you cast the charm before you found out on its side effects?! On a helpless babyboy?!" I screeched again, nearly upsetting the cup of tea I was holding.

"The Order voted upon it. It was the only way to defeat Voldemort." The Headmaster saidcalmly. "At least that's what we thought back then." He added after a moment's hesitation.

I took a deep breath. Great. Now I had some unknown charm cast on me with unknown

side-effects until a year ago. "What are the side-effects?"

"Nothing bad really. In truth, it's better than we originally thought. You see, Fujisaki-

kun," I winced at the ridiculously drawled out pronunciation of my name. "The charm

does strengthen your magical reserves by breaking down all barriers around it. Basically

it changes the wizard's physique into one that can accept and transmit magic through themagical fields in his surroundings. In other words, he becomes a magical vessel, much

like a wand."

Great. Now I'm a thing, a wooden stick ready for Dumbledore's maniac sorcery. "And theside effects are?"

"Nothing too worrisome at all. You, Fujisaki-kun, just need someone, a partner, to groundyour magical capabilities lest you accept too much, transmit too little. Namely, without

your partner, the magic can overload your body's system and land you in St. Mungos."

Of course it's nothing to worry about! It's only Harry and his insanity! Who cares aboutHarry now that he's done the job he was born for.

"I know it's hard for you to accept all this with such short notice Fujisaki-kun. But for

your sake, you must find and take on partner before your magic gets out of control."

In other words, for the sake of the wizarding world being known to muggles. "And if I

don't?"

"We'll find one for you!" Dumbledore beamed happily as if he just found a forgotten

cache of Lemon Drops in his coat pocket. "In fact, we already have several suitable

candidates picked out! I'll send them over to you next week. Then you can pick the oneyou like."

I gripped my cup of tea, valiantly resisting the urge to break the old coot's nose. Is he

purposely trying to be sadistic or just plain annoying? "I don't need a partner. I won't have


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a partner." My eyes narrowing into cat-like slits. "And if I do, I certainly don't need you

picking them out for me. Take the charm off."

"I'm afraid that's impossible. The castor died several years ago. Not to mention, the

research is still taking place."

I scowled at Dumbledore, who kept up with his smiling faade as though nothing iswrong. Well, nothing was wrong for him. Thinking back at the many times the old man

played and plotted around me had taught me to be cautious and suspicious at everything

he said. Wasn't there are a saying? Something like - nothing is free? Dumbledorecertainly kept to this.

Which is why I didn't trust what he's telling me now. There's no evidence. There's no

witness. Why the hell should I believe the same person who puts me in front ofVoldemort every year since Hogwarts, just for that tiny 0.01% chance that I could kill

him by pure fluke?

I stood up, the tea cup was still full, being magically transfigured to be self-refilling.Standing to my full height, which wasn't much but will have to do, I mustered as much

anger as I could and channeled it through my eyes. "Well, from your past history, Mr.Headmaster," I snorted rudely. "I believe I'll be just fine with or without the AngeoMagus charm cast on me. I don't need a partner and frankly, I don't believe that's the only

way to deal with the charm. Between, as you, yourself, had said before, I don't even think

you cast the charm properly since I haven't felt any of the side-effects you've mentioned. Ihope this will be our last meeting and that you will stick your nose into more important

affairs after this." With that, I strode out of Dumbledore's room, shutting the door with a

satisfied bam.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

K looked like he was going to maim me when I apparated and stomped back to the

studios. Snape must have obliviated all of them, judging by the rather angry expressionson their faces. Well, K was furious, Sakano had fainted, Shuichi and Hiro were messing

around with Pocky sticks of all things. I do wonder about the mental capacity of a certain

pink-haired rock star. I mean, just how much more immature can you get trying to build ahouse of Pocky sticks on my synthesizerWaiton my synthesizer?! Right. Now I'm

pissed.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Cold Fire's debut went well . . . in their opinion. After an annoying long wait in the

dressing room, the female lead singer apparently just couldn't bear the thought of hot pink

mascara matched with bright green lipstick. For half and hour, she fretted and fought withher manager, and her self-esteem while I fought resist the urge of kicking her and the

bassist into Timbuktu. That idiot Takeshi (he calls himself Shi-chan) just happens to be

too dense not know when to stop feeling me up, even after I knocked him senseless witha empty Guinness bottle. We had to wait another 10 minutes for the pervert to wake up.

By the time we finally got on stage, the lead singer finally decided that pink mascara

wasn't at all that bad, we were running 45 minutes late and a very impatient mob washurling curses at us. After the first few chords they finally settled down into a roaring

crowd of adoring audience. That did wonders to my headache, I assure you.


13/19

Finally at a quarter past midnight, I stumbled back towards my apartment complex,

cursing K and the NG company. Cold Fire had decided to celebrate their success by

camping inside a bar somewhere downtown. Naturally being too young and tired foralcohol, I declined the invitation, after knocking Takeshi senseless with his own bass

guitar when his hand 'wandered' into certain private areas. I was tired. I was cranky. I was

pissed at the world.Which is why I didn't see him until I tripped over him. For a horrid moment I thought it

was that pervert back to haunt me, I braced myself preparing to give him a good box on

his ears when I noticed the person had pink hair.

"Shuichi?"

@@@@@@@@@@@@@@

Chapter 4 Return of the Death-defying Bouncing Ferret

Purple eyes lifted to gaze into my brown ones, puffy and red with recent tears.

"Suguru" He sniffed and shivered in the cold night air.

I looked at him in puzzlement and surprise. Shuichi and I werent known for our buddy-buddy relationship. Just why hes sitting outside my door like an abandoned puppy was

beyond my comprehension.

"Come on then." I reached for my keys, too tired to think straight. "Lets get you warmedup."

My apartment wasnt something to brag about. The living-dining room being dominated

by a baby grand piano and four keyboards, there was just enough room to squeeze a smallcouch and a television to the side. I usually ate in the kitchen, keeping the cupboards and

the fridge well-stocked with enough food for a family of five. Im paranoid about empty

cupboards. I guess growing up half-starved had some effect on my psychologicalbehavior to them.

"Here. This will warm you up."

Shuichi stepped wide-eyed into the kitchen. "Thanks." His pale, trembling hands clutched

at his steaming mug and took a small sip. "Hot chocolate! Never knew you liked it too

Suguru!" I could see his puppy tail waving haphazardly in the air.

"You seem like a hot chocolate person." I shrugged and proceeded to make myself a

steaming cup of milk tea. Does aspirin mix well with tea? Hope so. "What is it that you

need to talk to me about?"

Shuichi flushed sheepishly peered at me over the rim of his cup. "W-who says I n-need to

talk about anything? This could just be a social visit!" He ended indignantly. Was this guy

really 3 years older than me?

I raised an eyebrow. "A social visit that includes five hours sitting by the door in the

cold? Why not visit Nagano-san instead? Isnt he supposed to be your best friend?"


14/19

Shuichi blushed and bowed his head in a very un-Shuichi type of way. Great. I cant

believe Im feeling worried for the guy.

I sighed. "Listen Shindo-san. You dont have to talk if you dont want to."

Silence.

Right, now Im really worried. Gulping down the tea with my aspirin, I stood up andtouched Shuichis elbow gently, opting for the no questions way to deal with him. The

poor kid already had five hours straight of mauling over his problems. "Why dont you

stay here tonight? Youve got an early interview scheduled tomorrow right? I dont fancyK shooting holes into my door . . . or me . . ."

Shuichis mouth quirked up in a small smile at my half-attempt to joke. Well, thats a

beginning I guess. I pray this is not the beginning of another slump. My hands guided anunprotesting singer into my bedroom, which only consists of a twin-sized bed and a

massive wardrobe. Massive, due to the fact that K insisted me to keep the clothes at the

end of every concert. Nearly all of which consisted of the same black leather pants andsilk, button down shirt.

I fumbled in my drawers before finding what I was looking for, a pair of dried flannel

pajamas. These I bought for myself, but never used. Being always too tired to change, Iusually just undress into my boxers and sleep in those. I threw the PJs at Shuichi, who

caught it with his face. The singer gave a muffled yelp. Opps.

"Change before you go to bed. I dont want my covers dirty. Good night." I shut the door

as Shuichi began muttering how ungrateful I am again. Ungrateful?! I sighed to myself

softly, my left hand gently massaging at my throbbing head. Not bothering to undress, I

dropped onto my small couch and fell into dreamscape.

%%%%%%%%%

Its odd how Malfoy always made such dramatic entrances at the most untimelyopportunity. I woke up from a screech of horror. Two screeches of horror actually, but I

couldnt really hear Malfoys voice since Shuichis is much louder and higher. Hmmmm .

. . judging from that high F sharp he just produced, maybe I can finally finish composing

our new song.

A UFO flew by. It had one large black ear with a hole in the middle and a circular prism

body that landed with a large crash on my cream-colored walls. I felt the light of anoncoming headache.

At least that wasnt my favorite mug . . .I reluctantly got up from my makeshift bed, wincing from my sore neck muscles. AnotherUFO came flying out, I think it was another mug, crashing just an inch above my baby

grand piano. The ceramic pieces bounced from the keys to the hardwood floor and lay

there glistening in the early morning light. Damn Shuichi. Im still paying off that babygrand you know. I growled and stalked over to my bedroom.

"Shindo-san! If you throw another mug out that door Ill personally see to it that it lands


15/19

on Yukis face!" I turned rudely at Malfoy. "And you! Who do you think you are barging

into my apartment like that? Get out!"

The two gaped at my sudden intrusion. Shuichi, still on the bed, covers lying crumpled

around him with a picture frame in his right hand poised in a pitcher position. Malfoy, his

hair not slicked back this time, gaped at my rumpled appearance, cheeks flushed,

probably due to his high-pitch wail a few seconds ago.

I glared at the open-mouthed ferret. "Get out before I call security."

His mouth snapped shut and reopened. "Who the hell is he Harry?! Hes not your partneris he?" Silver eyes looked incredulously into my own. "But hes a MUGGLE!"

Shuichis violet eyes narrowed at the insult. "And youre a white-haired pervert!" He

bellowed.

". . . idiot who dyes his hair fluorescent pink!"

". . . cross-dresser with no sense of style!"

"Shi-" I tried unsuccessfully to interrupt their tirade. My headaches getting worse with

every scathing remark from both bakas.

". . . loud-mouth who shrieks like a girl!"

"Oi! Guys-"

". . . better than that wheezing old geezer voice you have!"

"HEY!"

". . . at least Im not prone to-"

"Thats it!" I screamed, slamming my hand against the wall. The door rattled on its

hinges. "You!" I grabbed Malfoy by his collar. "OUT! NOW!"

Malfoy opened his mouth for further verbal abuse. Bad move. Doesnt he rememberHarrys not a morning person?

The front door slammed with a satisfying bam on the ferrets face. Finally. Peace andquiet. I stomped over into the kitchen and cranked the radio up. Something classical

would be nice. It always had a calming effect on me.

I turned over to the mused pink-haired singer staring at the front door. "Shindo-san." Heturned slowly to face me. "What do you want for breakfast?"

Silence.

GrrrI thought a good nights sleep would make him better. Apparently not. I heaved a

sigh and rubbed at my temples ruefully. "Listen to me Shindo-san. You got to eat

something. Believe me. Yuki-san is not going to throw you out. No matter what stupidthing you do, Yuki still loves you. Any baka can see that."

Silence. This time of shock.

Understandable. Ive always been against his relationship since it does create a rather

unstable Shuichi, when hes really not that stable to begin with. But after a while of being

in their presence, including the time when I accidentally caught them making out in the

recording studio, (I wasnt able to look into Shuichis eyes for a week after that. I mean, I


16/19

really dont need to know exactly howflexible Shuichi can be. Nor did I realize Yuki-san

could be so vocal.) I got used to their rather volatile relationship.

It just grows on you. Kind of like cancer.

&&&&&&&&&

The week flew by fast. Maybe it was because I requested a weeks sick leave for myexams and K knew better than turning up at my door on his daily midnight stroll to

make sure I was sleeping and in bed. What kind of skewed logic is that? If I hadnt

known Seguchi-san better, I would have sued him for harassment.

As it was, nobody knew of Shuichis sudden appearances by my front door around eight

oclock. I didnt know why he was there, nor did I ask. Im pretty sure it had something

to do with Yuki and perhaps Hiroshi. Well, of all places he could go to, he just had tochoose mine? I just dont get it!

So I let him stay. No questions asked. None were asked in turn. Most of the time we spentthe night watching television together, mostly game shows and any music videos wewandered across, all of which seemed to include a lot of Nittle Grasper. Shuichi had a

habit of commenting on the most inane things, which drove me crazy at first since I

couldnt hear the commentator over Shuichis voice. But it was a vast difference fromlistening to four blank, shadowed walls by yourself, which I got used to over the years.

Being the way he was, Shuichi managed to blabber away his problem two nights ago

while I was cramming for Mathematics. To be honest, it wasnt anything big. Justsomething about Yuki being mad at him again, this time because he flushed his lovers

whole stock of beer and cigarettes down the toilet. Shuichi had protested that both were

bad for Yuki and therefore, in protection of Yukis health, Shuichi got rid of all of them.Needless to say, Yuki was very pissed and literally threw the singer out in only a T-shirt

and shorts with no wallet. Since Hiros girlfriend was staying over at his place, he

decided walked to my place instead. Im surprised he even knew where it was. Alsosurprised that as immature as he acted at times, he knew when to leave people alone.

Well, after the first sleepover, he had gone back that morning only to find out that due to

the excessive amount of waste he had poured down the throat of a porcelain God, it hadtaken to vomiting everything back up.

Hence, the famous writer was also booted out of his own apartment and moved into a

nearby hotel. This incident caused Yukis short fuse to go off even faster and the singerdecided to let Yuki calm down a bit more before attempting to make contact.

Even I had to agree that is the wisest thing to do. Itll certainly be interesting to see Yuki

jealous after Shuichis extended stay in my home. Although it will certainly bedetrimental to my health . . . well, I do have certain suicidal tendencies so why not amuse

myself before Yuki shoots me down.

So at the end of my final day of examinations, also signaling the end of numerous stares

Id been succumbed to for the short time period of my stay, I was actually looking

forward to meeting up with Shuichi in my apartment. Yuki had called him up yesterday


17/19

and asked if his brat wanted to have dinner with him tonight. The singer was so excited

he knocked over a whole bowl of buttered popcorn all over the floor. I was excited too,

not that I would look anything like it. Its not everyday you get to see Yuki going in an allout jealous fit over anything. A definite Kodak moment. Too bad the conversation took

place over the phone.

I smirked to myself, relishing the fact that I could finally have something to blackmailYuki. K would be happy to find the cure-all for Shuichis slumps. K would be also happy

to know that Bad Lucks keyboardists now had a rather large following in a certain high

school. A definite boost on our next record sale.

Smiling to myself, (no more exams! YES!!!) I was literally knocked out of my thoughts

by a tight, air-constricting hug. "Fuji-chan! Did you miss me?"

I grunted and managed to choke out the answer. "Are you kidding?! What are you doing

here?!"

Takeshi ruffled my hair affectionately, letting me go with a final tight embrace. Final,because I kicked him in the shins. "K-san asked me to pick you up and drop you off at the

studio. Something about a night show." The man hopped around me in circles nursing hisbattle wound.

Night show? Oh right. Some sort of interview for our soon-to-be released CD. With all

predictably unpredictable things happening to our singer, K had somehow got the bright

idea that by setting the release date earlier, itd give Shuichi a motivation to do things ontime. We still have four other songs unrecorded. The new CD was scheduled to be out in

a month. In other words, we were screwed. Well, Shuichi and Nagano-san definitely were

screwed. Im trying hard to be.

I opened my mouth to thank the annoying bassist when I was interrupted again.

"Who is he?!"Malfoys gray eyes looked piercingly into mine own. He was standing

next to me in expensive muggle attire. When did he arrive? "Another MUGGLEpartner?!" he sneered derisively at a shocked Takeshi.

"Who are you? Are you Fuji-chans friend?" Takeshi calmly replied, knocking Malfoysgroping hands away from my only clean, cotton T-shirt. I discreetly inched my way

behind Takeshi to use him as a shield from the ferret. Better Malfoy hex him than me. I

dont own a wand right now. It broke two years ago.

"Harry Potter! Dont you dare hide from me!" I had a sudden close-up view of

Hermiones face as she rattled me by the collar. Why did she arrive? How come I didnt

see her? Does she know apparating in front of muggles is still forbidden? "Its been aweek already and you still havent answered us! Do you know how much paperwork

youre holding up?!"Takeshi looked a little shocked before attempting to knock her hand away from me too.My shining perverted hero and his white bass guitar! Please note the sarcasm.

"And no excuses Harry Potter! We gave you an entire week already! An entire week! We

cant wait anymore! Dont you understand what is at stake here? There are still supportersout there Harry!" A week? Oh yeah. It was such a hassle getting rid of all those owls

without Shuichi noticing.


18/19

By now the students were slowing down in their tracks to watch the drama unfold as

Hermione got angrier and angrier and redder and redder. Most of them had a rather

strained look on their face as the brown-haired woman shook and shouted in perfectBritish English.

"If one of them, any one of them, get the wind of this we will be back at square one!

Dont you see Harry? Theres so much as stake here. We dont want to go back to wherewe were before." Her voice quavered into a hiss.

I understand. You dont need to remind me. I know that if dark wizards ever get a hold ofthis tidbit of information, the first thing theyll do is to make me into their own personal

wand. I understand all too well what is at stake. But what about me? Dont I get a say in

this? What if I dont want a sodding partner?

"I know. I know what you mean." I raked my left hand through my hair and gave the

witch a half-hearted smile. "But that doesnt mean Ill do it."

Hermione stepped back, her mouth dropping in shock, probably because the Boy-who-lived had always played the reluctant hero in annual near-death experiences. I was such a

fool back then.

"But " A spluttering Hermione grabbed hold of my arm, in the same spot as Ron haddone a week before, looking at me with desperation in her eyes. I glared back at her.

"Harry, you cant just say that! Dont you care about everyone else anymore? I know

Professor Lupins death hit you hard but that doesnt mean you can cut all ties with usjust like that. You are one of us. Whether you like it or not."

I gritted my teeth, my eyes boring holes on the patch of uneven concrete in front of me.

Dont think. Dont think. Control your anger. Let go of all your emotions. Be blank. Itook a deep breath. Think like Snape. I cant believe I just thought that!

"I dont care what excuses you are going to make Harry Potter! Do you know how many

years weve been tracking you down? You such an irresponsible git Harry! How couldyou leave us like that?"

Remember the occlumency lessons from Snape. Sure I was a failure at it but . . . lets notthink about that now. I exhaled and cleared my throat.

"Its been two years Harry! Do you know what youve been missing?! You havent even

got your NEWTS yet! And-" Hermiones rage seemed to fuel itself. If only Shuichisovernight inspirations worked that way. Well definitely get a lot more done.

I cleared my throat again. Hermione finally shuts her mouth and looked at me expectedly.

"Look. Im sorry about that but thats not my problem. I gave up on that part of my lifetwo years ago already. Im not going back."

She did an amazing imitation of a crocodile with a toothache.

"Now that weve got that cleared. Im in a hurry, so please excuse us." I nodded my head

to her politely, ladling on an extra thick Japanese accent to my spoken English. Grabbing

Takeshis sleeve, I scurried away as fast as possible without looking like a headlesschicken.

I could not say I regretted leaving my ex-best friend like that. I really wanted to leave

behind that life. Could they not see? Couldnt Hermione understand my position?


19/19

Couldnt they just accept a simple refusal? Its my life afterall!

But there was one thing I regretted leaving behind, although I didnt realize this untilmuch later. I had completely forgotten about the ferret. And, as you know, an ignored

ferret is not a happy ferret indeed.

&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&

Afterlife by Clockwork Crow

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Transcript of Afterlife by Clockwork Crow