TRANSITION

There is a scream in the dark. A man's scream. It is chilling and unexpected. Lights come up on the office of the Head of Magical Law Enforcement, where HARRY is sleeping on a small sofa. The room is in complete disarray. MAN IN THE PORTRAIT is trying to wake HARRY.

MAN IN THE PORTRAIT: Mister Potter? Harry?

HARRY (groggily): What is it?

MAN IN THE PORTRAIT: Having a bit of a lie in, are we?

HARRY: Yes, for once. Why would you wake me?

MAN IN THE PORTRAIT: You were screaming, sir.

HARRY sits up. He rubs his face and stops his glasses from falling off his chest. He puts them on and walks, tired, into a crooked stack of books.

HARRY: They haven't stopped. The dreams.

MAN IN THE PORTRAIT: What dreams are those?

HARRY ignores the question. He packs his bag and prepares to walk out of the office and down the corridor. Then he stops and casts an eye on his desk. HARRY stares as if frozen.

Seeing if you've missed anything you shouldn't have?

HARRY: Quiet, Beggarsbush, or I'll set you on fire.

MAN IN THE PORTRAIT: Well, that's not right... of all the impudent...

The MAN IN THE PORTRAIT realizes he's overstepped. He offers HARRY a more considerate expression.

But then again, I always did have a soft spot for warmth. Warm blankets. Warm spot of tea.

HARRY slowly makes his way back to the desk. A spotlight radiates down upon the unassuming wand box where VOLDEMORT's original wand is stored. HARRY's chest rises and falls with heavy breaths. A haunting melody plays. Quiet at first, the music builds with each passing second as HARRY opens the box and reaches inside. The moment HARRY removes the wand, the spotlight bathes him with an ethereal shimmer. HARRY's eyes widen, he almost looks taller as he observes how the wand is reacting to his touch.

Mixed into the choral harmony comes a lone voice — it is soft, yet animated — keen to speak, yet prudent. It is the aged voice of OLLIVANDER, the wandmaker.

OLLIVANDER: "I remember every wand I've ever sold, Mister Potter. Every single wand. It so happens that the phoenix whose tail feather is in your wand, gave another feather — just one other. It is very curious indeed that you should be destined for this wand when its brother — why, its brother gave you that scar. (beat) Curious indeed how these things happen. The wand chooses the wizard, remember. I think we must expect great things from you, Mister Potter. After all, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did great things — terrible, yes, but great."

A smile forms, but it is gradually dashed with the receding glow. Then the entire office, HARRY included, turns 180 degrees while a massive wall with sets of adjoining stairs and platforms glides to center stage, like an elaborate fire escape. HARRY's office stops spinning to reveal that it has become the exterior of a magical bookstore. There is a brightly-colored poster in the window for the upcoming release of RITA SKEETER's book. The architecture correlates with the imposing wall at center stage. Upon each level of the wall is a different vignette, waiting to interact with someone.

HARRY enters. He is wearing a black coat with an open high collar that obscures his profile, his hair is wilder than ever, his scar stands out on a paler face, and in his hand is VOLDEMORT's wand. He approaches the ground level where, plastered violently in red paint across a wall of wanted posters, we read the familiar saying: "Blitzfanger Rises". HARRY leers at the graffiti and mounts the first flight of stairs.

We are to understand that, as the Transition Scene progresses and HARRY moves to each subsequent vignette, this signifies the passage of time.

HARRY reaches the second-floor landing and walks to the vignette, stage left, where he comes upon a room in ruins, the walls crumbled and smoldering, the furniture upended. There is a WOUNDED WIZARD draped over a chair like a discarded cloak. He is gasping for breath. When he sees HARRY, he flails his arms in fear. We can see a letter pinned to his chest.

WOUNDED WIZARD (panting): Please — It is all I — have to offer you — tonight.

HARRY watches as WOUNDED WIZARD pitches himself forward. He is dead. HARRY coldly tears the letter from his chest. He reads it and stuffs the letter into his jacket. We are to assume this is a second letter from his future self.

He returns to the landing and moves stage right. The wind has suddenly picked up. HARRY pulls his jacket to his chest while his hair rustles and flattens. Along the way, he is confronted with TEDDY's owl. HARRY waves it away aggressively then stops at a red telephone booth. There is a wizard inside, slumped and unmoving. There is a letter pinned to his robe. The wind abates when HARRY steps inside to retrieve the letter. He reads and pockets the letter before moving on.

With the aid of the letters, his search for clues leads him the rest of the way along the landing to the vignette at stage right. It is an ordinary front door, a warm glow shines through a small, curtained window. HARRY tries the doorknob. It is locked. He takes out VOLDEMORT's wand and swipes it upwards, releasing a mad howl. The door flies off its hinges, crashing inward. Lights come up on the interior beyond the door, where a family of five are having supper. HARRY storms the dining room, the young children run to their mother in fear. The father — FRIGHTENED WIZARD — stands, arms out in surrender.

FRIGHTENED WIZARD: No!

HARRY (firm, threatening): Where is he?

HARRY aims his wand at FRIGHTENED WIZARD. The man is yanked back to the wall. FRIGHTENED WIZARD clutches his neck, he seems to be struggling for air.

WHERE IS LESTRANGE?!

The lights go dark. The wife and children holler out. Below this, the ground level is alive as witches and wizards have gathered excitedly at the bookstore. The door opens and the shopkeeper is immediately overrun with impatient customers.

HARRY is back on the second-floor landing and around him the world gets scarier. He mounts the next flight of steps looking angry and determined. He reaches in pain for his scar. The entire third level is taken up by a darkened alley. There are too many bodies lying around him. There is a metal door, painted green, below a dim yellow light. HARRY rushes to the door and finds DELPHI sitting there exhausted. When she sees him, she smiles gratefully. He helps her to her feet.

HARRY: Delphi! Are you all right? I told you not to come.

DELPHI: He said you'd be here soon.

HARRY: Who?

DELPHI: You may not have been here, Harry, but you were fighting — fighting alongside me.

DELPHI holds up a letter.

HARRY: He was here? You saw him — me?

DELPHI: A little older, but it was you. Bit of gray in your beard.

HARRY: I had a beard?

He scratches his stubble and looks back at the death and destruction.

I take it I survived. Did I — did I use —?

DELPHI: The Killing Curse? Do you really want to know?

HARRY shakes his head. This is taking him further than he expected.

You did what you had to do. They were going to kill me.

DELPHI hands HARRY the letter. He reads it eagerly.

He left this for you.

HARRY (astonished): Is this —?

DELPHI: Yes. We have him, Harry.

HARRY: Lestrange! (beat) Can you walk?

HARRY and DELPHI step through the open doorway and exit. On the ground level, couplets of wizards and witches stand outside the bookstore, reading the new "tell-all" about HARRY. Some are flipping madly to a specific page. They read, they gasp, they tell others to do the same.

READER 01: No...

READER 02: Could that be true?

READER 03: He — he lied to us.

READER 04: That's quite something.

READER 02: Makes sense, doesn't it?

READER 03: Dark magic.

READER 01: But that would mean...

READER 04: Yes, part of his soul —

READER 03: — resides in Harry POTTER!

READER 04: And always did!

READER 01: He's a... a...

READER 04: A living Horcrux of Lord Voldemort!

The stage goes dark. A gentle green glow covers the top level of the imposing wall. The glow is coming from the Dark Mark of the Augurey. It hovers in the starlit sky, its wings slowly flapping. The landing resembles the parapet of a castle, with turrets on either side. At stage right, below the Dark Mark, stands a frail man with long stringy hair — RODOLPHUS LESTRANGE. He looks calm, at peace.

Stage left, HARRY and DELPHI enter. Strong wind pushes at them as they advance, wands directed at his back. RODOLPHUS turns to face them. He bows.

RODOLPHUS: Welcome, Harry Potter. I've been waiting.

HARRY: Let's dispense with the pleasantries, yeah? Where are the Tempest headquartered?

RODOLPHUS: I am the Secret Keeper. The location is bound to my soul. Bound by the Fidelius Charm.

DELPHI: Tell us, or we'll force it out of you!

HARRY lowers his wand. He moves forward gradually.

Harry, what are you doing?

HARRY: We can't. Even if we get it out of him, it won't work. He has to tell us willingly.

DELPHI: So, we take him in. Eventually, he'll talk.

RODOLPHUS: Dear, pretty girl. Your best bet is to kill me, and hope that when the secret passes to the rest of the Tempest you may happen upon someone who is willing to speak. (beat) But they won't be. They would rather die. For our cause is greater than even that of Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters.

HARRY continues to move toward RODOLPHUS.

HARRY: And what cause is that? Anarchy?

RODOLPHUS: No, Harry. It is enlightenment.

HARRY: By taking down the Ministry?

RODOLPHUS: Wizardkind must be free — free to think for ourselves — to dispense of Masters and rulers — of Ministers and tyrants.

HARRY (laughing): But Lords are okay?

It is clear that HARRY is using this conversation to advance further down the parapet. He is less than ten feet away.

RODOLPHUS: Lord Blitzfanger will lead us. It is through him that all of Wizendom shall be freed.

HARRY: You're mental! All of you!

He is surprised as RODOLPHUS reaches out and hands something to HARRY.

RODOLPHUS (his voice hollow): Forgive me for taking your son, Harry. The secret is yours.

RODOLPHUS takes a long step back as HARRY looks down at his hand.

HARRY: A key. But where —?

HARRY's eyes widen and he leaps forward as RODOLPHUS LESTRANGE steps easily off the edge of the turret.

NO!!

DELPHI sprints forward and they watch as RODOLPHUS falls. We can see from the expressions on their faces that he falls to his death.

DELPHI (breathless): He — he killed himself! Why?

HARRY: So that I...

HARRY pushes back from the wall, a look of recollection on his face.

DELPHI: What?

HARRY: No, it can't be...

DELPHI: What is it?

HARRY: I know. (beat) I know where they've been hiding.

HARRY hands the key to DELPHI. She inspects the key.

DELPHI: I can't see anything.

HARRY: Because I'm the Secret Keeper now. It's a number.

DELPHI: What number.

HARRY: Twelve.