Harry Potter 1. Chapter 1 Divergence

Harry Potter and the Letter to Far By Tiara Light 

AN/ The characters in this story are the intellectual and legal property of JK Rowling and her assigns.

My attempt at a slightly manipulative Dumbledore and a super power Harry. There are also clear homosexual overtones but no pairings. You have been warned.

Also this will not be updated very often since I am trying to complete my two older till ongoing stories.

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Chapter One

Divergence

There are only three days to go until his birthday and it has already been a very long summer for Harry. With even less to do then normal, there is nothing for the grieving young wizard to do but think. And thinking is the one thing he definitely does not want to do. So Harry sits on his bed contemplating a spider busily spinning a web across his window. Not the most exciting subject matter but it is better than his other choices; Umbridge, Snape, the Department of Mysteries, Sirius, Voldemort, Dumbledore, or the prophecy. Yes the spider is much easier to think about, a classic case of avoidance but it isn't like Harry doesn't have plenty of time. He has to stay at the Dursley's until Dumbledore is satisfied that the wards are recharged, he isn't even allowed mail or the Daily Prophet. After the Orders little meeting with his relatives they locked him in again, but at least this time he is getting three decent meals a day plus a little extra for Hedwig if they were both quiet.

Two almost simultaneous pops behind him, distracting from his new past time of spider watching, cause Harry to whirl and draw his wand on the intruders. What Harry sees, when he focuses fully on those who have so abruptly invaded his room, leaves him staring incredulously unable to rectify the disparity in appearances. Two houses elves, dressed in glaring opposite manners are staring right back at him.

"Hello, what are your names and what do you need?" Harry asks the two of them.

One house elf is dressed neatly in a combination of tailored suit and dragonhide armor with the Gringotts seal clearly visible on his left shoulder. The other elf is covered head to foot in a insane get up consisting of an overly large wide brimmed wizard's hat and long tunic, open fronted robe, and a cloak. All of which were made up of irregularly shaped swatches of the loudest wizard fabrics Harry has ever seen, each with wildly moving animations giving the overall impression of complete insanity. Harry can guess who the elf belongs to as he had seen some of the fabrics on a normal set of robes before today.

The wildly dressed elf bounces around wildly yelling loudly. "Sirs is a good wizard Master Dumbly wants a letter delivered right now. Needs nice master to send letter back. Master saying it is very important."

Harry quickly takes the proffered letter and turns to the other elf that holds out another envelope. "Gringotts respectfully wishes to inform you of an official summons." Harry takes this letter as well and settles down at his desk to read them.

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Mr. Potter

This missive is in regards to the will of Sirius Orion Black, Duke of the most ancient house of Black. You are requested to attend the will reading on July 29, 12 o'clock noon in the inner inheritance room at Gringotts. Your cooperation is appreciated.

With Regards Gringotts

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Dear Harry

I thought you might be anxious for a bit of news so I sent my own house elf with a letter knowing he could reach you safely. First I hope you are having a relaxing summer and are studying for the upcoming year. Voldemort has been fairly quiet after the Azkaban breakout, only conducting a few minor raids just to keep the ministry off balance. I want to assure that all your friends and classmates are just fine.

Now on to a more serious matter, what happened in the ministry foyer can not be allowed to happen again, so Professor Snape will be arriving August 1st to resume occlumency lessons. Please try a bit harder not to antagonize him this time, no matter your personal feeling about him.

I am sure you have noticed that you have received no letters prior to this, I thought it was for the best that owl wards be placed around your home. I am currently holding all your mail for you, you will receive it after it is thoroughly checked when we pick you up in late August. I know you were hoping to get out of your home sooner but your family needs the protection of those wards as much as you do.

Also it is my duty to inform that Sirius left a will at Gringotts that I was unaware of. I am sorry Harry but due to security concerns you simply can not be seen in Diagon alley. I realize that this might benefit the Black cousins but there is nothing we can do about it at this time, please stay where you are. I will endeavor to talk to the goblins to see if I or someone else in the Order can stand in for you but on such short notice it will be difficult.

Sincerely Albus Dumbledore

P.S. Please call my elf, his name is Dwizzy, if you need to report your scar hurting in any way.

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'No, absolutely positively not.' The headmaster has just asked one thing to many of Harry, he is already stressed beyond what could conceivably be consider normal. Harry grabs two pieces of parchment and hastily writes his answers to each party in what promises to be a pivotal experience in Harry's life.

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Headmaster

I will only say this once, so please listen carefully. Do not send that man to this house, I refuse call this my home because it never has been. I am not asking, it is non-negotiable. If you insist in following your own misguided counsel in your extracurricular dealings with me it will not help in any way except to continue undermining what minimal trust I have left in you.

Mr. H. J. Potter

P.S. I respectfully report that I have had no visions or pain from my scar. I would also like to bring to your attention that Mr. Vernon Dursley has added two deadbolts, an industrial strength padlock, a magnetic security plate, and a floor to ceiling slide bolt to my bedroom door. These along with the previous eight locks are all fastened securely except twice a day when I am allowed to use the bathroom. They have modified window to the point that Hedwig can barely get out, even without mail she needs to fly enough so her wing muscles remain usable. She is not happy about no mail but I agree that she is too important to me to risk on such frivolities as friendship and love. I hope these safety measures, so I will not 'contaminate' my 'family' with my 'freakish abnormality' more commonly called magic, meets your approval.

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Harry folds his first note up and sets it aside deciding to write Gringotts before actually sending the Headmaster's note so he could calm down enough to reread it and remove any overly antagonistic comments.

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Gringotts To whom it may concern

Thank you for sending this missive with such an efficient elf, the wards that Headmaster Dumbledore put in place would not have allowed an owl to get close enough to deliver it. I would very much like to be present at the will reading but above mentioned individual has forbidden me to leave my residence and my muggle guardians are disinclined even allow me out of my room. If I had a portkey or knew how to apparate I would risk the ire of all the aforementioned and Voldemort to be where I need to be at the allotted time. Alas the Headmaster thinks of everything and my carefully saved money was also confiscated so I can not pay for a trip on the Knight Bus or a muggle equivalent. Nor is this strictly muggle house attached to the floo network.

That being said, if you could think of any way for me to fulfill your request for my presence I am open any non-fatal suggestions.

With Sincere Respect Harry H. Potter

P.S. I have no idea who is currently entrusted with my vault key, again the Headmaster's doing. Believe me I wish there was a way to remedy this.

P.P.S. Would you happen to know if my parents had a will, and if they did is there any way I could receive a copy.

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Harry rereads his note to Gringotts and nods to himself in satisfaction before putting it in the provided envelope and handing it solemnly to the neatly dressed house elf from the bank with a quick thank you before the little being can disappear. Harry glances at the hyper elf that Dumbledore had sent as it scurries around the room cleaning and making happy squeaking sounds to itself. Harry thinks that it might be singing but is loath to ask because the elf seems a bit insane even when compared to its master. Harry sighs resignedly and reads through his response to the Headmaster, wincing occasionally at the way the words seem to shout even without any type of emphasis. Done reading Harry sits down and stares at the parchment trying to decide what to change and what to leave. He finally scribbles out the line about this not being his home and everything after his comment about his scar he also leave his concern for Hedwig in and gives it to the elf who pops away giggling ecstatically. Harry knows that the Headmaster will probably remove the scribbles to read what else he said but the old man would just have to deal with it if he was that nosy. With the excitement done for the day Harry returns to his efforts to think about nothing.

What Harry can not possibly know is the impact his letters where about to have on his life and by proxy the entire wizarding world.

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The letter to Gringotts arrives in a timely manner and is given first to the clerk assigned to screen all mail for unwanted magics, next it is placed in the hands of a goblin courier that delivers it to the appropriate office. The office secretary checks the letter again and places it on the desk of the goblin assigned to the client's account. It is when the account manager finally works his way through his other appointments and reads Harry's letter that the first reaction is seen, a deep frown and a raised eyebrow. On a human this would not seem like much but for a goblin, especially a banker, to react in such a manner is telling. The Potter accountant is most displeased with the revelations in the letter, and realizes that these matters will need to be passed further up the chain of command so his other accounts will not suffer. Another courier is called as the accountant writes a short cover note to his superiors listing the steps that need to be taken in regards to Mr. Potter's letter. The letter goes through four different offices before it reaches a Gringotts governor with the necessary rank and clearance privileges to efficiently address the issues raised by it.

Governor Gripstaff is most unhappy to see the single short letter with four progressively more pompous notes attached to it. The first note is short, accurate, and properly efficient to serve the purpose it was meant to. The rest are just lower department heads trying to gain recognition. He finally comes to the original letter, reading through it he growls disgustedly, Gringotts personnel had long suspected something was amiss with this particular account but not to this extent. The easiest issue to remedy is getting the young Potter heir to the will reading, if the lad is willing to be uncomfortable for a short time. Gripstaff calls for an elf and writes a short note explaining to Mr. Potter that a Gringotts house elf would come collect him for the will reading. He also discloses that travelling in such a manner is best done on an empty stomach by anyone not used to it no matter their species, and that there will be a certain level of pain involved as well.

Gripstaff informs the other board members that he will be unavailable for anything except a full emergency and shows them the letter. To say that there are some most impolite comments made about wizards in general and one in particular would be a grave understatement. After a quick discussion it is decided to make a copy of the letter and the original note, that will be sent to the head Gringotts goblin with a very short note telling their leader who is working on effecting the necessary corrections. Once the board acknowledges his request for a cessation of his normal duties Gripstaff returns to his office. Once there he begins auditing the stacks of paperwork on the Potter account and consulting the assorted instruments that have been delivered to him in his absence, it is going to be a long night.

It is early the next morning before Gripstaff is able to check an inheritance globe to see what other paperwork he needs to have brought to him to integrate the Black inheritance. He is shocked to realize that he will have to do the exact same thing for all the Black holdings. There are five minor dispensations but none of them would cause any trouble, unlike the main inheritance where an insistent red flashing under several items in the globe indicates these things had been tampered with. Gripstaff growls and decides that he will simply go over it all and that Mr. Potter will need to do a blood heritage reading so that any missing inheritances could be audited and integrated as well. That can be done just after the will reading, hopefully he can be done with this before then because he has a feeling Mr. Potter's affairs are far more complicated than just the Potter and Black accounts. Gripstaff calls for a house elf to bring him some food and a stimulate drink.

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Dwizzy pops happily back to Dumbledore's home and places the note on his desk before popping down to the kitchens to complete his normal duties. The Headmaster does not return until late that night after overseeing the Wizengot, advising Minister Fudge, and trying to work out a compromise with Gringotts about Sirius Black's will. None of which showed much positive progress, in fact the goblins had been outright hostile. To say he is tired would be an understatement. He sits down at his desk and calls for a late tea, looking down he sees Harry's note and sighs, knowing that the young man's response is not likely to be polite. After some hot tea and a bit of consideration Dumbledore decides to wait until he has had some sleep before tackling the note, very sure that Mr. Potter's response will be an unhappy one.

Dumbledore sleeps late the next morning since he has nothing scheduled until almost noon, when he needs to make another attempt at negotiating with Gringotts. After waking up and preparing for another day he has breakfast and settles into the comfortable chair stationed at his desk. Opening Harry's note Dumbledore can feel the angry residual magic crackling threateningly around the sharply scrawled words. Dumbledore sighs realizing he was right about how Harry would take his letter. He is actually surprised by the actual neutrality expressed in the words still visible on the parchment, even if they are rather blunt, but he knows there is more to the letter since Harry didn't bother to rewrite it, only scribbling out certain sentences. Dumbledore is alarmed by the first crossed out words he uncovers. He had always known that Harry didn't consider Privet Drive home, but as long as his displeasure remained undeclared the wards would remain, but to have it in writing with so much negative magic flowing through the words, it would only be about a week before the blood protection unraveled. At least he had a little time to find a way to move Harry and his relatives safely to a more secure location. Perhaps he should separate them if Harry was this adamant about disliking them, it might be best if they were not around when he could finally use magic freely. He is also disturbed by the outright vitriol that Harry obviously has for Severus, this type of emotion doesn't happen without provocation. The only explanation Dumbledore can think of is that Minerva is right and Severus still refuses to see anything other than James Potter when dealing with Harry, but then they will be spending time together this summer so maybe they will finally find some common ground. Dumbledore is not sure what to make of the rest of the revealed writing, there is a desperate undertone that makes him almost believe that Harry's claims are not exaggerations, but that couldn't be after all they are family, right. The owl though he could understand. It would be a simple matter to have her stay with a magical family so she would not need to be locked behind wards, though Dumbledore reminds himself that his original plan is moot now that they were going to be forced to move Harry.

Dumbledore mulls over what should be done to assure Harry's continued survival, maybe he can be sent to Snape Manor. Yes that is an enlightened idea, Harry will be safe, the two boys will have to work out their differences, and any rebellious notions Harry might have will be thoroughly squashed. The Headmaster hums happily as he writes Harry a note explaining the change in plans and the reasons for it. He strongly stresses Harry's guilt in destroying the wards and the terrible consequences that might come about by not learning occlumency. He never once stops to consider how a grieving, strong willed, forcedly independent, powerful young wizard might view his words.

Harry is still awake when the Gringotts elf comes back with a reply, he is most pleased with the prompt response and by the solution. He doesn't mind that there will be some discomfort during transport, it will be worth it to keep Sirius' legacy away from Voldemort's followers and from Dumbledore's manipulations. Harry finally drifts off to sleep at about one in the morning because he was unable to calm his nervous energy and a brooding sense of impending doom.

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Banging on his door the next morning wakes Harry and lets him know that Petunia has unlocked his door while Dudley and Vernon are gone so he can go to the bath room. He glances out of the window and notices that the sun is well up, if he hurries he might be able to have some hot water before his aunt starts the laundry. Harry grabs a clean pair of jeans and some string to hold them up, he would change into something more appropriate once he got back into his room. His few nice things were hidden in his trunk under some obviously magical equipment, ensuring his family stayed away from them. Harry manages to thoroughly clean his hair, wash his more delicate bits, and do a cursory scrubbing before the hot water starts to run out. He is even able to finish his shower with tepid water, turning the shower off completely before the water becomes truly cold. Harry towels off with several towels that he stashed in his room just in case he needed them, he puts the two wettest ones in the laundry hamper and takes the others back to his room where he spreads them out to dry.

Standing in front of the cracked mirror on the battered old dresser Harry stares at himself until Petunia relocks his door and shoves a decent looking meal through the cat-flap. He looks at the time, 10 a.m., there is enough time between now and when he has to leave for his stomach to digest everything. He decides to eat first, then pack everything he owns away in his trunk except a change of cloths, his wand, and something to read. Harry figures he has nothing to lose by asking the elf the goblins are sending to shrink his stuff so he can keep it with him. He just knows something big is going to happen today, and anything he leaves behind will be gone for good. Harry returns to staring at himself, he reaches up in irritation and tugs at his hair wishing very much that it was longer. To his complete surprise and utter horror his hair begins to creep down his neck and face, Harry glances wildly out his window. He can't see any owls, so he relaxes and watches what his hair is doing. When it reaches his shoulders Harry begins to worry about whether or not it is going to stop. As soon as he thinks about needing it to stop his hair ceases to grow and Harry breathes deeply in relief.

Turning this way and that Harry decides he likes the way his hair looks, it covers his scar and makes his features more aristocratic. Harry snickers at himself for sounding as vain as a Malfoy. He flops down on his bed and begins to reread his first year transfiguration book, muttering occasionally about important spells and theories he missed when he read the book when he was eleven. He keeps an eye on the time and when Dudley's old alarm clock shows 11:37 he puts his book away. Harry changes into a pair of dragonhide pants the Weasley twins had gotten him as a joke and a nice silk shirt Hermione and Ginny had badgered him into getting because the almost dark enough to be black shade of green 'made his eyes stand out'. He stuffs his feet into a pair of dragonhide boots Tonks had sent him as an early birthday present with a note attached saying that they had auror level enchantments on them. Lastly he slips on a set of dress robes, the same ones he had gotten for the Yule Ball back in his fourth year. He had, had to alter them of course. He had done so awhile back while still at Hogwarts using a charm to lengthen them, then removing the sleeves and fancy closures so they would hang open. Harry puts his old clothes in his trunk, checking himself one last time in the mirror before his 'ride' gets there.

He doesn't have to wait long before a pop signals the arrival of the Gringotts' house elf. "Is sirs ready to go?"

"Just one thing, I am feeling rather edgy of late and I would like to keep my things with me, could you please shrink my trunk?" Harry motions to the battered wooden trunk that has served him faithfully since he was eleven.

"Of course sirs." The elf snaps its fingers and the trunk shrinks the size of a snitch. "Sirs has only to tap it with his wand and says shrink ors grow whenever sirs needs to."

"Thank you very much, you are a very efficient house elf. I am sure Gringotts considers you a valuable asset." Harry says kindly enjoying the slight blush and perked up ears that indicate the joy the house elf feels at the compliment.

Before they can leave Dumbledore's elf pops into the room. "Harry Potter sir, Dwizzy having another note for you."

The house elf bounces in place eagerly as Harry reads, his expression becoming progressively more angry. "So be it." Harry manages to smooth out his expression not wanting to take out his anger on the innocent elf that is only doing its job. "Will you give Headmaster Dumbledore a message for me since I am out of ink and parchment?" Dwizzy nods enthusiastically. "Enough Headmaster, you just went one step too far. Good-bye." Harry stops and nods to a very confused Dwizzy who looks up at him for a second then pops away.

Harry looks around his room to see if he has forgotten anything, he almost curses when he sees Hedwig watching him intently from her cage.

"Will she be affected like I will by traveling with you?" Harry retrieves Hedwig and her cage.

"No, sir. Owls and other magical beasties ares immune to effects of elf magics." The Gringotts elf replies promptly.

"Good, now what do you need me to do?" Harry asks his face set in cold determination.

"Sirs just needs to gives me his arm, and I's is be doing the rest." The house elf responds quietly.

Harry silently offers the elf his arm, the next moment he feels like his innards have been scrambled and rearranged upside-down. He just barely manages to set Hedwig down before he collapses. After what seems like eternity Harry hears someone clear their throat, he groans and levers himself up so he can look around.

"If you like Mr. Potter I have some catnip and honey tea that will help settle your stomach and nerves." A richly dressed goblins moves into Harry's line of sight carrying a teacup.

"Yes please, thank you." Harry croaks while accepting the cup not ready yet to attempt getting up again no matter how bad it looks for him to sprawled out on the floor, it would be worse if he fell again.

"My name is Gripstaff, and while we have a few quiet moments I wish to apologize for the discrepancies that our bank found after you wrote us. When you came to the bank the first time the blood wards on your key should have been restored so that only you could use it. We should also have personally verified you had been appraised of your parents will either then or when you where staying at the Leaky Cauldron. We have corrected all the problems with the Potter account except for a couple of personal family heirlooms, but when we checked the Black accounts we found some irreparable discrepancies, however they will not effect today's reading. We will deal with the specifics of those matters after the reading itself, but I would also like to make a request of you." Gripstaff watches interestedly as a myriad of emotions rampage across Harry's face.

"A request?" Harry is leery of committing to anything after trusting the Headmaster so blindly.

"Yes I would like, with your permission, to perform a blood inheritance ritual." Gripstaff hurries to explain when he sees Harry blanch. "Mr. Potter I have read your account of what happened and I wish to assure you that this process can only work if you are completely willing. I will not be touching you in any way. You do not need to answer me now, and I will be quite happy to answer all your questions as soon as the reading is over and we can relax in a secure office away from meddling individuals."

"I am willing to hear you out, so long as I am safe and free to make my own decisions." Harry suppresses a wince at how petulant he sounds.

"Perfectly understandable for one in your position Mr. Potter, it is unenviable to be caught between two such powerful wizard without an anchor." Gripstaff says as Harry struggles to rise. "If you have your balance back it would be for the best if you were already seated securely in the meeting room, that way no one has access to you and we can all say you were never exposed to public scrutiny."

Harry closes his eyes tightly when the ground seems to sway but nods slowly anyway.

"Good, if you will follow me we will take the short rout slowly." Gripstaff moves to a door Harry hadn't seen and waits for Harry to reach him. "Do not be discourage by the way you feel Mr. Potter, every goblin I know of actually passes out on their first elf trip as do most wizards. I am most impressed by your fortitude."

Gripstaff's admission doesn't really make Harry feel better physically but it does sooth his nerves a bit. Harry is relieved when they reach a heavily guarded door and finds there are several comfortable upholstered chairs waiting for them. Harry chooses the chair closest to the desk that Gripstaff sits down at, it is larger than the rest and has deep wings so that anyone sitting in it will be almost hidden entirely from everyone but those directly in front of it. They sit in silence waiting for the other beneficiaries to arrive.

By the time noon rolls around and the others show up Harry has recovered his equilibrium enough to have a light snack and take a good look around the room. Gripstaff has a young goblin bring Harry a slightly oversized cloak with a deep hood made of a silky dark green fabric before the other beneficiaries are allowed in. Each of the people who are shown into the room look quizzically at the unmoving figure in the most prominent position in the room and wonder who he is and what relation he is to Sirius. For his part Harry stoutly refuses to look at anyone lest his reactions give him away. Harry stiffens in his chair when he hears the unmistakable sound of Mad-eye Moody's wooden leg coming into the room.

"Headmaster Dumbledore, I must insist that anyone not specifically named in the will to remain outside. That includes most of the people who are with you or do you need a refresher course in goblin etiquette and banking procedures?" Gripstaff does not stand but he does seem to grow as several goblins move away from the walls and move towards the group of new arrivals.

"I am sorry I just thought.." Dumbledore is cut off by a snort from Harry.

Gripstaff smirks at Harry. "I think I have to agree with my friends sentiment Headmaster Dumbledore, you did not think about the ramifications of compromising Gringotts security by not only informing a large group of people you would be here but you also brought them along probably without checking their identities. Our security forces will now escort your entourage to a number of separate observation rooms for the next couple of hours, one can never be too safe considering the current state of affairs." Before Dumbledore can protest the extra people are hustled out and Dumbledore is seated in the chair farthest from Harry. "Now we can begin."

"I Sirius Orion Black being of sound mind and body do hereby bequeath my worldly goods as follows."

Albus Dumbledore, you know who you are without the other zillion middle name of yours, I leave you Kreature and the portrait of my mother. If you can not think of a way to remove them from my house safely they are to be destroyed, not freed and certainly not gifted to one of my other blood relations, no exceptions.

Molly and Author Weasley, I am not sure just who you think you are to bad mouth the dead, James and Lily were exceptional parents who did everything in their power to keep Harry safe, but I warn you not to do so where Harry can hear you. I am also quite aware that your entire family knows how to get to platform 9 3/4 without risking the muggles noticing by talking at the top of your lungs. That said Harry does care for you and your family, do not betray that trust now that you have it. To you I leave ten thousand galleons, this should be enough to help your children finish school and to really upgrade the wards so all of you will be safe.

Minerva McGonagall, you were the scariest teacher I had in school, terribly sorry you lost that title before Harry started Hogwarts. I implore you to reevaluate your position as Deputy Headmistress and Head of Gryffindor, Harry needs an advocate inside that school who does see him as a weapon or spoiled brat. Dam it woman do your job, uphold the oaths you took to the children. How can you miss the fact he is half the size Lily was and has only two close friends for five years. How about the way he eats; almost nothing at the start of the year, then slowly more until he begins to fill out, totally gorging right before he is sent back to those muggles, lastly hoarding food to take with him. Wake up and smell the ogre before he ends up permanently damaged without Voldemort lifting a finger. I am leaving you and the Gryffindor quidditch team five thousand galleons in a fund vault for new equipment.

Nymphadora Tonks, had to leave you something just so I could use your first name. Cousin you are spreading yourself to thin; between your family, the aurors, and the Order you definitely need a vacation so I leave you with ten thousand galleons. Take your parents with you, if you have any money left over I suggest you put it in a school trust fund for any litter of little nymphs that might pop up in the future.

Fred and George, the Weasley twins, entrepreneurs and would-be pranksters. Yes I said would-be because I will always hold to the belief that the Marauders were the kings of practical jokes, though many of them weren't very practical. To the two of you I leave ten thousand galleons for research and development. And a hint, the marauders had a son who might be able to help you learn a bit more about us.

Remus John Lupin, my dearest wolfy. To you I leave one hundred thousand galleons and Grimmauld Place, on the stipulation that Albus removes his things and you refurbish the place. Buy some cloths, procurer a reliable supply of wolfsbane potion, and outfit one of the basement rooms with a forest where the wolf can be content and everyone else safe. And you had better look after our cub this time or find a way to live forever because James and Lily won't be the only ones waiting to have words with you. You should have at least been able to check up on him a couple of times a year during the new moon, even if you had to hit Dumbledore over the head with a rolling pin to knock him out for a few hours.

Now to the Black legacy, everything I am and everything I have now belongs to Harry James Potter. Harry once you sign this document you will be my true and legal heir as well as James'. We discussed this a long time ago, all four of us, that if we had children they would be joint heirs. We swore an oath on our own children's lives that we would never betray one of the pack's cubs no matter what. Peter did, so he can never sire a child. That also means you are automatically his heir, gross though that might be Harry he is a pureblood and his family does have an estate. Hopefully Remus will have some pups, that way you can share this stuff with someone else instead of shouldering in all on your own. That reminds me since Remus has that hairy problem he isn't allowed to attend to certain functions for his family, if you want to you can. The bank has a complete and accurate list of everything that is legally supposed to be included in the estate, if anything is missing then there is a thief in a trusted position.

My last words are to my godson and heir, I love you Harry. Those words have never come easily for me And I am sorry I didn't say them to you every time we talked. Live your life Harry, not theirs, you never know what tomorrow will bring. Good luck kid, I'll be seeing you again when the time comes."

Gripstaff places the will flat on his desk and stares at each person in turn. "Mr. Black was right about someone stealing from his estate, I will only say this once so listen closely. Most of the things are unimportant and their loss is merely an irritation but if the Black family signet ring is not returned by tomorrow morning the individual possessing it won't live long enough to regret their theft. The Blacks were highly paranoid about the inheritance of their estate and they used magic far older than Hogwarts to insure descendency. The other item which carries a similar punishment is a sword, the difference is the sword is less forgiving, its punishment will be slow and very public if it remains outside the heir's presence."

"I didn't know the Black family had a hereditary sword." Remus says softly his voice rough from the emotions tearing him up inside.

"They do, but that isn't the sword I had reference to. No the sword that is missing belongs to the Potter family. And we all know who has it, don't we Headmaster Dumbledore?" Gripstaff turns his head to stare unwaveringly at the Headmaster.

"I assure you it is quite safe and well looked after where it is." Dumbledore says quickly hoping to postpone the coming explosion.

Harry finally decides to say something his voice low and rough making it unrecognizable. "Do you refuse to turn the sword of Gryffindor over to the Potter family's rightful heir by tomorrow morning? A simple yes or no will do Mr. Dumbledore."

"Who are you?" Dumbledore ask sharply, trying to see past the shadows concealing the unknown figure sitting motionlessly in their midst.

"I am the executor that Gringotts chose to insure the estate was handled with complete neutrality. They made sure of my credentials before I was ever allowed to set foot in these chambers. I serve neither Voldemort nor you Sir, nor do I work for the bank or the ministry, if that is not good enough I am sorry. Now answer the question, yes or no." Harry keeps his voice low, almost growling.

"I will not turn over such an important heirloom to a stranger." Dumbledore says with stiff dignity.

"Then have the goblins put it back where it belongs." Harry gestures to Gripstaff.

"The bank was been broken into a few years ago, it would not be wise to leave such an item unattended." Dumbledore is so focused on Harry that he does see the alarm on his companions faces and the angry narrowing of Gripstaff's eyes.

"The question is a yes or no question, answer it as such please." Harry puts as much disdain as he can into his words.

"No." Albus stands abruptly and strides towards the door.

Harry feels a tingle on his hand, glancing down he sees a ring appear on the ring finger of his right hand and something whispers into his mind. "So mote it be."

Dumbledore whirls around in shock, but his steps have already carried him out of the room with most of the other beneficiaries on his heels, as the door closes behind them. He takes one look at the feral smiles on the goblins guarding the door and realizes too late he has said something he should not have. He hurries out of the bank heading for Hogwarts to check on the items that he had taken from Sirius while the man was on one of his binges. The sword he had obtained a lot earlier and had not thought to hide its true nature. He never notices the angry disgruntled looks coming from the others that had witnessed the will. None of them notice in their emotional state that one person has remained behind.

Harry sighs and slumps in the chair. "I had really hoped he wouldn't take it this far."

Gripstaff nods. "He has become accustomed to being right, now he doesn't even bother to look at things from a different point of view."

"Kit?" Remus says cautiously.

Harry jumps and whips around to stare at Remus his wand trained steadily on the unexpected addition. "Who are you and what do you want."

Remus blinks slowly up at him then looks bemusedly at his wand. "You know what I am Harry, I can smell you. Polyjuice can't quite duplicate a persons scent since the potion itself creates an added twang, plus I know that wand."

Harry lowers his wand and sinks back into the chair reaching up to ruffle his hair in frustration only managing to make his hood to fall back. "Sorry Remus, this can't be any easier for you. Right now I am running on pure adrenaline to keep me from screaming insanely and collapsing in hysterical tears. If it was only one thing I wouldn't be in such a state but there is so much more going on than you know."

"If you want you can talk to me, you know that Harry. Padfoot was right I really screwed up big time when I didn't keep an eye on you growing up." Remus says morosely shifting a chair around so he can actually look at Harry.

"If I do Remus you must swear not to reveal what I say to you especially right now." Harry leans back tiredly his face grave.

Remus considers all his options and comes back to his first impulsive thought. "Harry you have my word as a friend, a wizard, and a werewolf that I will not betray any trust you are willing to give."

Harry pulls out a handful of letters and hands one to Remus. "I received this from Gringotts yesterday." While Remus reads it silently Harry signs the will Gripstaff offers him. He then hands Remus the next letter he wants him to read. "This is a copy of my response to them and the letter they sent back to me."

"He took your money?" Remus grumbles at Harry's nod.

"This letter came at the same time from the Headmaster." Harry tries not to sneer blatantly.

Remus gapes at the letter. "What the hell was he thinking?"

"My response was a bit more colorful than that, though I did scribble out some of the more negative comments. I knew he would read them anyway, and I didn't feel like hiding them, besides I was out of parchment I had to use a muggle pencil an the back of an old essay to be able to have a copy of my response just in case I needed it." Harry hands him the appropriate letter.

Remus whistles lowly. "I bet this tied a right knot in his beard."

Harry hands him the final note. "He didn't even address my comments, it is like he simply refuses to hear anything, if it contradicts his precious belief system, no matter how true it is."

Remus growls furiously and tries to shred the note which surprises him by resisting his efforts.

"May I see the note's dealing with the Headmaster, I would very much appreciate knowing what we are up against in trying to work around him." Gripstaff shrinks the desk between them so the seating arrangement is friendlier.

Harry nods and Remus hands over the notes still growling intermittently under his breath. Harry throws the werewolf an amused glance and turns to watch Gripstaff's reactions to the letters.

"This occlumency that he mentions, what precisely does it do?" Gripstaff asks as he fold the notes neatly and hands them back to Harry.

"There are certain powerful wizards who are able to use magic to look at or experience another persons memories using a form of magic called legilimency. Occlumency is the counter of that, it blocks outside magics from entering you mind. It was proposed that with occlumency I would be able to decrease the mental link between Voldemort and I. I was not given a reason for the necessity since we gained useful information about Voldemort's movements from my 'visions'. Nor has anyone mentioned if it has ever been tested on a direct link such as mine." Harry smoothes down his recently lengthened hair to cover his scar.

"Hmm, I can see where you would need to keep your memories to yourself. I believe that both the Potter and Black families have certain secrets that only the heir can access and that they have insured a way for those secrets remain safe. Not being well versed in human magic I can not say exactly how that secrecy is accomplished, I think it is linked to the family signet ring." Gripstaff stands and moves toward the opposite side of the room from where Dumbledore had entered. "Shall we abjure to a more comfortable and secure office Mr. Black-Potter? You are free to bring anyone you feel comfortable with." Gripstaff says when he sees Harry glance at Remus.

"Is there any way for you to verify Remus is indeed who he says he is?" Harry gives Remus an apologetic look.

"Since he has already promised to help you and keep your secrets why not simply ask him for a wizard's oath?" Gripstaff suggests.

Harry looks questioningly between Gripstaff and Remus.

Remus nods his head. "Harry when a wizard gives a verbal or written oath willingly it binds their magic to uphold the oath. That is why Peter can not have children, he broke a wizard's oath and his magic enforced the penalty. If you feel it is necessary to protect yourself and whatever secrets that are going to be revealed I will gladly take an oath." Remus notices Harry hesitate in answering. "If your are worried about someone getting into my head, don't, being a werewolf does come with one or two advantages."

"Alright, if you are willing to take an oath I can guarantee it will be an immense relief to share my secrets with someone I know I can trust." Harry looks at Remus hopefully.

"I Remus John Lupin do swear on my ability to do magic that I am who I claim to be and that I have always been loyal to the Marauders and the child born to James William Potter and Lily May Potter nee Evans. I do also aver that I shall hold his secrets more valuable than my own life. So mote it be." Remus intones seriously and Harry feels his finger tingle again.

"Thank you Remus, now we can get on with the important stuff." Harry releases a breath he didn't realizes he had been holding.

"Follow me." Gripstaff leads them out of the large meeting room, down a twisting set of hallways and into a nicely appointed suite of offices. "Dramhand, cancel or reassign any appointments I might have and secure the offices before you and the rest of my staff except Rigel take the rest of the day off."

Dramhand gives his superior a curt acknowledgement before they disappear into Gripstaff's office.

"I have a question before we discuss the wills and your proposal." Harry waits until they are seated and Gripstaff indicates for him to continue. "What is up with the ring that appeared when I was forcing the old man to answer the question about the sword" Harry holds out his hand to show Gripstaff.

"I believe that, that is the Potter family signet ring. I am not surprised that it is capable of finding its own way to its proper heir, though I am relieved that there will not be a repeat of the incident with the Black signet ring." Gripstaff snaps his fingers and a house elf pops into the room next to the desk. "Please bring my guests and I some tea Rigel."

"My best guess Mr. Black-Potter is that when you forced the Headmaster to acknowledge the sword's status your magic called out to the Potter family legacy. All signet rings are imbued with a certain amount of awareness, so when the Potter's ring felt your authority it came to you to seal your right to act as the Potter family heir." Gripstaff explains calmly. "The Black family is almost as old so it is possible that if you declared your will as the head of the Black family the signet ring would respond saving us the trouble of dealing with the Headmaster over it. It would be the most advantageous circumstance, especially in the unfortunate happenstance that the ring kills him before it is returned."

Harry takes a deep breath and focuses on the memory or the Black family tapestry. "I do hereby reinstate Andromeda Tonks nee Black into the family along with her husband and daughter." Harry smiles when he feels a tingling one left ring finger. "So mote it be."

A nudge from Remus and Harry holds up his hand to show off the Black family signet ring.

"Well now, that will make retrieving the rest of your rightful estate much easier. The rings will heat up whenever you get close any unclaimed inheritance, unless he tries to hide them behind extremely illegal blood wards the Headmaster can not keep you from reclaiming anything he has. Now you are probably wondering about the Potter will." Harry interrupts Gripstaff.

"Are you aware he has supposedly already cast at least one blood ward?" Harry asks his voice pleasant even as his lips twist into a sneer.

"He has? When and why?" Gripstaff looks intrigued.

"He told me that my aunt's house is under blood wards based on my mother's sacrifice. I know there are wards because I have always been able to feel something when I passed through them, before I knew about magic I had no idea what the dreadful creepy feeling was. I am just glad Hogwarts wards are so much more friendly." Harry explains quietly staring at a wall blankly in an attempt to control his rising anger missing the growing looks of alarm from both other parties in the room.

As Gripstaff opens his mouth to ask a question Remus beats him out with one of his own. "Harry you said they felt dreadful, precisely how do they make you feel?"

Harry glances at him briefly before staring at his hands. "Trapped, depressed, hopeless, it is like every time I crossed their boundaries all the negative feelings the Dursley's had for me were concentrated and shoved forcefully into my head. That intensity of feeling around the neighborhood is what kept me from running away, what was the point in doing that when no one would ever care."

"I am right in assuming that your Headmaster tied the wards to your aunt and that she was not completely willing?" Gripstaff asks.

"Yes and yes, in fact he sent her a howler when I saved Dudley from the dementors to keep my uncle from throwing me out." Harry answers glumly.

"If he had tied that ward to the house itself it would have remained on the edge of legality and it would have protected you from any hostile intent not just outside influences. It would also have covered a far greater area quite proficiently, though your aunt and uncle would still have had to accept the wards." Gripstaff frowns. "I do not understand why he would use the weaker more unreliable version, not to mention dark, of the wards."

Harry turns slowly to contemplate Remus. "Just how much trouble did my father cause? If you consider that there is a prophecy about Voldemort and I, would his attitude have been an asset or a hindrance?"

Remus winces at the bluntness of the question. "James was a pureblood, raised in wealth and privilege. He never knew anything except the same luxury and sense of entitlement that the Malfoy's feel. Even without Sirius and the rest of us helping he caused more trouble than any other student on record. His family held four seats on the school board." Remus shrugs.

Harry sags with a sour expression. "I hate it when that greasy git is right about something, but how the hell were a bunch of muggles supposed to raise me like a pureblood wizard even if they didn't hate magic."

"Severus has never been completely rational about James and Sirius, but they made it far worse by singling him out for their crueler pranks. Then they both did something totally outside the pale. Sirius gave away where I went on full moons out of pure spite because I actually liked Severus, we got on quite well until that happened. I know that he knows I had no control over the situation, just like he knows that James would not have agreed to endanger himself and me over a prank. Because believe me James came far closer to being bitten than Severus did, I did scratch him and pretty much shredded the back of his robes while Severus walked away with only a bump on the head. It was a good thing Severus hit his head, it gave James a chance to transform and toss me back from the trapdoor. Then it was easy for them to get the rest of the way out even though Moony was trying his dead level best to tear through the floor. After that he couldn't even look at me." Remus shakes his head sadly. "He knows your not James, he also knows that you weren't raised in a loving home. I think it actually makes Severus hate you more because you look so much like James and yet you grew up like he did. It is unsettling to look at someone who looks so like James and have them act the same way Severus would and add to that Lily's temper and compassion. It is hard to reconcile the differences and Severus doesn't want to, it is easier for him to continue hating a Potter."

"That doesn't really explain the Headmaster's decision, but I suppose he is the only one who can really answer why." Harry grits his teeth as his anger spikes again. "Will you tell me about my parent's will?"

"Of course." Gripstaff unrolls a parchment scroll and read over it quickly. "The Potter's will was quite simple really, they filed jointly and left everything to whichever of the three of you were still alive. If none of you were still alive then everything was to be liquidated, except for a few historic pieces which would go to those closest to them, and the proceeds given to charity. It is also named Mr. Black as your official guardian and godfather, no exceptions."

"Even with it being so simple, problems still occurred." Remus points out grimly.

"Speaking of problems, you said that there were a few that still needed to be resolved." Harry struggles to his temper in check.

Gripstaff opens a small ledger subtly embossed with a coat of arms. "The Potter estate is very large and very old, it took me all night to fully go over it and I found a considerable chunk of money missing as well as several businesses and shares there of that had been sold off inappropriately. We were able to track all the money down and return it all to its proper place, there were a few of things that were being funded by the money which we felt you would approve of. Among these were the children's wing of St. Mungo's, a research facility for wolfsbane, and the payment of a pair of free house elves. We switched St. Mungo's and the wolfsbane over to Potter vaults that were set up for charity purposes. The house elves were switched to the Potter vault set up for precisely that use, since your ancestors have never agreed with enslavement, even Hogwarts has a similar vault because of Gryffindor."

"So Dobby and Winky are actually being paid by me, does that technically make them my elves?" Harry gives a small shifty smile.

"Indeed, and I hadn't realized you would know the elves in question by their names." Gripstaff looks at Harry inquisitively.

"I owe Dobby a lot, even if I don't always approve of his rather unorthodox methods of keeping me safe. Winky on the other hand was a victim of circumstance, she was truly only trying to do what was best for her master and he threw that loyalty away. She would do better by serving in a more traditional manner than she can at Hogwarts. How much do house elves actually understand, in other words could I call them here and show them that they have actually been working for me all along and that I would like to acknowledge the arrangement formally?" Harry wonders what he is going to do if he actually ends up with two elves answering directly to him.

"House elves are extremely intelligent, all I would need to do is ask them a couple of questions and show them the withdrawals and they will understand perfectly well." Gripstaff answers a spark of amusement showing in his expression.

"Dobby, Winky may I talk to the two of you at Gringotts." Harry looks startled. "How the bloody, did I know how to do that?"

"It is part of the perks of being an heir, the family signet rings provide help to their bearer in adjusting to being the head of the family. For you it will be very obvious because you were never trained for the roll Mr. Black-Potter." Gripstaff doesn't even try to hide his smirk of amusement at Harry's discomfiture.

Dobby pops in before Harry can make a retort and throws himself happily at Harry. "Dobby is proud Master Harry Potter sir has called him. Dobby is very happy to hear Master Harry call. Dobby is wanting to know what he can do for such a great wizard, Master Harry sir." Dobby says rapidly , without a breath while still clutching Harry's legs.

Remus can't help himself and breaks out laughing.

"Dobby, I called both you and Winky, Where is she?" Harry asks in concern.

"Dobby is sorry sir, Winky not doing well. Winky not hearing Master Harry sir, Winky found more butterbeer." Dobby lets go of Harry to wring his hands in worry.

"Okay Dobby I understand, could you bring her here please, I might be able to help her." Harry says gently while firmly grasping Dobby's hand so he will stop twisting them painfully.

"Yes Master Harry, Dobby is doing that." Dobby pops away without another word and is back quickly with a dirty bundle of blankets.

"Remus I think we need a comprehensive cleaning spell and a sobering charm." Harry gestures to the unmoving pile that is obviously Winky.

"I've got it covered." Remus draws his wand and fires off a rapid series of spells. "I never thought Sirius' slovenly cleaning habits and love for wild parties would come in handy later on in life."

Winky stirs, groggily sitting up and looking around blearily. "Where is kitchen, Winky supposed to be there washing."

"I called you here Winky." Harry says.

Winky's head snap around in surprise. "Yous Master Harry Potter sir, Dobby's wizard. Whys you want Winky."

"I recently was made aware of my inheritance, both from my parents and godfather, and I found out something very interesting from Gripstaff." Harry motions to the goblin.

Winky's eyes become really huge upon seeming Gripstaff and nods vigorously even though she doesn't know what is going on.

Gripstaff suppresses a grin so as not alarm the house elves. "Do the two of you know who pays for your services at Hogwarts?"

Dobby and Winky look at each other and then back at Gripstaff, shaking their heads no.

Gripstaff holds up the ledger he had been reading out of. "This is the account book for the Potter family vaults, I want you to look at the withdrawal column for the last year for vault 46."

Gripstaff floats the book over to the two elves who flip through the pages quickly. Dobby is the first to comprehend what he is reading and squeals loudly throwing himself at Harry again. Winky's reaction is slightly different when she reads through the withdrawals completely, she breaks into tears.

Harry disentangles Dobby from his legs and leans forward in his chair towards Winky. "Do you not want to work for me Winky."

"Winky is a bad elf. Winky not deserve a family, Winky not want to be paid for anything, is not proper for house elf to take money to serve a family." Winky sobs into hands.

"Winky is a good elf, she did everything she could do to keep her former masters secrets safe. Sometimes bad things happen no matter how hard we try to prevent them. Mr. Crouch was afraid Winky, his son was supposed to be in jail for something very bad he did when he was young and foolish. You did your very best to make them happy and comfortable, you did nothing wrong. Sometimes friends and family do not agree with each other and they do and say things they shouldn't. I would be very proud if you would be my house elf." Harry maintains a straight face as Winky stares at him in shock and Dobby babbles happily about him being a great wizard.

"Good elves shouldn't be getting paid." Winky says stubbornly.

"Look a the ledger again Winky all Potter elves are paid, because you are not slaves. You are valuable members of the family, don't think of it as a salary think of it as an allowance that any faithful loyal servant would receive as recognition of superb service." Harry smiles as what he is saying sinks in. "You can do whatever you like with your allowance, even give it away to charities to help those who are less fortunate than we are. If you have a hobby like making stuffed toys and quilts, they could be given to the children that have to stay long term at St. Mungo's."

Winky looks ecstatic at Harry's suggestions.

"There are only a few very important things I will demand of you." Harry waits until both elves are completely focused on him. "You are not to speak about me and what I do to anyone outside the five of us here unless I give you specific permission to do so. And even then you must be extra careful so that no one good or bad overhears you." The elves nod vigorously. "Two I am not the Dark Lord and you are not slaves so I do want to hear you calling me Master; Harry, Mr. Potter, or sir are all okay but not all of them at once. I know it will take time to get used to but please try, I want my family to speak well and impress those around you with your gracious manners."

The two elves shift uncomfortably under his gaze but nod reluctantly.

"You can brag all you want when I am not present if you want to." Harry chuckles at the huge grins the light the elves faces. "Three you are not to punish yourselves at all unless I say you can, which I won't unless it is to dock your allowance. Me yelling and cursing is simply the way I vent my emotions sometimes, it is not a reflection on your worth or skill." Harry sits back and thinks about what he needs. "Secrecy, pay, the master issue, and punishment; I can't think of anything else right now. I don't have much for you to do right now, but you can pop by where ever I am staying discreetly a couple times a day to check on me, beyond that I would appreciate if you would help Remus with his new house. It is in terrible condition, the house elf in charge of it unfortunately went insane from the darkness he was exposed to for so long and didn't look after it as he should have."

Dobby and Winky nod vigorously and bow lowly before Dobby answers Harry, "We's is happy to being doing work for Harry Potter, sir."

Harry chuckles at the blush on Dobby's face when he slips in the extra sir. "I did say it would take getting used to. Oh, I know what else I was going to cover. Appropriate attire for a Black-Potter house elf." Both Elves look appalled, much to Harry's amusement. "Gripstaff you wouldn't happen to know if the Potter's already have a uniform, would you?"

"They do, it is much like the one used by the bank, except it is red and gold robes with the Potter crest emblazoned on the back." Gripstaff smiles at the face Harry makes. "It seems to change every generation or so."

"Good then it won't be strange for me to change it. Would the two of you be more comfortable in robes or something like the Gringotts elves wear?" Harry asks and Gripstaff calls Rigel so they can see what the uniform looks like.

Dobby says he likes the Gringotts uniform while Wink says a robe blushing furiously.

"Hmm, I think I will let you choose what you are comfortable with for your first layer so long as it a darker color. Then all of you will wear an open robe on top like the one I am wearing in a complimentary lighter color with the Family crests displayed on a diagonal sash." As Harry talks the elves clothing slowly morphs.

Dobby ends up wearing something that looks suspiciously like a dragon hide vest and pants in deep blood red with an antique gold over robe. Winky wears a flowing deep green robe with a silvery grey over robe. They both look proudly at the sashes that currently display three crests.

"Well that is interesting. I was only expecting two crests. Gripstaff what is the third one?" Harry motions to Dobby who skips around the desk so the goblin can take a closer look.

"Interesting, it would seem that when you forced the issue with the sword it activated your Gryffindor heritage not your Potter one like I had thought. If you would look at the ring on your right hand and tell me if it is a lion or a stag please." Gripstaff sits back and waits for Harry to answer.

"It looks like a griffin to me." Harry says baffled by the way Gripstaff sits bolt upright in his chair.

"Amazing, that was Godric Gryffindor's personal signet and brings us back to the issue of the one thing that couldn't be reacquired like the money, businesses and stocks could. The sword, we are still not sure how it got out of its vault, there were no withdrawals from that account since you great grandfather died. Your father visited it once in the company of your grandfather when he came of age, which was precisely why your grandfather visited it the first time. The only reason that the sword would leave the vault on its own would be if the true heir called it during a time of desperate need." Gripstaff regards Harry steadily. "The fact that you bear Godric's own seal proves that you are the true heir, it also means we still need to either summon the Potter family signet ring or wait and it will probably show up if you agree to do the ritual."

"Er, would pulling it out of the sorting hat when faced with a forty foot basilisk count?" Harry asks sheepishly.

"Indeed that would do it, I assume that you took it to the Headmaster not understanding what it was or where it came from?" Gripstaff's continues to regard Harry steadily.

Harry nods. "I was rather a mess by that point, what with the fight and the snake's tooth breaking off in my arm all, not to mention having a piece of Voldemort's soul trying to use a friend of mine to regain a body. The Headmaster did tell me it was Gryffindor's sword and that only a true Gryffindor could pull it out of the hat. I was only twelve and naive of the wizarding world, still am in many ways, it never occurred to me to take the comment literally."

"No matter, the sword will take care of finding its own way home now. When we were reacquiring businesses there was one I thought you would want left as it is since it was started as an investment to a friend, one Mr. Lovegood for the start up of his alternative newspaper. It was done in the same spirit as what you did for the Weasley twins, who are for your information crediting you as a ten percent shareholder." Gripstaff grins at the bemused look on Harry's face.

"The Lovegoods have proven to be good friends, obviously there is more to it than just my friendship with Luna. I'll have to have a talk with the twins about the definition of a gift. Does that cover all the issues with my parents account?" Harry frowns, feeling decidedly like he is on an out of control broom.

"We are done with the problematic issues. I will have an itemized accounting written up for you to go over so you know what you have well enough to recognize discrepancies in your quarterly statements, this will be done for all your accounts." Gripstaff exchanges the small Potter ledger for a larger more ornate book with a prominent silver crest. "The Black family estate was in considerable disarray since Mr. Black never fully claimed it and later he was unable to properly oversee the accounts. I have been able to sort out most of the monetary issues and about half of the businesses. What I couldn't do was seize unlawful accounts until there was a legally acknowledged heir, with the will reading down we are making the necessary seizures as we speak. The only matter we really need to discuss today dealing with the Black accounts is the family hope chest, or perhaps you would call it a dowry. Someone has been slowly increasing the amount of money that Narcissus and Bellatrix are receiving, and they also set up a wedding allowance for Draco Malfoy. The Wedding allowance will be canceled with the other unlawful accounts, but the dowries are a bit more delicate. The Black family estate guarantees an ongoing allowance for all gainfully married ladies who are members of the family, as such when you reinstated Andromeda a similar account automatically opened in her name. The one exception to the dowry law is if you disinherit someone, but to do that legally they must have broken a major tenant of the Black family which Andromeda did by marrying a muggle. As you found out it is much easier to reinstate a family member."

Harry clamps down on the string of expletives he wants to unleash. "Would blatantly killing the last blood heir of the Black family in front of unsympathetic witnesses and then failing in an attempt to kill his heir the very same night count?"

Gripstaff smile wickedly. "That would most definitely count, such behavior is assuredly not cunning nor properly dignified."

Harry smirks back at Gripstaff. "I Harry James Black-Potter do hereby denounce and disinherit Bellatrix Lestrange nee Black for blatant and unseemly public acts against the heirs of the Black family legacy." Harry slumps in his chair. "It is to bad Narcissus is such an unknown, I am sure she has done something I could kick her out for."

"She is the one who has been opening most of the extra accounts, in her own name no less." Gripstaff answers smugly.

"Perfect." Harry is absolutely beaming as he repeats the disinheritance ritual for Narcissus. "I Harry James Black-Potter do hereby denounce and disinherit Narcissus Malfoy nee Black for blatant acts of larceny against the estate of the Black family legacy." Harry feels like some type of burden has been lifted from him. "It is brilliant to have such convenient help from the signets rings in knowing how to do these things. How long before they realize what has happened?"

"That depends, do they have access to the Black family tapestry?" When Harry shakes his head Gripstaff goes on. "Then not until they receive their quarterly bank statement or they try to make withdrawal."

"It is to bad that the almost retirement age owl can't get terribly confused and deliver the statement to one of their less frequented vacation homes." Harry says mournfully.

Gripstaff looks at Harry for a moment before he laughs out loud. "Oh, you are a sly one Mr. Black-Potter, I like you." Rigel pops in and hands Gripstaff a note. "Very good. It should please you to know young heir that all misappropriated Black funds have been returned to their rightful estate, one way or another. The estate has also been reimbursed for all lost businesses and stocks that we have been able to track down but unable to reacquire. Some of the businesses were sold for cash value as I did not think you would want to be associated to closely with Knockturn Alley at this point."

Harry nods thoughtfully. "You are quite right, though I am curious about what the stores were." Harry smile crookedly at Remus when he chuckles.

"We only sold the stores themselves, the goods were place in a vault for storage until they could be sorted. We need to determine what can be legal resold as is or, needs to be 'decontaminated before resale. Some things may need to be destroyed outright, a few should be turned over to the Department of Mysteries because of their intrinsic value and the chance they could help us to learn how to protect Britains citizenry. It could be arranged for you to look through the vault for anything you might deem useful." Gripstaff is pleased with the smile that Harry gives him at his suggestion. "It would be wise if you took one of our curse breakers with you though, some of the items are quite dangerous and in a few cases aggressive."

"Who is your best curse breaker?" Harry asks though he suspects what the answer will be.

"Mr. William Weasley, and yes Mr. Black-Potter we are aware of his outside affiliations. You have nothing to worry about, we hold blood contracts on all our wizard employees to guarantee their silence about what happens under the auspices of the bank." Gripstaff assures Harry.

"What about properties?" Harry yawns tiredly.

"Maybe you should rest Harry." Remus suggests gently.

"Sleep has not been very restful lately and I am not safe at Privet Drive, either from the Dursley's or from Voldemort. What I really need is somewhere that I am truly safe to stay at for awhile, preferably away from Dumbledore. I need to assess my life Remus, I need to find out who I am, and I want to snatch a few happy moments out of life to keep me sane." Harry looks between his two companions to see if they understand what he is saying.

"I hear what you are saying Harry, and what you are asking is in no way unreasonable, but those things won't be easy to obtain." Remus smiles sadly at his last reason for going on.

Gripstaff clears his throat to gain their attention. "We all need some rest tonight, and there is a short term option to where you can stay here until we finish our banking business," Harry just motions for him to go on stifling a yawn behind a hand. "First I can provide some dreamless sleep potion for both of you to help you sleep peacefully. Second, one of the Potter vaults contains furniture, it is set up so the furnishings are neatly arranged in individual rooms with screens acting as walls. Now you should know this can only be temporary because the vaults were not set up to keep living occupants safe. We will have to add a simple bath room; toilet, sink, and a shower, all of which should last for about a week. The Gringotts elves can take care of your food and cleaning needs for a few days without adding to the work load too much."

Harry yawns again and nods. "Can we go down now, I am afraid nervous energy isn't going to keep me awake much longer."

"Of course Mr. Black-Potter. Mr. Lupin would you like to keep him company or do you need to be somewhere else?" Gripstaff summons Rigel to tell him what is needed and the house elf disappears to make the necessary arrangements. "Before you go down you will need the Potter family ring, just call it."

Harry raises his right hand. "I Harry James Black Potter do hereby call the Potter family signet."

A glow surrounds Harry right index finger accompanied by a now familiar tingle as a ring appears.

"Now you can fully access all your current vaults without a key, or goblin if necessary." Rigel returns to the room and Gripstaff has the elf lead Harry and Remus down to the vault they are going to be staying in for the night.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

Dumbledore is decidedly unhappy about the confrontation at the bank, not only did he lose control over the Black accounts totally but he suspected he lost the Potter accounts as well. There was something disturbingly familiar about the man Gringotts had chosen as executor. Once they arrive at Grimmauld place the house seems reluctant to appear but it does allow them entrance after a heart stopping delay. Dumbledore paces agitatedly around the kitchen with a number of Order members watching him.

Tonks is the first to break the silence. "Why does the house feel so different?"

Moody snorts. "Because Lupin owns it now. It is merely reflecting the difference in its owners personality and magic. Not only is he a werewolf but he is also noticeably stronger magically than Black was."

"It feels almost feral, wild and not very happy at the moment." McGonagall says looking directly at Dumbledore.

Fred and George look at each other speculatively in a rare moment of seriousness.  
"If you ask us"  
"Which we know you aren't"  
"We'd say that some of the revelations"  
"In the will have made some of us"  
"" Rather upset. ""

"Quite." McGonagall says dryly. "Care to explain why you are withholding Mr. Potters inheritance?"

"He needs to worry about other things. The child can't be expected to deal with something so complicated." Albus says distractedly.

"Child, what child?" Molly swells in rage. "That young man has never been the child you are talking about. I still remember quite clearly when those two," Molly jabs her finger at the twins, "took Ron and retrieved Harry from his relatives house before his second year. He-Was-Dying, those muggles were starving him and Hedwig to death. We barely managed to keep the owl alive, she wasn't lucky enough to have Harry's magical reserves to keep her going. Though I suspect he was imbuing her with some magic every time he sacrificed some of his meager food to keep her alive." Molly is by now standing and leaning threateningly towards Dumbledore. "My sons have told me the names those muggles called them, and I have talked to Hagrid about what his 'family' said when he went and got Harry the first time. How the bloody hell do you justify sending Harry back to someone who point blank admitted to trying to beat the magic out of him?"

Everyone gapes at Mrs. Weasley when she actually curses.

"Now Molly." Albus quickly tries to think of a way to moderate what she has revealed.

"No Dumbledore, I have had enough. You convinced me to help guide that young man on to the right path before he even started his schooling, and by Merlin that is precisely what I will do. You stay away from my children, all of them, including Harry. You have poisoned one of my sons against his family already, I refuse to lose any more to your war games. And until you formally apologize to my family and Harry for the damage you have done I never want to see your face again." Molly stands and storms out of the room. "Fred, George, Arthur we're leaving."

The Weasley men look at each other and decide they agree with her and rise to leave.

"Arthur, perhaps you can talk some reason into her when she calms down." Dumbledore suggest before he gets a good look at the cold expression on the mild mannered man's face.

"No I don't think I will, because even though I would have been more polite about it I completely agree with her. My family is my first priority, all of them. Good-day Dumbledore." Arthur follows his family out of the room.

"The power has shifted Albus. This is what needs to happen if we are going to win against Voldemort. You fought your battle now it is Mr. Potter's turn, if you had just listened to me he would be prepared to take on an heirs responsibility and would have been able to add the special training he needs to survive without being overwhelmed by it all. Pray to anything you hold dear that the Dursleys didn't teach him to hate muggles in a way that not even Tom experienced." Moody stands and glares at everyone. "I am going to go help the Weasleys and Harry's other friends set up better wards then you have been suggesting Albus." Moody stomps out muttering to himself about vigilance, smirking once he reached the head of the stairs because he had seen who was in that chair before the goblins hustled him and the others out.

"I need to think about some of the things Sirius said to me in his will and that others have confirmed here." McGonagall stands primly and moves toward the door, she pauses and turns to Dumbledore. "Albus as your second in command I must protest the favoritism shown by certain teachers and I will be asking for a renewal of teaching vows at the next full staff meeting. If anyone is missing I will be sure to visit them with a board of governors representative to get the vow in writing. No exceptions."

"Minerva, certain appearances need to be maintained." Dumbledore sounds desperate.

"Then perhaps it is time I and the other Heads of House began to maintain appearances. After all we wouldn't want people to think we approved of, or where in collusion with a known Death Eaters views and behavior. The choice is yours Albus." McGonagall says coldly and leaves the room.

Tonks is the only one left in the room of the group that received anything from the will aside from Dumbledore when Dwizzy pops into the room.

Dumbledore sighs. "What is it Dwizzy?"

"Dwizzy has a message for Master Ablie sir. Misters Potter was out of parchment." Dwizzy looks around the room nervously.

"It's alright Dwizzy you can go ahead and tell me." Dumbledore says without considering what Harry might have to say about his last letter.

"Misters Potter is telling me a massage while Gringotts elf is waiting for him. He's is saying 'Enough Headmaster, you just went one step too far.' And he is saying 'Good-bye.' too. Mister Potter is a kind wizard to trust elf with message and to say good-byes to." Dwizzy blurts out rapidly.

Everyone stares at the little elf for awhile until someone laughs sharply, it is not a cheerful sound.

Tonks stands. "What did you say to him Dumbledore? What did you do to finally push him 'one step to far'. I know he has a temper but I also know that he has to be severely provoked to unleash it at another being."

Tonks stops her rant and gets a strange look on her face, her hand grabs at her chest when she feels a tingle around her throat. She pulls out a gold chain with a gold crest suspended from it.

"I don't believe it." Tonks sits back down heavily.

"What is it Tonks." Hestia Jones asks while peering over her shoulder.

"I'm a part of the Black family. This, this necklace allows me to enter a family allowance vault." Tonks just continues to stare at the crest for a long minute before a smile splits her face. "Harry, he's the heir, he's the only one who could reinstate me or my family into the Black legacy." Tonks jumps up. "I have to talk to mom and dad."

Tonks runs out without any further delay. Before the rest of the Order can comment on the unusual happenings the kitchen fire flares green.

"Albus!" Professor Sprout's head appears in the fire. "Thank goodness I have found you. I have been trying the bank and other places you might be every ten minutes for last two and half hours. One of your devices started flashing yellow, then it went red, and now" Sprout looks over her shoulder, "it is flashing black."

Dumbledore jumps up. "I'll be there in a minute Pomona." He rushes out of the room leaving everyone else sitting there completely confused by the days events.

Dumbledore emerges into his office moments later and immediately recognizes the device that monitors Privet Drives wards. He turns it off. "I need to check this immediately, please continue to watch over my office for me."

Throwing some floo powder into his fireplace Dumbledore floos to Hogsmeade where he can apparate to Surrey. Striding through the neighborhood he can see a Dark Mark hovering in the sky. When he reaches the edge of where the wards are supposed to be he finds the body of Mundungus Fletcher, it has obviously been used as a sacrifice for some dark ritual. Dumbledore sighs in relief that the wards came down by force and not by something Harry had done, he believes that even if Harry hated his relatives he wouldn't have wanted them hurt unless provoked. Dumbledore also realizes he came very close to provoking such a response, but that Harry was focused mainly on him. When he finally comes into sight of number four Privet Drive it takes all his long years of experience not to collapse in shock at what he sees. The three Dursleys are flayed and frozen in cruciform floating above their home, slowly orbiting the Dark Mark. Dumbledore quickly casts a notice-me-not and a muggle repelling charm on number four Privet Drive.

"That wont be necessary Dumbledore." Comes a hiss from behind him.

"Tom, what have you done." Albus tries to look pityingly at Tom without much success after whirling in surprise.

"That should be obvious, I am simply insuring you have one less place to hide your little puppet. Though I had hoped he would still be here. Ah well, you can't win them all." Voldemort sighs falsely.

"No you can't win them all Tom, I think you have proved that saying several times already when it comes to Mr. Potter." Dumbledore tries to maneuver into a less exposed position.

"Tsk, tsk Dumbledore you are trying to provoke me. I am actually feeling quite happy at the moment, you wouldn't believe some of the terrible things I found in those muggles heads. I could have raised that child better than that, and I would have considered him valuable enough to show some form of kindness to at that. I wonder how long your weapon will remain pure after a childhood where he was beaten, starved, neglected, forced to live in a tiny closet, and denied any form of positive human touch or kindness? Yes my life was terrible, but the orphanage workers would still hug me when I was little and afraid or hurt, they made sure I had clothing that fit and food to eat. If I did well in school they told me I did a good job, and I may have shared a dorm with kids who hated me but I still had my own bed without being locked in with only spiders for company. Yes you did a fine job keeping Harry alive, but I wonder to what end? Good-bye Dumbledore may you have pleasant dreams tonight." Voldemort apparates away without throwing a single curse at Dumbledore or threatening him in any way, his words are enough to wound in a way Dumbledore had never expected.

Dumbledore waits quietly until aurors arrive. He only tells them his alarms on the house went off and he arrived just in time to see Voldemort himself leave. He assures them that Harry had been away visiting friends and had never been in any danger. After giving them his deposition Dumbledore returns to Hogwarts hoping to rest, but instead he finds Severus Snape waiting for him in his office trying to stare down Sprout who is simply ignoring him.

"What can I do for you Severus?" Dumbledore sinks gratefully into his chair and thanks Sprout before she leaves.

"I must admit that I was wrong about young Mr. Potter. He was not spoiled, pampered, or in any way coddled. It makes me wonder how he got into to Gryffindor at all." Severus sits down and stares at Dumbledore.

"Tom took you with him then?" Dumbledore asks absently.

"He did, he wanted me to see what he felt was his superior understanding of Mr. Potter. I am also his only sane legilimens powerful enough the strip their minds of every detail and be able to place the memories in a pensive." Severus turns to one of the bookcases when he hears someone clearing their throat. "Yes?" He focuses on the sorting hat which is shuffling its way to the front of the shelf it is sitting on.

"If anyone had asked I could have told you what was in his head when he first started Hogwarts." The hat says snidely while looking at Dumbledore. "And I tried to put him in Slytherin, Mr. Malfoy made a very bad impression on him so he insisted I put him anywhere but Slytherin, he really didn't care beyond that."

"That would have been a disaster. Until recently his only orders involving Potter where to bring him the boy alive." Snape says blandly. "His current orders are the same for every other Death Eater as well as their children in Hogwarts, we are to be more congenial to Mr. Potter on the pain of death. He means it this time, as young Mr. Malfoy found out when he unwisely made a rude noise. Needless to say he won't be returning to Hogwarts any time soon, if ever." Severus turns to the sorting hat. "Would Mr. Potter have fit in any House besides Slytherin or Gryffindor?"

"Why yes he would have fit nicely in any of the houses. The young man has an amazing ability to adapt, he is loyal, brave, and loves to learn when he is given proper encouragement. It takes amazing little to encourage him to do his best, just a couple of kind words and he will give it his all." The hat frowns. "It is amazing that he is as sweet and gentle as he is considering everything he has been through since he started Hogwarts, without even taking his childhood into account."

"It is indeed. By the way Albus were the Dursleys dead when you arrived?" Severus asks Dumbledore.

"What?" Dumbledore looks up at Snape, startled. "I didn't even bother check them, it never occurred to me that someone in that state could still be alive. Though I know Petunia had to be dead for my monitoring globe to flash black, I didn't key anything to her husband and son."

"The Dark Lord said he had found a way to keep them alive in that state for as long as they had tortured Potter." Snape shivers. "The curse he used was not as painful as the cruciatus, it is meant to maintain a fluctuating level of pain and terror without driving the victim crazy."

"Ooo, nasty one that." The hat puts in causing Snape to glare at it.

"I should have checked before the aurors arrived but I was a little distracted by Tom sneaking but behind me to gloat." Dumbledore says rubbing his face. "The ministry will just have to deal with this one. I take it that they will not remember enough for anyone else to use?"

"No, I doubt they will even remember their own names, much less the details of their crimes." Snape shifts things around on the Headmasters desk. "Where was Mr. Potter during the time we attacked? I know for a fact that you did not remove him, yet when we went in there was nary a trace of him or his belongings."

"I have a suspicion that Gringotts helped him leave, to attend the will reading, in some manner that I am unaware of. It never does to underestimate our fellow magical beings." Dumbledore says with a bit of his customary cheer beginning to return.

"Grand, so you are telling me that Potter is gallivanting around somewhere out there probably in the vicinity of Gringotts, Merlin knows exactly where, with the Dark Lord giddy from his plan to 'punish the Dursley's for him? Nor do we have a way of getting a hold of him and even if we did, we have very few choices about where he can be safely housed." Snape pinches his nose and stifles an irritated grumble.

"Actually I am afraid I did something rather rash and we probably will not be seeing Harry at all until the beginning of the school year." Albus sighs and conjures some tea for both of them.

"And what pray tell did you do to get a fight and flight reaction out of him?" Snape looks at the Headmaster suspiciously.

"I first insisted on him continuing his occlumency lesson with you. He wrote back most adamantly that he disagreed with my suggestion and declared Privet Drive was not his home in writing thereby forcing me to find a place to move him to. In my second letter I stated that he would have plenty of time to learn to get along with you because he would be staying at Snape Manor." Dumbledore shrugs helplessly at the incredulous look Snape sends him.

Snape pulls himself together and smoothes his feature into his usual cold expression. "That would cause even the majority of my Slytherins to run Albus. Did you not believe either of us when we said we could not stand each other. There was no way short of a complete immersion in his childhood that would have convinced me that I was wrong, as it is I got to much. More than I could have from Potter because I had to endure the not so pure motives behind the atrocities his family visited upon him, if I had seen it from Potter's view point I would never have known if he had done something to provoke the punishments. No locking us up together over the rest of the summer would have been a very bad idea. The boy needs time to grieve, to decide how he wants to handle his place in this war, but he also needs someone to support him the way his family never did to make it through intact. I would not, and could not have given him that. Perhaps now I might be able to at least not make it worse, but most of our interactions would have been trying to patch up the damage already done to each other."

"I seem to have lost objectivity in this matter Severus." Dumbledore swivels to regard Fawkes solemnly. "I now understand what everyone has been trying to tell me, but I also know something Tom doesn't about Harry." He motions to Fawkes. "Fawkes here may put up with my foibles but he is inherently a light being, he has never showed any reserve towards Harry, is actually inordinately fond of the boy. This tells me that, not only are Harry's motives pure but so is his heart. What should I do? How can I even begin to repair the damage I have caused?"

"Write him a letter, send it to him with Fawkes in care of Gringotts so he knows you are willing to give him space. Apologize and mean it, tell him the truth, that someone or several someones shoved the truth down your throat and you finally understand what was really happening instead of your optimistic dream world." Snape says sarcastically. "Then you politely ask him to find someone he trusts to create an emergency portkey that will either deliver him into the care of Poppy or some other trusted medic. You also recommend to him a couple of good books on occlumency, or send them to him yourself if you prefer. Tell him the whole truth about how the wards fell without accusing him of having anything to do with it, and what the Dark Lord feels about him. And for the love of Merlin return everything that rightfully belongs to him, lastly keep whatever promises you have made to him." Snape snaps the last out with a good deal of vitriol.

"His is not the only young man's life I have destroyed Severus, I am sorry to have failed you so completely." Dumbledore says morosely.

"What is done, is done. I understand how you think and I know you never intended to hurt anyone but thank you for acknowledging you were wrong, it helps to sooth the scars that were left behind all those years ago. And I to admit that I was wrong about some of my reactions, Lupin had nothing to do with it and Potter did value his friends enough not to do endanger them so blatantly. Black on the other hand was a fool, and if there is one thing I can not abide it is fools, especially those who have so much potential to be something more."

"You mean like young Mr. Longbottom?" Dumbledore asks in amusement. "You do realize he was memory charmed as a baby? They tried for a long time to repair the damage but it had little or no effect, until recently that is. Something about the way Harry treats Mr. Longbottom seems to be getting through, somehow repairing what was thought to be permanent."

Snape growls petulantly. "You didn't need to tell me that. Alright Albus I will moderate my bark in class as long as the little miscreants remain obedient, but if I catch anyone wandering around after curfew I refuse to play nice."

"Not even Mr. Potter?" Dumbledore chuckles at the glare he receives. "It is his nightmares that drive him to wander so."

"So long as he isn't breaking any other rules I will consider it." Snape allows grudgingly.

"Thank you Severus, for not only the concession but also the understanding and advice."

Severus rubs his face. "Your welcome Albus, now I am tired and it has been a long day, I would dearly like to get some rest before anything else goes wrong."

"Of course Severus, good evening." Albus finally seems to relax.

"I would suggest you send that message tonight Albus, good-night." Severus stands and sweeps out of the room seeking the comfort of his own isolated rooms.

"I really hate being wrong Fawkes. When you have so much responsibility even the smallest mistake can have dire consequences, and this was no small mistake." Dumbledore is calmed by his phoenix singing to him and flying over to perch on the back of his chair. "Thank you Fawkes that helps immensely, could you fetch me Harry's sword and the box of thing that belonged to his godfather please?" Fawkes chirps reproachfully. "I know my friend, and that point has been thoroughly beat into my head today. I do recall that you told me so, I am sorry for not listening. Now shoo you pesky to smart for my good phoenix, I need to return these things before tomorrow."

Fawkes trills a laugh and flames out of the room to retrieve the things Dumbledore ask for. When a heartfelt sigh Dumbledore begins the long and often painful process of writing a sincere letter of apology to Harry. He can only hope that Harry will recognize the honesty in the words he writes sometime before the end of the summer and that the young man will remain safe. After he is satisfied with the letter he moves around his rooms collecting several books that he thinks Harry will find useful or interesting. Once back at the desk he looks through the stack of books again before using a ditco quill to list them on his desk ledger so he doesn't worry about where they have disappeared to later. The writing on the ledger simultaneously copies itself to the correct spot in Harry's letter.

"Books given to Harry Potter in hope for a better summer and a long joy filled life."

' The Simplest Route to a Closed Mind .' What Every Occlumens Needs to Know About Legilimency ' Basic Legilimency to Improve Occlumency '

"I'm sorry Harry I should have provided these books for you the first time you told me your scar was hurting you, they might well have saved you much pain and heartache."

' Where There's Desire There is Movement ' The Ministry Book of How to Fool the Ministry ' So You are Underage? '

"Try not to let and aurors see these, except maybe Tonks since I do believe she is family now, as neither of us is technically supposed to have them."

' To Be Or Not To Be: A Question of an Animagus ' Imbuing the Inanimate with Personality ' A Marauders Diary

"I have yet to figure out the password to the diary, but I think you can or already know it. The other two are just for the fun of discovering the quirks of obscure branches of magic."

' Build, Refurbish, or Remodel: Magical Construction and Maintenance' How to Charm Your House to Run Itself ' Hiding What is Obvious the Undetectable Way Knut Pinchers can Still be Fashionable: Do it Yourself Alterations, Repairs, Charms, and Embellishments ' Food Stupendous Food: Conjured, Transfigured, and Enchanted: Cooking for Every Day and Occasion

"I have found these to be of great practical use in ordinary day to day life."

' Sometimes the Muggles Know Best ' Enchanting Muggles and Their Things the Legal Way '

"I am sure you have wondered why the wizarding world hasn't adopted more muggle inventions to ease our lives. These books will explain the true reason why there haven't been more advance, beyond the pureblood propaganda."

' Unorthodox Dueling ' Power Dueling and How to Guard Against It

Dumbledore returns to his bookcases to rummage around thinking that twenty is a nice round number. After some thought he changes his mind to twenty four.

Understanding Your Owl ' All the Languages of Magical Creatures and Beings

The next four books he handles reverently, adding his own protection spells to them to help boost the ones that are already there.

' The Ravenclaw Memoirs ' The Loyalty of a Badger ' My Diary ' A Serpents Struggle '

"The sub-title on Slytherin's diary is in parseltongue as is the text inside, please guard the founders books carefully."

A sudden thought stops Dumbledore from ending his ledger entry and he quickly summons one last book.

' Protection at any Cost: Wards, Charms, Traps, Guardians, and Obstacles '

"I think the twins read this one to inspire their lovely swamp. It is the one that your parents and I studied while we where choosing which spells to protect them and the Longbottoms."

Fawkes returns with everything that rightfully belongs to Harry and glances at the desk, as Dumbledore is deactivating the dicto-quill, after seeing the large number of books he makes an indignant sound.

"Not to worry Fawkes I am going to shrink all these and place them in a feather-light bag that will return them to full size as they are removed along with the other things. I would never ask you to carry something so bulky without desperate need. That reminds me, thank you for helping Harry in his second year with the Chamber. I am sure he thanked you at the time but it seems I was remiss in my recognition."

Dumbledore chuckles lightly at the quite right chirp this elicits from Fawkes. It only takes a few moments for him to reread the letter and seal it up, then he starts shrinking and packing the assortment of things that are stacked precariously on his desk. He notices a group of three battered trunks sitting on the floor next to his desk and a beautifully carved jewelry box laying on top of them.

"Fawkes?" Dumbledore gives the phoenix a questioning look.

Fawkes lets out a complicated string of trills and chips before hopping onto the chests to push the jewelry box towards Dumbledore.

"You say Hagrid had these stored in his shed?" Dumbledore gently opens the box. Fawkes chirps affirmatively. "Ah, I had wondered if anything had been retrieved from the house before the Ministry condemned it." He lifts out a braided leather choker with four crystal animals and a lily hanging from it. "James had five of these made as graduation gifts, it makes perfect sense now. A stag for James, a wolf for Remus, a dog for Sirius, a rat for Peter, and a Lily for Miss Evans."

Dumbledore performs several spells on the necklace until finally the rat charm morphs into a lightening bolt. "That's better, he deserves a place among them far more than Peter does, don't you agree Fawkes?" Fawkes nods and moves back to his place on the back of Dumbledore's chair. "And these," he levitates the trunks around so he can see the fronts, "are James and Lily's school trunks and the trunk James' family gave to them at their wedding. Alastor would dearly love to have a trunk like this, five fully expanded compartments, and two nice rooms with security functions so not only can no one else get in but the owner can not be locked in either." Dumbledore smiles at the memories of the happiness they all found at the wedding despite the war going on around them

"So everything that was intact enough to save was stuffed in these three trunks? But who did it, Hagrid didn't have a proper wand at the time nor was he trained enough to accomplish such a task?" Fawkes trills softly. "You don't know either, strange, very strange. Can you sense any hostile magic or spells that would affect Harry at all?" Fawkes chirps and shakes his head. "Well then they had no intent to hurt anyone or to kidnap Harry at a later date, I wonder if they left a note inside?" Fawkes trills loudly and bats Dumbledore's hat with his wing. "The Potter's security measures are still active I take it, amazing. Will Harry be able to get into them safely?"

Fawkes nods and chirps a couple of times. "Of course, how silly of me. Harry is a blood relative." Dumbledore pauses in thought. "You don't suppose it was Remus do you? Once the fidelius was broken he would have remembered exactly where they were and been worried about why he could remember, but why wouldn't he tell me that he had packed up the house?"

Fawkes chirps. "I don't know either Fawkes and I suppose we never will unless the one who did it comes forward on their own." Dumbledore listens carefully when Fawkes trills. "Sirius? I suppose he could have done so after Hagrid left, Merlin knows that Azkaban robbed him of many of his memories."

Dumbledore gently places the necklace back in the jewelry box and closes it before tapping it gently with his wand so it will not fall open accidentally. He then shrinks it and the trunks and places them in the feather-light bag, which he promised Fawkes, along with everything else he is sending to Harry.

"Everything is ready for you to deliver Fawkes." Dumbledore represses a smile when Fawkes eyes the velvet pouch in his hand. "I kept my word Fawkes. Now go on and take these things on to Harry, but if he is sleeping peacefully try not to wake him since I am sure he has been having a rough time of it."

Dumbledore looks at Fawkes pensively. "I had forgotten what it was like for me, as a young man to face Grindelwald, I was older than Harry and I had no prophecy tying me to the madman. Any powerful wizard could have taken my place in that battle, Harry does not have that option. I could have at least placed a charm that monitored his emotional health and overall wellbeing, but I didn't allow myself to see the necessity. Will he forgive me Fawkes?"

The phoenix chirps noncommittally and picks up the pouch and note. "Will you check on him occasionally Fawkes? He is going to need a positive influence in his life."

Fawkes bobs his head and trills soothingly then vanishes in a burst of fire. Dumbledore sighs and decides to turn in for the night.

* * *

End Chap 1

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year


	2. Chapter 2 Ritual

Harry Potter and a Letter too Far.  
By Tiara Light

* * *

The characters in this story are the intellectual and legal property of J.K. Rowling and her assigns. 

My attempt at a super power Harry, though the process will be far from easy. With this the power comes privilege and responsibility, strength and weakness, temptation and fear, along with many **Surprises**. There are also clear homosexual overtones but no pairings. You have been warned.

AN/ This story like all my others is written in present tense no matter how odd that might seem to some, that is just my style.

* * *

Chapter Two 

Ritual

* * *

Harry wakes the next morning distinctly disoriented, nothing is as it should be. Instead of a tiny worn out mattress with its springs poking out and a ratty threadbare sheet he is laying on a larger feather bed with soft linen sheets. Listening to the world around him Harry cannot hear any of the annoying sounds he associates with the Dursley household, instead there is only the rustle of feathers and his own heart beat to disturb the surrounding silence. Most confusing of all is something warm and comforting in a vaguely familiar way is siting in the middle of his chest. Harry just barely opens one eye to squint at the blurry red blob that is sitting on him softly glowing. He closes his eye in a vain attempt to feign sleeping while silently cursing his luck. 

When Fawkes trills happily at him Harry stops pretending to sleep. "Good morning to you to Fawkes. I suppose it is a good sign that you waited for me to wake up on my own instead forcing me to wake up." As he talks the memories of the previous day come flooding back. "Please tell me he isn't ordering me back to the Dursley's or to Snape."

Fawkes shakes his head and pulls Dumbledore's letter out from under him and 'hands' it to Harry. Harry accepts the letter cautiously with a mumbled thanks and reads through it carefully several times.

"Is he sincere Fawkes?" Harry runs an unsteady finger down the parchment trying to decipher the emotions behind the words.

Fawkes chirps an affirmative.

"Good, because I really wasn't looking forward to fighting him over every little thing in my life." Harry relaxes a little.

"Talking to yourself Harry?" Remus leans casually against a nearby armoire.

"Are you hiding from him?" Harry asks Fawkes accusingly.

"Who is hiding from whom Harry?" Remus straightens up and a hint of emotion taints his voice.

"Fawkes is playing games, I guess he got bored while sitting here politely waiting for me to wake up." Harry pokes the phoenix gently in the chest to divert his attention from Remus. "Come on Fawkes you know how hard last year and my second year were for me, when most of the school thought I was dangerously insane." Fawkes shakes his head and Harry tenses his hand groping for his glasses while the other remains hidden as he finds his wand. "Are you trying to tell me that isn't Remus?"

Fawkes squawks indignantly and flies off when Harry throws himself off his bed to avoid a stunner thrown at him by the person who looks like Remus.

"Rigel?" The house elf responds to Harry's call immediately. "Security breach Rigel, I need to subdue my current attacker and find a secure place to be."

Rigel's eyes widen when he sees another stunner coming towards them. He grabs Harry's arm and pops them behind the attacking wizard and snaps his fingers causing the wizard to slump to the ground unconscious. "Its is safe for yous to use magic ins your vault Master Potter."

Harry rolls onto his back with a groan. "Thank you Rigel. Do you need to notify security?" Rigel nods. "Okay, and sorry for the trouble."

"Nots at all sirs, yous shoulds have been safe here. And no ones told yous abouts the magic here." Rigel pops away eliciting another groan from Harry.

Harry stares up at the phoenix circling the vast expanse of darkness above him for a moment. "Fawkes?"

Fawkes flies down to sit next to Harry chirping in concern.

Harry smiles tensely at Fawkes. "I'm fine, a little shaken up and a couple of new bruises, but nothing that needs medical assistance." Harry sits up carefully. "Now that things have calmed back down, can you tell he if that is Remus?"

Fawkes warbles in distress and shakes his head no.

"That is not good. Do you think you can find him?" Harry asks fearfully.

Fawkes cocks his head then flies slowly off over the various groupings of furniture. A minute or two later he flies back with Remus, clutching the back of the werewolf's shirt securely in his talons. He settles his burden carefully on the floor next to Harry and perches nearby.

Harry adjusts his grip on his wand. "Accio wands, accio portkeys." Harry ends the summoning spells before the items can fully reach him in fear that they might have been set to cause him harm if touched. "Stupefy, incarcerous." Harry makes sure that his attacker isn't going to move any time soon. "Ennervate." Harry bites his lip when Remus doesn't respond.

Fawkes chirps imperiously at Harry.

"Again?" Harry asks, and Fawkes nods his had. "Ennervate." This time, much to Harry's relief, Remus begins to stir.

"Why am I on the floor?" Remus grips his head as it spins sickeningly as he gingerly sits up.

Harry throws himself at Remus ignoring how shaky they both are. "I'm so glad you alright Mooney. I was so scared something had happened to you to." Harry babbles rapidly with his face buried in Remus' shirt.

"Shush kit, I'm here. It will be okay." Remus rubs Harry's back in soothing circles until he sees himself tied up on the floor unconscious. "What in Merlin's name is going on?"

"Exactly what I would like to know." Says a gruff voice behind them.

Remus and Harry's attention, and in Harry's case his wand as well, snaps instantly to the goblin who had snuck up on them.

"Barrack, Head of the Inheritance Security Taskforce, at your service. Now tell me what you know." Barrack says bluntly while moving to examine the captive.

Harry explains everything that had happened since he woke and found Fawkes sitting on him in the most terse and precise way he can. "I am guessing the imposter is using polyjuice to impersonate Remus."

Barrack nods sharply. "Most likely since your friend is still alive. Luckily we goblins have a way of forcing humans under that potion back to their normal form, if it is their natural form they feel nothing but if it isn't it can be quite painful depending on how much time is left to the potion." Barrack grins viciously.

"At this point I do not care how much pain he goes through so long as he can still answer questions afterward. Remus do you know if being a master occlumens affects the efficiency of truth serums?" Harry glares spitefully at the unconscious man.

Remus sighs resignedly knowing exactly who Harry thinks his attacker is, but his nose is not agreeing fully. He decides to hold his peace about it for the moment. "Yes, if the person is a true master they can completely lock thoughts and memories of their choice away from even the reach of veritaserum, but it is incredibly difficult and the effort required to circumvent the potions is tremendous."

"Not to worry, we have are ways." Barrack continues smiling in a most disturbing way.

Harry sighs. "If that is who I think it is, he was acting under a prearranged set of circumstances that have changed since yesterday."

Barrack looks at him strangely. "Who do you think it is?"

"Professor Severus Snape. Dumbledore had planned on me staying with him after the wards around my house were compromised, but in the letter he sent to me he clearly states he has changed his mind."

Harry hands the letter to Barrack. "I asked Fawkes if the letter was on the level."

The phoenix trills reassuringly and nods his head.

Barrack hums noncommittally and hands the letter back to Harry. "I understand where orders could have a lag time in a situation like this, but that does not excuse the fact that he broke into a Gringotts inheritance vault."

"Of course it doesn't. And I think you should find out how he did it and who else knows the technique." Harry grimaces in distaste for what he is about to say. "That being said I also think you would know the value of such a strategically placed spy, if he turns out to be loyal to Dumbledore."

Barrack glances sharply at Harry. "Yes, he would be immensely important to the war efforts." Barrack thinks about the situation carefully. "We will examine what he thinks he was doing and why, as well as his true loyalties. If he is as you say a true spy we will erase his memories back to the point that Rigel popped with you, and fix the way he got in so no one else can use it. I just wish we knew who broke in last time and how they did it."

"I can tell you who." Harry barely flinches at the intense stare Barrack gives him. "It was Professor Quirrell, under the direction of Voldemort. I have no clue how he actually did it."

"Ah, that would explain why we could never find the culprit, it is rumored he is dead." Barrack watches Harry pale. "Lad, goblins hear many things wizards do not want us to and much that they overlook, you were only defending yourself. He choose his association, and he paid for it."

Harry nods and tells himself he doesn't feel guilty. "I have a lot of things to work out, if I ever manage to find peace enough to deal with it all."

Barrack just nods and moves to examine the things that Harry had summoned. He picks up one of the wands laying on the floor. "I believe this is yours Mr. Lupin, it is clean of any harmful magic."

Remus gratefully receives his wand. "Thank you."

"You need to hide it a bit better, so no one can use it against you and those you care about." Barrack scolds. He pokes through the other things laying there. "His wand is mostly clean, though some of the prior spells are not very nice. I have never seen someone carry so many different portkeys. Some of them are even duplicates."

"I carry duplicate portkeys." Remus only shrugs at the odd look Barrack gives him. "They are for someone who might not have their own, like sending an injured victim to St, Mungo's or if someone loses theirs to a summoning spell or a body search." Remus motions to the portkeys on the ground as an example. "He probably has a couple of very discreet portkeys with anti-summoning and anti-removal spells on them as well."

Barrack grunts in acknowledgement. "Then we need to get him under the influence of our devices before he wakes up and set up an anti-portkey zone just to be sure. Rigel." The house elf arrives immediately. "Would you retrieve a Jobberknoll feather for us please."

Barrack sees the wizard's curious looks. "The feathers are saturated in a combination of potions and several spells, all that is needed to activate it is some of the subjects blood. Once active any question you ask is answered honestly on an equally enchanted paper, no matter what they say out loud. The beauty of this technique is the subject never even realizes they have given away truth."

"I think I should not be present as you question him, I would be to tempted to force him to answer some questions regarding his behavior towards me." Harry looks at the man on the floor disgustedly.

Rigel pops in and hands Barrack the equipment he requested. "Masters Potter and Lupin, Master Gripstaff is asking ifs you woulds join hims for breakfast. I's is to wait for yous."

"Of course Rigel, just a let us straighten up a bit." Remus manages to stand up and then helps Harry up as well.

Remus uses a spell to clean Harry up and another to set his clothing in order. He then walks Harry through doing the same spells on him.

Harry grins at learning something new from his favorite teacher. "Okay Rigel we are ready."

Fawkes chirps indignantly before they can disappear.

"I'm sorry Fawkes, is there something else you needed?" Harry holds out his arm for Fawkes to perch on.

Fawkes happily accepts Harry's offered perch while he uses his beak to remove the small almost weightless bag the Headmaster had sent along.

"Thank you very much Fawkes, I had completely forgotten that he had sent anything else with you." Fawkes sings quietly to sooth everyone's frayed nerves before taking off and disappearing. Harry stashes the bag in one of his pockets next to his shrunken trunk. "Now we are ready to go."

At the other end of the house elf express Remus ends up sitting on the floor again with his head between his knees. Harry on the other hand manages to stay standing by bracing his feet and focusing his eyes on the stationary solidity of the nearest wall.

"Very good Mr. Black-Potter, I had a hunch you would adjust quickly. A good stance and a single point of focus are the first steps in popping well." Gripstaff is sitting comfortably behind his desk with a sumptuous breakfast already laid out. "I hope your mornings excitement hasn't dissuaded you from trusting our bank?"

"No, the excitement in question is quite capable of maneuvering freely around two of the most powerful wizards in the world. His involvement in an attempt to remove me did not surprise me in the least nor does it shock me in any way that he is capable of circumventing such powerful protections. There is a reason he is still considered to be a dark wizard even if he is willingly working with Dumbledore." Harry manages to make it to a chair before he collapses. "I am glad apparating does not feel that way, otherwise I would never learn."

"Harry we don't know if that is Severus or not, in fact his scent was off in a way I have never experienced before. And how do you know apparating doesn't feel like that." Remus asks dragging himself to his feet and staggering to the remaining chair.

"Er, Dudley chased me into a dead end one time at school and I ended up on top of the school's chimney." Harry grins sheepishly. "Possibly I levitated up there, but I don't really remember floating or anything."

Remus stares at him in surprise. "Levitating yourself that far would be almost as difficult as apparating and far more draining."

"After seeing the three signet rings you are already entitled to wear that particular information doesn't surprise me the way it might have done without them." Gripstaff pours them all some of his special tea to sooth them. "Eat, there is no way I can even make a dent in the feast the house elves sent up. You have made quite the impression on our elves Mr. Black-Potter."

"Would you be willing to just call me Harry while we are in private. I'm not used to the Black part, and the Mr. Potter part makes me feel like I am back at Hogwarts." Harry grins lopsidedly at Gripstaff.

"It would be my honor Harry, and that is precisely why the elves like you. You are polite to them, and you obviously are willing to trust them with your life completely. Dragel, the elf who delivered your letter and brought you to Gringotts, only had glowing things to tell the other elves about how you do not underestimate their abilities and that you actually treated him as an equal." Gripstaff says by way of small talk over their meal.

"I do consider the other magical races equals. All the races I have met so far are quite capable of thinking for themselves, even those that are perhaps a bit to violent to socialize well with humans." Harry says with a smirk thinking about Dragons and Acromantulas. "Okay maybe trolls are stretching it."

Remus' chuckle is echoed by Gripstaff's smile. On that more positive note they proceed to eat breakfast. When they finish eating Harry sits back from the desk regarding the intricate tapestries adorning the walls.

Harry takes a sip of his tea and sets the cup down. "So what is this ritual you want me to do?"

"Actually there are two rituals. One of them is suggested in a private addendum to Mr. Black's will. It is a blood adoption ritual, which will allow your descendants to retain inheritance of the Black family legacy instead of it reverting to the offspring of the Black sisters. After the ritual you can stipulate a secondary line of blood heredity, like any magical males born into the Tonks family. The irony of this is that your godfather's parents could have done just that without disinheriting him and we wouldn't be having this conversation." Gripstaff leans forward to regard Harry intently. "So what do you say? He did not make it mandatory, it is only a suggestion just in case he never had the chance to ask you in person."

Harry blinks rapidly and clears his throat. "What do I need to do, and are their any side effects?"

Gripstaff sits back seemingly pleased by his response. He opens a drawer and takes out a roll of parchment along with a quill and some ink, as well as a shallow basin, two black bottles, and a gauntlet covered in crystals.

"The ritual is fairly simple; you read the adoption papers and sign them. Once the parchment verifies your magic and intent I will place the gauntlet in the basin and pour the bottles containing a potion and Mr. Black's blood over it. The crystals on the gauntlet do the rest by absorbing the liquids, all you need to do then is put the gauntlet on. Then the real ritual begins as the gauntlet transmutes the liquids into a single compatible liquid that it imbues directly into your blood stream." Gripstaff stops Harry from picking up the parchment.

"I wont hide the fact that this could hurt quite a bit depending on how many of the Black family blood traits are compatible to you." Gripstaff watches as a multitude of thoughts flickers through Harry's eyes.

"Question, is Miss Tonks special ability an inherited blood trait?" Harry asks.

Gripstaff thumbs through one of his drawers and removes a folder which he quickly skims until he finds what he is looking for. "Yes, it is."

Harry glances at Remus then concentrates hard on returning his hair to its typical shaggy appearance. "Would that indicate a preexisting affinity to that particular type of magic?"

Remus gapes at Harry for a moment. "So that is how James could avoid having spending time on his hair and shaving. Bloody sly little bugger. But I thought metamorphagus ability precluded the ability to become an animagus."

Gripstaff nods. "It does indeed."

"But my father was an animagus, a stag to be exact, Remus can confirm that from first hand knowledge." Harry tells Gripstaff.

"Amazing, well then he was the first known exception to the rule and if you have his same ability there is a good chance that you will also be able to handle the dual transfiguration. Rigel." Gripstaff waits for the elf to arrive. "Could you go get me a vial of the x-animas potion, please?"

Rigel grins and pops out and back in with the requested potion.

Gripstaff accepts the proffered vial. "Thank you Rigel." Rigel beams at them all and disappears. "This Mr. Potter is a highly illegal potion, not because of any of ingredients but because goblins are not suppose to tamper with 'human' potions. The ministry is supremely stupid if you ask me since many of the really effective healing potions currently in use were originally discovered by goblins."

Harry snorts. "I won't argue with you about the ministry's chronic stupidity."

"Nor will I." Remus chips in.

"From the two of you those statements do not surprise me at all." Gripstaff offers the vial to Harry. "Since you already have some metamorphagus ability it might be best to find out if you already are able to obtain an animagus form before we potentially boost that particular transfiguration magic."

"I know what a regular animas potion is suppose to do, but what does your modified potion do besides the obvious?" Harry takes the vial and stares at the opalescent liquid.

"One it tastes a heck of a lot better than the original." Gripstaff smirks at the half smug and irritated expression on Harry's face. "Two it is theorized that it will allow an appropriately gifted wizard to have multiple or magical forms, and if the drinker is powerful enough perhaps both though it is doubtful they would have more than one magical form. Third it will 'lock' in the animagus form without leaving any residual potion in the drinkers blood, that means you can safely drink another potion after you wake up from your trance."

"Alrighty then, cheers." Harry swallows the potion before Remus can object or ask if the potion had been tested on humans since the goblins 'improved' it.

"Damn impulsive kit, one of these days your going to give me a heart attack Harry." Remus grouches.

"You and the rest of my friends to." Harry grins cheekily.

"I do hope you're not usually this trusting of strangers Harry." Gripstaff says both amused and amazed by his seeming trust in someone he had only met yesterday. "You did not give me a chance to point that the potion has never actually been consumed by a human. The least that could happen is nothing, and you will have a headache when the potion is finished. It is also possible it could actually force you to momentarily transform in to any form or forms you might have which I am told is extremely painful."

Harry shrugs. "Considering the banks reputation is at stake I doubt very seriously you would give me something you even remotely thought could be permanently damaging." Harry gasps as his head spins and the edges of the room begin to darken. "I think it is starting so maybe I should lay down."

Harry slips out of his chair and stretches out on the floor. The moment he is fully unconscious Gripstaff levitates him to an open space in the office and places a cushioning charm on the floor. Next he pushes all the furniture up against the wall just incase Harry transforms into something of significant size. As Gripstaff and Remus watch Harry begins to thrash and moan, his body seems to stretch and contract slowly into vague shapes without ever fully settling into a definite form.

Remus looks worried. "What does that mean?"

"Probably that the potion is only forcing a partial transformation and that he definitely has more than one shape." Gripstaff says, while watching Harry shift into a third form, in fascination.

Remus whines in sympathy when Harry begins to thrash while morphing into a fourth rather large form.

"It shouldn't be long now." Gripstaff assures Remus as Harry's body transforms into progressively small shapes.

The transformations stop at a small sausage like creature and suddenly Harry returns to a proper human shape.

"Wait a minute." Remus stands and quickly approaches Harry. "His body has changed. It not a lot but it is noticeable."

"I believe young Harry is approaching his sixteenth birthday," At Remus' nod Gripstaff goes on. "Then it is quite possible that his magic is taking advantage of these forced magical changes to catch his body up to where it should have been if he had been reared in a positive environment."

"Damn Dursley's." Remus snarls.

"Indeed. It is a good thing he was removed from their home and was exposed to some controlled form of transformation before his birthday hit. If he had remained there unchanged and unprepared there was a good chance he would have leveled the house if not the entire block." Gripstaff almost looks like that scenario appeals to him. "Come let's get him up off the floor."

Remus picks Harry up while Gripstaff rearranges his office and transfigures Harry's chair into an elegant chaise lounge. Harry groans as Remus puts him down on the chaise.

"Tell Stan and Ernie to take some driving lessons, they aren't suppose to run over their prospective passengers with that bloody eye-sore of a bus." Harry gripes ad he returns to awareness. "And please tell me why, oh why one of my forms is a ferret."

"Ferrets are highly curious and cunning creatures, as well as quite sociable. They are also very good at escaping confinement and dangerous situations unscathed." Gripstaff responds in amusement. "And I personally think they make very intelligent and loyal pets. Yes they are not for young children or novice pet owners as they can cause quite a bit of mischief if not properly handled, and they are predators."

"Okay, I see where that might fit me on occasions." Harry still sulks "But I can't call Malfoy ferret anymore." Suddenly he brightens. "What do you think he would do if I started following him around as a ferret, keeping him from actually seeing me transform of course?"

Remus groans. "The mutt rubbed off on you. Harry if he caught you at it, you might end up in his potions kit as ingredients."

"Ah, come on Remus just once or twice, you know so that the rest of the school would remember the amazing bouncing white ferret incident." Harry pleads trying to make puppy dog eyes at Remus.

"Once a year, and only while at Hogwarts in a setting were you can easily get away." Remus says sternly.

"Stingy old man." Harry pouts trying not to smile.

"That's stingy old werewolf to you kit." Remus stops to consider what he just said. "Hey I'm not old!"

"Of course not Moony." Harry laughs focusing on something besides his troubles for awhile.

Gripstaff watches the interaction with interest. "How are you feeling physically Harry?"

"My joints ache a bit from being twisted around in odd shapes and I have a small headache nothing more." Harry brushes aside what others might consider very painful as it was nothing.

"Can you remember all your forms?" Gripstaff is pleased when Harry nods. "Good, but remember you will still need to actually work on you forms from here on out like anyone else would. I would recommend you swap between sizes and power levels in learning your forms, it will potentially make your later transformations easier."

"I will keep that in mind." Harry bows his head to acknowledge Gripstaff's advice. "How long do you think I should wait before doing the adoption ritual?"

"You can do it any time you feel you are physically recovered enough to bear the pain that might come from the process. I think one more warning is in order here, when you turn sixteen you will inherit the full brunt of you families magical blood legacy. This process can be highly painful, but in this case every wizard goes through it so you have no choice. If we do this now you will be adding to the potential pain and destructive potential of the process." Gripstaff watches as Harry pales. "It might be best if you put in a request to use one of the specially warded rooms either here, the ministry, or St. Mungo's soon so that whoever you choose can reserve a space for you."

"I do not trust the ministry, period. I do not think St. Mungo's is secure enough to deal with my presence and I will not endanger their other patients if the Death Eaters decide to come after me while I am otherwise occupied. That leaves here, I hate to offend but do you think today's problem will be fixed by then?"

"After today's excitement I understand your concern. Let me tell you that the specialty ward rooms are actively guarded by several sentient being loyal to only Gringotts and are immune to most types of outside magic. And yes we will solve the breach in security you are worried about probably before the bank closes tonight." Gripstaff answers calmly.

Harry relaxes and picks up the parchment he needs to read and sign. "This seems fairly straightforward. "Um, can you give me an idea of what I might gain from the Black legacy?"

"I was wondering if you would ask." Gripstaff says in amusement, he pulls a paper out of the folder he had looked at earlier. "The metamorphagus ability you already know about, the same goes for the animagus ability. Now on to the other legacy abilities that could crop up. Divination which is often the source of some of the family's seeming insanity because not all foreknowledge is helpful. Visionary magic, this is the ability to actually see magic. Tongues, rather obviously that means you gain the knack for picking up other languages especially magical ones, this may be encouraged by the parseltongue you already have. An affinity for the more violent aspects of magic, this is something the entire family is known for so it shouldn't be a shock. Fire magics, this is considered to be an extinct ability, it means being able to control fire as well as being able to summon creatures that have affinity to fire both light and dark. The last blood legacy is a resistance to poisoning, whether by potions or venoms as well as many muggle substances. And that is all of the documented legacy magic the Black's might pass on."

Gripstaff pulls another folder out of his desk. "Would you like to know what you might inherit from the Potter family legacy?"

Harry looks at Gripstaff in surprise. "Yes, I would like that very much."

"Well considering the Potter hair is rather famous I think we should add low level metamorphagus potential to the list first." Gripstaff scribbles something at the bottom of the parchment he is looking at. "Again there is the animagus ability, and tongues. There is also the ability to control and call an element, in the Potter's case it is air."

"That explains the affinity for flying." Remus says with a teasing smile.

"Just so." Gripstaff agrees. "Warping, which is the affinity for advanced spell manipulation and creation, but there is a catch with that as you need to work on the fields of magic that most spell are built on. Namely runes and arithmancy which I happen to know you didn't study, so if you gain the gift you will need to do some self study to be able to use it properly. Battle magic, an affinity for weapons and defensive and offensive magic used in dueling and battle. Animal tamer, this is the ability to understand and communicate with animals without the ability to actually speak to them. Sometimes just speaking to an animal is not enough truly communicate with them, since a lot of animals use body language to telegraph much of what they are feeling and thinking. There are a few minor abilities but they are all offshoots of the major gifts."

"Er, do most families have that many gifts?" Harry shifts uncomfortably.

"When speaking of a legacy you are usually referring to something passed through several generations. It is then logical to assume the older the family the more possible gifts there are to pass on, and the Potters and Blacks are both old families. That is not to say muggle born wizards will not gain any gifts upon maturity, only that there is no way of knowing what those gifts might be." Gripstaff puts the files away. "It should be noted the more powerful a wizard is the more gifts he can support. A weak wizard might only have one true gift, where as someone like your Headmaster can support quite a few more."

Harry nods slowly and turns his attention to the parchment in his hands. He smoothes it out on the desk and signs it thoughtfully. He sits very still as magic washes over him, testing him for his true identity and capability of understanding. When the magic recedes the parchment rolls its self up and an unmarked wax seal appears.

"Once the ritual is finished the Black family seal will appear on it superimposed by your initials." Gripstaff begins to arrange the items necessary for the ritual in a very specific manner. "Are you sure you want to continue Mr. Potter, this is your last chance to withdraw from the ritual."

"Is there a reason I would want to withdraw?" Harry glances sharply at Gripstaff.

"Only to spare yourself some pain in the future." Gripstaff points out calmly.

Harry shrugs. "I have had some level of continuos pain since Riddle's rebirth a little bit more will make no difference to me."

Gripstaff nods and begins the ritual, first part of which only takes five minutes to complete. Once all the liquid in the basin is gone the clear crystals on the gauntlet begin to pulse dark red.

Gripstaff slides the basin over to Harry. "It would be best to wear it on the arm you do not use as frequently, it needs to remain undisturbed as much possible to insure a smooth infusion."

Harry pushes up his left sleeve and slides the gauntlet on, he feels it resize automatically to his arm. "What now?"

"Now we wait." Gripstaff banishes the ritual equipment they are finished using. "Is there any aspect of your current inheritance that you would like to know about?"

Remus beats Harry to the obviously most pressing matter on both their minds which they had touched upon the prior evening. "What type of residences are available and how secure are they?"

Gripstaff pulls what looks like a pair of locking tackle-boxes out of one of his desk drawers. After unlocking both of them he opens them and turns them so both his guests and he can easily see the contents. The boxes open up and out wards like there normal muggle counterpoints do, but inside there are a few differences. The compartments are vertical instead of horizontal and each one is obviously magically expanded. Neither box is full, but each occupied compartment contains a set of keys and some type of documentation.

Gripstaff taps each box with a gnarled finger. "Show me 'uninhabited' exception house-elves, 'inhabitable', 'secure residences'."

After the initial 'show me' instruction all the boxes begin to glow. With each spoken stipulation a number of compartment go dark leaving seven steadily glowing compartments and one flickering oddly.

"There appears that there are only two Potter residences that match your basic requirements. The other four are Black properties. I am not sure why the fifth one is flickering but it is also a Black property." Gripstaff regards the anomalous compartment quizzically.

Harry smiles wistfully. "I wonder if any of them are the island Sirius visited while he was on the run. He was always using these huge colorful birds to deliver his letters instead of owls."

"There is only one way to find out." Remus says pragmatically trying to distract them both from the raw emotions that are still to close to deal with.

"True, let's start with the Potter properties." Harry shakes himself out of the memories that seem to swamp his mind every time he thinks about Sirius.

Gripstaff pulls an ancient scroll out of one the glowing compartments. "Hmm, well that is interesting but ultimately unsuitable for what you are needing."

"What?" Harry leans forward to peer curiously at the scroll.

"It would appear the you own a portion of Hogwarts." Gripstaff says drolly.

"That is interesting, but I don't understand how the school could be counted as a residence." Harry fingers the set of large ornate keys that go with the scroll.

Gripstaff reads through the scroll to familiarize himself with the details of ownership. "There is a special wing that housed just the founders, the entrance to which was hidden in a rather unusual location. Your signet ring should give you automatic entrance to Gryffindor's suites. Slytherin set his entrance to voice activate in parseltongue, without the gift you need to use the appropriate key. The Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff suites were also keyed to family items, or if the direct blood lines died out to a key. As you can see by the existence of the keys the direct blood lines of three of the families have disappeared, and since they are in the Potter family holdings it means the indirect lines have also been destroyed."

"I think I have already entered the Slytherin rooms, at least the entrance way. Being a parseltongue allowed me entry into the chamber of secrets, through the sinks in the third floor girls bathroom." Harry grimaces at the memories involved with that incident.

"Yes that is where the scrolls indicate the entrances are. If your expression is anything to go by I imagine you triggered a secondary defenses since you did not have your signet ring or a key." Gripstaff glance at Harry for confirmation.

"A bloody big basilisk, I thought Tom Riddle's diary summoned the thing, and what about Voldemort? He has regained a body, doesn't that mean he is a living descendant of Slytherin?" Harry shudders as an image of the Basilisk from his second year flashes in his mind.

"As to summoning the Basilisk, he could not have done so if the stasis charm had not been lifted by the defense system. His body was destroyed and he was declared legally dead. He would need to go through an inheritance ritual here to reinstate himself as a living heir. And if someone else just happened to claim his family inheritance before he did the ritual or as compensation for crimes committed against them he would not be able to get them back." Gripstaff gives Harry a sly smile.

"Could you arrange that?" Harry asks with a touch of gleeful vindictiveness.

"Of course Harry, you most certainly qualify. Though there isn't much left in the estate, and you already posses the most important piece of it." Gripstaff indicates the key. "I take it you would like to keep the scroll and keys."

Harry nods slowly. "Yeah, even though it will not be of any use to me until school starts, I would like to go over the information at my leisure. It is just to close to Dumbledore and his annoying loyalists. I need something that is functional not decorative, somewhere private. I will explore the Founder's wing when I return to school."

Gripstaff produces a long leather cord from which he hangs each of the Hogwarts' keys and what looks like a leather day planner to hold the scrolls.

"The other Potter residence is not much better in the practicality department. It has fifteen bedrooms, each with an in suite bathroom and full closet, indoor Quidditch pitch, a kitchen large enough to serve Hogwarts and Beauxbatons combined, and indoor/outdoor swimming lagoon. It also has formal and informal versions of a number of rooms; living room, dining room, solarium, tearoom, den, study, library, and dueling room. It has a triple floor ballroom with transparent floors, attached and separate greenhouses, and almost a thousand acres of carefully landscaped mountain sides. It even has an underground vault and a fully functional stable of winged horses." Gripstaff looks disgusted when he mentions the vault.

Harry feels warmth spread from his signet ring on his right hand. "It is a portrait vault."

Gripstaff's expression relaxes. "Ah, that's different then. It is good to know that the rings are still fully functional so long after their original creation. Do you want to keep this key as well so you can perhaps visit the vault briefly, either your ring or the vault should provide you with instructions on how to duplicate and maintain portraits."

Harry stares at the delicate jewel incrusted key and nods slowly. "When I am ready, it might not be until Christmas, but I don't want to make to many trips to Diagon Alley. No need to risk unnecessary exposure or draw undo attention to my doings here."

Gripstaff agrees fully and adds the key and informational scroll to those from Hogwarts. "The first Black residence is a castle in the Ireland. It seems to have been used as a sanctuary during various 'persecutions' of dark wizards. It is remotely located, has a mote and numerous less than friendly deterrents for unwanted guests." Gripstaff glances up from his reading when Harry mumbles something.

Harry grimaces at getting caught in a less than polite comment. "No, that one sounds a bit to dangerous for my tastes."

"Or my peace of mind." Remus mutters.

Gripstaff replaces castles information back in its proper compartment and moves on to the next property. "A small castle in the Black Forrest, in Germany. It seems there is a very good reason it is named that way, the Blacks own most of it."

"How can a castle be small?" Harry asks.

"In this case the outer walls and turrets are merely defensive and are not attached to the actual abode, making the outside look like a fortified castle. Inside the battlements there is approximately four acres of well manicured lawns and gardens with a comfortable manor. Anyone coming upon it from the outside, which is highly unlikely with the number and strength of wards in place on the property, can only see dangerously unstable walls and a couple of small towers leaning at precarious angles. More often a small castles means a builder or home owner has used castle like elements on a manor for vanity's sake." Gripstaff shows Harry a rough sketch of the properties grounds. "The surrounding forest is heavily populated with magical creatures which means the German magical government has its own set of wards and deterrents on the entire forest. If you add the huge battery of almost every ward that can be cast legally in Germany from the simplest to the most complex the grounds are pretty much sealed. The only safe way in is to have a key or be given specific permission to be there by the Head of the Black family."

"That one sounds promising, what about the rest?" Harry keeps the sketch to get a feel for the overall lay out and to study the legend below it detailing plants and defenses.

Gripstaff sets castle's documentation off to one side the key settled primly on top. "Next is a nice little house in Hogsmeade, fully equipped with the standard wards and a couple of simple blood wards. Nothing strong enough to keep out the Dark Lord or Dumbledore if they exerted themselves in the least."

"To close. Do you think the wards it has now are sufficient to allow me to use it as a jump off point for the other properties or for a base from which I can do my necessary shopping?" Harry figures the answer is yes when Gripstaff adds the property to the others he wishes to utilize temporarily or at a later date.

"Now we have a penthouse in Tokyo, Japan. It is warded fairly well but Japan has a much stricture set of rules governing the statute of secrecy in general and under age magic in specific, due to the size of its population in relation to how little space they have available. You would essentially be forced to live like a muggle or to hand over your wand." Gripstaff braces for an angry explosion he is sure Harry will have to this description.

Harry's angry scowl becomes thoughtful. "There is no way I wold agree to be parted from my wand and living like a muggle wont help my chances of learning anything that might help me survive this war let alone winning it. But if we can make everyone believe that I wanted to have a quiet summer away from the pressures of the wizarding world, then the penthouse might serve well."

Gripstaff makes a note and attaches it to the key which he then sets aside to see if he can facilitate the proper illusion. "Next is an entire warehouse with a studio loft located adjacent to the magical district in Los Angeles, California, America. The attitude here is completely opposite from the one in Japan, so long as you cause no harm and the muggles don't notice anything obviously magical you can use as much magic as you want. They do prefer that younger children be monitored by a properly trained witch or wizard so any accidents can be reversed without to much alarm."

"I think that one might be a bit to obvious a choice, what are the underage magic rules in Germany." Harry asks as casually as he can.

"Their laws are similar to ours but the actual attitude and enforcement align more to the Americans way of doing it. And on such a remote property they really do not care unless you get caught doing something illegal." Gripstaff shrugs off the surprised looks he gets. "You didn't think Durmstrang got its dark reputation by accident did you? Anyway our last property is from the flickering compartment. It is an unnamed island somewhere in the tropical zone. It is already under a type of Fidelius charm attached to the head of the Black family." Gripstaff pushes a booklet about the island towards Harry. "Only you can read more than first few lines."

Harry reads through the booklet thoroughly. "I can safely guess why the properties box was blinking. It appears the residence itself is perfectly sound, the problem is the current environment. The island is currently experiencing a monsoon season. Not a complication I want to deal with right now, but I would like to keep its key as well. It would serve well as a safe house if I am ever forced to relocate in a hurry. It isn't very large, only really comfortable for two or three people, but it does have all the comforts one could possibly want in a wizarding home."

"Then you are using the German home for your main residence?" Gripstaff asks while adding the island to Harry's planner of interesting or useful properties. He then closes and shrinks the two main boxes and puts them in the planner as well. "You saw how I queried the property caches, do you remember it well enough to do it yourself?"

Harry nods to both questions absently, thumbing through the booklet.

"You seem to be handling all of this fairly well Harry." Remus notes hesitantly.

Harry shakes his head. "Not really, I just don't have the time or energy to think about all of the particulars right now. Once I settle into my own home and I know that I am truly safe I am going to crawl into bed, pull the covers over my head and hide for a day or ten."

Gripstaff chuckles raspily. "Perfectly understandable, but I might suggest not hiding for to long since you have much to learn."

Rigel pops in distracting them from embarking on a serious debate about what Harry needs to learn in the little time he has this summer. "Is Masters wishing for lunch?"

Gripstaff looks at the other two who nod in agreement. "Yes please Rigel."

Gripstaff motions for Harry to pull up his sleeve. "Very good, all the crystals are clear again. You may remove the gauntlet now Harry."

Harry removes the gauntlet in relief as it had been getting increasingly uncomfortable to wear. Soon Rigel is back with their midday meal large enough to feed ten people, smiling happily at them all as they begin to eat heartily. Remus and Gripstaff talk softly about the state of magical beings and creatures in the current wizarding world as they eat. Harry immerses himself in pouring over the information on the properties he is keeping the keys to. Harry is just starting to read the Hogwarts scrolls when he realizes his companions have finished eating.

Harry rolls the scrolls with a sheepish grin and finishes eating. As he pushes his plate away Harry goes rigid in his seat.

"Kit are you alright?" Remus moves towards Harry in concern.

"Mr. Lupin I did tell the both of you that the ritual would cause some pain. At this stage the magical properties of the Black family are finding their places within his born magic, admittedly there usually isn't such a noticeable lag time. There is a possible third stage but very few people go through it. It requires both parties involved in the ritual to have a deep and abiding love and trust for each other, causing them to actually share some of their personal magic. In this case if he goes through the third stage he will most likely receive all of Mr. Black's magic, it will be considerably more painful than this stage. It has been almost a millennia since this ritual has reached its full completion and someone actually added another's magic to their own. Usually the only thing the ritual gives the participant is one or two stray gifts from the bloodline adopting them and possibly a slight change in features. With Mr. Potter here already sharing a number of the possible gifts it is conceivable that he might end up with all the gifts or the gifts being be considerable stronger than if they only came from one family. It will be interesting to see the end results." Gripstaff watches the process in fascination.

"Is that why he is hurting so much?" Remus growls while helping Harry lay down.

"In part, but this is a bit more intense than what most would go through. I admit I was not expecting him to feel this much pain in this stage of the ritual, I can only guess that it is a combination of the massive differences in Harry's and Mr. Black's physiques and the contradiction between his animagus ability and his metamorphagus ability. Unfortunately if this in any indication, than the third stage if he goes through it will be much more painful." Gripstaff pauses when Remus' growling increases.

"It would have been considerate of you to disclose that bit of information before Harry agreed to this." Remus tries to adjust Harry's limbs so he will be more comfortable.

"Mr. Lupin do you think that he would have declined even if I had told him it would hurt more than the Cruciatus Curse?" Gripstaff asks blandly.

Remus shakes his head. "No, for Sirius he would endure anything."

When Harry groans Remus' attention is drawn away from Gripstaff.

"Ouch!" Harry hisses in irritation and covers his eyes with his arms when the light in the room jars his aching head. "I have decided that I do not like pain."

"Most people don't." Gripstaff says dryly, Harry groans as he tries unsuccessfully to sit up.

Remus places a hand gently on Harry's chest to prevent him from further attempts to sit up. "It would be best if you remained laying down for a while longer Harry, just in case the ritual process goes into the rare third stage Gripstaff just now informed me could occur."

"Lovely." Harry huffs in irritation at the possibility of having another unusual thing happen to him.

"I suppose some humans would consider you as such." Gripstaff almost cackles openly at the strange look he receives.

Harry looks over at Remus and whines low in his throat. "Please tell me that there is not a goblin flirting with me."

"There is not a goblin flirting with you Harry." Remus responds trying to decide if he should be amused or alarmed by this turn in the conversation.

Gripstaff lifts an eyebrow. "And if I am, would it be a problem?"

"Er, no sir." Harry looks highly uncomfortable. "It's just that aesthetically speaking I have never thought of a goblin in those terms."

"Generally speaking we feel much the same about humans, but there are more aspects to consider besides looks when speaking of attraction." Gripstaff watches Harry's facial responses intently.

"I suppose so, thank you sir." Harry blushes heavily.

"Luckily I can assure you that I am not interested in you in that way; despite your wealth, magical depth, strength of character, or generous physical appeal on a human scale." Gripstaff does chuckle out loud as Harry's blush deepens and he tries to stutter a polite answer.

Remus finally relaxes enough to laugh at Harry as well. "At least you know you made a good impression kit."

Harry glares at Remus. "Shut your muzzle wolf, it's not funny." Harry's irritated look becomes melancholy. "That's the first time anyone's paid me that type of compliment, even if it was meant in jest."

Both Gripstaff and Remus look at him in surprise.

"Surely not, James always had many admires." Remus says without thinking.

"Well I'm not James," Harry snaps, "and I'm not Lily either. I wish people would quit looking for their perfect little replicas of their imaginations, because those things aren't me they never existed."

Harry tries to sit up again but only succeeds in scooting up the chaises sloped side a bit.

"Harry I'm sorry I shouldn't have said that and I know you are not your parents. I taught you for long enough to know you probably would have driven them both up the wall." Remus smile sadly at Harry. "Oddly enough you remind me more of a combination of myself and Sirius, at least in the way you act if not in looks. Though the looks have changed a bit and I think it is safe to assume they will change a bit more on your birthday.

"They will and if I remember correctly Mr. Black had no lack of admires either." Gripstaff says smugly.

"No, no he didn't." Remus grimaced. "Just a lack in decorum."

Harry looks at shyly Remus before speaking hesitantly. "I thought the two of you were together."

Remus jaws drops in surprise. "Er, ah, well not really." Remus takes a deep breath to compose himself. "He was always rather overly affectionate unless he really hated the person. So the two us being such longstanding and close friends we did occasionally share a bit more than normal to relieve the occasional bout of loneliness."

"Oh, okay. Kind of like the twins then." Harry says absently.

Remus looks at Harry strangely. "The twins?"

Harry stares at him appalled by what he had just let slip. "Um, are you sure you don't want to add Hagrid to that list of personality traits."

"Why would I do that?" Remus asks confusedly.

"Because I shouldn't have said that." Harry says meekly.

"Your serious!" Remus blushes and looks away from Harry then back again. "I didn't hear that, and I don't want to know any more."

"Thank you Remus, if they ever found out I let that slip there is no telling what I would end up looking like for the rest of my life." Then Harry grins impishly. "They are fun to share with though."

"What?" Remus manages to squeak.

"Yep." Harry affirms cheerfully. "I liked being part of a Weasley sandwich."

"Oh, Merlin. I didn't need to know that." Remus covers his face.

"What, oh yeah I forgot you were to old for that sort of thing any more." Harry clamps down on his laughter when Remus' head snaps up. "Uh, huh you didn't really think Sirius didn't tell me some of his more interesting stories did you. I mean why else would I think the two of you were together, its not like I saw you two together often enough to get that impression."

Remus turns red. "He didn't."

"About you, my father, himself, and a whole kitchen full of staring house elves. Dobby even confirmed it for me with a couple of the older elves still working in the kitchen. I wasn't about to take Sirius' word for it." Harry grins lopsidedly. "I feel the same way about hearing my father's exploits, I really didn't want to know."

Harry gathers enough strength to reach his tea. "Then I started to wonder how it would work and well they were a built in double act, funny, and they actually treated me like a person not some living breathing story book character. They got a huge laugh out of me asking them about the 'S' word. It would not have been so bad if I had known ahead of time that assorted gender pairing were all right in the wizarding world, even though I should have realized it after Sirius' stories. Muggles are still widely divided on that issue, and my 'family' was definitely not what one could call tolerant. By then they had managed to embarrass me fairly badly, and I made them really work to find out why I had started such an 'interesting' conversation." Harry smiles when Remus snorts. "Really you can't imagine what type of torture it is for those two not to tell them something once you have their curiosity going." Harry pauses again and looks at Remus contritely. "I'm sorry Remus you said you didn't want to hear this, so I'll just drop the subject."

"What? Now wait just one minute, you can not just lead a person up to a good point in a story and stop there." Remus protests before he sees the smirk on Harry's face. "You made that up, that was quite Slytherin of you Harry."

"Nothing wrong with being Slytherin Remus, but your wrong it did indeed happen and they said much the same thing when I refused to tell them why I was asking." Harry sighs. "Alas I finally did cave in and tell them that a friend had showed me a diary that had belonged to the infamous Padfoot and friends and well there were some very interesting things that the boys got up to together behind closed curtains." Harry puts on the most innocently eager expression he can. "And I asked them if they knew any fellows who would be interested in teaching me how to do interesting things behind closed curtains."

"Oh Merlin you did, I know that look. The one that says I'm so innocent and naïve, please be gentle with me, I never could get that look down." Remus grouses.

Harry blushes. "Well to tell the truth I really was at that point, oh they fell for the line but they didn't really believe the act until they actually got me alone. Poor Fred and George you should have seen the dumbfounded looks on their faces when they realized I really didn't have any experience whatsoever. And before you start lecturing me on how I should have waited for someone special, we didn't go all the way in point of fact we have never even got beyond a bit of cuddling and a few kisses. The twins are really good friends and understood that I needed to go slow."

"I am glad to hear that Harry, but why the twins? Why not someone a bit more serious, someone who you could stick with for more than just experimentation." Remus asks curiously. "You never impressed me as the dabbling sort."

Harry looks pensive. "Its not like I can just get intimate with anyone who strikes my fancy even if they are serious. The newspapers would crucify them and automatically make them Voldemort's target even before me, because they would likely be easier to catch and it would hurt me worse than being directly captured. I explained this all to them, plus the fact that not everyone within the school would be trustworthy and even those who where might end up being controlled to do someone else's biding. And I really don't want someone that close to me who only sees my fame, it is degrading to be gawked at and paraded around like a prize pony."

"I never thought of that." Remus admits. "Don't take this the wrong way but you seem to be an even mix of all the Marauders, even Peter. He was such a shy young man, always shying away from the limelight. Please understand Harry he wasn't always evil, but James and Sirius where such overshadowing figures and they could be cruel even to their friends. I suppose when you overlook and neglect someone long enough it can push them to change in unexpected ways, Neville reminds me very much of Peter."

"No he does not!" Harry says sharply. "Neville is a strong, gifted wizard who just needs a little bit of positive encouragement to give him the confidence to embrace who he is."

"And there is Lily. But unlike Lily and your friend Hermione you know how to encourage people the right way, to give them the help they need not the help they want." Remus chuckles at the face Harry makes. "Unfortunately you seemed to inherit the combined temper of James, Sirius, and Lily making you positively scary when you really get mad. You do know that is one of the reasons Severus gets so nasty with you, you stand up, get in his face and pull off this creepy look that says death is to good for you. It scares him spitless, and then he lashes out in any way he can to get you to back off. Of course it doesn't help that he had crushes on both Lily and James at different times during our school years."

Harry contemplates what Remus is telling him. "It is to bad about Snape, if he would just take the tiniest bit of care in his hygiene he would probably be a striking man."

Remus sputters in shock then calms remembering he had felt much the same way about Severus before Sirius' prank. "Try getting that through to him though without being cursed or killed."

"Perhaps a secret admirer?" Harry suggests primly.

Remus blinks then looks more closely at Harry's blank look. "No, absolutely not."

"Why not, its not like I'm afraid of him. Unless he was the idiot that just tried to kidnap me for one the two neurotic war generals." Harry stretches carefully and relaxes bonelessly across the chaise.

"I refuse to write that man any kind of letter" Remus stops. "You said you weren't afraid of him?"

"Of course, I would never suggest you doing something like that, I think he is a little phobic about werewolves Remus. Besides think of how tempting and Slytherin a way it would be of getting revenge on his old rivals that the opportunity would offer him." Harry smirks wickedly.

"How the bloody blue blazes did you get into Gryffindor?" Remus shakes his head in exasperation.

"I refused being placed in Slytherin point blank. Malfoy junior made a very bad impression on me the two times I ran into him before we were sorted. I told the hat I didn't care where it put me so long as it wasn't Slytherin." Harry says smugly. "I suppose it thought that standing up to it like that was a sign of bravery, or foolhardiness one."

Gripstaff who has been watching the conversation like a hawk can finally hold his mirth no longer and breaks down into a series creaky cackles which remind the two humans of his presence. "Your mind was truly wasted on the house of Gryffindor young Harry. It no longer surprises me that you have won over the madman, it was never luck that saved you but your natural ability to use the resources presented to you in any situation."

Harry blushes at the praise. "Thank you sir."

Remus watches Harry blush and come to an eye opening discovery. "Neville isn't the only one who needs a little bit of positive reinforcement. That is why you got on so well in my class when I was teaching, it wasn't only that DADA was your special branch of magic, you needed the gentle approval I gave to everyone when they did well."

Harry nods slowly. "I suppose I see a chance to give Neville the encouragement that I know we both need so badly, that way at least one of us can be whole."

"Well we have finished lunch, you have completed the second stage of the ritual and we have waited for the third, I think it is safe to move on now." Gripstaff begins to pull out an array of diverse items. "The ritual I wanted you to do, when I first spoke of it, is the inheritance claim ritual that will allow older family estates to pass on to you. It will only hurt in so much as you will need make a cut in your hand so your blood can be added to the ink I will be using."

Remus looks at him stonily for a moment. "Precisely what do you need to do?"

Gripstaff acknowledges Remus' need to protect Harry from any more unexpected pain. "I will charm this parchment to automatically produce a family tree, any needed family certificates, and link the parchment to several other items. One being this box which summons signet rings or similar items from inactive family vaults, another being this second stack of parchment that will duplicate the necessary certificates and estate information. The certificate parchments will also be linked to a supply of empty containment boxes in case the estate has any properties or special items to pass on to Harry. The next thing I will do is to have Harry touch the quill with his wand and think about how his magic feels, this should cause a few sparks to appear just like they did when he first got the wand. Once that is finished I will mix the potions that will form the ink and I will ask Harry to add his blood to the potion which will change from its original orange to black once the ink bottle is full. Then I will link the quill to the parchment and the ink. Lastly I activate it and it will begin drawing out Harry's family tree on this large scroll." Gripstaff holds up each item up as he describes what steps he needs to take to complete the ritual.

"That doesn't sound so bad." Harry murmurs. "But I think we jumped the gun on assuming there was no third stage." Harry grits his teeth to ride out a ripple of pain. "Oh yes this is worse than before."

"Save your energy Harry, and try not to fight it. The magic is not trying to hurt you, it is trying to give you the last piece of himself that Mr. Black had to give." Gripstaff says as soothingly as he can.

Harry tries to relax into the next wave of pain but he has doubts about whether it will really help.

"It's alright to scream. You don't need to deny it hurts like anything, just focus your mind on the fact that it is trying reach your magic so it can leave his gift deep within." Gripstaff's voice sounds like it is becoming muffled like he is speaking from greater and greater distances.

Harry manages a slight nod before he loses focus on the world around him. As he feels the magic rushing into him and pushing painfully at something deep inside of him it seems like he can hear something or someone talking to him from within the magic. Harry turns his attention totally on the voice and the pain falls away. Soon he is able to distinguish individual words, then phrases, and finally the full dialog. He almost recoils from the voice when he at length recognizes it as Sirius'. With an ache far deeper than the ritual's pain Harry approaches the place where the voice is loudest.

"Hey kiddo, I know if you are going through the ritual I have broken the only rule Dumbledore truly set in stone for me. Do not leave the house unless it is attacked or you have proper backup. I was never one to sit back and do nothing if there was a good fight to be had and Azkaban did me no favors in the patience department. I know you will blame yourself for my death somehow. It matters not one wit to me if you did do something incredibly stupid and I did something equally stupid to bring us to this point, I love you kiddo. Now on to why I will be in bed suffering from magical exhaustion for the next week. Harry I poured every ounce of magic at my disposal into my half of this ritual so you would gain an extra measure of strength to help you through the tough spots that I will not be able to.

Harry tries to say something but the voice just goes on. "Knowing me there is a ton of stuff that I should have told you but never got around to, so just settle in and listen." Harry does as he is told and tries to remain focused firmly on Sirius' words.

Sirius talks about his dark childhood, Hogwarts, friends, family, and enemies. He describes all the spells and pranks he had ever done. Sirius' monologue branches to talk about girls and boys, his hopes, fears, desires, and dreams both appropriate and inappropriate. What he understood of the past, what he knew from experience, and what he hoped the future hold; for himself and those he cared for, especially Harry. He tells Harry about the Potter family, the things James and Lily wanted their son to know about them and a few things they didn't. Sirius also talks about what a pureblood child would know almost instinctually from growing up with magic, from etiquette and inheritance to household chores and traditions. Sirius' talk seems to go on for years inside the magic he left for Harry.

Harry jolts awake, from a particularly nasty stab of pain, after Sirius' words begin to repeat. "Is it normal to hear a message hidden within the magic of the ritual?" Harry asks not sure if he feels exhausted or not.

"Harry!" Remus grabs Harry in a desperate hug.

"What? Remus what's wrong?" Harry tries to squirm loose from Remus' grasp.

Gripstaff looks up from a stack of papers on his desk. "Welcome back Harry, Mr. Lupin's reaction is not out of line if you consider you have been unconscious and convulsing for almost two hours."

"Two hours?" Harry gapes at Gripstaff in shock.

"As you noticed the adopter can leave a message bound to their blood. It is accomplished by focusing their raw magic through their wand into the blood while they speak. The amount of magic they imbue the blood with at this stage is directly responsible for the amount of magic possible in the third stage. The imbuing must be done all at once, otherwise the ritual would destabilize. For his magic and message to last that long Mr. Black had to commit himself to nearly twenty hours of continuous casting." Gripstaff sound impressed by this feat.

"Was he insane!? Didn't that idiotic flea bag realize he could have killed himself or Harry by throwing that much magic around. I know he was rash at times before Azkaban, but this takes the cake." Remus rants while pacing around the room. "When I get to the other side I owe the mutt a good whack upside the head." Remus flops back into his chair. "Merlin that explains why he didn't fight Albus when he was moved into that dreadful house."

"And proves to me just how little the Headmaster actually cares for those who so trustingly follow him." Harry waves off Remus' half hearted objection. "Oh I don't doubt he is fighting for the greater good, and fully believes in the tenants of 'light'. What I am saying is I don't trust him with my wellbeing as an individual. I think his belief in the prophecy has become an obsession, a dangerous fixation for all involved." Harry smirks at the two of them. "Or I could be wrong and he is the perfect Slytherin dark lord hiding behind the cleverest disguise of all; that of a benign dottering old laymen. I think I will remain wary of our dear Headmaster until I can be sure, and yes I remember his letter and that Fawkes indicated he was sincere. It is just time for me to get my own life in order."

There is a polite knock at the door effectively derailing Harry's speculation about Dumbledore. Gripstaff grants entrance to a young goblin carrying a multitude of weapons. They converse quickly in gobbledy gook. Gripstaff nods and makes a complicated hand gesture to which the young goblin bows and retreats from the room.

"I can now tell you that your would be abductor was not anyone you would have reason to know." Gripstaff says solemnly. "Unfortunately we do not know who sent him or why. It appears that someone used an experimental combination of spells and potions on him to complete submerge the assailants own persona. Once he essentially was without any thoughts of his own they directed him to retrieve you 'unharmed'. His mind has no record of who did this to him or any details that would give us any clue to where he was going to take you."

"So it still could have been either Albus or Voldemort." Remus rubs his face tiredly. "Though the mind control bit does not sound like something Albus would do, even at his most persistent."

"Or the Ministry." Harry adds cynically.

Gripstaff agrees thoughtfully. "It is possible that an outside party has become interested."

"Oh that's so very reassuring. Aren't three ego challenged entities out to get for their own agendas enough to deal with already?" Harry snipes sullenly.

"It IS unlikely that a fourth party would take such a sudden interest in these affairs." Gripstaff acknowledges grudgingly.

"Do we know how he got past security?" Remus brings the conversation back to the topic of greatest immediate import.

Gripstaff nods. "It would seem we need to cast a hygiene ward on you and Harry. You should also notify Professor Snape that his ward needs to be reevaluated. Our imposter somehow acquired some hair and skin from each of you, and used it to create a modified polyjuice potion, probably a simple summoning charm."

"What is a hygiene ward?" Harry combs a hand through his hair nervously.

"Hygiene wards are considered something of a joke by most wizard, as they are most often used by either the vain or the paranoid. We cast one on Padfoot after we got tired of all are beds and clothing being covered in dog hair all the time." Remus explains with a sad smile. "Their original use was to prevent dark wizards from acquiring tissue samples from a witch or wizard, to be used in potions or necromancy. With a hygiene ward in effect all such genetic material is destroyed as soon as it loses contact with the body."

"What about blood?" Harry touches his arm.

Remus gives Harry an understanding look. "Yes, if we had thought through the worst case scenarios the ward might have been considered, but there are no guarantees that we would have thought of something so simple. Also you need to consider the ward has some built in limits, like if a whole limb is severed it would remain intact to provide a chance for it to be reattached."

"But what about blood wards or rituals like Gripstaff needs to perform?" Harry gestures vaguely at the things set up on the desk.

"That Harry is the true genius behind the hygiene ward, the subject can give a sample for such uses of their own free will. No spell or potion has yet been created that can circumvent or fool the ward." Gripstaff leans back in his chair smugly.

Remus snorts in amusement. "That is because it is on of the only known wizard's spell based on goblin magic."

"Brilliant." Harry looks duly impressed.

"We think so." Gripstaff gives them a mock bow. "While we are on the topic of personal wards and such it would be in your best interest to find out if there are any active spells attached to you and what they are intended to do. Depending on what they are we might want to look into removing or changing them to suit your needs instead of those of others."

"Sounds like a very good idea to me." A scowl crosses Harry's face at the thought of something else that has been kept from him. "Every time we start talking something else pops up that needs to be done."

"It will get better kit." Remus pats the foot closest to him.

"Before or after it gets worse?" Harry grumbles pessimistically.

"Hopefully both. I think its high time you caught a break." Remus mutters softly.

Harry turns his full attention to Gripstaff. "How should we proceed?"

"I think we will give the blood adoption ritual some time to fully settle before moving on to the blood inheritance ritual." Gripstaff looks at Harry seriously. "To be able to remove or change any preexisting magic I need to take a close look at your magic. The reason I tell you this is that most wizards are extremely private about their magic. Also be aware that once I start tampering with these things those who cast them will know almost immediately."

"Do it, I am tired of playing at being a docile little lamb." Harry pulls himself fully upright and squares his shoulders in determination. "What do you need me to do?"

Remus grins widely. "Kit you where born to be a lion not a lamb."

Gripstaff smirks at them. "As one of you ancestor put on his personal seal 'Chan y Bagledig Lew Esgor Ddraig' or as you would say, from the caged lion is born a dragon." Gripstaff is greatly amused by the sour expression Harry makes at hearing the translation. "The Gryffindor and Potter saying are even more heroic."

"What language was that any way, because I know it wasn't English or Latin." Harry ignores Remus' teasing about how he has always lived up to the family's mottoes.

"That young Harry was Gaelic, the remnants of a language used when magic was still known to all and honored as a gift not a privilege or feared by those who did not have it." Gripstaff's voice sounds strangely wistful. "Moving on to answer your question about what you need to do, the answer is nothing but sit there. I do all the work here by looking closely and carefully at the magic flowing around and through you."

Gripstaff arranges a normal quill, ink, and parchment on his desk before composing himself so he can fully utilize the magic within himself. After a few minutes Gripstaff begins to stare at Harry muttering to himself in his native language and humming sporadically as he records everything he can perceive carefully on the parchment. As time passes Harry drifts off to sleep and Remus pulls a book out of his robes to read.

An hour passes then another before Gripstaff sits back cracking his knuckles and stretching his muscles. Remus looks up from his book at the sound. Gripstaff rubs his eyes and summons a fresh pot of tea, he pours some potion into two of the cups.

At Remus' questioning look Gripstaff frowns. "It is a calming potion. It will unfortunately be necessary."

Remus nods grimly and gently wakes Harry. "Would you like a fresh cup of tea to help you wake up?"

Harry yawns accepting the tea wordlessly. Gripstaff waits until they have both consumed approximately half their tea before he steels himself to reveal his findings.

"I found no less then fifteen separate types of magical interference attached to you Mr. Black-Potter and some of them have multiple instances indicating separate casters." Gripstaff regards Harry solemnly. "While a few of these spells are to be expected, and a couple are actually intended to be helpful, this number and level of tampering is unheard of. Some of what I found is quite frankly, unnerving."

"You put something in the tea so I wouldn't loose my temper." Harry looks at Gripstaff blandly.

"I should have told you before you drank the tea, I apologize for my lack of decorum Mr. Black-Potter, Harry." Gripstaff takes a sip of his own tea. "I would rather not be in a locked room with a wizard of your power should you happen to lose control of your temper and your magic along with it. It is a fairly mild form of calming potion, it only blunts your immediate responses while still allowing you to feel and react to the stimuli around you."

"I understand your concerns perfectly." Harry accepts Gripstaff's apology and explanation. "Now tell me what they have been doing to me."

"I will start with the most obvious, and that which we will unlikely be able to do anything do about, your scar. There are three different magics attached to your scar, none of which should be a surprise." Harry acknowledges what Gripstaff is saying with a sharp nod. "The scar itself is laced with intense green threads of raw magic, very obviously the remnants of the killing curse. Surrounding that, especially above the hairline, is a dark blood red miasma."

"Voldemort." Harry hisses in disgust.

"Very much so, I'm afraid. Around the miasma is a jagged outline of pale blue and white, it seems to be trying to contain the taint. The white is the magic left over from whatever your mother did to protect you." Gripstaff bows his head respectfully while Harry brushes tears away and contains his sorrow. "The best I can surmise is that the pale blue reflects whatever Dumbledore did to bind her sacrificial magic to you, otherwise it would have dissipated as you grew up."

"So he did try to do something at least partially beneficial for me with all his tampering." Harry rubs his temples. "What a headache."

"He does have a talent for causing those at times." Remus smiles at the sarcastic snort Harry responds with.

"You are not funny." Harry grumbles. "Next problem."

"The next magic is actually quite a bit older as it is a hereditary curse passed down to all the male heirs of the Potter line. It appears to as a grayish-green haze around the retinas of your eyes. After a bit of memory searching I recalled a story from several generations back. It is said that a particularly headstrong heir eloped with a young woman who had been betrothed to the Longbottom heir. Now the Longbottom Lord involved believed that the lady was quite capable of choosing what she wanted and was not offended in the least. His mother on the other hand was furious, she cursed the Potter line to have poor eye sight until such time as the Matriarch and heir of the Longbottom line receive an official apology." Gripstaff chuckles at Harry's shocked look. "As far as I know no Potter has ever apologized for the chaos caused by the Potter heir's impulsive behavior, which is all the Longbottom's have ever asked for. Though there have been a few instances where their demands where far from polite."

Harry looks over at Remus. "Have the Potter's always been that arrogant and hard headed?" Harry snipes irritatedly. "Well I for one am quite willing to ask Neville and his grandmother for forgiveness. For Merlin's sake there had to be a better way than simply snatching the lady like some sort of barbarian and hoping for the best."

"We here at Gringotts would be honored to mediate the Potter Longbottom dispute." Gripstaff intones formally.

"Gringotts honors me by offering to help our families find peace." Harry manages, with a great deal of internal struggle, to maintain a serious expression.

Gripstaff bows formally the relaxes and redirects their conversation to the topic at hand. "Soon after the scarring occurred someone placed a heavily modified notice-me-not charm on you. It is specifically keyed to wizards with an exception of those that are deliberately exposed to you. On some level I can understand the use of this spell since the decision was made to hide you in the muggle world, but it does have two major flaws. The first is that it does not recognize intent, and secondly magic allows a baby to imprint other magical people at an extremely young age. In other words Mr. Pettigrew would have been able to see you if he had actually come looking for you."

Harry blanches at just how much luck was involved in his surviving to this point. He is also perplexed by some seemingly contradictory experiences. "If it prevents unknown witches and wizards from noticing me how is it the people in Diagon Alley and Hogwarts aren't affected?"

"The answer to that comes in two parts as well. Firstly the charm usually fails in highly charged magical environments and two you or someone you do know clearly announce your presence." Gripstaff glances between Harry and Remus to judge their understanding, then finds his place in his notes. "Now we come to the least detrimental of the legally suspect magics used on you. You are currently under one of the strictest mail wards I have ever seen on a non prisoner. It insures that absolutely no owl will be able to find you unless you are intimately familiar with the sender or you have met the owl itself directly for a certain amount of time. The newspapers have a very secret spell they use to allow them to bypass all but prisoner level mail wards." Gripstaff grins lopsidedly. "It just occurs to me that we could have gotten around that one easily by simply using any birds besides an owl, but using the house elf was more efficient since it allowed us to transport you without interfering with any wards that might be in place. I certainly could understand redirecting fan mail and any that had been cursed, most prominent personalities set up a mail vault with us to handle that sort of thing. This level of restriction is completely beyond the pale, especially since the Potters already have a mail vault. After you are settled in somewhere secure we can start sending you packets of mail in quantities that you can handle, I believe our mail department already has a package set aside of what they deem as critically valuable mail."

"I never thought about why I didn't receive any mail from people who grew up thinking of me as some kind of hero." Harry blushes slightly. "Though I guess I should be thankful for the lack, I can just imagine what the Dursleys reaction would have been. So, if my mail wasn't coming to a vault here where did it go?"

"It was bounced automatically back to the Potter vault. We have kept track of everything that landed there without to much trouble except for a few surges when your name appeared prominently in a news publication." Gripstaff dismisses the issue and moves on. "This next one was cast sometime during this last school year. It is an altered form of the ward used by the ministry to monitor underage magic use. The advanced version that was used on you is heavily restricted, because it records absolutely everything you do that effects your magic in any way no matter how slight." Gripstaff leers scarily. "And I do mean everything, since even your heartbeat and other bodily functions effect magic on some level."

Harry looks a little ill as he ponders who would want to cast such a spell, all the while trying to ignore the implications of Gripstaff's leer. "The only person I know that would like to cast that type of spell on me, that I was in contact with for any amount of time, is Umbridge."

Remus nods. "She is the type that would derive pleasure from invading someone's privacy in that manner."

"Ah yes, a most delightful hybrid toad." Gripstaff says drolly. "I discovered that someone did try to place a hygiene ward on you. From the reading I took it seems to be about the same age as the magic surrounding your scar. Most likely it was cast on you by someone in an immense hurry, either right before the attack or just before you were taken away from Godric's Hollow. Whatever distraction the caster was facing it caused the ward to be ineffective."

Remus gets a far away look on his face. "Probably Sirius, when he gave Hagrid his bike and went after Peter. After Azkaban he probably wouldn't have remembered he did it nor was he thinking straight that night." Remus swallows some tea with difficulty. "Are there any older wards still on him, I think I remember Lily casting a rather strong parental ward on Harry when they first brought him home."

"You have a very keen memory Mr. Lupin." Gripstaff looks up a specific notation in his notes. "Oddly enough her parental ward is still in effect, she must have tied it to something or someone who is still around. In case you are curious Harry a parental ward is as it sounds, a ward cast by a parent to help them keep track of the health and location of their babies and toddlers. It will gradually fade as the child ages, giving less and less specific information as time goes by, it is completely removed by the process of a child receiving their first wand. I think that it is possible that your mothers remaining magic is what allowed the ward to remain even after you received your wand."

"So far the only magic that is actually working for me is that which is helping contain the taint. I suppose it would be best to have the mail and hygiene wards redone since they might actually be useful to me." Harry rubs his scar in irritation. "I just wish there was a way to strengthen the magic surrounding my scar."

"Is your scar bothering you kit?" Remus asks in concern.

"No more than usual, Its just the stress of all this that makes it more noticeable." Harry drops his hand and returns his attention to Gripstaff.

"Please try to retain enough control not to break anything to valuable please." Gripstaff bares his teeth in an odd parody of humor. "Seriously though, do you need a break before we go on?" Harry shakes his head emphatically. "You have quite a collection of tracking charms, some of them illegal self-sustaining variants. The reason self-sustaining charms are illegal is that they feed off the victims magic indefinitely instead of being fueled by the caster's initial spell."

Harry grunts feeling a stab of anger surge through him before it evens out. "Who?"

"Keep in mind that not all those who cast a tracking charm meant you ill." Gripstaff waits for Harry to grudgingly acknowledge his statement. "Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, Albus Dumbledore, Poppy Pomfrey, Molly Weasley, Lucius Malfoy, Cornelius Fudge, Tom Riddle, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Peter Pettigrew, and Delores Umbridge."

Harry snorts in disgust. "Those will all need to be removed. Some of them I will admit that I can understand, but I should think eleven of them is just overkill plain and simple. Do any of those people really need to know where I am twenty-four/seven, prophecy not withstanding?" Harry grumble in irritation, then he pauses. "When exactly did you put a tracking charm on me Remus?"

Remus looks at Harry perplexed. "I can not remember doing so in recent memory. I did cast a few when it was my turn to watch over you for James and Lily when you were a baby. You were a very active baby and it was the only way to keep up with you without actually staring at you the entire time, which I might add you didn't like in the least. I don't understand how it could still be active after all this time though, since I certainly did not cast a self-sustaining charm on a baby let alone anyone else."

Gripstaff stares at Harry for a few seconds. "I think it was trapped by Lily's magic along with her parental ward. It is possible that the magic of the killing curse itself is what is still feeding it power." Gripstaff notices Harry grimace. "These spells should be able to be removed, or we might be able to deconstruct them and feed their magic back into the containing field. There is nothing we can do about the killing curse safely but if it is feeding the old tracking charm then it to might also become a useful power source for combating Voldemort's taint."

Gripstaff continues his spell assessment when Harry relaxes nodding his understanding. "Interestingly enough the next bit of magic is very helpful to you and was cast just after you left Hogwarts, probably while you where still at the train station by ex-auror Moody. The only reason I can pin point the casting so accurately is that it is so recent. He seems to have noticed your collection and decided it was unsafe because he cast an anti-tracking charm on you. His spell is almost strong enough to negate all of the tracking charms."

"Almost?" Harry asks cautiously.

"Yes, while Mr. Moody is a strong wizard he just isn't powerful enough to override Dumbledore or Voldemort. Though his ward is serving to interfere with them enough so that they can now only get a general idea of where you are instead of being able to pinpoint you exactly." Gripstaff winces and is very glad for the calming potion when he sees fury flash through Harry's eyes.

"Lovely, did a description of what I was doing come with that?" Harry says snidely.

"That I can not tell you Harry." Gripstaff pauses in thought. "It also doesn't interfere with the charm Mrs. Weasley cast since hers is a passive charm that is used to key people to a family clock."

"Oh," Harry blinks in surprise several times, "that was thoughtful of her. I guess that one can stay, it should reassure everyone that I haven't cut them off entirely."

Gripstaff shuffles his papers so he can move on to the next piece of parchment. "I found several clever concealment charms which I am sure you are aware of."

"I should think so since I am the caster." Harry ignores the questioning look that Remus gives him.

"The next spell was cast on you twice, though the way it was cast by each party was considerably different. Though both instances are considered dark because they steal your free will in some way, only one truly uses dark magic." Gripstaff prepares himself for a potentially violent reaction from Harry.

"Tell me." Harry takes a deep breath and releases it slowly trying to calm himself as much as possible. Then he remembers his tea and swigs it down hoping there is enough calming potion left in the cup to be of help.

"You have two compulsion charms on you trying to insure your loyalty to their caster. One is by Dumbledore and seems to merely encourage you to tell him when you feel endangered, it might have actually backfired on him when you started to feel like he was the one putting you in danger. The other is by Voldemort, to seek him out whenever the two of you are in close proximity. I do not think I need to point out which individual used dark magic against you." Gripstaff watches Harry's knuckles whiten as he grips his cup. "I would imagine that you have been very moody and perhaps hostile for the last year or so."

"I do hope you can eliminate those." Harry's voice is far to calm for the obvious level of anger he is feeling.

"The dark spell and its borderline cousin will be easier to remove than a lot of the others since we have light magics designed specifically to eradicate dark magic safely. It is a specialized branch of curse breaking." Gripstaff is more ill at ease with Harry's stony silence then if the young wizard was screaming in rage so he hurries onto the last bits of magic he had found. "The last two pieces of magic effecting you were created at the same time, both are inhibitors. One inhibits your metal acuity making learning and retaining new information more difficult than it should be. There is no legal excuse for casting such a spell on another being particularly a young one."

"Bloody straight there isn't." Remus explodes. "I know that the longer that type of spell is left in place the greater the chance that there will be permanent damage done."

"I am aware of the Mr. Lupin." Gripstaff watches a Remus regains a semblance of calm. "The final spell is one that simply can not be removed completely without endangering you Harry, especially since the magical inheritance. It is a magical inhibitor, it can be used by parents of a child who has shown strong signs of early magic to protect them from what the child can not control. If that were the case the inhibitor would slowly be released over the first couple of years of formalized schooling."

"Why would someone do this to me?" Harry's question is sad rather than angry.

Gripstaff does the best he can to wear an expression of concern that is recognizable as a human expression. "The problem with these spells is that they were created with wild magic, which is why the staff of Hogwarts missed them. They simply are not equipped to detect these sorts of spells. Another problem arises from when they where cast; you were in your aunt's care at the time."

Harry looks up startled. "How can that be, did someone slip through the wards Dumbledore cast on the house?"

"I do not believe so, and that leads us to the last bit of the puzzle. The only magic present in the inhibitors is your own." Gripstaff leans forward. "All the evidence I could find is that you cast those wards on yourself. Harry, there have been a few rare cases where an abused witch or wizard, especially muggle raised ones, subconsciously inhibit their own abilities in an effort to protect themselves from harm. How were you treated by your guardians when you showed signs of magic or did well in your schooling? "

Harry pales considerably. "I can't."

Remus moves over to enfold Harry in his arms immediately. "Kit, it is alright you don't have to tell us any details. Just know that you are never going back to that place no matter what."

Harry nods slowly and forces himself to relax. "Why do you call me kit?"

"Well you see, one day James and Sirius decided to prank each other using only animal transfiguration. They had been running around outside playing until it started to rain so they moved inside. Now you need to understand that they were using mostly silent casting so they wouldn't alert Lily to their game or wake you from the nap they knew you usually took at that time of the day. What they didn't know was that Lily had left you in your playpen instead of risking waking you up by carrying you upstairs. But they soon found out when Lily came downstairs after hearing them bump into something a bit too hard. She was absolutely livid to discover you still sleeping in your playpen with the head of a fox and the tail and legs of a cat. About that time I arrived to take my turn to watch you, I very nearly got hexed on general principals except Lily knew I hadn't been there. I went ahead and took you upstairs before Lily really exploded." Remus pauses for dramatic effect. "By the time Lily was done hexing the two of them they had purple bunny ears, pink bunny tails, were females sporting double D measurements, and couldn't wear anything more substantial than a tank top and mini skirt; though come to think of it they could wear less. They were stuck that way for almost two weeks." Through his tears of laughter Remus manages to finish his explanation. "After that I thought it would be appropriate to call you either kit after a fox or kitten for a cat, sort of an honorary marauder name until you earned your own. Needless to say James didn't think kitten was manly enough for his baby boy so you ended up with kit from there on out."

By the time Remus finishes his story Gripstaff is chuckling openly and Harry is sprawled across the chaise laughing so hard he can barely breath. After a time Harry manages to calm himself enough to regain an upright position.

"Thank Remus I needed that." Harry turns to Gripstaff. "I will say that whenever I did better then my cousin Dudley or performed some accidental magic the results were not pretty."

Gripstaff nods in acceptance of Harry's explanation. He does not try to ask for any details, not after seeing what was hiding underneath the concealment charms. "Since you are likely the one that cast them I will need your help in removing the inhibitors. You will need to acknowledge the spells and why they were placed, you also need to concentrate on how much you would like to actually learn and use your magic freely. If you don't it is likely the blocks will just snap right back in place or worse when you go through your maturity they might rupture violently."

Harry agrees fully. "I always used to love to read, but I didn't want to draw attention to myself by being anymore different at Hogwarts than I already was. I am tired of hiding that I can do as well if not better than Hermione, if she really is my friend then she will understand. And it is high time everyone stopped thinking they can simply walk all over me."

"Very good Harry." Gripstaff writes a note and sends off to his office staff. "Before we even begin to try to tamper with any of this magic I would like to move to a warded ritual room and call in a human curse breaker to help us."

"Do we have time or perhaps I should say energy to do this now?" Harry shifts nervously.

Gripstaff glances at something behind them. "It is 4:47 p.m. now, the removal may last several hours, it all depends on how difficult the process may become as we peal off the layers of magic. What I propose to do is go on down to the ritual room and set up a comfortable area where we can sit, eat, and nap. Then we can take the removal in small stages, with plenty of breaks, until we are finished."

"That sounds reasonable." Remus looks to Harry.

"Who would the curse breaker be?" Harry asks tentatively.

"Would you be comfortable with Bill Weasley?" Gripstaff asks. "As I said he is sworn to our service, anything he does for the bank in an official capacity is sealed by the magical oath he made when he started working here."

"I have never had any negative experiences with Bill, but I think he should be given a choice in case he feels he would be caught between loyalties." Harry looks sad. "The Weasleys are already at odds with one of their own because they have a different view point of this war, I don't want be the cause of a second division."

"That is very honorable of you. I will give him the choice to take a pass on this assignment if he feels that he is not comfortable with what we are trying to accomplish." Gripstaff sits back. "Now I wish to discuss the original ritual I wanted you to go through, the blood inheritance ritual. I know there are many secondary blood lines that have died out of the years, this ritual will recall these descendant lines to you. Example the Potter branch of the Gryffindor line used to have several non-inheriting lines that came from later born younger sons. Each of these sons was given something; land, money, or businesses to help them start their own lives. None of them survived the purge that Grindelwald and then Voldemort visited upon the line. If you perform the ritual the inheritances that were passed to them would be returned to the line of the Potter heir. The same would be true for the Black's and any other major blood lines you might be descended from. It would also make your inheritance of these lines magically and politically binding, meaning no one could challenge you for the tangible things you would inherit from them."

"If I choose not to?" Harry sighs wearily.

"Then the inheritances remain frozen until either someone else claims them or the last descendant dies and we somehow can confirm that, then physical inheritance is split between us and the ministry." Gripstaff explains with an odd gleam in his eye.

"Besides the obvious, what benefit do I get from the ritual?" Harry just wants to curl up and sleep instead of dealing with this.

"Most families collect a few ancient or unique magical items through the generations; weapons, spell books, heirloom furniture, portraits, jewelry, and to many other assorted magical and muggle gadgets to list. There is also the potential of seats in the wizengot. It is also the chance to find out more about your actual bloodlines, since the ritual itself recognizes all different bloodlines; whether they be muggle, magical, creature, or other being."

When Harry doesn't say anything immediately Remus jumps in with a question. "How will this effect him magically"

"Well, Godric had two older brothers, if their lines have also been destroyed that might mean he is the heir of that line. To understand why that is important you need to know that Godric broke away from the family without any inheritance to form his own line. The Gryffindor line is actually descendant from Merlin, mother unknown." Gripstaff smiles frighteningly. "Laying claim to that inheritance would understandably bring another awakening of power. With any older family there is always a chance at gaining a bit of magic and unlocking assorted gifts."

"If a squib married a muggle and a descendant of that union were to do this ritual they would become the inheritor of the wizard line if there wasn't one currently?" Harry asks in a desperate hope to understand the full scope of the ritual.

"Yes, it even works if the child was from an unwanted union." Gripstaff admits softly. "The Lestranges could be divested of their inheritances in this way."

"What do you and Gringotts get out of this?"

"Harry!" Remus yelps in shock.

Gripstaff grins broadly. "Very astute Harry. As I said any defunct inheritances are divided up, ones that will not come to you because you do not qualify to inherit them though you may be distantly related. But in order for us to have a legal record of which vaults fit that description we need someone, namely a wizard in the case of wizard vaults, to perform the ritual. Whenever the ritual is performed our books are automatically updated due to the family tree portion of the ritual which extends a little beyond the original participants family. In your case this would include the Black family as well. If you are willing to go through with the ritual I am authorized to offer you a percentage of the non monetary bounty from the seized vaults."

"You mean like books, clothing, and such." Harry queries his interest perking up.

"Yes, I take it books would be you first choice." Gripstaff smile becomes impossibly wider at Harry's nod. "Clothing you can have, we usually just dump it at a charity shop after it is checked for harmful things."

Harry gives Gripstaff a calculating look. "Would scrolls, loose parchments, and other alternative recording materials be included in 'books'?"

Gripstaff actually cackles in glee at Harry's quick thinking. "Oh indeed young Harry we will include all such unless they are goblin written."

"Fair enough, you should be allowed to retrieve your own written secrets, but other languages will need to be negotiated or returned to their originators. It might foster goodwill with other species and nations if some of their 'lost' texts find their way home." Harry smiles slyly at the highly amused goblin.

"Hmm, it seems that the simple steps of remembering and admitting you like to read and knowing about the block has already unlocked some of your higher intellect." Gripstaff muses out loud.

Harry shrugs. "How will we determine what I can claim?"

"We will set up a group of vaults to sort the goods into categories so we can see what there is to choose from. After that we will separate out any dangerous items then you can choose you share of the goods, say 2 percent."

"20 percent since I am the one risking his neck to participate in a ritual that probably went out of favor for a good reason." Harry responds immediately.

"Preposterous, we couldn't possibly part with any more than 5 percent." Gripstaff settles in to enjoy haggling.

"I see you didn't deny the possibility that it is dangerous, 15 percent" Harry grins over at the flabbergasted Remus.

"It really is a fairly simple ritual, there is no need for such unfounded accusations, 7 percent" Gripstaff throws a mock scowl at Harry.

"Well then perhaps the Ministry has deemed it unlawful." Harry almost crows in triumph at the slightly shifty expression that crosses Gripstaff's face. "10 percent, no lower, with the proviso that any clothing I want is not counted in that percentage along with anything in parseltongue or directly pertaining to my bloodlines." Harry folds his arms and glares.

"Only if said items can be made safe." Gripstaff tries to hedge his losses when he realizes just how well Harry's has outmaneuvered him.

"Cursed items that fall into those areas should be set aside. The curses may well be dissipated or at least suspended if the owner actually speaks parseltongue." Harry tries very hard not grin in victory.

Gripstaff makes a disgruntled sound. "Those terms are acceptable as long as someone is nearby when you test your theory."

"Of course." Harry says quickly.

Remus startles the two of them by applauding. "Bravo, bravo a finer example of bargaining I have never seen."

Harry finally allows himself to smile. "So glad you approve Moony. So how'd I do?"

"A pro could not have done it better kit." Remus teases.

"Oh I don't know about that." Harry says ducking his head to hide a slight blush. "I think I had an advantage going in, the most prosperous and esteemed goblin seems to like me."

"One must always remain objective in all business dealings." Gripstaff says primly.

"Of course sir." Harry replies while he studiously avoids looking at Remus. "Though one is likely to receive fairer treatment if one is on good terms with ones business associates."

"A valid point." Gripstaff agrees over Remus' chortling.

Harry sobers after a short while of enjoying the happy atmosphere. "I understand what steps are required for the ritual but I don't see how the Ministry could object to it. Plus you didn't mention the need of a warded room in your original description."

"You are correct, I did not think we would need a warded room until you went into a third stage during the adoption ritual and then I began remembering some of the ancient bloodlines you might gain through this. I believe I mentioned a connection to Godric Gryffindor and Merlin, I think it is obvious if you inherit from him there might be a definite need for a safe place to ride out his blood awakening. There are also some disturbing rumors about the Black line which I didn't consider until Mr. Lupin brought up magical inheritances." Gripstaff shifts a little guiltily. "As far as the ministry goes it is because of the use of human blood in the ink potion that they frown upon the ritual, even though they stand to gain from it."

Harry gulps. "Is it possible that this ritual will cause creature or being traits to be awakened?"

Gripstaff slumps in his chair. "It is highly likely. Please understand that it is somewhat acceptable, from a purists standpoint, for a wizard to have magical beings in there blood line. They are still magical after all, but don't let that fool you they are still looked down on as inferior to wizards. On the other had if it is a 'creature' then the wizard is considered a half-blood. Another quirk is if we can prove you mothers magic is from a squib line you would then be considered a pureblood even if there are muggles in the mix as well, the magic came from an acceptable source."

"That is ridiculous." Harry snaps in disgust.

"I agree completely Harry, and I doubt it will make any difference in how your 'peers' view you." Gripstaff sneers at the word peers.

"What species are considered creature as opposed to being?" Harry asks curiously.

"Hags, centaurs, giants, goblins, dwarves, vampires, elves, and veela are considered to be beings. As you can see from that list they are all humanoid and able to speak as humans do. The issue of speech is what keeps mermaids off that list even though the warm water varieties are quite lovely and have been known to cross with humans from time to time. I think you can see where the problem is with non-humanoid species comes in." Gripstaff gives Harry a pointed look.

"What about werewolves?" Harry asks fighting off a blush at the choking sound Remus makes.

"So long as it is not full moon they are considered human, even if they have fewer rights than any other magical being including vampires that are potentially dangerous all the time." Gripstaff is visibly disgusted by the stupidity of the ministry.

Harry sits quietly for a few minutes deep in thought. "Gripstaff, how will the block on my magic be effected if I gain anymore magic or if a non human trait is awakened?"

"I am not sure which is precisely why I think we need to do it in a warded ritual room. The rooms not only protects the population in general from something going wrong they also hide your magical signature completely from anyone who might be looking for you. A couple of the rooms have extra charms on them to stabilize an individuals magic and genetics if something untoward awakens until we can provide you with a talisman that will do the same thing. If a talisman is needed we will have to tailor it specifically to you so that your awakened inheritances are released at a safe rate for you and those around you. It will also give us time to find information on how you should proceed with dealing with the aftermath on your own, like training gifts and controlling instincts." Gripstaff sighs deeply when he sees Harry blanch.

"Are you sure this is such a good idea?" Harry asks Gripstaff tentatively.

"Harry, Mr. Lupin, I can assure that no matter what happens you will remain unharmed. There might be some pain and you may well need the suppression talisman but we will take full responsibility for your safety and with dealing with the ministry should they complain about the ritual or its end results." Gripstaff sighs. "There is a reason the goblins authorized me to make an offer to you, the ministry is pushing us to confiscate the vaults of suspected death eaters, this is in direct violation of all our current treaties with wizards. The ministry is almost broke and very desperate for money, they see the 'trivial' concession as the quickest way they can get enough money to continue running. If you go through with the ritual it would hopefully mean they would cease pushing us towards a confrontation."

Harry groans and slumps over. "And I thought Fudge was a fool." Harry sits up and rubs his face. "Alright I'll do it in the interest of continued goodwill between wizard kind and the goblin nation. Of course it is a plus that I might be able to really annoy certain personages with my new found wealth. I just hope nothing undocumented pops up or we are all going to be in trouble."

"Kit, your parents should have named you trouble." Remus tries to lift Harry's mood a little bit.

Harry gives Remus a nasty look. "Make yourself useful you mangy wolf and help me up."

Remus jumps up hurriedly. "I've got you Kit."

Harry bats Remus' hands away when he tries to pick Harry up. "Remus! I'm emotionally drained and my magic might be a little out of sync but I am not a cripple."

Remus sighs and offers Harry a hand to help steady him as he clambers to his feet. "Kit you really should conserve your energy."

"Do you let others carry you around when you can move on your own?" Harry snaps.

Remus grits his teeth in frustration when Harry sways. "No I'm just as irrationally stubborn as the next person."

"See that wasn't so hard to admit." Harry takes a tentative step forward. "Gripstaff if you would be so kind as to arrange for a guide to lead us to the ritual room you want us to use I would be most grateful."

"I can do better than that." Gripstaff gets up and walks purposefully over to a large painting to one side of his desk. "If you would follow me please, we can take a short cut to the proper level."

Harry drifts slowly over to join Gripstaff, concentrating on each step, with Remus following closely in case he stumbles. When they arrive Gripstaff swings open the painting and enters a small bare room, Harry and Remus follow him wordlessly. As soon as the painting snaps shut behind them leaving them staring at Gripstaff it feels like the floor fall out from under them. Only moments later the sensation stops just as suddenly as it had started. Remus barely manages to catch Harry when his legs give out from the disorienting sensation.

Harry mumbles dejectedly. "Is there any form of magical travel that isn't going land me on the floor?"

Remus picks Harry fully. "Flying" Remus suggest helpfully while following Gripstaff down a dim hallway.  
"Oh yes, you can just fly every where you need to go at any time of the day or night." Harry growls sarcastically.

"No need to rude Kit." Remus says as they enter a large rough hewn room with six spires of crystal set evenly around the floor. He settles Harry gently on a lounge chair that Gripstaff transfigures from an already present bench.

"Rude, I haven't even begun to throw curse words yet, so I do see how you can say I'm being rude." Harry says sulking over being carried around like an invalid.

"Not entirely true Harry, if you take into account what all those growls mean you are indeed saying some very colorful things." Gripstaff points out in amusement.

Harry throws a disgusted look at both of them. "And how pray tell am I supposed to know what I am saying when I growl?"

Remus chuckles lightly. "Growls do not really have specific meanings like a normal language would, just general feelings like; fear, protective, angry, possessive, hurt, confusion. The actual 'words' are provided by your mind. In other words you were irritated when you growled and you feelings on the matter where clearly expressed in the growls you released."

"Does the same thing apply if I whine?" Harry asks with an innocent look of curiosity.

"Indeed it does Harry." Gripstaff puts in.

Remus groans. "You are going to use that information to vent at people who won't understand what you are saying."

"Yep." Harry perks up enough to grin at Remus. "What's wrong with that?"

"Most people who are animagi, who have non-human blood, or have study the language of animals will understand you." Gripstaff explains. "I believe that about two-thirds of you teachers fall into one of those categories."

"Rats." Harry pouts, then his face takes in a shifty look. (s) What about now? Will the manipulative old crackpot understand me this way? (s)

Remus shudders. "Kit, you do know that, that is extremely creepy, don't you?"

"Maybe but you couldn't understand me either." Harry says smugly.

"I could." Gripstaff interrupts Harry's gloating. "Approximately half of all goblins have the ability to understand the language of snakes though none have ever been able to speak the language. All goblins can understand some animal or another."

"So I should be careful about doing that around anyone who might have a goblin in their ancestry" Harry continues to smile impishly.

"Or around other Parseltongues." Remus points out the obvious.

"Nor an animagus with the form of a snake," Gripstaff adds, "or a dragon."

"Are you telling me I could have talked to the dragon during the tri-wizard tournament?" Harry asks loudly, seething once again at Dumbledore for withholding information.

"It is possible, but some dragons take insult at being addressed in parseltongue like they were some common snake." Gripstaff cautions.

"Okay," Harry says hurriedly then changes the subject. "Would removing some of the self-sustaining spells help me regain enough energy to at least get up properly? As much as I trust Remus and the prowess of the goblin nation I need to be able to look after myself if something untoward should happen."

"Even if removing them doesn't help your energy levels immediately, it will lessen the chance of magical backlash occurring if one of your inheritances forcefully removes hostile foreign magic." Gripstaff continues to mutter to himself as he calls a house-elf.

Gripstaff talks rapidly to the elf in gobbledy-gook before sending it off. A smaller nondescript elf delivers a platter of fruits and vegetables along with a tray of various pitchers. Harry ignores the offering due to drifting off into a light doze. Gripstaff pours himself a glass of a dark wine like drink while Remus chooses to enjoy a warm mug of butterbeer. The two odd companions sip their drinks as they each contemplate the young man sleeping nearby while a steady stream of house elves bring in and set up a wide range of equipment that Gripstaff has asked for. When the last object is place and all other preparations are finished the original elf returns and offers Gripstaff the hilt of a jewel encrusted ceremonial dagger. Gripstaff stands, ignoring the elf, and inspects the entire setup right down to the smallest detail.

Gripstaff nods sharply and takes the dagger in hand. "I am pleased with the work you and the other elves have done." Gripstaff cuts his palm allowing the blade to be coated with his blood before handing it back to the elf.

Remus shakes his head bemusedly. "Should we wake Harry now?"

"It is not necessary for this." Gripstaff moves around activating various magical apertures each of which is marked somehow with his blood. "There is nothing that he needs to do for this except be present. He will need to decide what wards he wants to put back and what parameters and restrictions each will have."

Remus relaxes some just becoming aware of tense he has grown. "What about the actual ritual?"

"He only needs to provide the blood required for the ink and a bit of magic, then we wait for the ink to do its job. After that he only needs to accept whatever tokens his various heritages are represented by to awaken and claim what is his to claim." Gripstaff arrives back at his starting point whispering a few sacred words to bring up the rooms innate wards.

They both watch as the magical devices do their jobs. Every so often Gripstaff checks one device or another, turning one off or adjusting another's settings as needed. It takes less than an hour for all of the devices to successfully remove all the unwanted spells they can from Harry, leaving only that which is attached to his scar, those he had cast himself, and Molly's clock charm.

Gripstaff seats himself. "If you would do the honors Mr. Lupin, we can get on with rewarding his person so he can leave this room much better protected than when he entered it."

Remus calls Harry's name a couple of times, then he shakes his shoulder gently. "Harry, Kit, wake up."

When he gets no response he calls a little louder and shakes him more firmly. Again failing to gain a response Remus pulls out his wand and casts an ennvenerate on Harry.

"No Hagrid you can't keep it." Harry groans and tries to shake Remus hand off.

"Harry wake up. You are at Gringott's with Gripstaff and I." Remus says gently, concerned when Harry seems to have trouble focusing.

"Remus?" Harry lifts his head and squints at Remus.

"Yes kit." Remus bends down so Harry can see him more clearly.

"The next time someone violates my privacy with their magic remind me to hex them so bad their own mother's wont recognize them." Harry drops his head back onto the lounge. "Gripstaff, am I supposed to feel like the Hogwarts Express ran me over?"

Gripstaff shakes his head. "Not normally, but the two strongest tracking charms were entrenched firmly in your magic. When they were removed they caused the equivalent of bruising to your magic."

Remus winces. "How will that effect placing new wards?"

"If we do not delay to long it will make it easier to place them since Harry's magic is a little numb from the process, allowing us the opportunity to slip the new wards in with the minimum amount of effort. If Harry does the main casting they will be exponentially stronger and they will tie more deeply into his magic. This means that Harry will have complete control over the wards, allowing him to change them as needed without having to remove them and start over. Also there is the boon that unless Dumbledore and Voldemort combine their strength no one will be able to overcome his wards."

"Then lets get it done and over with before my magic recovers." Harry swings his legs over the edge of the lounge using the momentum gained to sit up. "I know that I want the hygiene ward, an anti-tracking charm, and I will have to have an owl ward probably for my entire life."

"Those are all good choices, but might I suggest a couple more?" When Harry nods Gripstaff continues. "I would suggest a Godiva charm which blocks any attempts to monitor you or your magic by remote means including; ministry recording devices, scrying, or even cameras without your prior willing consent."

"I have never heard of that one." Remus interrupts.

Gripstaff grins fiercely. "It is goblin made."

Harry chuckles. "I think its brilliant, I would definitely like to incorporate it. What else do you suggest?"

"Considering you are going into a home that was owned by a family well known for dark wizards, I would suggest a passive detection ward. It would allow you to sense harmful magic or intent nearby, and depending on how strong you are," Gripstaff smirks at Harry, "it will cover a greater distance and be more precise about location and nature of the threat. Moody doesn't actually need that eye of his against dark opponents."

"Maybe," Harry shifts uncomfortably, "but what am I supposed to do if I end up being able to sense every bit of 'harmful' magic within several miles of me. That would make Hogwarts and Diagon Alley rather uncomfortable places to be considering the close quarters and the diverse nature of locals themselves."

"With the way your magic is right now and how we are going to cast the wards you will be able to control what and how much you sense almost as if it were a natural gift." Gripstaff assures Harry. "Now the last ward I would suggest is ironically called an anti-ward. It is a far more comprehensive version of the anti-tracking ward. It will lessen the likelihood of anyone placing any other wards on you successfully without your willing consent, this includes someone trying to plant an object on you that serves the same purpose. Say someone you thought was trustworthy either intentionally and accidentally sent you an item that contained a tracking ward. As soon as it came in contact with you the ward would be destroyed, you would feel the spell in question, thus allowing you to change locations as well as keep the item that contained the charm."

"It would seem I don't really need the anti-tracking ward at all then." Harry looks at Gripstaff for further explanation.

"By using the anti-tracking ward you will have control of any exceptions you might want to allow, like Mrs. Weasleys clock charm." Gripstaff explains as patiently as he can realizing quickly that Harry is reaching the limit of what he can absorb and deal with for one day.

Harry nods distractedly as he looks around at the various devices surrounding them. "Did Bill decline to help?"

Gripstaff gets the oddest look on his face that Remus and Harry have ever seen on a goblin. "No. I never got the chance to ask him since he is currently on vacation."

Remus suppresses a snigger. "Considering the chaos of the past few days I can easily see where something so trivial could be overlooked."

"That solves the problem of conflicting loyalties effectively and he can honestly tell anyone who asks that he has no knowledge of what happened here today." Harry seems both relieved and disappointed at not getting to see one of the elder Weasleys. With a slight shake Harry focuses on the task at hand. "You'll need to teach me the spells for the wards if you want me to help cast them."

Gripstaff blinks a few times at the sudden reversal of topics and the realization that he had overlooked something so important. He summons a house elf to retrieve the necessary documentation for Harry to read over. After reading the pertinent information on the wards they would be using the three of them go over the proper pronunciation and wand movements for the spell. Harry is relieved to find that since they are doing a group casting his inexperience will not jeopardize the casting.

When both Remus and Gripstaff are satisfied with Harry's progress and overall understanding of how to personalize the wards mentally they take a break for a snack. They each eat quietly relaxing and preparing mentally for the spell casting coming up while the curse breaking apparatuses are removed. Harry only picks at the food he has taken, suffering from a bout of nerves.

"Calm down Kit, think happy thoughts about spending the rest of your summer free to do magic. No more Dursleys ever, no snoopy hangers on, and no twinklely busy-body old men." Remus tries to divert Harry's pent up energy into more positive emotions.

Harry scowls. "Remus."

"Yes Kit?" Remus suppresses a smirk at the similarities between Harry's current expression and a certain acquaintance typical glower.

"Has anyone ever told you that your dogged optimism is going to get you hurt on of these days?" Harry gives Remus his best glare, then ignores the werewolf's laughter entirely. "Gripstaff, my good sir, is there anywhere in particular we need to stand while we cast?"

Gripstaff eyes the wards he has turned on in the room and the two participants before answering. "Only as a matter of safety and practicality."

"Good enough reasons to be going on." Harry stands gingerly. "I do hope I adjust to all these changes quickly."

"Best not worry about the adjustment period until we are finished with the ritual." Gripstaff moves to the back of the room where the natural ceiling slopes down to meet the rough hewn walls. "Now stand in the center of the room Harry, with your wand pointing at your feet. Mr. Lupin if you would stand opposite me, by the doors, we can get started. As to safety issues, if young Harry's magic becomes hostile during this process, I will use goblins natural affinity for the earth to protect my self. Mr. Lupin you are right next to the door, with your reflexes you should be able to get out of the room without to much trouble. Harry you are standing at the focal point of the room's wards and are the most likely participant to lose control. This means the magical backlash would begin with you and work outward, this room will react to such an occurrence immediately by snapping magical dampers up to prevent you from damaging or burning yourself out, so stay put no matter what."

Harry nods in understanding.

Remus smiles warmly at Harry before getting into position. "The quicker started and quicker down."

Harry tries to ignore his growing apprehension by focusing intently on the primitive murals he can just make out on the walls around him. As Gripstaff prepares himself to perform wizard magic Harry's attention is riveted to a mural that reminds him strongly of a Basilisk. The impression is so strong that when Gripstaff is ready and they begin the casting Harry slips unconsciously into parseltongue. Gripstaff is so focused on his own chant in his native language that he doesn't seem to notice, but Remus flinches noticeably almost losing his place in the Latin incantation he is using. After an internal struggle Remus manages to compose himself enough to cue Harry at the proper times to focus on the specific parameters he wishes to impose on the wards they are casting. When they are finished Remus finds the nearest bench and sinks onto it.

Harry notices how pale Remus is in concern. "Remus are you alright?"

"Even though you used parseltongue earlier in jest, having to listen to it being used to cast such powerful magic was unexpected. It brings up a lot of bad memories from the first war." Remus swallows convulsively to wet his dry throat.

"I am so sorry Remus, I wasn't even aware I was doing it." Harry looks chagrinned at his slip. "Do you think it will affect the spells we were casting?"

"Rest easy young Harry. It had no more of an adverse effect on the spells than my use of the goblin language did. If anything it will make the wards even stronger, since the diverse languages will make them all the more difficult to unravel. When you add that diversity to the strength you currently posses as the main caster I think it is safe to say nothing short of divine intervention can forcefully remove the wards now." Gripstaff chuckles at Harry's blush.

"Er, I guess that means the spells were successful?" Harry fidgets nervously.

Gripstaff taps his temple beside his eye. "From what I am seeing I can say with confidence that the process was a total success."

"Oh good." Harry begins to calm down. "Um, do you think we could have a snack again, I'm actually hungry now."

"Of course, that is why the food is present." Gripstaff retrieves a steaming mug of dark gray liquid. "Help yourself."

Harry fills a plate with a wide variety of foods and a glass of pumpkin juice. Remus only takes an apple and a cup of tea. Harry eats noticeably slower than usual, trying to postpone the ritual for as long as possible.

Gripstaff finishes a second mug of his odd drink, setting aside the cup he turns to Harry. "Fortified enough to go on now, or do you want to wait until tomorrow?"

Harry realizes belatedly that tomorrow is his birthday and that he would really prefer to have the day to himself, but he also recognizes that he can't stay here much longer since someone with unknown intent is already aware of his presence. "I wish to state for the record that if anything 'curious' happens, because of the ritual or the other proceedings here, it wasn't my idea so don't blame me."

Remus laughs heartily at Harry's theatrics even though his words and sentiment are very true. "I hear you Kit. Now get on with it because I will have to be leaving soon to attend one of Dumbledore's meetings, or they might get suspicious about where I am."

"If you need to leave Remus I understand." Harry briefly touches Remus' shoulder. "Just be careful Moony, I want to see you again. Maybe even before I leave."

"I'll do my best Kit, but it is likely to be a very long meeting, current happenings being as they are. The last thing you need right now is for anyone to try and meddle with your life some more." Remus casts a quick tempus charm.

"It will not take long for Harry to make his contribution to the ritual." Gripstaff moves to the center of the room and arranges a table with the necessary equipment for the ritual on it , Harry's lounge, and a comfortable chair for himself there.

Harry and Remus join Gripstaff while he double checks everything.

Harry takes the quill that Gripstaff hands him. "Think about how it felt to hold your wand for the first time, then push that remembered feeling toward the quill."

Harry does as he is instructed and the quill glows brightly for several seconds. "Very good, now for the other ingredient."

Harry accepts the proffered dagger and an open glass inkwell from Gripstaff. "Is there any special way I am supposed to do this?"

"No, just make a cut big enough to bleed freely without cutting too deeply, then wipe the cut across the top of the inkwell. The inkwell is enchanted to draw the blood into itself until it has the amount needed, at which point it will heal your hand." Gripstaff gesture to the inkwell. "Once the blood is flowing into it you can put it down, you do not have to be in contact with it after that."

With a sigh Harry examines his left hand deciding to cut across the heal of his thumb where he can see several small blood vessels. The sharpness of the blade insures a clean cut that Harry barely feels as blood wells from the cut. Harry quickly sets the knife aside so he can maneuver the inkwell to his left hand without dropping it. As soon as the inkwell touches his cut the blood vanishes from his hand and they can see it streaming down the insides of the inkwell. Harry places the inkwell in front of Gripstaff.

"How long until I actually stop bleeding." Harry retreats to the lounge chair.

Gripstaff examines the inkwell for a moment. "It all depends on the speed and amount of blood that you are bleeding. My best guess is approximately five minutes. Without magic it would take closer to fifteen."

Remus divides his attention between the inkwell and Harry, watching intently for any signs of trouble. As the minutes tick by at an intolerably slow pace Remus becomes aware that Harry's skin is becoming paler. "Gripstaff how much longer? Harry can not lose much more blood without serious complications." Remus says as quietly as he can and still have Gripstaff hear him.

Gripstaff glances between the bottle and Harry in concern. "As soon as the cut disappears give him this, it is a blood replenisher, goblin made to be a bit more palatable to our customers who use the ritual rooms." Gripstaff hands in vial to Remus.

Remus takes the vial and balance next to Harry on the lounge. "Hang in there Kit, just a bit longer." Remus focuses his full attention on the cut on Harry's hand. Just as the hand begins to tremor the cut vanishes as if it never existed. "Scoot up the lounge a bit Kit, you need to drink this blood replenisher before you can take a nap."

" 'Kay." Harry struggles up enough to swallow the potion. "Be careful out there Moony." Harry slides back down exhausted.

"You to Kit." Remus arranges Harry comfortably on the lounge before turning to Gripstaff and watching the frantic jerking of the quill in trepidation. "This may sound like a very strange request to make of a goblin but will you watch over him while you can? Strange and often times dangerous things happen to him far too frequently."

Gripstaff diverts his concentration from the ritual for a moment to regard his guests. "Yes I will look after him. I have become oddly fond of this young human."

Remus bows to Gripstaff. "Thank you Manager Gripstaff, may your business dealings always be lucrative and your vaults overflowing with profit."

After Remus is led out by a house elf Gripstaff turns back to watch the results of the blood inheritance ritual as it unfolds before his eyes. His interest is not merely curiosity but also so he can be prepared for any possible genetic gifts that might be awakened. At first everything is exactly as he had expected including the presence of Sirius Black as a full blood ancestor. Soon however it becomes obvious that Lily Evens was actually descended from an ancient magical bloodline, despite the rest of her family's lack of magic and their phobia of all things 'abnormal'. Gripstaff watches the fluid glide of quill across parchment unfolding a complex magical history for many minutes. He leans forward avidly when the genealogical record passes beyond the expected eight generations. Standing quickly he moves around the room engaging numerous different wards and more powerful suppression stones before returning to his vigil. Soon Gripstaff is muttering to himself rapidly in his native tongue while scribbling furiously on a hastily summoned piece of parchment. When the ritual quill slows it pace, pausing for long intervals before adding names to only a few family branches sometimes unable to even fill in both parents names Gripstaff returns his full attention to the parchment now covered with Harry's diverse and ancient ancestry. Gripstaff mutters several untranslatable epitaphs when he notices that the last few lines added to the chart are definitely not human, and decidedly potent magically.

Harry is blissfully unaware of anything around him during the ritual, hovering between a deep sleep and a trance, submerged in the ebb and flow of his own magic. When the magic in the quill and ink can no longer trace his heritage through the gulf of time it releases Harry from its influence allowing him to shake himself awake.

"Welcome back Harry." Gripstaff greets him softly. "I must say I am immensely surprised that you ritual stretched so many generations back and over such vest stretches of time, most magic would have failed at around eight generations not the twenty odd generations that yours is showing in several places."

Harry groans. "It is always something. Did you find any non-human bloodlines?"

"More than I expected and unfortunately in direct descent." Gripstaff answers faintly.

"That bad?" Harry doesn't even turn his head to look at the somber expression on the goblins face. "Any goblins or house elves in the mix?"

"No, nothing quite so radical, at least not in the bloodlines recorded. There are a few creatures, reassuringly they were of the type that could take on human form when they wanted to." Gripstaff grimaces when Harry lets out a bark of hysterical laughter.

"Gripstaff my friend quit trying to cushion the blow. If I am going to have a mental and or magical break down it is best it happens here." Harry finally turns his head to look at Gripstaff, his eyes showing both fear and curiosity.

Gripstaff composes himself and glances around to check the status of the various wards he had activated. "You are right. Starting from the most recognizable or common too rarest; veela, vampire, incubus, satyr, selkie, lenashee, thunderbird, peri, wulver, and dragon.

"Okay," Harry gives Gripstaff a very confused look, "I never heard that dragons could become human, and what the bloody hell are the other four at the end of the list with it? Do I even want to know how a satyr became entangled with a human?"

"There is a type of satyr that appears almost entirely human. They are shorter than an average human and much better endowed, and they have certain decidedly exaggerated instincts." Gripstaff explains calmly. "There are a few very reclusive and powerful breeds of dragons that can make the shift, but they usually have the same disdain for humans that their lesser brethren do if not more so. It might interest you to know the dragon blood comes to you through your mother, it appears you are more pure blooded than others have led you to believe." Gripstaff returns Harry's shaky grin with a nod. "A Lenanshee or as they were sometimes called Leanan Sidhe were a mystic Celtic figures, they disappeared from human knowledge many generations ago. The name translates as fairy lover. They were dark muses who fed on the life-force of young and beautiful beings. Legend said that they resided under the Irish Sea off the eastern coast of Ireland. While they were radiantly beautiful to the beings they enchanted, they are usually invisible to all other mortals. As with all things Faerie, once the victim had tasted the Leanan Sidhe's caress, all other lovers, however comely seem lifeless and dull to them. Most often this seduction leads death, but it was nothing but otherworldly ecstasy for the beings it fed on."

"Oh," Harry blushes deeply and turns his head to stare up at the ceiling.

Gripstaff pretends not to notice Harry's discomfort. "A thunderbird is a magical race of birds, it is believed they were native to the Americas. It is described as being two canoe-lengths from wingtip to wingtip that is a wing-spread of about 26 and 38 feet, and it creates storms as it flies. Clouds are pulled together by its wing beats, the sound of thunder is its wings clapping, sheet lightning is the light flashing from its eyes when it blinks, and individual lightning bolts are glowing snakes that it carries with it. In masks, it is depicted as many-colored, with two curling horns, and sometimes with teeth within its beak. Thunderbirds could shape-shift to human form by tilting back their beak as if it were only a mask, and by removing their feathers as if it were a feather-covered blanket. Stories of thunderbirds in human form marrying into human families are not uncommon among some Native American groups but I have never heard of such happening over here."

"That might explain some of my joy and ease in flying." Harry takes a deep breath and releases it. "Please go on."

"Peri are exquisite, winged, fairy-like creatures that have been called both angels and devils. They crave pleasure and are rumored to be endowed with immortality. There is a legend that says that vampires were created by a dark wizard trying to corrupt a peri to his own twisted purposes. They are extremely rare today as they are very wary of humans and vampires tend to favor them as food."

Harry shifts uncomfortably under Gripstaff's gaze but doesn't say any thing.

"A Wulver is a kind of werewolf that until now I would have said was merely a fable, the only record of them comes from the Shetland Islands of Scotland. It's described as a burly man, covered with short brown hair but with a wolf's head. Unlike most werewolves, the wulver kept to itself and was not aggressive if left in peace. He spent most of his time sitting on a rock, still known as The Wulver's Stane, fishing, and was reported to have occasionally left fish on the window sills of poor families. The last reported sighting was early in the 20th Century. If I had to make a guess I would say that these supposed 'werewolves' were actually wizard's that botched an animagus transformation. It is also possible they are offspring of the union between a human and a breed of magical wolves or a transformed werewolf."

"That would explain its isolation and passiveness, it was trying to avoid the persecution it knew would come from what its parents had done." Harry feels a swell of sympathy for his distant relation for the suffering caused by something that they had no control or say in.

"Yes it would." Gripstaff waits for Harry to process all the information he had been given.

"How many of those exude, um, create an enticement?" Harry fumbles to find a polite description for what he wants to know.

Gripstaff covers a snort of amusement at Harry's description. "Both veela and incubi produce a certain automatic pull, but they can learn to contain it if they want. Vampires and lenanshee must learn to control their victim's minds before they can effect such an allure, as well as many other ways to trick the mind. Satyrs and peris attract by sheer physical appeal. Selkies use a combination of physical appeal and enchanting song to entice those they want, but their song does not have near the potency of a siren's call. As for the rest I suppose the individual involved simply fell in love the old fashioned way even though their species seem so different from each other." Gripstaff shrugs.

Harry swallows nervously. "How many new family's am I heir to?"

Gripstaff thumbs through the stack of parchment that had appeared on his desk during his explanation of Harry's non-human ancestors. "It looks like you have about one hundred different unclaimed inheritances listed here." Gripstaff holds out a simple wooden box to Harry. "This box is charmed to take all the information gathered from the ritual and use it to call any token of family headship."

At first Harry doesn't seem to notice the proffered box, but slowly he focuses his attention on it. His hand slowly moves toward the box until his fingers brush it lightly.

"You can wait to claim what is in there for a little while, but you risk losing it if the ministry decides it likes the benefits of the ritual enough to begin sending in their own people to claim inheritances." Gripstaff waits patiently for Harry to decide what to do.

Harry's hand closes around the box. "What the ministry knows, Voldemort's followers know. And he certainly doesn't need the extra resources as far as I'm concerned. Could you perhaps write to my friends and invite them to do the same?"

"Who should I send notices to?" Gripstaff summons a fresh sheet of parchment.

"Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom, Bill Weasley, Lee Jordan, and Oliver Wood if that is they can be proved to be loyal to the light. I realize some of those are female and or muggle born but I think they will prove to have the moral character to shoulder the responsibilities that will come with any inheritance they receive." Harry feels a little guilty for not believing Ron could handle what the others were sure to receive.

"All good choices, and all eligible. I was afraid you might name one of the younger Weasley's, they would not have been eligible unless all their older siblings were dead." Gripstaff reads over the list. "The ladies of course can not be named heirs but they can be named as beneficiaries whose children will then gain any titles available no matter if someone else tries to claim the inheritance."

"You never did answer me about how many families I might be heir apparent to." Harry turns the box over in his hand examining it from every angle.

"The main parchment is basically an elaborate family tree with a bit of genetic information attached, with an occasional notation about known traits and gifts. The other parchments are inheritance claims that the rituals magic called forth. But I can only guess which ones you will actually be heir to as some inheritances are yours through marriage not by blood, and others have unique requirements that must be met before one is named heir." Gripstaff grins at Harry. "Go on I am interested to see how many different types of tokens you ended up with."

"Types of tokens?" Harry glances at Gripstaff. "I thought signet rings were the emblem of an heir."

Gripstaff shrugs. "They became the standard token shortly after the statute of secrecy went into effect, I suppose because they were easily hidden. There are always a few families that like to be different, there are even a few who kept their older tokens while adding a signet ring. Of course non-humans usually had some type of physical marking that announced their station within their species. The box should provide you with a scroll for any bloodlines that might bear such markings."

"Great, hopefully I won't grow any extra appendages." Harry mutters under his breath.

Gripstaff still hears him. "I doubt that young Harry, remember that you are basically human and that even though you might be an heir to a bloodline does not mean you will automatically inherit a trait or gift from the bloodline."

Harry takes a few deep breaths. "Okay so no wings or tail."

Gripstaff recognizes that Harry is stalling. "Take all the time you need Harry. I have nothing else to do until you are done, and I want to help you in any way I can."

"In other words, get on with it." Harry rights the box , opening it he swallows hard. "There are a lot of things in here. Is there any way to know precisely what I am going to get when I claim these?"

"No," Gripstaff grimaces, "that is one of the major drawback of the ritual. Only an accepted heir may know such information or to authorize an informational folder to be left for their chosen inheritors. Think about how you simply knew about an heir's duties, like how to disinherit the Black sister's who chose to follow a darkened path."

"I just don't like not knowing what type of trouble I am walking into. It has meant the difference between like and death several times already." Harry taps the side of the box rhythmically with one finger.

"Understandable, but that is among the reasons we are in a warded room." Gripstaff holds out his hand, his next words are formal and filled with ancient meaning. "Will you allow me access to your inheritance for the remainder of this ritual my Lord Black-Potter-Gryffindor?"

Harry is once again confused but quickly realizes what is needed. "It would be an honor to I and my family if you would assist me with the declaration of my true lineage."

Gripstaff's face splits into a full blown smile at the full meaning of Harry's words. "Nay my Lord the honor is mine and my people's."

Gripstaff reclaims the box from Harry and clears off the table next to him. Opening the box fully he lays out the various items in separate piles. When he is done there is a group of things at each of the four corners of the table. The corner nearest to him holds several neat rows of signets rings. Clockwise from that is a stack of sealed beribboned scrolls. Farthest away is a trio of odd objets and on the last corner is a confusing jumble widely diverse pieces of jewelry. Gripstaff refers back to the family tree created by the ritual so he can sort the piles by the importance of the family's they represent.

Gripstaff picks up the five signet rings he had placed at the front of the group and a pair of simple pendants. "These are from minor families, of the this group only one ever bothered to create a family crest. Family crests were usually created for a ritual designed to anchor certain family traits to a bloodline. These pieces are likely to be the only things left behind to prove these families ever existed." Gripstaff taps the family tree. "The record does not go far enough back for these branches to reveal any useful information about the bloodlines or their traits. The only way something that old could affect you is if a newer bloodline had a similar trait. Then the most that would happen is a slight boost in the strength of the trait involved."

"In other words, no sudden influx of power or physical changes this time." Harry takes his time examining each item as Gripstaff hands them to him before putting them on.

The first item Gripstaff holds out is a ring made of a silvery wire as fine as spider silk and twisted artfully into a lacy band. "This belonged to the Celedor family."

Harry looks up sharply. "Isn't that a high elven name?"

Gripstaff blinks at him in surprise, sifting through his memories of his long gone history lessons about the high elves. "It does sound like it, most likely it is an affectation by someone trying to profit from the seeming association."

Harry looks at the delicateness of the ring and ancient nature of the family, somehow he knows that there is more to it than merely egotistical pretension. Harry accepts the next ring from Gripstaff, which is cleverly carved from a stags horn depicting the wild hunt against a full moon, representing Deerdorian family. He feels another moment of deeper understanding when the ring settles fully on his finger, Harry is now certain that these 'minor' families have secrets that he is going to experience first hand.

Harry hesitates minutely before he takes the next ring representing the Valisays family. Once it is in his hand he admires the elegant beauty of the three magically fused bands of wood; oak, cherry, and walnut all polished to perfection.

Next he gently settles a pendant, made out of a smooth cylinder of flint with a playful ivy pattern etched on it, around his neck. Harry sighs when there is no odd sensations created by the Aruinn family. He takes the Hebauc family pendant from Gripstaff and looks closely at it. His breath catches at the exquisite detail of the etched crystal hawk depicted in flight in the center of the emerald cut clear crystal.

The sixth item handed to him is another ring, a plain silver band encasing an almost completely transparent piece of amber, which is the sole inheritance of the Galen family. The last ring in the grouping is a wide rough beaten iron band clasping a gleaming disc of onyx. On the onyx's surface is the Chairn family's crest, done in monotone colors from dark grey to ash white, a burning pyre with vaguely lithesome shapes dancing in the leaping flames.

When the last piece is in place Harry relaxes a bit. "Well that went well, I barely felt a thing."

"Hmm," Gripstaff looks perplexed, "you really shouldn't have felt anything." Gripstaff motions to the pedant's hanging around Harry's neck. "The Hebauc family pedant has an beast speech charm on it, avian to be exact. This will allow you to understand and speak birds while you are wearing it."

Harry actually grins at this. "Brilliant, I can actually talk to Hedwig now. So what's next?"

Gripstaff chuckles creakily at Harry's sudden upsurge of enthusiasm. "If you are sure? Remember these were from minor families with no known history or gifts, beyond the trinkets they only have a few heirlooms of no great value or importance."

Harry cocks his head as if listening for something, inside his magic whispers that there is more.

"Harry?" Harry shakes his head and returns his attention to Gripstaff with a wave of the hand to show he is listening. "The rest of the tokens will probably not be as easy."

Harry looks thoughtfully at the plethora of items still on the table. "How many of those things are from strictly human bloodlines?"

Gripstaff double checks all of his paperwork. "Just four, one of which actually has two tokens. The secondary symbol predates the use of rings by several generations."

Harry nods in understanding. "There won't be any rude surprise from these, right?"

Gripstaff sighs. "The ritual can only reach back so far Harry, despite the fact some branches of your tree traced back further than any could have predicted, time clouds even the most famous of bloodlines. Creature notations drop off at approximately the fifth generation and beings drop out around the seventh, if there is something further back we have no way of telling."

"Let me have those then." Harry reaches out to accept four rings and a torque. "Out of curiosity, is the other Gryffindor ring included in that group?"

"It is." Gripstaff hands over the signet ring in question. "I should remind you that the Gryffindor line descended from Merlin, who was known to be of mixed magical descent, which is why neither Gryffindor nor Potter or classified specifically as human." Gripstaff watches Harry narrow his eyes. "I see they have truly kept everything from you." Gripstaff shakes his head in disgust. "What did they think would happen when that side of your heritage awoke."

"Use it against me so that I felt ashamed , making that much easier to control me." Harry says with a sneer.

Harry slides the Gryffindor lion on the same finger as the others from the bloodline. The rings blend together until the lion and stag are sitting facing each other with the griffin above them looking out of the ring with its wings spread. Harry feels a loving warmth flow from the ring giving him strength and reassurance, something that had been missing from all the others.

He hears a whisper, clearer than the others, deep from within his magic 'well done my son'. Harry clamps down on the tears that threaten to fall at hearing something he always thought was lost to him. Harry's voice shakes a little as he stare at the new combined ring. "Well that was interesting, I was beginning to worry I would run out of fingers."

Gripstaff is curious about Harry's reaction but senses that it is a personal matter. "That is likely to be one of the few signets that will do that, since technically they are all one in the same bloodline. You of course need not wear all of them unless you just want to. Nor do you need show those that you are wearing, just focus on your wish to bear the rings secretly and they will disappear. The reverse is true as well, focus on what tokens you want others to see and on which finger for rings, and they will appear."

"That's convenient." Harry tests the theory and watches as all tokens disappear except for the Potter and Black signet rings. Harry picks up the torque turning it around in his hands curiously.

"It is called a torque. Essentially they are simply an early form of a necklace." Gripstaff explains.

"Yes I know what it is, but how do are you supposed to put it on without any openings?" Harry asks dryly.

"Magic." Replies Gripstaff in the same tone. "Just hold it up to your throat and focus on your desire to wear it, it will either obey or decapitate you."

"Nice way too eliminate thieves." Harry touches the torque to his throat and feels it slide effortlessly around his neck. Another tingle passes through him. "Gripstaff how will all these things effect my birthday?"

"If I was you I wouldn't be wearing any unnecessary magical items during your sixteenth and seventeenth birthdays, as these days mark miles magical milestones the magical community." Gripstaff responds nonchalantly.

"Gripstaff my sixteenth birthday is the thirty-first of July, tomorrow." Harry points out.

Gripstaff looks at him blankly for a moment then summons Rigel to retrieve something for him. Rigel returns quickly with a shallow glass topped display cases lined with dark velvet. Harry can see numerous depressions in the velvet.

Gripstaff opens the hinged top and holds it out to Harry. "Focus on revealing your tokens. Once they are visible take them off and place them in the box, do not worry if an objects is oddly shaped or seems too large usually those type items have an alternate form for when you wish to be a little subtler. The box will adjust to accommodate any true heirloom, well except for something larger than its opening. It will also accept wands if you wish to keep it safe from some type of outside magical disturbance."

Harry removes everything but his two family signet rings. "I want to keep them on until it is necessary to remove them, and I would rather not part with my wand at all unless it is absolutely necessary."

Gripstaff nods conjuring another table he slides the display case onto it. "From here on out just claim the token, hide it, then remove it and place it in the box. I'll explain how to claim the other items as we come to them."

Harry goes through the four rings in his hand rapidly, concentrating on sensing any shifts in his magic when doing so. He is relieved when they engender no reactions. "You said Merlin was related to Gryffindor?"

Gripstaff hand Harry a knobby looking wooden ring with a small rainbow crystal imbedded in it. "This is actually a staff, you just need to think of which form you want it to take and it will shift to mach, but for this purpose leave it as a ring." Gripstaff doesn't release the ring fully when Harry tries to take it. "Be very sure about this, Merlin was fully capable of using his non-human inheritance."

Harry only sets his jaw and puts the ring on with his family's signet. He closes his eyes as he feels a rush of magic caress his entire body intimately. When Harry opens his eyes again a goofy grin tugs at his mouth. Looking down Harry notices that Godric's griffin has moved over and a phoenix is now facing it, but unlike the other signet rings the Merlin's wooden ring remains on his finger unchanged. He removes the wooden ring and reluctantly places it in the box.

"Your family signet ring now recognizes your status as full heir to your entire family heritage, an honor that has never occurred before. The staff remaining, that is a different matter as it means that you have the potential to match Merlin's magical strength or perhaps even surpass it." Gripstaff leans forward. "I suggest that after your birthday you wear the staff ring at all times. Not only will it provide you and those around with a degree of protection if your magic should spike unexpectedly, but you will also have a secondary means of casting spells that no one can take away from you."

Harry looks thoughtful before nodding. "I will. Before we go on I believe you mentioned something about Merlin's non-human ancestry, I don't think you said what it was."

"I didn't." Gripstaff replies evasively.

"Don't you think it would be for the best if I knew what heritage I might have just awakened by accepting the ring?" Harry blushes. "It did provide a very interesting welcome."

Gripstaff raises an eye-brow. "Really, then I suppose I should tell you. Merlin's father is known to have been a full-blood incubus, his mother on the other hand is still unknown. And if as you say your welcome from the ring was interesting, well..." Gripstaff trails off at Harry dawning look of comprehension. "Such potential is why the room's suppression charms are already active."

"Are you telling me that I'm going to have lust crazed riots exploding where ever I go?" Harry squawks. "Please tell me goblins are immune."

"No on both counts Harry. While goblins are not immune, neither will you be causing any undue attention since there are others currently preparing suppression charms for you to use when you leave here. You are to wear them at all times until you learn to control your allure on your own. I will also be providing you with some reading material on how best to accomplish said control. There might even be some information in yours scrolls about your abilities, needs, and how to manage them." Gripstaff gives his best impression of a soothing look. "As to those who might be immune to you naturally, those that have a powerful allure of their own come to mind first. Those with strong minds and the magic to back it up. The less 'human' a being or creature appears the less likely they will to be affected. Likewise normal animals and their magical counterparts will not suddenly become enamoured with you."

Harry looks at the things that remain on the desk warily. "Gripstaff should I really do this?"

"Harry, I know you are concerned about what having non-human blood might mean for you, but you need to remember that the majority of your ancestors were human." Gripstaff tries hard to calm Harry down as much as he can, wanting to finish the ritual before the thirtieth of July passes into the thirty-first.

Harry reclines fully on the lounge and closes his eyes. "Ring."

Gripstaff hurriedly complies and gives Harry the first signet ring he comes to. Harry settles the ring on a finger just long enough to bond with it before adding it to the jewelry already resting in the display case. Harry simply reaches for the next ring without further comment. They work through the rest of the signet rings in this way until there is only one left.

Gripstaff glances at the last signet ring in trepidation. "Harry this last ring is actually from an ancestor of the Black's. There is a lot of power attached to the LaFay bloodlines, little of it good."

Harry still doesn't comment, he just takes the ring blindly. The only sign that he even heard Gripstaff comes when he slips the LaFay ring onto the same finger as the Black signet ring. As soon as the rings touch each other there is a flash of blue fire and Harry's body twitches jerkily for several long moments. When the twitching stops Harry visibly forces himself to relax and look at the Black signet ring. The only thing to show that Black family ring has merged with the LeFay ring is the presence blue flames, which had not been there before, behind a stylized B.

When Harry reach for the next item Gripstaff hands him a scroll. "Just break the seal, and wait a few seconds for any magic to settle, you can read them whenever you are ready."

Harry grunts in acknowledgement as he takes the first of the eleven scrolls he needs to open. Each scroll Harry opens makes his innards squirm in odd ways, almost as if something was trying to wiggle its way into any unused nooks it can find. After each scroll is opened Harry drops it into the display case where a cubby hole will recess itself to hold the scroll safely while standing on end.

"That felt creepy." Harry rubs his arms to banish the last remnants of the crawling sensation caused by the scrolls. "What do we have left?"

"Two pieces of normal jewelry, two pieces of unusual jewelry, and four highly unique objects." Gripstaff carefully lines the things up absently, as he begins to feel the first stirrings in Harry's magic.

"Jewelry first I suppose." Harry chooses not to even glance at things on the table.

"You already have a torque from the Wledig family so we will start with the Aydz torque, both pieces were originally druid in nature." Gripstaff hand Harry an emerald and gold torque.

Harry runs a finger over the four-leaf clover crest. "One of the rings had a similar crest."

Gripstaff glances at the torque. "Yes, Aydz family has a signet ring as well as the torque. One of the scrolls also bore that crest on its seal."

Harry merely frowns a little before putting the torque on, after he has removed it and added it to the case. He catches the broach that Gripstaff tosses at him next out of pure reflex.

"Nice reflexes Harry, but you might rethink trying to catch any unknown objects in the future." Gripstaff admonishes. "Now prick you finger on the pin back, it should glow for a moment." Gripstaff hides his amusement at the face Harry makes about having to bleed again.

Harry looks up to stare at what Gripstaff offers him next when he hears bells. "What the bloomin' el is that?"

Gripstaff shakes the long chain in his hands causing the bells adorning it to ring happily. "This is the Satyr's version of a signet ring. If you look closely you can see four different styles of baubles adorning the chain. The number of different baubles, the intricacy of materials, and the length of the chain all represent the standing of the family it is from. This belonged to the half-satyr daughter of Ialonus. The beads usually represent a special ability within the family. In this case the large beads are blessed by lightening, the red beads represent fire, the blue water, and the smoked silver bells bear the semblance of a grapevine."

Harry gathers the chain in his hands curiously. "How did they wears these things?"

"The chains where usually wrapped around the torso and a limb so that the bells would chime pleasantly while the satyr danced." Gripstaff shrugs at Harry skeptical look. "I am not sure exactly how they did it either, but I suspect that the larger beads are weighted so they can help hold the chain in place. All you need to do right now is wrap it around your hand so it makes full contact, it should act enough like a signet ring that you will then understand how it is usually worn."

Harry proceeds to wrap the chain carefully around his lower arm until he can't wrap it any more, he then loops the rest of the chain around a thumb. Harry feels a slight breeze and all the ball ring cheerfully before falling silent. Harry take the chain off and coils it neatly into the display case.

Gripstaff offer Harry the second chain. "This is from a more prominent bloodline. A wedding gift from the satyr Silenus to his daughter, Aeval, by one of the Fae. The chain on this is made of enchanted gold, as are the bells which are inlaid with star-silver in a phallic pattern even the clappers follow that theme." Gripstaff chuckles at Harry's embarrassed splutter. "I did warn you about satyr's appetites. The large bead is blessed by a fountain. The four smaller beads are as follows; rubies for fire, emeralds for plants, flint engraved with scale of justice, and amber etched with the sacred rune of magic. The chain is probably about twice as long as the other one."

Harry ignores his continued blush to take the chain, he starts wrapping it at about two-thirds of the way up his upper arm. He experiences the exact same response from the chain as the first and is relieved to take it off, though he is intrigued by the hereditary memory of how to wear it. He promises himself that when he is settled into his own home he will get to know his different families as well as he can.

Gripstaff hands Harry a rough looking stave with a fishing line lashed to one end and wound tightly around it. "This is from your wulver ancestor, one Math Mathonwy. When you get the chance you should probably get a book on Celtic and Druid history, it will help you make some sense out of why inheriting from these families is important."

Harry takes the stave and yelps in indignation when the fishhook just happens to scratch him. "Well I guess that answers how it will bond to me." Harry starts to lay it on the display case, only to yelp again when the stave shrinks down until it looks very much like a wand. "Problem number two solved."

Gripstaff watches bemusedly as Harry glowers at the stave in annoyance. "The golden harp of Aengus MacOg. I believe it has some overt magical abilities besides its roll as an heirs token. I am not even sure how this piece came to be in the possession of the bank, the ancients supposedly took all their artifacts to the grave with them."

Harry scowls at the reference to another abnormality in his life. Harry sits up so he can lift the harp properly. He passes a hand over the cool metal, looking over the oddly shaped harp for any indication of how to join the harp to his magic.

"Play it." Gripstaff suggests.

"I don't know how," but even as he speaks Harry's fingers glide across the strings causing the harp to thrum melodiously.

Gripstaff nods and clears his throat to get Harry's attention. When Harry sets the base of the harp in the case the harp seems to shrink until it looks to be a large cloak clasp.

"The forest druid Cernowain, is a figure who haunts both the wizard and muggle world alike. There are so many different names and myths about him that not even the oldest among my kind knows the truth of it all. The is his only know magical object, it is believed that he didn't need anything to channel his magic properly." Gripstaff hands over the longest Irish flute Harry had ever seen, almost three feet long and made of a pale honey colored wood.

Harry sighs and fumbles with the instrument until he figures out how to hold it well enough to attempt a few shaky notes. He barely stops himself from dropping the flute when he hears the instrument itself laughs inside his head. 'At least you tried lad. I will teach you when the time comes.'

Harry hurriedly holds the flute out toward the display case and it helpfully shrinks down until it will fit in the case but no more. "Okay, it is really unnerving when an inanimate object talks to you, and even more annoying when it laughs at you."

"When you read up on your ancestor I am sure you will find the flutes personality is very much in keeping with the former owners playful, free spirited nature." Gripstaff taps the almost empty table slowly with his fingers. "Are you hungry, or thirsty?"

"No," Harry is more than confused by the sudden shift in moods, "why?"

"Midnight approaches and I fear it would be highly unwise for you to leave this room until after your sixteenth awakening. "There is a shower room just down the hall."

"If its not wise to leave this room so close to my birthday that will be a problem wont it?" Harry says completely lost by this turn of conversation.

"It is close enough that we can temporarily shift it to inhabit one wall in here, thereby allowing the wards to maintain a minimum presence while you prepare for rest." The tapping of Gripstaff's fingers picks up speed.

"That sounds feasible." Harry responds cautiously.

"While you do what is necessary I will be setting up the room for your comfort." Gripstaff stills his hand.

"Thank you." Harry replies slowly.

"Take the case with you, Rigel will look after it until you reclaim it. Be sure to your wand and anything else magical you have with you inside it for safe keeping." Gripstaff gets up as he continues advising Harry. "No one will be in here when you get back, so don't bother with clothing. Anything you might wear will be destroyed and bits of fabric wrapped around your body might also prove to be hazardous."

Gripstaff closes the display case and lays the last token on top of it. "There will be a cushioning charm on the floor in the center of the room, in conjunction with a warming charm that should insure your comfort and safety."

Harry takes the case when Gripstaff thrust it at him. "Gripstaff how do I claim this thing, what ever it is?"

Gripstaff begin banishing the leftover food. "That is a ceremonial breastplate. It is infused with the magic most often practiced by Baile of the Beli Mawr clan. To lay claim to their token you must spill your seed onto it, since they practiced sex magic quite freely."

Harry's jaw drops open in shock. "Oh." Standing sharply Harry looks around frantically, trying to control the need to bolt for the nearest door in embarrassment.

"I figured you would rather do that in privacy." Gripstaff states primly. "And though I have no interest in humans and the rooms wards are still working I think that type of exposure while your magic is fluctuating is to much of a risk for everyone involved."

"Um, yeah." Harry backs away a little. "Yes you are correct. Thank you for the courtesy."

Gripstaff waves his hand at the blank wall to the right and a door appears. "The facilities are through there. I will see you again after your sixteenth is over."

Harry watches briefly, as all of the furniture vanishes from the room, before beating a hasty retreat to the shower room. He proceeds through his night time ritual automatically his mind racing with to many thoughts to be able to focus on anything. Harry takes the breastplate into a shower cubicle with him, setting it on a conveniently placed shelf for personal items, he turns the water up as hot as he can stand. Harry hopes that a hot shower will relax him enough to allow him to do what is necessary.

While he is showering Harry tries to think only pleasant thoughts. He thinks about Cho, Ginny, the twins, and all the racy stories Sirius managed to tell him in the short time they had together, but nothing seems to help. He finishes washing up with a sigh no closer to achieving a physical state that is in the least bit helpful. Harry leans back against a wall allowing the water to run freely over his chest. The rivulets of water sliding down his body reminds him of the way Merlin's magic had touched him, how arousing such intimate contact between two magics was for him. A small smirk graces Harry's lips as he lazily pushes towards completion. With his free hand he snags the breastplate just before hitting his peak. With the last ancestral item properly claimed Harry feels a great deal of relief while he dries off.

When Harry goes to add the breastplate to the display case he notices that his 'offering' has been totally absorbed. He adds his wand and still shrunken trunk to the display case, as well as the letter and pouch from Dumbledore. Harry catches a glimpse of Rigel popping in just before he returns to the ritual room.

As he enters Harry can feel that the wards have been increased in the room. The wards seem to push heavily down on his magic as it fluctuates at a steadily increasing rate and severity. He staggers toward to the center of the room, seemingly in a trance. As the first definitive burst of magic escapes his control Harry sinks to his knees, only by lucky chance actually making to the cushioned area. After curling up in a tight ball he passes out and knows no more for several hours.

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End chapter 2

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I wish to thank the following lovely readers for leaving me reviews: Celtic Warrior Princess / I-Shave-Clowns / amour de vin / Haunt of twilight / Nathalie-z / LitCandle / GinnylovesHarry / Professor Rich / Treck / deniche / Belladonna16 / spacecatdet / David305 

AN/ Some of you noted that my Dumbledore had a change of heart, that wasn't really what I started out to do with this story but it is where my plot dust bunnies led me. On the other hand my time travel story is starting out with an alright Dumbledore but I am pretty sure he won't stay that way.


	3. Gifts

Harry Potter and a Letter Too Far.  
By Tiara Light

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The characters in this story are the intellectual and legal property of J.K. Rowling and her assigns.

My attempt at a super power Harry, though the process will be far from easy. With this the power comes privilege and responsibility, strength and weakness, temptation and fear, along with many surprises. There are also clear homosexual overtones but no pairings. You have been warned.

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Gifts Chapter Three

Harry becomes aware that someone is poking at him insistently. He bats at the offending individual, mildly surprised when his hand contacts nothing.

"Wakey, wakey." Chirps a far to cheerful voice.

"No." Harry growls and tries to pull non-existent sheets over his head.

"Come now little lion, it is time for you to become my little snake." The voice loses some of its cheerfulness, instead sounding smug.

Harry almost snorts in disgust. (s) Oh, really? I was under the impression I was already both lion and snake, and have been for quite a while now. (s)

Harry smirks at the silence that follows his hissing response.

"You are a snake speaker?" The voice, which Harry can now determine is feminine in nature, says in barely disguised interest.

"Yesss. And that question tells me you don't know me well enough to be poking at my like that. I am what fate requires me to be, whether I like it or not. Such labels are what others use to try and fit me into their comfortable little lives irregardless of whether or not the label fits." Harry grumbles at the annoying woman hovering just beyond his reach. "Go away, I'm tired and I hurt."

"My, my you are a testy little thing." The voice is now intentionally grating. "Don't you even want to know who I am and what I am doing inside your head?"

Harry lifts his head taking a peak at the offending invader of his well deserved rest. "If it will make you go away quicker I suppose I must."

"Now you are starting to get the hang of it my little grandson." The woman sounds highly amused.

Harry groans and drops his head. "Not again." Harry struggles into a sitting position and glares at the invader through his bangs. "Well madam, who is it that graces me with their presence? And why do you so honor me?"

The woman claps hers hands gleefully. "Very nice, you do have manners, even in the face of such trying circumstances." She sinks down cross-legged next to Harry. "I am your many times great-grandmother Morgana LeFay. I am here to bestow on you my gifts, having been accepted by the token I left behind to find just such an individual, that I deem you worthy of."

Harry stares at her stonily.

"Ah, not so warm a welcome I see." Morgana seems amused. "Forget what all those jealous old has beens have written about me. I am not nearly so cold as they would like everyone to believe, else I would never have agreed to go through the pain of birthing a child. No, I know what love is, and hope, and compassion I just choose not to share such precious things with those who never bothered to get to know me for who I truly was."

Morgana looks shrewdly at Harry. "Sound familiar yet? Now I will not lie to you and say that I was neither dark nor cruel, for I was indeed both of those things. Some of that came from the genetic gifts I could not avoid, my parents were dark beings. Some was caused by the cruelty that others treated me with, I was not so strong as you young lion. But in the end it was my freely made choice to embrace my darker side. Notice I did not say the darker side of magic, because magic itself is simply a naturally occurring power source. You as an individual that can tap into it choose how you will channel magic, and how you will use it. But once the magic is trained into something either light or dark it leaves behind a taint of what you created so be cautious."

She jumps up. "Now up you get so I can look at you."

Harry starts to stand then sits back down with his legs pulled up in front of him to hide certain parts of his naked anatomy.

Morgana laughs heartily. "Now, now young lion no need to be shy I got a nice long look at your tools before I woke you. Come stand up, be proud of your body, I need to see how you hold yourself; how you stand, move, the way the space around you responds. Truly my young heir, I am your grandmother, you need not feel self conscious around me. I have waited a long time for my bloodline to claim you, there is nothing you can do or say that will make me stop caring for the child of the last Black's heart."

The turn of phrase catches Harry's attention. "You saw this while you were still alive?"

"Yes heir I did. I saw your eyes, I felt your pain at a barren childhood. I knew that you would bear a scar that separated you from the rest of your kind. But most importantly I knew how very much you would be loved by the descendant of my blood, and knowing this I knew I could entrust you with the gifts which I allowed to master me instead of I mastering them." Morgana reaches a hand out to help Harry up.

Harry allows himself to be drawn to his feet, blushing heavily and unable to meet Morgana's eyes. "Your pardon lady, I am not used to such casual regard."

Morgana snorts. "I dare say you are not used to any type of private regard." She forestalls Harry's automatic retort. "I am not criticizing you, in fact I think that it shows a great deal fortitude and honor to have remained so untainted by the notoriety you have to deal with."

"Sorry." Harry shuffles his feet uncomfortably. "What exactly do you want of me, grandmother?"

Morgana giggles. "See that wasn't so hard. First off you can put on some clothing dear."

Harry looks up in surprise. "What?"

"Well I am your grandmother so I am not interested in seeing you jiggling about in the buff." Morgana motions to void around them. "This is your mind, so all you need do is imagine what you want."

Harry manages to blush even harder while he finds himself standing in a pair of jeans and a soft sweater. "Thanks for telling me."

Morgana pretends to ignore his sarcasm. "Your welcome. Now show me." She sweeps her hand toward the void and fades from view.

"Show you what?" Harry mutters irked at being treated like a trick pony.

"This way young lion." A voice whispers.

(s) No this way. (s) Another says from the opposite direction.

"Why?" Harry looks one way then the other.

"So you can find the gifts I left you"  
(s) So I may give you the gifts I promised. (s)

Harry growls. "Where are you?"

"Over here"  
(s)Over here.(s)

Harry chooses a point between the two voices and starts walking.

(s) Why are you going that way? (s)

Harry smirks. "To see what is there."

"But there is nothing over there."

(s)There is no harm in looking, now is there.(s) Harry keeps moving, ignoring the two voices nagging him to come to them.

His walk is interrupted by Morgana fading back into view with a pout on her face. "You are not playing by the rules."

Harry shrugs. "A gift is given freely. A reward is earned. Which did you claim you were offering?"

She blinks at him then tosses her long hair back laughing truly for the first time. "So the little lion is truly a serpent as well, I am corrected of my folly. I said what I was going to give you was indeed a gift, but I hadn't decided which gift so I left it up to a combination of choice and chance. And here we are."

Harry takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "I am sorry grandmother, the last few days have only added to an already stressful situation for me. I am afraid the last of my tolerance for surprises has been burned away by the harshest of realities."

"Oh and what reality is that." Morgana is truly curious about what lesson Harry's life had taught him.

"What you don't know can kill you." Harry says coolly. "Even worse it can kill those who are innocent of your decisions."

Morgana is taken aback by the depth of pain hidden behind Harry's words. She smiles bitterly and strokes his cheek. "Such a hard truth for one so young. Now that I see you my gifts have so much more meaning."

Morgana steps back and raise her hands above her head. "My first gift to you is the power of death and rebirth. Though you have not the gift of necromancy I bestow on you my stone blade. With it you may circumvent death by using it to die by your own hand first. Only you may use this blade, and only you can remove it when you deem it is safe to return to life."

Harry gapes openly at the wickedly pointed eight inch blade that appears in front of him. "But necromancy is a cursed art."

"The rules only state that it is cursed when turned upon the innocent or if you open this world to the nether realms. Using it on yourself, or on those who have tainted themselves with the blood of innocents if they die upon the battlefield is allowed." Morgana smirks evilly. "The second half of that you will have to learn on your own serpent in a lion's mane."

Harry snorts at that particular description. "I thank you lady for your gift, I will cherish the knowledge you have offered me."

Morgana is pleased by Harry's words and a book appears beside the knife. "Guard this knowledge carefully my grandson. Now my second gift to you is a spell, one that I specially designed near the end of my existence." Morgana presses a kiss against Harry's forehead, planting the spell in the deepest part of his mind. "That spell will ensure that you are never overcome by the taint of dark magic. Use it whenever you are forced to use magic that is perhaps considered suspect or had it used against you."

Harry stares incredulously as Morgana fades from sight. "Good-bye my grandson, be sure to read my scroll."

"Scroll?" Harry looks around frantically but Morgana is gone. "Well hell."

"Language young master."

Harry whips around to face a new speaker. He wishes desperately that he was awake so he can faint properly.

"Lord Celedor." Harry manages to squeak out.

"I see you recognized the import of the name young one." The void around them lightens and becomes a warm summer glade. "Please, sit, relax."

Harry sinks down onto the surprisingly cushiony ground. "Am I going to visited by all those who I have inherited from?"

"Not at all young master, only a few very unique individuals who felt it best to talk to their heirs about a few secret gifts that run through their blood, and in some cases to decide which gifts to awaken." Celedor lounges casually on the ground across from Harry.

Harry closes his eyes tiredly. "I suppose there is no use fighting it since I have already accepted my place in these families, but da - - rn it I don't like surprises."

"I can certainly see why young master." Celedor keeps his voice low and soothing.

Harry does not want to deal with the memories dredged up by Morgana so he pushes his pain aside. "What should, may I call you?" And why do you call me young master?"

"Because that is what you are." Celedor smile slightly. "To me you will always be young and the title of master belongs to you and my other descendants because I still hold the title of Lord."

Harry leans forward. "You mean your not..."

"Dead? No I and the rest of my people are still very much alive. We left this plane long ago because our magic was becoming increasingly out of sync, we were fading. It was becoming impossible to interact with the physical aspects of this place and our magic was also beginning to slip from our grasp, it was as if we were becoming living ghosts. We made the painful choice to open a dimensional gate and follow magic through the planes until we found a place where we could live. We were forced to leave behind friends, family, even familiars who were still attached to this worlds magic."

"Did someone cause this intentionally?"

Celedor shrugs. "It is unknown if the separation was a natural happenstance or if the magical races of this world created the problem, nor does it matter. We survived and are happy."

"I'm glad, when I read about the high elves history it always made me sad to think that such beauty was lost."

"Not lost, merely moved to a new venue." Celedor taps Harry on one knee to attract his full attention. "If all goes well with you there will come a time when you will begin to fade as well. Then you will have a choice, join I and the rest of your living family in a new world, remain in your world as a living ghost, or pass through death."

"I have living family?" Harry seems to shrink into himself as he whispers the question.

"Yes young Harry you have many aunts, uncles, and cousins as well as I who am a sire to one of your bloodlines." Celedor watches as a myriad of emotions play on Harry's face.

"A sire is the same thing as a father?" Harry looks up slowly.

"Yes it is." Celedor sits up and holds out his arms.

Harry throws himself into Celedor's embrace crying desperately. "I'm not alone."

"Never young one. I and my kin will always be family no matter the distance that lays between. Real family Harry, one that cares about you simply because you were born. A families love based not on gossip, fame, or mistakes you may are may not have made but on who you truly are." Celedor knows he has said the right thing when Harry's grip on him eases along with his tears. "I think you can get away with calling me papa for many years yet, if you want to."

Harry tries to laugh through the remnants of his tears. "Thank you, I really needed that. Since Cedric was murdered it has been so hard just to get up, trying to keep the pain and guilt from overwhelming everything else. And that is just from someone I was just beginning to be friends with."

Celedor pull Harry fully into his lap so he can hold him properly. "Hush young one, no one but the truly guilty knew about that portkey. You and the other young man did the only thing you knew to do. Your enemy chose to kill without mercy as he had always been want to do, you did not control any of their choices that day or any other."

"But I offered to share, ..."

"No buts. You were honest and fair, it was his right to take the cup. Without your participation your friend Mr. Krum would probably have won. The outcome would have been the same, the dark lord's resurrection and the death of the champion. Remember it was only your wand's connection to its brother that kept you alive when his full intent was to kill you." Celedor pets Harry's unruly hair. "Yes you chose to share the victory with Cedric. Cedric also chose to let you win. Peter chose betrayal to save himself. Voldemort chose to destroy everything that got in the way of his hate, including himself. Of all these choices which one was truly made out of evil intent?"

Harry bites his lip. "Tom's, he chose to turn his magic to hatred."

Celedor rubs Harry's back in encouragement. "I see someone has already explained the true nature of magic to you. Tom, as you call him, made his choice. Over the course of the next year you will have to choose how you are going to shape the magic within you."

Harry nods hesitantly. "Morgana told me, I met her first. You arrived, er, appeared just after she had left."

"Madam LaFay was always a sly one, she should have been the last one to talk to you. Now that honor will fall to her greatest rival, and your most magically attuned ancestor." Celedor lets Harry sit up.

"She didn't seem so bad." Harry glances at Celedor shyly.

"Compared to your Tom she was an angel. No her darkness stemmed mostly from her blood and heartbreak. By the time her sanity returned to her she had twisted her magic so much that the damage was permanent." Celedor explains gravely.

"She gave me a spell that she created to purify ones magic of taint." Harry tells Celedor tentatively. "She said she had created to late to use on herself."

"Hmm," Celedor looks thoughtful, "that could be useful. But I am concerned that something like that could weaken your magic by returning it to its immature state."

"What do you mean by immature state?" Harry asks confusedly.

"You are aware that your sixteenth and seventeenth birthdays are important milestones, right?" At Harry's nod Celedor goes on. "This is because your magic matures during this time."

"Okay." Harry shifts uncomfortably.

"But that is only a vague clinical definition of what happens during that time. It certainly is not a real explanation of what happens." Celedor says dismissively. "To truly understand why I am concerned you need to understand what is really happening to you and your friends."

"Would it have something to do with why Gripstaff wanted me to finish claiming all my inheritance before my sixteenth birthday?" Harry asks with the first stirrings of interest.

"Certainly, though if someone happened to miss that deadline is could still be done before their seventeenth birthday, after that it becomes increasingly more difficult to integrate any new magic into their cores and the magic they inherit will be weaker." Celedor stops Harry from fussing with a kiss to the top of his head. "The reason for all this will become clear."

Celedor shifts Harry to sit beside him so they can be more comfortable. "Normally it starts with the bloodlines you are heir to. When most children pass their OWLS their families give them some type of token that represents their families; for a long time this step was accompanied by an inheritance ritual similar to the one you went through."

"During the time between the ritual and their sixteenth, the youth would study their families to prepare for what they might inherit. On the eve of their sixteenth birthday they were led to a specially warded room in preparation for anything that might awaken in their blood or magic. The youth would remain in the room until the morning after their sixteenth as precaution to keep themselves and everyone else safe from their fluctuating magic. The same would happen for their seventeenth. The year after the initial awakening the youth's magic grows in strength and intensity. Historically, old families and those who believed caution to be a virtue kept their youth secluded because it is during this time of growth that your magic is the most vulnerable. You emotions, thoughts, experiences, memories, and the magic that you are exposed to begins to shape your core."

Celedor glances at Harry and sees only fascination. "Your magical core during that year absorbs a 'taint' from everything you do until your seventeenth. Ideally your core is being stretched by using extreme amounts of your magic; both the standard magic which you are best at and enjoy, and the gifts you inherited. Once you are almost exhausted you immerse your mind in the theory of your different magical discipline until your magic is recovered. This pattern of exertion and immersion continues until a month before your seventeenth. That month is spent relaxing your mind and body completely so you are prepared for your seventeenth."

"I'm already behind in the schedule.: Harry tries to get up.

Celedor holds him firmly to his side. "Not really, you would have only had a bit over a month from end of term to your birthday to learn about your families, it is definitely not an insurmountable problem. Of course you then would have had to wait for your family to acquire a waiver for you to practice your magic outside a school setting. I will leave a letter behind for you outlining all of this for anyone you wish to inform of it, though I suggest that you at least tell the goblins so they can help anyone else who comes to them. Now before I continue with explanations do you understand why I am worried about Morgana's spell?"

Harry frowns deep in thought. "If it completely erases any 'taint' then I would have to retrain my magic to use my natural strengths and inherited gifts every time I used the spell."

"Yes and without the natural growth that take place during you maturation it would be much more difficult and take a much greater length of time. It might even be more painful." Celedor adds as a precaution. 

"It would be an act of desperation, a last resort to stop some terrible curse used directly against my core. It might actually destroy the link between I and Tom, and while that might be a good thing it might also kill me if not done with proper care and preparation." Harry says in a whisper colored with a sickening combination of hope and horror. Harry shakes himself loose from the dark thoughts that always seem to plague him when he considers just how his scar might connect him to Voldemort. "What happens if I inherit a gift for something I have never studied before?"

Celedor sighs. "Hogwarts used to be set up to include its students magical maturation. It used to be a requirement that all students rotate through all the electives in their third and fourth years, fifth year they had a study hall instead where each student was responsible for preparing for whichever Owls they wished to take. This allowed the truly gifted children to take all the OWLS they wanted without having to deal with conflicting schedules."

"What were the core and elective classes during that time?" Harry snuggles closer so he can listen to Celedor's voice rumble in his chest.

Celedor in amused by how long it has taken for Harry to fully relax into the affection he is offering. "There were five core classes which were considered critical for all wizards to understand; transfiguration, charms, potions, care of magical creatures, and herbology. There where twelve electives; healing, history, dark arts, dueling, runes, arithmancy, divination, astronomy, ritual magic, magical theory, etiquette, and non-human culture. Some of these courses where taught as grounding subjects to allow better understanding of the magical world for everyone. Others where taught in preparation for the students gaining special gifts during maturation, others are taught so you understood what your strengths and weaknesses were, and a few were taught simply to make day to day life easier."

"No defense against the dark arts." Harry says disappointed at the lack of his best subject.

"What you call defense against the dark arts would have been covered in the dark arts and dueling. Entry level Dark Arts was concerned entirely with protecting yourself against non-sentient threats. Dueling covered basic protections against wizards and other magical beings with less than honorable intent. Only at NEWT level did these classes begin to teach offense instead defense. You I think would have excelled at both fields. Do not scowl so, the dark arts of that time did not include what you call dark arts, those were classified as black magic. Black magic existed only for the sake of pain, hatred, and degradation and the unforgivables while still only dark were always considered to be the crossover point between the two categories. There were also several other categories that have become obsolete as wizards have disregarded the truth about magic."

"What happens on your seventeenth birthday?" Harry decides he is not ready yet to deal with the different designations of magic or to worry about OWLs and NEWTs.

Celedor represses a smile over Harry's obvious dislike of tests. "Remember what I said about stretching your core? On your seventeenth you gain your mature magical depth, raw strength. If you have stretched your core properly the process should be almost painless. It also stabilizes your magic and protects it from being tainted by outside influences as easily as it is while your magic is still growing."

Harry sighs. "I wish you didn't have to leave."

"I am merely a projection drawn to you by the awakening of my blood within you, there is nothing here in reality." Celedor hugs Harry close. "We will meet again in reality someday young one. Until then you will always be in my heart and thoughts. Now to bestow on you the gifts I came to give. First is a key to the plane where my people now live, when the time comes it will open a direct portal for you so you need not wander through the planes looking for us."

Harry reaches out to cradle the blue crystal key that appears in front of him.

"Second is a gift you will never see, feel, or use consciously. The ability for your body and magic to seamlessly adapt and integrate your diverse bloodlines. This will prevent some of your more antithetic gifts from clashing with each other causing your core to be unstable. And thirdly knowledge, knowledge of our culture, magic, and language." Celedor stands lifting Harry easily to his feet at the same time.

He holds Harry close for a moment more before stepping back and vanishing. "Use my gifts well young master, until we meet again."

"Well he was long winded." A cold voice whispers as darkness overtakes Harry's mind.

Harry is irritated by the theatrics and thinks lumos to himself with all the force he can muster. The result is a bright white expanse of nothingness instead of blackness.

"Well that was most unexpected." The voice hisses at Harry.

Harry glances over his shoulder in disdain. "Theatrics are unappreciated at the moment sir. If the light bothers you I am willing to moderate our current surroundings. In interest of an amicable meeting."

"It would make this meeting more productive." Harry's new guest concedes while concealed within a sweeping black cloak with its hood pulled low enough to hide all features.

Harry lowers his eyelids, without fully closing them, and pulls up a picture of a comfortable sitting room lit only by a cheerfully lit fireplace. The area next to the fireplace holds a plush rug and two deeply upholstered chairs.

"Much nicer." The man discards his cloak on the back of one of the chairs and settles into it languidly.

Harry observes the shadowy clothing and luminescent flesh of his guest. "You are a vampire."

"Very good. Come, sit, the chairs you so considerately provided are quite comfy." He gestures to the empty chair with a flourish. "You may refer to me by the name Creavon."

Harry feels an odd push in his magic toward the chair. "If you wish this to be an affable meeting please cease and desist with the mind influence."

Creavon looks at Harry first in surprise then with a pleased smirk. "I am impressed that you felt that, I was being subtle. I will not tamper with your mind again using my magic."

Harry nods in acceptance and sits down. "If I were to guess I would say that our relation comes through the Blacks."

"Your guess would be correct. Your godfather was very daring to join our families in such a way. You would have inherited everything from him anyway, both due to his will and his magically binding oath. To add his blood to yours was - -, unusual to say the least. But I suppose it did serve to continue his ancient bloodlines in a way not possible otherwise."

"He had his own reasons." Harry says tightly.

"I am sure, but no matter we are here now. Which I must say would not be possible if there hadn't been at least one vampire in your born bloodlines. Though it is possible that it is 'her' influence that tipped the balance." Creavon stares boredly at the fire while watching Harry out of the corner of his eye.

"Lefay." Harry murmurs in surprise. "That makes things so much clearer. She really didn't have a lot of choices."

"Vampire born rarely do, but you, you do. You have so much light in you that our curse will not be a problem." Creavon smiles creepily.

Harry feels something within him shudder strangely. "As interesting as your acquaintance is I know you are not here merely to keep me company." Harry holds his reaction to Creavon perfectly neutral.

"She liked you." Creavon turns toward Harry his smile turning predatory. "Perhaps I will as well."

Harry adopts one of Professor Snape's most disdainful glares. "You need not strain yourself on my account."

Creavon grins showing off a gleaming set of fangs. "I bet you are delicious."

"I bet I could arrange for a bright sunny day around a roaring bonfire." Harry snaps back even as the vampire words send an unexpected jolt of desire through him.

Creavon flips something at Harry, who manages to stop it with a thought before it can make contact. Creavon takes advantage of his distraction to stand and move silently around behind Harry. As he stands so close Creavon's eyes glaze over and he leans over Harry's shoulder. Bracing himself with a hand on one of Harry's thighs Creavon licks him from just behind the ear down his throat to where his clavicle peaks out from his sweater. Harry freezes, caught between abject surprise and his bodies awakening craving.

Harry yanks himself away from Creavon's looming presence. "Stop!"

Creavon fights the daze he has fallen into and takes a slow step back. "What?"

"What?!" Harry repeats incredulously. "Do you have any clue what non-human bloodlines I am inheriting from and what comes along from them?" Creavon nods and moves to put more distance between them. "I was told some of what I might inherit, who knows what else since I didn't get a chance to even glance at the species were listed on my scrolls."

Creavon whines softly still fighting magical enticement. "I haven't been susceptible to such allures for several hundreds of years."

Harry crosses his arms self consciously. "Does base magical strength affect allures."

"Yesss." Creavon begins to drift back towards Harry.

"What did you throw at me?" Harry tense as the vampire gets closer.

"A ring to wear should you wish my help in exploring certain aspects of your magic." Creavon pounces pinning Harry to his chair in one smooth movement. "I would be a most discrete partner."

Harry eyes lock onto the crest displayed on a broach, worn at Creavon throat, with two snakes twined nose to tail in an infinity symbol. (s) That might no be wise. (s)

Creavon groans and melds their bodies together while sliding to kneel between Harry's legs. "Please, everything about you makes me ache. The language of snakes is such a naughty indulgence."

Harry places his trembling hands on Creavon's shoulders unsure if he wants to pull him closer or push him away. "Creavon, please, today is my sixteenth, don't ask such a choice of me. I have so little control of this situation and even less innocence left to lose."

"I can wait. When you are ready just put the ring on and I will find my way to you." Creavon wrenches himself away, collapsing into the other chair.

Harry sighs in relief then blushes when he gets a good look at the 'ring' Creavon had tossed at him, it did not go on a finger as he had first thought but elsewhere more private. "Then you are still alive in this world?" Harry tucks the ring away in a pocket.

Creavon licks his lips as he watches Harry's movement. "Yes cousin I am still 'alive'. Old enough to walk in the sun if I so desire."

Harry grumbles about finding a better threat for the next time they meet, earning a smile from Creavon. "So why are you here cousin?"

"The ring is a personal gift. What I came for is to give you the protection of my clan." Creavon holds out a simple teardrop shaped deep red ruby suspended from a black silk cord. "No vampire of lesser power will dare approach you with harmful intent while you wear my blessing, and none can remove it save by your free will."

Harry accepts the necklace respectfully. "I thank you."

Creavon's tension eases up. "My other gift is related to a specific talent you inherited from my blood, this cloak. It will assist you in learning how to use the shadows to do many things where all other magic seems to fail. Use it to guide you through the midst of those hunting you, to read the shadows that have gone before you, to trap the minds unwary enough to walk into shadows that are not, and many other things."

Harry nods thoughtfully as Creavon stands. "Thank you for all your gifts. Be safe always."

Creavon bows. "God-bye cousin."

"Until we meet again cousin." Harry stands and returns the bow even though there is no one there any longer.

"I must say he made quite a number of passes at you, and you handled them all very well. Though I personally would have had him screamin' harder after his first flirtatious little smirk lad."

Harry notices that the sunny glade is back, he closes his eyes. Rubbing his temples he turns to the newcomer. "Why?"

"No reason in particular except he was beggin' for it and he was dead sexy. Names Silenus by the by." Silenus voice has a sing song quality to it.

Harry's eyes pop open at the candid answer, he snaps them shut again when it registers that Silenus is totally nude. "I didn't want my first to be that way."

"Ah." Silenus smiles knowingly. "You can look now, I have a toga on now."

Harry peaks through his lashes before opening his eyes fully again. "Good-day to you satyr Silenus."

"And good-day to you my heir. I am here to warn you that the information about satyrs is understated at best. We do not just crave pleasure, we grow stronger magically through it." Silenus makes a negating motion when Harry tries to speak. "Not like a incubus who feeds off others. Pleasure increases our magical core's capacity, our own pleasure. When you enjoy a slow hot bath, the slide of silken cloth, good food, and yes an orgasm you gain potential. Normally this is but a minor concern since satyrs have little accessible magic, you on the other hand have a magical core that not only holds much more magic but also have almost direct access to it. Add to that, that this is your year of maturation when your magic is in a natural state of growth."

Harry wants very much to curl up in a ball and whine about not being normal but it has never helped before so he figures he'll skip that step for now. "So every time I enjoy anything on a physical level I will cause my core to expand just like pushing my magic will?"

"Exponentially so, especially if you are following the old traditions of intentionally stretching your magic." Silenus agrees cheerfully. "A gift." Silenus holds out a handful of onyx beads. "Pour them onto my daughter's chain, they represent your shadow gifts that the prior visitor gave you. The beads are like wands to us, allowing us to channel certain types of magics while we dance a technique called sikinnis."

Harry takes the beads. "Thank you."

"Think nothing of it lad." Silenus waves, his toga vanishing before he does. "You will discover how to make your own beads soon enough."

"Exhibitionist." Harry gripes.

A being covered in warm brown fur steps up to Harry's side to contemplate the spot where the satyr had disappeared from. "That is just the nature of a satyr, they know they look good so they see no reason to hide it. You will gradually grow into a portion of that confidence in your body."

Harry glance at his new visitor, wearing nothing but a loin cloth and his fur. His eyes trail up a well defined chest to look at the wolfish face watching him in turn. Harry wets his lips nervously, he is far more attracted to the casual strength this being holds than to those who were overtly sexual and would traditionally be considered appealing.

"Is that a good thing?" Harry guesses his guest is a wulver.

"Perhaps." The wulver gives a lopsided 'doggy' smile. "My name is Math Mathonwy, some people have called me a wulver. Silly really since that if the messed up pronunciation of the transfiguration based curse that saddled me with this appearance."

Harry grins automatically in response to Math's happy, easy going personality. "The goblins surmised it was something like that."

"Those sly little buggers don't miss much." Math agrees in good humor. "You keep sneaking glances, is there a question you wanted to ask?"

Harry flushes pink at being caught. "I just couldn't help but wonder if your fur is as soft as it looks?" Harry says in a rush.

Math laughs a short yipping laugh. "Here feel." He places Harry's hand or his forearm.

"Oh, it is soft." Harry unknowingly begins to pet Math's arm out of the sheer delight at the sensation.

"Yep you definitely posses satyr blood, or you wouldn't be glowing over something so mundane. We'll make a hedonist out of you yet." Math says teasingly.

Harry snatches his hand back. "Sorry."

"Nonsense." Math puts Harry's hand back "We are kin, and you have no idea how nice it feels for someone to respond so positively to what others shunned in fear."

"I think I do." Harry recalls how tempted and flattered he felt when Creavon responded so eagerly to his use of parseltongue. "People usually react badly to my ability to speak to snakes."

"Then we have something in common in the way people treat us according to their own preconceived ideas." Math covers Harry's hand with his own and leads him towards a glimmer in the void that materializes off to one side.

When they arrive Harry sees a small lake. "Do you realize how disturbing it is for me that someone else is able to manipulate my mind so easily?"

Math pats Harry's hand. "We are a part of you, awakened and released by the ritual for this short span."

"Some of the others are still alive." Harry mumbles.

"Yes, and they were touched by the ritual's magic in warning of what was to come." Math guides Harry to a large flat rock sitting at the very edge of the lake. "They then had to find a way to connect themselves to the dream world at the prescribed time, not that you gave them much warning. They had to really scramble to make sure they would have the time and security needed to spend time connecting with you, rather than simply relying on their tokens to carry out preordained scripts. Those who have passed rely on basic scripts to cover what they wanted to tell any heir that receives a gift from them. Others with experience with ancient forms of magic imbued their tokens with their own personality, kind of like the sorting hat you encountered at Hogwarts.

Harry sits next to Math on the rock without complaint. "Which are you?"

"I am most certainly dead, so I must be the results of an imbued token." Math tugs Harry against his side.

"You certainly feel real." Harry rubs his cheek against the fur covering Math's side.

"Then the process worked as it should." Math stifles something that sounds suspiciously like a giggle because Harry had rubbed against a ticklish spot. "Morgana and Merlin are different yet again, while they undoubtedly imbued their objects they were also powerful enough to leave echoes of themselves in the ambient magic surrounding a few special places, thus creating a boost or stabilizing force for anything they left behind."

"I guess I get it." Harry runs a hand through his hair trying smooth it down. "It is hard to meet all of you on such a personal level, finding out that I like you, only to have you snatched away again."

Math wraps an arm around Harry's shoulder pulling him even closer trying to offer what fleeting comfort he can. "We are such as dreams are made of, and our little life is round with a sleep."

Harry snuggles closer to the sleek warmth of his companion. "Shakespeare has never been all that comforting to me."

"Look into the water cub, let it carry your concerns and constant cacophony of thoughts away. Take your memories, wrap then inside an opaque globe of water, release them to sink into the fathomless depths before you." Math's voice leads Harry deeper into his own mind. "Take all your secrets and all that causes you pain and do the same, take a weight and add it to you globes. Let them go cub. Now look and see how vast the ocean is."

Harry blink like he is just waking to stare out at a measureless stretch of water. "What was that?"

"The beginning phase of what you call occlumency. Do that exercise every night before you sleep, it will help you protect your mind from intrusions and lessen your nightmares. Be cautious though, this is merely the beginning stage you still need to build in protection to prevent entry and to throw out anyone who tries." Math's quiet voice is soothing.

"Is that what clearing your mind is supposed to be?" Harry asks becoming instantly angry.

"It can be, but very few know how to truly show another this stage. Add your anger to the ocean, perhaps in the form of a shark something that will guard against someone entering the ocean to directly search for your memories." Math watches in pride as Harry follows his instructions without any difficulty.

"I feel much better. How do I retrieve my memories?" Harry stares at the ocean.

Math hands Harry the same staff fishing rod combination he had handled in reality. "You still have your memories, just choose one and cast the line into the water. Something simple, without strong emotion, perhaps a spell your found interesting in class."

When Harry does as suggested, coming up with a jumble of interlaced memories. "Ouch that causes a nasty headache."

"Release the memories back to the water. Try again, this time be more specific about which class and when you had it. The more detail you can recall about the information you want the easier it will be to grab the real memory. Think of those tiny unimportant details as invisible moisture in the air itself. If you do catch someone poking around before you have a chance to develop protections just visualize it raining into the ocean. The rain will take everything the intruder might be able to use to find a memory beyond their reach, your mind should then look like a dessert where the water is merely an insubstantial mirage." Math continues to instruct Harry with a calm voice until Harry gets the hang of retrieving his memories and clearing his mind completely.

After a time of practicing Math hugs Harry close bestowing a feather light kiss. "Well done." He hands him a book about the mind arts. "Take care cub."

Harry quickly tosses his pain at parting into the water in the shape of leeches. "Bye."

"You will see us again you know." Another ancestor sits down beside Harry their voluminous robes billowing around them.

Harry stares unseeingly ahead of him. "Will I?"

A harp plays softly. "Death is but the next great adventure."

"An adventure you can only take if you actually die." Harry barely notices his new book fade away to be replaced by the key made of crystal which he had received from Celedor.

The harp player catches his breath sharply in surprise since he had been unable to catch much of Harry's earlier dealings because of his recent occlumency lesson. "How?"

"A supposed minor family." Harry fiddles idly with the exquisite key. "Turns out they aren't so minor, just ancient beyond measure. I liked my Celedor ancestor but is it enough when all the others I have cared for have passed from this realm?"

"It will be all right Harry. Do not despair before you have learned the culture of your ancestors young one. They live in a different plane whose rules are different. You will see all you have lost again, whether you have known them a few hours or many years." The harp is played in a simple set of scale. "I was known as Aengus Mac Og of the Tuatha De Danann. My specialty in magic was music and dreams, these you have inherited."

"A god?" Harry turns toward Aengus and finds himself doubly shocked by the sight. "What idiot named you?"

Aengus chuckles. "The cow named after the clan lands is a relatively modern variety."

"You are male right." Harry blanches at how rude his question sounds.

"Yes I am." Aengus throws him a sardonic smile. "My mother was a Peri, I got my all looks from her though luckily not her wings. My looks are what earned me my title, the people of my time didn't understand how I could look like this and be a simple mortal."

"Sorry, that was tactless of me." Harry kicks at the water.

"It was, but it was a completely unfeigned reaction, far better than the awed fawning and drooling I usually get." Setting his harp aside Aengus leans back on his elbows to watch the shifting void above them.

"You are just so beautiful, it's hard," Harry blushes, "sorry." He looks away trying to rectify the truth of his ancestor being male while looking decidedly feminine.

Aengus shrugs. "That was my brand for all the world to see."

His words make Harry feel even worse. "You certainly are different from the others."

"True." Aengus continues to stare off into the void in a bored manner.

"You can leave anytime you want." Harry begins to become irritated by the almost Lockhart like self absorption.

"Not until I have finished what I cm meant to do." Aengus watches Harry's reaction subtly.

Harry lets the key fade and begins tossing memories into the ocean absently. "You have graced me with your words of wisdom and told me about the powers I inherited from you what else is there?"

"Something has upset you." Aengus sits up in interest.

"Perhaps you listened to mere mortals a bit to often." Harry pulls his bangs down over his scar defensively.

Aengus leans forward so he can see Harry's face more clearly. "It seems I am the who should be apologizing. I didn't think about how my words could hurt you. That has always been a problem of mine, it probably is related to the way I became accustomed to behaving around those who insisted on treating me as a god."

"And I am frightened by all the changes." Harry looks back at Aengus.

"The gift I wish to bestow upon you my heir is key to my home. It is what you would call a fairy palace that is located of the Boyne." Aengus smiles a little at Harry's astonished expression. "Being a fairy construction means time runs differently there."

"Isn't that to unpredictable for me to use under the current circumstances?" Harry asks remembering stories of people showing up unchanged after years had passed or coming back inexplicably older after a single night.

"Unless you know the secret of the places creation." Aengus retrieves his harp to play a happy tune. "Which I do."

Before Harry can ask Aengus leans over to bestow a kiss on his temple, and then he to is gone.

Harry flops onto his back. "The coming year is going to be a real mess."

"Is that counting all that extra time in fairy space?" Responds a whispery voice low and husky.

"I only 'need' to use fairy space long enough to complete the basic training all inheriting wizards used to receive before their maturation began." Harry is a little reticent to find out which ancestor is talking to him this time.

"You could study those subjects that interest you that you didn't take OWLs for." The whisper suggests.

Harry smirks a little. "Or those things Hogwarts no longer teaches." Harry props himself up enough to look around. "Hello?"

"Greetings." The whisper is now much closer and distinctly coming from the direction of the ocean.

Harry stands warily still looking for his visitor. "A bit shy?"

A body presses fully up against Harry's back strong arm encircling him firmly. "Not really."

Harry startles and tries to pull away. "Let go!"

"No." The voice purrs in his ear. "My gift needs 'skin to skin' contact to be successfully passed on."

"I'm not ready." Harry struggles even more to free himself when he feels all his clothes vanish.

"I know, nor am I asking that." The body behind Harry holds very still, allowing him to register with fissure of unease that this ancestor is also male.

"What type of skin to skin contact?" Harry chokes out trying to ignore the craving beginning to burn in his gut. "This is not wise."

"Oh but I think it is." Harry's captor's voice deepens even more. "Baile Beli Mnwr, master of the sea and storm at your service. These too shall you be."

Harry gasps as heat consumes him, the ocean in front of him becoming a raging tempest. "I understand, but I can't..."

Baile's hold gentles. "In time you will, do not fear. Be cautious and selective yes, but never fear yourself or you 'will' cripple your magic. There is much you can not control that is true, but your own magic should not be one of them. That is after all why this year of maturation was once set aside as sacred, to give such wild burgeoning magics time to calm and their bearers to learn of their strengths." Baile presses a palm size crystal ball, with what looks like a miniature ocean inside, into Harry's hand. "To practice with safely."

Harry takes a shaky breath when he realizes the heat within him was released with the storm and is not the same as what had happened with Creavon. "My thanks for your gifts and knowledge Lord of Belatain."

Baile snorts. "I hate that title, and you are most welcome."

Baile steps away Harry finds himself dressed again and the ocean calm as glass. A mist rising sensuously from it's surface shrouding it from view. Harry stands quietly breathing deeply to quiet his rising anxieties, straining to hear something that might indicate how the next encounter will go. At first he hears nothing, then gradually a haunting tune begins to swirl through the mists so softly that Harry thinks it is only his imagination. Gradually the melody swells wrapping Harry in a blanket of music.

"I inherited a flute." Harry peers at the swirling mist in a dreamlike trance.

The mist coalesces into a most unexpected form. "It is mine."

"Herne!" Harry shuffles backward in utter surprise. (AN\ the image of Herne, that got stuck in my heard for this character can be found at www dot runic moon art dot com / art / thumbs / cernet.gif. I hope the artist doesn't mind the plug./AN)

"My heirs go under the name Cernowain." Herne bows the impressive rack of horns crowning his head to Harry, one dear like ear flickering towards the void and back.

"I think I need to sit down." Harry mutters.

The ocean shimmers turning into a quiet pond, the rock becomes a fallen log covered in soft moss. Around them an ancient forest forms leaving them in a small clearing lit only with the diffuse light that sifts though the dense canopy.

"As you like." Herne moves around the pond with an odd gait. "May I join you?"

Harry just looks blankly at Herne, his mind not truly registering anything while he befuddledly tries to figure out the oddity of Herne's movements, before snapping back to his current reality. "Oh sure."

As Herne settles the hem of his elegant robes rises just enough for Harry to catch a glimpse of deer like hooves. "I never pictured you as the type to wear full robes." Harry sits down distractedly.

"After some of the guests you have had I felt discretion would be appreciated. Beyond that it just depends on what mood I am in." Herne smoothes his robes down.

"It is greatly appreciated, thank you." Harry looks at the clearing without really seeing it, something about Herne puts him at ease just as Math had. "I know I need to learn how to accept and control all these gifts as well as all my non-human inheritances, but" Harry jumps up to pace. "Toady is my sixteenth, I only learned of 'my' family bloodlines and claimed them yesterday, then of course there is the blood adoption the day before. Ah hell, lets just have a good laugh over the fact that most of my non-human ancestor are obsessed about sex in one way or another and I am still a virgin. Blast it all, I wanted my first lover to be someone who actually cared for ME, not some sick thing that my instincts forced on me!!"

Herne blocks the path of Harry's pacing with an arm. "Do you really think that your ancestors waited, in some cases hundreds of years, to bestow their most precious gifts on someone they didn't care for?"

"But you don't know me." Harry yells in frustration.

Herne's sensitive ears clamp down at the loudness of Harry's voice. "For the most part we can only be here because of the strength of your magic and your mind allowing us to exist. We can not know your mind more intimately than that, besides we are inside your head anything we do 'physically' would be nothing more than a dream."

Harry stares. "A dream?"

Herne's lips quirk into a smile. "A very intense, realistic dream. Or if you want to make it so, a fantasy, though the things we are giving you and telling you are very much real."

"Rally?" Harry begins to calm.

"Truly, if that is what you truthfully desire." Herne turns Harry to face him.

Harry moves closer. "You are sure?"

Herne pauses to actually consider all the possibilities he can think of. "Physically you would still be a virgin no matter what your mind does. Else the first time you had a fantasy would have eliminated that condition already. Your magical core will change, but still register magically as virgin. The only repercussion I can foresee is that it 'might' awaken your sexually oriented inheritances a little sooner."

"After everything that has happened I already feel like there is an inferno raging within me." Harry braces a hand against Herne's chest to physically hold himself away from temptation.

"And what does this inferno want of me?" Herne places a hand over Harry's holding it in place.

Harry shudders his voice sounding strange and distant. "To consume, to posses, to bind, and to ravage until pure ecstasy burns away all but itself." Harry leans forward breathing hard still struggling to maintain some control.

"You have heard tales of me, how do you think your words effect me Har-ry?" Herne's voice dips into a husky whine as his unoccupied hand clutches Harry's hip.

Harry sinks to his knees between Herne's thighs his free arm winding its way around Herne's waist. Harry presses his face into the folds of Herne's robes which are keeping him from nuzzling the taunt chest beneath his cheek.

"I hurt so much." Harry mewls. "It burns."

With an oath Herne scatters clothing, log, and doubts to the void closing in around the oasis he had created, and calls forth a sweetly scented bower to cushion and cradle the fervently heated body in his arms. "You are burning up."

"He is experiencing a surge of raw magical growth causing his core to change shape, his second of the day. He was fully unconscious before the first one truly started."

Herne looks up in surprise at hearing another's voice his eyes widen, much as Harry's had at him, upon seeing the identity of the guest. "Merlin?!"

"Yes, yes it is me. What you are doing should really wait, unless you think he can handle manifesting as both a full incubus and a full veela. Or did you fail to recognize the difference between to consume and ravage, and to posses and bind? Those two urges are completely opposite." Merlin says with droll sarcasm.

Herne closes his eyes and slows his breathing. "That would be disastrous."

When Herne begins to get up Merlin waves him still. "Go ahead and hold him, our young heir desperately needs any bit of affection he can get. Though I would suggest a modicum of clothing be added to your current arrangement."

Herne gives Harry a light pair of sleep-pants and a sarong for himself before pulling the shaking, sweaty body closer. "You said this was his second surge, how many will he have?"

Merlin perches nearby on a convenient stump. "Two or three more at least I should think, maybe more depending on how the inheritance ritual he underwent affects the physical portion of his core."

"That's preposterous, no wizard child can survive such a change." Herne feels a surge of protectiveness towards Harry.

Merlin shrugs. "His mother carried an anomalous core as an adolescent just as our heir does. Hers never developed any further, she only gained more access to it during her maturation, though it is likely she would have if wizards still bothered to practice the old traditions. A normal core is 'I' shaped (AN/ Think of a dumbbell /AN), Harry's adolescent core had an extra bulge in the center and was already twice as large as is normal. Obviously he did not have full access to it or he would have had a definite problem with control. His inheriting like this is no accident of fate."

"What will his core eventually look like, if he survives the change?" Herne glares balefully at Merlin.

"He will survive." Merlin states confidently. "I am sure you know that currently a normal wizard's core maintains four prongs throughout their life, normally it is 'plus' shaped (a.k.a. +) at maturity. Our heir's core would have gained two more prongs, rare but not unusual historically speaking, making for a three demensional 'plus' shape. However with the use of the two rituals this initial set of surges it should make it look like an eight pointed starburst. At the end of this year of maturation, after all of his non-human inheritances have come into play, his core will be overlaid with a secondary core in the shape of a cross pattee with triangular arms which come close to being a filled square."

"What did your core look like?" Herne asks out of curiosity.

"A single core in a fleur-de-lis variant of a Maltese cross." Merlin says primly. "He will be stronger than I, whether or not he can access and control enough of it to make it noticeable to the world around him is another matter. If he follows the usual course and returns to his school he will be lucky to reach average, on his own he has a much better chance. If he had a mentor who could help him in the old ways then he would be the most powerful wizard this world has ever known."

Herne snuggles closer to Harry. "How long will this surge last?"

"As long as it lasts." Merlin says in a bored manner.

"Annoying old man." Herne grumbles.

"I've been called worse with complete honesty." Merlin smirks.

"I am sure you have." Herne replies with an equally vicious smirk.

After what seems like an eternity Harry begins to stir. Warm arms hold him securely against an equally warm body. Harry struggles to recall how he came to be in this position. His emotions run the full gamut in mere seconds finally settling into stoic befuddlement. He notices that his reactions seem to be completely numb to the realization that he can feel an unclothed chest pressing against his own bare back. Like a seductive song he recalls being told that what happens in his mind isn't physically real, just like dreams weren't. In a small corner of his mind that desperately wants to wake up, Harry wonders how accurate that is since so many of his dreams are indeed anchored in real world. Harry doesn't want to think, he wants to roll over and kiss his companion to quench this irresistible itch.

Herne is relieved when he feels Harry's temperature go down and even more so when the young man starts to awaken. He gives Merlin a relieved smile to which the old man only looks inscrutable. Before he can greet Harry, Herne is shocked out of all coherent thought when Harry twists around to capture his mouth in a searing kiss.

Herne breaks the kiss with a gasp. "Harry!"

Harry doesn't wait for further words, rolling over on top of Herne forcing him flat on to his back. "Intoxicating." Harry rubs himself decadently against the body beneath him enjoying the drag of velvety fur against his skin.

"Harry perhaps..." Herne's suggestion gets no further as it is swallowed by the heat of another kiss.

Harry pushes down harshly, growling ferally unable to fight the tidal wave of raw instincts sweeping through him.

Merlin stands sharply, with a wave of his hand he separates Harry from Herne.

Harry howls in rage, his mind calling forth a raging storm as he thrashes to get free, at being parted from his chosen prey.

Herne scrambles to his feet conjuring a robe quickly.

"Now do you understand why he was instinctually declining advances?" Merlin asks smugly.

"As I recall you told me to continue holding him." Herne snaps in return.

"I had hope he could control it a bit better than that, but I suppose there is only so much temptation one can ignore. I was not infallible when I was alive and death certainly did not change that." Merlin frowns. "His tantrum has caused another surge." Merlin keeps Harry from falling while he mutters to himself. "It is far to soon for another."

Herne glares at the man once recognized as the most powerful wizard to ever be. "You don't say."

"No need to get nasty." Merlin crosses his arms defensively.

Herne shakes his head causing his long hair to whip around in the wind generated from the tempest still raging around them. "I'm beginning to wonder just how much of your incubus heritage was active?"

"More than the history books record, sheep, always wanting to gloss over the flaws of their heroes." Merlin scowls.

"Would you two please keep your voices down, my head is killing me." Harry whimpers at the loudness of his own voice as the storm dies down.

Herne hugs Harry in relief, not stopping to think about the possible consequences.

Harry growls low in his throat causing Herne to retreat quickly. "Herne my dearest ancestor, unless you have a physical body that I can properly feast upon I think it would be best if we didn't cuddle up again until certain urges cool a bit." Harry's voice is barely recognizable.

"Of course my Harry, I am most sorry. I truly believed there would be no harm." Herne's ears droop emphasizing his regretful expression.

"I know." Harry eases his tense stance. "I think we should finish the business you came here for so I can devote myself to meditating on happy memories instead of worrying about all this. I get the feeling the more relaxed I am the less the transition will hurt."

"Very astute heir." Merlin puts in.

"You remind me of a very creepy combination of Ollivander, Dumbledore, and Riddle." Harry contemplates Merlin uneasily.

"Descendants all, different mothers of course. I am what I am after all." Merlin smiles a little wistfully.

"Enough." Harry hisses feeling a surge of irritation at Merlin. "Fulfill your purpose here old man and leave."

"Of course my heir." Merlin seems amused by the reaction. "Once Herne is finished."

Harry feels a sudden spike of undirected anger. "As far as I am concerned he can wait until you are done and gone to finish." Harry tries to find a reason for his sudden fluctuation of temper. "His was an honest mistake, where as yours was the meddling of a doddering old fool." With that Harry knows whose words he is echoing. "Thank you, but I think dealing with two manipulative mad men is already two too many."

Merlin loses his amusement at Harry's bitter words not noticing a corresponding darkening of the void around them in his focus on his heir. "Perhaps I was wrong about your suitability."

"Perhaps everyone was wrong to place the fate of the world on an infant. Perhaps it is wrong for those sheep, as you so charmingly call them, to bury their heads in the proverbial sand and rely on an unloved abused orphan to save them again. Enough I say, if all they are going to do is heap false platitudes on me one moment and revile me in the next why should I care if the sheep get butchered?"

"Bravo Harry, bravo now you begin to see why our world needs cleansing." A dim figure approaches them.

"Yeah of the inbred monstrosities that have become so genetically warped they can barely rise above squibs. No wonder you inner circle has only produced impotent runts." Harry grits his teeth against the searing pain Voldemort causes him.

"How dare you." Voldemort hisses.

"Should I list off the names of the current Slytherin students who are either mentally impaired or too magically crippled to be effective wizards let alone soldiers? You Tom are lucky you dearest mommy screwed a muggle, at least the injection of fresh blood revitalized your genetics. Of course that didn't stop you from mutilating yourself, so I can only conclude not all the inbred damage was fixed in the metal department." Harry hisses back viciously.

"You will regret those words boy." Voldemort sneers at Harry.

"What ever are you going to do Tom, torture and kill me? Oh please Tom that is what you have always intended to do so it is not really much of a threat, now is it?" Harry drawls insolently.

"Your friends." Voldemort leers at Harry.

"Which ones? The ones who are in it because of my fame or the ones our favorite Headmaster arranged? Try again Tom the only person I loved unconditionally is dead because of you. What irony that neither of us gained anything useful out of it." Harry pretends to pointedly ignore Voldemort.

Voldemort eyes Harry ancestors warily. "You really shouldn't lie so obviously."

"Oh yes, how useful. By the time they are done with me I'll be less human than you are, even including the issue of using dead bodies to make you something less than fully alive." Harry sneers at Voldemort. "Here is a secret, I know you are incapable of understanding because somehow you ended up more of an emotional cripple than I did, I would rather have my family. A families love and approval, then all the shit I inherited. But guess what, that won't be happening so that just leave me with one thing Tom, my so called destiny." Harry draws further into his own mind summoning a maelstrom of fire and lightening to throw at Voldemort.

With a shriek of rage and pain Voldemort is forced to retreat from Harry's mind. This time Harry doesn't recall the storm, instead he pushes outward toward the edges of his mind, where it settles as a barrier that all must cross to enter.

Herne wraps an arm cautiously around Harry's shoulders. "You have true friends Harry, those who stand at your side because you reached out to them when no one else would. And never underestimate the depth of feeling a werewolf holds for his pack, a pack of which you are a cub to. You read the Headmaster's letter and the phoenix verified its truth, he never intended to hurt you in any way."

Harry sags as his externally instigated anger abates. "What should I do?"

Merlin clears his throat. "I guess death hasn't taught me tact nor was I expecting his outside influence even though all of us who have come to you can sense what you have had to deal with. What I should have explained is that I can't give you my gifts until Herne has. Unfortunately as soon as our gift is given, whether it is physical and mental, our time is done."

"Oh." Harry closes his eyes and leans against Herne. "Okay. I think I'm going to sit back down now."

Before either man can respond Harry sinks to the 'floor' cross legged his limbs trembling.

Merlin's face scrunches up with the effort it takes for him to change the landscape of Harry's now protected mind, providing more cushioning for Harry. "Another surge, at this rate I'm, going to have to rethink my original estimate. Although this one looks like it is only a bit of physical growth to accommodate his growing magic, it wouldn't do to have so much magic your body can not hold it all."

"It is impolite to talk over some ones head." Harry complains trying to ignore the aching in his bones and the trembling the besets his muscles. "How much more am I going to change? Will I even look like me after all of this?"

Merlin and Herne exchange a serious look.

Herne pets Harry's hair as he kneels beside him. "We do not know how much you will change tonight. Over the next year you will change a bit as each of your non-human inheritances become fully active. After your seventeenth it is likely you will appear significantly different, as does everyone when they mature physically."

"I want to keep my mother's eyes" Harry says in a small voice.

Merlin crouches down in front of Harry. "The biological traits that your parents gave you will be the base that guides whatever changes you go through. Certain features that identify you as their son will remain the ritual is not so inclusive as to completely override your strongest connections to your family."

As Harry accepts Merlin's words he relaxes enough to stop trembling. The pain in the rest of his body tapers off soon after.

Merlin stands offering Harry a hand to help him up. "Up you get, let us see what all that bothersome discomfort did to you."

Harry is not sure if he wants to like Merlin for his odd sense of humor and easy way of playing things down or to punch him for it.

"He is a bit odd." Herne whispers in Harry's ear.

Harry tries not to grin at Herne's words as he accepts Merlin's help getting up. "I am curious about something Herne." Harry sways some after fully gaining his feet, his growth spurt causing his center of gravity to change.

"Oh really, and just what might you be curious about?" Herne flicks on ear at him.

"Everything." Harry grins cheekily, "but specifically I wondered how you came to look as you do?"

"Well I for one am glad he had something in particular in mind or we would be here for a very long time, and I am certainly not getting any younger." Merlin says in exacerbation over such a trivial question.

"True but seeing as you're dead you aren't getting any older either." Harry coughs to hide his snigger at the sour look on Merlin's face.

Herne intervenes before the sniping can escalate. "My mother was a cat's-paw, a toy, created by a black mage for the amusement of a rich patron. He used demon's blood in a ritual to partially transform a deer into a humanoid female. She was stolen from her owner by an angry Urisk who was the guardian of the herd the mage took deer from. After several attempts by some sympathetic wizards it was obvious that the transformation could not be undone. They were however able to increase her intelligence and brake the obedience spells that where in place. She stayed with the Urisk that had saved her and she bore him several children, all of them were girls. One of the wizards that had tried to help fell in love with the eldest daughter. These were my parents. None of the other daughters married humans."

"I hope the mage and his patron met with a suitable end." Harry can feel his rage building up at the thought of someone defaming magic and nature in such a way and his storm magic begins to respond until he manages to calm himself.

"The patron was killed when the peasants under his sway rose up in anger against his cruelty. The mage met his end when he used another ritual in an attempt to gain some obscure magical abilities from different magical beasts, it backfired. He lived out his days as a twisted combination of a snidget and a graphorn." Herne smiles viciously showing off a set of pointed teethe that he inherited from his grandfather.

Harry's jaw drops open, his anger completely forgotten in his shock, unable to visualize such a combination. "The black arts must make one insane."

"They most often do have that effect." Merlin mutters. "Modern wizards outlaw what they call 'dark' but do not worry about the truly black ones, unless you call the outlawing of all blood magic without consideration of the actual process and result of the ritual."

"It is safe to assume that Tom in fact does use the black arts?" Harry remembers with revolting clarity what Voldemort looked like after his rebirth as well as how it was accomplished.

"Certainly, the drinking of unicorn blood alone shows what black depths of depravity to which he will sink." Merlin answers with a look of complete revulsion. "Not even a true demon would do such a thing."

Harry shakes his head, rapidly throwing the distressing thoughts Merlin's words had brought to mind into the now ever present body of water. "I'm not sure I understand the difference between dark and black. Where do the unforgivables fall in that distinction?"

"The unforgivables are classified as dark arts. They are rightfully banned though as they are the harshest level of charm based dark arts, there is dark magic that is rightfully banned in every active field of magic. Once you become that immured in dark magic it far to easy to slip over the edge into the black arts." Merlin answers promptly.

Merlin stops talking to stare at the ring of trees still surrounding them while he thinks about the best way to explain a very complex concept without confusing Harry who was just being introduced to the topic. "White arts are strictly harmless, there is no way to cause harm to others through their use. Healing is probably the only field that knowingly uses white magic regularly. The patronus charm is one of the only defense spells that falls under the auspices of the white arts. Light arts are or were strictly defensive in nature; mostly shields, wards, and counter charms like envenerate and finite incantum. Neutral magic is that which has no intent or emotion involved, most household spells fall into this category. Reparo is the most common repair charm, it is used to fix basic damage done to inanimate objects. Grey arts were spells that could be used for almost any purpose; the effects of the spell are completely controlled by the intent of the caster. The first wand magic taught at Hogwarts, the levitation spell, also used to be used to teach the ethics of grey magic to impressionable young minds. With the simplest flick of a wand you can lift a chair so it can be cleaned under, free someone trapped under debris, or drop something lethal on an unsuspecting victim. So it can easily be light, neutral, or dark depending on application."

"Couldn't you use reparo on a weapon or dark object?" Harry interrupts.

Merlin hums noncommittally. "Yes, but the reparo can't wield the objects just like a potions vial isn't labeled as being light or dark because of the potion a wizard choose to put into it. Now let me finish explaining." Merlin grumbles about the curiosity of youth. "Dark arts are offensive in nature, they are wielded directly on another person or object with the intent to affect another being. Even your temporary hexes and pranks would once have been classified as dark arts. The Black arts are destructive not only to the victim but to the caster as well." Merlin paces. "These are things that you should have been taught before you were even allowed to own a wand."

"Is that why Slytherin wanted bar muggle born students from Hogwarts?" Harry shifts nervously under Merlin's sharp glare.

"No, he was concerned that their parents would expose the wizarding world to those that were campaigning to destroy all things magical either accidentally or intentionally. The others didn't take his concern seriously which led to the attempted burnings of several witches and the eventual slaughter of innocence. The 'enlightened' zealots took the children of every family that was suspected of having magic under the guise of pirate raids, placed them on ships that were towed out to sea and torched. The rift between Slytherin and Gryffindor occurred because Godric's children from his second wife were taken and instead of comforting him Salazar threw his ignored warning in the grieving mans face. It wasn't discovered until much later that Salazar was so harsh because he lost a child to the slaughter as well, neither man was in any condition to listen to reason. By the time sanity returned too many hurtful things had passed between them." Merlin sighs sadly. "That was a terrible time in history, much was lost both tangible and intangible. But the lack in your education does not stem from that time at all, no that has been brought on in much more recent times. An underhanded tactic by your 'pureblood' supremacists to control who was taught the true nature of magic. This ignorance then caused the misuse and abuse of certain magics which the same 'purebloods' used as an excuse to ban more teachings. The subsequent leaders who broke from their control, though honest and truly interested in the peoples safety, didn't understand the root problem so they could only pass stricter laws to try and control or curb the misuse of magic. It has become a viscous cycle, now even stooping to curtailing the rights of individual citizens simply because they became victims of an incurable diseases like lycanthropy. Before Hogwarts and the Ministry there was a treatment that could be used to stop the poison from vampirism and lycanthropy from fully turning a victim, but now it is unusable because it is labeled 'dark' magic because of its use of blood in a ritual."

"That is just wrong." Harry growls. "And it only reinforces my opinion that most the wizarding world are spineless back-stabbing sycophants. Can you explain how the Black arts effect the caster?"

Merlin regards Harry warily for a moment. "Very well. I hope you are aware that it is your own magic that fuels most spells you cast." Merlin waits while Harry gives a mumbled ascent. "The light and dark arts often require strong emotions as well to be cast successfully. White and Black arts use your soul to harness the magic being cast. White magic purifies and soothes while Black magic fractures and twists the soul. White magic has a greater effect on the recipients soul; Black magic effects the caster's soul more. An off shoot of this is that the White arts can rarely be self inflicted, whereas there are many changes a practitioner of Black magic can inflict on themselves."

Harry listens intently to all of Merlin's explanations. "I think I understand all of that for now. I do have another question though. If for some reason a person uses some of the more damaging arts, be they Dark or Black, can they damages be lessened by the use of Light or White arts?"

"Yes and no." Merlin looks even more troubled. "Things like the unforgivables tend to be exponentially more damaging each time you use them, and addictive. Light magic does not have that effect on the caster and White magic would have to be cast on you by someone else with the intent to purify you of something specific. And no matter whether you can find someone to do that for you it still wouldn't do anything to treat the addiction. If you are worried about the spell you cast on the kin slayer, don't, she was quite right about your intent. Righteous anger and the wish for justice, no matter how much pain and anger involved, will not taint you."

Harry takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. "Well that's good then, even if the ministry might see things a bit differently."

"Oh I doubt the Ministry will say anything about you cursing an escaped convict, even if she does show up to file a complaint." Merlin smirks knowingly.

"At least not until I am no longer useful to them." Harry replies bitterly. "Then I wouldn't put it past them to interrogate me with versatium just on general principals."

"By then you will not need them at all. You can simply walk away when the time comes." Herne whispers in Harry's ear. "Now it is time for me to bestow my gift upon you."

"If you don't then you won't have to leave me." Harry says in a small voice pulling into himself.

"Oh Harry." Herne hugs him tightly. "If I don't then you will never wake up and even worse you would be stuck with Merlin to."

Harry tries to smile at Herne's attempt at humor. "I guess that would be a bad idea."

"Real life is a better choice, even if things aren't as easy as you might want it to be." Merlin puts in pragmatically.

"My gifts to you are the magics of nature and the elements in all the many facets each of those magical branches encompass. These abilities will emerge gradually as you learn to use each one, they will never come on suddenly threatening to overwhelm you the way some of your gifts may. If you ever find that you need help to learn my gifts ask the animals around you, they can help." Herne's arms tighten around Harry's waist one last time before they simply fade away.

Merlin isn't sure what to do as Harry crumples to the ground in tears, curling into a tight ball. He had not been exaggerating his lack of tact, he had never been good at handling emotions. Merlin sighs and sits down nearby unable to decide whether reaching out to his heir will help or make things even worse when he to has to leave as well.

As Harry's tears give way to hiccups he feels decidedly hollow inside. A hollowness that produces a feeling of need that is entirely alien to Harry.

"Something is missing." Harry struggles to sit up looking around wildly.

Merlin sighs again drawing Harry's attention instantly. "Most non-human species need a mate for their magic to fully mature, during the year when wizards are best secluded they need to be searching for their mates. Because of the diversity of beings in your background it will be impossible for all your instincts to be satisfied in a single individual. Also you have inherited from species that take prey not mates, those bloodlines awakening will cause similar sensations along with a hunger that normal food can not satisfy. What you have been feeling here is merely your inheritances settling into your core not an actual awakening, which will take place after you wake up. Hopefully gradually." Merlin mutters the last comment to himself.

Harry shakes his head in violent denial. "I won't do that, I can't."

"Hush lad, let me finish explaining, we will take care of that problem in just a bit." Merlin makes a vaguely soothing motion with his hand. "Now as I implied, each species that you are inheriting from will be drawn to a different set of characteristics. You will need to familiarize yourself with each species needs so you can understand and control your cravings. The better you understand each species the easier it will be and you will also be able to get the maximum out of any relationships you do have. This is very important my heir, because even after my intervention your magic will still seek out individuals who can stabilize your various inheritances."

"You're not making a lot of sense to me right now." Harry groans plaintively. "I got that my inheritances will make me crave things I don't want and I need to learn about them, but I already knew that."

Merlin snorts. "I suppose I was talking around what I was trying to tell you so you would understand my first gift better. My first gift is to release you from the compulsion to take a mate or seek out prey. This however does not mean your magic will not benefit greatly from having certain craving fulfilled or providing a surrogate source of compatible magic. This could come from close friends, familiars, or even the more usual choice of a lover or two." Harry sputters indignantly. "Oh for mercy's sake I am not suggesting you practice loose morals or unseemly behavior, I think you will find your werewolf 'uncle', your goblin mentor, and your owl familiar will stabilize most of your desires. You already have a standing offer from one who can help with the rest without putting you in danger or demanding anything you are not ready to give, you need to stop being such a prude."

"Excuse me." Harry growls. "I don't believe being picky' wanting something meaningful, reliable, and yes blast it romantic has anything to do with being prudish. Besides I really don't think an active incubus is a good one to judge the difference between moral standing and prudish behavior."

"There is the spine I like to see in my heirs." Merlin is relieved that he has managed to distract Harry from his sorrow.

Harry pinches the bridge of his nose where his glasses usually sit. "Since you are still here I presume you still have some more dubious advice to bestow along with at least one more gift."

"Yes I do, you have been given some gifts of pure knowledge. These gifts, while saving you the time of reading all the information the long way will still need to be studied before you can effectively use the information. That is one of the things the technique you call occlumency is good for." Merlin has to stop as Harry is overcome by another wave of sorrow.

"One day you will travel beyond this plane's confines. Those you have loved are not gone, they are in your heart and waiting beyond this flawed existence." Merlin fumes silently at the damage of every kind that has been heaped on his heir. "You are not responsible for other's choices. Yes your choices affect others, and some of them have been rash, leading others to make certain decisions you didn't like. But it was their choice, you have never chosen to hurt or kill simply to get your own way."

"They would have been better off without me. I have been nothing but a burden and a danger to everyone around me." Harry shudders and buries his face in his knees pulled up against his chest.

Merlin grips his staff tightly wishing he could throttle those who had brainwashed a child to believe such things. "Harry."

Merlin's use of Harry's first name snaps him out of his withdrawal. "Yes sir?"

"Question, did your relatives lie about magic and your parents?" Merlin asks trying to make his harsh voice as gentle as possible.

"Yes." Harry's emotions flounder confusingly at Merlin's question.

Merlin goes on before Harry has a chance to dissemble. "And is Dudley a smart handsome young gentleman?"

Harry snorts in disgust. "Maybe in comparison to a leech."

"Do you believe they would ever tell you the truth if it was in any way beneficial to you?" Would they lie to you if it would hurt you or force you into obedience?" Merlin's questions become much more pointed.

"Er, they hate me so no and yes." Harry says in a small voice. "They would do almost anything to make my life miserable."

"Then why do you still behave like they were right about you?" Merlin asks coldly. "From what I can sense about you and the way your other ancestors have behaved around you, even those that rarely got along with anyone, I can refute all their spiteful words. You are not stupid, they forced you through their abuse to get lower grades than their son. You are not a scrawny runt, they starved you. That vampire of yours is very particular about the looks of those he partners with, so you certainly are not ugly."

"He is not my anything, what is it about people that keep pushing him on me?" Harry yells surging to his feet.

"Perhaps because we know more about him than you do heir. For all that he was born a vampire he is a kind, generous, gentle being. He has spent aeons working vigilantly to lead his fellow vampires away from their violent and dark paths."

"Oh."

"You can always contact him in a more traditional way if you want to get to know him better." Merlin points out archly before going on with his dissection of Harry's childhood. "If the Dursley's had paid for a live in maid, butler, cook, and gardener they would have been broke within a month, so you were certainly worth a whole lot more that the scraps that you were getting. Now let us deal with what you thought your name was. Magic is a natural occurrence therefore you are not a freak. Actually we have no record of when or how magic became part of the human race so it is possible that originally all humans had magic and being 'muggle' was caused by a curse or a problem in birth."

Harry hunches his shoulders forward defensively. "I know, it's just hard."

"You were an innocent who only wanted to be loved." Merlin gentles his voice as much as he knows how. "It is hard to heal the scars they left on your spirit, especially when you have never been given the time to truly be at peace.

"Yeah it is. I asked for help even though it was so very hard. They ignored me, said it wasn't that bad that they were sure my aunt and uncle really loved me." Harry voice is bitter.

"It was not your fault, you did not deserve the way they treated you." Merlin wonders how many times Harry will have to be told that until he believes it.

"I never have to go back."

"No, they are gone."

"I don't feel any remorse that they are dead."

"That is hardly a surprise and it does not make you a bad person. After what they did to you the short span of suffering they did does not even begin to cover justice."

"Still if I hadn't been born . . ."

"Then they along with every muggle would have been exterminated like vermin or kept like animals as pets. That is of course assuming the muggle military didn't get involved and solve them problem using extreme measures." Merlin's voice is colder than ice, hoping to snap Harry out of his destructive mind set.

"This is so very hard. I don't really want all these titles and material things but I want to help in any way I can. I don't want Tom to benefit from my inactivity, from my weaknesses."

"I know my heir. Now calm yourself and let go of the pain and fears of your past. These things are passed they no longer exist, there is nothing that can be done to change any of it. Look forward, but always remember so that you do not repeat the mistakes you and others have made, prepare for the future."

"The future? The future is unknown, and best left that way. To much tragedy has already been caused by those who would tamper with what is come just because of a few vague hints at what could be." 

"True, but ultimately that to is now in the past. Soon, perhaps even as soon as you awaken, the creature blood that has been awaked within you will begin to make itself known. You must learn to accept and control the abilities that will awaken without being controlled by the instincts that come along with them. It is imperative that you meld these new reservoirs of magic with your original or they will tear you apart leaving you nothing more than a mindless shell to be used by the magic raging within you with no control or compunction."

Harry shudders. "But how will I know that one of these inheritances has awaken and how do I know which species the change represents? Some of the species have very similar traits, and that is just taking into account of those I have heard of before."

Merlin gives Harry an uncomfortable look. "Unfortunately I can not tell which traits physical or magical will manifest for the different species. It varies greatly from individual to individual even with each species, add them all together and who knows. Just work through any unusual emotions or urges you get and continue being you."

Harry groans. "That was very helpful Great grand ancestor. Could you try being a little more obtuse, because I am terribly confused as it is."

"An example perhaps." Merlin pauses to think for a little while. "Say that your vampire traits awaken and you suddenly find yourself salivating over slamming someone against a wall and sinking your teeth into them, ask yourself why you want to hurt them or what a lovely headline that would make in the 'Daily Prophet'. Do anything you can that will bring your perspective back to being just Harry. You would also need to think through why that particular person made you react like that and allow yourself to accepting feeling that way."

"Oh, okay that makes sense." Harry ignores the lurch his stomach makes at Merlin's description and the stray thought of his meeting with Creavon. "Is there nothing you can tell me that might help me identify which species is awakening?"

"I suppose I can describe the most prevalent traits that manifest for the different species you are dealing with, but realize some of them are so unique and rare that even I am can only guess." Merlin organizes his thoughts before beginning down the long list of species that Harry might gain something from. "I will start with those few species that always mark their inheritors in a certain way. Selkies without exception have callused palms in human form. Similarly thunderbirds will have a series of small itchy bumps along the spine and shoulder blades where their wings would normally be attached. I am sure you noticed that Herne had horns, this many generations apart you most likely will not inherit fur and cloven hooves, yours would be smaller due to age and time. The most frequent physical manifestation of satyr blood is a noticeable loss of height and an exaggerated endowment; believe me it is obvious."

Harry slowly nods. "Those all sound fairly straightforward."

Merlin laughs quietly at Harry's stunned expression. "That is because they are, the rest become a bit more muddled. I suppose the vampire will also be fairly easy to predict; moon pale skin and fangs do tend to be quickly recognizable as will the craving for blood or rare meet. Veela, lenanshee, high elf, and peri will be immensely difficult to separate unless you are fortune enough to suddenly turn into a blond signaling the onslaught of veela traits. If you do not gain blond hair then the only real way of telling is the serpentine dance that is instinctual to the species."

Harry cringes at the thought of blond hair. "Blond?"

Merlin smirks. "Veela are blond, do not fret most of the initial physical traits are mere temporary warning signs of an impending awakening that will fade away upon proper incorporation. Beyond the slimmest of chances that the peri will manifest wings there really is not any way to separate them visually from high elves and lenanshee. All of them possess an ethereal beauty that marks them as non-human. The lenanshee will manifest certain cravings and enthrallment that peri and elves do not have."

Harry feels queasy about all of his non-human inheritance but the one that Merlin hasn't mentioned at all terrifies him. "Incubus?"

"There are two types. Those like my father, who while being very handsome, are not unnaturally beautiful. The inheritance from these types is mainly in magical strength and an elevated libido. The other type is not as magically strong, but much more dangerous. They are extremely beautiful making the initial attraction easier, their real danger lays in what happens once someone touches them. Even the barest touch can enthrall an unsuspecting individual, essentially making them an eager slave to the incubus' or succubus' every whim. It is unlikely that you will inherit those traits since they usually only awaken in succubus."

Harry tries to ignore the fissure of unease that goes through him at Merlin's words. "But if my core is fluctuating already and all these other things are threatening to tear it apart how will all this effect my normal magic? What about outside magic; like wards, travel, or the suppression charms that the goblins are going to provide me? Will I still be able to use my wand?"

"First only use suppression charms if you absolutely must, and do not wear them for very long. Wearing those things for more than a few hours at a time can lead to permanent damage to your growing magical core. As you learn to accept your non-human inheritances they will bond to your normal core allowing both to support and strengthen the other. Until then you will have to be very cautious while performing magic as it will be in a constant state of flux, causing some of your spells to not work at all while others will be far to powerful. It is a good thing you will not be returning to Hogwarts in the near future, while your wild outbursts might strengthen the wards they might also level the school. Other sources of outside magic are a mixed bag, most wards are perfectly fine unless they are designed to effect one of the species that you will be manifesting. Magical travel that is guided by outside magic is fine but do not even think of apparating yourself until after your next birthday. As far as someone trying to hex you there is not any way to gauge how your body and magic will react to that, some of your non-human species are both resistant and vulnerable to an assortment different types of magic. An example would be a fire spell, vampires are more vulnerable to fire whereas thunderbirds are highly resistant to it. I suggest you visit a wand shop or second hand store and acquire what at one time was called a training wand so that you do not burn out your main wand. Though you will probably need a different wand when all is said and done."

"Doesn't your staff act in the same may?"

"It does, but heed what you already know about wands. Though you are my heir and my staff will work for you, it will never respond to you like one that is solely yours will."

"I got ya. I have another question. Some of my other ancestors have given me items, how do I get a hold of them in the real world?"

"The same way you do here within your mind, just focus on calling the item you want to your hand." Merlin shifts his attention from Harry to the void around them. "You know you can make this mindscape of your look however you want it to."

"Why bother right no, I have no idea of how to get back here on my own." Harry takes an involuntary step back at the glare he receives.

"You need to learn how to enter your mind as soon as you can. Start with basic meditation, it will help create the foundation for your standard form of occlumency. It will also help you to relax so the assimilation of your inheritances will go more smoothly."

"Lovely more study topics." Harry grouses.

"When you can access your mind easily you will be able to learn how to use your gifts to their fullest extent." Merlin continues to glare. "While your new method of protecting your mind is useful you still need more than this to protect what you are hiding. It is easier to build such defenses from within your mind."

"Oh all right I get." Harry glowers at his mindscape. "I need to make a list like Hermione is so fond of doing. Things to learn immediately; meditation, occlumency, family history, non-human inheritances, inherited gifts, finances, excreta excreta."

"If that helps you keep you on track then by all means go right ahead and make as many lists as you want." Merlin snaps.

"Excuse me for being confused about which crisis takes priority." Harry yells back at him.

Merlin draws in a deep breath before slowly letting it out. "You are right my heir, you knew nothing of what was going to happen on your sixteenth and the rituals complicated the matter immensely."

Harry scuffs his feet. "I'm sorry I yelled. Sometimes I just get overwhelmed by everything."

"The most pressing issue is to learn as much as you can about the non-human species you are inheriting from so merging their magics will go as smoothly as possible. The other truly important thing is meditation; it will help you remain calm, speed up the merging process, give you a good bases for occlumency, and allow you to control all of your magics more effectively. Meditation should be enough to maintain whatever level of protection you establish during this visit, but only on a passive level. Do not worry about anything else until your inheritances have settled down. Then learning true occlumency will become your most important goal because it will allow you access your gifts of knowledge efficiently. It will make absorbing and recalling anything else you study quicker." Merlin gives a small smile. "You will have plenty of time to study the rest before you go back to school, the goblins will take good care of your interests until you can do it yourself."

Harry calms at Merlin's more logical approach. "That sounds a bit more manageable. Any more nerve wracking secrets you need to reveal before you move on?"

"That all depends on your nerves. My next gift to you is my grimore." A huge leather bound book appears between them. "This is both a physical item and a gift of raw knowledge that you will learn to access with your mind." Merlin drums his fingers against his staff. "There is so much you need to know about life in the magical world, without having been taught the most basic of things that an average wizard grows up with there are many things you will not understand about the knowledge you have been given."

"Tell me something I don't know. Merlin but I wish someone would just sit down and talk to me." Harry lets out a soft whimper. "I have got to go through all the stuff Sirius dumped in head during the adoption ritual, it we are lucky he went over some of the stuff I've been missing."

Merlin watches on worriedly as Harry clutches his head. "What if I waited a little while to give you my last gift, you could work on your mind's organization and defense, perhaps you will find something on meditation amongst all the clutter."

"That might be helpful, but I don't know. I can't keep letting myself rely on others for every little thing."

Merlin snorts derisively. "You barely trust anyone with anything, so I hardly think you can be accused of dependency."

Harry shakes his head in a sharp negative. "No, I let myself trust that others would tell me what I needed to know instead of researching things for myself. I trusted that they would tell me the truth, that I would be protected. Some of them might care for me, but only I can truly understand what I am going through. I should've stood up for my own path long ago. That's the one good thing I should have remembered from my time with the Dursleys, survival lies within your own ability to adapt and learn. Knowledge has always been the key to surviving."

"You need others to anchor you, to balance your magic." Merlin insists.

"Yes you've already explained that, and I hear what you are saying. I will find a way to mesh my messed up life back together. Those who I care for are part of that life now, I will not try to shut them out Merlin." Harry stares at Merlin with an intensity that is unnerving.

Merlin blusters thumping his staff on the ground. "The storm around your mind is calming, and do something about all this clutter. Take what I am offering you so you have less to worry about later. This most likely will be the only chance you get to work on this fully secure and uninterrupted. Believe me you do not want to wake up until your inheritances stop adding to your core."

"What does you staying here have to do with me not waking up precisely? You have referred to my not being able to wake up a couple of times."

"The old magic inherent in the ritual the goblins used draws your consciousness, deep into your own being. This allows us your ancestor to interact with you, it also makes it possible for us to determine which gifts and knowledge an heir can handle. Until the last of us is finished the old magic holds you here, then it will awaken you. The reason for this is that when the ritual was created it was assumed that a youth going through it would not yet be able to do it on their own especially under duress. It had the added benefit of dulling the majority of the pain you would otherwise be feeling during the process."

"If the pain I've been feeling is dulled then I'm glad that I do not have to experience full force." Harry sighs resignedly. "How much longer do you think it will take? And it just occurred to me to wonder why Morgana didn't seem to know as much about me as the rest of you do?"

"Because she did something to her token that allowed her to appear before your mind was completely attuned to the ritual, therefore she didn't have immediate access to all your memories when she butted in." Mer smirks. "To answer your other question, a full twelve hours is standard for a wizard inheriting from non-human bloodlines. For you I would estimate around twice that"  
"You mean I'm stuck with you for another twelve hours? Insanity here I come." Harry wails while holding his head in mock despair.

"Practice your occlumency brat, and do something about this dreadful scenery while you are at it." Merlin swats at Harry gently.

"Yes Merlin." Harry skulks over to the current watery representation of his inner mind, flopping down on the bench like stone gracing the pond's margin.

Harry turns his back to Merlin to hide the smirk that suddenly appears on his face, it would seem the research notes Hermione foisted on him were going to come handy in a lot sooner than he had expected. Focusing carefully on the pond and the surrounding ground the water begins to flow over the banks of the pond in several directions. Each stream of water becomes another pool which in turn produces streams and more pools. Harry urges his mind to repeat the process over and over again until there is a massive maze of interconnecting pools of various shapes and sizes stretching out around him. Harry ignores Merlin's complaints about getting wet and turns his attention back to the original pool.

As his concentration sharpens Harry bring his memories to the surface of the pool, looking very much like a bunch of glowing ping pong balls. With a few moments of careful consideration the balls begin to change into a myriad of colors. From there the glowing memories begin to flow into the surrounding pools according to the color Harry had assigned to different types of memories. When Harry is satisfied with the dispersal of his memories they stop glowing and return to their translucent crystal states, sinking soundlessly out of sight. When the ripples cease Harry turns his attention to scattering bench stones randomly throughout his maze of pools.

Around the stones sprout groves of cypress trees, their branches covered in curtains of hanging moss. Thick blankets of rushes and reeds obscure the small pools and streams. A wild tangle of grass and weeds covers the ground hiding the sudden addition of quick sand and other traps.

"Harry?" Merlin yelps before levitating himself out of a newly created tar pit. "That was totally unnecessary."

A rude gesture is the only indication Harry gives to acknowledge hearing Merlin. Soon small insects and animals begin to populate the swap Harry has created. With each successive hour Harry adds larger and larger inhabitants, at least one of which is highly dangerous. As he works on his visualization Harry is so focused on what he is doing that he is unaware of the occurrence of several more power surges. When he is finally satisfied with his work Harry drifts into an even deeper state of meditation.

Deep within his own being Harry unwittingly anchors his creation and sets an unpredictable cycle of storms, fogs, and rain showers to hide his mind. With only a passing thought he also puts into motion the process for the rain to wash his loose memories into the center pool where he can sort them out at a later time. A particularly vicious stab of pain brings him back to conscious awareness of his own mind.

Harry glares at Merlin, rubbing a tender spot where Merlin had rapped him on the head with his staff. "What?"

"It is almost time." Merlin says placidly while standing carefully beside Harry on his stone.

Harry notices Merlin's position and slight stiffness of posture. "What is the matter Merlin?"

"Well there are mosquitoes, leeches, shrews, alligators, cougar, and an assortment of small theropods all out for blood."

"Not all the animals here are predators." Harry responds.

Merlin continues as if Harry had not spoken. "One also has to be aware of the quick sand, tar pits, dead falls, ankle nooses, trip lines, and spike pits. And your snakes do not like me."

"So it's the snakes that got to you huh, that interesting." Harry's lips twitch in amusement.

"Ha, ha very funny." Merlin glowers. "In know that you can talk to them but so can your rival, so is it wise to use them as part of your defenses?"

"Considering that there very existence relies on my safety and health they are totally loyal, beside they have instructions to attack any parseltongue but me the instant they try to talk to them." Harry smiles viciously.

"Humpf, well I do not speak the snake language and they still do not like me." Merlin brandishes his staff at the snake that is approaching them.

Harry shakes his head and picks up the tiny green garden snake that Merlin is threatening. "Who would believe that the wizarding world's dislike of snakes was spawned by the great Merlin's own phobia."

"Bah, being afraid of snakes is hardly irrational." Merlin edges away from Harry or more accurately the snake he is holding.

Harry bites his lip to keep from laughing while he gently puts the snake down. "You do realize that, that tiny little thing is not near as dangerous as the anacondas and king cobras that are roaming around? Aside from your unease with my snakes, what do you think of what I have done?"

"It is interesting, though I think the central pool is a bit to obvious." Merlin gestures with his staff.

"The pool is so obvious because it provides me with a landmark, the only things in there is a few inconsequential memories hidden in a shoal of crystal piranha. The rest of my memories have been shifted around to hidden pools still in their water globes. In those pools the piranha are only the first line of distraction and defense." Harry smirks. "When all is said and done the sorting hat was quite justified for trying to place me in Slytherin."

"I am proud of you my heir, you have done an impressive amount of work on your mental defenses. When you learn to return here on your own the only major thing you might want to add is a more solid outer barrier, with wards, beyond the storms to serve as an early warning and to ward off non-hostile intrusions. There are a few light wizards that practice mind arts as well as those who have a native ability to enter your mind usually without meaning to."

"Yes Merlin." Harry barely contains his urge to roll his eyes.

Merlin watches as Harry shudders his hair standing on end from the sheer magnitude of power seeping from the young wizard's skin. "It seems that it is time for me to go."

"Oh good," Harry flushes red, "er not that I don't like you or anything but you aren't the easiest of my ancestors to get along with."

Merlin chuckles. "All to true. Now my heir it is time, you have been under longer than even I was expecting, it is now three a.m. over a full day after you first began your sixteenth. You will have one last surge when you wake up as your mental and physical selves align, it will be painful my heir but there is nothing that can be done for that particular problem."

Harry pales as a sudden thought occurs to him. "If fate made me this strong, what must Tom be like?"

"Do not borrow trouble from the future my heir, it will find you soon enough." Merlin leans on his staff feigning calm even though he to has had that thought.

"Not reassuring Merlin, not in the least." Harry grouses.

"My heir, that thing marked you as his equal when you were but a babe. He only had your parents known bloodlines to judge you by. The prophecy states the he would mark you as his equal, which he did, it also states that you have a power that he knows not. That one line could mean any number of things, from the ability to love that your Headmaster goes on about to the extra bloodline you were adopted into to the entire breadth of power you are receiving. The seer never said who was truly the more powerful. Prophecy is an inaccurate field at the best of times, at its worst it is so convoluted that we all would be better off without it. Very few have any real gift for it, though there are things that almost any wizard can learn to do if they have a competent teacher. I learned to do scyings for lost items very well without any real tutorage, probably because I got tired of misplacing things all the time." Merlin grins a little at Harry's snickering. "Yes it is rather funny if you are not the one searching for the things. Back to the Tom issue, I do not think the level of your power will be a problem but you do need to make the most of the time you have to close the gap in knowledge and experience."

"Experience is the one that will be hardest to gain, there are no shortcuts to make up the difference." Harry looks resigned. "The only thing I can thing of that might give me a chance of bridging the gap between our experience levels is if I can keep the element of surprise with my real strength and gifts."

"A very good supposition. Now my final gift to you is one of my precocious companions. Ashindel (ash - shin - dell) is a ruby phoenix and was ancient when he first came to me, he will look after you when no one else can." Merlin gestures to the empty air between them. A dark red phoenix materializes in a swirl of fire and shadows next to Harry. His dark red plumage is tipped with black flames and he is much larger then Fawkes was the last time Harry had seen him. "Goodbye my heir."

Harry barely has time to acknowledge the phoenix before he begins falling, his body convulsing violently. Light explodes around him pulling him from his mind and into reality. With the return to consciousness Harry's pain multiplies beyond anything he has experienced before. The intensity of the pain wrenches a scream from him. Harry's scream seems to stretch beyond the capability of human lungs before the searing pain recedes leaving Harry slumped on the ground.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

End Chapter 3

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