Harry Potter and the Sword of Godric

A/N: Hey everyone, this is only my second fan-fic (I wrote a one-shot) so please, if you are going to review (which I hope you will) don't be too hard on me. I'll gladly except any reviews though, even if they are flames, because I want to improve in any way I can. So, with that, here's chapter one:

Back To Grimmauld Place

Harry leaned over and looked over at the clock on his nightstand, 11:00p.m. Not unusual for him. Ever since he had gotten back to the Dursley's that summer they had completely ignored him. Now, he might have considered this a good thing at one time, but the lack of anything to do caused him to dwell on the thought that he had been trying to avoid, his godfather. Harry hadn't gotten much sleep over the last couple of months. This was because of the nightmares. They were unbearable, just visions of scenes from the Department of Mysteries last year. Ron being strangled by an octopus-like brain, the sound of Ginny's ankle breaking, Hermione being hit by the purple flame Dolohov had cast on her. Harry's heart had stopped beating for a moment when he saw her laying there motionless, not to start again until Neville had found a pulse. And then the last, Sirius falling through the veil. It was one of those last two images that Harry woke up to, screaming, with sweat on his forehead. That is why he had tried to avoid sleep whenever possible; it was the only way that he wouldn't have them, but it didn't stop him from thinking about them. He tried to do things to distract himself from thinking, a hard thing to do. There was only one thing that he did on a routine, and that was writing to the Order. Those never livened up his day though, just the usual, “everything is fine here.”, but he added a little more every once in a while, but they never wrote him back, in fact he hadn't gotten a letter from anyone except for one each from Ron and Hermione. So, with the dullness of his usual day (or night), he had nothing else to do, but think, and thinking led to bad thoughts and dreams. Tonight was no exception. He heard the sound of his alarm going off. He looked over, 12:00a.m. It was now officially the 31^st, his birthday.

Just then he heard a tapping sound on his window. He walked over and opened it, letting Hedwig in. She flew around the room once, and then landed on Harry's bed with a soft hoot. He walked over to her, took the note attached to her leg, then stroked her.

“Thanks, girl.” She gave him an affectionate nip on the ear, and then flew over to her cage to rest. He looked at the handwriting on the envelope, definitely from Hermione. He opened it:

Dear Harry,

Happy birthday! I would have sent a present with Hedwig, but figuring that I'll be seeing you later today, I decided not to wear her out. I've missed you so much, I'm sorry I haven't been in touch, but my parents have insisted that I devote my time to being here, since I'm usually gone the rest of the year, and we spent a lot of the time on vacation in . I hope you've done your summer homework, even though I highly doubt that both you and Ron have even touched yours.

He laughed. Normally she would have been right, but in an effort to think of something besides last year, he had done his homework. Even the 3-foot essay Snape had assigned them on healing potions.

I've done mine, and I assume I will be doing yours as well. I hope you've been doing ok. I know you blame yourself for Sirius' death, and the injuries to the rest of us, but it wasn't your fault Harry, we followed you in there, and nothing you could have done would have stopped us. So don't be too hard on yourself. Can't wait to see you tomorrow!

Love,

Hermione

Harry couldn't believe it. He was seeing them tomorrow? What was she talking about? His thoughts were interrupted when a brown ball of feathers shot passed his head. He looked up, immediately recognizing it as Pig, Ron's owl.

“Stupid bird, get down here.” Pig was busy flying around Harry's room.

“Hedwig, do you mind?” She hooted, and then started to fly out of the cage. Pig saw this action, and in one quick move, dropped the letter on Harry's head, and flew out the window.

“Finally.” He picked up the letter and opened it:

Harry,

Happy birthday! I'm going to give you your present later today at Grimmauld place. I can't wait to see you and Hermione again; it feels like ages since I saw you two. I hope Dumbledore's letter has gotten to you or else you probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Well, you'll get it soon if you haven't.

From,

Ron

As if on cue, there was a flash of fire and a letter dropped onto his bed. Harry picked it up excitedly, not knowing what to expect, but happy that he was finally going to see Hermione and Ron again:

Harry,

I wish you a happy birthday, and as I know that you are probably extremely anxious to see your friends again, I have decided to allow you three to come and stay at Grimmauld place until the start of the term. The Order will continue to hold meetings there, and the rest of the Weasley's will be coming as well. I would like you to inform Fred and George that we will be sealing the doors during our meetings, so it would be a waste to try using those extendable ears, as I know you've been doing. You are probably wondering why they cannot join the Order, now that they are of age. To answer that question, the Order has decided that no one may join who is still in school, and they will be repeating their seventh year, because of the occurrences during last year. You will be picked up promptly at noon today. I would suggest that you mention that you are leaving to your relatives, for, as you and I both know, it will put them in a good mood.

Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledore

Harry had a mixed reaction to this letter. For one he was happy that he would be able to spend the rest of the summer with his friends, and away from the Dursley's. He was however, still a little angry at Dumbledore for the events of last year. Keeping the prophecy from him, the prophecy that determined that it would just be he and Voldemort in the end. He had gotten over that mostly, and intended to apologize to Dumbledore for destroying his office last year. He still hadn't told anyone about the prophecy; he would tell them when he was ready. After all, he didn't want to worry them any more than he had to. Harry grabbed the letters and put them in his trunk. He then continued packing, without any organization, just randomly throwing them in. Once he was done he picked up his wand and Firebolt, laying them on top of his trunk, and put Hedwig's cage next to it.

Harry spent the next 11 and a half hours pacing around his room, or laying on his bed. He only left his room for breakfast, and to go to the bathroom. At breakfast he had told them about his leaving.

“Umm, Uncle Vernon?”

“What is it now, boy?”

“I'm going to be picked up by the people from the station today.”

“I don't want any of those freaks in my house! You can just take your stuff, and wait outside!”

“Fine, it's not like I want to be here anyway.”

With that he had hurriedly finished his breakfast and headed up to his room. He was now pacing around his room again, triple, and quadruple checking that he had remembered everything. He couldn't wait to see Ron and Hermione. Harry wasn't completely sure yet, but he thought that he had gotten over Sirius' death. Hermione had been right, he was blaming himself, but he had taken her words to heart, and was now, at least not entirely blaming himself.

At 11:50, Harry headed down stairs. He was surprised to see all three Dursley's standing there. Not only that, but they looked nice. At least as nice as the Dursley's could look. Vernon looked over at him when he came in,

“Stand up straight, try to look nice. We don't want them thinking that we're treating you badly.” Now Harry knew what was going on. It seemed like they were still scared of Mad-Eye. Ever since he had threatened them, the Dursley's had been rather scared of him. Most all people had to have some fear of Mad-Eye Moody, with his face all scared, a wooden leg, and an eye that swiveled around, looking in all directions with a mind of its own.

It was then that the doorbell rang. Harry started to walk over to it, but Vernon shoved passed him and opened the door. There they all were, Tonks, Lupin, Mad-Eye, Ron, Hermione, and Dumbledore.

“Harry!” Hermione ran over towards him and hugged him.

“Hi, Hermione.” She eventually let go, even though there was a small thought in his head wishing she hadn't. Lupin and Tonks exchanged glances, and then they too said hi to Harry, all wishing him a happy birthday. The whole time the Dursley's just stood there, watching the strange assortment of people in their living room. Harry, Hermione, and Ron talking together, Lupin, in his shaggy, torn robes, Tonks, with her hair a bright pink today and tied back in a long ponytail, Mad-Eye with his eye swiveling around, and Dumbledore, with his traditional purple hat and robe, with silver moons and stars on it, and his half-moon spectacles. After a few minutes Vernon said,

“Excuse me, but when do you all plan on leaving?”

“Oh, shut up Dursley, we'll be out of here as soon as we can, it's not like we want to be here.” Mad-Eye said, with a threatening voice. If that had been he that Mad-Eye was yelling at, he would have run. He could be very intimidating at times, especially when his eye was swiveling in all directions, it was distracting.

Dumbledore looked amused, “Harry, you, Ron and Remus go get your things, we'll be outside.”

“Sure Professor.”

The three headed upstairs. “So, Harry, how have you been?” Lupin asked.

Harry immediately knew that he was not really asking about how he'd been, but about Sirius. “I have had a lot of time to think about it, and I think that I have managed to get over it mostly. It may be a little difficult going back to Grimmauld place, with all of the reminders of him, but I'll be fine.” He didn't tell him about the nightmares, he would tell Dumbledore, and then they'd all be fussing over him, especially Molly Weasley, Ron's mom.

“I imagine it will be, but remember Harry, you're not the only one mourning his death.

Harry hadn't really thought about that before. Lupin had to have been just as sad about Sirius as he was. After all, they had been very good friends, known each other for a long time, and were two of the original Marauders.

Once they had loaded Harry's things into the car that Dumbledore had borrowed from the ministry, they started off towards Grimmauld place. Tonks was driving, and no one was very happy about that. Tonks wasn't exactly the best driver, and they very narrowly missed more than a few accidents.

He, Hermione, and Ron were all sitting next two each other in the back seat. Hermione in the middle of the two boys.

“So, Harry, who do you think the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher will be?” she asked him.

“It will probably be someone from the Order; Dumbledore will be trying to get as many Order members into the castle as he can.”

“You're probably right, even with all the protections that Hogwarts has, there are still ways that it could be attacked. Especially with almost half of Slytherin being children of death eaters.”

Ron decided to chime in at that moment, “Yeah, but enough about teachers. Harry did Dumbledore tell you if you can play Quidditch this year?”

“Oh, I forgot to ask him.”

“What! How could you forget about Quidditch?”

“Ron, I had other things on my mind.”

“Oh, will you to stop talking about Quidditch? What about the D.A. Harry, did you ask him about that?”

“I forgot about that too. It's not like I was in contact with him.”

“I know Harry, but make sure you do. He has to let us continue it, especially since everyone now knows that Voldemort's back.”

“I'll ask him later tonight, in private.” There was something else that Harry had also been wanting to ask Dumbledore.

It was then that they pulled up to Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. Dumbledore got out of the car and walked over to the space between Numbers Eleven and Thirteen. Number Twelve then appeared between them. Harry, Ron, and Lupin got Harry's stuff out of the trunk, and levitated it up into the house. Harry, Hermione, and Ron then followed him inside.

A/N: I will try and upload the next chapter soon, but I'm going to be visiting family for Easter and may not be able to for a little while. Remember, I really appreciate your reviews!

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A/N: Thanks so much to Mike, JayaMioneDurron, and Blueshoe06 (the only ones who reviewed ). The reviews are what make me want to write, so please, after you read a chapter, just put in your 2 cents worth, it means a lot to me, even if they are flames. So, just take 30 seconds of your time to review, it will make me want to write the chapters faster, so here's chapter two:

The Best Birthday

Harry couldn't believe his eyes. Grimmauld place looked nothing like it had the last time he had been there. No longer was it the dim, dusty place it had been before. It didn't have that gloomy feel about it either. The place was sparkling clean, the house elf heads had been removed from the walls, and the screaming picture of Mrs. Black had disappeared, along with the curtains used to cover it. It was replaced with a wizards photo of James, Sirius, Remus, and Lily (Pettigrew seemed to be missing from it). They were on the grounds of Hogwarts, Lupin was reading a book, Sirius was bothering him, and James and Lily were talking, laughing every once in a while.

Lupin came back down stairs and saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione admiring the portrait.

“I'd hoped you'd like that Harry, I've had that for a while, and thought it would look good in here. It used to be in your old house, back before everything happened. I managed to save it from the wreckage though.” He hadn't seen Harry look that happy since before Sirius died.

Harry looked up at him, “James isn't making a fool of himself, and Lily doesn't hate him, so this must have been taken during your seventh year, right?”

“Yes.” He paused for a moment, dwelling on some thought from long ago. “That was one of the best times of my life, but enough about me, you haven't seen the rest of the house, come on.”

He turned and went back up stairs, Harry, Hermione, and Ron following behind him. He gave them a full tour of the newly renovated house. It was amazing, especially Harry's room, which was Sirius' old one. It was decked out in Gryffindor colors. The bed was scarlet, with gold pillows. The rest of the room was similarly decorated, including scarlet curtains, and a big Gryffindor lion on the carpet.

They finished exploring the rest of the house; Ron's room was across from Harry's and Hermione's across from Ginny's. The attic where Sirius had kept Buckbeak was also cleaned out; there were no more dead mice, or other repulsive traces that a hippogriff had been there. Harry also learned that Kreacher had been replaced with Dobby. He wasn't really sure who he liked better at first; Kreacher was one of the main reasons Sirius was dead, and Dobby hounded Harry wherever he went, but in the end he decided with Dobby. After all, Dobby at least did something, and Hermione was happy because he was being paid.

It was when Lupin was done showing them around that Harry realized that they were alone in the house. It was just he, Lupin, Ron, Hermione, and Dobby.

“Professor,” He was cut short.

“Harry, please, I'm not your professor any more, so there's no reason for you to call me it, just call me Remus.”

“Ok, then, Remus, where is everyone?”

“Oh, they will be arriving later.” Lupin said, looking nervous.

“No, I mean everyone that was with us. Tonks, Mad-Eye, and Dumbledore were with you when you picked me up.”

Lupin paled. “They had to, umm, do, something.”

Hermione glared at Lupin, and then turned to Harry. “They'll be back soon Harry.”

He looked at her, “How do you know?”

She had a brief look of uncertainty, “Dumbledore told me before we picked you up.”

“Oh.” Harry didn't really believe them, but decided not to push it. He just wanted to spend some time with his friends for the first time in three months; he didn't want to spend all that time asking questions.

Harry hadn't realized how long it had been since breakfast. Lupin seemed to notice this.

“Why don't we have lunch, I think we're all hungry.”

They all agreed, and sat together, eating a simple, but nice lunch of sandwiches, and pumpkin juice.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Hermione sat on the couch in the library, “studying up” for N.E.W.T.'s the next year. Harry and Ron had nearly fainted when she told them this, especially Ron.

“Bloody hell Hermione, N.E.W.T.'s aren't until seventh year! In case you forgot, this will be our sixth.”

“I know that Ron, but you can never be too prepared.”

Lupin had been listening to their conversation, “She's right Ron, your N.E.W.T.'s will basically decide what career paths you can take.”

She smiled at him, “Exactly, thank you Remus. Now Ron, I'll bet you haven't even done your summer homework!” Ron looked at her.

“Well Harry hasn't either, right?” He said, looking over at Harry.

Harry looked down, “Actually Ron, I didn't really have much to do this summer and”

Ron cut him off, “Geese Harry, you're turning into Hermione!”

Ron was in a bad mood until Harry asked him to a game of Wizard's Chess. Ron happily obliged, and was successfully creamed.

“Hah!” Ron said with his winning move. “Harry, have you ever beaten me?”

Harry laughed, beating him at something always put Ron in a good mood, and Wizard's Chess was one thing that Ron always won at. “No Ron, I don't think I have. Of course, the fact that you've been playing since you could talk, and me for only five years has nothing to do with it.”

“Oh, shut up Harry, you're ruining the fun.” Ron said laughing. Harry laughed too.

It was nearing 4:00, and figuring that Harry had been up since 11:00 the previous night, he was growing tired. He yawned loudly, and Hermione glanced at Lupin and Ron.

“Harry, you're probably tired having been up for so long, why don't you go upstairs and catch up on some sleep.” She asked hopefully. “We'll wake you up before dinner.”

Harry didn't particularly want to, since he wanted to spend some more time with Hermione and Ron, but taking a rest suddenly felt very appealing at that moment.

“Ok, but wake me up when everyone gets here, I can't wait to see them all.” With that he got off the chair he had been sitting in and went up stairs.

He walked into his new room. He looked to Phineas Nigellus' empty portrait on the wall, remembering the last time he had seen him. It was in Dumbledore's office last year after the events in the Department of Mysteries. He had gone from the portrait in the office to the portrait here in order to see if Sirius had really died.

Harry pushed those thoughts from his head, and lay down on the bed. He fell asleep before he even had a chance to get under the covers.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

The dreams started out normal, but quickly turned into what they had been ever since the Department of Mysteries. He had been dreaming of someone, someone with bushy brown hair that he knew, but couldn't quite place. Just as he thought he was about to figure it out, he heard the crack of Ginny's ankle breaking. Then the rest began; Neville's legs moving wildly, out of control, the marks on Ron's arms after they had finally managed to get the brain off of him, Sirius falling through the veil, and, unlike normal, he didn't wake up after Sirius. He saw Hermione hit by Dolohov's purple flame, the panic, and then woke up.

He had dreamed of that before, but never had he slept past Sirius falling through the veil. He wondered why for a moment, before drifting back off to sleep. This time his sleep was dreamless.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harry woke up to Hermione softly saying his name. He opened his eyes.

“What?”

She smiled, “Get up; it's almost time for dinner.”

“Oh.” He sat up, feeling hungry all of a sudden, and then noticed that it was very dark.

“Hermione, why is it so”

“SURPRISE!”

Harry was instantly wide awake. It had gone from pitch black, to very bright, which was just doing wonders for his already bad eyes.

He picked up his glasses from the bedside table, and put them on. Looking up he noticed that everyone was there; Ron, Hermione, Tonks, Remus, Mad-Eye, Dumbledore, and all of the Weasley's, every single one of them except for Bill, who they told him was on a secret assignment for Gringotts, and Percy, who still hadn't redeemed himself since siding with the ministry instead of his own family last year.

Everyone was wishing Harry a happy birthday, and Fred and George had set off some of the fireworks from there fifth year. Harry couldn't believe that they had done it all just for him.

The party continued late into the night. The dinner table that night had looked like the house tables at Hogwarts, completely covered by every food imaginable. After the wonderful dinner (which had been prepared by Molly) it was time for Harry to open his presents. He was shocked when he saw all of them.

“I don't deserve all this.” He whispered to Molly.

She looked at him with a sad look on her face, “Of course you do dear. Looking at how you grew up, I can't think of anyone who deserves it more.”

He felt a little better after that, and proceeded to open his presents. He sat down by the pile and didn't know which to open first. Fred and George seemed to recognize this, and immediately handed him theirs.

“Here Harry, open ours first.”

Harry tore off the wrapping paper. He pulled out a box that said “Weasley's Wizarding Weaseys Special Edition Prank Kit”.

They looked at him, glad that he liked it, “It's a kit we made especially for you Harry. It has every single thing we've come up with so far. Read the card.”

Harry hadn't even noticed the card that had fallen out when he first opened the kit. He picked it up and looked at it: Harry, we wanted to thank you for giving us the chance to start our dream, because of your…donation. We don't think we'll ever be able to make it up to you completely, but we're certainly going to try.

Harry looked up at them, with an annoyed look on his face, and mouthed “no need” to them. Ron looked at him questioningly, but Harry acted as if he hadn't noticed it.

He then picked up the next present, it was from Ron. It was light, and wasn't sturdy. He opened it, and out fell a Cannons jersey.

“Awesome, thanks Ron.”

“Your welcome, I hoped you'd like it.” He had a relieved look on his face.

Remus then handed Harry a present from he and Tonks. Harry looked at him suspiciously, but he just blushed a little bit. He winked at Harry, and then went back over to sit next to Tonks.

Harry opened it, and pulled out an album. He opened it up. On the inside cover was a message Harry, this was given to me by James in his will. I decided that I should pass it on to you. He opened it up, and saw what was inside. It was filled with pictures from when The Marauders were at Hogwarts, and pictures from Lily and James' wedding. Harry wanted to look at it then, but held back, because he still had presents to open. He would look at it before he went to sleep.

He set the album down with his other presents, and thanked Lupin and Tonks, picking up the next present in the pile. It was from Mad-Eye. Harry looked over at him, and saw that he was smiling. That's when Harry got a little scared, Mad-Eye smiling. That would scare anybody. He slowly tore the wrapping paper off, and saw, much to his relief, that it was a sneak-o-scope. Unlike the mini-one that Ron had given him, this was a real one, which many aurors, and definitely Mad-Eye, used. Harry thanked him, and put it with the rest of his things, wondering why he would need it, figuring that he already knew when Voldemort was near him.

He tried to go through the rest of the presents quickly. He got a book on Quidditch tips from Ginny, a dragon hide robe from Charlie, and new dress robes from Arthur and Molly. Now all that was left was Dumbledore and Hermione's presents.

Harry picked up the one left on the table (Hermione was holding her present for him; she obviously wanted him to open it last). It was heavy, and Harry didn't have any idea what it was. He opened it and saw that it was a pensieve, just like the one that Dumbledore had. He thanked Dumbledore; this would make it a lot easier to share the prophecy with the others.

And now it was time for the last present, Hermione's. He had been looking forward to hers. He didn't really no why, he just was. She walked over to him and handed her present to him.

“Happy Birthday Harry.” She said, and then headed back over to where she had been sitting. He opened it slowly, and pulled out a necklace. It had a silver chain, with a small gold heart pendant. He admired it for a minute before reading the note that had come with it. Harry, this is a necklace that I found this summer with my parents. They allow the wearer to sense when someone with one of the matches is feeling sad or angry. I have the other one. I just want you to know Harry, that last year in the Department of Mysteries wasn't your fault. We followed you there. Don't blame yourself.

Love,

Hermione

He looked up at her, “Thank you Hermione.” She couldn't have gotten him a better gift. In the back of his mind he was glad that she hadn't given one to Ron. He didn't really know why.

She smiled, “I'm glad you like it.”

After that they had a huge cake that probably could have fed them for a week. When they finally finished there was a lot left. By that time it was very late and Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and the twins headed off to bed. The others stayed to discuss some things about the order.

Harry lay in his bed. He had finished looking through the entire album that Remus and Tonks had given him. He was now admiring the necklace that Hermione had given him. Harry fell asleep thinking about her, and for the first time since the Department of Mysteries, slept peacefully, and dreamless the entire night.

A/N: I am leaving for Easter first thing in the morning, and was lucky to get this chapter up before I left. I probably won't be able to upload for a few days, but I'll get the next chapter up as soon as I can. Remember, I'd really appreciate it if you take the time to review; they make me want to keep writing!

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A/N: Thanks to all of you who reviewed, there what make want to keep writing, even if they are flames, just as long as they aren't to mean… I've gotten over 900 hits, but only 10 reviews. Come on people, it's not that hard! Sorry for how long this took to update, but, like I said, I was having Easter with family, and literally didn't have any time to write. Also, this chapter is a lot longer than the previous two (about 17 pages), but there was just a lot in this chapter, even though it's only over the course of a day, I hope it makes up for the delay. So, please don't expect them all to be this long, and thanks again for the reviews!

JayaMioneDurron: I appreciate your advice so much, feel free to continue giving it to me, I want to do anything I can to improve my writing!

Oh, and just to prevent any confusion, when you see words in italics throughout this story, it means that that is what the character is thinking, except for a few headings and such, but you'll be able to tell.

So, here's chapter three, Hogwarts letters come, and that means that Harry, Hermione, and Ron finally receive their O.W.L. results:

O.W.L.'s

It was quiet, and peaceful outside the next morning, a perfect reflection of the atmosphere inside Number Twelve Grimmauld Place. Early morning rays of sunlight were finding there way in through the windows, illuminating certain patches of carpet. It was early, nearing 6:00a.m., and no one was awake besides two people in the kitchen, talking quietly.

Harry had woken up early that morning. His body was used to getting little sleep, having averaged only a couple hours a night because of the nightmares. After getting out of bed, he had headed downstairs. No one else seemed to be awake. He walked into the kitchen and was surprised to see Dumbledore there.

“Oh, hello Professor, I didn't think anyone else would be down here.” Harry said quietly.

“No problem at all Harry, in fact, I was hoping someone would come down soon. Being an early riser can be peaceful, but lonely at times.”

Harry was trying to think of something to say when he remembered his conversation (well maybe it was more like Ron yelling at him) with Ron in the car yesterday. Harry looked up at Dumbledore with hope, “Professor, I was wondering, will I be allowed to play Quidditch this year?”

Dumbledore chuckled, “Yes Harry. As a matter of fact, I have convinced Mr. Fudge to lift all of the decrees, and bans that were made under Professor Umbridge's consent last year.”

A shine that had been missing from Harry's eyes since Sirius' death came back at that moment. Harry had been wanting to fly again for so long. “Thank you Professor.”

Dumbledore looked thoughtful for a moment, and then looked at Harry, almost as if deciding on something. “Well Harry, I guess it would be best to let you know now, since Mr. Weasley will be asking me about it sooner or later, that Professor McGonagall has appointed you to Captain of the Gryffindor team.”

Harry looked shocked, “What? Not that I'm not glad or anything, but why me?”

“Well Harry, I believe that it is because Professor McGonagall sees that you have good leadership skills, and that you can lead the Gryffindor team to win the Cup this year, as do I.” He said with the familiar twinkle in his eye.

They sat in silence for a moment, before Harry looked up again at Dumbledore. “Professor, I'm sorry about last year, I shouldn't have gotten so mad at you, since it was mostly my fault.”

“Harry, you may think that you caused Sirius' death, but you are wrong. Although a small part of it may have been you going to the Ministry, if anyone is to blame then it is me. Any man would be anxious to get out, being stuck in here for so long. I should have let him out more, under disguise.” Harry knew that he was referring to Sirius' animagus form, the shaggy, black dog.

“What made matters worse, is that I didn't give Sirius anything to do. Everyone else was being given assignments, and he was supposed to stay here in hiding, with Buckbeak and Kreacher as his only company. Then, there was Severus, his rival since they were kids, rubbing it in. I could have put an end to it, but I didn't, and that is why you have no reason to be blaming yourself, Harry.” Dumbledore said in his usual, calm voice.

There was another moment of awkward silence as Harry let what Dumbledore had said sink in. He then looked up at Dumbledore, “Thank you.”

Harry had a lot of reasons for thanking Dumbledore just then; the fact that he had convinced the Minister of Magic to lift his bans, telling him about being appointed Quidditch Captain, but most of all, that he had lifted a heavy weight off of Harry's shoulders. Somehow, although he knew it was selfish, since Dumbledore had taken most of the blame, Harry no was no longer convinced that Sirius' death was completely his fault.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harry and Dumbledore sat in the kitchen of Number Twelve Grimmauld place for the next half-an-hour. They didn't talk, just sat, taking in the beauty of the summer morning.

It was precisely 6:30a.m. when the two heard the soft tapping sound at the window. Dumbledore opened the window, letting the two barn owls in, with a wave of his hand. One landed on the table near Harry, dropping six letters on the table before flying off. One each for Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, Fred, and George. The other landed on Dumbledore's shoulder, and left after he had taken the letter tied to his leg.

Dumbledore read it quickly, his face going from the carefree expression he had earlier, to one of concern.

“Harry, I'm afraid that I must be going. Something has happened. I will inform you of what when I return, which should be sometime tomorrow. Please inform Molly and Arthur that I will send word to them later tonight.” And with that, Dumbledore disapparated with out a sound. Harry didn't even have a chance to wonder what was going on, because just after Dumbledore went, Molly came down stairs, followed a few minutes later by Hermione.

“Oh, Harry dear, I didn't think you would be awake already.” She said when she came down. “I'll go ahead and start making breakfast.”

The kitchen was buzzing with the sound of bacon sizzling, and the smell of eggs frying. Harry had completely forgotten about the six letters that the owl had brought until Hermione came down.

“Oh, hi Harry, Molly. Harry, what are those?” She said, pointing to the letters.

“An owl brought them before Dumbledore left. Another owl came to, gave a note to Dumbledore. He looked worried, and left. Oh yeah, Molly, he told me to tell you that he would send word tonight to you. About what's wrong I guess.”

Hermione walked over and sat down next to him, picking up one of the letters. “Harry!” She exclaimed, “These are our Hogwarts letters, do you know what this means?”

Harry looked at her, “Umm, that we'll know what to get for school this year?”

She frowned. “No, it means that we'll finally find out our O.W.L. results!”

“Oh.” Harry said, panic flowing through him. What if he hadn't gotten good enough grades to become an auror? Well, McGonagall did say that she would make sure he became an auror if she had to tutor him nightly. He wondered if she still would.

He looked up at Hermione to ask her if she would help him, but found that she was already ripping open her letter, quickly dropping the supplies list on the table and pulling out what Harry guessed was her O.W.L. results.

Molly had come over and was as excited as Hermione. They both read over her results and Hermione looked extremely happy.

She looked at him, “Harry, aren't you going to look at yours?”

He felt queasy, “I don't think I can, why don't you look at them for me?”

She looked uneasy at first, then agreed, “Oh fine. Here, you can look at mine while I read yours.

She handed him her results, quickly tearing his letter open and pulling his out.

He looked down and read over her results:

Theory of Charms:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Transfiguration:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Herbology:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Defense Against the Dark Arts:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Ancient Runes:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Potions:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Care of Magical Creatures:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Astronomy:

Written - O

Practical - Not Scored

Overall - O

Arithmacy:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

History of Magic:

Written - O

Overall - O

Congratulations Ms. Granger, you have achieved 10 out of 10 O.W.L.'s, and have passed those required to become an auror.

The feeling in Harry's stomach got much worse after reading Hermione's results. She had wanted to become an auror too? How would she feel when she saw that he had wanted to become one, but didn't have good enough results?

“Harry, good job! Now we'll both be able to become aurors, that is if we get enough N.E.W.T.'s.” Harry felt much better after that. He had done well enough to become an auror?

Realizing what Harry was feeling, she handed him his results. He took them, somewhat gratefully and read them over.

Theory of Charms:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Transfiguration:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Herbology:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Defense Against the Dark Arts:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Potions:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Care of Magical Creatures:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Astronomy:

Written - O

Practical - Not Scored

Overall - O

Divination:

Written - A

Practical - P

Overall - A

History of Magic - Due to certain events, your History of Magic O.W.L. will not be graded.

Congratulations Mr. Potter, you have achieved 7 out of 8 O.W.L.'s, and have passed those required to become an auror.

Harry couldn't believe it. He hadn't been too worried about passing the classes he needed to become an auror, except for potions. Somehow, he had managed to get an O, exactly what he needed. He couldn't wait until school started. Snape would probably have a heart attack when he saw him walk into his N.E.W.T. class.

Molly then walked over to them. “Here, let me see.” She said, taking their O.W.L. results. She read them over quickly, “Good job Harry, and Hermione, even though we already knew you would do well.” Hermione blushed.

Molly started fishing through the pile of Hogwarts letters, and then pulled out Ron's. She opened it and pulled out the O.W.L. results, and began looking them over. It was then that Ron came down.

“Hey guys.” Then eyeing the letters, “What are tho…” He realized what they were mid-sentence, and then looked up at Molly, “Mom! What are you doing, those are my results!” He ran over to her and tried to grab them from her.

“What's the matter dear, afraid of what they are?” There was a look of terror on Ron's face as he realized that if he had done badly, he was in trouble. He would personally rather go tell Dumbledore that he was joining Voldemort, than face his mom when she was in a bad mood. He remembered all too well when Fred and George had received theirs, only having gotten 3/9 O.W.L.'s each.

Molly noticed his look, and turned to face him. “Don't worry Ron, even you had to do better than Fred and George did.” She was smiling, and looked somewhat proud as she handed them to him.

Ron took them and walked over to Harry and Hermione, pulling a chair up in between them, and sitting down. They read them together:

Theory of Charms:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Transfiguration:

Written - O

Practical - E

Overall - O

Herbology:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Defense Against the Dark Arts:

Written - O

Practical - O

Overall - O

Potions:

Written - O

Practical - E

Overall - O

Care of Magical Creatures:

Written - O

Practical - E

Overall - O

Astronomy:

Written - E

Practical - Not scored

Overall - E

Divination:

Written - P

Practical - P

Overall - P

History of Magic:

Written - A

Overall - A

Congratulations Mr. Weasley, you have achieved 6 out of 9 O.W.L.'s, and have passed those required to become an auror.

Ron was stunned “Harry, I can't believe it! I passed Potions!” He exclaimed. He then looked back down at his results, and his eyes came to rest on his Divination O.W.L. “See Harry, told you I'd get a poor in Divination. I'm glad I don't have to take that class again.”

Harry laughed, “Yeah, well I didn't do much better, I got an acceptable.”

Ron looked at him, “Well, at least you did better than me. Speaking of which, how did you guys do?”

Harry and Hermione handed him there results, which Molly had left on the table. “Hermione did well, and I didn't do much better than you Ron.” Harry said as Ron took their results from them.

Ron quickly read over them, and smiled. “Hey, I didn't know that you two wanted to become aurors too. I mean, I thought that maybe Harry would have wanted to, but I didn't think you would Hermione.”

Hermione gave him a look, “Well Ron, I'll have you know that I'm perfectly capable of becoming an auror.”

Ron looked at her, “I didn't mean it like that, I just thought that you would want to do something else.”

“Like what?”

“Umm, I dunno, maybe a healer or something?”

“I actually did consider that, but I decided that I would rather become an auror, since I have a lot more experience in that area.”

Harry looked up at her, “Hermione, I'm sorry.”

“Harry, don't apologize! It's not your fault.” Why does he do that? Always blaming himself for everything, if only I could tell him how I really feel. But he would never return my feelings…

Ron decided to change the subject, “So, did you guys already look at your supplies you need and stuff?”

Hermione turned her gaze from Harry to her envelope, and pulled out her supplies list, “No actually, we were too excited about our O.W.L.'s.”

Harry looked up at her, “You mean you were excited about your O.W.L.'s.”

Ron laughed, “Yeah, I'll bet Harry just couldn't wait to open his.”

Hermione scowled, “Well, I guess it was just me who was excited, Harry made me look at his before he did.”

“Don't blame you Harry, but at least you didn't have my mum looking at it first. Can you imagine if I had done as bad as the twins? I probably wouldn't be with you right now.” He said, laughing.

Harry laughed too, and pulled out his supplies list, along with another letter. He opened it up and read it:

Dear Mr. Potter,

I would like to inform you that I have promoted you to Captain of the Gryffindor team. You will be required to schedule when tryouts will be for recruiting new players, and you will also be in charge of scheduling Quidditch practices, and informing your team of when they are. The first match has not yet been scheduled, but you will be informed upon arriving at school of when it will be held. I ask you to do the best you can to lead Gryffindor to when the cup, and I know you will be as determined as Mr. Wood, and Ms. Johnson were to win, which is one of the reasons why I have selected you, but I would like to tell you that although Mr. Wood was a good captain, he was a little, overbearing. I ask you to, if you can, be a bit more like Ms. Johnson, and not work the team into dire straights, as Mr. Wood did. It takes a lot out of them, which leads to lazy school work, but I still want you to be a good captain. Good luck Mr. Potter, not that you will need it.

Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall,

Deputy Headmistress

Ron looked over at him, “Harry, what's that?”

Harry decided to tell him in a casual way, “Oh, Professor McGonagall was just telling me that I'm Quidditch Captain this year.” He shrugged.

Ron had a look of shock on his face, “What? Let me see that!” He grabbed the letter from Harry and read it over. “Harry, this is great, I completely forgot that we would need a new captain this year! Harry, please tell me that you're taking McGonagall's advice, and not being like Wood, from what I heard from you, Fred, and George, he was brutal.”

“Don't worry Ron; I knew what it was like when he was captain. I know what that was like.”

Hermione then cut in. “Congratulations Harry.” She said hugging him. He hugged her back, blushing slightly. After she let go, Harry had a strange feeling. When she had been hugging him he had felt, complete, and comforted. Why did you let go? He found himself thinking. Harry was trying to figure out this new feeling, when Hermione interrupted him.

“Harry, from what you and the twins said, Wood slightly overworked the team, but that doesn't mean you should just let them slack off, especially if you want to win the cup.”

Harry was about to answer her when Ron cut in, “Slightly, are you kidding Hermione, from what I heard, Wood worked the team until they could hardly walk back to the tower! You saw what Harry looked like after practices, he was about to pass out!”

Harry then turned from staring at Hermione, to Ron, “Yeah Ron, but we're still going to practice as much as Wood made the old team, just probably not as long, Hermione's right, when isn't she?” He said looking over at her. She blushed. Ron noticed this and gave her an odd look from behind Harry. She just glared at him and he shrugged to himself.

“That's true; I don't think she's ever been wrong.”

Hermione was about to reply, when Molly walked into the room, levitating about five trays full of food. She used her wand to lead them over to the table. “Breakfast is served. Why don't you three start while I get the others up?”

“Ok.” They all replied as one.

They began eating, and flinched as they heard Molly shouting from the bottom of the stairs, which were just a room away. “Fred, George, Ginny, wake up and get down here, breakfast is ready!”

They heard a few moans, and footsteps upstairs of those getting out of bed. Then, after a few minutes, the twins came down. They sat down next to each other, across the table from Ron, and Harry, picked up their Hogwarts letters, absently pulled out the supplies lists, read them over, and began talking quietly amongst each other. They had gotten Hogwarts letters this year, since they would be repeating their seventh year, because they hadn't really finished it last year. This would actually be better for Harry. Now he wouldn't have to find new beaters for the team, since their bans had been lifted as well.

Harry looked over at them, “Hey you two, Dumbledore got all of the bans from Umbridge lifted.”

The twins looked up at him, smiling, “Are you serious? We can play Quidditch again!” They talked about Quidditch for a few minutes, and they both congratulated Harry, and then went back to talking quietly.

Ron turned to Harry, “Probably talking about some new thing for their joke shop, they've been inventing stuff all summer. Unfortunately, I've been their main tester, and trust me, I didn't do it deliberately, they kind of, jumped me, and, after threatening me with what they would tell mum if I didn't do what they asked, forced me to be a “volunteer” for whatever stupid thing they needed to test.” Ron whispered to him. Harry laughed.

Soon after, Ginny came down stairs, and she sat next to Hermione. After opening her letter, the two of them began talking, and kept to themselves all through breakfast, giggling occasionally.

Harry and Ron, left with no one else to talk to, started talking to each other about the upcoming Quidditch season. During the conversation, Harry told him everything about his conversation with Dumbledore that morning, except the part about apologizing for destroying Dumbledore's office last year, and anything else that may hint about the end of last year. Once finished with the subject of Quidditch, they moved on to wondering what the note that Dumbledore received had said.

After breakfast Harry, Hermione, Ron, and Ginny went upstairs to Harry's room. Fred and George had gone off somewhere, most likely to work on more jokes and pranks for there shop, which they were going to open the next year. They talked for a good part of the day, about all sorts of things; who the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher would be, what Voldemort was up too, and what the prophecy might have contained, and many other things.

When they got on to the subject of the “lost” prophecy, Harry found himself debating over whether or not he should tell them what Dumbledore had told him at the end of last year, but in the end, he always ended up deciding that he would just wait a little longer before he told them.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

It was nearing dinner time before any of them knew it. They had spent the day catching up, and only stopped to eat lunch, but they continued there as well. They were all grouped around or on Harry's bed. He and Hermione were sitting next to each other towards the top, and Ron was on it too, but near the foot of the bed. Ginny was sitting in a comfortable looking chair she had brought from the library.

That was when they heard Molly shouting up the stairs, much like she had done at breakfast, for them. They got up, and headed down stairs. She was near the door, waiting for them.

She looked up at them as they walked down, and she motioned for them to hurry up. “Come on you four, I have just received a letter from Professor Dumbledore. He will be arriving shortly, and he will be bringing two people with him.”

Ron looked questioningly at his mother, “Mum, who's coming?”

“I don't know Ron, all he said was that he was bringing two others, and he would be arriving shortly.”

As if on cue, the door opened, and in walked Professor Dumbledore, with (to the disbelief of all of them), none other than Luna Lovegood, and another man.

“Ah, thank you for bringing them all down Molly.” Dumbledore said, looking to the four of them. “As you all know, I have brought Miss Lovegood, and her father here to headquarters. Miss Lovegood will be staying here until the start of term, and her father will stay here tonight, and then begin to rebuild his home.”

“Professor, I don't mean to interrupt, but why would he have to rebuild his house?” Harry asked, answering the question that all four of them wanted to know the answer to.

“Death Eaters, led by Lucius Malfoy, attacked the Lovegood's home late last night. Mr. Lovegood was working late at the office, and Miss. Lovegood managed to escape before they attacked. The house was destroyed, but luckily, no one was injured.”

There was a stunned silence, as there hadn't been any word of Voldemort, or his Death Eater's activities since in the Department of Mysteries last year.

Harry finally broke the silence, “So that was why you had to leave so suddenly this morning?”

“Yes Harry, that is correct.” Dumbledore said calmly.

“Professor, were there any other attacks?” Hermione asked quietly, unconsciously moving closer to Harry.

“None that we know of, but I am quite sure that this was the only one. So, Miss Lovegood, you will be sharing Miss Weasley's room, I am sure she would be more than happy to show you to it.”

“Yes, of course Professor.” Ginny said, and she led Luna up stairs to her, now their, room.

“Now, why don't you three go up stairs for a bit, I am sure Molly will tell you when dinner is ready.”

Molly seemed as if she had forgotten that their dinner was still cooking, and hurried off to the kitchen. Harry, Hermione, and Ron turned and headed up stairs. They certainly had a lot to talk about now.

They reached Ginny and Luna's room, and Hermione knocked on the door. “Come in.” Came Ginny's reply.

They walked in and saw that there were now two beds in the room. Both Ginny and Luna were sitting on one of them. “Hey.” Ginny said as they walked in. The beds were parallel against the back wall, so Harry, Hermione, and Ron sat on the other bed, facing Ginny and Luna.

The four of them sat there for a few minutes, wondering what to say to Luna. She on the other hand, just stared off into a corner of the room, dreamily, without any sign of emotion on her face.

Hermione finally said something, “Luna, I'm sorry for what happened to your house.”

Luna looked over at her, she looked as if she had just been woken up, “Oh, it doesn't really bother me Hermione, I'm just glad that my dad wasn't hurt.”

“Yeah, but didn't you lose all of your stuff?” Hermione asked.

“Well, yes, but it's no matter, I can always get more things.”

“Oh. You sure your ok Luna?”

“Yes, I'm sure. Ever since my mother died nothing bad that has happened to me really bothered me, I think it's just better to just not be bothered by it.” Luna said dreamily.

After she said that, everyone seemed to loosen up a little bit. Hermione told her that she was sorry about her mom, but Luna simply said that she had gotten over it.

They talked for a while, and Harry noticed that Luna seemed to stare at Ron a lot, and most of what she said was to him. Ron on the other hand looked slightly nervous, but seemed like he liked talking to her.

After a while, they all went to go to sleep. As Harry lay in bed, he began thinking about Luna. He realized that she wasn't really that bad after all. She had lost someone very close to her as well, her mother. And last year, when Harry was desperately trying to figure out a way to talk to, or see Sirius again, and realized that he couldn't, Luna had comforted him somewhat, and he felt sorry for her, when she told him about how people stole her things, and hid them.

As Harry was drifting off to sleep, he remembered Luna and Ron talking. Luna definitely fancied Ron, and Ron seemed to like her as well. But didn't Ron have a thing for Hermione?

Those thoughts were quickly forgotten as Harry drifted off to sleep, and they were replaced by the dream. It was the dream about the bushy haired girl that looked so familiar, and gave him a comfortable feeling, and seemed to make him feel complete. He needed her. He started towards her to see who she was, but just as he was about to find out who she was, the dream changed. He saw the scenes from the Department of Mysteries, and the feeling of grief as Sirius fell through the Veil, and his heart stopping when Hermione was hit by the purple flame Dolohov cast on her…

A/N: Hope you all liked this chapter, I think it turned out very well, although it was rather long. Ok, now that you've read it, write a review! Please do, they make me want to keep writing!

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A/N: Hello everyone, and thanks to all of you who reviewed. And I'm very sorry for the delayed update. I know that I told many of you in review reply's that I would update within the next week, but with school and everything, it got kind of busy. Take that, and the fact that our computer decided to start acting up; I didn't have any time for writing anything except for school papers. As I replied to those of you who pointed it out, I didn't realize the thing about Wood until too late. I actually did go back and change that, although I didn't think I would. The chapter is re-uploaded with that change, as well as a few other things that I thought could be better. Also, thank you once again to JayaMioneDurron for pointing out that Fred and George already said that they had a shop in OotP; I changed that as well, and made it so that they will be opening it after they have finished with repeating their seventh year. But enough of my babbling, here's chapter 4 (this chapter is somewhat violent towards the end):

A Simple Trip To Diagon Alley

Harry woke up late the next morning. It was strange, he hadn't woken up late for a while, and he had come to call himself an early riser. Maybe it was because of how early he had gotten up the previous day, or maybe it was because he hadn't had any dreams that he could remember, although there was something about a girl, but he couldn't figure out who she was. He shrugged it off, figuring it was nothing.

He got out of bed, and headed off towards the bathroom. He took a quick shower, loving how the hot water fully woke him up. After getting dressed he headed downstairs. Harry was surprised not to here the sounds that could usually be heard at this hour; the sizzling of whatever Molly was cooking for breakfast, the clatter of chairs, and people walking, and the usual hum of voices, as everyone ate.

Walking in, he saw that only Hermione and Molly were there. They were talking about something. They looked up, and immediately stopped seeing that Harry had walked in.

“Good morning Harry.” Molly said cheerfully, heading into the kitchen, more than likely to begin preparing breakfast.

“Good morning Harry.” Hermione said, looking at him.

Harry suddenly began to feel nervous. The way she was looking at him, it just made him feel weird.

“Err, good morning.” He said rather nervously, as she continued to look at him in that strange way.

She looked away, as if realizing she had been staring at him, and blushed. Then, after getting herself back together, turned back to him. “I thought you would be up earlier, you're usually the first one, unless Dumbledore's here of course.”

“Oh, yeah, me too. I guess with how early I got up yesterday, I just slept in. I'm surprised that no one else is up besides you two.”

“Well, we all did stay up pretty late; I guess they all overslept too.”

“Yeah, I guess.” Harry replied, that awkward feeling leaving him as he began talking with Hermione.

Soon after Harry had come down, the others had begun following suit. Ron came down first, followed quickly Luna, then Ginny, and then the twins.

Molly soon brought out breakfast, and they all began eating. After serving them, she sat down and began eating her own. They didn't talk much; everyone seemed a little tired, which was weird since they had slept later than usual.

Once they were all finished, Molly looked at them all, “Okay now, today we are going to go into Diagon Alley for your supplies.”

They all cheered; glad to be able to get out of the house for the first time since they had gotten there.

“Now, don't get yourselves too excited, we are going to be escorted by Remus and Tonks, so don't you think you can just do whatever you want. This is a dangerous time you know. Who knows what could happen.”

Fred looked up at her, “Mum, it's not like You-Know-Who's going to attack us every time we leave the house.”

She gave him a stern look, “So, you can never be too cautious.” She replied, sounding somewhat offended, something that wasn't unusual when Fred or George had something to say.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Harry, Hermione, Ron, Ginny, and Luna went up to the library after breakfast. Hermione was reading a book, like usual, Luna was reading the newest edition of The Quibbler, and Harry, Ron, and Ginny were playing a game of Exploding Snap.

They were told that Remus and Tonks would be arriving later that afternoon. That is why they were surprised to here the door opening downstairs long before anyone was supposed to be coming. They all got up and headed down. After walking into the foyer, they saw none other than Professor Dumbledore, accompanied by Remus. Dumbledore's face wasn't displaying any emotion, although the usual twinkle in his eye was not there, and Lupin looked downcast. Dumbledore looked to Harry, and motioned for him to follow he and Lupin. The three of them walked into another guest bedroom near the foyer. Dumbledore conjured three chairs with a wave of his hand and motioned for him to sit down. He did, and Dumbledore and Lupin did too.

Dumbledore turned to Harry, “Harry, I'm sorry to inform you that there is some business you, Remus, and I must take care of before you and your friends go to Diagon Alley today.”

Harry could tell from the way that Dumbledore said it, that this was business that he wasn't going to like. “What is it?”

“We have to go to the reading of Sirius' will.” Lupin answered.

Harry's heart sank. Sirius' will? How could he have forgotten about something like that? And right when I was beginning to get over it… so that was why Lupin was looking so bad. He looked up at Dumbledore, noticing the look of concern on his face. Then to Lupin, also looking at him with sadness, and concern. It made Harry feel a bit better to know that he wasn't the only one who mourned the death of Sirius. Dumbledore did, Lupin did, and even Hermione and Ron did. After all, they had known him just as long as Harry had. Sirius wouldn't have wanted him to mope around about his death, but to continue on even stronger. He looked up at Dumbledore, “When are we leaving?”

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

After their talk in the guest room, the three of them had immediately headed off. Dumbledore took a book from a table that was in the room, and with a portus and a wave of his hand, the book was activated as a portkey. They all touched a part of it and felt the tug on there navel, and then the strange spinning sensation as they were transported to wherever they were going.

Now they were sitting in a room at the Ministry. It was small, and Harry definitely didn't recognize it. There was a small table in the middle, with one chair on one side, and two on the other. Dumbledore motioned for Harry and Lupin to sit down on the side with two chairs, while he sat down on the other. Harry glanced down at the table, noticing that there were a few papers in a neat pile close to Dumbledore.

“Professor, will you be reading it?” Harry asked hopefully.

“Yes, I will be.” Dumbledore answered.

“Good, I'd rather it be you than someone else, since you're one of the only people who really knew him.” Harry replied, saying the last part quietly.

The ends of Dumbledore's mouth rose slightly, but quickly went back down again, as he remembered what they were doing. “Okay, now, let's begin.”

And with that, Dumbledore began reading off Sirius' will. Harry was surprised to learn just how much money he had had. He had never really thought about how much money Sirius had before, but he never thought it would be this much. Lupin was given 75,000 galleons, and Harry 100,000. Hermione and Ron each were given 20,000, and Molly and Arthur were given some too. The list went on and on, almost everyone on it Harry had never even heard of. But it was the last part that shocked Harry.

“To my godson Harry James Potter, I give the ownership of Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place for he, and anyone else he allows to live after he has finished with his schooling, as long as the Order of the Phoenix is allowed to continue meeting there.”

Dumbledore put the will down, having finally finished reading it. He looked up at Harry, almost as if to see how he would react. To his surprise, Harry didn't look upset. He wasn't really showing any emotion, but at least he wasn't angry, or sad. Remus hadn't said a word through the entire reading, although he had given a small grunt of disapproval when he heard how much Sirius had left him.

Dumbledore reactivated the portkey, and the three of them were transported back to Grimmauld Place, which, to Harry's disbelief, now belonged to him. They walked back into the foyer, noticing that no one was there, except they heard some soft talking from the kitchen. They headed in, and found Tonks and Molly talking animatedly. They stopped when Harry, Lupin, and Dumbledore walked in. Molly marched up to Dumbledore.

“And where may I ask did you three go of to?” She said angrily, pointing an accusing finger at Dumbledore.

“We had to go to the reading of Sirius' will.” Harry said softly. The reality of Sirius being gone hadn't completely sunk in, though he was making progress.

Molly's face softened, “I'm sorry dear.” She said soothingly, and pulled him in for a hug.

“It's okay.” He said, pulling away from her. “Aren't we supposed to be going to Diagon Alley?” He asked, initially to Dumbledore, but when he turned around he realized that Dumbledore wasn't there. There were only Remus and Tonks.

“Where's Dumbledore?” He asked Lupin, who was stealing glances at Tonks.

“He left as soon as Molly was finished yelling at him. I guess he wanted to escape as fast as possible.” Molly glared at him, and Harry and Tonks laughed.

“Actually, he had something with the Order to deal with, nothing unusual. Right now we're trying to recruit as many new members as we can.” Tonks said nonchalantly. “And as for when we are leaving, that would be now. Why don't you go up and get everyone?”

“Sure.” Harry answered, and began heading for the stairs, but Molly called him back.

“No need Harry.” She said, walking over to the base of the stairs. She then began yelling to them to come down.

Ron and Hermione immediately walked over to Harry. They were about to start asking him questions, no doubt about where he had been, but were silenced by a look from Molly.

“Okay, we're going to be flooing there, so, if you'll follow me.” Remus told them, and they followed him into the living room, where a fireplace was. He grabbed a jar of floo powder off the mantle, and gave some to each of them. One by one they each stepped into the fireplace, disappearing in a whirl of green flames.

Harry was the first to go, and the first to step out into the Leaky Cauldron. He waited patiently for the others to come. Once they were there, they headed out the back way. Surprisingly, there weren't many people in the pub. Harry asked Lupin about this, and he just told him that now that everyone knew that Voldemort was truly back, many people were afraid to leave their homes. Tonks tapped the appropriate brick, and the archway to Diagon Alley opened up.

“Okay, first we'll go to Gringotts, and then we can split up into two groups to get your supplies.” Tonks told them.

As they walked down the road towards Gringotts, Harry couldn't believe how many stores were closed, and the lack of people. It seemed that it was becoming like it was sixteen years ago. People were really starting to get scared.

They arrived at the tall, stunningly white building that was Gringotts. Hermione, Ginny, and Luna went with Tonks and the goblin that was escorting them. Harry and Ron went with Remus (the twins had been allowed to go off on there own, since they were of age).

They made quick stops at there vaults. When they got to Harry's, his jaw dropped. He thought he had had a lot before, but with the added amount from Sirius, his vault would soon need to be expanded. He grabbed enough for the school year, and then they left towards Ron's. He seemed embarrassed as the goblin opened his vault because of how much Harry had. The embarrassed look turned to one of happiness as he looked inside. Harry had never seen inside Ron's vault before, but he knew from knowing the Weasley's a long time, that there was more than double the amount that had been there before. Ron grabbed some, and they headed off to do there shopping.

They stopped at Flourish and Blot's for there 6^th year books, and then headed off to Madime Malkin's for some new robes, since theirs were beginning to get to short. Afterwards they went to replenish their potions supplies, and then to Quality Quidditch Supplies, the store they had been waiting to go to. Harry wanted to get a new broom. His Firebolt was still perfectly fine, but it had been two years since Sirius had given it to him, and there were some better brooms coming out. He walked in, and immediately saw the one he wanted, a Phoenix. It was a top of the line broom, brand new. It made the Firebolt look like nothing. It was expensive, 500 galleons, but he decided to get it anyway. He asked Ron if he wanted to have his old Firebolt, but Ron said no.

“I think I'd rather get myself a new broom, not that your Firebolt's not good or anything, I just want to finally be able to get a good broom myself.”

After about twenty minutes of looking at different brooms, he decided on a Starflare. It was a very good broom, in between the Firebolt and Phoenix. It was also specially designed for Keeper's. They left with much lighter pockets, but were very happy with their purchases.

They all met up at Gringotts, and started back towards the Leaky Cauldron. A few minutes afterwards, they heard the screaming. They spun around, and immediately found the source. Three masked figures were heading towards them from another street near the bank. Even with the lack of shoppers, there were still a lot of people there, many of them shopping for school supplies with there kids. They watched in horror as one of the Death Eater's began torturing a woman with the Cruciatis Curse and another successfully used the killing curse on a man on the other side. The third one used a Reductor Curse on one of the walls of Gringotts, by far the tallest building in Diagon Alley. The force of the blow knocked a huge section of the wall out. The huge chunks of rock killing a few of the people near it, and crushing some other nearby shops.

Anger coursed through Harry. He pulled out his wand and began running towards the three Death Eaters. He heard footsteps behind him and realized that the others were following him.

As soon as they were in range, they began fighting back.

“Stupefy!” Harry yelled, successfully stunning the Death Eater who had almost finished the woman off with the Cruciatis Curse. Her mask fell off, revealing the face of Bellatrix Lestrange. Harry's temper flared up. She was the one who pushed Sirius through the veil. He started towards her, but was held back by Lupin until he came to his senses.

Tonks was dueling with another one of the Death Eater's, who Harry recognized as Lucius Malfoy, from his cold voice as he taunted her. Lupin had successfully stunned the other, who was revealed to be Dolohov, the one who had hurt Hermione. That feeling of anger coursed through him, but he came to his senses. Tonks, with a little help from Lupin, stunned Lucius. The others had been trying to keep everyone in order, and Hermione and Luna had also been helping the wounded.

Dumbledore appartated in shortly afterward, followed by a few aurors. He glanced around, immediately taking in all that had happened. It wasn't hard to figure out; there were three stunned Death Eater's, a huge hole in the side of Gringotts, and the once white stones that had fallen, were now speckled with red.

He called Harry, Hermione, Ron, Luna, and Ginny over to him, and appartated to the living room of Grimmauld Place, bringing them with him.

He turned to Harry, “Wait here Harry, I will be back shortly.” The usually wise and strong Dumbledore was not the one Harry saw just then. He looked old, and tired.

Harry nodded, and Dumbledore vanished without a sound.

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