Harry Potter and the Powers of Old

Chapter 1: Sweet sixteen

It was an evening like any other in Little Whinging: the sun was slowly setting behind the clouds leaving the sky in the distance a beautiful blend of oranges and reds. The kids in the town could be heard laughing and playing, enjoying the last of the daylight before retiring for dinner with their families. To any passer-by it would seem like the perfect ending to the perfect day in a town that seems little too normal.

The grass in every lawn was well kept and neat, there was no litter strewn around; not one thing looked or sounded out of place in the posh, secluded suburban town. However if you happened to look up to the top, side window as you passed number four Privet Drive, then you would notice a young man in his mid teens with his head pressed against the window, sporting a lightning shaped scar just off the centre of his forehead, with a rather small excited looking owl trying to get his attention from the ledge outside. His large, round, emerald eyes seemed to be full of pain and anguish.

It wasn't until he heard the rustle of many wings rapidly approaching that Harry was distracted from his brooding, and gave a weary eye at the black cloud making its way towards his bedroom window. He then decided to acknowledge the presence of Pig, Ron's small owl, that had been tapping at his window nonstop for the past 15 minutes. Sighing, he slid the widow up, causing Pig to fall through and get tangled up in the net curtain that Aunt Petunia insisted be put up due to Harry's 'funny business,' as she liked to call it. Leaning over, he scooped up the little owl, cupped it in both hands,and set it down on his desk, quickly making room for the other six owls that were tumbling through his already open window. Naturally curious, having never really received so much mail, Harry left Pig sipping some of Hedwig's water and begun relieving the other owls of their burdens.

It wasn't until he sighted the colourful wrapping of one of his parcels that he remembered that it was his birthday. Not surprisingly though, as it was the late Sirius Black, wrongly convicted, escaped, mass murderer and loving godfather that had been taking up most of his thoughts this summer. Harry just kept replaying in slow-motion that final moment when Sirius fell, disappearing behind that mysterious veil out of sight and out of Harry's life...forever.

Anybody closely watching Harry that night could almost tell the exact moment that his heart broke. You see, Sirius, although he was Harry's godfather, only met him during his third year, after he made a legendary escape from Azkaban, the wizarding prison, guarded by the soul sucking dementors. Risking everything to be with Harry and keep him safe, Sirius fought gallantly in the Department of Mysteries after Harry so foolishly got tricked by the devil himself into leaving the safety of Hogwarts in the middle of the night.

"NO!" Harry said loudly to himself shaking his head scaring off the owls that were watching him intently from his desk. 'I've been here before' he thought 'I can't keep blaming myself for this, Remus and Hermione have told me that already'.

Getting up, he removed the letter tied to Pig's leg and let him take flight once more. Shutting the window, he turned towards his desk, letting a small grin grace his face. 'Well,' he thought, seeing the stack of parcels he had just received, 'I'm sixteen.' He carried the pile over to his bed, sat down, and chose to open Ron's letter first, before attacking his presents.

Hey, Happy Birthday Harry!
How's it goin? Sweet sixteen eh? I hope you're well and you ain't letting Snuffles get you down. He wouldn't want you to be acting all moody on his account, now would he mate?
Anyway I've been strongly advised (threatened, more like) by everyone down at HQ not to inform you of what they've got in store for you, but...knowing how much you love surprises, I'm risking my neck sending this to you while everyone is downstairs. I hope it gets there in time! Just letting you know that they're planning a heck of a party for you. I think it's next week, and it seems like all of Gryffindor is invited! How cool is that?!!! You should see the place! It's looking GREAT. You'll see it soon anyway.
Keep Pig as long as you want; I've told Hermione he's out hunting (she wanted to write to Vicky, the nerve of that girl!). Anyway, have fun, and I'll see you at the party.
Curse those muggles for me Your best mate,
Ron P.S. Dumbledore's got a surprise for you; it should arrive soon.

Harry smiled at Ron's letter. Although he wasn't really the party type, he'd never had a proper birthday party before and felt he was long overdue for a bit of cheering up. Putting the letter aside, he eagerly pulled forward one of his presents. Choosing the largest one first, he unwrapped it to find gifts from all the Weaslys. An assorted box of sweats from Ron; a wand holster from Ginny. From Mr. Weasly, some fancy looking quills, and ink that was charmed to randomly change colour as you wrote. From Mrs. Weasly he received some miniature minced pies, a birthday cake with emerald icing, and a note telling him how much he was missed.

Nibbling on the corner of one of the minced pies, he pulled forward the rest of his presents and began unwrapping them eagerly. Hermione (who had been on holiday in Egypt) got him a matching chain and ring. The chain was gold and seemed to get warm and glow when it touched his skin, and the ring was also gold, but it was in the shape of a griffin with wings spread, wrapping itself around his finger with ruby in its mouth. Putting them on, he skimmed over Hermione's note,

Hey Harry! Happy Birthday.
By the time you get this, I should be at HQ with Ron and the others, but I'm sending this from Egypt. It's great over here. It's got such a magical background! I found out soooo much! Did you know the Egyptians were the first known animagi?
Anyway to the point; your present! I bought it off of a traveller I met. I've read all about them and I just had to buy it. They are 'the jewels of Gryffindor' and if you wear them they will protect you against minor spells and even accelerate you healing for the spells it can't stop; supposedly all of the founders had them but hid them when they suspected Salazar Slytherin was thought to have betrayed them. They say that if all four sets of jewels are bought together by four strong enough to harness their power, the group will receive unimaginable power that will keep growing until one amongst the group gets corrupted by their power.
Of course nobody believes that anymore, but it's still valuable. Anyway, I've got to be going now, so, I'll see you soon, keep your sprits up and let me know when you get your O.W.L results. I know you're not going to want to talk about Sirius, but don't let it get you down. Remember it was NOT your fault, so don't blame your self. If you ever need to talk just let me know, I'm here for you. Love, Hermione XXX

Harry stroked the griffin on his ring after reading Hermione's letter. Could it really of belonged to Godric Gryffindor? If so, then where are the others... Pushing this thought to the back of his mind, he continued to open the rest of his presents.

From Hagrid, he got a book called '101 Completely Harmless Beasts.' Harry smiled at the title, 'Just like Hagrid,' he thought. He got a mirror that was charmed to rebound spells, to practice on as a thank you present from all of the DA. Thumbing over the frame work, Harry smiled as he saw the inscription 'Harry Potter-World's Greatest Teacher'. The last present was from the Order; it was the 'Standard Book of Spells, Grade 7.'

The last thing was a letter with the usual Hogwarts crest. Opening it neatly, he removed four sheets of parchment. The first was the usual welcome back letter, the second was the new book list. As Harry got to the third, he paused upon seeing the title.

Results for Harry James Potter, Ordinary. Wizarding. Levels:

We are pleased to inform you that you achieved the highest grade for Defence Against the Dark Arts that has ever been recorded. Please see Professor M. McGonagall for details of what lessons you should continue to take at N.E.W.T level. Below are your results.

Transfiguration – E

Care of magical creatures – E Defence against the dark arts - O Potions – O Charms - E Astronomy - A History of magic - D Divination - A

'Wow! An 'O' in Potions and the highest DADA mark ever! Hermione's just going to have to wait till I see her to hear about this' he thought 'She'll do her nut trying to guess what I got'

Harry was just about to put the letters away in his drawer when he noticed the fourth sheet of parchment that must have fallen to off of his bed. Eyeing the neat writing that he recognized as that of Professor Dumbledore, he begun to read.

Dear Harry
Firstly, I would like to wish you a happy birthday. I would send your present, but let's just say I don't think your aunt and uncle would approve. You're just going to have to wait and see.
I trust that you now understand why you must return to the muggles each year, even if only for a couple of weeks, but rest assured you should be joining us fairly soon.
I know you don't have a subscription to the Daily Prophet, so you will not have heard this next bit of news. Cornelius Fudge is desperately trying to hold onto his position as Minister of Magic, and trying to win back public favour after his blunder involving Voldemort's return. Also, I thought you should know that the law on underage wizards performing magic outside of school has been lifted, so feel free to try out any new spells, but remember you must still be discrete.
Once more, I wish you a happy birthday with many happy returns. I WILL see you soon. Yours, Albus Dumbledore P.S. Get packed, we may come for you at any moment.

Re-reading the letter to make sure his eyes didn't deceive him, he smiled and gingerly picked up his wand, quietly saying the incantation "Accio." He watched as his new wand holster shot across the room and right into his outstretched hand. After catching and strapping it onto his wrist for easy access to his wand, he waited for a full five minutes for the sound of a ministry owl, to see if he had been wrong and broken the law.

When no such a owl came, he let out the breath that he didn't know he had been holding. "Well," Harry said to nobody in particular, "time to make up for 16 years of abuse." Packing away his new things, he holstered his wand. Deciding to cause some trouble, he picked up the book the Order had given him. 'Of course,' he thought, 'they knew I would be able to use magic tonight.' With this thought, he put the book under his arm and made his way downstairs to the living room, where the rest of the family had congregated.

"Good evening," Harry said joyfully as he entered the living room, earning himself a raised eyebrow from his Uncle Vernon. Usually, Harry would be sent to his room, but the warning from the Order at the start of the holiday really got through to his aunt, and she had been keeping her husband and son in check.

Making his way over to the unoccupied part of the couch next to his lump of a cousin Dudley, he sat down and made himself comfortable. Using one hand to hold up his book, he begun flipping through pages trying to find an appropriate spell to kick start his evening.

Choosing to begin with a light extinguishing spell he read over the incantation before clearing his throat loudly. "What is it boy? Be quiet or get out!" Uncle Vernon said, scowling at Harry. "Nothing," Harry replied, as if hurt by his uncle's words. "I was just wondering if you minded me practicing a few spells in here, seeing as my room is a bit too small". Dudley almost fainted as Harry flicked his wrist to release his wand from its holster. "Oh no you don't, boy!" Uncle Vernon yelled angrily as Aunt Petunia rushed over to draw the curtains. "You think we don't know! You're not allowed to use ma...mag... the M word outside of that freak school of yours." Harry had to laugh at his uncle's obvious discomfort at being within a few meters of Harry's wand. "I guess you haven't heard then," Harry said, trying hard to keep a straight face as Dudley was paling and his uncle's face was turning crimson. "But as there is a very powerful dark wizard on the lose, they're letting anyone aged sixteen and over use magic at home. And incase you haven't noticed, TODAY is my SIXTEENTH birthday, soooo I'm going to begin practicing."

Silence followed that revelation, and as Harry saw the vain in uncle Vernon's neck pulsate with rage, he decided to head him off by using his first spell. Visualizing his new rebounding mirror in his mind he mumbled the incantation. Within a few seconds, his mirror was in his hand. Flipping through his book to the appropriate page, he found the sticking charm and performed it on the back of the mirror, and, making his way past his uncle, he stuck it on the wall. "You might want to leave the room," Harry said to his uncle, "this could get a bit messy.

"You little....." His uncle started making his way over to Harry, arms outstretched, but all the years of quidditch practice paid off, and Harry was able to easily dodge his uncle's grab. Before his uncle could turn to try again, Harry raised his wand to the small of Uncle Vernon's back. "STUPEFY!" he yelled angrily, knocking his uncle unconscious and watching him slump to the floor. Turning to aunt Petunia, he heard Dudley whimpering behind his unconscious father. "I'm going to be practicing for at least an hour. Feel free to watch, but please stick to the far corner so you don't get in the way," he told her calmly.

Aunt Petunia looked as if she was seriously considering watching her nephew so as to see what he was capable of, but after eyeing her husband's unconscious body and Dudley cowering behind it, she decide against it. "N...n...no its alright," she stammered. "I'll just take them and leave," she said, pointing to Uncle Vernon and Dudley. Dudley got up and fled from the room, while Aunt Petunia seemed rooted on the spot. "That's alright," Harry told her, lightning up a bit. "I'll levitate him out for you." Aunt Petunia nodded and made her way to the door as Harry, instead of using the Mobilicorpus spell, used the Banishing Charm to move his unlce from the living room to the hallway outside, allowing him to hit every piece of furniture on the way out. Using the same spell on the furniture, he made himself a small clearing to practice in.

Using a variety of spells from his new book, he spent about two hours shooting spells at the mirror, using a combination of his quidditch reflexes and shielding charms to dodge most of the rebounded spells. Harry sent a Bat Boogie Hex at the mirror, but it had rebounded faster than Harry anticipated. Bracing himself for impact, he was surprised to feel his new ring get warm and his chain lift from against his chest and glow gold as it absorbed the spell.

'Wow,' Harry thought. He couldn't wait to show that little trick to the others. He allowed rebounded spells to hit him for about ten more minutes to see if there was a spell that could not be blocked. Unwilling to try an Unforgivable Curse, he settled with knowing that most spells that were sent at him by another Hogwarts student could be blocked with ease.

Putting the furniture back to how it was before his 'training session,' he picked up his book and mirror and retreated to his room. Hanging the mirror up above his desk and putting his book in his trunk with all of his other belongings, he flopped down onto his bed and slipped into another nightmare about Sirius and the veil.

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A/N: this is my first fic so let me know how im doing so far, R&R