Chapter 1: The Proposal
The black creature dashed through the quiet forest as night approached. It was fleeing as if the hounds of hell themselves were after it. The shape of the creature was indistinct, but the color wasn't, a deep black. After a while, it slowed and started to seem more comfortable with the surroundings. It paused to look behind it, and one could see that it was a rather large feline, that of cougar. The color was unusual for this breed, but it suited the animal just fine for this location.
It looked around as if searching for an enemy while catching its breath. Not seeing any movement, the graceful feline stretched a bit and then took off on a slower pace than before. At a sudden sound off to the left, the beast stopped in its tracks to listen. Looking in the direction of the sound, the animal caught a scent of a human and sprung into action. It became aware of incoming lights headed to the area it was currently stopped in, so the cougar went into defensive mode and started to dodge the lights that created small craters around it.
As the agile animal jumped behind an obstacle to avoid another light, this a green with a sense of death, it shifted forms in mid air to that of a young adult that continued the dive and rolled to come to a crouching position behind a small mound with a couple trees to use as a shield. His green eyes continued to scan the surroundings as he had done in his animal form to locate the threat. With a flick of the wrist, his Holly wand fell into his right hand. The familiar weight and feel, making a small, predatory grin form on the young man's face.
Harry Potter was the name, and right now, survival was the game. He had been trying to escape his pursuers for a few hours now, but it appears that they caught up to him and trapped him in this small clearing in the forest. He had counted four earlier in his animagus form, but from the variety and the directions of the curses, a few more decided to join in on the fun.
Taking a quick glance around the tree he was behind, he quickly fired a couple of Reducto curses at where the majority of the curses had originated. These were sent silently, to prevent his opponents from knowing what had been sent at them. Front the grunts he heard, they had managed to block most of the powerful curses.
That's one of the things Harry had started to harness recently, putting some power behind his curses. In doing so, he had started to feel that he was "flexing" his magical core, which was strengthening it immensely. He began to notice this after he had done a normal Accio to summon a book across the common room, and it zoomed towards him at a speed that had him ducking instantly. He remembered looking at his wand, the book, and back at his wand in astonishment.
This increase in his magical core made him realize he that on power alone, he was equal to Voldemort. The experience that Voldemort had on him though, he wasn't even close. And Harry knew it.
A curse hit the tree that Harry had been using as a shield, which brought him out of his thoughts and back onto the fight at hand. He again assessed the situation. He was outnumbered, at least 8 to 1, and he was essentially trapped. Realizing he needed to use some quick thinking, he reached into a pouch on his belt for a potion that he had saved for an occasion such as this. He downed it quickly and felt the effects immediately. Things began to slow down to a snail's pace and he knew that he had to act quickly before it wore off.
The potion was one that gave the individual super speed and reflexes for one minute, making everything else appear as slow motion. The downside was that after taxing one's muscles to such an extent, that person would be sore and unable to move quickly for some time.
Quickly going around the tree, he sent off a mix of Stupefy, Impedimenta, and Reducto to where he had identified the locations of the attackers. His aim was true on all accounts, and the pursuers were quickly taken care of. A sudden pain in his left arm, made him glance down to the source. A lucky cutting curse had gotten through his defenses and blood was slowly trickling down his arm, where upon reaching his fingers, dripped steadily down onto the ground. Applying pressure to the wound, Harry made his way to one of the attackers, conjured up some rope, and tightly bound the, now, prisoner. He repeated this with each of them, after taking care of the wound by wrapping a stray cloth around his arm to stop the bleeding.
A slow clapping started behind him, causing him to turn towards it in alarm. Since the potion had just worn off, this caused him to wince in slight discomfort. There before him stood the Headmaster, Albus Dumbledore, with a slight twinkle to his eyes as he observed his student. Harry sighed with relief as this ended the training session in the Room of Requirement, and the environment, including the attackers, faded away to a comfortable sitting room. He hadn't realized what the room's limitations were, but it hadn't disappointed yet.
As Harry and the Headmaster approached the seats, Harry went back to how all of this came to be. He couldn't help but smile at the turn his life took back at the beginning of the summer after his fifth year.
Flashback
Harry was walking towards the Dursley's car after they had that little chat with Moody and the others from the Order of the Phoenix. He was feeling as any would after losing someone close to them: depressed. He knew that Sirius wouldn't want him to feel this way. It went against Sirius's personality. He had just started to get to know and understand his Godfather, and he wouldn't get to any longer. It was at this point he vowed to be the best he could. He wouldn't dwell too much on the prophecy, except to get better than he currently was.
He wasn't as upset with the Headmaster either after his outburst in his office, but he couldn't help but feel better afterwards. How would you feel after seeing someone die and then being told you hold the fate of the British Wizarding World in your hands? Upset would be an understatement actually.
He was brought out of his thoughts as his Uncle told him to put his trunk in the boot and to get in.
Driving back to Privet Driver was as normal as could be. His Uncle was muttering about "freaks" and "telling me what to do" and glaring in the rearview at his nephew every other minute or so. Aunt Petunia had her lips pressed tightly together and wringing her hands together nervously. Dudley wasn't with them; Harry assumed he was hanging out with his gang, terrorizing the neighborhood kids.
Some time later, they pulled into the driveway of No. 4, and Harry unloaded his trunk from the car and took it up to his room. Looking around, he found nothing had really changed much, except for the layer of dust throughout the room. Striding to his window, he opened it up to let in some fresh air and let Hedwig through. He had let her out at the train station after exiting the Express. He then started to clean the room some and to organize his things.
When the sun was just lowering over the horizon, Harry stretched his muscles and breathed a sigh of relief for the quick clean up he just finished. It may not be much, "But it is home," he said to Hedwig. "Right?" Hedwig looked at him with those eyes of hers.
A mournful, "Hoot," was his answer.
"Yeah, I know."
He didn't sleep well that night. The usual nightmares surfaced of the night of Voldemort's resurrection and the recent venture into the Department of Mysteries. Harry woke up an hour before dawn in sweat drenched sheets and gasping for breath. He wasn't sure what was more painful watching, the death of Cedric or that of Sirius. He did know that both hurt. He came a realization right then; he didn't want anybody else to feel this hurt that he currently had. Harry reaffirmed his vow to be the best wizard he could.
He quickly got out of bed to go take a quick shower and get ready for the day ahead. He wanted to get started right away to get his life going in the right direction to be the best.
It was at this point, that Harry's summer would be taking a turn for the best in helping him reach this goal.
In a burst of fire, Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, appeared in his room with his familiar, Fawkes, on his shoulder. As always, the Headmaster was dress in eccentric wizard robes. In fact, Harry had never thought that you could put a design on robes that depicted the cosmos, in all its glory.
"Good morning Harry, I hope I'm not intruding?" asked the Headmaster after a moment of silence passed between them.
Harry was looking at the Headmaster with an even stare. Taking a moment to gather his thoughts, Harry replied, "No sir. In fact I just woke up. What can I do for you?"
Dumbledore looked at the young man in front of him, with a hint of sadness in his eyes at the state of him. He could tell that the past few weeks hadn't been the best for Harry. Of course, he had lost his godfather and learned of the prophecy. He had wanted to allow Harry to have a childhood and not be worried about the future. He felt confident in his choice to proceed as he came here to do.
"Harry, I've come here with a proposal for you. I know what I did during the last term wasn't one of my better moments. I regret having not told you of the prophecy sooner, but that is, as they say, an old man's folly. I have come here to bring you back to Hogwarts for the summer. The Order won't know, except for a select few whom I trust. I have come up with a training regime, one that is only available in the halls of Hogwarts and known to only the Headmasters and Headmistresses. You won't be able to visit your friends during this time, but you will be able to communicate via owl."
During this speech, Dumbledore had been looking steadily over at Harry for his reaction. He was expecting the shock and surprise when he first mentioned his training offer; however, he wasn't expecting the hard glint that then appeared representing determination and the drive to succeed. 'Harry, you are full of surprises. I do believe this was the right decision.'
Harry wasn't sure what to feel. Shock? Albus Dumbledore, one of the greatest wizards in history, was offering training to him. Anger? Why hadn't Dumbledore offered this before? So many things would be different now if he had. No…he felt determination. He had made a vow; a vow to Sirius, his parents, Cedric, and all those affected by Voldemort and his Death Eaters. He would partake of the training, and he would succeed beyond any expectations made of him.
Harry looked Dumbledore in the eye and with conviction in his voice, he said, "Alright, I'll do it. One question for you sir, is there anything else you would like to tell me? Any other secrets you're keeping from me?"
Dumbledore knew this question was coming and had decided on the correct course of action.
"That is a valid question, and you do deserve the right to know. Yes, but not intentionally. The information I've kept from you is common knowledge among most whose family history stretches back a number of centuries. The Potters, as you know, are an old pureblood family. Their history stretches back to the time of the founders and beyond even. Each of the older families has at least one Family Vault. These are not your everyday vaults that just contain galleons, sickles, and knuts. These hold the history of the family, artifacts, books, portraits and other valuables."
Here Dumbledore paused to conjure a glass of water for his parched throat. "Your case is different, due to the fact that Sirius named you his heir. Which means, you have the Potter and Black Family Vaults. That was one of the things I was going to discuss with you this morning and take care of before bringing you back to Hogwarts."
When Dumbledore had mentioned Sirius naming Harry as his heir, his shock of hearing about the Family Vaults evaporated quicker than a puddle in the Sahara. 'His heir?! Why would he do that? I don't want anything of his since it was partially my fault he's dead in the first place!' Other thoughts along these lines were rapidly going through Harry's brain.
Some of these thoughts must have presented themselves on Harry's expression since Dumbledore forcefully said, "It wasn't your fault Harry. Sirius understood the dangers, and he protected you, his best friends' son. He loved you like you were his own. Don't tarnish his memory by blaming yourself."
Harry immediately admonished himself for thinking those things of Sirius. 'Of course, it isn't me to blame. The blame rests solely on Bellatrix and Voldemort.' Out loud he said, "You're right Professor. I'm sorry. It's hard, to know that he is gone. To know I'll never be able to see him laugh at a story of his relating to a past prank. But what I do know is this, I'll treasure the time I did have with him. I'll remember him and what he did for me and my family and for my friends," he said with a small smile. His eyes had a glistening as if he would cry, but no tears would fall.
"I'm glad to hear that Harry. You are showing wisdom beyond that of a normal teenager," Dumbledore said after Harry's emotional speech. "Well, let's get your stuff packed and be on our way. We need to go to Gringotts first to finalize a few things and get you to those vaults."
With a sweep of his wand, the little unpacking Harry had done the previous day was redone and packed neatly inside his trunk. "I believe that's everything; now if you could send Hedwig to Hogwarts…" The Headmaster trailed off when the owl in question came upon Harry's shoulder and GLARED at him as if he were crazy to suggest such a thing. Harry was her human, and he had suffered recently. She wasn't going to leave him anytime soon.
"I think she disagrees with that suggestion, sir," Harry said as he affectionately pats Hedwig on the head. She in turn nipped his fingers gently as if reiterating the fact she wasn't leaving him.
"I see this," Dumbledore said with an eye twinkle beginning to show in his expression. "Well that's quite alright, she, of course, is welcome to join us on our trip to Diagon Alley."
With that, another wave of the wand had Harry's trunk shrunk and easily the size to fit comfortably in a pocket of his jeans. Which he did right away. "Are you ready Harry?"
"Yes sir"
"Okay, then I believe you're familiar with this travel, but just grab onto one of Fawkes's tail feathers, and we'll appear in the entrance area of Gringotts."
Harry did as instructed and in a flash of fire, he was gone from Privet Drive once again. And he couldn't be more thankful of that fact. He was well on his way to becoming ready for his future.
They both appeared in the wizard bank, Gringotts, in a flash of fire from Fawkes. With a nod from Dumbledore, his phoenix left once again, presumably to go back to his office. He then led Harry towards an out of the way counter with an aged goblin behind it. The goblin looked up as the two approached, and upon recognizing the two wizards, quickly brought out some paperwork to verify the identity of the two wizards approaching his station.
"What can Gringotts do for you today gentlemen?" the goblin asked in rough voice.
Noticing the nametag on the desk, the Headmaster said, "Yes Runozk, Mr. Potter is here for the reading of Mr. Sirius Black's Will. After that, he would like to access the Family Vaults he will then have available to him."
Runozk studied the two in front of him. "Very well, I do need to verify that the both of you are who you say you are."
"Of course," Dumbledore said as if he had expected it.
The goblin pulled two pieces of parchment from the pile on his desk and placed them in front of the wizards. He then brought out a small dagger and placed it between the parchments. "What I need you two to do, is to make a small cut on your wand hands, could even be a finger if you wish, and place five drops of blood on the parchment in front of you. This will verify your identity with us."
Dumbledore proceeded as if he had done this countless times, 'I'm sure he has,' thought Harry as he watched Dumbledore make the small cut and place the drops on the parchment. When the dagger was handed to him, Harry noticed it was void of blood. 'Must be charmed to vanish the blood.' Making a small cut on his right pointer finger, he carefully squeezed out five drops onto the parchment.
Runozk grabbed the dagger from him and the two parchments on the desk. Scanning the parchments, he looked back up and nodded, "All seems to be in order. You may proceed down this hallway," pointing to a door to the back right of his station, " and locate the door for Gurs. He will assist you with the will reading and the issue with the Family Vaults."
"Thank you Runozk," Dumbledore said as he guided Harry through the doorway. Going past numerous doors, they walked through the one labeled "Wills & Family Vaults" with Gurs underneath it.
The goblin behind the desk resembled all other goblins in their features, but was just a bit different due to the fact that he wasn't quite as old. In fact, it appeared he was in his prime for a goblin.
"Good morning gentlemen, what is it I can do for you today?" the goblin asked, not taking his eyes off the documents he was studying on his desk.
"Good morning to you Mr. Gurs, and my your wealth flow throughout your life. Young Mr. Potter and I are here for the reading of Mr. Sirius Black's Will, and to discuss the Family Vaults of Mr. Potter."
At the greeting, the goblin locked eyes with the Headmaster. He seemed pleased about the unusual greeting, as depicted with the smile gracing the being's face. "And may your riches continue to grow, Mr. Dumbledore. And hear for the reading? Let me see here…Brucklehurst, Bridgewater…. ah here it is Black, Sirius. Recently deceased, it says. Will was updated not too long ago. Alright, here it is."
With that, the goblin handed over a rolled up parchment with a black ribbon tying it together. Dumbledore explained that the ribbon would only come undone when the heir of the family in question tried to undo it. So, Harry untied the ribbon, and the parchment seemed to come alive, and Sirius's voice sounded from it, not too unlike a howler, just quieter.
This is the Last Will and Testament of Sirius Black. Me being of sound mind do hereby bequeath the title of Lord Black to Harry James Potter of the House of Potter. That does include the holdings in the Family Vaults, the money vaults, properties and rights of an adult wizard. I also….
The rest of the will just went over the other things to be divided amongst those that knew Sirius. Some funds went to the Weasleys, Remus, the Tonks', and so on. Dumbledore went into explanations again about what Sirius had done. It had made it so Harry was an adult in the eyes of the law. No longer was he going to be monitored for underage magic.
End Flashback
Harry was brought back to reality, when Dumbledore asked him a question about the scenario he just went through. "Please explain the scenario from your point of view, and what you could have done differently if you knew all of the facts?"
Thinking about the entire situation he had just been in. He explained how he had gone through the notions of sneaking onto the enemy encampment to gain as much knowledge and information there was about them before retreating. He had forgotten to check for wards on his way out of the camp, which had caused the chase he had found himself in at the end of the training session.
"I'd forgotten to double check any additional wards that may have been setup after I had gotten through the others to get to the camp. That cost me my element of surprise and it nearly got me killed in the process. I should have found a different path to retreat since it seems the enemies anticipated my movement to the clearing later. If I'd have to do it again, I would do more of a dodging pattern and not such a straight line to get away from them. Maybe include some random Apparating to go to different locations to disorient my attackers," Harry said going into detail about his recent training session.
Dumbledore was nodding throughout the explanation. "You're growing wiser and more battle oriented with these sessions Harry. Don't get me wrong, you are doing a fantastic job, but I would recommend that you take Alastor's saying to heart and practice vigilance in all aspects. I believe that is it for the night. One turn as always, and we'll head to bed."
Harry pulled out the trinket that was hanging around his neck. It was a mini-hourglass that held the special sand all Time-Turners held inside. This one was a bit different though, in the fact that it went back one day and one day only. This is what they were using to train Harry during the summer. He took the long chain and extended it over the Headmaster's neck and one turn later they disappeared. To reappear in a different part of the Room of Requirement that wasn't already in use by the other Harry's and Headmasters. Everything looked the same, and the young man and elderly teacher went to their rooms for the night.
AN: Well, what a week it has been. My other story seems to be pretty popular, so if you have a minute or two please read it. Again this week has been interesting and I had this idea bouncing around in my head the last few days, and I thought it would work as a story. So here it is for you to enjoy. Please review!