Hello again, people! Thanks for reading my newest story. Here are some additional warnings- I may have forgotten them in the first chapter.

Very Bad Language, drunk people, underage stuff, and...I think that's it, for now. I've written 26 chapters already. Woot!

He woke up in a very familiar bedroom. Number four, Privet drive.

"What the fuck?" He cursed, sitting up slowly. He rubbed his head. It hurt something awful. There was a note on his bedside table.

He ripped it open, and recognized Dumbledore's loopy handwriting.

Dear Harry,

I'm sure you're wondering why you are here. It seems as though you had a bit of a fall during the Leaving Feast- all that excitement was just too much for you. You were asleep for the rest of the evening, while the others went back home on the Hogwarts Express.

Madam Pomfrey was able to patch you up, of course. I thought it best that you go home for a bit of rest, and get away from the excitement for a while. I think the summer holidays will be enough time for all this excitement to die down, don't you think?

Nymphadora and Remus have volunteered to check in on you every so often. I do hope you will write your friends, as they will be looking forward to hearing from you.

Thank you again, for defeating Voldemort.

However…your destiny is not complete. I myself, wondered what would happen after I defeated Grindenwald, and ended up devoting myself to teaching. It is a very rewarding career. This year, you have proven that you also have a talent for teaching others. I would like for you to continue your DA- of course, since the war is over, it could simply just be called 'Defense Association'. I will be sanctioning it as a school club, and it will be open to the entire school.

Of course, I believe it would be a wise precaution to limit the ages to fourth years and above. You will, of course, have a faculty advisor. I suggest that Filius, or perhaps Minerva, may be your best choice- both are formidable duelers, and are quite experienced.

Take the time to rest Harry- you need it. Your life is just beginning; there are much happier and joyful things to come.

Ah, and one more thing. Sirius Black has been proclaimed innocent by the Minister, and has been given the Order of Merlin: First Class, posthumously. I know it won't bring your Godfather back, but everyone now knows the truth.

Sincerely yours,

Albus

Harry stared at the letter…and then read it again. He set it aside, and looked about the room. His trunk was at the foot of his bed, and Hedwig's empty cage was by the window. It was open, as was the window, so he assumed she went flying. He got up from the bed, and cautiously tried the door. It was unlocked.

He stepped out of his room, and looked up and down the hallway. Empty. He headed downstairs, and heard the rumbling of the telly. He poked his head into the sitting room, and saw Dudley eating a bag of crisps, staring at the screen.

He ducked back out, and looked into the kitchen. Empty. Hmm. Aunt Petunia must be out. He went back up stairs, wondering what he should do.

Seriously, did Dumbledore really want him to stay at Privet Drive? What was the point? Voldemort wasn't around anymore, so they didn't have to worry about the wards. Yeah, the muggle world was probably a bit calmer than the magical world at the moment, but why couldn't he stay somewhere else?

He glanced at the letter, and sighed. Hermione was probably having kittens by now. He should at least write her a letter.

Letters finished, Harry wandered downstairs again around dinnertime. Hedwig had come by, and he sent the letters off. Harry cautiously went into the kitchen, and his Aunt Petunia made a slight face at him.

"You're up finally, are you?"

Harry sat down at the table, and glanced at his Uncle. He was scowling openly at Harry.

"That old freak came to the house, with you unconscious. Said you were to stay here for the holidays." His Uncle Vernon said, clenching his meaty fist.

"Um…well, that's the thing. Why should I?" Harry asked, feeling a bit brave.

Petunia set down the food on the table, and immediately, her son and husband tore into it. "That letter said there were some…protections or something. You have to stay here until you're seventeen."

"But he's gone. I killed Voldemort just a few weeks ago."

Aunt Petunia's eyes went round, and Dudley choked on his steak. Uncle Vernon took a big drink of his beer.

"Which is why I asked…why should I be here? You guys don't want me, and I don't want to be here, so why should I stay?"

"Well then. You should just leave." The woman sniffed, taking his empty plate from his place, and putting it back in the cupboard.

"Fine then, I will." Harry said calmly, and walked out of the kitchen. His Uncle glared at him all the way, while his Cousin continued to stuff his face.

Since he'd never unpacked, it was an easy thing of getting his things together. He was going to call for the Knight Bus, and go to…hell, where could he go?

He put Hedwig's empty cage on top of his trunk, and attached them together with an old belt. He drug them down the stairs. Grimmauld Place, as much as he hated it, would be fine for now.

As he got down to the foot of the stairs, he was unprepared to see his Aunt again. She shoved a small box in his arms- a paper box that seemed to be yellowing with age. "Get out, and I don't ever want to see you again."

"Okay." Harry shrugged, and held onto the box tightly. "Don't suppose you could tell me what's in the box?" He asked on the way out. His reply was the door slamming behind him.

He couldn't help but laugh as he headed down the walk, feeling better than he had in ages. For years, he'd always imagined all the different scenarios of him finally leaving Privet Drive, and for some reason…right now, it felt unreal. He thought there would be screaming and yelling, and at the very least, a bit of blood or hexing. But no...there was nothing like that.

He held out his wand, and the Knight Bus appeared almost instantly. Stan beamed as he saw Harry. "Hey! It's you again!"

"Hi Stan." Harry said, getting on the bus. "Grimmauld Place, London."

He remembered to hold on just in time before he and his things went flying. He went to pay the driver, but Stan shoved his hand away. "Your money's no good here." He winked at Harry, and the boy furrowed his brow.

"Um…thanks."

"No problem. See you around."

Harry got off the bus, and walked over between Number Eleven, and Number Thirteen, and visualized Number Twelve reappearing. He smiled as it popped in place. He headed inside.

It was three days later that his minders finally realized he wasn't at Privet Drive anymore. In those three days, he'd started to go through some serious withdrawal symptoms. He'd felt achy and threw up, and woke up sweating often during the night. His nightmares were terrible, and he desperately wanted a dreamless sleep potion.

But he remembered Hermione's words, and Poppy's warning, and put any plans to go to Diagon Alley to the side for now. He didn't want to face the crowds anyways.

On the fourth day, he received a letter from Remus, as well as a letter from Fudge. Fudge's letter was promptly thrown away after reading the first few sentences. The man was practically begging Harry to support him publicly, as payback to Sirius' name being cleared. Remus' letter was much more interesting.

Harry, where are you? We checked on you at Privet Drive, and Petunia told me you left! I know you didn't like staying there, but they were your family…but I won't make you go back. Can you at least tell me where you are now, so I can make sure you're alright?

-Remus

Harry felt a little guilty for making the man worried like that. He wrote a quick note back, and within a few hours, Remus and Tonks were on his doorstep.

Remus looked rather haggard, and hugged Harry tightly as soon as he saw him. Harry was a little self conscious- he felt a little grimy, achy, and sleep deprived, but Remus didn't care.

"Merlin, thank goodness you're okay. Didn't you read Albus' letter? He said he'd left one for you."

Harry frowned. "Yeah. I read it. It didn't like that he just dropped me off there while I was unconscious- I didn't even have a choice, did I?"

He sat down on a dusty loveseat, and Tonks sat on the armrest next to him, while Remus sat by his side.

"You planning on staying here?" Tonks asked.

"Haven't got any other place to go, do I?" Harry mumbled.

Remus furrowed his brow. "The weird thing is, how did you get into this house in the first place?"

Harry looked at Remus a bit oddly, and the man explained. "Sirius was the owner of the house. The Fidelis should have fallen when he died."

"Er…well, unless he transferred ownership to Harry." Tonks said cautiously. "After all, didn't Albus try getting in last week?"

Harry's eyes went wide. "I thought Dumbledore had cast the Fidelis- I thought the secret was his."

"Yeah, it was, but now it's yours, because you own the house. Until you set another secret keeper, it will continue to be you. It's kind of frowned upon not to have a separate secret keeper, because whole Estates have been known to vanish completely because of that. The only reason we knew how to get here was because you wrote us." Remus said.

Harry's brows raised. He really didn't want to have to set another secret keeper, but...it sort of made sense. "Huh. Okay. So I guess you guys aren't using this as HQ anymore."

They both shook their heads.

"So I have no reason to tell Dumbledore where I am."

Tonk's hair changed green, and Remus arched a brow. "Harry, he's really worried about you."

"If he was so worried about me, he shouldn't have dropped me off at the Dursleys while I was unconscious. Now, I'm going to stay here. Remus, Tonks, you guys are welcome to drop by whenever you like. I might tell Ron and Hermione where I am so they can visit, but nobody else."

He got up. "I'm going to finish unpacking." He hadn't done much since his arrival to Grimmauld place, except be ill. He was so tired, but he was scared to sleep.

Remus and Tonks stood as well, and Remus frowned. "Okay. I'll let Albus know that you're okay. I won't tell him where you are, though."

Harry nodded, and the man left. Tonks gave him a cheeky grin. "So, what are your plans for the summer Harry?"

"No clue." Harry mumbled, going into the foyer. She followed him. "I mean, when I was stuck at the Dursleys, I was always doing housework and stuff. When I was at the Burrow, I always flew and played Quidditch with Ron and the others…here, there's not much to do."

Tonks shrugged, following him up the stairs. "I wouldn't say that. You're in the muggle world- people don't know you here. I could take you to a few places."

Harry gave her a Look. "What sort of places?"

She shrugged, trying to look casual, but failed. "Clubs and stuff."

Harry laughed. "Tonks, why would you want to hang out with me? I'm going to go get unpacked."

That week, Harry unpacked his things, and cleaned up around the house a bit. His dreams were getting less and less violent, and seemed to calm down some. He was averaging about five hours a night, which was good for him. And...surprisingly, he felt better than he had in a long time. Clearer, somehow- clearer than he had been in years. He had no idea how much that potion had affected him until then.

Ron and Hermione had both written him, but he ignored their letters. He just wanted some time alone, for now. To process things. Everywhere he looked, he was reminded of Sirius, and kept thinking of the war, of Voldemort. He tried not to, but it was hard. Especcially with the nightmares.

Something that helped was the box that his Aunt had given to him. Inside was his Mother's diary, and a few pictures inside. One, was of his Mother and Father, who looked to be in their Seventh year. There were pictures of his Mother as a little girl, playing in the garden, drawing, and swinging on a swing set. To his surprise, he found a picture of her with Snape, of all people, when they must have been eleven years old- they didn't even have the House patches on their robes yet.

His mother must have gotten it taken the day that they left for Hogwarts.

Snape, as a kid, was an odd thing to see. His skin was just as pale, and his dark hair just as lanky. Had he always been that way?

He stared at the pictures often, putting them into his photo album along with the other pictures he'd gotten over the years. The Diary was full of information- some things he found were invaluable, others were embarrassing. He did not want to know what his Mother thought about his Father, thank you very much.

He'd also found some girly magazines that Ron had left behind, and found a book Ginny had left behind as well- the title made him crack a smile- "One Hundred Beautification Potions, Spells, and Charms, to Charm your Man."

He rolled his eyes at the title, and flopped on his bed. Ron's magazines slid off the edge, and on to the floor. The magazines did little for Harry, which was why he was reading this book just for a laugh.

He began to read, and his grin faded away.

So yeah...what did you think? Good? No? Boring? Then why are you still reading? XD

Seriously (Siriusly) , I hope you guys liked the chapter, even if was short.