Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all of its wonderful characters belong to JK Rowling.
When Harry stepped into Grimmauld Place he felt an overwhelming sense of welcome. The place was brimming full of centuries of magic and that magic seemed to recognize him somehow and welcome him into it. It wrapped around him and cocooned him in a magical warmth that was at once familiar and foreign. Of course after this initial warm feeling he found the place a bit repellent with its dusty and fading motif. The house elf heads on the walls were also more than a little off putting. A portrait of an older dark haired woman vaguely reminiscent of Sirius's own aristocratic features started shrieking at them about being blood traitors and mudblood filth but abruptly cut off when she caught sight of Harry gaping at him in astonishment.
Harry wanted to question her on the staring but was forced to plod on until they had reached a living room of sorts. Harry was surprised when his friends and godfather poured into the room. Of course they all stopped dead upon seeing Harry, looks of confusion on their faces as they gazed at him trying to figure out who he was and why he was here. Harry couldn't help but quickly pick out Hermione Granger's bushy brown hair in the sea of redheaded Weasleys. He felt a burst of anger seeing both of his best friends here together with his godfather while he'd been stuck panicking alone at Privet Drive especially when neither of them had even bothered to respond to his mail.
His godfather Sirius Black was the first to pull out of his shock.
"Moody you paranoid bastard did you really have to use polyjuice on him? You were just apparating here," Sirius joked jumping to the most logical conclusion.
"We didn't use polyjuice Sirius," replied Remus softly.
"What do you mean? Who is this then? I thought you were going to get Harry tonight," said Sirius looking disappointed.
"I am Harry but I haven't taken polyjuice or any other type of potion," replied Harry.
"No you can't be Harry. There's no way. I mean of course you could have grown some but there's no way you would have ever changed this much. Is this some sort of joke Moony?" said Sirius looking a little hurt.
"It's no joke Black something's happened to Potter and we need to get to the bottom of things quickly. This could be some sort of Death Eater trick. I'll floo Dumbledore," with that Moody stomped out of the room.
"That's really you Harry?" asked Hermione, timidly moving towards him.
"Yes," said Harry firmly.
"Wow mate talk about extreme changes and I thought I had grown a lot the last few weeks," said Ron Weasley forcing a chuckle.
"I don't know I think it's a—"
"—good look for you," said Fred and George Weasley wearing identical grins as they looked over Harry's new appearance closely.
"It's nothing to joke about, it could be something serious," snapped Hermione looking worriedly at Harry.
Harry couldn't help but agree with her and was nervous about the whole thing. But mixed in was the hurt and feelings of abandonment he had from everyone ignoring him for half the summer while he was forced through these changes with no way to contact anyone.
"We'll figure this out pup, don't worry," Sirius said forcing a smile and giving him a quick hug though he seemed a little nervous hugging Harry. No doubt feeling strange, what with him looking like a completely different person and all. But it still hurt Harry that Sirius couldn't bring himself to look past Harry's new looks.
Harry nodded and Hermione and Ron brought him upstairs to the bedroom he would be sharing with Ron. He then interrogated them about the so called Order of the Phoenix and learned his assumptions had been correct and that it was a secret organization to fight Voldemort led by Dumbledore. It was also secret from the Ministry since the Ministry refused to recognize that Voldemort had even returned and had gone so far as to call Harry a liar and mentally disturbed. Even when Azkaban had been broken into and all the Death Eaters were freed they still refused to recognize that it was Voldemort behind it. No they blamed Sirius.
Harry also couldn't help but bring up the fact that they hadn't contacted him all summer.
"We're sorry Harry but Professor Dumbledore asked us not to," said Hermione wringing her hands nervously with confliction as if she had known it was wrong but just couldn't bring herself to go against Dumbledore's orders.
"And that makes it okay? I really needed support this summer what with Cedric and then these changes. I didn't have anyone that I could turn to for help," Harry spat internally seething over the fact that Dumbledore had forbade them from contacting him and even angrier that they had listened.
"We're sorry mate. Dumbledore must have just thought you needed some space," replied Ron shrugging it off.
Was he really that stupid? Did Ron really think he'd want to be cut off completely after he'd not only seen another student die but had almost been murdered himself? He tried to shake away some of the anger. Most of the time Ron was a good friend but how had he never before realized just how obtuse he could be? Dumbledore said something and immediately that made it the complete truth in the redhead's mind. The same could even be said for Hermione who he had thought to possess at least a bit more sense to realize he had needed someone to talk to after the traumatizing event and that cutting him off wasn't the best of ideas.
Harry was saved from further conversation when Sirius called up to them to let them know Dumbledore was there. Harry followed Ron and Hermione down into a large kitchen where everyone else had already gathered. The group included Remus, Sirius, Moody, Tonks, the twins, Ginny Weasley, Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, Minerva McGonagall his transfiguration professor, Severus Snape his potions professor and all around slimy git and finally Albus Dumbledore his headmaster. The headmaster wore his normal clashing, brightly colored outfits but he quickly lost the expected twinkle in his eyes when he caught his first look of Harry. In fact the man actually paled at the sight of him which left Harry feeling extremely nervous.
Professor McGonagall and Snape looked equally shocked by his change in appearance but it was a more general look of shock at his radical transformation rather than the complete one on Dumbledore's face. He knew something or had deduced something from Harry's appearance. He recognized Harry's new features. Dumbledore quickly pulled out of his shock enough to ask Snape to start running a few diagnostic spells on Harry. They all came back fine stating that nothing was wrong with Harry so they cast more complex ones. People in the room started shifting nervously and Harry couldn't help but wonder what all this meant if they couldn't find anything wrong with him. Eventually they ran out of diagnostic spells but all of them had come back stating that Harry was completely healthy with no foreign potion or spell affecting him in the slightest.
"What does this mean Albus?" Professor McGonagall asked the question they were all now thinking.
"There is only one thing left to try," said Dumbledore softly with a somber and defeated expression.
Harry had a feeling he wasn't going to like where this was going.