"If we go to him telling him we are from the future and have come back to correct his mistakes, what do you think he will do?" Harry asked pointedly, "He'd obliviate us to keep us from messing up his plans or he would have us arrested for meddling in time! If he did listen to us he'd still head off on his own and try to fix it by himself and get himself killed again!"
"All this because you don't want to marry Parkinson?" Snape asked.
"No, that was the start of it. But I want to save lives while we do this." He explained, "I want to have a godfather, a mentor and a potions professor when all is said and done. I want all my friends and I want my own godson to grow up with his parents and all of his grandparents. I want both twins alive and I want to walk away from all this actually feeling like we won."
"Tell me which of my snakes know about this?" Snape asked.
"Blaise, myself, Daphne and Astoria." Draco listed the names, "The rest didn't want to be a part of it in case it failed. Of course none of us knew we would be drug back here to do this again."
"Your grades are no better than last year." The Professor glared at him.
"If they had jumped for any of us you would have been suspicious." Harry explained, "We are trying to keep a low profile, but we can't do it alone. You have always been an important part of the light side. Oh, one more thing."
Snape raised an eyebrow, "Just one?"
"The prophecy can only be pulled off the shelf by either me or Volde." He explained, "I'd rather Volde not know until he has to. But the order members don't need the injuries that will happen."
"Are you sure?" he asked.
"That was found out when one of the DOM workers told someone later in the year." Harry said, "It's why Volde ended up using a vision of him torturing Sirius to get me to the ministry. Of course Dumbles never bothered to tell me anything so I fell for it." He paused for a moment before changing subjects, "I know you don't like Sirius and I know you have good reason. But he has spent twelve years in Azkaban, do you think that is enough punishment for all he did to you."
"I won't become his friend." Snape growled, "But I can be civil as long as he does."
"Good enough." He said, "Now you guys have some work to do so I'll leave you to it."
"How did your meeting go the other night?" Draco asked before he reached the door.
"Sirius is fine and ready to help." Harry grinned as he unlocked the door, "Although he doesn't know he has to be best friends with Professor Snape yet."
He left quickly before Snape could say anything. Harry made his way out of the dungeon but didn't get far before he was waylaid. The twins had been waiting on him.
"I thought we were going to have some fun with the toad?" they asked together.
"Blame Hermione she's the one that told Minnie." Harry waved them off, "I was too tired last night to stop them."
"What are we going to do now?" Fred asked.
"We didn't make any plans so we could have the day free." George added.
"We could work on some inventions." Harry suggested, "I need to get Ginny then we could meet you in the ROR in about twenty minutes?"
"You have some ideas?" they grinned rubbing their hands together.
"I have a few but Ginny has more." He left them to go find his girlfriend.
"Then by all means bring our lovely sister along." The agreed together.
They met outside the room and George began to pace. Harry stopped him, "Wait, I have another job to do first then we can do prank planning."
"What?" George asked and moved away so Harry could pace.
Once inside the twins gaped at the room full of junk. It was Fred who moved first, "Just think of the possibilities of using stuff in here for pranks."
"Focus." Ginny smacked his arm, "We have to find the diadem and then you can scavenge."
"Ravenclaw's diadem was in here?" George asked.
"Is in here." Harry started, "Ginny take Fred and keep him on task. I know it's in this general area."
"How general of an area?" Fred asked.
"Between here and the wall that is somewhere off that direction." Harry pointed to the left, "Look for a bust of an ugly warlock and it will be somewhere near it."
"Very specific." George grumbled, "Shouldn't take us more than six months to locate it."
"Harry, try to concentrate. When you came to hide your book which direction did you go first?" Ginny prodded.
"Left." He stated and moved that direction. They searched for quite a while when Harry spotted a few brooms, "Should have brought mine, it might have gone faster."
"Why not use these?" George asked.
"Yea alright." Harry didn't really like the idea of using those brooms again.
He grabbed one and began to lift off with George right behind him. When they reached the top of the pile near them George moved off to find Fred and Ginny to offer the same idea to them. But they had also found brooms and they were just topping a pile of junk.
"Great minds think alike." George grinned.
"That's right. Harry and I do have great minds." Ginny grinned.
"I've found it." Harry called and the trio turned toward where he yelled but he wasn't in sight.
"Where are you?" George asked.
Harry shot off sparks and the three of them moved his direction. He already had the tooth out and was stabbing it just as they reached him. He mounted his broom and they took off for the door. Once outside George paced again and they re-entered and began their prank planning session.
"So what did you have in mind?" Fred asked when they all took seats on the two couches that appeared. A writing table sat in front of the twins couch.
"Battle pranks." Ginny told them, "Something to keep the death eaters too busy to kill us."
"We're thinking your portable swamps might slow them down when they first arrive." Harry said, "Then a few new surprises to keep them off kilter. Sentries not only to let us know bad guys are there but to put up some resistance too. We also want to get rid of the spiders or at least cut their numbers way back and something to take a giant down or at least make him pause."
"I would like to see you develop something that will freeze anyone with a dark mark." Ginny added, "Hit them where they are weakest. Next I want you to see about automating the gargoyles on the building. I don't know why they aren't part of the castles defense."
"They may be and the knowledge to activate them is lost." Harry offered.
"Maybe we can work on that part." She shrugged, "Last but not least, get with Neville and see if you can alter any plants to obey orders. A venomous tentacula who could attack on command would be cool."
"Wow, that's a lot." George looked thoughtful, "Ok, one thing at a time. Portable swamps were not made until later this year. We developed that solely for Umbridge."
"Really?" Harry asked, "Why a swamp?"
"Toads live in swamps." Fred grinned.
"Point." Harry conceded with a grin, "So can you develop them early?"
"Yes no problem I know how we did it and I'm sharing that with Fred later tonight." George waved him off, "The sentries though, that's going to be tough. Getting rid of the spiders may be a Ron and Hermione job more than us. However once they know how to get rid of them we'll do it. I don't think Ron would like to go near the nest."
"Not again." Harry sighed.
"What?" George asked.
"What?" Harry asked bewildered.
"You said not again." Fred pointed out.
"Oh, yes Ron and I had a run in with them back in second year." Harry shook his head, "Hagrid sent us to talk to them to find out about the basilisk. If it hadn't been for your dad's car we would never have made it out alive. I thought he already told you about this?"
"We thought he exaggerated." George shrugged, "You really went into the nest and talked to a spider the size of the knight bus?"
"Yes about that size." Harry agreed, "He gets sick and dies next year. Just be sure that Hagrid doesn't find out we're trying to kill them off. He thinks their marvelous creatures that are just misunderstood. However, I think they really were planning on eating us just like they said they were."
"I'm hungry." Ginny interrupted their conversation, "Dinner isn't for another hour. Who is up for a kitchen run?"
"I thought we were planning?" Harry argued.
"You didn't even eat lunch." She stood and tugged his arm.
"Let's go." The twins agreed and they all drug Harry from the room and headed down to the kitchens, "You're too scrawny to miss any meals."
Harry huffed but let himself be forced to the kitchens. However when they arrived he got a shock.
"Master Harry!" Nearly all the elves stopped working and turned and bowed to him.
"Uhhh." Harry looked wide eyed at the others who shrugged back at him.
"Harry Potter Sir has you come to visit Dobby?" the excitable elf popped up next to him.
"Hi Dobby." Harry teetered at the unexpected flashback, "We were just looking for a snack."
The elves quickly gathered enough snacks for twenty people and placed it in front of the teens. Another elf asked, "Is you needing anything else?"
"Umm… why do you keep calling me master?" He finally asked.
"You have been recognized by the castle." Babble the elf that had sent them all back in time was the one to approach and explain, "You've reached your magical majority and the castle knows it."
"Has it told anyone else?" he asked.
"Just the ghosts." Babble answered, "We knows you've been sent back by us you has our magics on you."
"Can anyone else sense your magic on us?" Ginny asked.
"No." he replied.
All this time Dobby was standing by them wringing his hands and Harry acknowledged this, "Are you ok Dobby?"
"Dobby be wondering why you came back." He looked up into the eyes of his idol.
"We made some mistakes the first time." Harry sighed, "We wanted to correct all of those mistakes. And the first one I want to correct is Winky. Is she still here?"
Dobby pointed to the dirty little elf curled up by the fire with a butter beer bottle in her hand. When he turned back around he had tears in his eyes, "She's sick."
"Can you rouse her for me?" he asked. Dobby came back with the elf a few seconds later, "Winky?"
"Yessmm." She slurred.
"I want you to be one of my house elves. But before I do you must get better." She perked up when he made his offer.
"Yous not wanting me. I's a bad elf." She started to cry.
"No you were mistreated." Harry stated, "Do you want to be a free elf and get paid like Dobby or do you want to be owned."
"I's hating being free." She scrubbed her face with her hand.
"You get better and get cleaned up and I'll take you as my elf." He made his offer.
She nodded then snapped her fingers and she was clean and sober and ready to bond. Her dress already had the Potter coat of arms on the front. Dobby was rather misty eyed as he witnessed her change. The other elves all nodded in approval.
"How do we do this?" Harry asked Babble.
"It's done." Babble shrugged, "As soon as she met your requirements the bond was set."
"Ok, good." Harry turned to Dobby, "Dobby I want to hire you away from Hogwarts. I'll pay you double what Dumbledore is paying you and I'll give you a day off a week."
"No, I want to bond too." Dobby said, "I liked being free from bad master but I'd rather be your elf."
"But…" Harry started but realized what he had seen on his face when Winky had gotten bonded, "Ok, as you wish. You may wear whatever you want. If you want to keep the socks and things you already own then feel free to wear them at any time. Winky if there is anything you wish to wear you may do the same. For the time being I would like you to go work at Sirius' house. Do I need to tell you the secret?"
"No we knows about all places yous will inherit." Dobby and Winky answered together.
"Places?" Harry asked.
"You's be having seven properties that yous be owning." Dobby stated.
"Several are in bad shapes." Winky nodded sagely.
"I'm aware of Godric's Hollow and Sirius' place." Harry nodded, "Any others?"
"Potterhall in Scotland, the Black Palace in Germany, an island in the Caribbean, a flat in London, a vacation home in Italy and Hogwarts." Dobby gave the list.
"Ok." Harry rubbed his hands over his face, "How many of them are from Sirius?"
"The Black Palace." Winky answered.
"Ok, Dobby would you take a note to Sirius for me?" he asked.
"Yes Dobby can do that." He nodded and his bat like ears wiggled.
George handed him a quill and parchment and he quickly jotted down the information about Winky and Dobby and the place they had told him about. He asked if they should come to his place to help clean or if he should send them to the palace to get it prepared for him.
"Stay and wait for his answer please. Do not give this to his house elf and ignore him if he says anything rude." Harry instructed. He then turned back to Babble, "Sorry about holding you off. Tell me about this Hogwarts thing."
"You have been recognized by the castle." He said again.
"Recognized as what?" he asked.
"The heir of three Founders." Babble explained finally, "Gryffindor and Hufflepuff by birth and Slytherin by conquest."
"But he's not dead here yet." Harry argued.
"You destroyed his body fifteen years ago." The elf pointed out, "That was enough."
"He has a body again." Harry wasn't willing to give up.
"But there is no Slytherin left." He shook his head, "Bone of his muggle father, flesh from worthless rabble and your blood. Blood of Gryffindor and Hufflepuff but no more Slytherin."
"Fine so I own three quarters of Hogwarts." He gave in.
"No you own it all." He corrected, "There is no Ravenclaw heir."
Harry dropped his face in his hands before he looked up again, "What kind of responsibilities does that give me?"
"You have already corrected the first and biggest problem." Sir Nick floated in through the wall followed by three other ghosts.
"Umbridge." He stated.
"Correct." He nodded.
"You will be expected to correct any mistakes like that." The Bloody Baron spoke making three of the four teens shudder, "You have also taken care of the second problem."
"Which is that?" George asked.
"The jinx on the defense job." Helena answered, "It was on the diadem, when you cleansed it you destroyed the jinx."
"Way to go Harry, now we can get a good professor at last." Fred cheered.
"But we have no way to get rid of another bad one." George shook his head.
"Harry can get rid of them." Ginny grinned, "He owns Hogwarts."
"I don't know if it works that way." Harry shook his head.
"Actually it does." The fat friar grinned cheekily.
"So I can say move Snape to defense and hire Slughorn for potions?" Harry asked.
"If they accept." Helena answered.
"What about the Headmaster?" Harry asked, "Isn't he in charge of all that?"
"Not if you don't like his choices." She replied.
"I can get rid of Binns?" he asked.
"No." the teens grumbled as Nick grinned, "But you can move the class to another room and hire someone else."
"Why hasn't anyone thought of that before?" Harry wondered aloud.
"We have suggested it several times to the Headmaster but he has chosen to ignore Hogwarts." The Baron growled.
"Again with the ignoring details." Harry hummed, "I'm beginning to see a pattern."
"What do you mean?" Fred asked.
"I was wondering the other night when we visited with Sirius why Dumbledore didn't get him a trial. As top dog in our Wizengamot and ICW surely he has enough pull to get it through." Harry pointed out, "Now he's blatantly ignoring good advice from Hogwarts. So my question is; is he old and senile or does he have some master plan that includes leaving Sirius hang and a ghost teaching us nothing."
"I vote for an evil master plan." George offered with a slight laugh.
"You don't seem all that shocked about owning Hogwarts." Fred said after the ghosts finished talking and left.
"This is Harry." Ginny pointed to him, "The guy that has all the weirdest stuff happen to him. You do remember his life up to this point?"
"Yes, but this is Hogwarts." Fred looked exasperated.
"We had prior warning." Harry waved him off, "The elves were calling me Master back in the other time line. I kind of suspected something like this. The Slytherin part blew me away though. I wonder if that's why the hat wanted to put me in Slytherin?"
"No way." Fred argued, "It couldn't have wanted to do that."
"That's what took so long. It keep saying you'll be great in Slytherin." He shook his head, "I keep saying no Volde was from there and I wanted no part of that."
"That's why it put you in Gryffindor." Ginny said, "You were brave enough to fight the hat."
Harry started laughing and shook his head at her antics, "You've got a lot of twin influence there."
"Of course." George grinned, "We trained this one right."
"We tried to train Ron but… that was just a mess." Fred shook his head.
"You went about it a little differently with Ron." Harry shook his head.
"We learned from that and taught Ginny right." George grinned.
Dobby returned with a message a few minutes later. His note was clear, "I'm not leaving you alone."
"Alright." Harry grinned, "Go to Sirius and make sure he is well taken care of."