Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry looked around his surroundings, taking in the antiques that were around him as he waited for the house elf to get Lucius Malfoy. It had been two days since Hagrid had told him about his meeting with Harry Potter and Dumbledore had been investigating the claim of Harry's family and what he had discovered did not make him happy.

Sophia and Michael Cavendish had legally adopted one Harry James Potter when the child was 16 months old, after he had been put up for adoption by his Muggle relatives. The adoption had been allowed to go through, even though the Cavendishes had been living in America by that time because both still retained British citizenship. When Albus discovered that Sophia was, in fact, the sister of his own Potions Master, Severus Snape, he had gone to the man to ask why he had not been informed about the adoption; Snape told him that he did not know that his nephew was the famous Harry Potter. Severus had not been to see his sister since the end of the war, being unable to travel abroad because of the Dark Mark on his arm, and Sophia had never told him anything about her son's previous life. When asked what the Malfoys could be planning by keeping Harry's location secret Severus had no idea. While he and Lucius were close, he knew there were plenty of secrets that the Malfoy head kept to himself.

After Albus discovered the adoption, he went to the Ministry to see if there was anything he could do to reverse it and had not been happy to find out that the adoption was final. Short of something happening to the elder Cavendishes, and if they did not make provisions for said something happening, there was no way that Albus Dumbledore could legally remove Harry from his family, so Dumbledore began to work on another plan. The first part had begun with the Weasley family, a family that staunchly supported Dumbledore in everything. They were also a family that already had three children going to Hogwarts and a fourth, a son Harry's age, starting there that September. Albus asked Arthur and Molly Weasley to encourage their children, especially the younger ones, to befriend young Harry and encourage him to their side. He didn't know how close Harry was to young Draco Malfoy but he was positive that he would be able to separate the two boys once they reached school.

"Headmaster, I must say this is a surprise," Lucius Malfoy greeted the wizard, drawing him out of his planning. Lucius had to fight back a smirk at seeing Albus Dumbledore in his front parlor, knowing exactly why the old wizard was there. He had wondered how long it would take for the Headmaster to contact him, knowing exactly where Hagrid would head after their confrontation in Diagon Alley.

"Somehow I doubt that," Dumbledore said, seeing through the meaningless lie. "And I am also sure that you know why I am here."

"Then why don't we take this to my study where we may get more comfortable." Lucius suggested, leading the way towards the room. As they were heading towards the back of the house, they passed by a group of windows that looked out upon the back yard and what Dumbledore saw there caused him to stop in his tracks.

"My God, he looks just like his father," Albus said, watching as Harry and Draco flew around a makeshift Quidditch pitch. Both boys were laughing as they tossed a Quaffle too and fro. Lucius stopped, smiling at the picture his son and his friend made. Seeing Draco so carefree and not afraid to laugh in public was a marked difference from the way Lucius himself was raised.

"They both look like their fathers, I believe," Lucius correct, well aware of the similarities between himself and Draco as well as Harry and his biological father, James Potter. "Luckily for everyone, their personalities and relationship is completely different from their elders. Come, Headmaster, my study is right over here." Albus took one last look at Harry and Draco flying and followed Lucius to his study. Once the two men were situated, Dumbledore got right down to his reason for coming to Malfoy Manor.

"Lucius, I've come to talk to you about Harry."

"If that's the case, I believe we need at least one of his parents here. Dobby." A house elf arrived with a pop.

"You called, Master Lucius sir."

"Yes, Dobby. Go find Master Michael and ask him to join us here."

"Yes, Master." With that Dobby disappeared with another pop.

"You don't mind waiting a few minutes, do you Headmaster?" Lucius asked, smirking at the older man. He couldn't wait to see what Dumbledore had up his sleeve.

"Of course not, Lucius. In fact, while we're waiting, maybe you could tell me how you and the Cavendishes became so close," Dumbledore asked. "It looks as if Harry and Draco are rather close."

"There practically brothers," Lucius replied just before a knock came on the door. "Come in." Michael Cavendish entered, closing he door behind him when he noticed someone with Lucius.

"You wanted to see me, Lucius?"

"Michael, this is Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Pleasure to meet the man who will be in charge of making sure my son and his friends are taken care of for the next seven years," Michael greeted the elder wizard, steeling himself for the confrontation that he was sure was about to happen. "Do you make it a habit of visiting the homes of all your students or is there something special we can help you with?"

"Actually I came to talk to you about Harry Potter," Dumbledore began. "While I think it's noble that you and your wife took him in when he was younger, for whatever reasons, I must tell you that it's imperative that he be returned to his relatives. His aunt and uncle are aware of that and are, at this minute, preparing for Harry's return, so I would appreciate it if you could have Harry meet me in the front hall and I can take him to Surrey."

"You must be joking, of course," Michael stated, humor lacing his voice. "Harry is going nowhere except maybe to London for some more shopping before school starts. We are also planning a trip to Hogsmeade to look for a home there while Harry is in school that way he knows we are close by if he needs either of us."

"Mr. Cavendish, I understand your reluctance at letting Harry go, but you must understand that Harry has a larger destiny than most children his age. He needs to be with his family, it's for the good of everyone involved." Dumbledore looked between the two men before him, knowing that it was going to be an uphill battle to get them to go along with his plans, but knew that he would eventually succeed, if not now, when Harry went to school.

"I understand that you believe my son has a destiny, as well as a good idea of what you believe that destiny is, but that is not my concern," Michael Cavendish stated. "My only concern is that my son is raised right and knows that he is loved and cared for. And that is not going to happen if he is being raised by people that gave him up when he was nothing more than a baby. No matter what you say, I doubt their feelings have changed that much."

"Be that as it may, Harry needs to return to the Dursleys. His aunt and uncle. It's where he will be safe."

"Harry has been perfectly safe all his life," Lucius broke in. "And haven't you always said that Hogwarts is one of the safest places in the country. So between the two places, Harry should be fine."

Dumbledore wanted to protest more, convince both men that his plan was for the best of everyone, but he knew that it would do no good. If anything, it would make them suspect something of him and he couldn't afford that. He just had to make sure his plan to separate Harry from Draco and the Malfoys, as well as the Cavendishes, once he was at school worked.