A/N. All the usual disclaimers apply. Not JKR, not making any sort of profit aside from personal satisfaction. As always, my happiness if you are enjoying the story so far, and reviews are always appreciated.

I have known terror dizzy spells
finding out the secrets words won't tell
whatever it is it can't be named
there's a part of my world that's fading away

If I Ever Feel Better, Phoenix

When I wasn't reading another book about the various potions typically needed in everyday life that Ben insisted I needed to know, or about the rules of his favourite wizarding sport, Quidditch, I was reading over the letters I received from Harry. I had received plenty since he arrived at Hogwarts, at least three a week. Every time I saw Hedwig arrive I would feel lighter somehow, like a small part of me that was taken when Harry left was being brought back to me. I loved how his letters were basically just all of his thoughts put down onto paper; Harry was one of those people who wrote how he thought. His letters sounded exactly like his mind, familiar and comforting, and I needed that connection more than anything.

We have our first flying lessons tomorrow, and everyone else in my dorm – most of the first years, are really excited, telling these amazing stories of how they fly at home all the time. I'm not looking forward to making a fool of myself, although I think Neville Longbottom and Hermione Granger will both be worse than me. Currently Ron and Dean Thomas are fighting over which sport is better, Quidditch or football. Ron doesn't understand the appeal of any sport not involving flying of some kind, not knowing anything different to Quidditch. He doesn't really get that it's the same for us too. I guess I am sort of excited about it all; it'll be interesting to see how it goes anyway, and I'll be able to tell you about it before you start next year. I won't send this letter until after my lesson, so you don't have to wait to hear how it all goes.

You won't believe it. The lesson today was... I'll just have to start at the beginning.

Neville broke his wrist at the start of the lesson, and Madam Hooch (who was teaching us) had to take him up to see Madam Pomfrey. Neville had gotten a Remembrall from his Gran in the mail this morning, because he's so forgetful. It's like this round glass sphere that fills itself with a deep red mist if you've forgotten something. It's pretty cool, and Neville was really glad to have it, I think. Anyway it fell out of his pocket when he fell, and Malfoy was threatening to get on his broom while Hooch was gone and put it in a tree so Neville couldn't find it. Malfoy, he just reminds me so much of what Dudley and Piers were like, I was so angry. I tried to get him just to give it to me, but reason doesn't exactly work with him, as he isn't incredibly bright. He did go up on his broom and I followed, and the thing was, even though I had never been on a broom before, nothing in the world felt as right as that did. The feel of the wood on my skin, the wind all around me; for a moment I felt peace. Like I had control over everything. And then actually flying the broom was wonderful, a feeling I couldn't possibly describe with words, at least not as well as you could. It is something you will need to feel for yourself, once you're here.

Malfoy ended up throwing the Remembrall towards a classroom window, but I wasn't thinking about that. All these things that happened next were no conscious thoughts on my part, but maybe instinct. I could tell how it was going to fall and how I was going to fly, how I would catch it, the speed I would need. I did it effortlessly and landed easily, only then coming back to reality and having the capacity to think about the world and people around me. When McGonagall came outside for me I had no idea what to expect – but definitely not what happened.

We went to Professor Flitwick's class and McGonagall asked for Wood. I had no idea what that was until a boy walked out and was introduced as Oliver Wood, the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. McGonagall then declared that she had found Wood a seeker. It took me a full moment to comprehend that she meant me. She then raved about the way I caught the Remembrall, saying it was an extraordinary dive, it was my first time on a broom, how easily I did it, and that Charlie Weasley couldn't have. I didn't know what half of this meant at the time, but Oliver looked like the time Dudley found out he was going to be celebrating his birthday and his half birthday every year.

So it turns out that Ron's brother Charlie was the Gryffindor seeker until he graduated last year, and they hadn't found a replacement yet, and the Quidditch season starts soon. McGonagall really wants to beat Snape, so she's letting me play on the house team. The thing is, first years never make the house teams except for exemptions like this, when a teacher has given their approval. So that makes me the youngest seeker in a century, which is alright, but even better was when McGonagall said that dad would have been really proud, because he was a great Quidditch player too.

The letter continued for a bit and I read misty eyed, the mention of my dad hitting me full force. Would my parents have wanted this; for me to sacrifice such a huge part of my life for my brother? Or would they be disappointed I will be in Slytherin? I knew there was no way I could reason this out. If they were alive today, neither Harry nor I would be in this mess, and we would have adults that cared about us and made these choices without jeopardising our safety. Lily and James were these figures that haunted my dreams, people I had to make up in my mind because I have no memories of either. That hurt more than anything, and most of the time I would happily not think about them, if it meant not reminding me that they didn't exist for me at all.

Harry's letter carried on a bit more, making me laugh and ponder a bit more, until he mentioned something... odd.

So I saw an old copy of the Daily Prophet in Hagrid's hut, one from the 1st July, saying how Gringotts had been broken into the day before, my birthday – the day we were there with Hagrid. The article mentioned that the vault had been emptied earlier that same day. Which made me believe it ties back to whatever Hagrid had to get for Dumbledore. When I brought up the robbery, Hagrid got really evasive, and because he's so terrible at it, you know he is lying or avoiding something. The thing that I keep thinking back to is how Hagrid said that Gringotts is the safest place in the world if you wanted to hide something – except maybe Hogwarts. It's something I hope I get a chance to look into more, and I'll keep you updated.

Keep safe, and don't let the Dursley's force you to do everything. If it starts getting too much, talk to Kate and Ben. If they're Dumbledore's friends then they should help you, and I'd feel better knowing you were being looked after properly.

Talk soon

Love, Harry

p.s. I didn't get a chance to post this straight away – long story involving Malfoy trying to get me expelled like normal – but Ron, Hermione and I ended up trapped in the forbidden third floor corridor and it turns out there's a three headed dog in there, guarding a trap door. I'm guessing it is whatever Hagrid took from Gringotts for Dumbledore, the thing that someone attempted to steal – H

It took me several moments to gather my thoughts. When I had finally formulated some ideas of my own, Ben walked into the classroom alone today, which was just as strange as Harry's letter.

"Where's Kate?" I asked bluntly. Ben raised an eyebrow at me good naturedly.

"And here I thought you enjoyed seeing me, Potter" he teased and I grinned ruefully at him.

"I do, you know that. Sorry I was blunt, I'm just a bit thrown off this morning" I glanced at my letter without thinking, and Ben looked at me with both curiousity and concern. I realised he was waiting for an explanation, and having none I just passed him the letter from Harry. He too spent some time reading through its contents carefully, like one would do before starting an extremely difficult recipe, or like Ben says I should do with every potion no matter what. Nearly ten minutes had passed, and he still hadn't said anything, so I decided to ask one of the first things I thought of while I had been reading.

"Do you remember that book I read the other week about the foundations of wizarding society?" Ben nodded, clearly content to see where I was going with this. "Well I remember reading that Gringotts would neither confirm nor deny the truth about the rumours they have dragons guarding the high level vaults, preferring the fear to act as a deterrent for would be thieves. And the thing is, most people can't make it that far under the ground without a goblin to prevent them from being trapped inside for eternity anyway. So I guess my question is – if a person was planning on breaking into Gringotts, they would need to be more than just very smart in order to get in and get out of a high level vault, because that day Harry and I were there with Hagrid, they don't use keys to open the lock, it is the goblin's fingernail that fits into the groove and opens the door. Griphook said that if anyone other than Gringotts goblin tried it, they would be sucked into the vault and trapped there. They only check every ten years! And you can't go down that far without an escort."

"You're right about the person needing to be more than smart, because no one has ever broken into Gringotts before and got out, which is why this was such big news. The fact that our bank, which is the safest place other than Hogwarts, can be breached..." Ben seemed a little overwhelmed by the new information Harry had on the subject, and I could almost see the wheels turning in his mind.

"Do you know what Professor Dumbledore had Hagrid pick up that day?" I asked curiously. It couldn't have been coincidence that the vault in question was later robbed, and maybe the answer as to who broke in lied with what had been stolen.

"No, I really don't. I'm guessing that's something only Dumbledore and some select staff at Hogwarts know, and most likely for good reason if they've got Fluffy guarding whatever it is."

"Fluffy?" I echoed, incredulous. "The three headed dog is named Fluffy?!"

"It's Hagrid's dog." Ben answered simply. I rolled my eyes, because that really did explain it all, even for me. I learnt enough about Hagrid's fascination for dangerous creatures on our trip to Diagon Alley, and his eagerness over the –

"Rumours of the dragon in the vaults." I finished the thought out loud. "Hagrid was really excited to be going to a high level vault, hoping to see one."

"Him and Charlie both." Ben laughed to himself. I frowned, my thought interrupted.

"Charlie Weasley?" I asked curiously, but then answered my own question. "The brother that went off chasing dragons."

"They have a lot in common." Ben commented easily, but left it at that so I tried to pick up where I had stopped.

"The thing about our trip down to the vault, Harry and I both saw this huge flame of fire at the end of a passageway we passed. I know we were going pretty fast in the cart, but we both saw it, and it was huge. House sized flames. It could have easily been a dragon, unless you know of something else that could have produced so much fire deep in London's underground." Ben was thinking again, and I was getting a little annoyed that I was the only contributor to our conversation.

"Ben? Is there a loop I could join you in here, or are you going to keep your thoughts to yourself?" He laughed at that and seemed ready to indeed share with me, and I waited attentively.

"I'm not withholding any new information from you; the fact is what you've already read is my own level of knowledge surrounding Gringotts' security. Kate would know a bit more about it, but you have to understand that if it has anything to do with her work for the Department of Mysteries she can't talk about it. I'm not saying don't find out what you can or not to be curious about things in our world – your ability to determine fact from fiction, figure out clues and find the right information are just some of the skills we need you to have if you're going to be in Slytherin. So I'm not saying don't keep searching for the answer. Just be aware that right now, I don't know anything else, and Kate may not be able to shed much light on the subject."

"Where is Kate anyway? You never did tell me."

"Out on assignment." Which meant Kate was on assignment for the Department of Mysteries, because I was usually allowed to know more when it was just auror stuff.

We spent the remainder of the afternoon with my attempting a forgetfulness potion, Ben wanting me to learn how to brew a few key ones before I went to school. I had read over the instructions twice before I started by preparing all of the ingredients first, so I could concentrate on combining each for the potion properly. After an hour and a half I had finished, and if Ben was surprised at the attempt, the liquid matching the exact description of the final product, he didn't show it.

"Perfect. Its amazing Al, really. You should be proud, not many first years ever pull this off." We continued like that for the remainder of the day, eating our lunch together in between potions and discussions about certain ingredients like we had on the first day at the hospital. It felt just as normal now as it did then, and I was once again especially glad to have Ben and Kate with me this year, since I didn't have Harry.

The end of the day came and Kate still hadn't returned, worrying me slightly. Ben waylaid my fears, assuring me that it was a simple enough task she had to do, and he would see her before dinner. He asked to keep my letter from Harry, so he could show Kate tonight, which I readily agreed to, if it meant I might get some more helpful information tomorrow. As I packed up my belongings and headed out, I turned back once to look at Ben, who had a grim look on his face and was staring out the window into the ever-greying sky. I knew then that he was worried, but hadn't wanted to scare or worry me, and I felt a sudden burst of anger, because I wanted to be there for him or help him somehow. But knowing I couldn't, even though I desperately wanted to for the person I had grown to consider like family, was enough to placate me and make me feel somewhat contrite.

If Kate isn't back tomorrow I will force him to let me help somehow, but until I then I will let him have his space, because I would want the same if it were Harry.

I turned and left without a word, but I was sure I could feel his eyes on the back of my neck as I did.