A/N: Spelling is being checked with British English - so for those of us on the western side of the Atlantic some of the spelling may look odd or wrong. Please just deal with it.

A/N 2: Harry is a bit slow when it comes to relationships. That has been clear throughout the books. He has just been through a very traumatic battle. He is not thinking logically - he never really has.


May 6, 1998 (still)

Harry was finishing getting ready to head over to the DeMarest manor. The dress robes he had acquired were very similar to the ones that were worn in England. He made sure that the Black family crest was on these robes, however, he had the motto changed from "Toujours Pur" to "Toujours Pur de Coeur".

Rene then brought Harry over to his neighbours for the evening's festivities. Harry was introduced to everyone as the Lord James Black. He met several families who had also been invited. As they had all heard that the wizarding war in Britain had just ended, they were all asking questions about what had happened.

Harry tried to give answers that were as non-committal as possible. Yes, he had been aware of the fighting between Voldemort and his followers and the rest of the wizarding world. Yes, he knew that there was a new government being set up, and he was not surprised when he had heard Kingsley Shacklebolt's name mentioned as the interim Minister for Magic. Baron DeMarest's daughter, Angelique, who appeared to be about 15 or 16 years old, asked the Lord Black if he had fought in the war. Harry was hoping to avoid this question, and he tried to answer honestly but evasively.

"It was a dangerous time over the past year," he said gently, "and many wizards and witches were being attacked openly if they did not follow the Dark Lord. Maybe it was not the best thing to do, but I tried to stay hidden from the forces that followed him. But when the time came for the battle I tried to do what I could. I didn't feel that I actually did that much, I only took out one or two of the enemy, but I tried."

Her sister, Camille, who was perhaps a couple of years older than Harry, followed up with another question. "Did you meet the Boy-Who-Lived?" she asked excitedly. "My friend, Fleur DeLacour, or is it now Weasley or something, well she met him a few years ago. She said he was quite handsome and that he was a very powerful wizard."

"Well, I know of this wizard," said Harry, trying to be evasive still.

The Baron DeMarest turned to him, "We have heard that this young man actually killed the Dark Lord. Is that true?"

"Well, yes," said Harry, "I saw the final duel. Many people did, it happened in front of many of the Death Eaters as well as many of those that opposed Voldemort."

"I heard that Harry Potter killed a thousand Death Eaters!" exclaimed Angelique.

Harry laughed at that comment, "If he had, then there would probably have been no one left to fight for Voldemort."

Camille eyed up the young British Lord, and then she made a pointed statement. "You do not seem overly impressed with this Harry Potter. Are you jealous of him? Did he still a girl from you?"

Harry had not expected those comments. His surprise at the question was initially interpreted as an acknowledgment that one or both of the questions had hit the mark. The Baroness DeMarest now joined in the conversation. "Now my girls, do not tease the young man. I am sure that if he really knew Lord Potter than he would tell us." She turned to Harry and she spoke to him more about the stories they had heard. "Please pardon my girls, Lord Potter, but they had heard many fabulous stories about the young man from their friend, Fleur, when she competed against him in the Tri-Wizard tournament. I would like to know if the stories are true."

"Well, I can tell you honestly that I know many of Harry Potter's friends," he said truthfully. "I have heard many of the stories about the Tri-Wizard Tournament. Is there something in particular you would like to know?"

Angelique squealed as she asked her next question. Harry thought it odd that a 15 year old girl could act like such a young child. "Is it true he killed a dragon?"

"No, Harry did not kill a dragon," he answered with a chuckle. "He did summon his broom and he out flew the dragon, a Hungarian Horntail, if the story is correct, in the process of surviving the first challenge of the tournament."

Camille's attention was piqued. "So, you saw Harry Potter do this then?"

Harry grinned slightly, and he admitted, "Well, not exactly, I was a little busy at the time, but I do know for certain that he managed to escape from the dragon."

Camille eyed him carefully, wondering just why he would have been too busy to watch such a fantastic adventure, particularly as her friend Fleur had told her there were stands erected around the arena. Changing the subject she then questioned him further, "I heard from Fleur that her younger sister Gabrielle owes Harry Potter a life debt as he saved her from drowning."

"Many people thought that might be the case after Mr. Potter rescued Fleur's sister, but the Ministry for Magic assured everyone that no one was truly in danger during that competition and that there was no life debt owed by anyone."

"Maybe you are just jealous of the things that Harry Potter did, maybe you're just jealous that he is a better wizard than you," snapped Camille.

The baroness snapped at her daughter, "Camille, that was uncalled for. That is no way to treat our guest. Apologise immediately young lady!"

Camille's mouth opened in shock at her mother's chastising.

Harry then spoke up, "No that is perfectly all right. I could only hope that I could live up to the legend that is Harry Potter. I know that he has done some amazing things, perhaps the most amazing and the most important is that he did defeat Lord Voldemort. From what I understand, there was no other wizard anywhere that could have done that. Personally, I am happy to avoid the fame and attention that he has drawn. I do not mean to belittle his accomplishments by anything that I have said."

Camille gave her mother a quick glare, then turned back to the Lord Black, "My apologies to you, Lord Black, for accusing you of being jealous." Then she smirked when she added, "Besides, I have heard from my friend Fleur, who was the champion for our school, Beauxbaton, that Harry Potter did not always get his way. In fact, he was jealous of another champion during the tournament."

Harry raised on eyebrow at this statement. "Oh?" he asked. "Now that is a story I would just love to hear."

Camille now spoke as thought she was letting everyone in on a big secret. "Apparently Harry Potter was madly in love with a young witch. As it turned out, Viktor Krum, the champion from Durmstrang, stole his love and took her to the yule ball they held that year."

Harry feigned shock, although he was a little surprised at the comment, "Viktor Krum stole Potter's girl? How could that be?"

"Apparently it was all over the Daily Prophet, you must have seen the articles," she continued. "Also, Harry was so miserable to not be able to take the love of his life to the yule ball that he refused to dance with anyone. He may be the bravest and most powerful wizard of our age, but he seems to be a little bit childish."

Harry just nodded his head in agreement. "So it would seem," he replied simply.

The conversation quickly changed to more common topics such as the weather and the upcoming summer season. The Baron DeMarest then mentioned that they planned to go out for a sail on his yacht on the Mediterranean, and he asked Lord Black if he would like to join his family for the event. Harry was relieved that the conversation no longer revolved around him, or rather the Boy-Who-Lived, and he was looking forward to a good night rest at his home.


May 7, 1998

Hermione had returned to Hogwarts the night before, no closer to finding Harry Potter. She went down to the great hall to get breakfast as she was trying to plan out her day in her mind. She had not made any progress despite spending time studying books in the library or even meeting with the goblins at Gringotts. Well, other than the fact that she learned that Harry is alive, somewhere, but that in and of itself was not terribly surprising considering that he had survived the battle against Voldemort. All she had learned was that he had at least once returned to the Forest of Dean.

As she took her seat at the one long table that was being used for those who were still staying at the school, she noted that there were a few professors and only a few students left in the crowd. She wondered how long she would be able to stay at the school, and when she would need to find a flat, or if she would have to arrange a trip to Australia to find her parents. The thought of having to find her parents was distressing, as she really did not have any money to spend on a plane ticket and she was not sure if she even could retire her parents' memories.

Hermione noted that a couple of the people dining at the school were from the Auror department. She then got an idea, and she quietly stood up and approached the headmistress.

"Professor McGonagall," she began, "is there any way I can get in touch with the Minister of Magic, Kingsley Shacklebolt?"

"What seems to be the problem, Miss Granger?" asked her former head of house. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"No, I don't think so," she answered as she bit her lip. "I just have a few questions for him about things that are going on."

"Well, he should be here before nine, and then after a briefing with my staff he will be heading to the Weasley's for the funeral. Will you be heading to the Burrow later then?"

Hermione looked away briefly before answering, "I really don't know," she admitted, being more honest than she thought she could be. "It still seems so strange, so surreal I guess. I am not sure how I would react to being there for that."

The headmistress looked at her former student and understood her emotions, both those voiced and those hidden. She then added quietly so that no one else could hear, "I am sure you are working on finding Mr. Potter, you do not need to make excuses to me or to anyone else for that matter."

"Well, about that," Hermione said as she responded to the headmistress, "I was hoping to speak with the Minister about that."

"Well, then," smiled McGonagall as she answered, "why don't you just plan to be at my office a little before nine and if you promise to be brief I will let you speak with him before my meeting starts."

Hermione was hopeful that this opportunity might finally bring her some answers or at least a more clear direction in her search. As Hermione excused herself from Professor McGonagall, she noted that her runes teacher, Professor Babbling, was leaving the Great Hall. Hermione ran to catch up with her. Upon getting her former teacher's attention, she asked, "I have some questions about wards and alarms, do you have a few minutes?"


Harry awoke to the sun streaming into his room. He was thinking of the night before and how odd it was to talk about himself in the third person. He actually preferred being an anonymous person, but the thought that he was accused of being jealous of himself was amusing. He wondered what Fleur could have said to the DeMarest girls to make them think that Harry had his heart broken at the Yule Ball, but then he considered all of the rumours that were spread just by the articles from Rita Skeeter. Perhaps it was more the articles than anything Fleur may have said, he thought to console himself.

Harry stretched as he swung his legs over the edge of his bed. He noted the still unopened letter from Hermione. He considered that perhaps he really did fancy her back in fourth year, and maybe the article in the Daily Prophet prevented him from ever talking to Hermione about it, but then it was all too late now. He was sure that the letter from Hermione was telling him how she was planning to spend her life with Ron or some such thing. He still couldn't bring himself to open the letter.

He decided to continue to ignore the letter as he went to shower and get dressed.


Hermione had arrived at McGonagall's office several minutes before the Minister for magic had arrived.

"Sir," she politely said to Kingsley, "could I bother you a moment to ask you some questions?"

Professor McGonagall excused herself a moment from her office to give Hermione the opportunity to speak with the minister alone.

"Of course, Hermione," he answered with his deep and resonating voice. "How can I be of assistance?"

"It's Harry," she blurted out.

"What about Harry?" asked a puzzled Shacklebolt, "Is he okay? Has something happened to him?"

"I don't know, sir," she replied with her frustration clearly coming through in her voice, "no one knows. No one knows where he went. The day after the battle he disappeared. He then sent a bunch of letters to people, and then nothing. No one has heard from him since."

"It is quite understandable that he may feel he needs some time alone after everything he has been through," commented Kingsley, trying to sound as reassuring as possible.

"I know Harry is capable to take care of himself," said Hermione, "but I have been searching for him, I really need to find him. I have had no luck tracking him down anywhere."

The minister raised an eyebrow as he considered her words.

"The goblins are not offering any information, and I know he has been there," she continued. "He sent the letters from Gringotts, I spoke with the goblins and confirmed he met with them prior to sending the letters. I think he may have gone to one of his family's homes, but I have no idea where to search."

"So how exactly do you think I could help?" asked Kingsley.

"The Ministry should have records of all of the Potter and Black properties. If I could have a look at the list, I may be able to find out where he is staying," she said, hoping that she would not seem too presumptuous.

"I can see what I can do," he said simply. Then after a brief pause he added, "I presume you have already tried Grimmauld Place."

"The wards have been changed," Hermione said, the dejection in her voice quite apparent. "There does not appear to be any 12 Grimmauld Place along the block, it can't be found. Somehow he must have created a new Fidelius Charm to protect it."

He minister considered this for a moment before responding, "I can have someone from the magical records department help you. It probably won't be able to happen before this afternoon though, everyone is swamped and I really am not sure how much help we can offer."

"Anything that may help me track him down would be great, minister," smiled Hermione.

"Please, Hermione," he replied with an even bigger smile, "enough with the formalities, with everything we have been through, just call me Kingsley. What ever you do, do not call me Shack, somehow that makes some people think of a basketball player in the states."

Hermione had wondered where that comment came from, then thanked the minister as she turned to leave the headmistress' office as Professor McGonagall returned.

"I hope you have had enough time to complete your inquiries with the minister, Miss Granger," stated the headmistress.

"Yes, thank you," beamed Hermione as she quickly left the office and ran down the spiral staircase.

Hermione wanted to complete her tasks before she could speak with someone at the ministry later that afternoon, so she rushed to the edge of the school grounds, and apparated back to the Forest of Dean. Upon arriving in the vicinity where they had been camping earlier that year, she quickly scanned the ground, and she was saddened to not find any further evidence of Harry having returned. Nonetheless, she still felt certain that he would come back again. They had both been drawn to return to this very spot on more than one occasion. Hermione then set about placing wards around the area. She had reviewed with her ancient runes teacher the process for placing wards of detection that would trigger an alarm. She had already studied how to create an alarm that would be triggered remotely. The work was slow as she set up the runes so that if Harry ever returned to the area around the stream, then it would send a signal to the bracelet she had linked to the wards. The bracelet would constrict slightly in a pulsating pattern to alert her that he was there.


The ministry official in charge of records was clearly irritated to have to deal with this young witch who wanted information on the Potter and Black families. She was busy enough as it was with all of the people complaining about their property being damaged by the Death Eaters and the Snatchers during the war. She assumed that this was probably just another Harry Potter fangirl trying to track down the Boy-Who-Lived just to throw a love potion at him or some such thing. Who did this young upstart think she was after all, Hermione Granger?

"You know, luv," snapped the ministry worker, "I actually have important work to do here today, so I am not sure what could be so important that you need to come marching in here to the department of records and just expect me to drop what I am doing to give you a hand. It's not like you have an order from the Minister for Magic for me to help you now, is it?"

Hermione sighed briefly, "Well, it so happens that I do have a note from Minister Shacklebolt." She pulled the note he had signed for her out of her bag and handed it to the deputy assistant director for the department of magical records. The woman took the note and looked it over quickly and her jaw dropped.

"I am so sorry, Miss Granger," said the deputy assistant director, "now how again is it that I can help you?" Her face flushed as she realised she was actually face to face with one of the golden trio.

"I am doing research for Harry Potter, and he wanted me to check on the properties that the Potter and Black families have listed on file with the ministry, so he can then see if there are any discrepancies with the list of properties that Gringotts Bank gave him."

"Oh, that shouldn't be a problem at all," she answered excitedly, knowing how much fun it will be to brag to her friends that she actually met Hermione Granger, the smartest witch of her age. "It should take just a few minutes while I have the parchment prepared. If you won't mind taking a seat, dear, that would be wonderful."

Hermione turned to take a seat and rolled her eyes as she turned away, wondering why her new found fame was the only thing helping her get this information. About fifteen minutes later, Hermione was on her way out of the ministry and headed back to Hogwarts so she could study the list and work out a plan on where to begin her search for Harry.


A/N: for those who don't like the angst and feel this story is going to slow - the dates in the story indicate that this is still less than 1 week after the Battle at Hogwarts - things will be happening...do not give up hope on our hero - no matter how slow he may seem to be...