A/N: More vacation, more fun! Shopping, shopping, shopping, lesions, quick showers…and Remus gets clued in to some very important information.

Thanks once again to my incomparable beta, Miss Idina Malfoy.

Previous disclaimer still holds.

Chapter 10

Note:(conversation)

All too soon, it was time to leave Paris. Following a grand seeing-off by the family Delacour at the international portkey terminal, the boys and Bill Weasley portkeyed to Greece. The next few days were spent sightseeing and lounging on the beach, while their nights were wiled away enjoying the local nightlife. Then, just when Harry was starting to develop a decent tan, it was time to move on to Egypt.

For Harry, who had never seen the ocean or a beach, his experience in Greece was absolutely memorable. For Cedric, seeing a laughing, truly happy Harry splashing in the waves like a brunette hippocampus was the high point of his Grecian holiday.

In Egypt, Bill came into his own as a tour guide. His experience as a Gringott's curse breaker searching for (and looting, the truth be known) ancient tombs and treasure troves made him a tremendous guide as he took Cedric and Harry into places that the average tourist would never go. Harry was especially interested in the wizarding Library at Alexandria, which had been largely spared the destruction of the muggle wings over the centuries. Cedric, not surprisingly, had never even heard of the muggle library or its fabled destruction.

The trio spent an interesting day in the company of a dapper Egyptian gentleman who explained that the muggle library had been severely damaged at least four different times—the last, most devastating being during the Moslem invasion in 642 A.D. He went on to explain that, fortunately, strong muggle-repelling charms had protected the wizarding stacks from the worst damage. Thus, the wizarding Library, founded in the early third century B.C.E. was considered one of the oldest libraries in the wizarding world.

The next day they went tomb exploring, which Cedric enjoyed immensely but made Harry nervous.

("I don't know, Ced…it just creeps me out, somehow."

"Harry, Cedric, I promise you that it's not haunted."

"We know Bill, it's just that ickle Harry's all scared of ghosts…."

"I don't know…I just don't like the thought of somebody doing the same thing to my grave centuries after I'm gone."

"Well, love, considering what a monument to the Boy-Who-Lived will be put up, I'm afraid it's inevitable that your tomb will be plundered."

"Oh, that makes me feel sooooo much better."

"Harry, you realise that it was common practice to inter faithful servants, and sometimes family members with the 'main resident' in these tombs?"

"Really? Hey, Cedric…I guess we get to haunt my tomb TOGETHER!"

"Oh, wonderful…so you're telling me I'll have to put up with you forever?"

"Yeah. Get used to it, prat."

"Well, it looks like I'm your prat…for all time."

"Did anyone ever tell you two just how nauseating young love can be?")

The trio even went into the desert for a day's excursion, because Harry had insisted and threatened to pout. Later that evening, as Cedric rubbed Harry's aching limbs (he was almost three inches taller by now) the two of them promised each other that neither would ever force the other to ride on a camel—ever, ever again.

After a week seeing the sights of Egypt, Remus Lupin joined them as had been planned in London. Bill needed to return to England, where he was starting a new job in the London branch of Gringott's, so Remus was taking over chaperone and guard duty. The next day the new trio—Harry, Cedric and Remus—took an international portkey to Japan, where they were to spend a week before returning to England.

Cedric and Harry had come to Japan already prepared for the things they needed to do. Many of the nights they had been in their room 'snogging' they had actually been studying the information on Cedric's computer. For convenience, they had decided to keep Harry's 'bag of tricks' in his trunk, since they could both use Cedric's. Also, Harry could use the computer while Cedric was meditating, which he now did every night. He had discovered that simple meditation enabled him to unlock memories of more complex mental techniques from the 'download' future-Harry had given him. He was working on sorting and assimilating these memories as well as trying to master Occulumency, but it was proving to be difficult because of the volume of material involved. After talking about it with Harry, he had decided to concentrate on Occulomency first, both for defensive purposes as well as practical reasons. Both boys hoped Occulomency (and the related techniques) would help him process the rest of his memories more quickly, as well as letting him teach Harry.

One of the first things they had discovered in Cedric's bag was a set of charms that would allow electronics to function near strong magic sources…like, for instance, Harry. Also, they had made careful notes about where to find wizarding electronics shops in Chiba City, a short train ride from Tokyo. As an added inducement for Remus, Harry planned to use the excuse that he wanted to see Chiba's Experimental Station for Landscape Plants. The magical section of the Station was reputed to have some of the rarest, most valuable plants in all Japan. Harry even planned to hint that some of the plants might be useful against Voldemort—and anyway, he had promised Neville Longbottom that he would bring him back a cutting or three.

Of course, it hadn't been all work. Somehow, they had found the time for a bit of snogging. Just a bit….

In short order, the boys had visited the Japanese Ministry for Magic and arranged for all three of them to have week-long translation charms placed on themselves and Remus. Their experiences in France had taught them that being able to speak the local language was invaluable, especially if you planned on doing anything outside of the usual tourist haunts. Then, armed with their notes, they had dragged Remus to Chiba City, where the werewolf was absolutely amazed at what he saw in the wizarding district there. For someone raised in Britain's magical world—stuck sometime in the technological 1500's, for the most part—the video games, computers and other electronics he saw there left him gobsmacked. And, the truth be known, despite his exposure to the toys he had been given, Cedric wasn't terribly far behind Remus in the gobsmacked department.

While they watched Remus work himself into a frenzy over an old 'Space Invaders' game, Harry confided to Cedric that he frequently wondered how something as radically 'progressive' as the Hogwarts Express had ever been introduced in the first place. To his credit, Cedric had just shrugged and admitted that he had no idea—nor did he have any idea as to how students had travelled to Hogwarts before the Express. Like so many other things in the magical world, Cedric just accepted it without questioning—a mindset that Harry frequently found to be both frustrating and mind-boggling.

Once in the electronics stores, both boys announced that they intended to buy something for themselves, as well as presents for their friends and families. What followed was a complicated dance of distraction and misdirection. While one of the boys showed Remus something that 'he just had to see' on one side of the store, the other would be on the other side buying something else, having it wrapped and shrunk by the clerk before Remus got a close look at just what they bought. In addition to stocking up on all manner of gifts—and making Cedric incredibly grateful for the Gringott's card he and Harry had each gotten in Paris—they managed to buy enough at enough different shops to thoroughly confuse their chaperone about just what they had. Then, just to add to the confusion, they had dragged the poor man on a whirlwind tour of the Experimental Station—making sure to rub against enough different plants to thoroughly mix up his were-enhanced sense of smell.

Back in their hotel later that evening, they had trotted out a number of their purchases for Remus' inspection and approval. Gadget after gadget alternated with cuttings, seeds and seedlings for Neville until Lupin finally called a halt.

"Boys, boys…save some for me to look at when we get home, alright? And really, Harry, you've been too generous to me. I'm sure that Sirius will absolutely love everything you've picked out for him, but I really don't need this much…."

"Shut it, Remus. You're almost as much my godfather as Sirius and this is my money! I can spend it how I want."

"I'd listen to him, Professor. He's feisty when he's angry."

"Hey!"

Remus chuckled at this. "How well I know the temper of the Potter male. And Cedric…didn't I tell you to call me Remus? Sirius and I have already talked about you and Harry…."

"I'm going to kill my godfather, you know."

"Harry! If Sirius needs killing, I'll be the one to do it. Anyway, Cedric, we've talked about you, and we're both of the opinion that you're going to be a grand addition to the family. It's about time Harry had somebody to calm him down, after all."

"Hey!"

Cedric smiled. "Thank you, sir…Remus. I know I'll certainly try," then turning to smirk at Harry, "but he may be more than all three of us can handle!"

Remus shook his head in mock sadness. "Cedric, my boy…I'm afraid you may be right." He sighed mightily, making 'tch tch tch' sounds as he admired his new watch and video game.

"Just so you know, I hate you both." Harry sulked, which deepened when the other two men just laughed at him.

Later that evening, when Remus was in the bath Cedric put up a small privacy bubble.

"Do you think we've got enough to cover our...other toys?" Harry asked worriedly.

Cedric just shrugged. "I think so. After all, we've got 'back from vacation' gifts for almost everybody we know, and enough extra to cover us for the next two Christmases…I think we'll be all right."

Harry smiled. "Well, let's hope so. And now, before my not-quite-godfather gets back…" he reached towards Cedric with both arms.

When Remus came out of the bath, he was greeted with the sight of Harry and Cedric snogging on the couch in their suite's sitting room. Unfortunately for the boys, Remus seemed to take his almost-godfather duties seriously, and decided to give both boys 'the talk' on love, romance, relationships, intimacy, and the importance of waiting until they were both of age before allowing their relationship to progress.

For the rest of their vacation, the boys were sentenced to separate beds, and for some reason they never quite found any time to be alone, except for when Remus was in the bath.

Somewhat surprisingly, Remus seemed to be the master of the three minute shower…a fact which irritated Harry and Cedric to no end.

Despite the odd lack of any time suitable for a decent snog, the boys enjoyed themselves immensely. At times even Remus seemed to share Harry's childlike delight at the sights, sounds, smells, tastes and even feels (silk robes, which Harry needed due to his rapid growth and then insisted that the others get) of Japan. After a hurried two minute 'shower' conference one evening, the boys had decided to share the results of their hospital trip with Remus. Even if they hadn't, Harry's monstrous appetite and rapidly changing appearance would have merited an explanation.

Remus' barely-controlled rage at hearing about the blocks on Harry's magic was a sight to behold, if rather frightening.

"That explains something," he seethed. When both boys asked, he replied, "when Dumbledore hired me as DADA Professor, he kept insisting that Madam Pomfrey should be the one to do all of the diagnostic and healing spells on you, Harry, even for the most simple of things. He kept insisting that your scar occasionally caused such spells to behave…peculiarly…and that Poppy was accustomed to it and not likely to worsen any problem. I remember thinking at the time that it was just so much rubbish, but he is Albus Dumbledore, after all. Now, I'm wondering just how much else he's done without telling anyone."

"Well, actually," Harry began, then went on to relate what Little Jacque LeGrande had found out about his holly and phoenix feather wand. Then, of course, the boys had to explain about getting new wands, and Harry's bracelets, and their warding figurine, and just why they had left all of the old charms on Harry's old wand.

"We didn't have any choice about the charms on Harry's body," Cedric explained. "They had to be removed before he could really be examined by Dr. Latour, and neither of us had any desire to have them replaced after that." Harry nodded vigorously from his position leaning back against Cedric, but didn't speak. He was now tall enough so that his and Cedric's heads were almost on the same level when they sat like that.

Cedric rubbed his head gently against Harry's before he went on. "When we thought about it, we thought it would be simpler not to change any of the charms on the wand. For one thing, if anything went wrong with the removal, the Ministry might take offense…and might even trump up some charges against Harry for trying to get around the underage magic ban or some such rot." Cedric's snort made it imminently clear what he thought of that. "Also, the tracking charms on Harry we can explain away by saying that he didn't feel well, and that we took him to hospital in Paris. If we don't mention them, Dumbledore may assume that we didn't even know about them, and let it go. We can't very well do that with his wand without raising questions that we'd rather not answer. So, for now, Harry's officially not using his wand on the advice of his doctor in Paris, and won't be using it for several weeks, at best." He shrugged, which jostled Harry in the process. "By the time it becomes an issue, hopefully Harry's magic will be completely unbound, his core will be healed, and we can 'clean off' his old wand."

"Or arrange for it to have a 'tragic accident'," Harry growled.

Harry wasn't the only one growling. Remus' eyes were glowing yellow as the wolf responded to the implied threat to one of its pack. "It's going to be difficult for me to be around Dumbledore after this," he ground out. "Occulumency aside, I don't know that I can look him in the eye without wanting to go for his throat. He'll certainly notice that, regardless."

"I'm sorry we had to tell you, Remus, but…" Harry shrugged. "You deserved to know the truth. Plus, we needed to for you to know, so we can decide what to tell Sirius," he finished.

"Who else knows this?" Remus asked sharply.

"Just you, Bill Weasley, and Fleur Delacour," Cedric answered.

"Probably Gabrielle, too," Harry added with a small smile. "But somehow I don't think we have to worry about her telling tales out of school."

"No, we don't. And, don't forget, Dr. Latour, and Albert and Little Jacque LeGrande," Cedric finished. "Well, the apothecarian probably can figure out some of it, just based on what he gave us, but that's probably not going to be an issue. After all, the little git's getting all big, now," he grinned at a now-pretending-to-be-offended Harry.

"Hey! You're the one who made me go to hospital in the first place!" he huffed.

"And a good thing, too," Lupin said emphatically. "Harry, I don't know what to say. Everything you've told me points towards the Headmaster being responsible for what amounts to criminal acts against your person, for no good reason that I can see. I just don't understand it," he shook his head angrily.

"Oh, but you see, Remus, you just don't understand the 'greater good' like Dumbledore does," Cedric said sarcastically. "Look back…he allows the prophecy about Harry to leak to Voldemort, convinces Harry's parents to change their secret-keeper to Pettigrew—which allows Voldemort to kill the Potters—then against all reasonable expectations, puts Harry with his magic-hating relatives which virtually guarantees that he would be abused. Then, he leaves him in that horrible environment without the first attempt at monitoring him, leaves an infantile magic block in place and probably puts another on for good measure…" Cedric just shook his head wonderingly. "And it just gets worse from there. The charms on Harry's body are bad enough, but when you add them to those on his wand, and take into account that Madam Pomfrey had to have at least some knowledge of what was going on…it all adds up to a rather ugly picture."

"I'm not sure that he 'left' the infant block on Harry," Remus said slowly. "I could be wrong, of course, but I don't recall Lily or James ever putting a charm like that on Harry." The werewolf closed his eyes as his memories became painful. "I remember Harry doing accidental magic, of course. We were all delighted; he was so strong at that age, stronger than we had ever heard. Harry, you probably never knew this, but for several days Lily had the hardest time getting you to sleep. She'd put you down and walk away, but she wouldn't get ten feet until you'd summoned half the toys in the nursery." He opened his eyes and smiled, and the boys noticed that the yellow glow had faded considerably. "Finally, I think she just gave up and let you sleep in a pile of toys. We laughed about that for days. No," he said, "James and Lily talked about charming you, but there was something of a fad about letting nature take its course at that time, so I don't think they ever did. That would mean, of course…."

"That Dumbledore put the first blocking charm on me, and probably the second, too," Harry said darkly.

Recognizing the signs of an impending explosion, Cedric moved quickly to head it off. "Shush, love…we're taking care of it now, and there's nothing else to be done about it tonight. Just relax…." He caressed Harry gently, rocking him back and forth in the way that he knew Harry liked, all the time whispering soothing thoughts into Harry's ear.

Remus just sat quietly, watching the pair with growing respect for the older boy. Harry responded to him like he did to no one else, and it quite frankly made Remus glad to see his almost-godson cared for as much as Cedric Diggory obviously did. Suddenly reaching a decision, he stood and reached for his coat.

"Boys, I'm going out for a bit of a walk, I think. Turn on your little toy there," he waved at Little Jacque's warding figurine, "and lock the door. I'll be back in thirty minutes or so." Waving, he left the room, closing the door behind him.

There, he thought. Thirty minutes ought to be just about enough time for him to enjoy a couple of pints in the hotel bar, and let the two young men have some time for themselves—without giving them too much time, of course.

Whistling to himself, he set off in search of something with a little more kick than Butterbeer.

A/N: Next chapter, the vacation winds down, and it's back home by way of Paris. Gifts all 'round, chastity charms and Harry's hormones. Poor, poor Cedric!

I know, I know...not a lot of ACTION ACTION ACTION, but the plot needs to be developed. I promise, there will be action, including the second battle with Dementors I just finished writing--it's only15 or so chapters away *snickers*. Sadly for all of you adrenaline junkies, still more plot in the next chapter or two...so feel free to review and tell me off! Honestly...there are questions that just HAVE to be answered or my brain will explode...thus all the plot chapters. This isn't PWP, after all. I'm saving THAT for Harry's 18th birthday chapter....

Shout Outs! to the lovely candice rose, RRW, pallaskitty, WiCkEdLiTtLeReD, the always-faithful AntarPrince, and all of you other lovely people who take your valuable time to review--and these people stirred my brain in particularily interesting ways. I can't possibly name you all (ff would SHOOT me), but you all keep me going--know that you are much appreciated!

Want your own Shout Out? Stir my brain...but please, no more story ideas...and STOP sending MORE plot bunnies, for Merlin's sake! I'm honored, really I am, but I can only write so fast! Unless, or course, it's a really, really GOOD story idea *sigh*. I love you all....