[Saturday Aug 12]

Harry spent all day Saturday mulling over what Snape had said. He tried to think of plans, counter-plans and back-up plans to get to Gringotts to hear his godfather's will..

Maybe I can go with Remus under my invisibility cloak - but Tonks might still tell Dumbledore, or maybe even the goblins I should just tell Dumbledore to go hang himself, but then could I return to Hogwarts? Would I still be safe there? If not, then where would I go?

The problem came down to this, Dumbledore did something to him and/or the Dursleys/Lupin/Snape/Sirius and they still did not know what it was. If someone (namely Harry himself) let on that something had changed, just how dangerous would the Headmaster become? But honestly, could Harry just pretend nothing had changed? Could he tow the line - so to speak - until there was a better plan in place, or better way to protect him? Maybe, but he just did not think he was that good of an actor.

After much thought, Harry sat down and wrote a letter to Dumbledore:

Headmaster

Thank you very much for the belated birthday greetings and for sending through my Hogwarts mail. I will consider which classes to take and send along my response before the deadline.

I will be ready to leave the 21st. Any time spent with my friends, actually enjoying my summer, is appreciated.

About Sirius' will. I am available this Tuesday (August 15) to hear it's reading. Surely it is no more dangerous for me to go to Diagon Alley, accompanied by an auror and Order member (Tonks and Lupin) than going en masse on one of the busiest days of the year to pick up supplies. I will even make use of my special cloak if need be. This is really important to me, in order to get closure over my godfather's death. You promised at the end of school last year not to keep me in the dark anymore, but once again you are telling me to do something, but not really telling me why.

By the way, you may want to tell Fletcher not to smoke cigars before his guard duty. No one in the neighborhood smokes cigars and you can smell him a mile away. Also, there is some lady guard who uses way too much perfume.

Thank you,

Harry

When Remus came to visit that night, Harry showed him the letter.

"Do you think the Headmaster will OK this, or is he more likely to say I can't go get supplies?" Harry asked.

"I think you used just the right combination of logic and guilt to get him to see things your way, Harry." Remus commented. "If this letter doesn't get him to see things your way, nothing will."

"Is he going to be at Headquarters today or tomorrow?"

"There is an order meeting planned tonight. Why?"

"I was wondering if it would be better for you give it to him? Then he can't act like its totally outrageous - because you've already seen it and agreed to it."

"I can do that, it may help. I don't see it hurting any."

"It wont cause problems between you and him?" Harry asked, concerned about the power that Dumbledore held over the werewolf.

"No, he knows I visit, though he doesn't realize how often."

"Good. Its just, with everything that has happened in the last two weeks, I think I need to break away from him a little. I am trying to make it seem like 'normal' teen rebellion. Just realize, no matter what he says, I plan on going Tuesday morning to Gringotts - if you are up for it."

"I should be fine by Tuesday morning, thanks to Severus' potions."

"Great. Snape told me that Tonks will be on guard duty then, and if I take my cloak, no one even needs to know that I was near Gringotts. even if Dumbledore says no."

"That sounds fine, Harry. I'm with you."

"Thanks Remus. What about the logistics of getting there? I don't think the Knight Bus is a great idea."

"No, not very comfortable, that's for sure. We can apparate from Arabella's house, or use her floo. That is how Order members do it now. She will tell Dumbledore though if she sees you. Just keep that in mind."

"That's fine, I am just being a rebellious teen, trying to push against authority. I am sure that Snape will have lovely things to say about it - especially if I don't have the Headmaster's permission!"

"I'm sure he will. I will mention the letter to Tonks. She has been wanting to get this over with for a while."

"Great, thanks Remus. I really appreciate all your help."

"No problem. But to change the subject, I have some news about our little mystery. First of all, there are two things we figured out. The first, your birthday was the night of the new moon. That may or may not important. The second thing, and more interestingly, look at this page of the runes." Lupin pulled out the page he had with the runes, names and translations on it. "You see the names and their meanings?" He waited to Harry to scan the page and give a nod. "See how they are grouped? Well all of the ones that we are interested in are in the 'body part' group. I don't think we can write that off as coincidence."

"I see... tooth mouth hand palm... That is so cool." Harry said excitedly.

"Just so you know, Severus made contact with a Jordanian potions master that he is acquainted with. Apparently, all the big names in the field know each other, not only from the articles but from conferences and such. Anyway, he asked this man about trying to reference some ancient texts for some potion he is supposedly trying to develop, claiming that it is actually a reproduction of a lost ancient potion. He said this guy was a better choice than his Egyptian contact, because the Egyptians never really look outside of ancient Egypt -they are a bit ethnocentric that way- but the Jordanian would have a good handle on Phoenician texts."

"That's great, and we didn't have to involve Bill."

"Exactly. So Snape may be off to the Middle East for a few days. He said he would stop by to see you before he leaves, if only to give you 'homework' for while he is gone. He will be back before the 21st, since apparently Dumbledore has asked Snape to be part of your 'rescue' crew, under the pretense of needing to talk to you about your potions and occlumency classes next year. I think he also wants to talk to you about that before he leaves."

"Its so stupid of the Headmaster to force us together like that, especially since he is still sometimes called by Voldemort."

"Well, that's the way it is. Severus is a big boy and can manage."

Later that night, Remus contacted Harry via the mirror.

"Psst, Harry you up?"

"Yeah I'm here. How was the meeting?"

"Same as always. Snape tells us what he knows, Moody tells us he doesn't trust Snape or believe him, and Dumbledore tells us to prepare. Prepare for what I don't know since we never do anything other than watch you."

"Stupid."

"Yeah."

"Were you able to give him the note?"

Remus let out a chuckle. "Yes."

"What's so funny?"

"Snarky Snape in the background just accused you of having a Slytherin write the note."

"Ha ha ha."

"I gave it to Dumbledore in front of almost the whole Order. Mrs. Weasley of course immediately got all nervous about your safety, to which I reminded her that Tonks and I would be protecting you, as opposed to later in the month when she is going to be in the alley with at least six kids... that shut her up, and everyone else."

"Everyone?"

"Well, Snape made some nasty comments about you being pampered and needing to have your way, and how you could have the reading later in the month when you come to the alley."

"He's a great actor isn't he?"

*Who was acting?* Harry heard Snape say in the background.

"Ha ha ha." Harry said dryly.

"Anyway, thanks to Snape's comment, the Headmaster realized that if he didn't do it now he would have to let you go on the 30th, which security wise is worse. So we are set for Tuesday. Just so you know, he will be there too."

"The Headmaster?"

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Because he will. Ours is not to reason why..."

"Maybe I shouldn't have warned him..." Harry hedged.

"No, its better this way. I even commented about teen rebellion and Molly agreed that this was normal behaviour... good job really."

"OK. Well, the important thing is getting to Gringotts."

"Tell The Menace I will be by Monday night." Snape called out in the background.

"Tell His Snarkiness I heard. I guess I'll see you Tuesday Remus - and you Monday Snape. Take care of yourself tomorrow, Remus."

With final goodbyes, the wizards closed the connections on the mirrors.

[Monday Aug 14]

When Snape entered the Dursley home in the evening, he was not expecting what he saw. Harry was trying out his 'rebelious teen' outfit. The darkly clad boy was very obviously not the same emotionally beaten boy that had lost his godfather just a few weeks prior. His physical appearance was totally overhauled - he was taller, tanned and more muscular. He had styled his hair into a longish, spiky mess and dyed the tips dark blue. He was not wearing his glasses and his peridot green eyes stood out on his face. Most apparent was how he carried himself, his stature yelled independence and strength. Snape did not think that Dumbledore would be happy with the changes, though he thought the female population of Hogwarts was going to be quite pleased.

"What, no piercings or tattoos?" asked Snape sarcastically.

"I don't think I will ever get a tattoo." Harry answered, looking pointedly at Snape's left arm. "Too many bad connotations. Petunia suggested an earring, but I figured I would see how tomorrow went before going all out."

"Petunia advised you to stick holes in your body? How odd." Snape commented, clearly not impressed with Petunia's advice.

"She helped me with the whole look. We went shopping together and she told me what she disapproved of most, and that is how I put together this look." Harry explained, posing like a model for the full effect.

Snape took in the boy's attire: very worn black jeans adorned with a double strand swag chain, sturdy black boots, tight black t-shirt with an unbuttoned dark plaid shirt (sleeves rolled-up) over it. On one wrist he wore a number of black leather chords, and around his neck a chord with a non-descript silver pendant hanging off of it.

"I believe that your Aunt is correct, this outfit sufficiently projects the image of rebellious and sulky teen. Try not to ruin that with your cheerful demeanor."

With that last comment the occlumency lesson commenced. After an hour of Harry trying to hold up his shields to his professor's mental battering, the lesson was finally called to an end.

"You are almost adequate at basic occlumency." Snape said. A huge compliment coming from him. "Always keep your shields up around The Headmaster. Actually, try to keep them up all the time - that will make them stronger."

"Won't he think its odd, me having shields up around him?" Harry asked.

"Keep your eyes down an he won't know. If he does catch a glimpse of them you can always say that you practiced after the MOM incident." Snape advised.

"Won't that get us out of lessons next term?"

"I don't believe so, The Headmaster has been pushing very hard for me to accept you into NEWT level potions, and to reestablish the occlumency lessons. Truth be told, I think you have a deeper connection to the Dark Lord. After all, he isn't making eye contact when you have your visions."

"Even if that is true, I haven't been getting visions since that night. Why continue?"

"I believe that you hurt him at the MOM. He is afraid of whatever it was that you did, so he is leaving you alone. This may not be a long term thing, Potter, just realize that"

"OK. I guess I will just consider this a vacation, and in the meanwhile try to strengthen my mind against my enemies." Harry said. "All my enemies." He added significantly.

Snape nodded his head in understanding but remained quiet..

"Oh, I heard that you liked my letter to The Headmaster." Harry added after a moment of silence.

"I never said that."

"No, your compliment was much more obvious, asking if I had a Slytherin write it." Harry has a sly smirk on his face.

Snape's face though had gone sour. He did not think his comment would be taken then way he meant it - as a compliment - and now he was upset that it was. In retribution, Snape cast a silent 'Legillimens' at Harry, only to find the boy's defenses up, and holding off his attack. Harry's smirk became exponentially larger.

Harry was finding his new reality interesting. He was able, for the first time in his life, to seek the advice of adults. His aunt was helping him plot and scheme. The most bizzare change of all was that he was able to talk, and even joke a bit with, The Imposing Professor Snape. He realized that he liked being able to ask Remus his opinion, have his aunt on his side and have a rapport with Snape.

Harry sat quietly and tried to read his occlumency book, but his mind would not stay on that topic. He did not want to waste the time that Snape was with him by reading, so he started asking about the older man's upcoming trip, which led the conversation back to the research going on about the odd occurrences on Harry's birthday.

"Sir, Remus showed me what you figured out with the runes, how they are all from the same grouping. Do you think that will help you find out what this is all about?" Harry asked.

"Obviously, the more information we have, the more likely it is to find the source of the changes we have all gone through. I am, unfortunately, not surprised that you did not see the connection between the runes, as Lupin and myself did."

Harry bristled at that comment. "What do you mean by that?" He asked, defensively.

"Well, it has always been obvious to me that you do not pay attention to details." Commented the professor.

Harry tried to curb his initial anger at the insult, a testament to how far along his relationship with Snape had progressed. "Really? In what way?"

"For example, when a potion calls for fresh sage roots and you use powdered sage. Its obvious that you just did not bother with the details. You asked me how I seem to have eyes behind my head, or know what people are thinking - its because I pay attention to details. People's faces generally project their feelings. Actions like fidgeting or looking down can betray ones thoughts. I don't miss these little things, and I remember everything. I also happen to be rather logical so I can put seemingly unrelated bits of a puzzle together."

Before Harry knows it, they are into a discussion in which his professor is pointing out many of Harry's shortcomings. Most of the discussion centered around Harry's lack of observing details, poor research skills and even poorer documentations skills. Harry admitted to Snape that as a child he was discouraged from doing better than Dudley, and he was never got passed his bad habits. He agreed that while having Hermione as a friend helped in some ways, it also gave him a crutch in many of his weak areas. At the end of the conversation, the older wizard assigned his student a task. While Snape was away, Harry was to research - and execute - ways to build his memory and attention to detail. Upon his return, Snape expected a organized document about the research and the implementation. Harry grumbled about being assigned extra homework over the summer holidays, but realized that his professor was right.

[Tuesday Aug 15]

Tuesday morning Remus and Tonks picked up Harry from the Dursley's. Tonks was shocked and impressed at how Harry looked.

They were able to get him to Gringotts without anyone recognizing him. Dumbledore was there waiting for them and he was NOT impressed with Harry's new look or attitude. He wondered to himself how the boy had grown so much - but wrote it off to a teenage growth spurt. He was not really sure how much Harry had grown because he was ignoring him for the last year. Harry made a point of standing very straight, which he had never done before. Whoever saw him would think that at least part of the growth was really just posture. Harry made a point to look to Remus any time The Headmaster asked him a question. Harry did this to avoid Dumbledore being able to look into his eyes. It had the added benefit of giving the old wizard the impression that Harry, while rebelling, was still seeking approval from a father figure - one that said old man thought he had a lot of control over. Harry had made a decision before arriving at Gringotts. He decided that since he had won the major battle about getting the will read, that he would not push (too hard) about anything that The Headmaster said - for the meanwhile. Harry was hoping that it would give Dumbledore the impression that his rebellion was only about the will.

The group of four was led to a private room for the reading. An official looking goblin, in a three piece suit, read the will quickly and efficiently. Sirius had left five thousand galleons for the Tonks family, who was represented at the reading by Tonks (Nymphadora). Remus was left fifteen hundred galleons and the flying motorcycle. Everything else was left to Harry. This included - but was not limited to - #12 Grimmauld Place and all its contents - including Kreacher, one percent stock in Zonkos and approximately ten thousand galleons. Harry was by no means independently wealthy, but he knew that he had the money to be comfortable while he decided to do with his life. He was tempted to boot the Order from Grimmauld Place, but decided that no change needed to be made just yet. When the goblin finished reading the will, he passed out envelopes to the three inheritors, explaining that they each had a personalized message. When Dumbledore tried taking Harry's, 'for safe keeping', the goblin allowed his suit to fall open, revealing a poison tipped dagger, and explained to the old man that interfering with official Gringotts buisness was not a wise idea. The three read their letters, behind a goblin provided privacy bubble. They each laughed a little and cried a little as they read their letters. When they had finished reading their letters, they decided to take advantage of the privacy bubble.

At first they spoke of their letters, which while parts were funny or moving, all said basically the same thing: Beware of Dumbledore. Sirius said that he did not remember the details but he felt 'wrong' about the man, ever since he got out of Azkaban. He referred to it as his 'doggy sense' which helped him know who to trust. He also thought Dumbledore obliviated him (repeatedly he suspected) and somehow bound him not to talk about his unease. Other than that, he asked for the three of them to look out for each other - especially for Harry - and be like a family to each other. They spend a few moments talking about Sirius and sharing stories about him. Then they burnt their letters and disposed of the ashes.

Dumbledore, who was outside of the privacy bubble - being watched by the officiating goblin - was wondering what they were doing. He was worried about what might have been in the letters. He became a bit nervous when he saw them burn the letters and banish the ashes, fearing that Sirius had somehow figured how to communicate his suspicions to the three. The old wizard relaxed though when he realized that none of them were looking at him, they were all just looking at each other - had there been anything about him in the letters he was convinced that at least one of them would look his way. When they finally broke the privacy bubble, after an awful display of sentiment, he inquired about the letters. Tonks told him the contents of the letters, only holding back about Sirius' distrust of the man. Remus explained that since they did not have a body for a funeral they burnt the letters instead. Harry was to teary eyed to really talk. The old man was not going to risk legilimizing them with the goblin present, so he took what they said as truth - being that their demeanors where that of mourning and not suspicion.

The goblin quickly got through the rest of the official business. Papers were signed and gold transferred. When all was finished The Headmaster insisted that Harry go straight back to Privet Drive. Remus agreed to take him back, ignoring Harry's dark looks. And a cheerful Headmaster bid them good-day and went about his business.

Almost as soon as the old man disappeared, Harry started in on Remus.

"I can't believe you agreed to take me back now. I wanted to at least see the twins' shop." Harry complained.

Remus held up a hand to prevent further protest. "Great idea." He said with a smile. "And then we can go out for lunch - as long as you don't get mobbed."

Harry's confused look made Tonks laugh.

"Just because I agreed with him," Remus explained reasonably, "doesn't mean I had any intention of actually doing what he asked. I knew it was the only way to get rid of him."

Luckily, Harry was able to enjoy a few hours out with Tonks and Remus before returning to Privet Drive. Tonks made it back just in time to be in position when her replacement guard came, and Harry was able to make it to his afternoon gardening job. A rather uneventful end to a rather spectacular day.