AN Hey guys I know it's been a long time since that last update but bear with me. I'm in my senior year of high school and graduation is coming up and I've had to make sure my grades stayed up. Along with the fact that I took my first steps this week! (April 25th) since my accident in February and it's been a struggle. My arm is also fully healed so you better believe that I'll he back on this! Another reason for the slow return is because I've been working on an original fantasy novel, but I've decided to focus on fanfiction for now so that I can get back into the groove of everything. I've gotten around two chapters of my original story which was a fun experience but I've decided to focus more on this so I can further refine my writing. Thanks for the messages with well wishes I appreciated them greatly while I was recovering. Now onwards, you have all waited long enough. Please continue to follow and review! And I am very sorry for this being short, I just wanted to give you guys SOMETHING to wrap this portion of the story up (I don't intend a big love triangle) and to answer a reviewer about Harry not needing Fleur or Hermione or anyone. It isn't purely strategic for Harry! He WANTS to have friends he WANTS to be in a relationship he wants to be HAPPY and he enjoys other people! Thanks for all of the support and the constant challenges! Next chapter will be coming very very soon, and it'll be on the Hogwarts's Express. And for those who didn't follow the time jump please read this. There was a three-year jump, solely for the purpose of getting the story going and skipping through a rehash of years 1-3, this year will be VERY different!

Time stood still for a moment, it was like the world had stopped and for a moment Harry wondered if he had achieved the nigh impossible and stopped time completely through a bout of accidental magic. But he soon realized that it was the adrenaline coursing through his veins and not the magic besides it. He looked to Fleur, who was in a state of shock and then glanced to Hermione who above all looked proud of herself.

"Hermione what are you doing!" The French witch exclaimed with a tone that was of anger and shock all in one.

Hermione only smiled in response before she actually tried to answer her.

"Fleur! It's great to see you! And I'm doing what you said I should do! In your letter, you told me if I liked somebody, I had to make a leap of faith and go for it if I liked someone! So, I did! Thank you!" Hermione said excitedly before she looked back down to Harry with ravenous eyes.

"Well I wouldn't have told you that if you meant attacking my boyfriend!" Fleur yelled as she made her way to the twos tangled mess of bodies. She reached down and grabbed him by the shoulder and helped him up and out from under the brown-haired girl.

"Your boyfriend!? You never said anything about that to me! How could I have known!" Hermione said hotly while she got to her feet. And Harry could swear he could see her hand twitch towards her wand.

"Well I didn't think it was relevant in the moment! But now it's obvious I should've!" Fleur continued to yell.

"Well, well." Hermione started before running out of the room and bolting up the stairs and towards her room.

"Fleur I'm so sorry, she just pounced on me and I really wasn't sure what to do and it all just happened so fa- "she stopped him with a finger on his lips.

"Hey, I trust you. I'm going to go talk to her. You just deal with our friends?" She said before she followed the brown-haired witch. Then Harry looked back, and as expected his friends had crowded the doorway, each with their own expressions. Neville's jaw was nearly on the ground while Luna looked non-paused at the news.

"Blimey Harry! You got a pretty witch like Hermione snogging you! And you have Fleur as your girlfriend! Geez leave some for us other blokes!" Neville exclaimed which lead to a giggle from Luna.

"I would have to agree Neville." The voice of his godfather joined in which only made Luna laugh more. And for Konungr's part he just laughed uncontrollably.

(LINE BREAK)

Fleur wasn't sure exactly which room would be Hermione's, but the sound of crying was a pretty good place to start. She followed the noise, a noise she had heard more than once. She was met with a door and tentatively she softly knocked on the door. The crying stopped abruptly and there was silence.

"Please leave me be." A calm voice met her.

"Please let me come in Hermione? I'm not mad at you." Fleur said in a soft voice, all the while leaning against the door. After a moment she could feel the door handle turning and she took her weight off the door. It swung open to present Hermione, eyes red and puffy and tears running down her cheeks and she instantly felt some sympathy for the girl.

"Hermione it's okay, I'm not mad at you. At first I was shocked and maybe a little mad but now I realize that it isn't your fault and there was no way you could've know." Fleur did her best to comfort the girl.

"I'm sorry Fleur, I didn't know you two were together! I should've known, I should've known that'd be fall for you. You're incredibly smart, you're the most beautiful thing on the planet, and you're older and foreign… you're perfect! Then look at me! I'm plain, I'm annoying, and I'm useless!" Hermione cried even harder which prompted Fleur to hug her young friend.

"Don't you say that! You are a very pretty young woman who Harry enjoys the company of! He likes when you challenge him intellectually! And Harry works incredibly hard and has methods of learning that we couldn't hope to use! And you're not useless! You're a friend you and Neville and Luna yeah sure he is incredibly independent and if the only reason he was friends with us was because he needed our abilities, I would be useless too! But we all give him love in our own way! Harry considers you guys his family." Fleur explained to the girl who slowly stopped the crying and wiped her face.

"I just… I've always liked him since the troll… and he was always so sweet to me and I thought he might like me, at least more than any other bloke ever did. And then I wrote you and asked for your advice and I kind of figured you knew who I was talking about, and I thought your advice might've been your blessing for me to be with Harry, considering you've known him longer than any of us. But I saw what I wanted to see." Hermione said with the same sadness, but none of the tears.

"I'm sorry Hermione, no I didn't realize that he was the one you were talking about. But I'm not mad and I know Harry isn't. I'm sure everything will return to normal if we just try to forget it and move on." Fleur proposed to the girl who had begun nodding before she had even finished.

LINE BREAK

The events earlier weren't spoken about for the rest of the night, they had chosen to ignore it to spare three of their friends the embarrassment. And considering all Harry and Hermione did for the group it wasn't hard to do, and they deserved as much. The group had spent most of the time talking to Sirius and getting to know him better. Despite the years in Azkaban, the man had retained his signature humor and made the group of young teens laugh at jokes from the past. They especially enjoyed all of the stories about one Severus Snape. That alone helped Harry understand the man's hatred for him better. But the two had gotten along well ever since the initial incident. They didn't really speak to each other on a personal level but the two shared an understanding that he was the student and he was the professor. And Harry's work actually impressed the potion master which was something to be proud of considering the mans incredibly high standards.

But the stories were hilarious none the less. But when it was Luna's time to share most of the people in the room, Harry included, found her hard to follow. Sirius did however seem to enjoy the girl immensely and even shared with her a few things he knew of her mother before her untimely death. He spoke of how imaginative and smart the woman was and how she was a dreamer, but more than a dreamer she would dream her thoughts into reality. But there was an air, an air in the room that felt like the atmosphere was closing in on them and it was coming from their generous host, Harry Potter. Who eventually stood and addressed them all.

"I am sure you're wondering about the books I sent you all during the summer. And knowing all of you I am sure you all took them to heart and would know that I would not send them to you without good reason. And assuming you all practiced, and I find you capable enough, I'm going to let you in on a secret that only a handful would recognize and all of them are in this room." Harry announced to his now perplexed guests.

"I'll go first," Neville said without needing to be asked. Harry nodded and without a word he drove his mind towards his friend. He could see the walls, they looked… strong. And if he had to guess he would say that his friend had some prior training. But then Harry did the unexpected and instead of going over or through the walls, he went directly under them. He slipped through undetected, but before he could search Neville's mind he pulled out.

"I got in, very easily for me but I doubt anyone else lightly probing or possibly even attacking could. I have my own unique way of delving into minds which is very different from anyone else. Who's next?" Harry asked calmly before one Luna Lovegood stood tall. She nodded at him and the he found the girls mind.

He looked, and he saw no walls which was a huge disappointment considering how long she had the book. So just to be sure he drove into her mind with ease but then it happened he could hear the music growing louder and louder in his head to the point where his mind felt like it was burning. He made a dive towards the exit, but he had forgotten where it was, he was trapped, like a maze without an end. But before the panic really set in, he was forced out and left panting.

"You thought you had me at first." She giggled as if she hadn't nearly crushed his mind.

"Merlin we can defeat any dark lord if we trap him in there. Give me a minute then you're up Hermione." Harry said with a chuckle before he took a seat and let out a strained breath. But after a moment he had recovered and was ready to test Hermione. She looked nervous, more nervous than anyone else had been, which he assumed was because of the feelings she had for him that she was afraid he would see. But she didn't protest, instead she walked up to the plate as the others had.

Just like the others, Harry made his way towards her mind without pause. First, he examined the sturdy and tall walls, and he was happy to see that unlike Neville's these walls had some outer defenses to stop him from simply going under them. So, without any other options he decided to dive right in. Forming a mental javelin, he drove it towards where he saw a soft spot. His javelin was initially met with resistance, but it didn't take much of a push to gain entry. But before he could view any of her memories or thoughts he exited.

Hermione was on the ground panting and clutching the front of her head which gave way for the wave of guilt that panged his body before he swiped it away.

"I'm sorry that was unpleasant, and something different considering I doubt none of you have experienced an attack like that. Don't worry Hermione, you didn't do bad, you were just the only one where I did not have an alternative way in. So, I had to create one, which is good because all you have to work on is strengthening what you have." Harry explained as he helped her to her feet. She smiled weakly at him in return which made them both feel slightly better.

"Well I think all of you are good enough as of now, but that does not mean you are done. After I show you my secret you must continue to train every day until you can fend me off. Once a week I will test you guys until I'm happy about where you are. But for now, it will do. And if you are all okay with it, I think it is best that we head out now while it is still light… I think you'll want to see everything." Harry announced to the pleasure of his friends who all began to beam at him, eyes swelling with curiosity that made him want to laugh, if not for the fact that he knew he'd be doing the very same thing in their position.

LINE BREAK

The group had gotten prepared and headed out towards the forest. Harry didn't say a word about where they were going, and all of his friends decided if he didn't say anything it was probably better not to ask. They trekked, along with Sirius towards their unknown destination. Sirius was incredibly confused considering he had spent a lot of time in the woods they currently traveled.

But it didn't take very long for them to reach forest he had not ventured. The light in the sky faded slightly when the foliage became heavier and the golden rays were stopped in their tracks. The musk of the forest grew even stringer and the group wondered when they would get a break… or when they would finally reach their destination.

"Okay guys this is far enough, everyone take a few, you'll know it when you see it." Harry announced before taking a seat on the nearby stump. For the groups part, they couldn't be more confused as to what they were supposed to be looking for.

But then they all heard it

THUMP THUMP THUMP THUMP!

Harry seemed unfazed by the sound that grew ever so louder, to the point where it felt like it might be right above them. But the next thing they saw is what really did it, bright like snow from the tip of a mountain. Beautiful shine like millions and millions of jewels or stars lining the sky, casting a shadow over them and the blue… the single blue eye staring at them with mirth abundance and what seemed to be a… smile.

"Bloody hell"