A.N.: Ta-daaaa! Here's the latest chapter of my story! Before I continue, let me address -for the last time, I swear- a matter that many of you have brought to my attention. Some of you are against me including Ginny's and Draco's characters in this story because of how they are depicted in canon. Please remember that this story is an AU. Meaning, the characters might sometimes appear OOC simply because they're not that same as in canon. So, yes, I agree, Draco was a proper jerk in canon. But even J.K. admitted that he wasn't that bad in the end and besides that, the Draco in my story will be one of my imagination that will play an important -and needed; allow me to know what my story needs to progress, please- role later on. He will still be a jerk for some time and he might never completely lose that snarky attitude that makes him the Amazing Flying Ferret, but he'll develop differently from a point onwards. Regard him, as all the characters in this story, as a parallel Draco. Tom Felton, while he did a great job depicting Draco in the films, has nothing to do with how I want this story to proceed. That's all.

Now, please pay close attention to this chapter because there's a plot twist coming your way, addressing a matter I have only hinted at previously. Maybe some of you have caught on by now. Anyway, it will be important for later on. Oh, and those of you that expected James to snap and do something stupid, well, he will and he does. There will steadily be more conflict between Severus and James from now on, so pay attention ;p

Anyway, I hope you'll enjoy this chapter too and don't forget to review!

Disclaimer; Who owns Harry Potter? Not me, not I.

AND THE AXIS SHIFTED

He looked at Severus who was walking ahead of him, his demeanour pensive. The Death Eaters, the Dark Mark, the destruction he faced as they walked out of the forest and towards their, now crumbled, tents were the rest of their group were gathered. He could faintly hear James calling Adrian's name as he caught sight of them. Harry closed his eyes and run a hand through his hair. Nothing made sense.

Meeting with the rest of their group had been… interesting, Harry thought, two days later as he stared at the starry sky. He had climbed in the astronomy tower at Silbreith two hours ago and had remained there for the past hour. The main objective had been to observe the constellations for a few minutes and do one last check at his Astronomy homework but the very moment he had stepped out that balcony, all thoughts of studying ha dispersed. It was a chilly night all things considered and there was a slight breeze reminiscent more of mid-autumn than late August. Still, the skies were clear and Harry hadn't even bothered to bring out his telescope. He had just leaned back on the cold stone and had let his body slide down the wall, eyes locked on the stars above, finally allowing himself to relax, his fingers clasping the letter he had received from Nagnok earlier that day in his pocket. He knew his father had taken a more destructive path in letting go of his frustrations and was probably in the process of pulverising a training dummy at the dungeons. With good reason, Harry mentally added.

The moment the little group had walked out of the woods two days ago, James had screamed Adrian's name and run towards his eldest son, checking to make sure the teen was unharmed; the hazel eyed boy had squirmed, mildly embarrassed at the display. Harry had just stood there, watching the scene unroll with detachment. 'Sure', he could remember himself thinking, 'it's not like I'm here bleeding or anything.' The boy sighed as he inwardly recounted the names of the stars he absentmindedly located in the night skies. To be fair, James had almost had a heart attack when, having stepped back a bit to get a better look at Adrian, his eyes had fallen on Harry. He had tried to move closer to check his younger son's wounds but Harry had just raised a hand in a gesture that clearly stated he was fine.

"It's just a scratch." Harry had assured the increasingly frantic auror. "I had to dodge out of the way of a spell, but I didn't get hit." He had then turned to look at Neville, concern clearly written in his face.

"Same here, Harry." Neville offered, rolling his eyes. "Told you so already."

"Because that will stop him from worrying." Severus muttered, looking at Neville in worry.

"Professor, really, I'm fine!" The boy complained.

"Like that will stop me from worrying!" The potions master stated, causing the brown eyed boy to go slack jawed and Harry to smile warmly at his father and brother.

"Adrian! Harry!" Lily's voice sounded over the ruckus. She looked at them wide eyed, her hair dishevelled; she had a scratch somewhere on her side since a few drops of blood marred her yellow shirt but other than that looked unharmed. She was still clenching her fingers around her wand. From what Harry could gather from the following conversation with Prongs, she had ordered Adrian to run towards the woods when a couple of Death Eaters had closed in on them so she could fight them off and had been unable to locate her eldest son since. "Merlin, Harry! Are you hurt? Where were you! Why didn't you follow us?"

"Just a scratch, really." Harry stated once more, closing his eyes and sighing deeply. He was still angry and confused and all he wanted was go home, drink some of that ridiculously good tea Severus had bought from Diagon Alley and think things through. He didn't seem like he was about to get his wish.

"Just a scratch?" Sirius exclaimed having just arrived, his eyes zeroing on his godson immediately. "Harry, you're bleeding!" His eyes then travelled to Neville and the still open gash on his cheek. "What happened to you two?"

"Death Eaters." Severus explained, moving closer to examine his son's and Neville's wounds. "They're not deep but you will not move an inch till I've healed them." Harry was about to protest, probably to say that Severus didn't need to bother or something equally ridiculous, but was quickly silenced by the potions master. "Not an inch, Harry!" The teen nodded as Severus cast the charm necessary, checking his work and moving to heal Neville once satisfied.

"Thanks, Sev."

"I could have done that!" James protested, while Severus ignored him. The potions master was doing his best not to just grab Harry and run. On second thought, he would probably take Neville away too. Death Eaters. What were Death Eaters doing at the World Cup? He knew it wasn't an honest attack, if he could call it that. Thirty or so Death Eaters against the Ministry officials that had gathered for the protection of the campers? Not something the Dark Lord would have chanced. Plus, they had disappeared the moment the Dark Mark ascended. Run away scared.

"I know you could have, Potter." The potions master stated. He didn't want to pick up a fight or contest his right to take care of his son. He just wanted a few quiet moments to think. "Sanacio!" He pointed his wound over Neville's injury after cleaning it with a quick charm and watched as the skin stitched together, leaving no trace of any injury behind.

"Thank you, professor." Neville said, his hand touching the now healed expanse of skin on his face tentatively.

"Don't mention it, Neville."

"But how did you get injured?" Mr. Weasley asked, waving his hand so Remus, Molly and the rest of his family -who had been looking for them a few demolished tents further down- would spot them. "Weren't you at the forest?"

"We were going towards the forest." Harry admitted, looking swiftly at Severus for confirmation. The potions master nodded; no more hiding. "But then we caught sight of the Robinsons. So we helped." The stunned silence that followed his declaration was half expected. Neville flinched slightly in expectation of what would surely follow and Harry braced himself for the tirade. He would have rather avoided it, but he could see it in their eyes; it was coming alright!

"Why are you so silent?" Bill, who had just managed to reach them asked; he was slightly out of breath and dishevelled but didn't appeared to bear any injuries. His question however had shaken the assorted crowd out of their temporary trance.

"Harry James Potter!" Lily bellowed, her face pale as all blood abandoned it. "Did you willingly fight against a group of Death Eaters?" Her breathing was laboured and Harry could tell she was bordering on a panic attack.

"Lily, calm down." Severus said, trying his best to defuse a situation he already knew he couldn't save.

"Calm down?" Lily screeched, her eyes widening even more. "Harry fought against Death Eaters and you want me to calm down?"

"And where were you when he got injured?" James hissed, hazel eyes filled with anger and contempt.

"Right there, fighting against the Death Eaters next to me." Harry stated calmly. The shock in the air was palpable for everyone to feel. "So was Neville for that matter."

"Were else would I be?" The boy in question wondered out loud for everyone to hear.

"Still, Harry," James said, his voice slightly stunned but switching back to angry in a second, "you can't just run towards a group of crazed wizards that would have no qualms over killing you at the spot!" He then turned accusing eyes at Severus, not letting the subject drop. "And you!" He exclaimed, index finger pointing accusingly at the potions master. "You just let a teenager fight against the Death Eaters? What, missed your old buddies or something? Couldn't wait to see them again? Missed the excitement of playing for both teams?"

"Damn it, James!" Surprisingly, the exclamation had come from the usually reserved Remus, who eyed the potions master wearily. The Potter patriarch's comment seemed to have captured the attention of the whole group; Severus, surprisingly, was the one who took things the calmest. Even Sirius was looking at James in mild disbelief; no matter how much they had disliked Severus in the past, his time with the Death Eaters had been something they all knew about but had mutually agreed on never bringing up. Because, no matter how or why he had actually joined the Dark Lord, the man had ended up risking his life for over three years for the cause and, if Dumbledore was to be believed, had had a less than pleasant experience during his tenure as a double spy, still bearing the scars as a proof of his efforts to this day.

"Yes, I must admit that I had missed the complete terror of dying a painful death if I got caught spying for Dumbledore." Severus deadpanned his voice cold. He was boiling on the inside but was decided not to let his feelings show; the past was just that, the past, and he wouldn't allow anybody to drag him back there. "Thank you for reminding me." Harry was glaring daggers at Prongs while yet another stunned silence fell over their group.

"You were a spy during the first war, professor?" It was Neville that had spoken, a note of confusion colouring his voice.

"Yep!" Harry answered for his father, feeling proud looking back and seeing how far they had both come since those early days.

"A spy?" There was no more confusion anymore, just an undertone of awe in the teen's voice, brown eyes widening at the revelation.

"It's not something I like to bring up." Severus stated. "It's not something I would have brought up -not really prudent to boast about it!- but it seems somebody wanted to share with the class." And he turned his passive gaze to James; the man's expression looked an odd mix between contrite and irked.

"Sorry, Severus." Lily said, on behalf of her husband. Her eyes had narrowed in a way that clearly stated she would be having words with James later on.

"Really though, professor?" George asked, looking at the potions master as if he had never seen him before and wondering how many more times that would happen in the future. Severus sighed; it seemed that if they didn't actually hear him confirm it himself they wouldn't believe it.

"Yes." Severus confirmed laconically. "But we're getting off subject."

"Wicked!" The twins exclaimed simultaneously; the majority of the group seemed to be in complete agreement over their last statement, especially those who had never been told what the potions master had exactly been doing during the war. Severus just shook his head in amusement and wondered how Dumbledore would react to James revealing his status as a spy for the Order in front of a group of teenagers.

"Still, I see no point to have allowed Harry to fight!" James carried on, reverting back to the original point of his rant. "You were supposed to be looking after him! And don't tell me it couldn't have been avoided!" He exclaimed even if Severus had shown no intent to interrupt him. "What difference could I make should he not have fought…" Looking back at that moment, Harry decided that Basil, Mr. Weasley's friend from the Ministry and whose last name Harry never did find out, couldn't have chosen a better moment to approach them, bringing along a distinguished looking wizard, dressed in a Muggle-style suit. The unknown wizard was tall and built, the facial characteristics on his dark skin schooled to complete neutrality; if Harry had to guess, he would peg him as an Unspeakable.

"There you are!" Basil exclaimed, his eyes wandering over their group only to land on Harry. "I've been looking everywhere for you!"

"Is there something wrong, Basil?" Arthur asked and then sighed. "Besides the obvious, I mean." The man's eyes turned back on Mr. Weasley for a moment before seeking out James.

"No. We just… We just found the Robinsons." The man explained looking at the presumed Unspeakable for confirmation; the man nodded once. A sense of dread filled Harry; he had been in a haste when he had left them, the Dark Mark capturing his attention but they had appeared fine. Still, looking fine and being fine where two different things altogether. His mind brought forth the image of the two terrified children he had seen cowering from the Death Eater and shivered; had something happened to them?

"Are they alright?" Molly asked, concern colouring her voice.

"Yeah." Basil offered distractedly and Harry's heart finally slowed down to a more reasonable rhythm. Nobody had died; thank Merlin!

"Then what?" Sirius asked, wondering what had been so important as to track them down and tell them immediately; James and himself would have been informed eventually after all.

"It's just…" His eyes strayed over to Harry, Severus and Neville who were standing close to each other and a bit further from the main group, lingering once again on the green eyed wizard.

"Just what?" Sirius persisted. "Out with it!" Basil nodded once jerkily at the authoritative tone the command had been made in.

"We had some Unspeakables to extract their memories of the attack before obliviating them. Oldman over here was one of them." He said pointing at the man standing next to him; so he was an Unspeakable after all. Huh. Meanwhile, the part of the group that worked in the Ministry nodded in understanding; it was standard procedure in such cases after all.

"And?" Arthur asked.

"Well…" The man seemed a bit unsure of how to proceed but, one bewildered look towards Harry later, got his grip back on his thoughts and continued. "It started as one would have expected; the Death Eaters woke them up with some curses and brought them out in the open to amuse themselves. Levitating them and such." Harry cringed at the memory. "And then, after the battle had started, the Robinsons saw a small group of wizards heading their way, taking down Death Eaters as they went." The small group of wizards in question exchanged glances. Neville resorted to a facepalm, Harry opted on staring at the sky that had just began turning the steely gray of dawn while Severus shrugged as if he faced Death Eaters every day. Well, at least he used to.

"You three?" Adrian asked, looking mostly at his twin.

"Well…" Harry started but it seemed that Basil was eager to keep narrating now that he had begun.

"And then Mr. Potter," he continued having his hand to indicate Harry "cast some sort of a spell to push the Death Eaters back -forgive me but I wasn't told which incantation you used, Mr. Potter…" As if hearing a Ministry official address him as 'Mr. Potter' wasn't strange enough, the Unspeakable only identified as Oldman decided to intervene.

"Maybe I should take it from here." He spoke in a strict tone, his voice unemotional, his air the personification of professionalism. Basil gulped and nodded, willingly stepping away from the limelight.

"Of course." He muttered and physically moved out of the way in his haste to comply, taking a short step backwards so that he actively positioned himself in the background. His eyes were still wide and excited; it was clear that he wanted to hear the story once more.

"Mr. Potter used a Terrae Legumina curse; it causes the earth to pulse and he caught the Death Eaters mid-stride, thus sending them a few feet backwards." The man was just making a clinical assessment of the situation, Harry knew as much. Still, hearing everything he had done the past hour made him feel accomplished and, most of all, lucky. Those Death Eaters had acted out of pure boredom, it seemed, and Harry could just go as far as saying they must have been slightly inebriated; he would have to run it by Severus later on, but the irrational way they acted pointed to that direction. They had simply been having to much fun at the World Cup and decided to end their night in the most spectacular way possible. And if they hadn't been at least partially drunk, none of their moves made sense; they had attacked a camp site filled with ministry personnel after all. And Harry knew, despite his training, one of the reasons why he hadn't acquired more wounds and bruises to show the world after fighting the Dark Lord's forces was because they had been surprised to be attacked by a fourteen-year-old and too disorientated to properly fight back.

"That's quite a hefty curse." Sirius announced, mostly talking to himself, bringing Harry's attention back to the present.

"Well, yes." Oldman stated dryly, barely looking at Sirius as he spoke. "The curse effectively cut their concentration and the spells they used to hold the Robinsons in the air. Mr. Longbottom assisted in getting them on the ground safely and moving them out of the way as fast as possible while Professor Snape held the Death Eaters back along with Mr. Potter…" The man carried on with his narration of the battle, explaining everything that had happened in the most effective way possible. "As you understand the rest of the fight we still only know due to witnesses as the Robinsons were ushered away at that point. We thought that was it when suddenly, looking through the Robinsons' memories, we came by one more interesting tidbit of information. Mr. Potter seems to have prevented a Death Eater from casting the killing curse on the Robinsons." Oldman stated, cocking an eyebrow in surprise or appreciation, Harry couldn't tell. Still, it was good to know the man was capable of emotions.

"He what?" James barked out, his face going paler by the second.

"Your son probably saved those Muggles' lives, Mr. Potter." The Unspeakable explained.

"Probably? Try definitely!" Neville muttered under his breath, bringing a small smile to Harry's lips. The shocked faces around were what the green eyed had expected to see as well as the proud smile on Severus's face. Neville, the second exception from the stunned witches and wizards around, punched him softly on his uninjured shoulder.

"I believe this would be all." Oldman stated. "We just thought that since Mr. Harry Potter is a minor and you are his parents," he continued bowing his head slightly towards James and Lily, "you had to be notified. The memories acquired will become public property at the end of the investigation and can be viewed at the Ministry's archives, if you do so wish. Though misters Potter and Black will probably see them during the investigation anyway." And with another bow, vaguely appointed towards Harry, he turned around and left. Basil followed him after pausing to stare at Severus, Harry and Neville for one last time, muttering a hurried good night at the startled group and calling over his shoulder that he would talk to Mr. Weasley at the Ministry.

"It seems that me fighting made some difference." Harry stated simply, remembering what James had been trying to say before Basil had interrupted them.

"I'd say!" Neville exclaimed, hi-fiving his best friend. It wasn't hard for said best friend to see that Neville was trying to cheer him up, catching up on his anger still bubbling under the surface.

"You were great out there too, you know!" Harry reminded him, not willing to let Neville fade to the background.

"I was alright, I suppose." Neville offered, shrugging noncommittally.

"You were both great out there." Severus interjected, looking at both boys with a kind smile. "I would however prefer it if you didn't have to fight at all." The latest admission seemed to be mostly to himself; Harry elbowed him on the ribs playfully, in a subtle reminder that he was still there and in one piece. The potions master smiled but the worry didn't leave his eyes. The green eyed wizard knew that, even if Severus had accepted Harry would play a great role in the coming war and -hopefully- afterwards, he would have rather his son didn't have to face any of the dangers heading his way. His father had a protective streak a mile wide, Harry thought fondly.

"Still, Harry, that doesn't change the fact that you put your self in harm's way…" James continued, his pride over his son's doings battling with his worry and unwillingness to lose an argument.

"What was I supposed to do?" Harry countered in a would-be-calm voice. "You, Sirius, Remus and Mr. Weasley had run off to fight. Before you left you screamed for her to take Adrian and run; she did just that." The teen could tell that James was thinking back to what he had said and realizing his youngest son was telling the truth. "Mrs. Weasley left with her children and Hermione, Charlie and Bill staying back to fight and that left Nev, myself and Sev to do what exactly?"

"Harry, I…" James started, not knowing what he was supposed to say exactly.

"No, Prongs." Harry said, sounding resigned. "I get it. Just don't tell me I shouldn't have helped, especially when I knew I could. And I did." Neville felt like applauding but opted not to; he just shared a meaningful look with Severus and smirked. He decided to keep a tally in his mind; it was "Team Family" vs "Everybody else namely the Potters and the Dark Lord" -he needed to come up with a better name for the opposition- and Harry had just scored them one point.

"Look Harry, your father meant that you can't just charge blindly and hope you don't get hurt. You don't have an actual experience in dueling." Lily said, trying to squash her guilt; 'Take Adrian and run!' had been exactly what she had done.

"You're right." Harry admitted, running a hand over his eyes. "But that doesn't mean I can't defend myself of try to help others less able to protect themselves. You can't that of me." The silence that followed had been absolute, only the background noises easing the oppressing weight that had seemed to settle over everybody's heads. Two to zero and counting, Neville thought, breaking the silence asking whether he could contact his grandmother before she found out about the attack herself. Mr. Weasley had offered to help and Harry had sent him a grateful look as the boy walked by him. He could always count on Neville to watch his back.

The next two days had passed in a blur. Meetings had been held, both in Hogwarts and at the Ministry; there had been no result at all. It seemed that the Death Eaters had hoped for some fun -if anybody could characterize what they had done as such- and had jumped on the opportunity to do just that. All the while, the atmosphere at Potter Manor had been tense. Sirius and Remus hadn't stopped by since the morning after the attack. James and Lily, couldn't even look Harry in the eye while Adrian had seemed too shocked -awed, confused- to even speak to him. It had been a huge relieve when Dumbledore had called for the Potters at Hogwarts; the Headmaster had offered, for the first time, to include Harry in the conversation but the boy had kindly declined. It wasn't his place to be there anymore and he couldn't find himself wanting to. Instead, he had asked if he could spend the night at Silbreith. James had been reluctant while Dumbledore insisted it might be for the best. Harry didn't even bother to wonder why the Headmaster had given up that easily.

And so, he had found himself home, finally, after two days of feeling caged in his ancestral house. Severus, accepting Harry's want and need to be left alone with his thoughts, had agreed to let him work on his astronomy project, knowing fully well the teen would be unable to concentrate. And Harry had climbed the stairs to the highest tower, trying his best to put his thoughts into order.

First things first, he was worried about how his family was taking everything in. James seemed less and less willing to consent to have Harry spend time at Silbreth, still adamant on his futile attempt to bond with his youngest son. And after the events at the World Cup, he had been even more determined to keep Harry at Potter Manor and away from Severus, even if he still haven't put his intentions to words.

Lily had been trying to get to know her son better too, asking him questions he didn't feel like answering, questions for which the answers she should have already known. She seemed to have been trying to be subtle at her approach, but every question cut a little deeper, until Harry felt the need to run. He shouldn't have to answer her questions. It was his life and his mother should have been there, by his side, if she wanted to be worthy of what she wanted to know. Over the years the rift that had first appeared when Harry was still a toddler had turned into a chasm, broadening and deepening with every question left unasked, every moment in his life that had gone unseen by his family. Harry no longer knew what to say to make things better; he didn't even know if he was willing to try.

Still, the fact remained; chasm or no chasm, his parents had the power to dictate his actions until he turned seventeen. If they wanted to keep him away from Silbreith, they could do just that and Harry would have been bound to listen to them, his blood bounding him to his father's will and his ancestral house. James could ground him, give him a strict order to not leave the Manor for Silbreith and his own blood would force him to obey. It was an old blood ritual, strong and ancient, that had been woven into the laws of the wizarding world since the moment they had been put to paper. Harry banged his head against the wall behind him; how could his blood direct his life like this? He felt trapped.

Could there be a way out of this? He knew that, even if magic had acknowledged Severus as his father, he was still a Potter to the law. And an underage Potter at that. In three years the power of the blood ritual would be null and void as he would enter adulthood. But with an impending war, three years was too long to wait.

He heard footsteps on the staircase and sighed, waiting for his father to announce his presence. He had wanted to talk to him about his thoughts, but he would have preferred to put them in line first. He didn't seem to quite succeed, so maybe he could just trust his father to help him sort everything out.

"Found an answer to whatever this is that's been troubling you yet?" Severus asked, seating next to his son on the floor and handling him a cup of warm chocolate. Harry smiled and took the offered beverage. Severus had tried to act confident and carefree but the dark circles under his eyes gave away the troubling thoughts he had tried not to burden his son with.

"No." Harry admitted. "But I have at least managed to pin point the most serious problem at the moment. That's something I guess."

"And what would that problem be?"

"That should Prongs want it to be so, he can order me away from Silbreith during the holidays." Harry stated sighing. "It's his right as head of the Potter line and will keep being his right as long as I'm underage. It's a little miracle he hasn't decided to do so just yet. I was certain he would have objected me coming over today, but Dumbledore seemed to want to speak to him and my mother in private. Still, his dislike of you has increased exponentially -because how dare you steal his son away!- and his discomfort with me spending time around you has only followed the same pattern."

"I see." Severus said; he had been thinking around the same line himself for the past two days. Between worrying about Harry's wellbeing and how it could be threatened in the coming war and simply wanting to lock his son in Silbreith and never letting out, it had occurred to him that James had the power to do just that. Order Harry to stay away from Silbreith until the boy reached adulthood. Severus was no blood relation and, should the head of Harry's family decide it to be so, he could forbid him from seeing him outside school at any given time.

"I don't know what to do." Harry admitted, before correcting himself. "Well, I might have a solution but it's rather… radical."

"Radical?" Severus asked, his attention immediately claimed by said solution.

"Yes." Harry offered. "It's something Nagnok said, when I handed him the blueprints of the new Firebolt on my birthday. He said that, now that my parents were fully aware of my financial dealings, they had the power to intervene. The goblins seem to dislike that thought almost as much as I do; I've worked hard for that money and the mere thought that someone other than me can decide what to do with my business earnings doesn't sit well with me. Even if I know my family would probably never even consider it, it's the principle of the thing."

"I understand." Severus stated, understanding much more than Harry let on. He fully well knew that this wasn't about money at all. It was about Harry having achieved something of his own, away from his family's influence; finding out that even that part of his life could be affected by the Potters hurt cut deeper than he wanted to consider.

"He said there was a way to make certain I would be the sole master of my accounts and offered to make the arrangements necessary. I said that I would think about it but, with everything that has happened since, it simply slipped my mind. Yesterday however, while I was trying to avoid my mother who seemed intent on knowing everything she didn't care to find out in the past fourteen years and Prongs who suddenly remembered Adrian has a twin…" Severus detected the bitterness in his son's voice but, seeing how he was entitled to feel bitter, let it slide "I remembered what Nagnok had said. So I sent him a letter to enquire about what exactly it was that he suggested I should do." The teen pulled a letter out his pocket and handed it to Severus. "He wrote back this morning." The potions master frowned in confusion as he unfolded the letter and started reading. His eyes got wider after each line; it was only a short letter and to the point, but Harry was right; it was radical.

"An Emancipation ritual?" The potions master asked. "Are you sure, Harry?"

"I can't see any other way around this!" The boy exclaimed, his head coming to rest over his knees. "Nagnok said they're mostly used for sixteen year old wizards that need to get hold of their assets and affairs in case of a death in the family but what can I do? Being legally and adult will solve all the problems that my family may cause and my fortune is, mercifully, large enough to warrant it."

"So you're saying that you want to go through with this? Use your fortune as a scapegoat and free yourself of any obligation towards the head of your family?" Severus asked; Harry seemed to have put quite some thought into this.

"Honestly? Yes." The teen admitted, green eyes shining with determination. "This is the perfect way out, if you think about it. I mean, in all technicality, it's a financially motivated decision. So, all that the law demands is that the head of the minor's family gives permission for the minor to have their own vault and for the minor to prove they have the financial means not only to survive but to warrant the ritual in the first place. Despite the fact that I'm younger than most wizards that ever completed the ritual, I'm an ideal candidate." Severus looked between the letter in his hands and his son for a few moments before chuckling.

"Using your fortune to achieve your goals without threatening a soul or actually spending a knut. Very Slytherin of you, Harry!" The boy paused and looked at his father shocked for a second before chuckling along.

"You raised me right, I have told you as much before." The boy simply stated. Severus smirked and tousled his son's hair as the boy protested.

"I must admit, you turned out great." Severus threw back flippantly. "So, when are you going through with this?"

"In three days' time when we visit Diagon Alley for school related purchases; the actual ritual requires nothing more than two witnesses -a wizard or witch and a goblin- my signature, a few drops of blood and the official seal of Gringotts."

"Can't James contest it? Stop you from going through with it?" Harry shook his head negatively.

"The only way to do that would have been having protested me getting a personal vault or disallowing me to find a job; I have the vault already along with his written permission to pursue a career. It's out of his hands right now."

"You have truly thought this through." Severus noted.

"I have." Harry admitted. "And I'm having Nagnok over to the Potter Manor tomorrow to talk to my parents; he seems loath to have them interfere with my account plus, the two of us are swiftly becoming two of Gringotts' favorite clients. He'll properly stress the need to have me in control of my finances and I have every trust in goblin logic to help me convince them that this is the best course of action. I will, of course, fail to remind them that they will be unable to dictate my life as they could were I a minor and at this point I'm not even above playing a guilt card. I don't want them interfering, Dad. They've lost that right, I think." Harry had whispered the last few words but Severus still saw them for what they were; the last remnants of a child's hope that he could gain his family's acceptance vanished.

"I will help you, Harry, if that's what you really want." Severus offered, wrapping a hand around his son's shoulders and pulling the teen near.

"You're my family, Dad. You and now Nev and here's where I belong." Severus closed his eyes and nodded, fighting away his tears as he pulled his son closer and enveloped him in a proper hug.

"I know, son. I know."