Things moved along swimmingly for the five students. A few days later found them lounging on the grounds under a tree at the edge of the lake on a weekend afternoon. Hermione was reading, of course; Dray was stretched out in the grass, his interlocked hands comfortably underneath his head as he relaxed, eyes closed. Neville was entertaining himself by practicing some transfiguration spells, his rock changing into assorted different small animals and then back again; Ginny had rolled up the ends of her jeans and waded into the shallows of the lake. Harry had stood, watching the redhead with a small smile. However, this abruptly ended when Ginny surprised him, tossing a handful of water up into his face, spattering his glasses.

The raven-haired boy stared at her, shocked, before he smirked, quickly shedding his shirt as he dived after the girl, who shrieked and ran from him. He splashed her a couple of times, and she responded in kind. Then, she realized she could no longer see him, and the water was bouncing off some sort of bubble.

"Harry! No wards, that's cheating!" she cried, hands on her hips.

Suddenly, a huge wave of water crashed over her from behind, leaving her ponytail plastered to the side of her neck and her purple tank top stuck to her petite frame. Harry couldn't help thinking he'd never seen her more beautiful that she was right then…until he realized she was looking absolutely livid. The rest of his friends, too, looked somewhere between shocked and angry- apparently he'd made the wave a little too big, because it had left a thoroughly-soaked Dray, Hermione, and Neville on the shore.

"Harry!"

"Seriously?"

"That's it, Potter!"

But it was Ginny who drew his gaze. She was radiant, with her eyes blazing.

"Harry Potter!" she roared, "You are so dead!"

Harry purposefully strode over to her, dropping his wards as he went, not even thinking about it as he gently took her face in his hands and kissed her softly. Ginny froze, her eyebrows disappearing into her hair. He drew back slightly, searching her face for some sign of…pleasure, anger, life…something. Yet, her expression remained frozen, though a red blush was steadily creeping up her neck and staining her cheeks. His own expression became suddenly guarded. He stepped back from her, acutely aware of the other three watching them.

This was a mistake, he realized. This was why he didn't let his feelings out where people could see them. This was why he'd stayed away from everyone for so long. This-

Without warning, someone crashed into him, pulling his head down to meet theirs and capturing his lips. Now it was his turn to become a shocked statue as she kissed him back and he was enveloped in the scent of apple and cherry blossom that he'd come to associate with Ginny. Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her for all he was worth, no longer aware of the whooping cheers from Neville, or Hermione and Draco's smug smiles. There was just him, and her, and the sun shining down on them that seemed to be in them as well as around them. As they broke apart, Ginny grinned up at him.

"Well, Mister Potter, you certainly know how to apologize," she said. He forewent his typical smirk, a sunny smile lighting up his whole face.

"Well, thank you, Miss Weasley. I must say, if this is being dead, I'll gladly take it," he replied, leaning down to kiss her again.

After the incident at the lake, Harry and Ginny became practically inseparable. It was quite common to see the two of them stealing moments together between class times. Harry slowly became accustomed to her touch, and after that, the others were, one by one, able to casually throw an arm around his shoulders or put a hand on his arm as friends often do.

Hermione and Dray continued work on their projects together, steadily becoming more familiar with each other. They had yet to make themselves official, but their friends figured it was only a matter of time. They could most often be found holed up in the library. Hermione, it seemed, appreciated that Dray could distinguish when it was time to work and when it was permissible to playfully tease and chat, seeing as she told Ginny this repeatedly, who told Harry, which of course meant that Draco eventually got wind of it.

Neville made some great strides in his spells, becoming at least proficient in everything they practiced. He still had somewhat of a block when it came to transfiguration, but everything else was coming along nicely.

Harry, for his part, was catching up quickly. He was nearly at the end of fourth year-level transfiguration, and had blown through his potions and herbology up to about mid-third-year. All the rest of his theory was also coming along, and he was very grateful to his friends for their help.

The only thing still lacking was his control with a wand. He was nearly there, but was terrified to use his wand to duel with. His friends and professors kept reminding him that it would probably be in his best interests to pretend that he could only use a wand like everyone else so as to give him the best advantage possible over You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters, but so far, he refused to budge.

The following weekend, Ginny took another visit to Sirius and Remus' place, at Harry's request. The boy followed her, invisible again. He had to admit, the first visit, as well as the couple after that, had gone relatively well, but he wanted to make sure it wasn't just a fluke. He once again followed Ginny through the fireplace in the Headmaster's office, into the kitchen of Grimauld Place, and to the sitting room where Sirius and Remus were waiting for them.

It seemed when they got there that Sirius was not in nearly as good of a state as he'd been at their last visit. He wasn't angry, nor was he jovial as he had been. On the contrary, he looked…quite ill. Remus, too, looked as though he'd been through the wringer.

"Sirius, Remus, are you two ok?" Ginny asked immediately as they entered the room. Remus seemed to be struggling to get to his feet to greet her, but Ginny shook her head. "You don't need to get up." She made herself comfortable on a sofa.

"It's just the full moon," Remus said waving a hand in what he apparently thought to be an airy fashion, though Harry could see it pained him to make even that large of a movement. "It was just yesterday. We're still recovering."

Ginny's eyebrows shot up. "'We'?" she repeated, confused.

Remus nodded grimly. "Sirius has a hard time with full moons these days," he said quietly. It seemed this was true, because the other man seemed lost in his own head and didn't even acknowledge Ginny's presence, nor the fact that they were talking about him. "He gets really confused and depressed without James, not to mention angry at the thought of…" Remus stopped, shooting at look at Sirius before mouthing, "Wormtail."

Harry watched Sirius closely. The man seemed thin and wan, muttering darkly to himself. Harry couldn't hear what he was saying, but he caught his father's name a couple times, and his own as well. He could see Ginny's eyes flicker with pity. This man was hurting. He might be prejudiced against Slytherins as a whole, but from what Ginny had said the first time he'd asked about Sirius, he knew Sirius was lost in his thoughts of what-if's and self-blame. He had to do what he could.

He stepped up carefully, putting a hand on Ginny's shoulder. She looked up at him questioningly, and he could see Remus's brow furrow in confusion.

"Will you…will you help me?" he asked Ginny quietly. "I'm going to let my wards down."

Ginny's eyes widened. "Are you sure? He's probably even more unstable than he was when he came to the castle."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "Ask Remus what he thinks. But I think he won't hurt me. He's hurting himself; someone needs to pull him out of his head."

Ginny nodded, then checked with Remus, who gave the ok. Harry took Ginny's hand, sitting down beside her, before he lowered the wards. Sirius didn't even look up. Harry shared a concerned look with Ginny, then rose, taking the redhead with him as he crossed the room and knelt in front of Sirius. The poor man's eyes widened at the sight of them, and to Harry's astonishment, Sirius fell to his knees and began to sob in earnest.

"James," he gasped, "Lily, I'm so…so sorry! I failed you! I failed Harry! I lost him! I should've-"

"Sirius, it's me," Harry interrupted him, taking the older wizard's hands in both of his own. "It's Harry. I'm fine, see? And Ginny's right here as well, look."

Sirius slowly, as though not sure he was really seeing him, reached out toward him, putting a hand on the boy's shoulder. Harry's muscle twitched, but he didn't flinch away.

"I'm right here," Harry repeated. "I'm fine. You haven't failed Dad. What happened before, when I was a baby, was a mistake. It wasn't a good decision, but it also wasn't entirely your fault. Dad wouldn't hold it against you, Sirius." Harry hoped he was telling the truth. While he'd seen memories of his mother, he'd not heard a lot of good things yet about his father. But it seemed to calm the Animagus to some degree, and Harry could see recognition glinting in his eyes now.

"Harry," the older man muttered to himself. "Harry's alive. He's alright."

Harry and Ginny carefully helped Sirius back up onto the sofa, where he sat, staring unblinkingly, as though afraid they would be gone if he closed his eyes even for a second.

"I'm sorry, Harry," he said finally, sinking back into the sofa, looking thoroughly worn out. "I'm so sorry."

Harry and Ginny slowly walked back to the common room after their visit, hand in hand, lost in thought. They had sat with the two older wizards for a time, but it seemed that neither was in a state to really entertain that day. They had sat in silence for some time when it became clear that the two of them needed rest. So, Harry and Ginny said their goodbyes with promises they would come again another day when Sirius and Remus were feeling better.

"Harry," Ginny said finally.

"Hmm?"

"Did…did Sirius just confuse us with your mum and dad?" she asked curiously. Harry nodded.

"Mum had red hair, too, just like yours," he said quietly, running a hand through the silky locks at her shoulder. "I expect that if I look as much like Dad as everyone says…well, it probably wouldn't have been too far of a jump, given where his head was at, at the time."

Ginny nodded thoughtfully. "Would you show me a photo?" she asked. "I'd love to compare…" She trailed off as a dark look came over the boy's face.

"I don't have any photos of them," he said softly. "The most I have so far is from Uncle Severus' memories. Unfortunately, Dad and Severus never got along, and Mum thought Dad was an arrogant bully at the time, so…"

"…not the happiest memories," Ginny finished, understanding. Harry could see her slightly sad look change to wheels turning in her head, as though she was plotting something. He shot her a small crooked smile.

"What are you thinking about over there, Miss Weasley?" he asked playfully. She caught his eye and grinned.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" she replied with a smirk, giving the password and climbing into the common room. Harry just shook his head fondly and followed her inside.

Sunday afternoon, the five teens were lazing about on the Quidditch pitch. Harry and Draco were doing some seeker drills while Ginny was focused on perfecting a rather difficult defensive spell which had the effect of making others think they were upside down. Hermione and Neville were assisting her in her practice, becoming her guinea pigs essentially.

"Hey Harry?" Draco asked suddenly. Harry looked at him questioningly. "Are you…are you going to tell the others about the prophecy?" Harry's brow furrowed in thought.

"I don't really want to," he replied finally. "Ginny especially will worry. Besides, I don't even know the whole thing yet."

Draco raised an eyebrow. "Normally, I'd say it's your business. I'm all for keeping things to oneself. But…don't you think they have a right to know? They won't let you go out there to fulfill your destiny alone, you know."

Harry scowled. "I don't want anything to happen to any of you because of me," he said. "I'd rather keep all that as far away from the rest of you as possible." Draco snorted.

"If you think any of us, especially Firebug, would abandon you just because it's dangerous, you better think again." Harry shot him a deadpan look.

"Wow Dray, who knew you were such a Gryffindor?"

Then it was Draco's turn to shoot his friend a look. "Every fiber of my body is screaming that I should be offended by that…but…I can't even argue with it." The blond stared into space thoughtfully. "You know they'll be safer if you keep everyone in the loop. Keeping information from them could put them at greater risk."

Harry sighed. Draco was right. "Alright. I'll tell them. Soon," he promised.

Just then, all activity came to an abrupt halt when Snape came striding purposefully into the stadium. He gestured for Harry to land, though he likely understood that in doing so, he got all five students by default, which is exactly what happened. In no time, the quintet were all gathered around the older wizard.

"What is it, Uncle Severus?" Harry asked calmly. The potions master's face gave nothing away however.

"I wish you to get in some extra dueling practice today. I realize it is the weekend, but you will only have a couple days before all of you leave for the last week of the holidays." Harry nodded agreeably. He had accepted the invitations to the Weasley's and the Longbottom's once Draco had also been invited, and the five young wizards were happily looking forward to having a small break.

"Alright. Dray?" The blond nodded, taking out his wand, but Severus stepped in.

"I wish for you to duel with your wand, Harry," he clarified. Severus could clearly see the look of fear that shot over the boy's face before he pulled his emotions back in, hiding his terror behind a hard blank mask.

"No." Harry's magic swirled in his anger and fear. "I will not put Draco at risk like that. Nor Ginny, or Hermione, or Neville." Severus inclined his head.

"I had no intention of doing so," he said calmly, raising an eyebrow. Harry calmed slightly at this, and Severus could see his confusion. Then, it dawned on the boy what Severus was getting at, and his magic radiated with a vengeance.

"Absolutely not!" Harry said, his blank expression cracking, now visibly distraught. "Uncle Severus, I will not! I could…I could kill you with one out-of-control spell! I'm not safe!"

Severus could see Ginny and Draco stepping forward to try calm him, but he gestured to them to let him handle things. He closed the distance and carefully set his hands on the boy's shoulders. He noted that Harry did not flinch. It seemed Ginny was having a good influence on him.

"Harry," he said softly. "You will not harm me. You have enough control. I will be fine. Besides, I have a better chance of being able to block your powerful spells than your friends. If there is an accident, better me than one of the students." He could see Harry readying himself to argue, but Severus held up a hand to silence him. "We must practice this before the beginning of the school year if you want it to remain a secret." Harry's head drooped in defeat. He knew how important it was for his wandless magic to be kept under wraps.

Severus studied Harry carefully. Lily's boy looked absolutely terrified. "Harry," he said, drawing the boy's gaze back to him. "You can do this." Harry stared into Severus' eyes, his emerald green gaze boring into his mentor's head, as though trying to discern the truth. Severus could see that he'd found it, because a determined look stole over the boy's face. The potions master stepped back, drawing his wand. "Now- en guard, Potter," he echoed his very first challenge to the boy firmly. Harry obediently drew his white wand, settling into his ready stance as the other students backed away.

The ensuing duel was fast-paced and fierce. Severus did his best to stay out of the way of Harry's spells just in case, though the few that he did have to block, while breaking his shield, did not hit him directly. The older wizard had no doubt that, had Harry wanted to make the spells hit, he could have. The fact that they didn't was a testament to Harry's capability to control his power. Severus could see in his student's face that his confidence in his ability was growing.

Finally, after several intense minutes as Harry and Severus volleyed hexes and curses back and forth, Severus saw and opening and took it, hitting the boy in the side with a Stunning Spell. After a moment, he revived Harry, helping he raven-haired boy to his feet. Despite his loss, Harry was practically bouncing, all dignity and expressionless-ness forgotten in his triumph.

"Uncle Severus! I did it! I didn't hurt you!" Severus smirked at the boy.

"Well done, Harry," he said wryly. "However, you will need to practice more if you are to defeat me. Now, again."

They did five more duels, which all ended with Severus disarming the young man. The last, however, was close; Harry nearly took Severus down with a well-timed spell causing the potion's master to slip on a banana peel. Severus managed to right himself just as he encased Harry in thick ropes with Incarsarous, effectively ending the bout.

"We will continue this tomorrow," Severus said as he released Harry from the ropes. "For now, you may return to your activities. I will see you all at dinner." The boy's eyes shone as he smiled.

"Yes, sir," Harry replied, before he rejoined his friends, who all surged forward to congratulate the young man on his personal victory. Severus allowed himself a small smile as he turned away. Harry would be alright.

"Severus, what is the status of your projects?" Albus asked quickly as the younger man entered the circular office. The potions master grimaced.

"The train should be secure, though we will need to ask Harry for his help soon before he leaves with the others for the Weasley's. He should be able to expand his wards to the entirety of the train if he was able to do it with Petunia's house. As for the other one…I have not found anything of consequence. It seems that if a horcrux becomes somehow attached to a living creature, that being must also become past the point of magical repair in order to kill the soul fragment. As such…it seems that Harry has little chance of surviving," he finished solemnly. Albus nodded slowly.

"It is as I expected, then. The solution will need to be created." The old wizard paced the length of the office as Fawkes let out a trill. "You are correct, Fawkes. We will likely need to involve his friends in the creation of the spell if we are to save Harry." Severus' eyes narrowed.

"The other students, Albus? Miss Weasley hasn't even finished her OWL's! And Longbottom-"

"Severus," Albus cut him off. "They must be involved. Mister Malfoy and Miss Granger easily created a practical version of Harry's infamous audiobook spell; you must have heard about it. With their fresh perspectives, you will be more likely to light upon the solution we are seeking."

Severus' expression became impassive, and he inclined his head. "Very well, Headmaster."