They agreed to begin that evening, so, after a game of Exploding Snap in Harry's room (Sirius had cast a Silencing charm to prevent the Dursleys from overhearing), and they had both changed into their night clothes, Harry sat upright in bed, and Sirius next to him. Even though it was Sirius and not Snape, and even though Sirius had promised not to use legitimency on Harry, just assist him with clearing his mind, he felt uneasy. What if, even with his godfather there, he couldn't manage to do it? Harry also wondered how he would be able to tell if he had succeeded. When he had asked Sirius about this, he said that he would likely sleep more easily, and have fewer dreams. Or, at least, fewer concerning dreams.

Sirius took a few moments to page through the old volume, and Harry couldn't help but feel his uneasiness grow.

His godfather placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. "There's no need to be frightened, pup."

Harry tried to smile, or at least to nod. "I-I know.

Sirius wrapped him into a hug, and Harry squeezed back, feeling some of the tension in his stomach ease up. When his godfather left go, Harry could see how gentle his eyes were.

"Why don't you lay down?" he suggested.

Harry nodded, then changed from his sitting position to lying down. A moment later, Sirius' hands were on his head, running his hands through his hair. It felt so good, and he hoped that this would continue.

"Comfortable?" Sirius asked, softly.

"Yes," Harry half breathed, half whispered.

"Your dad loved to do this when you were a baby. You always fell asleep within minutes," Sirius remembered.

"And my mum?" Harry asked, closing his eyes.

"Yes, but you especially liked it when she'd kiss you all over and tickle your tummy!" Sirius answered, with a chuckle.

Harry smiled at the image.

Sirius continued to run his hands through Harry's hair. "Ready to begin?" Sirius asked. At Harry's nod, he continued. "Think of a place or a person where you feel completely safe."

A place? Harry knew of no such place that held such security. As much as he loved the castle at Hogwarts, his life had been in danger there more years than not. Privet Drive might be safe, strictly speaking, but he certainly felt no love from the Dursleys. The Burrow? Perhaps, but that was more Ron's house. Grimmauld Place? Again, the protective wards may be there, but the presence of Kreacher and the remains of Sirius' unhappy childhood made it far from a place of security.

A person, then, Harry decided. Well, why not Sirius? He was the only real link to his parents, and he had certainly loved Harry enough to risk his life for him. More than that, really, given that until a few weeks ago, he had been a wanted man by the Ministry, and would have had his soul sucked out by the Dementors if they caught him.

All right. Sirius it was.

Harry gave a little nod, expecting to feel some embarrassment, but none came.

"Did you pick a place or a person?" Sirius asked. "The instructions are different for each."

"A person," Harry murmured.

Sirius chuckled. "Right. I should have guessed that. All right, then...imagine this person, and recall a memory or feeling associated with them..."

This went on for several minutes, Sirius slowly guiding Harry through the instructions the author provided. As they progressed, he felt overcome with a feeling of safety, comfort, and protection. His mind didn't wander towards the worries that often plagued him, usually involving his OWL results or the fact that Voldemort must be gaining even more power.

Instead, as he felt his eyes close for the night, was the image of Sirius in the Department of Mysteries, protecting him and his friends, and finally, managing to escape with every one of them still alive.

That night, Harry slept as soundly as though he had drunk a dose of the Dreamless Sleep potion.

He smiled to himself. It had worked, then. He'd managed to empty his mind. What this meant as far as repelling Voldemort or another Death Eater or, if they attempted it, Sirius from his mind, he didn't know. But, then again, Snape had always ordered him to do this after each class, and sneered at him when Harry had been unable to, or forgot, or both. Not that Snape had explained how to empty his mind, any more than he'd told Harry how to repel him from his mind.

Still, this was a start.

A light snore next to Harry told him that Sirius had slept next to him. He wondered if his godfather had done so on purpose, or if he'd simply fallen asleep there after helping Harry. He rather hoped it was the first. Sure, he knew he was too old to need a parent to sleep next to him-even though Dudley had done so well into his teenage years, especially after their encounter with the Dementors last summer-but he also hadn't had a parent to tuck him in or reassure him when he had nightmares for nearly all of his life. Harry knew that looked to Sirius as some sort of combination of an older brother and a father figure, and Sirius had been happy to take on these roles.

Harry turned over on his side to see Sirius still asleep under the covers, not close enough to touch Harry, but not more than a few inches away. Not wanting to be caught staring in case Sirius woke up, Harry turned back on his other side, wondering what they would do today.

His mind went to his OWL exams. Hardly the first time since he'd taken them. He was quite certain that he would not be receiving an OWL in Divination or History of Magic, and if he passed Astronomy, it would be with an Acceptable at best. None of these were subjects he had much interest in continuing, though, and he doubted that he would need them if he somehow met the required grades to continue the subjects necessary to begin Auror training. He recalled Tonks talking about other examinations, so his studies wouldn't end after Hogwarts. Still, it might be better if he was studying what he needed to catch dark witches and wizards.

Right. So, Astronomy, Divination, and History of Magic were likely fails. He was still confident that he got at least an E in Defense Against the Dark Arts, and likely an O. He knew that his other subjects, except maybe Care of Magical Creatures, had gone well enough on the practical end, with only small errors. No one had asked what the requirements were for receiving an E in a subject, but Harry figured that an E meant you did a reasonably good job all around, and an O meant you did everything perfectly. He'd probably end up with an E in Charms, Herbology, and Transfiguration. As for Potions? Well, it wasn't Snape grading the tests, so he could expect at least an A. Probably nothing higher, though, and certainly not an O.

Would Dumbledore interfere again, like Harry was sure that he had in his third year, when he was sure Snape had given him a 0 on the final? He'd passed with the lowest mark possible, then. So had Ron. Hermione, of course, had received full marks, but Harry suspected that no matter how much the Potions teacher hated the three of them, he hadn't been able to take any points away from Hermione's Confusing Concoction without ruining it. Perhaps, Dumbledore would see that only Hermione-and maybe a couple of other students-had received the required O, and insist that he take on students with E's.

That was, of course, if Harry had managed an E, and he wasn't sure he had.

Sirius yawned and stretched, nearly causing Harry to jump.

"Easy there, pup!" he chuckled, pulling Harry into a hug. "Didn't mean to scare you."

Harry wrapped his arms around Sirius' frame for several seconds, enjoying the warmth of the hug, before letting go.

"How'd you sleep?" Sirius asked, staying close.

"Yeah, I slept really well. No dreams at all," Harry said, grinning. "I guess clearing my mind worked?"

Sirius' grin was just as broad. "Sure sounds like it! I'm impressed, pup. Shall we try again tonight?"

Harry nodded. "Sure." He thought for a moment. "How will I know if it's really working?"

"Well, you won't have any visions," Sirius stated, as though this were obvious.

Harry reddened. "I meant more like, suppose Snape tries to get into my head?"

Sirius frowned a little. "Do you think he would?" At Harry's look, the frown deepened. "I see. I could try, after a few weeks, using legitimency. Nothing like what he did, just light prodding. As you get better, I could strengthen it."

Harry didn't particularly relish the idea of letting anyone in his mind, but Sirius would be far better than Snape. Anyway, if he tried hard enough, maybe he wouldn't see much.

"Yeah. All right."

Sirius placed a hand on his shoulder. "Not until you're ready, though, I promise." At Harry's nod, Sirius changed the subject. "What were you thinking so intently about that I made you nearly jump out of your skin?"

"My OWLs. I won't know...well, I'm not sure when. McGonagall said sometime in July."

Sirius nodded, pulling Harry a little closer. "I don't envy you the wait to find out. 'Course, everyone gets nervous as they wait for their results."

"Even you and Dad?" Harry asked, the pensieve memory in mind.

Perhaps Sirius realized this, because he wrapped another arm around Harry.

"Yes, pup, even us," he murmured. "Oh, we did well enough in most of our classes without over exerting ourselves, usually." At Harry's grin, Sirius continued. "But we all had our...what's the muggle term? Achilles heel? Anyway, not one of us naturally excelled in every class, and we certainly didn't get all Outstandings. Not that Remus didn't nearly receive all O's."

This was a little reassuring. "Do you still remember your marks?"

"Let's see. James, Remus, and I all got Outstanding in Defense against the Dark Arts. Peter managed an Acceptable, and was thrilled." Sirius rolled his eyes, and Harry grinned. "James and I got Exceeds Expectations in Herbology. James thinks he should have gotten an Acceptable, but he wasn't going to write to the examiners. There was a nasty plant that kept attacking us during the exam. Peter got another Acceptable, and Remus got an Outstanding. James said his lycanthropy must have had a calming affect on the horrible plant. Potions...Peter failed, Remus got an Outstanding, as did your dad, and I got another E. I outscored him in the NEWT exam, though."

"I thought you couldn't continue if you didn't get an Outstanding?" Harry wondered.

"Not when we had it. Slughorn would take anyone who passed the OWL, at least our year. Old Snivellus is only taking Outstanding students, eh? That's rough," Sirius sympathized. "Surprised that Dumbledore would allow that, since at least half of the well known magical careers require a NEWT level of understanding in Potions."

Harry sighed. "Yeah, well, I doubt that I got an Outstanding. Honestly, I don't even know if I passed."

"Look on the bright side. You don't really want to spend two years studying under Snape, do you?" Sirius pressed.

"I have to, if I want to become an Auror," Harry muttered, darkly.

"Who told you that?"

"McGonagall. She said I need Potions, Transfiguration, Charms, Herbology, and Defense Against the Dark Arts," Harry explained.

Sirius chuckled, then pulled him into another hug. "Well, now, you're the Boy Who Lived. The Chosen One. You could get all Acceptable and they would be begging you to join up."

Harry shrugged. "I don't want special treatment."

"It wouldn't be, not really. You would benefit from the training if you're going to kill Voldemort for good." Sirius released Harry, then placed his hands on his shoulders. "Either way, pup, I am proud of you. As are your parents, I am sure."

"How were your other marks?" Harry asked.

Sirius ruffled his hair. "Changing the subject, are we? All right. Let's see...Remus received an E in Transfiguration, Peter an A, and James and I both got O's."

That made sense, as Harry remembered that his former professor had asked for help studying in the memory. His dad and Sirius had preferred to hex Snape, though. Had the professor faulted his friends for his lower mark? Would he, too, have gotten an O if they had used the afternoon to study?

The only person who would be able to answer truthfully would be Remus, and Harry didn't think he had the nerve to ask him.

"I don't think Transfiguration went too badly for me," Harry offered. "I forgot what a Switching Spell is, but I didn't mess anything up in the practical part. Hannah Abbot ended up turning her ferret into a flock of flamingos, and the whole test had to be stopped so that they could capture them and remove them from the hall."

"Ah, well, 'ferret' and 'flamingo' do both sound similar," Sirius replied, not entirely able to hide a small grin. "Personally, I think that the practical subjects shouldn't have a written exam. As long as you can show what you've learned, does it really matter if you can write it all down on parchment? Say, does McGonagall also require an O to continue?"

"Just an E, but she said my work had been at A level over the last two years," Harry recalled.

"Right. Now, in Charms, Peter actually managed an E. That was one of his strengths. The rest of us got O's," Sirius recalled. "No, wait, I got an E, but your dad and Remus definitely got O's. Now, what are we up to?"

Harry counted in his head. "Astronomy, History of Magic, and whatever courses you added on in your third year."

"We all got E's in Astronomy. Mostly, in my opinion, because of how late the exam was held. You can't concentrate too well when you should be sleeping. Besides," Sirius added, with a bit of a grumble, "it's not as though they can't hold the exam during the day, and have the Great Hall enchanted to look the way it would during the exam."

Harry couldn't argue there. "History of Magic, then?"

"All Outstandings, except Peter got an Exceeds Expectations. He remembered the details fairly well, but kept mixing up the dates. That's what he thought, as they don't give your exam paper back," Sirius explained. "Now, we all took Muggle Studies. Your dad to try to impress your mum, which didn't work, or not well enough. I did it to annoy my parents." Sirius grinned broadly. "I rather suspect that Remus thought it would be an easy course, and to be fair, he was the one we went to if we had questions. Everyone, including Peter, received an Outstanding. The second class was Arithmancy, which I don't believe you took?" When Harry shook his head, Sirius continued, "It's very interesting, and you need an eye for detail. Peter failed, Remus got an E, as did your dad, and I got an O. The only time I outscored him, and I only reminded him about it ten times in the first week. We had a friendly rivalry going on," Sirius explained, as Harry's eyebrows rose.

"Your grades were really good. I was passing everything, at least before my fifth year, but the only class I was really good at was Defense Against the Dark Arts," Harry told Sirius, feeling sheepish.

Sirius wrapped an arm around Harry's shoulder, pulling him in close. "That doesn't matter to me, pup. Your parents would be so proud of everything you've accomplished, especially with Voldemort seeking you out to kill nearly every year."

"You think so?"

"I'm positive. Speaking of which," he added, with a grin, "are you up for telling me about that first year adventure you had? I believe a sorcerer's stone was involved..."

Harry grinned. "Well, it started when Hagrid took me to my vault for the first time..."