PERCEPTIONS

by The Calming Draught

Hermione is known as the smartest witch of her generation due to several reasons. Being observant is one of them. Her better perceptions leads Harry to eventually win the war and find a Family in the most unlikely of places. Slightly OOC Snape and other Slytherins (Only slightly this time I assure you). Slightly Manipulative Dumbles (though not much screen time). HarMione. COMPLETE

At the end of the fourth year, when the international schools were departing, the golden trio was reminiscing the year that they had spent. Ron, as always, was hungry and wanted to go to the kitchens. Hermione stopped Harry. When they were alone, Harry turned to Hermione, worried seeing her so morose. It was quiet unlike Hermione. She was a straight forward girl who said whatever she wanted, without fearing for the other's reaction. But today she seemed tense and thinking hard. It was evident she wanted to talk but her hesitance shown clear. Harry slowly placed his hands on her shoulders and said, "You know you can tell me anything right?"

"I know Harry. But it's more like I want to discuss something with you."

"Go on. I am listening. I won't judge until you are finished if that is what you are afraid of."

"Okay! Then promise me you will not say a word until I finish speaking."

"I promise. Tell me already. You are making me curious."

"Well. It's about Professor Snape." Seeing Harry open his mouth, she just held her hand up to make him stop. "Just let me finish okay. I know none of us like him. He takes points unjustly and intentionally antagonizes you. But at the end of last year, when he stood in front of the three of us like a shield, it got me thinking. He could have stunned Remus or simple run away, but he chose to protect us instead of himself. He stood in front of us like a human shield. Over the summer break, I thought about each of our encounters. First year, he saved you from Quirell in the quidditch match. The questions from our first class were not meaningless either. Do you know the significance of the first question? It took me a lot of time and research to actually find it out. According to Victorian Flower Language, asphodel is a type of lily meaning 'My regrets follow you to the grave' and wormwood means 'absence' and also typically symbolised bitter sorrow. If you combined that, it meant 'I bitterly regret Lily's death'. He was giving his condolences in his own twisted way. Of course he did not want you to find that out. And bezoar is sort of first aid for almost all poisons. If you get poisoned and have a bezoar on your person, you will at least have time to reach a medical facility, if not be cured immediately. Monkswood, or Wolfsbane is the main ingredient of the Wolfsbane Potion. Clearly he expected you to be intelligent. This also shows that he doesn't know about your home life and has the wrong notion that you are a spoiled brat, and nobody has corrected him. Dumbledore could have just forced him to visit over the summers if he was not taking his word for it. Harry, I just sometimes feel Dumbledore is too manipulative and not have your best interest at heart. I know you would say you have to go back for the blood protection and all but a little warning could do to staunch the abuse wouldn't it? But no, nobody visits you and… and now Dumbledore has instructed me and Ron not to write to you in the summers; Something about you needing space. Also, I think someone, anyone of your parents' friends would have tried to contact you while growing up but you never got any correspondence. Weird isn't it? People leaving their saviour all alone? Not a thank you note or a small gift? Anyway, I am going off topic. These small realizations about Professor Snape were not enough for me to bring it up to you, so I observed Professor Snape this full year. When Dumbledore announced the tournament, I swear I had seen a frisson of fear in his eyes which I noticed only because I was looking for it. It felt as if he could feel something was going to happen. When your name came out of the goblet, the fear grew in his eyes, as if his worst fears were realized somehow. Somehow he suspected that there was more to what was happening. I saw him deliberately bring an angry scowl on his face before he entered the anteroom you all were in. I could see his disdain whenever he looked towards Karkaroff, and his anger towards Dumbledore. Didn't you say that he was quiet deliberate to somehow get you disqualified? Harry what I have understood of the man, he wanted to get you out of the danger. People have died in the tournament and he feared the worst. I have seen that fear reside in his eyes permanently all through the year. Didn't you notice he was even more grumpy and nasty this year? You should have seen his face when you were taking so much time inside the maze. His brows were wet with sweat. And when you landed with a dead body, we were shocked, frozen in place, but he was moving towards you with a purpose. He was late as we know, but then did not lose time and moved back towards the castle. The crowd which had started to descent was slowing him down. Do you remember? He once again stood in front of you like a human shield, pushing you behind him, after disarming Crouch. Harry I know it's hard to process. I have got a few occlumency books for you. Now that the evil bastard, excuse my language, is back, you will need it. Harry people are already calling you a liar and I think the coming year will be difficult, but I will stand by you. Occlumency will also help you view your own memories and you can review your memories to see what I mean to say. I am not saying that you accept my reasoning immediately. I don't even know why he has to be so nasty if he really cares about you. I just want you to think and may be observe it for yourself this coming year. Will you do this; for me if not for Professor Snape?"

"Yes I will. Merlin but this life is too short to hate everyone, isn't it? If I can do away with resenting one person, it will be worth it. Making Ron understand will be difficult though."

"First you Harry. We will think of Ron later. He is a pressure cooker, bursts into angry whistles before cooling down. It's inevitable." They both chuckled at that.

"Harry, I will send you a letter every day for the first three days of holiday. If I don't get a reply, I will understand that there is some sort of block in your mails. If you don't get them, don't get disheartened; know that there is some outside force stopping you from getting the mails. Also, do you know your aunt's phone number?"

"Yes, but you know she will not allow me to attend any calls even if you ask for me."

"No worries there. Here, write the number in this diary. On Friday, stay near the phone at 1 a.m. Pick the phone at one ring. We will decide the next phone call then. How does that sound?"

"You know you are a genius right?"

"I know right?" And they both chuckled again.

Hermione had indeed given Harry too much to think about. He trusted his friend explicitly. So, on the very first night of his return, even though he was sore, he sat with the first of the three books she had given. The first one was a thin book on the methods of meditation to clear your mind. He read the first two chapters and sat in a yogic posture to clear his mind. It took him two days to get through the thin five chapter book, which listed ten methods to clear your mind, which ever worked best for the reader. Harry found meditation through concentrating on a particular feeling quiet helpful. He chose the feeling of being in the air, flying freely of course. It even helped to get a peaceful dreamless sleep. Harry was grateful. So on Friday, Harry took a nap till midnight, when he woke up by the alarm he had set for half past twelve. Exactly at 1 a.m., the phone rang and he picked before the first ring even went through. "Hello" came Hermione's voice, hesitantly.

"Hermione, I love you, you know that?"

"Oh Harry, I was worried you would forget."

"As if. You are a genius Hermione. These exercises to clear my mind are working wonders for me. I did not have a nightmare in the last two days. I will begin on the next book tomorrow onwards."

"That's great Harry. Did you get the letter?"

"Actually no. I got none till now. And Hedwig is not allowed out, so I cannot send any either."

"No worries there. We have got a new way haven't we? I understood after the third letter that you may not be getting any. But it should have come back unopened. Instead, it never came back. Most probably, it is being redirected to deliver elsewhere. No worries. I had not written anything to give our plan away. Just regular homework pestering."

Harry chuckled lightly, "Yeah, nobody would suspect anything on that at least. That is your regular type of letter."

"You must finish your homework though."

"I will. After learning this meditation technique, it feels I will be better able to concentrate and more easily. I will try the next book first, and then go for the homework. I have a feeling this would help."

"It would. I started it last year when I came upon the book in a book store in Sydney's magical half while I was visiting with my parents for the summer. It feels amazing to be able to access your memories and sift through them like a journal or file cabinet. It makes the mind clearer and more perceptive."

"Cool. I will do it. Where are you going this year?"

"Italy. I will also visit its magical part and see if I can get a few more nice books on different topics. Harry, one more thing; I know you had stepped back from studying because of your aunt and uncle not wanting you to do better than Dudley. But Dudley is not in Hogwarts. After learning to block your mind and access your memories, will you bring back your love for books of your childhood again? Will you try to?"

"I guess so. I have tried in the last few years but…"

"But you were trying not to offend Ron." Hearing a sigh from the other side, Hermione understood that she was right. "Harry, if Ron stops you from doing better for yourself, he is not a good friend for you, for us. Please Harry, I want to see you excel. Will you? Please?"

"Yes. I will try Hermione. But you will have to be with me."

"Always."

They were silent for a few moments. Then Harry said, "When will you be calling next?"

"I have written my number at the back of the first book. You call me. Tomorrow. I will be by the phone from 11 p.m. till 1 a.m. Whenever you feel safe, call me okay?"

"Okay. Goodnight then."

Through the day, Harry would continue to do his chores. He spent his evenings reading his books and applying what it said in his mindscape. He called Hermione every single night. It became sort of their nightly ritual. He shared his progress with her. She explained to him that for her mindscape, she had created a library and each book contained her memories. She kept none free. She could not know if her mind will hold the shields if attached externally, but she felt they were pretty strong. Harry, on the other hand, had decided on a forest clearing. Nobody knew about it but when he was young, and wanted to get away from Dudley and his gang, he went into the nearby forest cover. There was a small clearing among the pine and fir and Douglas growing there. It was pretty much secluded and always gave Harry a nice reprieve. So, he had decided to design his mindscape as his retreat from the abuse of his cousin. On the highest of branches, he will place the worst of memories and the lower branches, the ones nearer to him, will contain happy memories. He discussed so with Hermione who was happy with the idea.

On the night of the 30th of July, Harry waited for Hermione's phone call, as she had asked him. At the stroke of midnight, the phone came alive and Harry immediately picked it up. "Happy Birthday Harry." came a quiet voice from the other side. "Thanks 'Mione".

After a moment of quiet and peace, Harry said, "Hey 'Mione. I have finally finished sorting out my memories. I don't know what defences to put though. I will meditate every night. I have also started on the first year curriculum, revising it. The kitchen is quiet at night so I am also practicing the potions, beginning from first year. I really like potions you know. It was only Professor Snape's behaviour that had put me off. Even though it is a chore here, I really like cooking. Potions is somewhat similar, just more precise. Do you think I can do well in my owls next year?"

"Oh Harry! I am sure you will."

"Thanks. So, you are leaving for Italy in the morning?"

"Yeah. I won't be able to call for the next two weeks Harry. Please take care and keep studying okay."

"Yes Mother."

"Oh don't you yes mother me Harry James Potter." And they both chuckled.

Harry heard a little movement upstairs. Afraid, he bid goodbye to Hermione and quietly crept up to his room. While sifting throw his memories, Harry had found out that Hermione had always been by his side, more than Ron, and he kind of liked her, not as a sister. He believed she liked him too. He was determined to pay more attention in the future. He also had found out that Hermione was mostly correct about Snape. While he was reviewing his second year memories, he had found that for a moment, there on the quiddich pitch, when Lockhart had removed his bones, Snape had become extremely worried. The expression vanished in a moment of course. But it was there. After that day, Snape always looked at Lockhart with disgust (and sometimes murderous intent). During the mock duel, when Malfoy had conjured the snake, Snape looked ready to strangle his favourite student (or was the whole favoured student also an act? He would have to look more closely next term). The fun was when Lockhart had antagonised the snake though. Harry could bet all the money in his vault that Snape barely constrained himself from casting Crusio on Lockhart. It was sort of funny to see your least favoured professor so indignant on your behalf. And when Harry spoke to the snake (though he thought he was speaking in English), Snape looked scared. That may be because he had often heard the Dark Lord talk in the language? He was most curious about it. Harry also decided to observe Snape for the next year before making any move. It was his OWL year and he was determined to do well in his studies.

When the letter came from Mrs. Weasley that she would do the shopping for Harry and to send her the vault key, Harry politely refused, saying he will owl order them and that Hedwig needed some exercise. In reality, he had decided to sneak out and find his own way to Diagon Alley. He also wanted to talk to the goblins, as he was never left alone with them before; something he discovered while sorting through his memories. So, on the 5th of August, Harry slipped away from home at the break of dawn. He had become quiet adapt at potions and had successfully brewed Polyjuice for this excursion. He had also stolen a nice T-shirt and jeans from Dudley's wardrobe and his hairs from his head. Dudley did not even stir when Harry plucked his hairs. He would visit Gringotts first. He could not use the Polyjuice there. Goblins hated disguise and would never help him when they detected the polyjuice, whatever the reason behind it may be. Nobody would be around at this time so he expected not be noticed. The Dursleys won't be happy with him when he returned, but he would cope. He needed to do this right now.

After getting out of the house, Harry decided to try his luck and call for the knight bus. He was wearing Dudley's new green sweatshirt with the oversized hoodie hiding his face. He looked around and saw that the area near the park was deserted. He pulled out his wand and concentrated. Within moments, the knight bus was in front of him. He quickly got in and paid for the leaky cauldron. Stepping down, he entered the pub. It was mostly empty except a few people having breakfast. He went to tom, the barkeeper, and asked his help to be let into the alley. On reaching Gringotts, he politely bowed to the teller and said, "Is it possible to meet someone who I can ask about my family accounts?"

The goblin was astonished by the kind tone and gentle manners of the boy. He said, "State your name good sir."

Harry smiled at the polite address. The goblins always seemed so grumpy. Guess they take tit for tat a bit too seriously. "Harry James Potter sir."

The goblin looked shocked. He quickly schooled his features and said, "Please follow me."

He led Harry to a long hallway which had numerous doors. Harry guessed they were offices of various account managers. He was led to a door towards the back which had a golden placard, reading "Axehead". Guess he was the account manager for Potter accounts.

As soon as Harry entered, he saw a goblin sitting behind a big desk, looking through some papers. He looked up to see Harry standing there, with a sneer on his face. Harry greeted him politely, but the sneer became more intense, rather than diminishing. When the goblin spoke, he sounded extremely pissed off, Harry did not know why.

"Oh! So you have finally decided to grace us lowly creatures with your presence?"

"Why do you sound so angry? I don't think you to be lowly."

"Oh you don't? Then why pray tell you haven't replied to any of the mails sent to you by Gringotts? Do you know how difficult it has been for me to fend off your Magical Guardian, asking for access to your vaults? Or do you not care for what happens to the money that your ancestors earned through their good senses. And what about your house elves? They have been on the verge of insanity for so many years, thinking that their master has rejected them. Do you even care if they live or die?"

"Sir please let me explain. I never received any mails from Gringotts and didn't even know I had house elves. Please believe me. Use any charm or potion to determine I am not lying. I don't mind."

Axehead stopped to think about it. It was unlikely for any family, wizarding or muggle, to ignore reports from a place where they keep their money. He decided to test the waters. "Explain yourself, in details. I will decide then, whether to trust you or not."

With a deep breath, Harry narrated the story of his life and the recent developments because of Hermione. Needless to say, Hermione's initiative was about to change his life for ever.

As Harry had expected, he went without food for three days straight when he got home that evening. But, he felt it was worth it. And the loss of food did not really bother him as he had stocked his entire bag with packed food to last him for the next month. He had bought various books from Diagon Alley as well as Knockturn Alley. Nobody knew Dudley, who he was polyjuiced into, so there was no trouble at all. Dudley had a dark brooding bad boy look to him and his heavy stature made him look older than his age. So, traversing Knockturn Alley was also not an issue. In a very shady back corner of the street, Harry had found a wand maker. His wands were non-traceable and dark wizards often bought from him for this reason. He did not have any particular shop so as not to attract Ministry's attention. He took Harry into the nearby woods where he had a hut. There, Harry's magic selected his wand and core and the wand was made. It was an odd combination, slightly different from his own Holly with Phoenix feather. It was what the wand maker explained to be half eucalyptus (rainbow eucalyptus from Philippines; good for healers) and half Baobab (Adansonia of Africa; known for its long life. Wand made of it tend to be good for all types of spell work; charms, transfiguration, hexes and curses. It mostly chooses fire elemental) with the core being Kelpie tail hair and Minotaur horn (found to be good for transfiguration and duels). The wand-maker told him that he had never made something so uncommon. He even doubted that the wand will work. Harry was ready to take the chance. These woods and cores had chosen him after all. Now, Harry could also practice Charms and other magics, and not only potions. That evening, just when Harry decided to use his new wand, something came to his mind. He thought back to his first summer after Hogwarts. When Dobby had levitated the cake, he had not had his wand on him at all. So, the tracking was not only on his wand but also the house somehow. This could be distressing, but he had an idea. He would be using the secluded clearing upon which he had built his mental defences. That decided, Harry packed an overnight bag. Now that he could do magic outside the house-wards, he could use lumos and other household charms that he was reading about in the books he had bought that day. Reaching the clearing, he transfigured a chase lounge from broken twigs and produced levitating lumos balls that he had read about in a book he had bought from a second hand store in Diagon Alley, to light up the clearing only. Hence, began Harry's revision of the last four years of his education, and then some additional training that he set for himself. With the Ministry denying his claim of the return of Voldemort, he was sure he would not get any training. He would have to help himself.

Harry reached the station at 9 am. Vernon had refused to take him this time because of his lack of interest in housework. Harry did not mind. He collected his things, having upgraded his trunk several days ago when he had gone cloth shopping in muggle London, and called for the Knight Bus. He had also owl ordered some good robes from Madam Malkins, with his measurements, as he did not want to be gawked at by the last minute shoppers. He now had a full wardrobe that perfectly fit along with Two sets of school robes, Two sets of light summer robes in dark grey and forest green and two sets of formal robes in a dark burgundy in sifting material and one in dark navy blue. The only house colour he did not have was yellow but he suspected it wouldn't suit him much. He had a mustard yellow t-shirt though.

Harry knew Hermione would be at the station early like him. They will be able to discuss certain things without interruption from Ron or anyone else. Nobody will be reaching the station at least before 10 a.m. As soon as Hermione entered the compartment Harry had saved for them towards the back of the train, she grabbed him into a bone crushing hug, saying, "Harry. I missed you so much. How have you been?"

Harry just chuckled and said, "Settle down Hermione, we have at least more than one and half hours to discuss things before Ron arrives. You know the Weasleys are always late right?"

Hermione laughed at that. "Sometimes I think how they reach anywhere on time at all. So, first you. How far along are you in your studies?"

Harry smiled at the enthusiasm his friend was showing for HIS sake. "I have completely reviewing my first four years' syllabus and am almost half way through this year's. Apart from that, I have bought several other books, out of our curriculum and read them too. I think I have achieved basic occlumency shield. Now I need only a master legilimens to train us. Also, after mastering occlumency, I would like to learn legilimency too. I have got this book about Dark Lords through the ages and I read in that that Voldemort is believed to be a master legilimens. That is why his followers are unable to lie to him. These are only speculations though, but I still want to be ready. Like things are going, it would be a miracle if someone decides to train us at all. I also wanted to do some research in parsel magic, but did not get any books however hard I searched. That's all about me. Now you tell me about what you think?"

"It's good to hear Harry that you have progressed so much. I am sure you will excel in all your classes now and this will also give us some insight on our other friends, please don't mind me saying that. I have got some new books from Italy, one of which is about animagus. You said your father was one, didn't you? Well I would like to try. The methods in those books are totally different from the ones I purchased in Diagon Alley. Pretty unconventional but looks and sounds easier. We can try it. If it doesn't work, we will revert back to the English methods. What say?"

"That's an excellent Idea 'Mione. I would feel more connected to my dad if I can achieve it. So, when should we start?"

"Well I have already read the book so you can take a week to read it. Then we can start the meditation required together."

"Why don't you start ahead if you already know what to do?"

"Oh it won't be any fun Harry. Doing it together will be more fun."

"That's true.. 'Mione… I wanted to discuss something."

"Yes Harry. Tell me."

"When I went to Gringotts, I got to know that Dumbledore is my Magical Guardian and he tried to take out some money and family heirlooms from my vault, which the Potter accounts manager Axehead denied, showing or sometimes even making up rules. I have now taken full control and he won't be able to do anything. Moreover, he never mentioned I had property apart from Godric's Hollow and that I had house elves who were waiting for me. I met them and talked to them. I know how you feel about slavery but believe me this is not slavery. If you want, you can talk to my head elf Ditsy. She is such a mother hen I tell you. They said if I would have delayed another month or two, they would have died of rejection. They thought by not acknowledging them, I was actually rejecting them. They were miserable. Right now, they are working hard to clean up all my properties and bring them in good working order. I have also commissioned Axehead to ward Godric's Hollow as well as all of my other properties and then the elves will work to build the ruins of my parents' house. I don't know what to think anymore. I trusted Dumbledore. I cannot anymore."

"I know. I have not trusted him for the whole year. I feel being the head of the school, he could have somehow found a solution to keep you away from the tournament. But he did not do anything. That's when I started thinking about why you never received any mails while growing up. This summer proved that someone else was getting your mails. We can think of finding it out later though. I have some theories. I even tried to talk to Ron once but he was outraged. I narrowly avoided a huge chaos by pretending it was just a joke. That is why I wanted to hold back from telling Ron before we had all the facts. As for the house-elves, I don't know Harry. But I promise I will not take any action until I have all the facts."

"That's all I ask. Thank you."

"Before I forget, here; your Birthday gift." saying that, Hermione handed Harry a wrapped package. It was obviously a book. Harry practically tore the wrapper in his excitement. Inside were four books on basic healing, handbook on magical and muggle first-aid, advanced healing potions and the last one was the first level of muggle MBBS. It belonged to her father. Harry remembered he had told Hermione about his inclination towards becoming a healer and incorporating muggle and magical treatment to enhance the chance of survival for both worlds. He noticed how Hermione remembered the most inconsequential things about him. He was glad he had her. He hugged her tight and thanked her.

They proceeded to discuss which books they had studied and Harry showed her his new trunk with the expandable library cabinet where he stored the books she gave her and one to organize potions ingredients and equipment and keep them protected. She was pleased and said she would buy one when she went shopping next time. That would be Christmas break most probably. When Ron entered the compartment, just two minutes short of departure, both Harry and Hermione were going through an advanced book of potions which listed the properties, uses and hazards of every ingredient imaginable. It would be easier to understand why some ingredients were used how they were used and why certain ingredients should never me mixed together. Ron tried to catch their attention but did not get anything more than a hello and how are you. To say the least, Ron's journey back to school was a boring one. After about an hour, he went to find Dean and Seamus to play exploding snaps.

At the welcoming feast, Harry looked up to the head table. His eyes met Snape. As soon as their eyes met, Snape looked away. Harry could bet he saw a frisson of worry in his eyes, before he schooled his features. Was it a yearly ritual? Did Snape notice more than usual skinny body every welcoming feast? Or was it a new development? Harry would never know. May be he could ask Hermione later?

Harry was not shocked to know that the fifth year Potions' curriculum will include nutrition potions. He was expecting it. He had scanned his own memories thoroughly and had found that last year they had covered bruise salve and nausea potion. When he had arrived last year, a small part of a large bruise had become visible when his oversized t-shirt had slipped from his shoulder for just a few seconds. Hermione had noticed and that's why she knew about what happened at the Dursleys'. Did Prof Snape notice it too? And of course because of constant starvation, he had not been able to stomach his food and had run out of the Potions Classroom on the first potions class of the session to the nearest bathroom. He had got detention of course. But the next week, they had brewed the nausea potion, which was not even in the book. Nobody suspected anything. This year though, Harry was determined to impress his teacher and enter the advanced class next year on his own merit. Snape too noticed this change in Harry's demeanour in his class and ignored him completely, though Hermione was adamant that she saw a proud look in his eyes for a moment. Severus Snape was becoming such a great mystery that it intrigued both the teenagers even more.

After a week of classes, they both sat to compare notes, when Ron was busy playing chess with Neville. Hermione wrote down whatever came to both of their minds. At the end, she said, "Let's start with first year. He saved you when Quirell was jinxing the broom, even though we thought he was doing it. He also visited you at nights when you were sleeping, at the end of the year, though you won't have any memory of it as you were unconscious. I had to pry that information from Madam Pomphrey last year. And of course his way of giving you his condolences which we had discussed before summer. Second year, He looked worried when you lost all the bones in your hands and then was always disgusted by Lockhart. We have to explore more on his fear of parseltongue. There could more there just hearing it from Voldemort, we never know. He was also very worried, again, when you and Ron went missing. Again, last year Madam Pomphrey told me that he had fought with Dumbledore himself to keep you in Hogwarts till Madam Pomphrey was sure that no poison remains in your body but Dumbledore dismissed them both. Third year. He kept extra close eye on Remus, because he was himself scared of werewolves most probably, we don't know. Then when we were led to the shack, he came after us, though it was a full moon and he is afraid of werewolves. Even after you stunned him, he should have been angry, but instead, he stood in front of all three of us as a human shield. It would not have helped much but that protectiveness was pure human instincts and it comes out for only people you care about. He then ousted Remus' problem. I know you are angry about that but think rationally. If Sirius would not have led him away, Remus could have killed all of us. Forgetting the potion that helps you keep your mind is not an option if you are such a dangerous creature Harry. I don't blame Remus but I understand Prof Snape's desire to protect his students. And finally last year, when I was actually looking. Do you remember the bruise salve and nausea potion? Those were not in the curriculum. If you don't know, yearly curriculums of all subjects are available in the library for those students who want to study ahead. I read them ofcourse. Both the potions were impromptu additions. I think he noticed your bruise and was worried when you ran away in between class. I told you about his fidgeting all the while you were in the lake and the maze. Apart from the obvious, I always looked into his eyes. Just for a flash of a moment his worry would show through, and then he would again regain his cold mask. I think he is hiding many things. What do you think?"

"Yes all of it adds up. And I think he felt I am a bit too skinny this year." They both chuckled at the remembered syllabi this year.

"But this time it is not impromptu Harry. The nutrition potions are there in the curriculum. It was not there last year though. I think he wanted to include it earlier but couldn't as it is advanced. It is usually taught at NEWT levels. I don't know what strings he had to pull to include it in OWL levels."

"He is a mystery I would like to solve, but something tells me we need to tread carefully. He has hidden behind so many masks. It would be something serious. Don't you think?"

"Yeah that is most likely. First let us excel in his class and give him more chances to be proud of you, like today. Did you see his eyes when you submitted a perfectly brewed Level B nutrition potion?"

"Yeah." Harry smiled. "It sure felt good." They both smiled and went back to their study.

These days Harry spent as much time in the library as Hermione. Everyone except Hermione and Ron were saying he was lying about Voldemort. Even Ron did not spend much time with them, making excuses. Harry and Hermione both felt that he did not want to be in the bad light. His last year's behaviour and jealousy had hampered their friendship and this year was lengthening the gap. Moreover, their new DADA teacher, Prof Dolores Umbridge was a hard task master. They could understand she was sent by the Ministry to crush any sort of acknowledgement of Voldemort's resurrection. Harry kept quiet in the class. If people were not going to listen, he was not going to say. He and Hermione trained themselves in silence. They read various books and made notes in the library, and when everyone went to bed, they both practiced what they had learnt in the common room, after creating a silencing bubble. After about a week, Neville joined their night time practice. He had got a new wand this summer and magic came easier to him now. Though his confidence was low, he was enthusiastic. He believed that Harry was saying the truth. So, a new trio was formed and each day they progressed in leaps and bounds, and nobody was the wiser.

One Sunday in mid-October, while they were reading in the library, Hedwig came with a note. Both Harry and Hermione were astonished to see the note, even though it was unsigned. It asked them to come to the astronomy tower, covered in Harry's cloak, at midnight. The handwriting was evident enough to tell them who it was. They had seen it enough times in their essays in red ink. Harry felt nervous. Hermione soothed his worry by saying that they were more than adapt to defend themselves and will be fine if it was a trap. So, armed with both his wands, Harry and Hermione trudged up to the Astronomy tower at a quarter to midnight. The man they had gone to meet was already there. Harry was not surprised, neither was Hermione. Harry and Hermione came out of the cloak and stood behind him silently, waiting for him to speak first. They waited for ten minutes before the man broke the silence. "I see you have finally started to use your potential to the fullest."

"How would you know I was not using it to the fullest before now sir?"

"Mr. Potter, I have taught in this school for the last 15 years. I have seen boys and girls grow to Men and Ladies. I know when my student is holding back. Though you may think I don't know the reason but I do. Yes I had not known them for the first few years of your schooling, but I have done my research in the last two years."

"And why would you care sir? I know you do. I just want to know why."

"Well Mr. Potter, your mother was a dear friend of mine, up until your father became jealous. In my anger towards your father, I lost your mother's friendship when I was your age. It was my own mistake. You must be thinking why I am telling you this and why now. I wanted to talk last year but you were rather busy surviving manipulations. This year, the pressure is more and absolute. I have no trust in the authorities Mr. Potter. Hence, I wanted to extend an offer to train you and any friend of yours that wants to join."

"That is a very generous offer sir. Right now, Hermione, Neville and I are trying to train ourselves. Would you consent to train us three?"

"I have no objection. But I must inform you there will be several of my own students there. And I am as hard a teacher to impress in private as I am in public. Do not take this offer as an opportunity to slack in your other classes. Also, I would ask you to keep an open mind towards the students you will meet in these sessions. They all wear masks like I do, out of necessity and self-preservation. They will aid you in your fight against Voldemort, I can assure you. They hate the mad man as much as you."

"We promise to keep an open mind sir. May I also request some sort of help in other subjects if it is very important?"

"You may ask. I do not guarantee an answer but if it is worthy, I will oblige."

"Thank you sir. When and where will we meet?"

"Tomorrow at the same time in the seventh floor corridor. Take a nap before that. The sessions usually run for three to four hours. Do you have any objections?"

"No sir. We will be there."

"Very well. You are dismissed."

The next day, Harry, Hermione and Neville went to sleep immediately after dinner. They had completed their homework before hand so that they could take a nap before the training session with Snape. About ten minutes before midnight, they reached the seventh floor corridor. Only Blaise Zabini, a Slytherin in their year, was waiting for them. As soon as they arrived, he led them through a door that they had never noticed before. Snape explained that this was the room of requirement. Harry was astonished to see that there were nearly 20 to 25 students in the enormous room and not all were Slytherins. Harry was even more astonished to see Fred, George, Lee and Oliver there. There were five Ravenclaws, three Hufflepuffs and the rest were Slytherins from all the years. Severus explained that these students were either from light families like the Weasleys and Boots, or were from Voldemort supporting families who did not want to join their parents and had decided to fight against snake face. Among Harry's year, there were Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Daphne Greengrass, Millicent Bulstrode and Gregory Goyle. The only Slytherins who were not part of this secret society from their year were Theodore Nott, Pansy Parkinson and Vincent Crabbe. It was off to see Draco and Goyle without Crabbe. Anyone who was not a member of the group did not know about it. Harry, Hermione and Neville readily swore the secrecy oath. First, Snape asked to see what they already knew. They were asked to duel with his trainees as he called them. The trainees were divided into seven ranks or levels. Neville came in par with the fourth level trainees while both Harry and Hermione lost to only the best students in the group, the three seventh levels. They would be training directly with Snape, alongside Fred, George and surprisingly Goyle, the seventh levels. Neville will be trained along with the fourth levels by the seniors to bring him up to mark. Snape was impressed but did not show it. That was not needed either. All these months studying him closely, Harry and Hermione could gauge his mood by the twist of his finger. Needless to say, they were quiet happy that they made their professor proud, though he would never say it.

By the time Christmas rolled by, Umbridge was getting impatient by the lack of response from Harry or any of the other students. The students behaved as if nothing was out of normal. For once Harry was happy about something Voldemort did. By the end of the year, Umbridge will somehow have to leave Hogwarts. That was a curse Tom Riddle had placed on the DADA position after being denied the post by Dumbledore. Just three days before the Christmas Vacation started, Harry was shown a vision in his sleep, of an attack on Arthur Weasley by Nagini, Voldemort's pet snake. He woke up in cold sweat. It was nearly 5 a.m., just one hour after he went to sleep. He rushed to the common room and immediately floo called Snape and told him everything. Snape told him to go and inform the headmaster immediately. He would see what he could do. Within an hour, Ron and Ginny were being woken up and sent home. Arthur was injured severely but will live. Snape was brewing anti venoms for him and salves to close the bite wounds; Harry was sent with Severus with the instructions to learn occlumency, without any explanation of why it was necessary and what it meant for him, not that he did not know.

In his first occlumency lesson, Snape discovered that Harry had basic shields but that could not protect him from a powerful legilimence. That would come from practice though. Snape was impressed. He asked if he was the only one, to which Harry confessed that Hermione too was somewhere above him but not too far as they did not know whom to ask for help. Snape asked him to bring Hermione the next time he came for a class. He outlined what they will accomplish in these lessons. They will first strengthen their defence in preparation for an attack. Then Snape would teach them how to differentiate between a true memory and a fake one. Harry did not understand its importance now but he was sure it would be important, otherwise Snape would not have insisted.

Hermione had had her parents invite Harry to stay with them during Christmas and Harry had readily agreed. Severus consented to continue their training in Hermione's house as long as he was not interrupting family time. All set, Harry went with Hermione happily. It was also a relief that Dumbledore was ignoring him this year, otherwise he would have surely prohibited Harry to go. Unknown to Harry, Hermione had a Christmas surprise for him.

The few days before Christmas, Severus came every day to train them in occlumency. He did not train them in anything else as students were forbidden to do magic during holidays. It was at this time that Harry told them about his second wand and how he got it. He wanted it to be only between the three of them. After thinking through every scenario that could go wrong and hearing Harry's speculations about magic detecting wards and how he managed to find another way, Severus approved. He still prohibited them to practice magic in Hermione's house as he did not want them to get into trouble. She could also have the wards on her house, being the best friend to the boy who lived. Harry and Hermione did not even know when Snape became Severus to them. He had not changed one bit, except that he now trained them and praised their good work, occasionally, but Harry and Hermione had learnt from the Slytherins that he was always like this, even with them. They were at least happy that Severus considered them one of his now. Mr. and Mrs. Granger also liked Harry and his kind and quiet demeanour. They had met Ron once at the station and had told Hermione that her choice in friends was abysmal. They changed that opinion after meeting Harry. Harry even helped Mrs. Granger (who always insisted Harry to call her Evangeline but he could not bring himself to do it) to prepare food. He was a fairly good cook and they all praised him. The next day, Harry and Hermione visited Knockturn Alley, disguised as Mr and Mrs Granger. Hermione also wanted a second wand and she knew a discrete place to practice their spells. This wand-maker had unique woods from all over the world, unlike Ollivander and the wand was made from scratch so it was not possible to be tracked. Hermione's magic was chosen by Sycamore wood (From Australia) and a vine of Clematis with small purple buds here and there. To incorporate the vine, the wand-maker cut ridges on the Sycamore and intertwined the ivy in a spiral pattern, with deeper ridges around the buds to set then in it properly. Then he encased the whole wand in a very light blue tinted epoxy with very tiny shreds of amber here and there. For core, she had got beard hair of Dokkaebi from Korea and Pixiu of China. Both these Asian creatures chose a person with an innate sense of good and bad, inclined towards welfare. This wand would prove to be especially good for charms and transfiguration, with inclination towards earth magic. Harry bought her a trunk made of redwood, just like his, with her initial in an ivy pattern on the lid, as an early Christmas gift.

Two days before Christmas, Harry was shaken awake early in the morning. Instantly alert, he could not hold back the gasp that escaped him when he saw who was standing over him shaking him out of his sleep. He literally threw himself in the outstretched arms of his godfather Sirius. Harry could not believe Hermione could do something like that. He decided to thank her properly when he went downstairs. Both Sirius and Harry sat there for a long time, talking and sharing what they were doing. Sirius was proud to hear of his godson's achievements, though he was a little upset about training under Snape. He confessed that he had done quite a lot of soul searching and found himself rather guilty of bullying. He did not like Snape even after that. But he promised to be civil and apologize to him when they met next. He did not have to wait long. Severus was coming for their extra class that very evening, like every evening. After a little sneering and name calling, both adults sat down for a long discussion. At the end of the evening, both the men were civil to each other. It was then that Hermione asked permission to speak her mind. She was given the permission and she began, "Okay! So here's what I thought. Pettigrew is gone. We have a very small chance of catching him. Even if we catch him, what I have seen of the Minister and Ministry in the last few months, I don't think they are going to listen to reason. We cannot leave Sirius to rot in the ruins of the home he hates. What I am trying to say is, if we forget about Pettigrew and getting Sirius pardoned for a moment, maybe we can come up with some other means to free him."

"What did you have in mind Ms Granger?"

"Please call me Hermione Professor; At least in private. What I was thinking is there are various potions to change appearance for a short time, or even permanently. A charm may slip when your concentration is somewhere else but a potion holds. That's up to Sirius which one he wants. Then we can take help from Axehead to create an alias for him complete with papers and a Gringotts account. He will need to live in some other country for some time then he can come back with a different name and appearance. Of course it would help if you know any foreign language, otherwise you will have to learn to speak one fluently. What do you say?"

"It's a nice idea. Merlin knows we need as much help as we can get. And Mr Potter must be trained. The more the merrier."

"Why Snape, that's the best thing I have ever heard you say. But what about my magical signature? That will easily give our game away."

"No it won't. There is a potion that can mask magical signature for up to a month. Then it has to be replenished."

"That's great then. I am quite forgetful so I would go for a permanent change in appearance. What do you think Harry?"

"I guess instead of your brown hair, midnight blue would look amazing on you. And blue eyes are quiet common. How about hazel? Or something unique, like purple or violet or any such shade? And what about the foreign accent?"

"Relax kiddo. Well very few people know that I can speak Spanish quite fluently. I have an aunt there who I love dearly and I had learnt Spanish to talk to my cousins there. I remember it still so I can just polish it up by going to Spain for two months. That will give a nice comeback don't you think? And yes I'd like midnight blue hair. As for the colour of the eye, I don't know, what do you think Snape?"

Severus was taken aback by the question but recovered immediately, "I think a unique colour, not usually seen will be nice. It will keep suspicions far away and also stroke your ego. How about a combination of pink and purple. Not the girly pink but more towards magenta. The way I am imagining it, it would look good."

"Can you show me?"

"Can you perform legilimency?"

"Of course I can. It is taught at the house of Black at the age of twelve. So, can I?"

"Go ahead."

Sirius looked inside Severus' mind and came out in just a couple minutes. "Wao! That was beautiful. I want that eye."

"It's final then. Midnight blue hair, violet and magenta eyes, a little muscle mass would change the body structure too. How about an inch or two of height? It would hurt though. But it would change the total appearance. A little change in the face is also needed. How about a little higher but pointy nose and higher cheekbones with chiselled jaw line? Clean shaved; with wavy instead of curly hairs. What say?"

"My my Severus. One would think you were either gay or an artist. It's perfect. When can we do this?"

"I imagine myself to be asexual Black. I can brew the required potions in two days. How about let the kids enjoy until boxing Day? They will surely worry when you will not feel like to be up and about for at least three to four days after the potions. Call your werewolf and tell him the plan. He can help training the students too."

Sirius was gobsmacked. Severus got up and went towards the door to leave, departing with a last jibe, "Close your mouth Black. I don't want flies messing up my hard work." Loud laughter of two teenagers could be heard till the door.

On the day Harry and Hermione boarded the train, they were almost jumping with excitement. Sirius' transformation had gone well. Harry had asked him to shift to one of the Potters' properties which was unplottable. When Remus had joined in and both the adults and both teenagers had sat together to discuss their life so far, they discovered that there were many in their lives that were unreliable, Dumbledore being the biggest of them. Though the old man meant well, he often did not take into consideration people's emotions in the bigger scheme. That was what hurt people most. They all were now determined to keep their eyes and ears open and take their own decisions. Sirius had re-warded his house at Grimauld Place, making Remus the secret keeper instead of Dumbledore. When the Lord of the house instructed, the secret keeper was changed without consent or death of the previous secret keeper. Now, no one could enter the house, not even Dumbledore. This way, he would never know that Sirius had vanished from his house. When Severus was called in to join the discussion, he too confessed that he had wanted to leave the ranks and his spying long ago but was unable to because of Dumbledore. There were instances where he came back bruised and bloodied, just because he was the last one to reach the meeting. The death eater ranks were cruel and pure evil and he wanted out. That is why he was training willing children, so that when time came they would be strong enough to hold their own, not weak like him who can't even run away and hide. Though none of them believed him to be weak, they kept silent. Harry was determined to find a way to end the Dark Lord once and for all. They got thinking the reason that the Dark Lord did not die the first time. They needed to research and they would all do it. Sirius had the Black family library with all obscure and dark books. In other circumstances, he would not have touched them, but to know the secret of a Dark Lord, they needed to search in Dark Arts books. Plan made, they set to work.

Back at school, Ron confronted them, asking why were they avoiding him. Harry said, "It is not we who are avoiding you Ron. It is you who is avoiding us. It's okay though. I know I am not attracting any positive publicity now-a-days so it's okay if you and Ginny want to wait for everything to go back to normal to start sitting with us again." Harry went to the dorm, followed by Hermione. Both were tired, so they instantly fell asleep. The next day though, Ron did not even try to come and sit with them. He sat with Dean and Seamus instead. Harry did not mind at all. He was getting to spend so much time with Hermione due to Ron. Harry was glad for it.

Sirius wrote to Harry after about a month. He was enjoying his time with his cousins in Spain. He had told his aunt and her entire family about what he was actually doing and she agreed whole heartedly. She loved her nephew, a concept foreign to his own close family. Sirius now went by the name Santino Blanco. His aunt now lovingly called him Tino. To solve his problem of going back to England, his uncle Mr. Lopez, had decided to open a branch of his business in England and make Tino the manager there. This would give him a perfect excuse. Mr. Lopez did business in Potion ingredients and obscure and rare plants. It was a vast business and he imported ingredients from all over the world. This would also give him an excuse to form a working relationship with Severus and get into his social circle, mainly Hogwarts. It was a perfect plan. Nobody needed to know who he was. Tino went just fine.

One morning, about two months into the new session, Umbridge screeched while everyone was having breakfast. When they all looked up to see what happened but could not understand. Everything looked perfectly fine to them. She shouted, "Who did this?"

"Who did what Dolores?" asked Filius Flitwick.

"These horns over my head. Who did this tell me now."

"But there are no horns over your head." Said Trelawney.

"You are lying." With that she stormed off the hall.

Seeing the mirth in the eyes of the otherwise impassive cold face, Harry and Hermione understood that Severus had done something. They got to know that night that Severus and Sirius together had planned to prank Dolores Umbridge. She was being given mild hallucinogens that are untraceable. When she will do these silly things, people will think she has gone senile. They won't have to do anything. The student body, parents or any of the teachers will inform St. Mungo's and then Umbridge will be out of their hairs. That joyful day came about a week and a half later, when Umbridge screeched that there were spiders in her food. She was given sleeping potion and the hospital was contacted, who took her away. Before her departure, Severus slipped a heavy dose in her drink which will make her so delirious that she will be thrown in the Janus Thickey ward. She being taken care of, Harry and the others went back to their training and studies. The other teachers covered the DADA class for the rest of the session until end of year exams.

On the other hand, Harry and Hermione were having their own research and had already discovered their animagus forms. Hermione was an owl, wise and attentive. Harry was a fox, cunning and fast. Now, they only had to keep picturing their animals and learn to transform.

OWLs started in the first week of June. It would run through the whole two weeks. Harry had self-studied Ancient Runes and Arithmancy and somehow convinced his head of house Minerva McGonagall to let him take the subject OWLs. He was determined to do away with the useless Divination class and join the advanced classes of Arithmancy and Ancient Runes with Hermione. Right in the middle of his exams, Harry got another vision. Now, there were a few things wrong with the vision. First, it was of Sirius who did not look like that now and was not even in England. He was enjoying his holidays in Spain. Second, Severus had taught them well. Though the signs were very minute, it was definitely a fake memory that Voldemort was planting in his mind to lure him out. Harry again called Severus in the middle of the night. After hearing the whole scenario, Severus said that Harry should probably sleep over it. If he would not fall for the obvious trap, Voldemort will become impatient and do something rash, exposing himself to the wizarding world. Even if he did not, it was not Harry's responsibility to expose him. He has done enough and should concentrate on finding ways to kill him once and for all. Sirius was returning home every few days and helping Remus search his own library, which Remus was scouring for any information he can get which could prove how snake face was still alive. So, that is what Harry did. He went back to bed, got up early the next day and got ready for his exams.

Voldemort sure was frustrated. He kept on sending visions of torturing Sirius to insanity. But the flaws remained. Harry soon learned to block him out. When in the middle of June, all exams got over, the group met again for their midnight training. They were now thirty, with Luna and Colin joining in. They then discussed the visions being sent to Harry and what should be done. It was decided that, in broad daylight, they can just go and ask to view the prophecy he was after. Surely there would be one, otherwise why would he send the vision of that place particularly. And any prophesy made about one person can be viewed by that person. Severus also confirmed that there was a prophesy concerning Harry Potter. He looked pained. Harry decided to ponder over it later. It was also decided that Harry could not be left alone with the Dursleys. One thing about this group formed by Severus was that they had to share all of their childhoods and all treatment done to them. There were no secrets among them. That is how they were going to visit that particular wand-maker during this holiday, at different times and in disguises of course. Harry had been ashamed to confess the abuse he had borne for so many years. He was equally astonished to hear most of the Slytherins here were abused, Draco included. Though he was ever so snotty and insulting outside these rooms, inside, he was a broken sensitive teenager. Harry and Hermione became good friends with him after he apologized to Hermione about calling her a mudblood. He had no problems with blood status actually. His godfather and the man he most loved in this world, Severus, was a half-blood. When Harry rejected his offer of friendship in first year, he had to do something to show his disdain. His father wouldn't have been happy if he didn't. And an angry Lucius could do great damage.

Neville suggested that it was becoming rather awkward to address the group as a secret society all the time. They needed a name. Severus snorted at that but agreed. Suggestions started flying, from outrageous names like Midnight Party to short ones like DA (Defence Association). Harry suggested the Midnight Squad, with the logo of a Knight on a Horse in a dark background. Everyone liked it. They often called it just 'the Squad'.

Plan was made that Harry would be abducted after a week in his relative's house. They were debating on where to keep him but Harry said he would like to go back to Godric's Hollow. It was well warded and unplottable with Hermione as his secret keeper. He had house-elves and enough room for training. As it was warded by goblins, the Ministry could not detect magic being performed there. Sirius would also be arriving there itself. They will proceeds with their plans from there. They also set a schedule for training. Severus would of course come to train Harry. Others could join whenever they could get away with it. Hermione would be spending a part of the holidays there, talking to the elves and practicing the animagus transformation. Sirius would be great help there. After talking to the Potter elves during Christmas holidays, she had given up the campaign to free them, but she would fight for their rights, to make abusing them a punishable offence even if the abuser is their master.

As planned, on the second week of holidays, Harry went out to get some groceries and never returned. He had all his things shrunk and stored in his pocket and some replicas in the house. Some neighbours saw the struggle of the kidnap and informed the Dursleys. The Dursleys promptly threw away all of Harry's things. To them it was a good riddance. Hence, when Dumbledore sensed that Harry was not at the Dursleys, where he should be, he did not find any clues in the house to suggest it was not a kidnapping. He called in the order and Severus and asked them to search for him. Severus knew they were not going to find him, and did his part in the search. Unknown to Dumbledore, his loyalties had changed again. His loyalty now was to his Squad and them alone, with the sole purpose of defeating Voldemort. Nevertheless, Harry was safe and under training.

The Squad had devised a method to be able to train together. Harry's home at Godric's Hollow had a massive training room. They chose a particular day of the week and kept changing the day each week, so as not to form a pattern to be caught. First week they met on Wednesday, next week on Friday, the third week on Thursday. It was a Wednesday of mid-August when Sirius and Remus came in, excited, with a small black leather bound book in Remus' hands. Sirius began, "This is the only book we found with something similar to what we are looking for. Look here in this chapter. It says about splitting your soul to become immortal. These soul shards are then placed in objects of personal value to the caster. These carriers are known as Horcruxes. They can be made by committing deliberate murder, without a sliver of doubt or guilt in the murderers mind. The murder should also be significant to the murderer in some form or the other. Then a very small ritual follows which transfers the soul into the selected object. The soul is broken into half each time. So, if the caster casts one time, he may live with half his soul. If he makes two Horcruxes, he will have one fourth of his soul in his body. The highest number of Horcruxes to be made so far is three, at least according to official records."

Everyone was deep in thought. Severus said, "Seeing his sanity, or rather insanity, I think Voldemort has created more than three Horcruxes. His soul is broken so many times that he is no longer sane."

Draco piped up before Severus could continue his speculations, "Could it be possible that the diary that Harry destroyed in his second year was a Horcrux?"

Harry thought over it. "It could be. First, it was given by Lucius Malfoy, a right hand man of Voldemort. Second, it sure felt dark. Third, the memory of Tom Riddle in it was quiet strong. It should be the first one, containing the largest part of his soul. What do you think Severus?"

Severus raised an eye brow at the casual use of his given name but did not say anything. Instead, he continued, "It is very much a possibility. Moreover, the way Voldemort is possessive and protective about his snake, I think she is one. Also, Voldemort gives too much stress on tradition and old magics. I think he would go for magical numbers. If that is the case, he has either 3 or 7 Horcruxes. 9 would be too much even for him. Though three is a logical answer but we all know how logical snake face is. I will pitch for seven."

"I think your logic is sound Severus. I will also pitch for seven. Now, we should devise methods to know what those are", said Remus.

So, they all sat with parchment and quill to brainstorm ideas. The Diary was a sure guess and so was Nagini. Hermione suspected he could have used something from his family home. They knew his history. It was all the matter of checking the houses. That made only three. Nevertheless, it was a start. The next afternoon, the elders got their disguises ready to visit Little Hangleton. Harry insisted that he wanted to go as it was directly related to him. The elders agreed when Severus permitted him. Their first stop was the Riddle Manor. Harry remembered the house and the graveyard before it. There were a few lights on. That meant it was being inhabited by some death eaters, as the Dark Lord himself was residing in Malfoy Manor. Abandoning their plan to raid the Riddle Manor, they proceeded to the Gaunt Shack. There was a snake, or rather the skeleton of a snake nailed to the door of the Shack. It was shrivelled and nothing was left of it except the carcass. Severus checked for wards or traps of which there were none. After searching the whole house for half an hour, Harry called the others to a room at the first floor. There under a lose floorboard was a silk pouch. As Harry drew near the pouch, his scar tingled the same way it had when he was near the diary in second year and when Voldemort's memory-self was talking to him. Severus again cast several charms and confirmed they had found something. Severus levitated the whole thing into a moleskin bag, made to dampen any sort of magic. When they returned, they inspected the item properly. It was a ring with a big black stone in the middle. Severus was successful in extricating the stone out of the ring and it was determined that the ring was a Horcrux and not the stone. But how to destroy it? Hermione broke the silence that had descended upon them, "Harry. You destroyed the diary by poking it with Basilisk Fang right? Professor, will there still be venom in the fangs though the Basilisk has been dead for three years?"

"Yes it will be. We will have to get some fangs then. Harry, can you tell me the password?"

Harry was looking at Severus owlishly. Severus snapped his fingers in front of him to snap him out of the daze. "You called me Harry."

"I thought that was your given name."

"It is but you called me by my name for the first time."

"Oh come off it and answer the question. Can you make me learn the password?"

"Yes. It is just a hissing sound for you really." It took only twenty minutes for Severus to perfect the hissing sound of 'open' and 'close'. After midnight, Severus snuck into Hogwarts. He had planned that if he got caught, he will say he needed some ingredients from his personal stores. After hissing the password, Severus conjured a ladder and climbed down towards the chamber of secrets, closing the passage behind with a hiss. He collected ten fangs into a moleskin bag and then looked around a bit. He hissed the same 'open' at several places but to no avail. There must be a library or potions lab somewhere he was sure. He would bring Harry later to explore more. Maybe they could even find some parsel magic books which the boy desperately needed. While searching, he found a back door. Probably this was the way made for the Basilisk to hunt in the forest. There was some blockage which Severus cleared with much effort. Turned out the foliage of the forest had covered the area around the big door. It opened just a few feet shy of the boundary. It was a rather good route to get in and out of the chamber without entering the school. Severus would keep the location in mind. After that, destroying the ring Horcrux was an easy task.

Two weeks before school started, Dumbledore called Severus to a private meeting. When Severus returned, he was more morose than usual. He called for an emergency meeting of the squad. There, he informed them that Dumbledore had gone after two Horcruxes, though he did not tell him what they were. He showed him a locket that was a potential 'threat' but fake. It needed to be destroyed. If Severus had not known from before, he wouldn't have guessed what the old man was talking about. Severus showed the others the fake locket. It was amber coloured with a snake engraved over it. When opened, a note fell out of it. It said that someone had taken away the original to destroy. The signature was of someone with initials R.A.B. When they all heard the loud gasp, they all turned to Sirius. He whispered, "Regulus Arcturus Black. I can identify his hand writing from anywhere."

They all sat in silence for a few minutes, all deep in their own thoughts. If Regulus stole the locket, was it destroyed or was it still somewhere hidden away? Sirius spoke again, "I think I have seen it somewhere. I think in Grimmauld Place. I will go with Remus and Severus. No Harry you cannot come. The house is full of Dark Artefacts. I don't want you anywhere near it. In fact as soon as all of this is solved, I am selling that house. Come let's go."

An hour later, the three men tumbled into the living room where the fireplace was. Sirius explained "My house elf Kreature had the locket. Regulus had told him to destroy it but he couldn't. That is why he was so bitter. Also, we think the locket brings out the worst in people who are in contact with it. I think it was affecting my house-elf too. Not being able to carry out a command is sort of shameful for a house elf. I think his mood will improve now. He only gave me the Horcrux when I promised to destroy it and show him the remains. We also gave him the fake locket as a memory of Regulus. This locket belonged to Salazar Slytherin. Let's destroy it."

But when they stabbed the locket with the fang, nothing happened. Hermione whispered something in Harry's ear. He nodded and hissed something which Severus identified as open. The locket flipped open and the room was filled with grey smoke. In front of Severus stood Lily, but not the soft and kind one he had been friends with. The evil mockery of Lily spoke to Severus, "Oh dear Severus. Did you think I will remain friends with a poor and ugly boy like you when I had a better option? If you did you are a fool. You are still a fool though, to think my son will respect you. He will use your skills and throw you away like I did. You are unlovable Severus Snape. Nobody loves you. You are a nobody…" The image kept spewing venom with her words. Everyone was stunned to witness their leader's deepest fears. Hermione understood what the Horcrux was doing. She snatched the fang from Severus' frozen hands and stabbed the locket at its heart. Like with the diary and ring, an ear piercing shriek was heard followed by black smoke, which dispersed shortly. Harry dragged Severus to the couch and handed him some sparkling water and a veil of Calming Draught. After Severus was a little calm, he said, "You know that the Horcrux was only reading you and showing your worst fears right? It is not true. It can never be true. You are not ugly Severus and not at all a fool. You are the bravest and the most intelligent man I have ever met. You know that right? I respect you, I truly do. Please do not think otherwise. "

"I do know that you respect me Harry as do all the others. It scares the strongest of men to face their insecurities." Severus said with a tiny smile which did not reach his eyes.

"I do respect you sir. Though the last four years I preferred to be blind but the last year and this summer have shown me how respectable and trust worthy you are. I respect you and trust you with my life. If you will allow me, I would like to build a stronger relationship with you."

At this, Severus smiled a real smile. "Very well. We will see what type of a relationship we can build once we have dealt with the evil that has marked both of our lives." Everyone cheered at that.

Though everything seemed normal, there was something still bothering Severus, Harry could tell. So, at night, when everyone had left and the inhabitants went to bed, Harry knocked at the guest room door where Severus was staying for the time being. When Severus did not come forth for a long time, Harry whispered sorry and promptly delved into his mind. In his shock and surprise, the memory that Severus wanted to hide most slipped through. After scolding Harry for his irresponsible behaviour, he held a weeping teenager till he was calm. They never talked about the memory (or that the evil dungeon bat was capable of comforting a crying teenager), nor did they tell anyone else. They would deal with it when time came. There was no use of making the others worry.

When they sat for a discussion after their last training session before school, they again began guessing what other Horcruxes were. The diary, ring and locket were destroyed. Nagini was one, which they had left for the last as it was difficult to get to her. That meant they had to find three more Horcruxes. As there was one artefact from Slytherin, Hermione reasoned there may be one each from the other three founders. Now what could be a symbol of the other founders that Tom could use? For the first time in such discussions, Luna spoke up, "Ravenclaw's Diadem."

"What?" Hermione said.

"Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem. It was lost years ago. If we think about it, the time period of it getting lost roughly coincides with the time Voldemort first came into power."

"That's a good deduction Luna. But now the question arises; Where to find it if it has been lost for so many years now?"

"I know someone I can ask for help."

"Who?"

"Helena Ravenclaw."

"But Luna she is dead for several decades."

"Oh! You don't know the real name of the Grey Lady then? The Ravenclaw ghost?"

"Oh! That would be fantastic Luna. Can you do it? Do you need help?"

"Oh no; Helena doesn't like talking to many people. I often talk to her. It would be better if you leave that to me."

"That's great. So as soon as we reach school, you will talk to her. Then we will forward the location to Sirius and Remus if it is outside Hogwarts. Now what about Hufflepuff's artefact?"

"I think it is Helga's Cup. It is as legendary as Ravenclaw's Diadem and lost for as much time if not longer. But nobody knows its location, not even our house ghost. We have asked" said Terry Boot.

"Hmm… We will have to think over it. What about Gryffindor? Do you think it's the sword? Seeing that it is as legendary as the Diadem and the Cup?"

"No Hermione. Basilisk venom kills the Horcruxes and I stabbed the Basilisk with the sword. It would have reacted if it were one" said Harry.

"That's right. We will research over Gryffindor then. If anything comes to anyone's mind, owl away. If not otherwise summoned, we will see each other at school in four days. We would like to show you all something before we go though."

Everyone waited eagerly for whatever Hermione had to say. Hermione looked towards Harry and they both smirked. A minute later, a huge majestic eagle owl sat where Hermione sat previously and there was a slick black fox with bright emerald eyes with pupils slit, at the foot of Harry's chair. Sirius gave out a loud cheer and transformed into his own animagus to wrestle the fox affectionately. Both of their furs were so similar that it was difficult to tell them apart in the blur of motion. Blaise managed to borrow the book from Hermione first. He promised to share though, if anyone was willing to sit with him through the reading and the actual procedure.

The sixth year started in a chaos. As soon as Harry entered the Great Hall, Dumbledore swooped down the head table and pulled Harry out of the hall. "Where were you Harry?"

They had discussed what to say already. "I don't know sir. It was pretty much dark where I was kept. I wasn't let out of the room and there were magic dampening wards. I was dumped outside Hermione's house yesterday, unconscious. The Grangers helped me get ready for school."

Harry now had perfect occlumency shields, almost as good as Dumbledore's, so Dumbledore could no longer know if he was lying by peeping into his mind without permission. That done, Harry went back to the hall and sat at the Gryffindor table beside Hermione. Ron came and sat opposite them and began saying how worried he and his family were. Harry obviously could not believe him. He had received all his mails this summer, addressed to him and not to any particular location. His elves had sorted them before giving them to him of course. There were no letters from any Weasley, not to him and not to Hermione. Still, Harry behaved cordially, if not overly friendly. The whisperings and disbelief had died down when Harry had not commented over the resurrection the whole previous year. Now people behaved as if nothing had happened, but Harry had come to know who his real friends were during this time. Ron was not one of them neither was Ginny. The twins on the other hand had gained his respect and love. Neville had become an inseparable part of their life too. The squad was doing wonders for his confidence. What was even more astonishing was that they had come to know at the end of the summers that he was dating Millicent Bulstrode. They made a good pair. Where everyone saw her outer manly stature and appearance and teased her, Neville saw her physical as well as mental strength and inner beauty. They both were good for each other and helped each other progress. Neville tutored her in Herbology while she tutored him in History. Their relationship was very refreshing to witness.

That day, Severus excused them from the Midnight training as they were all tired. The next day, Luna told them that she talked to the Grey Lady. Apparently, Tom had told her he will get rid of the Diadem as he knew the discord the tiara had created between mother and daughter. When Luna made her believe that she and her friends were actually going to destroy the thing, already defiled by Tom, she agreed. Luna relayed her directions to all, "You will find it where things are hidden." Nobody could understand it; nobody except Severus. He asked all of them to exit the room and hide in the corridor for a few minutes. When the door vanished behind them, he paced three times in front of the blank wall. Another door, a bit larger than the previous, formed in place of the empty wall. When Severus opened the door and entered, they all followed one by one, discreetly. The room was filled with junk. They all began to search for the tiara which they had never seen. Draco found a cupboard with runes etched into it. He called Severus. "I have seen an exact replica of it in Borgin and Burkes. What do you think it is?"

"It is a vanishing cabinet. See the runes etched into it. I guess it may have been used to transport books and other things in the past. It's broken though. But I think if you all work on it, you can mend it. What say? Should we steel it?" Both Severus and Draco smirked. They called Harry and asked Harry if he could get his elves to transport it to Godric's Hollow. They will look over it later. As the room did not come under the headmaster's direct command even though it was within Hogwarts, Harry easily got it sent to his house by five elves. Hogwarts had her own magic after all and she happened to like the Squad.

At about 4 a.m., Blaise called out and showed them a bust placed at the top of some furniture, piled high. On the head of the bust was the Diadem they were looking for. Severus levitated it and placed it inside the same moleskin bag he had carried the ring in. He would go to Sirius' new house right away and destroy the thing. Four down, three to go.

Over the next few weeks, Harry noticed that Ron was trying to get cozy with Hermione. He knew what he was trying to do. He was a boy after all. He understood how guys thought very nicely. To say the least, he did not like it. He discussed his dilemma with Blaise, Neville and Draco. They suggested that Hermione was a straight forward girl so she would like a straight forward proposal. Harry was pretty scared to talk to Hermione. Gathering all his Gryffindor courage, he approached her.

"'Mione." He said in a weak voice.

"You look pale Harry what is the matter?" He was losing his courage pretty fast. He decided to barge in head first, as he always did.

"W… will you go to Hogsmead with me this coming weekend?"

"It's a Hogsmead weekend Harry we always go together. What is there to ask?"

"N… no… I mean as… as a d… date."

Hermione blushed. She actually blushed. Harry had seen her cheeks flush for the first time. He was mesmerized. "Yes", she said, in almost a whisper. Harry forgot all his nervously and pulled her into a hug. Then he got nervous again. When Hermione hugged him back, he was relieved. She returned his feelings, somewhat at least. He will not have to fear about Ron stealing her from him anymore.

In no time, the semester ended and Christmas arrived. In the middle of the holidays, Sirius barged in, followed by Remus who was carrying a moleskin bag. It felt like deja-vu to Harry. Apparently, they had brought good news. "Guess what" Sirius said, "I took up my Lordship with the help of Axehead two days ago. As the new Lord of the house, I had to go through the vaults of family members who have been incapacitate to do so for more than a decade. Though I was not very happy at that time to enter dear Bellatrix's vault, it turned out to be a boon. I found Helga's Cup, or at least I think I found it. I also disowned her and Narcissa both and reinstated Andromeda. All the things in both their Black vaults, after removing all the curses, are now in Andromeda's previously empty vault. I think she deserves it more, and as I am the Lord now, who is going to stop me?"

Sirius's enthusiasm was contagious. Everyone began to chuckle. After determining that yes it was indeed a Horcrux, it was destroyed. Sirius said that he thought so because there were various hexes on the other objects he discovered in the vault that were probably put there as protection as well as distraction. That gave Sirius more confidence in finding the cursed object. As soon as the black mist dissipated, Harry's scar began to burn. Severus rushed to bring some pain potion and calming draught. After the pain ebbed, everyone's blood ran cold, "He knows. He knows about the Horcruxes. We will have to act fast now. He can attack any time." Harry and Severus looked at each other. Only they knew what the last Horcrux was. Only they knew what had to be done. Severus had tried to find some other way but there was none. They also had to think of how to destroy Nagini as Basilisk venom won't be deadly to her. The ever intelligent and all-knowing Hermione chimed in again. "Ah well… I read about this in a book when we were researching about Gryffindor that his sword was Goblin made and forged by the breath of a Dragon."

"What do you want to say Hermione?" Harry asked.

"That Goblin made weapons absorb poison when dipped into them. You killed the Basilisk with the sword. Now the Basilisk venom is absorbed into it. I think that if we kill Nagini with it, the Horcrux within her can be destroyed."

"But the sword was with Dumbledore last I checked."

"Actually it is not." Everyone turned to Severus for further explanation. "Well, the sword of Gryffindor never stays at one place. It rather appears to those who seem to need it the most and show true courage. Nobody knows where it vanished too after its use is fulfilled and how it appears again."

"So Dumbledore had not sent the sword to me in the second year?"

"Oh no; if the sorting hat wouldn't have been there, it would have appeared somewhere else but easily at your reach and not at your enemy's. That's how it works."

"That manipulative bitch."

"Language Harry."

"Sorry. I could not help myself. But we cannot work on the assumption that the sword will show itself. Do you think the venom gland would have enough venom to soak one more sword?"

"I inspected it when I went to get the fangs. It does have one more hidden gland behind the main one, sort of reserve may be, but that is very small. At most, we will be able to soak a big dagger."

"That would have to do I guess. Though, we will have to be very near the snake to strike. So you think it would be worth a try?"

"Anything would be worth a try if it kills snake face. What about the last Horcrux?" said Daphne. Though she was a quiet person, but she had the ability to strike at the heart of matters when need be. She was a perfect match for her beau, Blaise Zabini. Severus gave her the reply, "We are looking for it. I hope before he attacks, we have a solution." The sadness in his voice did not go unnoticed. They could not understand the reason though.

True to their prediction, Voldemort attacked at the end of the school year. Harry could not understand the man's fascination about attacking at the end of the school years. Was he thinking to give the students reprieve enough to finish the exams and then ruin their lives? It was downright hilarious if you think about it. Harry had long since accepted his fate. He was determined to end the Dark Lord, even if it meant the end of his life. He had stored the ruins of all the destroyed Horcruxes in his house, as a memoir. At the start of the exams, Dumbledore called Harry to his office. As soon as Harry entered, he saw Dumbledore raising his wand to attack him. He disarmed him in the matter of a minute. To this, the eccentric old man only said, "Good reflexes Harry. I wish you luck for the upcoming exams. You may go now." Weird was not an appropriate word to describe the old man. Nobody could understand his motives. Why had he called him exactly? To test his reflexes? No-one knew the working of the old brain, neither did Harry want to find out.

Now, Harry was standing in front of the man himself, or rather who was once a very handsome man who now looked more like his pet Nagini, waiting to die. It was the only way to kill the Horcrux in his scar, to die willingly at the hands of Voldemort. And die he did. How did he wake up, or was it undie, while being carried by Hagrid, he did not know. All he knew was that he met his Mum and Dad from after-life, or limbo as they called it. He lay perfectly still while Voldemort boosted in front of everyone. And then, someone started laughing, loudly. There was sorrow in that sound, and disbelief and anger. But most of all, there was pity. And the pity shone when Severus spoke. "You thought you killed your adversary Tom? Didn't you feel a part of your soul being destroyed when you killed him? Yeah… it is now that you are realizing isn't it? That one more of your Horcrux is gone? Actually, all of them have gone. Where is your dear pet Voldy? Cannot see it anywhere? Well if you go into the Great Hall you will see her hear adorning the head table while her body lies on the floor, bleeding, dead. Who killed her? Pore thing. I did. Not alone though. My students helped. You want to know who? Here. Draco Malfoy, Blaise Zabini, Neville Longbottom, Luna Lovegood, Terry boot. They were so many surrounding her that your pet got confused who to attack first. While she was preparing her attack, Oliver here levitated this goblin made dagger, dipped in Basilisk venom right over her neck and let it fall back down on her with the force of lightening. And she was gone. Pity. Really. She was such a beautiful creature. If only she would have been wise enough to choose a better master. Now, there's only you, a weak wizard with 1/128 of his soul. And with the destruction of seven of your Horcruxes, your power is equally diminished. What did you think? Now that the saviour, the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord was gone, everyone will weep and mourn and you will easily wipe them out and they won't fight back in their grief? Harry will live with us forever, in our heart, as a friend, a lover, a leader… … a son. We all will finish what he left behind to be done. We will mourn him only when you are gone, this time forever." With that, Severus raised his wand and so did thirty one others. Soon the rest joined the squad. Most of the death eaters fled, but could not flee too far. Aurors apparated after them and they were capture and taken to Ministry holding cells, which were freshly reinstated. Just when Severus thought that everything was going to be over, Harry tumbled down from Hagrid's arms and called out, "Hey snake face. We meet again." As soon as Voldemort turned around, Harry cast, "Bombarda Maxima". In the matter of a second, Voldemort's body blew into ashes and flew off in the wind. The Dark Lord was finally and completely gone. As the adrenaline rush subsided, Harry lost all his energy. He sat down into the ground and soon darkness took him before anyone could reprimand him for his crazy stunt.

One month later, Harry came to sit by Severus in the grass by the brook behind his house. They sat there together in peace for some time. Then Harry said, almost in a whisper, as if afraid to break the fragile peace, "You know when I was 'not-dead' dead, I met my parents. They said they loved me dearly and that they have been watching me from above and that they are proud of me. They both asked me to pass on some messages. I already told the others. They had message for you too. Would you like to hear?"

"If you must."

"Mum said to tell you she was foolish to not accept your apology and that she was sorry that she didn't listen. Dad said he was sorry for all the pranks, though they are unforgivable. They asked you to take care of me."

"Why me? Why not Lupin or Black?" Harry noticed Severus' intentional diversion from the apology.

"Mum said they would spoil me. Sirius can be a fun uncle but not a strict parental figure. Remus has his own family to think of now. They did not want to burden him."

"Makes sense." This time the silence was comfortable.

A/N: Yes this IS the end. Don't get mad at me please. I have sequel to this which will be posted next Sunday, though, that is no way a continuation to this end. The sequel will be set a few years after the defeat of Voldemort, where the group of friends try to play match-makers for Severus Snape. I hope you like this one and take your time to read the next. Till then, Enjoy!

A/N: Sequel is now up. Check it out mates.