It had been two weeks since I had met with Sirius. In that time I had really accomplished more than I would have thought possible. All of my summer assignments were finished and I had even started to read ahead for next year. I didn't know if it was my new attitude and promise to myself that I would never hold back or the piece of Voldemort's soul affecting me, but either way I had found reading and learning to be a lot more enjoyable.

Not only was I actually enjoying what I was reading, but I was also able to understand it at a lot quicker pace. I didn't practice any spells that might cause lasting damage to the house in my tiny bedroom, but the transfigurations and charms were easy enough to reverse.

I had made a few more trips to the alley for supplies, and to gather everything I would need for next year. On one of the trips I had also made the decision to stop in at Madam Malkin's and get a new wardrobe. I had never really owned nice clothes before and now knowing how much gold I really possessed I felt no problem with spending it on nice things for myself.

I had started attending the classes with Neville as well and had already been to four sessions. It seemed like we would be meeting twice a week for every week until September first. That schedule was fine with me and I was actually learning a lot about why things happened the way they did in the Wizarding world. Part of me couldn't believe I had been so ignorant when I entered it and wished I had at least studied up on some of the traditions and courtesies. I had no idea that by rejecting a simple hand shake from Malfoy that I was essentially disrespecting everything his family stood for.

I may not have liked the git but I didn't mean to start a feud. I had actually started to write a draft to him apologizing for my ignorance of traditions. It laid unsent on my desk because half way through I had remembered hearing his father's name at the graveyard. If I did anything at all I would apologize in person to Malfoy when we got back to school. It was him I insulted, not his father, therefor he deserved at least that courtesy from me.

Sirius had gotten in contact with me twice so far asking how I was doing, and with one of the letters he sent a book about caring for Wizarding children. I had initially been curious as to why he would send it knowing I was trying to keep it a secret, but when I had read the letter it explained to me that the book was from the Black family library and only those who were given permission by the Head of the Black House(him) could actually read the titles.

It was definitely a useful book I had decided after getting four chapters in and learning all about how to change a diaper and when to expect the first bouts of accidental magic. Apparently babies were very prone to accidental magic because they went through such a range of emotions so quickly. I sent a letter to Sirius thanking him profusely and detailed to him about what I had learned in my lessons at the ministry. I didn't want to bring up the Malfoy issue knowing that Sirius would probably just tell me to tell the git to sod off. However I did ask about something Iron Tooth had brought up in our last meeting.

The goblin had mentioned something about mind magic and it sounded intriguing. I felt a sense of delight and excitement at the thought of the topic which meant that Voldemort probably knew all about the field. Anything I could learn that would help protect myself better against the dark lord was something I was willing to invest time in.

That was why I received the second letter from Sirius. He told me that it was a very obscure field of magic that had two main studies. One being Occlumency, or the shielding of the mind against invasion, and the other was Legilimency, the invading of someone's mind. One who practiced legilimency could tear into a person's mind and pull up memories of instances. I shuttered at the thought of having that done to me and vowed I would make an attempt to learn at least occlumency this year. Sirius had mentioned that it would take a while to grasp and make progress, but I had the rest of the summer to start it and since it looked like I would be going to Hogwarts friendless this year except for Neville I was sure I would have plenty of time to myself to practice.

I had looked in Diagon Alley's book shops first, not really expecting to find a book on mind magic, and no surprise I came up empty handed. Then I ventured down into Knockturn Alley and was only slightly surprised to find myself wondering into Borgin and Burke's. I recognized it as the shop I had wound up at during my disastrous first floo attempt. After some haggling and veiled threats at Borgin I left the shop with a book on each of the subjects. I was going to learn occlumency first, but I figured it couldn't hurt to learn about legilimency as well.

So now that is how I pass most of my days with reading about occlumency and practicing the exercises it lists in the book. I still exercise daily and I have been eating right. I've put on a healthy amount of weight and even built some muscle thanks to the potions I'm taking to supplement my diet. With my new found confidence, light muscle tone, healthy skin color, and emerald eyes I have to say I make a pretty attractive guy. I wasn't the only one to think so either apparently since lately I had noticed some of the girls at the park looking at me while I was out running. Two or three had even come up and asked if I had wanted to go out to a movie or dinner with them.

The situations were funny to me really. It was well known around the area that I was supposedly attending a school for the Criminally Incurable, yet these girls were still interested. I just shook my head at the irony of it and politely declined most of the time. I had actually said yes to one of the girls though. She has dirty blonde hair and light brown eyes. I could tell she'd never seen anything horrible in her life just by looking into them. They were warm and full of cheer, and with none of the hidden sorrow behind them like you might see in some of the witches at Hogwarts. Her name was Emily Redding and she had apparently gone to muggle primary school with me. I didn't recognize her, but I did try and block most of the memories of my abysmal childhood.

We went to dinner at a local pizza place one Friday night and had a really good time. She invited me back to her house and not feeling like going back to the Dursley's right away I had accepted. Her parents hadn't been home so we laid together on a couch in her living room and watched a movie. It had been the first one I had ever seen all the way through. Honestly it wasn't that entertaining to me, but then again I was also more focused on Emily who about halfway through had decided to lean over and kiss me. I made no effort to stop her advances and things got heated pretty quickly, but didn't go past some really heavy petting and touching.

Mostly it was my fault for that I suppose. I just couldn't stop thinking about what had happened last time and rationally I knew nothing like that would happen with Emily, but the thought was still there. That was the one and only date I had gone on with a muggle girl and overall it went really well. I still saw Emily at the park and occasionally she would run with me and we would make jokes and laugh, but we never went out again.

I was in the middle of my occlumency exercises when a disturbance at the window drew my attention. I found a smile spreading on my face when I saw Hedwig sitting on the ledge.

"Hey girl! What are you doing here? Did Sirius send you with a letter or just to visit?" I phished out a couple of owl treats from my trunk as I held out my arm for Hedwig to come land on. She nibbled at the treats in my out stretched palm and then I noticed the letter attached to her leg. I untied it and began to read. The smile on my face only got bigger as I finished the last line though.

Sirius was coming to get me tonight and I was going to be living with him for the rest of the summer! I couldn't believe it! After half a summer with the Dursleys I was finally going to live with my godfather. He would really be able to help me learn some new things and I was counting on it. If I wanted to make a real effort in preparing myself for what lay ahead getting Sirius to teach me was going to be a big step.

I started packing up my things that were laying out. It wasn't much admittedly, all of my new robes were neatly folded in my trunk already and most of my books were in there to. All I had out was my occlumency book, some letter writing supplies, and a pair of exercise clothes.

I left the clothes out and decided to go for one last run to the park and hopefully run into Emily so I could say goodbye. I had made it a habit of magically locking my door when I left so that Vernon couldn't try anything dumb. With my wand placed safely in a unique holster I had found while shopping that changed to match the color of your skin I started off on my run.

I let my thoughts wander slightly while still keeping an eye out as I ran. This summer had been of the most interesting and best for me so far. It started off rough with finding out I had been tricked, but then I became friends with Neville, met Meg, gained the ability to use magic outside school, met Emily, and now was going to live with Sirius. It couldn't get much better for me.

I was about twenty minutes into my run when I finally spotted Emily on the other side of the park. She must have just gotten there as I had made a couple loops around and not seen her. I changed directions and made a beeline for her. Deciding to have a little fun I took the most obscured path I could so that I could loop around behind her and surprise her while she stretched.

Confident that she hadn't noticed me as quietly as I could I snuck up behind her and then placed my hands over her eyes.

"Guess who." I whispered into her ear and enjoyed the little shiver of excitement it caused in her.

"Harry you're such a jerk. You scared the bloody hell out of me. What were you doing back there anyway; Just perving on me stretching?" Her voice held no malice in it though and I knew she was just having me on.

I dropped my hands from her eyes and let her turn around to face me before I circled her waist with my arms and pulled her closer to me. She was pretty much flush against my body at this point and the color was rising in her cheeks.

"Maybe just a little, it's not my fault you have a nice bum." To emphasize my point I reached down and giver her arse a quick squeeze. This resulted in her lightly hitting my chest and her face becoming even redder. "I'm glad I ran into you though, I wanted to let you know I wasn't going to be around the rest of the summer."

Her expression became one of sadness and I felt bad knowing I had caused it, but at the same time it was nice to know I would be missed. Truth be told I had really come to enjoy the time I spent with Emily just laughing and joking like this.

"Where are you going though? I don't mean to be rude, but I assumed since you lived with your aunt and uncle that your parents were well….you know…"

I smiled at her hesitation. "It's okay, my parents are dead yes. But I have a godfather who has offered to take me in for the rest of the summer so I am going to spend time with him and get to know him better. I'll be back here next summer though and hopefully I'll get to see you again."

That seemed to cheer her up as she smiled back at me. "That'd be brilliant! I'm really going to miss you Harry. I've had so much fun with you these past few weeks, and you're not the only one who enjoys looking at a nice bum." She mimicked my action from earlier and gave my bum a small squeeze, but I didn't blush or anything. Instead I just smirked at her harder.

"Well I've still got until tonight to spend here, how about you come back with me so I can shower off and then we'll go out and get dinner? Who knows, maybe if you play your cards right you'll get to see more of this fine bum." I winked at her as I finished my sentence and part of me was still in disbelief at the way I could flirt now. Before I killed Voldemort I was definitely going to have to thank him for that at least. Hell maybe I should try that now, might shock the crazy snake man to death if he received a thank you note from Harry Potter.

Emily stepped back a little bit and pretended to be thoughtful. "Well I was going to go for a run and all, but your idea seems like it could be a lot more fun. But I've got one slightly better. My parents are out again so why don't you stop by your aunt and uncles house, you grab the things you're taking with you and some clean clothes then come meet me at my house and you can shower there. My parents should be gone until tomorrow morning so really you could have your godfather pick you up at my place if you want."

Did I find it strange that Emily only invited me over when her parents were away? Maybe a little, but who was I to judge if a pretty girl wanted me all to herself. "Sure that sounds great. I'll see you in twenty minutes or so. I'm already packed so I would just have to grab my trunk. I don't have much of my own stuff anyway."

A slight frown appeared on Emily's face at that and her eyebrows knitted together for a second, but then it was gone and her cute smile was back. "Brill Harry, I'll see you soon. Don't take too long it's not nice to keep a lady waiting." She blew me a kiss and put an extra little sway in her hips as she started to jog back towards her house that I was sure was just to tease me.

I watched her go for a minute or two just enjoying the view and then took off at a good pace back towards number four. I reached it in what seemed like record time and was up the stairs in a flash. Without missing a beat my wand was out and the door unlocked. I almost missed that I had done the spell nonverbally. Almost. That would be something I would have to ask Sirius about to now. Hedwig was still sitting by the window basking in the sun. I opened my trunk and pulled out a quill and some parchment quickly scribbling a letter to Sirius to let him know where to pick me up and asking him to come alone. I didn't know if he had planned to bring anyone else, but it was better safe than sorry. Once I had finished I gave Hedwig the letter and asked her to make sure Sirius got it ASAP. She gave me a hoot of indignation like my suggesting she would do anything less offended her before taking off out the window.

I made one last sweep of my room before closing my trunk and putting a locking charm on it. I also used the featherweight charm so it wouldn't be so bad to carry. Granted I was only going a block or two down the street to number twenty five, but I had to make sure not to tire myself out.

I lifted the trunk and carried it down the stairs, and suddenly I had a brilliant idea. "Uncle Vernon!"

The hippo of a man came charging out from the living room red in the face. "What do you want boy?!" His fists were balled up and turning white from the pressure he was putting on them. He knew he couldn't do anything to me or I would leave him in bad shape.

"If you are willing to drive me down the road so I don't have to walk I can leave your house for this summer for good tonight. I am being picked up by my godfather from a different location so as to not disturb your family, but I will need a ride there as they are coming soon and there is only a short window."

Suddenly the man looked joyous. "Well what are we waiting for boy! Get in the bloody car! Where are we going? Not too far I hope, the game is on after all!"

"Not far at all Uncle, just to number 20 down the road. You know the one that is for sale on the corner. My people figured it was the best and safest option."

It took only a few minutes for Vernon to drive me down to the corner and practically kick me out of the car. "See you hopefully never boy, but at least not until the next summer. Don't bother writing!"

And then he sped off presumably back to number four to throw a party and celebrate. I smiled and picked up my trunk again and walked the short distance down the road to number twenty-five. I knocked on the door and heard a faint 'come in' from somewhere deep in the house. I slid inside the door and took my shoes off. Once I closed and locked the door behind me I called out for Emily.

I heard her voice coming from upstairs. "Up here Harry! The shower is up here to so feel free to bring your clothes, it's the first door on your left." I thanked her and opened my trunk so that I could pull out some clean clothes, being careful to make sure she didn't see what else was inside of it in case she decided to try and pay me back for earlier.

Once it was secure again I walked up the stairs and found the door to the bathroom. As I got closer I could hear the sound of running water and my heart suddenly skipped a beat. That was nothing though compared to the reaction I had when I actually walked into the bathroom. Emily was completely naked and in the shower with the curtain partially open. She was staring at me mischievously as I stood there with my mouth open. This was the first time I was seeing her naked and wow. I knew she had an amazing body, but it still blew my mind to see her with her long hair down and wet lying flat against her back. The water beads running down her body and…

"Harry are you going to stand there and stare all day or are you going to come join me? This shower is getting awfully lonely." Then she closed the curtain and I kicked into gear. I don't think I've ever stripped down faster than right then in that moment. I practically ran to the shower and dove in.

It wasn't until two hours later that we finally emerged from the bathroom cleaned and dressed. I don't think I'd ever had a shower that much fun or relaxing and I told Emily so.

"Well I'm glad you enjoyed it, and it was certainly nice having help getting some of those hard to reach spots." She gave me a wink and I just shook my head at the girl as we walked towards the stairs. We started to walk down, but as we were going I decided to be a little bit bolder and managed to lightly interlock my fingers with hers. She turned and smiled at me but otherwise said nothing about it.

"Go sit on the couch and make yourself comfy Harry, I want to cook you dinner since it's going to be your last night here. Do you have any favorite meals?"

The question caught me off guard as I hadn't eaten a whole lot of muggle food, and wasn't sure what I would like. "To be honest with you Emily I don't really know. My aunt and uncle…well just keep in mind they aren't the nicest of people… anyway how about you surprise me? Make your favorite dish."

I could feel more than see the strange look she gave me when I said my relatives weren't nice. I'm sure she had heard what good people they were and to hear any differently would be strange. We hadn't ever talked about anything personal really always choosing to keep our topics light, teasing, and sometimes sexual.

"Alright then, watch whatever you like on the T.V. and I'll let you know when it's ready." I took her advice and watched whatever show happened to be on the first channel I turn to, but it didn't hold my interest very long. Soon I found myself just lost in thought. Emily was awesome and I really enjoyed being with her and the playful attitude she always had, but I couldn't help but think she wouldn't want to be around me if she knew the truth. That I was a freak as my relative's would call it. I knew it didn't really matter anyway as I probably would see her once or twice more before I never had to return to Little Whinging, but that thought alone was enough to make me feel upset.

I turned around and just watched her work for a while. The scene unfolding had such a grace to it and it was all so appealing. Emily had her hair up in a loose bun to keep it out of her face while she worked, and she had chosen to wear a pale green summer dress. The top was form fitting and clung to her curves nicely, but the bottom was slightly looser allowing her to move around easier. It was simple, but elegant and sexy all at the same time. I just stared as she moved around the kitchen from one place to another preparing what smelled like an excellent meal.

Occasionally she would look up and see my staring, and then look away shyly hoping I wouldn't notice the tinge of pink in her cheeks. I don't know when but eventually I got up and moved to the kitchen. I leaned back on a counter and watched her work from there. This time being more blatant and purposefully raking my eyes up and down her body when she turned to look at me. This caused her to blush even harder and she would turn and pretend I wasn't there.

"Dinner's almost ready Harry, I'm just going to finish washing these dishes and then we can eat." I had already moved up behind her though and instead of a response I wrapped my hands around her stomach and mumbled a little 'mhmm' into her neck as I kissed it lightly.

She sighed and leaned her head the other way giving me better ask to her neck which I gladly took. Her hands were now resting on mine keeping them from moving off of her stomach. I kissed and teased her neck for a minute more before turning and pecking her on the lips and then pulling back so she could finish what she had started. But not without one final comment. "I just wanted to let you know you are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen."

If I had thought the blushes from earlier were something boy did she prove me wrong there. She lit up fire engine red. It was strange how my innocent and sincere comment got her flustered, but the innuendos and insinuations only made her a little flushed. I supposed it was the sincerity that I had said it with.

I moved into the dining room and waited patiently for Emily to come in. When she did I was amazed. She was carrying a plate of what could have only been baked and breaded fish, and another plate of homemade chips. It was a meal I had often cooked for the Dursleys but never had a chance to try myself. She set it down on the table and then took the seat directly across from me. It looked delicious and smelled it as well.

"This looks amazing! You're an even better cook than I am Em. Thank you for doing this." And I reached out and gave her hand a squeeze before pulling back and starting to serve myself and then asking if I could serve her as well since she had cooked. Another slight blush and a yes and soon both of our plates were filled and we were munching happily. I had had fish before at Hogwarts, but never anything this good and I wondered what she had done to make it so delicious.

Dinner for the most part was a very quiet affair. We didn't talk a lot but it wasn't awkward, we shared a few glances here and there and really it was nice. That's the best way I could put it. The whole situation was comfortable and nice. I actually found myself wishing I could have been a normal person and have met Emily in a different life where there wasn't some psychopath after me.

Once we finished with dinner I helped Emily clear the table and wash the few dishes we had created. We sat down and cuddled together on the couch for a little while before she popped up saying she had one last surprise.

She came back with two small bowls filled with fruit and cream. "This is some summer pudding my mother made. It's delicious, and I don't know if you have ever had it before, but you must certainly try it now." I hadn't ever had the dessert before, but I realized I had been missing out after the first bite. It was simply amazing and I wished again that I could have had a normal life.

We finished the dessert, and I might have 'accidentally' flung a little cream onto Emily which I licked off for her, and then we went back to lying together in peace. It was already dark outside and I knew Sirius would be showing up soon, but part of me hoped it had been a joke and he wasn't going to show up. I didn't really want to leave the situation I was in.

Apparently Emily had been thinking the same thing. "I wish you didn't have to go Harry. I'm really going to miss you." I could see her eyes starting to glisten and I knew what that meant. Oh bugger I was terrible with tears.

"Shh, please don't cry Em. It won't be that long until we see each other again after all. Maybe you can come to my godfather's for Christmas! I'll probably be going there to spend the holidays with him and I'm sure he wouldn't mind having you there. Plus I'm really bad with crying." Even as I said it I knew that there was no way she would be able to come to Sirius's house. There was just too much to try and explain away if she did.

The last part got a laugh out of her which I was thankful for. Crisis averted. "You're a prat Harry. But I don't know usually the holidays my finally goes on vacation. I think we'll be stuck until next summer. And you'd better be here to make up for the time you spent away."

She wrapped her arms around my neck and I pulled her a little bit closer and that was how we wound up dozing off. It wasn't until an hour or two later that I woke with a start when I heard the sound of an engine roaring outside. I had heard the sound in dreams I had had when I was still a little kid living in the cupboard. It was Sirius's motorbike which meant it was time for me to go. I wanted to wake Emily and say goodbye, but she looked so peaceful sleeping there I couldn't bring myself to do it. Carefully I untangled myself from her. I did a double check of myself to make sure I wasn't leaving anything and then went to pick up my trunk.

"Harry? Are you going now?"

I turned around to see Emily rubbing the sleep from her eyes and standing up.

"Yeah sorry I didn't say goodbye, I didn't want to wake you from your sleep."

I didn't get an answer, but instead she darted across the room and collided with me. "Be safe Harry and make sure to stay in contact. Here take my phone number and make sure to call, at least once a week please." I almost turned her down saying I didn't have a phone, but I figured I could find one at a store or something near wherever Sirius's house was. I took the paper she offered with her number and then with one last kiss goodbye I picked up my trunk and was out the door. I saw Sirius waiting by his bike and kept my eyes focused on him because I knew if I looked back that I might lose my nerve to leave. As I greeted Sirius and climber into the sidecar of his motorbike I couldn't help but laugh a little at that thought. Never would I have thought I would want to stay in Surrey. The bike sped off and I turned to see Emily looking out her window watching as I drove away.

Once we were a good distance from the house Sirius turned to me. "Way to go pup. You're getting with all sorts of lookers this summer. You must have certainly changed a lot in the past few months. I'm not sure what did it, but it certainly seems to be for the better."

I didn't say anything choosing to remain silent and watch as we took off and began to soar into the sky. As we got higher into the sky the noise of the engine became quieter. "Sirius is there anywhere that has a phone near your house?"

Sirius looked at me quizzically but then he seemed to realize what I was talking about. "You mean one of those things you can talk into and the person on the other end hears you? I don't know. The house is in a muggle neighborhood so I'm sure you could find one. How come?"

"Emily gave me her phone number and asked me to call her so we could keep in touch. I figured I'd be able to use a phone in a local store or something."

I could see the wolfish grin Sirius was giving me and it wasn't making my situation any better. "So you got a real thing for this girl eh? Yeah, I'm sure you'll be able to find one somewhere. Just don't let Molly or anyone else catch you sneaking out. They would probably lecture you on how it's not safe and all, but I know you can protect yourself and without the underage nonsense you'll be fine. But if you'd let me know before you go out that'd be great, just in case."

I looked at Sirius fully this time to see if he was being…well…serious. I saw no trace of deception or anything like that on his face. "Yeah sure Sirius, I'll leave you a note or something so you know when I'm gone and if it's more than two hours or something you can come check on me." I thought it was completely reasonable and wasn't about to turn down the freedom my godfather was offering.

"So how'd you meet her pup? What's she like?"

For the next hour or so on our bike ride back to where Sirius lived I told him all about Emily and how we had met for the first time. I told her how she worked during the summer at a local store as a cashier, but she really wanted to become a teacher someday. Before I knew it we were starting to descend back towards a street lined with tall buildings that looked like they were from the eighteenth century.

Soon enough we came to a stop and when I looked up I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. One building said number 11 on it and the next one said 13, but I distinctly remembered the last time I had come here it was number 12…

That's when I noticed the two buildings suddenly being pushed apart as a third one appeared directly in the middle of them. A black number 12 was emblazoned on the door and there were a few lights lit on the bottom floor, but the rest of the house was pitch black.

"Well Harry welcome to your new home for the summer!"

"It's brilliant Sirius, but honestly I'm just glad I'll get to spend some time getting to know you better. We haven't really had the chance to bond or talk and I think it would be great if we could do that this summer. "

I could see how happy it made the man to know I really wanted to get to know him. He put an arm around my shoulder and I let myself be guided up the stairs and into the front door.

"Now Harry first things first. You have to be quiet walking past here because there is a painting of my bitch of a mother, and all she does it shout obscene things at people. And if you happen to knock over this umbrella stand right here, well that sets the portrait off to. Second I want you to meet the ever pleasant Kreacher!"

A pop issued and before me stood possibly the craziest elf I had ever seen and I knew Dobby so that was saying something.

"Filthy Blood-Traitor master has called Kreacher. What can Kreacher be doing for the traitor?"

"Kreacher this is my godson as such you will treat him as if he was a member of this family. If he asks something of you, you will do it. Do you understand?"

I felt my heart swell a little at being included as family. I had never had a loving family before and for Sirius to so readily accept me into his… "Hello Kreacher. It is a pleasure to meet you." I held my hand out for the elf to shake and he looked at me like I was crazy at first before hesitantly reaching out and taking it. As soon as our skin made contact though he pulled back like he'd been shocked and his eyes grew to the size of tennis balls; then without saying a word the elf disappeared with a pop.

"Well he's a nutty little thing isn't he? Anyway we'll continue with our tour now…" I made to follow Sirius but was stopped when Kreacher suddenly reappeared in front of me. This time though he was holding a silver locket. But what really drew my attention was the Slytherin coat of arms on it.

"Master this is belonging to you. Good Master Regulus is giving to Kreacher for safe keeping until you is returning for it." I was growing more and more confused with every sentence the elf spoke until I reached down and touched the locket. I could feel it before I even made contact. The thing was practically radiating dark magic from it, but part of it was calling to me. Like it wished to be reunited with something it had lost. This was a horcrux that Voldemort had made. Somehow Kreacher had been able to know that I had a part of Voldemort in me.

"Harry where'd you go?" I heard Sirius call out for me from the other room he had entered, and quickly stashed the locket in my pocket when I heard footsteps coming back.

"Tell no one of this Kreacher. No one!" The elf nodded at me vigorously before once again leaving.

Sirius chose that moment to step back into sight. "Whatcha doing kiddo? Come in here, it's the kitchen and we can get a snack while I fill you in on who all is staying here and what's been going on?"

"Yeah that sounds good, sorry Kreacher came back and was talking all sorts of nonsense to me. You were right he is more than a little nutty."

I made my way into the kitchen and found that Sirius already had a couple of sandwiches laid out and some sliced fruit. I sat on one of the stools near the counter and nicked a sandwich from the plate to munch on while I listened to Sirius.

"So this as you know is my family's ancestral home. Blacks have lived here for hundreds of years. Now though I have agreed to allow Dumbledore to use it as a headquarters for his secret organization to 'fight' Voldemort. I use the word fight loosely because really all they do is show up after an incident and round up any stragglers. I mean it's better than nothing, but not really effective if you get my drift. Staying here currently is you, me, the Weasley clan, Hermione, my cousin Nymphadora, and occasionally Remus. I know you are on the outs with your friends, or that's what I've gathered from some of the conversations I have heard, but please don't go starting fights in the house. We're all forced to be here so it's best to just pretend we like each other."

I smiled at that, at least Sirius wasn't going to force me to be friends with them. "Don't worry Sirius I have plenty to keep me busy. Most of the time I'll probably just spend in my room, wherever it is, studying or practicing my occlumency."

That seemed to catch Sirius's attention. "Yeah how is that going? I know you had said something about starting, but have you gotten very far?"

I tried to not look to put out when I answered him, but most likely wasn't very successful. "It's a hard branch of magic to grasp that's for sure. I'm about three chapters into the book I found and I've managed to enter the meditation phase as of right now. According to the book this should have taken me about two months, but I've managed after only two weeks so I'm doing pretty good, but I just wish I had more progress."

Sirius nodded his head. "Don't get discouraged. You are progressing very fast and I'm sure soon enough you'll have some real results. I'd offer to help you but I was pretty much garbage when trying to learn and never actually finished my training with it. Luckily I've got the Black family ring which has some added protections on it thanks to my ancestors and their paranoia. While I can't help you with the mind arts if you want I can help you with some transfiguration and more offensive curses."

"That would be great Sirius, but where can we practice, won't the others be suspicious?" I didn't want to pass up an opportunity like this, but I wasn't going to reveal my secrets to people who I didn't even consider to be my friends anymore.

"The Black family library of course. Only those of Black blood or whom I permit can open the doors. Even Dumbledore himself couldn't get through the enchantments on that thing. That's enough talking for tonight though. I'm sure you are exhausted and if I'm not mistake you do have class with Neville tomorrow. "

I didn't realize how late it had gotten, but Sirius was right. I was tired and class was early in the morning so if I wanted any chance of paying attention I needed to turn in. "Yeah, would you mind making sure I'm up in the morning Sirius? I'll set an alarm but just in case I wouldn't mind you checking on me."

"Not a problem now follow me, I'll show you where you are going to be staying. It's just on the second floor. The master bedroom is located there and that is where I am staying, and you are right down the hall from me. We're the only two living on the floor so we have some privacy to ourselves. Feel free to decorate the room when you get the chance."

I nodded my thanks and stifled a yawn as I picked up my trunk and followed Sirius up the staircase. When he stopped in front of a large oak door I said a quick good night and thank you to him for everything he had done before I turned and entered the room.

I was shocked initially by the size of the room. It was huge and had its own personal bathroom to. A full walk in closet was located off to the left corner. There was even a glass door that opened to a balcony over-looking a garden. Despite having witnessed it for years now magic still amazed me. The giant canopy bed in the middle was decked out in green with silver trimmings. Slytherin colors, but honestly I didn't mind too much. I preferred them to the blaring red and gold of Gryffindor to be honest.

I set my trunk at the foot of my bed and used my wand to cast a locking charm on my door. I started to undress for bed when I remembered what Kreacher had given me. I pulled the horcrux from the pocket of my jacket and held it in my palm. I could feel the power radiating from it begging to be set free. It sounded like a good idea, all I'd have to do was open the locket and all that power could be mine. I found myself almost in a trance as I observed it, but thankfully something clicked in my mind and I was able to shake myself free of the spell. It was trying to draw me in so it could take over.

That wasn't going to be happening and now it looked like I would be taking a little detour to Gringotts tomorrow after my class. I needed to know how I could destroy the Horcrux permanently and I was sure the goblins, specifically Iron Tooth, would have the answer I was looking for. I carefully wrapped the locket in an old shirt of mine and then opened a desk drawer on the large writing desk near my closet and locked it away. I didn't want it anywhere near me during the night in case it tried to lure me in again. With the locket as secured as I could make it I finished changing into some of my new night clothes and then climbed into my bed. I was no longer plagued nightly by dreams of the graveyard and so I fell into a restful and deep sleep.

I stepped out of my class at the ministry having learned a good deal more about Wizarding society again. It still amazed me how much I didn't know about a place I have been a part of for almost five years. Today's lessons had turned into a more political nature and resolved mostly around how one should handle themselves in the Wizengamot, how to raise an issue, and how to properly vote. It was all more complicated than it seemed and I was glad for having talked to Neville and learned about these.

I waited for Neville by the exit of the classroom and we walked to the atrium of the ministry together.

"Alright Nev, I'll see you next time unless you want to stop by and we can work on some summer work. I've actually finished mine, but I'd like you to look over my Herbology paper and I can help you with transfiguration if you need it."

Neville had been growing more and more confident this summer and it was definitely noticeable in the way he carried himself. "Actually that would be great Harry, I've been working on the assignments but I am bloody awful with the transfiguration. I can stop by tomorrow afternoon just send an owl with your address so I can floo."

I would need to ask Sirius to write up the paper so that Neville could get through the fidelius but I didn't see that being a problem. "Yeah I'll send Hedwig by sometime tonight. I have a few errands I need to run in Diagon before I go back home and all."

Neville shot me a pitying look for some reason and I asked him what it was for. "Harry it's the end of August the alley is going to be packed this time of year with everyone trying to get their Hogwarts supplies. Good luck trying to fight the mobs at any store you go to. I need to get going Gran is waiting for me to help with the greenhouses, cheers mate!"

With that Neville took a pinch of powder from the mantle and threw it into a fireplace while calling out his address and then stepped into the swirling green flames and was gone. I was left thinking about what he said and admitting he was right. I hadn't considered how packed the alley would be today. I reached into my pocket to make sure my package was still there and was reassured when I felt the bundled lump.

I repeated the process Neville had just gone through except I called out for the Leaky Cauldron and soon found myself spinning out into the well-known bar.

I saw Tom the bar keep wave to me, but otherwise he didn't say a word which I was thankful for since I wasn't looking to draw any unnecessary attention to myself. I exited through the back and found a family with a young child staring at the brick wall in confusion. The kid was most definitely a first year if that, and most likely muggleborn judging by the fact that the parent's didn't have wands.

"Hello, need some help getting through?" I figured it was only right to be polite since I was going through anyway.

The older man, presumably the father, turned and gave me a smile. "That would be really great, this is our son Alexander and he's going to Hogwarts this year. We're not magical, and so we can't well I guess you know that we can't get through so…" He trailed off seemingly embarrassed by his lack of ability to get through.

I quickly tapped the wall in the order and stepped back so that they could watch as it faded away to reveal the alley. "Welcome to Diagon Alley. This is the most popular shopping centre for Hogwarts students and you'll see a lot of them roaming around as it is getting close to the start of term. Good luck with your first year Alex and keep an open mind in regards to the houses. Each one has their good and bad qualities and good and bad people." I started to walk away but was stopped when I heard the mother call out to me.

"I'm sorry to bother you, but well we don't really know where to go for all of this on his list." She held up the list of supplies that came with a standard Hogwarts letter and gestured at it. "I was wondering if you wouldn't mind maybe showing us around at least for a little while if you aren't busy."

I thought about it for a moment and honestly I couldn't come up with a legitimate reason to tell the family no. "Sure I'm assuming you'll need to exchange your pounds for Wizarding money, and I have to go to the bank for a short while so we can start there. Follow me." I looked back every now and then to make sure the family wasn't getting side tracked or lost in the crowded streets. It only took us a minute or two to make the walk to the bank.

"This is Gringotts Wizarding bank. It is run by goblins and they are a very proud race. You must always treat them with respect when you deal with them or face the consequences. I'll take you to a teller who will be able to help you with your exchanging and explaining how much you will need and then I have a matter of my own to handle. You may wait for me here and then we'll continue." I walked up to the usual teller window I visited and noticed that I recognized the goblin behind the counter.

"Good afternoon Griphook! I would like to speak with the Honorable Iron Tooth if he is available. Please let him know it is a matter of great importance. Also this family behind me is new to the Wizarding world and needs to do some exchanging so they can purchase their son's Hogwarts supplies."

Griphook looked momentarily shocked that I remembered his name but quickly covered it up. "Good afternoon to you as well Lord Potter. I will forward your request to Iron Tooth immediately and you may head towards his office. I'm sure he will be more than willing to see you." I thanked Griphook and gestured for Alex and his family to come forward. As I walked away I heard Griphook explaining the different values of each piece to the family and was momentarily reminded of my first trip here and smiled.

How long ago that seemed to me now though as I stood in front of Iron Tooth's door and knocked, patiently waiting for the enter. It only took a moment and I offered him the traditional greeting as I entered.

"It is good to see you Lord Potter. You look well and in good spirits so I trust this visit can only be profitable for us or you."

I smirked at that, goblins were always trying to find a way to make more gold. "Yes I trust that you will gain some profit from this and I will also gain, but not in the monetary sense." I pulled the package from my pocket and unwrapped it carefully so that it was laying on Iron Tooth's desk. "This is another horcrux of Voldemort's that I wish to destroy, but I am not sure how. Obviously the killing curse will work but I do not know if I could produce one strong enough or at all. Are there other methods that could be used?"

Iron Tooth eyed the locked distastefully. "For a man to split his soul so many times is disgusting. Nothing is worth the pain, agony, and dementia. Not even all the gold in the world would be worth that. If he has already split his soul three times that we know of I am sure there are more. As to your question, there are three ways to destroy a horcrux permanently. The killing curse as you have seen, basilisk venom, and fiendfyre. Fiendfyre is very hard to control and if not done correctly can easily backfire and kill the castor so it is not recommended. You have already ruled out the killing curse, so that leaves you with only the basilisk venom as an option. Unfortunately we have none available here otherwise I would be willing to sell it to you so that we could rid the world of this monstrosity."

I wasn't too worried about that because I knew where to obtain a large amount of basilisk venom once I returned to school, but what did strike me as odd was the fact that Iron Tooth wanted to help out so much. "Iron Tooth I hope I am not overstepping here, but why are you so interested in the affairs of a wizard? Don't goblins usually take a stand of neutrality or indifference in Wizarding wars?"

Iron Tooth eyed me up seemingly judging my worth before nodding to himself and speaking. "You are correct Mr. Potter. Normally we would have no part in the affairs of wizards, but I lived during the first war. I know what terrors Voldemort can unleash and I do not wish to see it happen again. Also having his band of masked men running around scares customers away from businesses and in the long run costs us gold."

I thought about that and it made sense. Voldemort making people live in fear of leaving their houses couldn't be good business for the goblins so it would only make sense that they would want him gone as well. Either way I was just glad they were offering to help out. I did have one more question though. "Is there a way to track horcruxes? Would I be able to locate them using this one?"

Iron Tooth shook his head at me. "Unfortunately it is impossible. We looked through all the research done on the foul branch of magic and it is impossible to track them. One simply has to know where to look. If that is all Lord Potter I do have another meeting to attend."

I executed a short bow and then left the office. I was storing the locket back in my pocket when I caught sight of Alex and his family waving at me from the corner of the bank. I finished tucking the locket away and began walking towards them. I was cut off though when a figure stepped in front of me.

My initial reaction was to apologize and go around them thinking I had cut someone off. Until I looked and saw who was in front of me.

"Good day Miss Greengrass. How may I help you?" I did my best sound professional in case any around was listening in. Luckily Daphne was quick on the uptake and continued to play along.

"Lord Potter, I just wished to inform you that the plans we had discussed have gone through and are now complete."

I nodded my head assuming she was talking about her family moving to safety. "Very well, if that was all I am busy right now." Here I gestured to the family I was escorting around and they started to move towards me.

Daphne had begun to walk away when I remembered something and reached out to grab her wrist and stop her. "Also miss Greengrass, I'm sure you're aware but there is a clause which allows you to perform your magic."

It was small but the slight dilating of her pupils told me that she did in fact not know about the loophole. "I did not Lord Potter, however I will make the most use of that knowledge and thank you for passing it on. Good day."

Alex and his family watched the end of our exchange with interest and I could tell they had questions about what they had just seen, but most of them I was not going to answer.

As we were walking out the questions finally came. Alex was the first one to crack. "Why did that girl refer to you as Lord? Are you royalty?"

I snorted at that, but then I suppose I was the head of an Ancient and Noble house. "Not exactly royal, but I am from an ancient and noble house. Which means the title of lord passes to me since I have no one else to claim the head of house position. You may just refer to me as Harry though. I only go by the Lord title when dealing with business."

"So Harry you said there was no one else in your family to claim the title, does that mean your parents are…"

"Yes my parents are both dead and so are my grandparents. I am an only child so naturally it passed to me. I don't like to talk about it though. So how about you tell me a little about yourselves while we make our way to Madam Malkin's to get you fitted for some robes."

And that was how I passed another two hours or so. As we traveled from store to store Alex's parents, Frank and Carly, filled me in about what they did, when they'd learned Alex was a wizard, his first bout of accidental magic, etc.. It turned out Frank actually worked for a big time insurance company as a manager of some department. While Carly was a math teacher at an elementary school. The mention of being a teacher reminded me of Emily and I found myself smiling as I thought about her.

We stopped outside of Ollivander's and I turned to them. "Alright this is the last stop and the most important one. This is where you are going to get your wand Alex. Every witch or wizard needs a wand to perform magic. There are a few exceptions to the rule who can do simple spells without a wand, but no one is fully wandless. This could take a while, merlin knows it took me almost four hours to get my wand, so don't be discouraged if you don't find a match right away."

I held the door open for the family and let them enter ahead of me. I sensed more than felt Ollivander moving from the corner of the store where he had probably been observing us. It was a weird sensation to think that I could 'feel' someone moving. I would have to look more into that as well when I got a chance.

"Ah Mr. Potter. It seems you are taking on the role of escort for the day. That is very considerate of you. How is your wand treating you these days? Holly and phoenix feather. A remarkable wand, very temperamental. Brother's to…well you know."

I chose not to answer the old man and instead made a gesture towards Alex. Ollivander caught on that I didn't want to talk about it in front of the family and wisely started in on his new customer. Soon enough tape measure were flying about and boxes of wands were soaring off shelves. It only took about thirty minutes for Alex to find a wand that matched him. The wand was oak and contained a dragon heartstring. According to Ollivander it was extra springy and well suited for charms. The family paid the seven galleons for the wand and then left.

I parted ways with them at the Leaky Cauldron and made sure to explain about the platform so they wouldn't be lost on the first before I took a pinch of floo powder and headed back to Sirius's house. What I didn't expect when I landed was to come face to face with an irate looking Molly Weasley.

A/N: So to anyone who may be worried that Emily is going to take over as a main part in this story, don't be. I used her as a good way to show Harry's personality changing and how he had been affected by his decision to absorb the soul. At best she will play a minor role in the future.

The scene with Harry escorting the family around Diagon was the counter to his change in personality. I wanted to make sure everyone still understood that Harry is a good person and is not going to go all evil dark lord just because he absorbed part of Voldemort's personality. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter and I'm in the process of writing another one so if I keep it up maybe a second update today, but no promises.