Chapter 2

Dawn was breaking when Harry woke to find himself, not in the room he'd shared with Ron, or even in the one belonging to Sirius.

Instead, he was in the green and silver chamber once the domain of Regulus Arcturus Black, Sirius' younger brother.

Unlike the rest of Twelve Grimmauld Place, this room was beautifully kept: a fitting shrine for a pureblood prince.

"Master is better." Kreacher materialized next to the bed.

"The ring…" Harry glanced at his right hand, where the lord's ring glowed. "Did I…did it not accept me as Head of House?"

Kreacher made a sound that, in anyone else, Harry would have described as a snicker.

"The ring is Master's, and it cleansed Master!"

"Cleansed? What do you mean?" Harry flung back his bedding and tried to stand…and almost pitched onto the floor. "What?"

"Master is changed." Kreacher summoned a mirror. "See?"

Harry's jaw dropped. It would be too much to say he didn't recognize himself, but there were definitely changes in his appearance.

Most notable was the scar…or rather, the lack of scar. It was gone.

There were other subtle things: he was taller, stronger, with higher cheekbones and longer hair. He particularly noticed the winged eyebrows above the green eyes that no longer needed glasses.

"Right then," Harry swallowed. "Guess I will…will get dressed. Kreacher, where are my clothes?"

"Master hasn't any."

"What!"

"They were not suitable for the House of Black, and have been destroyed. Kreacher must purchase others."

Harry threw up his hands. 'Fine. And in the meantime?"

Ten minutes later, Harry sat down to breakfast in a grey silk robe that had been the property of Regulus.

"Good thing I'm not planning to go anywhere," Harry grumbled.

"No," Kreacher agreed. "Mistress wishes to talk to Master Harry while Kreacher is away."

Harry took note of the fact that the portrait of Phineas Nigellus had been removed from upstairs and placed on a near wall.

"Much better." Walburga surveyed him. "Now we can begin."

"Begin what?"

"Begin fashioning you into a proper Head of House," inserted Phineas. "First, however, there are things you must know."

Harry eyed them warily. He was uncertain how much faith he could place in anything they told him.

Walburga registered his look of doubt. "You may not trust us, Lord Black, but at least listen to what we say, and let your instincts tell you if we are truthful."

Harry could do that.

"You may rely on Kreacher to carry out your orders," she continued.

Harry snorted.

"Yes, you dislike Kreacher. Perhaps you even wish him dead," she said calmly. "But you are unfamiliar with the ways of house elves."

"He lied to me!" Harry shouted.

"Because he was ordered to do so, by a family member," explained Phineas. "He could not refuse unless the order was countermanded by the Head of House. It never occurred to Sirius to do that, so Kreacher was forced to obey."

"Of course," Harry breathed. "I should have thought of that! I might have known Bellatrix Lestrange would do something like that!"

"So you might," agreed Walburga. "But in fact it was not Bella who gave that particular order."

"Narcissa?"

"No. There was another sister, Andromeda, who was disowned years ago. She has one daughter, and Sirius foolishly accepted them both back into the family."

"It's true, my lord." Phineas stroked his beard.

"That fatal order came from Nymphadora Tonks."

Harry stared at the portraits in numbed disbelief. "No! Not Tonks! She's in the Order of the Phoenix! She follows Dumbledore!"

"Exactly," stated Walburga.

"Are you saying Dumbledore wanted that to happen? He wanted me at the Ministry?"

"Think about it," advised Phineas. "The Ministry was determined to silence you, and oust Dumbledore from his positions of influence. Well, weren't they succeeding? He was desperate to lure Voldemort out of hiding and force him to reveal himself!"

"But Sirius…"

"He probably didn't expect Sirius to insist on going to the Ministry," conceded Walburga. "But anyone who knew him would surmise that he would. To Dumbledore he was collateral damage…to ensure the greater good!"

Harry did not know what to think. Yet he recalled something Dumbledore had told Snape after the battle at the Ministry: Fudge can no longer deny the truth.

Harry's head was reeling. He made his way to his room to think things through, only to find that Kreacher had fetched his belongings from 4 Privet Drive and provided food and water for Hedwig.

He couldn't help but warm to the elf as he released his owl from the confinement of her cage and handed her an owl treat.

"At least I know I can always count on you, Hedwig." He stroked her feathers as she rubbed her head against him. "I think maybe I believe them, and if they're telling the truth, everything changes."