"Harry? Harry, c'mon, wake up!"

"Dunwanna..."

"Oi! Get up, y'big lump!"

"Nnng...."

"Mum! Harry won't get out of bed!"

Harry bit back a grin as Tonks called for her mother. Andromeda popped into the room a moment later to see Harry sitting up in bed, very much awake, with Tonks facing away from him. She rolled her eyes and asked, "Nymmy, he's sitting there, waving at me. I've got to go finish dinner. Albus will be here any time. Now go on, go change!"

"Awww, I don't wanna wear my dress robes!" Tonks whined, kicking at the floor. "Don't like blue."

"You'll wear them and like it, young lady." Andromeda replied in a stern parental tone.

"Whassa big deal, anyway? We'll see him nearly every day for like seven years... not like seeing me in a less than royal outfit is gonna tarnish the family name..."

"Nymphadora."

Tonks winced, then glared at her mother, who smiled sweetly. "Go on, then."

Tonks looked over her shoulder at Harry and scowled. "You don't get t' make fun o' me when ya see me..."

"Alright." Harry replied, still somewhat groggy.

As Tonks left the room, muttering under her breath, Andromeda rolled her eyes and walked toward the bed. "Feeling better, dear? Nymmy told me how tired you were..."

Harry nodded. "I'm fine now, thanks... ...um, did she...?"

Andromeda pulled a face and looked towards the doorway. "Yes, she told me that you know... I wish she would have waited. There were better, more tactful ways of informing you. But what's done is done." She cleared her throat, then turned to look back at Harry and gave him a once-over. "She also mentioned being banged up. I'm no medi-witch, but I'm no slouch with healing spells, either."

"I'm fine. Just a big bruise and some sore muscles, really... I've had worse." Harry said.

"You shouldn't have." Andromeda said, frowning. After a moment, she sighed and smiled crookedly. "Go get cleaned up, Harry. Dinner's soon and we're having a guest. Hopefully he'll be able to explain why you didn't get your letter to Hogwarts..."

Harry nodded and Andromeda left the room, casting a glance over her shoulder as she did. Crawling out of bed, Harry stretched, wincing as his muscles howled out in pain. "Nng...Bloody Dursley's." He hissed, walking into the hallway and heading for the upstairs washroom.

Just as he reached the door, Tonks walked out of her bedroom, clad in sky blue dress robes with a fancy, white trim. She looked just shy of disgruntled. She spotted Harry and came to a halt. For a moment, the two just stared at each other. Tonks broke the silence when she looked off and grumbled, "I hate these... I'd rather go about in a t-shirt and jeans..."

"I dunno," Harry said, tilting his head. "They don't look THAT bad."

"You're hardly an authority on the subject." Tonks said, giving Harry the Evil Eye, which he ignored.

"Maybe not. But --" Harry paused here, then took a second look at Tonks. "...Your hair wasn't that color OR length earlier."

"I know." Came the reply. Tonks' hair was now down to the middle of her back and just as blue as her robes.

"...Let me guess - Magic?"

"Kinda."

But before Tonks could explain further, Andromeda's voice rang out from downstairs, "He's here! Both of you, hurry up and come down!"

Tonks sighed, shaking her head. "I'll go on. G'won an' get washed up."

With that, the bluenette turned and headed downstairs - very slowly, so as not to trip over her slightly large robes. Harry watched her with a ghost of a grin on his face before he turned and headed into the washroom.

When he entered the kitchen a few minutes later, it was to find three people at the table. Andromeda, Tonks, and a very, very old-looking man. He was wearing emerald-green robes with matching pointy hat and had the longest hair and beard that Harry had ever seen. Not that he got out enough to see many, but that was hardly the point.

"Ahh, there he is!" Andromeda said when she spotted him. "Come on over! Harry, this is Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts."

"Sir." Harry said, bowing his head politely in greeting. Harry had all but been the Dursleys' butler over the years and had learned how to properly greet people that one didn't know.

Dumbledore turned and looked Harry over. There was a strange twinkle in his eyes that Harry couldn't remember ever seeing in anyone else's. He felt nervous being surveyed by the man, though he couldn't quite place the reason.

"Ahh, Harry," Dumbledore began, smiling pleasantly. "I was wondering how you would turn out. It appears you are, in fact, quite different than what I had envisioned. However, this is not the time to recall past... mistakes, if you will. Rather, I believe that I have something that was meant to already be in your possession." With this, he reached into his robes and pulled out a letter, which he handed out towards Harry.

Harry's eyes flicked quickly to Tonks, who grinned and nodded at him. He stepped over and took the letter from the Headmaster. He flipped it over and read the front of the envelope:

Mr. H. Potter
The Guest Bedroom
#9 Fenshank Lane
Little Whinging
Surrey

He blinked at it, raising an eyebrow. It was quite unlike any other letter he had seen before. It was a thick, heavy sort of envelope. The writing on the front was as green as his eyes. And it seemed to be made, of all things, out of parchment. Ripping it open, he pulled out the letter and read:

"Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry...Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore..." His eyes skimmed down a bit, quickly glancing through the headmaster's numerous titles and briefly wondering what the devil a 'Mugwump' was. "Dear Mr. Potter," Harry continued quietly, "We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31..."

He paused, then looked and Tonks and asked, "Owl?"

"S'the way we mail each other. Owls're really smart." Tonks replied, nodding sagely.

"Ahh." Harry said, looking down and over his list of supplies. "Um... Excuse me, but..."

"Wondering, perhaps, how you might be able to afford your books and supplies when you haven't a pence to your name?" Dumbledore offered, still smiling. Harry just nodded dumbly.

"Ahh... you may be in for a bit of surprise when you visit Gringotts, then." The Headmaster said, chuckling. "Now, if the two of you do not mind..." He nodded to Tonks and Harry. "...I have some business to discuss with Andromeda..."

Tonks hopped from her spot at the table and, grinning, zipped over to Harry, grabbed his arm, and tugged him from the room. Once she had pulled him back into the living room, she was practically bouncing up and down. "I never toldja 'bout Gringotts, did I?" She asked.

Harry shook his head, gazing down at his letter once more. "No... what is it?"

"S'a bank. Run by goblins!"

"Oh." There was a pause. "...Wait, what?"

"Goblins!" Tonks repeated excitedly. "Been there a few times with mum. They're tiny little things, but they're right smart. Heard of a few people tha' got stuck in the vaults under the city... Oh, you're gonna love the cart ride! I think I even saw a dragon down one path..."

Harry blinked a few times, trying to work all of the hyper girl's words through his brain. "...Right. Look, Tonks... I'm just going to have to see most of this for my brain to understand properly. It's hard to imagine these things, given how I grew up."

"Nymmy! Harry! Dinner!" Andromeda's voice called.

"...That was quick." Harry said.

"Probably talking about us." Tonks replied with a shrug. As the two headed back toward the kitchen, Harry happened to be looking at his friend when something very strange happened. Her blue hair, which had been rather long just moments before, shortened to shoulder-length in front of his eyes. Harry gaped at this.

"S'wrong?" Tonks asked, finally noticing.

"Your hair! Just got shorter..." Harry managed.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Doesn't hang over my shoulders this way. Tends to be annoying, falling over my shoulders and into my food otherwise." Tonks replied, casually. Before Harry could ask anything further, they were back in the kitchen.

Dumbledore and Andromeda were still at the table, which was now sporting a rather lavish dinner spread. Tonks practically bounded over and began working on a porkchop. When Harry tucked himself in, he looked down at his letter once more.

"Future students usually receive them on their 11th birthday... but, in your case... I felt that an exception should be made. Especially given , shall we say, that you were found in." Said Dumbledore after swallowing a bit of salad.

Harry just nodded, folding the letter and tucking it back into the envelope. He set this on his lap and started piling food onto his plate. When Tonks noticed, she grinned at him and began copying him. When Harry was finished, both of them had the exact same things on their plates. Harry cast her a questioning glance.

"Bet I can beatcha." She said, a grin slowly spreading across her face.

Harry opened his mouth to respond, hesitated for a moment, then smiled and nodded.

"On three. Ready? One... two... THREE!"

Dumbledore and Andromeda watched on in amusement as the children practically inhaled the food on their plates. Though Tonks was trying her hardest to wolf down hers, Harry was simply faster by default. When one didn't normally get three squares a day, one tends to be able to ingest faster when presented with a good meal.

Harry, of course, won by a porkchop and two tomatoes. Tonks flopped back in her chair and groaned, patting her stomach and shaking her head. "Not gonna do THAT again..." She whined.

Harry just grinned.

"Andromeda, when did you plan to take them to Diagon Alley?" Dumbledore asked, his glance moving from the kids. Andromeda tilted her head back in thought before shrugging. "Well, I was figuring we'd go once Harry turned 11. Nymmy's birthday was a few weeks ago, so she's all set..."

Dumbledore nodded, stroking his beard (and removing a small bit of salad that had somehow missed his mouth) and murmuring, "I see, I see. And what, if anything, do you have planned for said birthday?"

"Well, I told Harry we could try out a few different cakes to see what kind he liked best." Andromeda replied with a smile, looking over at the boy in question. Harry, for his part, blushed and looked down at the letter in his lap.

Dumbledore nodded once, then leaned in toward Harry and stage whispered, "I recommend German chocolate. Very delicious, if I do say so." He straightened back up and cleared his throat. "It was a lovely meal, as always, Andromeda."

"I try." The witch said, flashing a corny sort of grin at the Headmaster. Tonks rolled her eyes and mouthed 'nutter' to Harry, who stifled a laugh.

The rest of dinner was spent digesting, discussing the future, and talking about what they had spent their summers doing. When it came time for Dumbledore to head back to the school, Tonks pulled her mother aside and asked if Harry could stay with them until September 1st. After sharing a quiet word with Dumbledore, Andromeda winked at her daughter.

Tonks, in turn, punched a fist into the air and nearly tackled Harry to the ground in her excitement. Harry gasped audibly as he watched Dumbledore Floo back to his office at Hogwarts, having only seen one part of what Floo Powder could do.

That night, Andromeda conjured Harry a pair of very comfortable pajamas to sleep in. Harry was thankful for the change of clothes - ones that actually fit, to boot. Harry and Tonks stayed up well into the night, discussing what they would spend the next few weeks doing.

"I think we should get even with your relatives." Tonks said, her hair long again.

"Hm? How so?" Harry asked.

The two were sitting in the floor of the guest bedroom. Harry was leaning back against the bed; Tonks was across from him, leaning against the wall.

"Well... you shouldn't just up and leave without TELLING them, should you?" Tonks asked, a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

"...What've you got planned?"

"Well... nothing, yet. Think about it, though! Mum could make you some really nice clothes, and the two of us can just go wandering in, chattin' away an' all. Nick somethin' from the fridge, maybe, before tellin' 'em you won't be back for awhile." Tonks explained. "If your aunt and uncle are anything like your cousin, it'd be right hilarious to see their reactions."

"I dunno..." Harry said, wearily. "I can't stay here forever..."

"Why not?"

Harry blinked. "Well, it'd... I mean... I don't wanna be a bother to you or your mum..."

"You aren't a bother." Tonks said, waving a hand dismissively. "In fact, once I get you loosened up a bit, we could have all sorts o' fun 'round here. S'been nice, having someone to talk to. No fun being alone."

Harry fidgeted for a moment, looking Tonks square in the eyes. Eyes, Harry noted with a bit of confusion, that seemed to be a rather light shade of brown now. "...Alright." He finally said slowly. "...We'll do it the first of August, after my birthday."

Tonks got a downright sneaky expression on her face as she grinned at Harry. "You won't regret it." She said, her voice solemn. "It'll be a day worth remembering!"