Disclaimer: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books, Raincoast Books, and Warner Brothers Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.

Harry saw that the eyes of the other two were on him and sighed to himself, he'd have to show him. He closed his eyes and concentrated for a minute. Slowly his hair started to lighten from black to a deep brown; when he opened his eyes again he saw that Dumbledore was shocked by it. Smiling to himself he closed his eyes once more and concentrated for another minute until he felt his hair touch his shoulders. When he opened his eyes again Dumbledore had gotten over his shock and was smiling broadly, looking happier than he had since he had arrived there that morning.

"That is indeed a very nice talent to discover Mr. Potter. I, myself, have had the need to change my appearance on more than one occasion, though I use charms and self transfiguration mostly." The twinkle was once again in his eyes as he began changing his appearance.

Harry openly gawked at Dumbledore, in the place where the ancient professor sat a moment ago, with his long white hair and beard, now sat a middle aged man with the same light blue eyes, but no beard, and long auburn hair. It was not just the appearance of his face that changed though, his facial structure and cheek bones changed drastically; his face was now smaller in length and a bit wider. His body structure also changed instantly; instead of the tall and thin frame normally associated with Dumbledore he now had a much broader and muscular frame. If it wasn't for the twinkle in his eyes Harry would never have been able to tell that it was still Dumbledore, even watching him change Harry had a hard time believing it was still his professor.

Smiling Dumbledore said, "Though your Metamorphmagus talent will come in handy, I would suggest that you learn other methods of disguise, as you can see they can be quite useful."

Harry finally got over his shock and managed to ask, "How did you do that sir? You're not a Metamorphmagus are you? But Tonks said that even a Metamorphmagus can't change their bone structure like you just did!"

Dumbledore's twinkled only intensified as Harry struggled to talk. "You are correct, the Metamorphmagus talents do not usually allow for one to change their bone structure, and no, I am not a Metamorphmagus. At least not in the way you are thinking."

"Do you know why a few people are Metamorphmagi where the vast majority of the population is not?" When Harry shook his head he continued, "It is because of the relationship between you and your body. For some reason, that we do not currently understand, your magic has a closer relationship with your body, which allows you to alter it to an extent. Though incredibly rare there are other such abilities that are caused by the different relationships between a person's body and magic, such as being able to speak to different animals, or Shifters, who are natural Anamagi. There was even a girl I met when I was young, only a few years out from Hogwarts that could understand what someone meant no matter the language you spoke. Though she did not understand the actual words being said she could understand the underlying message that the person meant. She could also tell some of the emotions behind the words and usually knew if she was being lied to." Chuckling to himself he added, "I learned of that portion of her ability the hard way not long after I met her."

A moment later he began changing his appearance back to how he normally looks. "As for how I was able to change my appearance in such a way. I used beauty charms for my hair, skin color and beard while my body and muscle structures were changed using self-transfiguration." Looking at Harry again he said, "Enough of my abilities for the moment, Miss Tonks has only told me that you have learned to Apparate and that your training is progressing well. Would you mind telling me about your other progress so far?"

They spent the next half-hour discussing what Harry learned the first few days and then moving on to their new training schedule. Dumbledore complimented Tonks saying that he was very impressed by how she changed the training regimen so that they each lesson helped with the other skills he was learning and overall with Occlumency. When she mentioned that she was working on trying to communicate with her protector Dumbledore suggested that instead of trying to tell it what to do, that she should try to produce a memory of it where it did what she wanted. Such as protecting her or scouting ahead, and that she should make sure to include the intent and emotions involved in the command. He said that each protector was a bit different but that that should help her as a starting block on communicating with it.

Dumbledore was interested in their theories about how the Shaman spells they had found worked. He was very pleased with what they figured out and confirmed that they were indeed spells cast using wandless magic and that the lengthy prayers were not required. Dumbledore said that though the full prayers were not needed, it was easier if they used some sort of wording as a trigger to release the magic. He said that eventually they would not need it, but that using a trigger was the easiest way to learn.

When Harry asked why the Shamans used wandless magic and why it wasn't taught at Hogwarts Dumbledore told him that, "Focuses, such as wands, are tools to assist you in using magic; they are not required to use it. When channeling your magic through the magical core it increases the power of the spell, allowing you to use much less magic to get the same result as casting it wandlessly. This allows people to use many spells throughout the day and not become magically exhausted. It also allows for those who do not have much magical power to cast spells they would otherwise be unable to."

"The spell words that are normally associated with magic are, in a way, similar to the focus in that they are not required in order to use magic. The words act as a trigger mechanism to help learn when, and how, to release your magic. Many years ago, long before Hogwarts began, wizards were normally learned how to use magic by themselves or were apprenticed to an older wizard. Learning magic back then was a very long and tedious task, sometimes taking between twenty and fifty years to learn to control and manipulate magic. Spells as we know it did not exist at that time, and the novices did not use wands or other foci to help assist their magic. Only after many years would you be at a sufficient level to create your own focus. Staves, rods, wands, rocks, and even jewelry were all different forms that the focus might take. Eventually words were used to create spells to assist in teaching the apprentice's magic. Though they were seldom used in the beginning and thought of as a sign of weakness they were found to be a great help for the novices to use until they became more adapt at the manipulating true magic. Then slowly over the centuries the spells became more and more prominent and we slowly forgot that any other form of magic exists."

"The average witch or wizard has no need to learn such magic anymore, so it is not taught at Hogwarts. They are taught the spells that they may need to help live their life and have a general ability with magic high enough to get a job in most careers. For most witches and wizards that is generally all the education they wish to have. There is nothing wrong with learning only what they are taught at Hogwarts and they can go on to be very happy with their lives and chosen profession. However, there are also those who choose to continue there education and learn beyond what is taught, such as your friend Miss Granger, and many times gain a much larger understanding of magic. They are generally considered scholars and spend time researching or reading the journals and books about the different forms of magic, spells, foci and other such topics. To many of us the research and truly learning about magic is one of our life passions."

"Now I am sure you have been interested in what has been happening since the end of term in regards to Voldemort and the Order?

Harry slowly nodded and said, "Yes, sir." Before the meeting he had been eagerly waiting for any news about what's been going on. With everything Dumbledore had told him so far though he found he wasn't to sure anymore.

"There is little that the Order knows about what Voldemort is currently doing, he has been very quiet for the last few weeks. We believe he is spending a lot of time reorganizing his forces, and finances, here in England and around the world. When we captured several of his most senior Death Eaters, we gained a significant amount of information about Voldemort's resources. By capturing Malfoy we also put a large dent into his ability to handle money in England. Though these were serious blows against Voldemort, it was not enough to cause such a delay in his plans. We believe he is just biding his time for the right moment to strike; I am sure that by now you have noticed that Voldemort has a flair for the dramatic and he has little reason to hurry his attacks. Voldemort has had many years while he was away to plan and has a great deal of patience, for now we must just wait for him to make the first move. At the moment the Order meetings are mostly about speculating on possible targets for his initial attack, though in truth that is merely a waste of time. There are a great deal of different opinions on the matter and we barely managed to get anything useful done at the last Order meeting due to that fact, as I am sure Tonks can attest to." He smiled at Tonks and she had the graces to blush.

Still blushing slightly Tonks looked over at Harry, gave him a smile and said, "He's right, by the time the last meeting finished I had a terrible headache and was in a rather fowl mood. I don't mind talking about what he may do, but pretty much the entire night was wasted with arguing about something that we have no clue about. Most of the arguments had no true basis what so ever."

"Besides that we are currently expanding our influence through our current members, gaining informants and allies throughout the Ministry, and wizarding world. Though we have added a few new members since last summer, I have been unwilling to truly expand the Order. I believe it is better to have fewer members that we know for certain we are able to trust, than to have many members and risk the chance that one of them is a spy. Since the Ministry admitted that Voldemort is back our job has become a bit easier, as the Auror's and Magical Law Enforcement have taken to at least trying to be useful."

"The Ministry has begun protecting public areas, such as Diagon Alley, and any large meeting, mostly Quidditch matches, and concerts at the moment. They have also published several guides on useful defense spells and wards for houses, and will soon start holding public defense lessons, to be held on weekends and some evenings."

Tonks quickly interjected, "The Ministry may be helping a bit more, but Fudge is unfortunately still being a git and playing politics. He's spending a great deal of time trying to find people to point the blame on and make it seem like he's doing a lot to help, when all he's really doing is wasting time. He's issued all sorts of new directives and scheduled meetings about what to do, but he hasn't actually done anything."

Dumbledore continued speaking as if Tonks had never interrupted, "I do not believe Fudge will be of a great deal of value to the war, however he is at least listening to reason again, and is not causing too many problems. Though some people are calling for his resignation, I believe that it would be best to keep him in office for as long as he continues to be only a minor nuisance. I must stress this to you Harry, it is sometimes better to have someone incompetent in office that listens to people who know what they are doing, than to risk having someone who could possible be much worse. If you are asked about Fudge in the future please remember that, and remember that to have Fudge removed from office would be terrible shock to the public. No country can easily replace a leader. Even if he may not be the best, Cornelious is well respected and there would be great consequences for his removal."

Dumbledore suddenly seemed to age before Harry's eyes and he lost all semblance of his normal happiness. "Though we may not know Voldemort's current activities, we do know some of his plans. Unfortunately his main goal right now is you Harry; he believes the Prophecy is lost so he no longer wants you alive. Though he may not know the exact details of the Prophecy, Voldemort does have the general idea, because he heard the first few lines all those years ago. As you have managed to destroy his plans several times and live through his attacks, he now sees you as his biggest threat. We do not know his exact plans, but we do know that he will be using several different plans to try and destroy you. There are those who believe he is not as 'all powerful' as he claims because you continue to live, even some among his current Death Eaters share this view. There are also several clans of dark creatures that have not, and will not, join his ranks while you are still alive. Because of this I believe he is researching new methods to bypass Wards, more specifically the Wards that protect this residence."

"There are many wards protecting your house, and even more protecting this tent. I still believe that here is the safest place for you to stay. Once the bond has been strengthened enough to last the next year I hope to find another suitably safe location for you. If you do leave the house to go on one of your walks, please try to stay as close as possible, and be prepared to Apparate back here at the first sign of trouble. It is easier to deal with any problems regarding the Ministry than Death Eaters."

"About the your Apparation license, I have not yet been able to get it for you but believe we should be able to when we have your meeting at the Ministry or at the latest, your birthday. Do you have any questions you'd like to ask before I continue Harry?"

Harry wasn't sure what to think, he asked Dumbledore to be honest with him but he'd never thought he'd be told all this. Though he knew he shouldn't be surprised it still wasn't easy to hear that he was now Voldemort highest target. In a way he always knew he would be in danger of him, he just hadn't realized how much danger that really was. "What about Ron and Hermione, and the Wesley's? They're staying at the Burrow what happens if Voldemort uses them to get to me like..." His voices lowered to a whisper as he finished, "like he did with Sirius"

Tonks scooted over closer to Harry and put her arm around him and her other arm grabbed his hand on her leg to comfort him.

"The Burrow is protected by many wards and the Weasley's currently have several of their sons there to help protect it. Though the wards may not be as strong as your own, they are much stronger than traditional wards, I as well as many Order members, helped to put them around the Burrow throughout the last year. Miss Granger's house is protected in similar ways, and the Granger's are also under constant watch. Though it is possible that he may attack them, I do not believe that he will. Voldemort does not understand love Harry, he does not understand what friendship means, and so he would not think to use your friends against you in such a way. I believe he used Sirius only because Kreacher told him that you cared more about Sirius than anyone else, and that you looked up to as something between a father and a brother. Voldemort has had ample time to use Mr. Weasley or Miss Granger yet he has not and though we are trying to protect them as much as possible, I do not believe he would think to use them against you."

"So let me make sure I have all this straight. In two weeks I have a meeting at the Ministry where I'll not only have to relive most my worse memories, watch Cedric and Sirius die again, watch as I let Wormtail live and endanger the lives of my friends, but also show them to the fools at the Ministry. I am extremely famous, even more so than I thought, and I have no choice in it. I'm becoming even more famous and the entire wizarding world is putting all their faith and trust in me to defeat Voldemort. I'll never know who is truly my friend, and who just wants me because I'm famous. I'm still going to have to put up with all the gawking and whispers everywhere I go, but it's going to be even worse now and I have to be careful because reporters are going to follow me everywhere I go, and a single wrong comment could have drastic effects. Even if I do somehow manage to win I'm still going to be in danger from future Dark Lords and a danger to all of those around me. Voldemort is far more powerful than I ever realized and his main goal is now my death. The Order has little clue as to what Voldemort is really up to and is only sure that he's researching new ways to kill me. That's pretty much it right?"

Dumbledore's face had become even paler and his frown more prominent as Harry continued talking. "Yes Harry, that is correct."

Tonks took that moment to move her legs over Harry so she was straddling his waist. She put her hands behind his head and took him into a long and passionate kiss, grinding her hips against his. After a few minutes of fierce snogging Tonks stopped and looked him directly in the eye. "I can tell you one thing you forgot to mention, and that is that you are not alone in this. That includes Dumbledore and my self, your friends, the Order, and many other people. We will not leave you alone to deal with this by yourself Harry; we'll be there with you the whole way."

"But you all would be better off with out me! I'll just be putting you in more danger."

"Why don't you let us decide that Harry, it's not your choice, it's ours! You didn't like it last year when everyone made choices for you right? Well, you're doing the same exact thing they did; you're trying to make decisions for us instead of letting us make them ourselves. Trying to push us away would just hurt us and you don't really want to hurt us do you Harry?"

Frustrated Harry ran his hands over his face. "What can I do? I mean how. Gah. I don't even know what to think right now."

Dumbledore smiled fondly at Harry as he began speaking, "Continue to do what you are currently, live your life. You are training, learning, and preparing yourself for your encounter the best that you can. Tonks and I will continue to help you, and I can have many others help as you need it. One thing that you need to learn though is that you must live your life Harry. You can not stop living merely because Voldemort is back, or because of the Prophecy, you must learn to continue on with your life. I do not believe it will be easy for you, but do not let fear win Harry, you need to have hope."

"Many people believe I am a bit crazy because of how I sometimes act or because of my obsession with sweets, but they can not say that I do not enjoy life, even when it is the worse of times a lemon drop can put a smile on my face. I try to find pleasure in the little things in life Harry. The future will come weather we want it to or not, the best we can do is enjoy the moment. I can say to myself that I will live my life the best I can and that no matter what happens in the future, I will face my destiny head on, with all the strength and courage that I possess."

Harry sat there a moment considering what Dumbledore had said. 'It makes sense' he told himself, 'but it's much easier to say than to do. How am I supposed to enjoy the small things when I can barely find anything to enjoy about my life?'

Tonks looked at him oddly for a second and Harry realized that he must have said that last part out loud. He was about to speak again when he found Tonks' mouth on his as she once again began to snog him passionately. A few minutes later she pulled her lips of his and said, "I can think of something you enjoy Harry, but I think that's enough for the moment. Why don't we all take a break for a bit, I know I've needed one for a while now."

"I only have another two hours before I have to head to the Ministry Harry, if you want we can get in some training before I have to go."

Harry was extremely thankful for Tonks' suggestion, he desperately needed to take a break and think about everything Dumbledore had told him so far this morning, and while he enjoyed the snogging immensely, it didn't give him much of a chance to think.

He decided that he needed to go on a run to try and clear his mind a bit first. The run itself had already become second nature to Harry and he was concentrating so hard on what Dumbledore had told him that he forgot Tonks would be attacking him sporadically throughout the run. Thankfully his instincts took over and he managed, barely, to avoid the first set of spells, though he took a good fall to the ground as he avoided them. The rest of the run went well for Harry; he started paying attention to his surroundings and not loosing himself in his mind. Though he didn't manage to find Tonks before she cast spells at him, he was able to successfully avoid all the spells, he even managed to find where they had been sent from and send several of his own back at her.

After the run Harry worked on conjuring different items. Instead of being able to conjure up whatever he wanted Dumbledore or Tonks would describe different items to him and he would have to make them as close as possible to what they described. Dumbledore told him that this should help him progress more quickly than just conjuring whatever he imagined. They worked on summoning for about half an hour and then moved on to his Metamorphmagus skills. Tonks had given him a picture from the witch weekly magazine and told him to study the person as closely as possible then try to turn into him. It had taken a little over a half an hour but Harry had succeeded in changing his appearance. Dumbledore and Tonks had been a great help to him, telling him what he had gotten wrong and how to improve on it next time. By the end of the lesson Tonks told him that he had the basics down fine and that he just needed practice to get the time down now. After having changed his appearance they unfortunately moved to Occlumency. Harry was not looking forward to it and tried to get out of it by saying that he had too much on his mind to succeed. Dumbledore told him that it would be even better this way and that he shouldn't worry about succeeding or not. He told him that it was the time spent on trying to control your mind that really mattered, and that practicing when his mind was whirling with so many thoughts, like it was at the moment, was the most important to try and gain control of it. The Occlumency lesson was a failure in Harry's eyes, but Dumbledore was quite pleased with the progress and told him he had done much better than expected under the circumstances.

After he finished the Occlumency lesson they had just enough time for lunch before Tonks had to leave for work. The atmosphere during lunch was a little tight, as Harry tried not to mention anything that they talked about earlier and steered the conversation away from there. Harry realized that Dumbledore must have known what he was doing because Dumbledore easily led most of the conversation to other topics and never approached anything to do with the war. It was actually quite a bit of fun for Harry, and he learned a lot about Tonks from Dumbledore's perspective. Telling them about what the teachers thought of her, and mentioning several of her pranks and adventures that Tonks thought no one had known about. Tonks was amazed at just how much of what she had done Dumbledore had known about, and even more amazed that he never got her in trouble. Harry laughed quite a bit at some of the stories Tonks had conveniently not mentioned, mainly those that embarrassed her, and though he hadn't realized it by the end of lunch he was in a much better mood than before.

Harry was about to clean up when Dumbledore told him not to bother and with a flick of his wand all the plates and glasses went into the kitchen to clean themselves. He told Harry that he would like to stay for a bit longer and help him with training for a while after Tonks went to the Ministry.

When Tonks got up to leave Harry was a bit embarrassed at the thought of kissing her goodbye in front of his headmaster and wasn't sure if he was going to. Tonks however, had no such inhibition; she pulled Harry towards her as soon as he stood up and took him in a forceful kiss. Any thoughts of being embarrassed by Dumbledore's presence flew out of his mind the moment he felt her body pressing up hard against his own and her tongue exploring his mouth, and he responded to the kiss with equal fervor. Being caught up with the kiss neither one noticed when Dumbledore excused himself to go on a short walk outside. Indeed, they were so caught up in each other they did not realize just how much time had passed and only stopped when Dumbledore cleared his throat to inform Tonks that she was now nearly ten minutes late for her shift. Tonks swore quite colorfully, some of which caused both Harry and Dumbledore to laugh heartily, when she heard she was now late. She told Harry she'd see him tonight while quickly straightening her robe and hair and then Apparated away.

Harry was a bit embarrassed after she left, having just been thoroughly snogged by Tonks in front of Dumbledore. Dumbledore however chuckled at Harry's blushing and told him not to worry, that he was young once as well.

For the next several hours Dumbledore worked with Harry on his conjuration skill. Harry instantly saw the difference between how Dumbledore taught and how most his teachers or Tonks taught. Dumbledore would set him a complex task to accomplish and say nothing more about; he would leave it completely up to Harry to finish it. Only after Harry completed it would he tell him what he had done correctly or incorrectly and how he could improve, he then would have Harry do another similar task. By the end of three hours Harry had successfully conjured a set of school and dress robes, a tea kettle with matching cups, and a large rectangular wooden table, that was only slightly off balanced, with four matching chairs, which unfortunately broke when he tried to sit on them. Dumbledore chuckled slightly when Harry fell to the ground but complemented him by saying that it was a great start to be able to conjure anything as large a table and several matching chairs. After that they began working with small objects trying to increase the speed in which he was able to conjure them. Dumbledore had him conjuring a different object every time and told him to concentrate on making it perfect. He informed Harry that he would become faster with the more he conjured, but that it was not worth it to be quick if the item you conjured was not exactly what you needed. Dumbledore also told him to make sure not to do too many repetitions of the same exact thing, telling him that conjuring three hundred identical tea cups would not be nearly as helpful as conjuring a hundred different items.

After the conjuration lesson Dumbledore thought it would be best to work on his Occlumency some more. However, Harry did not want Dumbledore going through his thoughts, especially with how often his thoughts seemed to center on rather specific memories of Tonks lately, so they decided to work on wandless magic instead. Dumbledore spoke to Harry a bit more about wandless magic and told him not to expect too much progress in the beginning, saying that it required a great deal of patience and dedication to become proficient at it, which was one of the reasons so few mastered it. He started by having Harry connect with his magic, like he did when he learned to Apparate, and then consciously hold it for as long as he could. He told Harry not to attempt to do anything with it yet, just familiarize himself with his own magic, trying to pay attention to as much detail as he could, how it felt, and how he connected with it. He said that everyone's magic was a little different and that understanding his own magic better would help him, not only with wandless magic, but also with magic in general.

Harry closed his eyes and tried to shut out everything but the feeling of his magic. It surprised Harry just how well he could concentrate on his magic, he was able to filter everything else away and truly concentrate just on that. Dumbledore had told him that he was learning how to control his mind better because of the amount of exercises he had been doing dealing with his concentration. The first few times Harry was allowed to use his wand to increase the feeling of his magic and make it easier to feel, but then Dumbledore told him to try it with out the wand for the rest of the time. After that it began taking a few minutes for Harry to begin to feel his magic. He found that not only did it take longer to feel but that he couldn't hold onto his magic for nearly as long either. Dumbledore said that it was to be expected and that he should continue the exercise until he was able to grab hold of his magic at will and continue to hold it for as long as he wanted.

They continued with the magic exercise until Tonks had come back from the Ministry and it was time for dinner. Harry had his eyes closed and was concentrating so intently on his magic that he didn't notice Tonks had arrived was calling his name to get his attention. Only after she put her arms around his neck and began kissing him did he realize she was back. Tonks was glad that Dumbledore was still there, saying that she had thought of a few things that she wanted to talk about while she had been at the Ministry. Harry began preparing dinner in the kitchen while Dumbledore and Tonks spoke. They came in a few minutes later and told Harry that Tonks had asked permission to take him out into Muggle London to shop for new clothes and to get outside some. Dumbledore had agreed as long as they obeyed a few general rules, such as letting him know where they were going and when, as well as making sure they went out in disguise, were careful and did not abuse it by going out to often. Though he agreed, Dumbledore did ask that they wait a day or two so that he could create an emergency port key for Harry, just incase something did happen, it would be better for Dumbledore to get in trouble for an illegal port key than Harry for Apparating with out a license. Harry was shocked that he was going to be able to not just go outside, but actually into the city, it had been years since he had really been there and had not expected to be able to go anywhere like last summer.

"So where would you like to go Harry? We can head out shopping one morning when I don't have to be at the Ministry, but anywhere else you'd like to go or something you'd like to do? I have a few ideas' of where I want to take you out to but do you have anywhere you want?"

Harry thought a minute and could only think of one place that he wanted to go. "There is this one place, I've wanted to go for the last few years but never had the chance, since I know the Dursley's would never take me."

"Well, where is it?" Tonks asked. "We can try to schedule it so we can go there sometime soon."

Harry looked down at the table, making sure not to look at either Dumbledore or Tonks, and said "I, um. I wanted to go to my parent's house in Godric's Hollow and if they have them, my parent's graves." He paused a moment and then continued, "I know it's kind of childish, but I guess I just wanted to see it once."

Tonks was stunned silent for a moment before she threw herself on Harry and hugged him tightly, saying that it wasn't stupid at all and that they'd go as soon as they could. Harry separated himself from Tonks and sat down at the table, he hated when people pitied him for being an orphan but wasn't sure what to do when Tonks did it, was it just pity? Or was she just trying to show him she cared?

"Though wizarding tradition is rather different than Muggle tradition in regards to the death of loved ones, there is a way for you to visit your parents resting place. The Potter family and their (attached families?) have a tomb in England, I believe you have nineteen generations of ancestors resting in it. I am surer I can arrange for you to visit the house in Godric's Hollow, though it has been rebuilt since that night and has a family living in it. That house was not your parent's home; it belonged to a relative of mine who allowed me to use it. We knew that Voldemort would be after you and your family home would be a prime target for any attacks. It was decided to go into hiding using the Fidelius Charm on a house known only to a few people; it was not even known to most members of the Order."

"You may be interested in knowing that your ancestral home is still in perfect condition, as are a few other properties that your family owned. Though you can not officially control of your family property until the day of your majority, I can arrange for you to visit the house, if you so desire."

Harry nodded dumbly and then asked, "Sir, why is this the first I've heard of it? And if I don't own it, then who does?"

"Your parent's will left nearly everything to you Harry, however because you were just a baby at the time it was left to your guardian to control, in your name, until the day of your majority. Officially, it is the Dursley's that control the inheritance in your name." Dumbledore held up his hand to stop Harry's rant before it started, "That is only officially Harry, your relatives are not aware of its existence. I knew that the relationship between your Aunt and Uncle and your parents was not a pleasant one, and I believed that it would be a mistake to put them in charge of your inheritance. While they may control the Potter estate officially, I have used my position, and the respect others place in me, to unofficially oversee the estate for you. I have made sure that the properties have been properly taken care of, arranged for the money from your parents personal vaults to be moved to a new vault that was in your name, on your eleventh birthday, and gave you your father's invisibility cloak as a Christmas present during your first year. I have never mentioned this to you before because I did not want for your relatives to accidentally find out about the existence of the estate and because it is not exactly legal for me to do as I have. I had planned on informing you about the inheritance on the day of your seventeenth birthday, when you would take control of the estate and could have a home to call your own."

Harry wasn't sure what to think about this, he was glad the Dursley's hadn't been told, as they would have taken everything and left nothing for Harry. He was angry at Dumbledore because he hadn't told him about it before this, but also happy that at least Dumbledore was now telling him things, and didn't try to hide it from him. "I think I'd like to go to their home sir. I've really only seen a few things of theirs, I have a few pictures Hagrid got me at the end of first year, and my father's invisibility cloak, but that's it. I don't even know that much about them, I know my father played Quidditch, was part of the marauders, an unregistered Animagus, hated Snape, and could be an arrogant git when he was younger. I know what my mum looked like, that she was suppose to be great in charms and that she, like my dad, was in the Order. I think that's pretty much all I know of them."

Dumbledore nodded solemnly, "I will arrange for you to visit the Potter manor, and perhaps some other property of your family's, this summer, it would be best to wait until you have received your Apparation license though. Dumbledore put his hands together on the table and had an unfocused look on his face for a moment, "Would you like for me to arrange a few visits from those of us who knew your parents Harry? Though he is away on business for the Order at the moment, I believe Remus would be one of the best to talk with, as he was very good friends with both of your parents. Professors McGonival and Flitwick were both close to your mother, as she had assisted with teaching their classes at Hogwarts for a few years after she graduated. Alastor Moody was your father's mentor and trainer, while Alastor generally is not the most personal person; I believe that in this case he would be happy to tell you about your father."

Harry just nodded; this was all too much for him. He had wanted answers, but everything he learned today was just too much for him to handle. Harry's mind began whirling with the possibilities of learning about his parents, with visiting his family home, on top of everything that he had learnt that morning.

Dumbledore seemed to understand what Harry was thinking and slowly stood. "I believe it is time that I got back to Hogwarts, I am sure there are many owls patiently waiting for me in my office." He smiled softly at Harry, "That reminds me Harry, I noticed you do not have Dobby cook for you?"

"No sir, I've been cooking for years, and um, Tonks kind of mentioned that she liked my cooking and thought it was delicious. So I've been cooking the meals."

Dumbledore smiled at Harry's embarrassment, "Ah. Yes, that would do it. I had thought of the problem with delivery mail securely for you and came up with a brilliant solution. As Dobby is a free House Elf, and there is little work to be done to the castle during the summers, I gave him permission to visit you whenever called for, as well as permission to deliver any messages for you. Even after you have your Apparation license, I believe he will be most helpful and able assist you in many ways. I have also placed him in charge of accepting and sorting the owl posts that arrive at Hogwarts for you."

Harry was glad that Dobby could deliver messages for him, but a little worried about how over enthusiastic the small House Elf could be at times. He was also confused about the owls going to Hogwarts, "Why are there owls that arrive for me at Hogwarts? Why don't they just come here?"

"That would be my fault I'm afraid. While the Bond of Blood may be the basis of your protection here, it is not the only magic that I have used. After Voldemort's return I bound even more protection spells to the existing wards around your relative's house. While it is possible for just anyone to send you an owl post, most of those arrive at Hogwarts. The only ones that can find you here are those that already know, or are told, specifically where your house is. This is to prevent any unwanted and potentially dangerous posts from reaching you. I am sure you remember a few of the posts that Miss Granger received in your fourth year."

Harry nodded and blushed slightly, all those hate mails that she received because everyone thought she was cheating on him. "Yes Sir, I don't think I'll forget about them anytime soon. Er, you don't think that I'll be receiving any like that do you sir?"

Dumbledore sighed slightly and looked down at Harry over his half-moon spectacles, "I am afraid that you will indeed receive many such posts, as you have already begun to receive a few containing curses and jinxes, and one containing a cursed broach that would cause extreme pain had you worn it."

Harry paled a little when he said that, "Er. Should I not open any of them then? I don't particularly think I'd enjoy those."

"Dobby thoroughly checks any posts before he would think of giving them to you. At the moment I believe he has sorted over two hundred posts into five separate piles; fan mail, friends, school mates, business offers and potentially dangerous. I would to first inform you that we, that is to say a member of the Order or myself, do not read any of your letters unless they are first sorted by Dobby and believed to be potentially dangerous."

Harry's jaw dropped slightly, "What! I have that many? But how? Why?"

Chuckling Dumbledore said, "As I mentioned before, the Daily Prophet has run several articles about you recently and many people have written you after having read those articles. While you may have received many posts after the article in the Quibbler, the Daily Prophet reaches considerable more people. They first began arriving after the Ministry announced that Voldemort was indeed back. I do hope you can forgive me, but I prevented any of the mail from coming to you while you were finishing your term at Hogwarts. I did not believe you would want to be bothered by them at the time."

Harry just nodded, still not believing he had received so many letters.

"Good day Mister Potter. Nymphadora, please see me on Wednesday to arrange the trips to London." Dumbledore smiled to them both and then Apparated away.

Tonks, who was still sitting at the table stood up and grinned at Harry, "Well, since it's just the two of us for the rest of the night I think I know exactly what I'd like to do now."

Harry's brain was still chewing on everything that he'd been told and didn't understand what she meant until she took his hand and lead him to the bed room.