This chapter isn't the greatest, but it has parts that will be crucial later on. And the chapters will get longer.

I don't own Harry Potter

Ron and Hermione left the hospital wing completely cured three days before the end of term. And much to Harry's annoyance, they brought their childish bickering with them. You would think that getting hit with a dark curse and being attacked by brains, respectively, would maybe give one a new outlook on life. But it seemed as though their time in the hospital wing had only degraded their maturity level.

Hermione showed signs of wanting to talk about Sirius; between her constant arguing with Ron and her accusations that Harry had ditched them while they were recovering.

How observant of her, Harry thought as he tried to control his urge to hex the bossy girl.

He briefly wondered how powerful a memory charm he would need to cast in order for Ron and Hermione to forget they ever met the Boy Who Lived.

On second thought, someone might notice if the two suddenly forgot five years of misadventure. He would come up with another plan. Quietly casting a Confundus Charm, he made a hasty retreat, leaving the two confused prefects in his wake.

Several people called out or waved as Harry made his way down to the Great Hall for dinner. He ignored them all. He had no idea how much they knew about the events that occurred at the Ministry, and he wasn't going to satisfy their curiosity.

They had looked away, and he wouldn't hold their hand now that they realized the monster was back.

He had just descended the last marble step into the entrance hall when Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, and several other members of the former Inquisitorial Squad emerged from a door leading to the dungeons. Harry stopped dead, and so did Slytherins.

Malfoy glanced around. Harry knew he was looking for signs of a teacher. Looking back at Harry, he said in a low voice, "You're dead, Potter."

Harry quirked an eyebrow and let a grin spread across his face. "Funny," he said, "you'd think I'd have stopped walking around."

The Malfoy heir looked angrier than Harry had ever seen him. There were similar looks on the faces of the other Slytherins. His grin spread even more, and he absently noticed that they were drawing a crowd.

"You're going to pay," said Malfoy in a voice that everyone in the entrance hall could hear. "I'm going to make you pay for what you did to my father."

Harry let out a bark like a laugh at Malfoy's words. It seemed to infuriate the Slytherins even more.

"Malfoy, you incompetent idiot, I doubt you could harm a first year," he said so the crowd could hear. It had slowly been growing in size.

"Tell me, how is your father enjoying Azkaban? Did they give him a cell with a view?"he asked innocently.

"The Dementors have left," said Malfoy, advancing now, the others flanking him. In the back of his mind, Harry registered that there were six Slytherins and one of him. Poor blokes are outnumbered, he thought with amusement. He mentally shook himself; apparently Malfoy was still talking.

"Dad and the others will be out in no time," Harry heard him say.

"Yeah I expect they will," Harry said with a shrug. "With any luck, though, I'll get another chance to kill the asshole."

Malfoy and the others all went for their wands at the same time. Harry was faster though. He had drawn his own before they had even reached theirs.

"Amplifico pello," Harry shouted.

The advanced Banishing Charm sent three of the Slytherins flying into the wall behind them. They sank to the floor, unconscious.

Quickly waving his wand, a green dome surrounded him, just as Malfoy and the other two fired curses. Instead of reflecting them though, the dome absorbed the magic. With a flick of his wand, Harry dropped the shield. He briefly saw the look of shock on Malfoy's face as his own curses back fired on him.

The three remaining Slytherins fell to the floor; covered in gashes, boils, and burn marks.

"Nasty business, that," Harry commented casually.

He took one last look at Malfoy's stupidity, before walking into the Great Hall for dinner, leaving a stunned crowd behind him.

The last evening of school arrived; most people had packed already and were heading down to the end of term feast. Harry hadn't finished yet and was in the fifth year dorm, ignoring Ron's complaints that they would be late for dinner.

Honestly, Harry thought with exasperation, doesn't the ape ever think about anything besides food?

"I won't be long," he told the impatient red head. "I'm sure the food will still be there when we arrive." He then added, "You can go ahead if you want, I only have a few things left."

When Ron finally left, Harry looked around the room and cast a strong privacy charm. From his pocket he took a small box. Unshrinking it, the box grew until it was half the size of his bed. He took more than twenty large jars out of it and put them in his magical trunk. They were the ingredients he had salvaged from the Basilisk. It had been tedious work cutting apart the giant serpent, but it was well worth it.

He pulled a long, heavy package out next. He wasn't sure what he was going to do with the hide; he did know it was extremely valuable though. Full-grown Basilisks were hard to find. He didn't have the skill required to make robes from the material, but he had made a nice wand holster. It was now strapped to his left forearm and he had practiced drawing his wand from different positions.

It was safer than sticking it in your pocket, and the anti-summoning charm he had added was a nice touch. Securing the ingredients and locking the trunk, he shrank it again and put it in his pocket. He would be using his old trunk on the Hogwarts Express tomorrow. Ron and Hermione would no doubt ask questions if they saw his magical one.

He made his way down to the Great Hall, passing a dreamy looking Luna Lovegood on his way. That girl was either a terrific actor or as messed in the head as Dumbledore, Harry thought.

He really wasn't looking forward to the feast. He had avoided the Great Hall as much as possible; eating before or after the crowds came. Ron and Hermione had thought he was avoiding the attention; though Ron had seemed confused as to why anyone would want to avoid such a wonderful thing. Truths be told, he didn't want to snap the next time someone mentioned how they had always believed him. He would end up cursing the idiot into oblivion.

Walking across the entrance hall, he pushed open the doors to the Great Hall as quietly as possible, and slipped in without a sound.

For all the good it did him. It seemed as though he had arrived in the middle of one of Dumbledore's infamous speeches. He briefly caught the words 'triumph', 'good', and 'evil' before the Headmaster noticed him. Dumbledore paused when he did, and of course, every head in the Great Hall turned to see what had distracted the bearded wizard.

Harry let out a small snort as the whispers started, and sat down at the end of the table next to Neville. Ignoring the Headmaster's twinkling eyes and the murmurs around him; his gaze met that of the Potions Professor. He had never seen so much hate in Snape's obsidian eyes before. Apparently, news of how the Gryffindor had taken out six of his Slytherins single handed had reached the spy's ears. And he thought Slytherins were supposed to hide their emotions. Snape's glare could have melted an iceberg.

Harry gave the man a lopsided grin and a patronizing wave, and was rewarded in turn by an indignant splutter from the Death Eater.

Ah yes, he thought to himself. This will be fun indeed.

The journey home on the Hogwarts Express the next day was eventful in several ways. Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle, who had been waiting since Wednesday for a time to strike, tried ambushing Harry on his way back from the bathroom. The attack might have succeeded was it not for the fact that they were complete idiots. Harry had seen their reflection in the window ahead of him as he walked back to his compartment.

So when the students stuck their heads out of the doors to see what the loud commotion was, they found Harry standing in the aisle laughing his head off.

"Uh, Potter," asked a brown haired boy tentatively. Harry recognized him as a Blaise Zabini, a Slytherin in the same year.

"You okay?" the boy asked. He was frowning slightly as he watched Harry laugh uncontrollably.

In reply, Harry pointed his finger above his head, unfit to speak. The gathered students looked up to find Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. They were hanging upside down from the ceiling, covered with tentacles and a thick, gooey substance.

Still laughing to himself, Harry walked back to his compartment. He passed Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and Neville on the way, all of whom had come to investigate. He sat down in the corner of his now deserted compartment, his back to the wall and wand in hand.

Nothing wrong with a healthy bit of paranoia, he thought truthfully.

He pulled a thick, leather bound book from his trunk and opened it. It was one Slytherin's journals that he had found in the Chamber of Secrets. Finding the spot where he had left off, he began to read.

A divide has been made today, and I fear it will only grow wider. The topic is one the others and I have discussed numerous times over the years. That of the material which we will teach are young students. We have always disagreed on the area, but in the end we have been able to compromise.

It seems that Godric has found out about the privet lessons I offer my students. The subjects that we cover in these lessons are less than honorable according to him. I asked him what honor had to do with magic. We live in a time of war, and one does not win a war by being honorable. One wins a war by doing what is necessary. And Godric, despite all the battles he has been in, has never understood that.

I wish to teach my students of all the branches of magic. I want them to understand that there is no light and dark. Magic is completely neutral. We bend and manipulate it to suit are needs. And Godric wishes to limit them to what he calls 'light magic', though he does not see it as a limitation like I do. How can one reach their full potential if they do not have a thorough understanding of the darker aspects of magic?

Godric has not yet labeled me dark, but I know that is what he thinks. The mind arts that I have developed work well. The man who has been like a brother to me is gone. Godric has grown stubborn as he ages. When we were young, I believe he would have understood. There is an important lesson he has yet to learn in life, and I fear that he never will.

There are forces in this world besides those of light and dark. There is the grey. And those who embrace it have the ability to harness and wield the powers that are used by both the light and dark. They can use magic like no other. They are not limited by their prejudices. For they have none. And if they do embrace the grey; there is no limit to what they are capable of.

That is what he does not understand. He sees in only black and white. He does not even realize there is a grey area. That is his biggest failure of all.

At that time, Harry was interrupted in his reading. He had sensed the others re-enter the compartment, but had paid them no mind. He was rather absorbed in his grandfather's journal. Apparently Hermione wasn't taking his silence as a hint though.

"Why did you do that Harry?" she asked in a disapproving tone. The frown on her face deepened as Ron, Ginny, and Neville started laughing.

"Why did I do what Hermione?" Harry asked, his eyes never leaving the book. It appeared that Hermione didn't appreciate the lack of attention he gave, for she leaned forward and grabbed the journal from him.

"Why did you do that to Malfoy and the others?" she asked once more, as she looked down at the thousand year old book in her hands.

"What is this?" she asked in confusion as she read the title. Or tried to read it more likely. It was written in Parseltongue, as was the entire book. "What language is this, Harry?"

"First off," Harry said as he took the book out of Hermione's hands. "I don't have to explain my actions to anyone, much less you."

"Secondly," he continued, "this is written in a language that you couldn't possibly understand."

He leaned back into his seat and reopened the large book.

"And another thing," Harry added as an afterthought. "I would advise you not to so rudely take things that don't belong to you, or you will find yourself in a situation similar as Malfoy and his goons."

With that he once more became absorbed in his book. He did not miss though, the shocked and offended look on Hermione's face. Nor the smiles that Neville and Ginny were trying to hide from her. Ron, it seemed, was still trying to figure out what had just happened though.

As the train slowed down in the approach to King's Cross, Harry had never been so eager to leave. He had things that needed to be done, and they weren't getting done on a magical locomotive.

When it finally pulled to a standstill, he lifted Hedwig's cage and dragged his near empty trunk from the train. His magical trunk was still shrunk and hidden in his pocket. His eyes searched the crowd as he neared the ticker inspector, looking for anyone who was watching him too closely.

As they came out the other side of the barrier, he noticed that he had a reception committee.

There was Mad-Eye Moody, who was failing miserably in his attempt to blend in. The traveling cloak and long staff stuck out a bit among the numerous muggles. Next to him was Remus, his face pale, his hair graying, and a long threadbare overcoat covering his muggle clothes. Tonks stood behind them, her neon pink hair sticking out terribly. Harry saw that the twins were there as well, standing next to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley, who were greeting Ron and Ginny.

He briefly wondered if any of these people had ever heard of operational security. They were sticking out like a muggleborn at the Malfoys. He scanned the crowd some more, looking for the two whales and horse face. He was more than worried when he didn't find his relatives. Not for their safety of course, but for the fact that his plans centered around returning to Privet Drive.

Taking a breath, he stepped out from behind the crowd of muggles, and walked over to the small group.

"Hello, Harry," said Remus, as Mrs. Weasley gave up in her attempt to reach the young lord and suffocate him with her trademark hug. Harry had purposefully positioned himself on the other side of Ron and Ginny, hoping their sacrifice would save him from crushed ribs.

"Remus," he said, nodding to the werewolf. He raised an eyebrow as he looked around at the others. "Any reason for the welcoming committee?"

"Security," Remus said with a slight smile.

"Security?" Harry asked, raising both eyebrows now. He looked around at the gathered group once more.

"Yes," he said, "I realized how security conscious you were when I noticed Tonk's hair color."

A small smile came to his face as he looked at the young auror. "You blend in nicely, Nymphadora."

His smile grew as the metamorphmagus glared optical death at him. Luckily for Harry, the glare shifted to the twins as they started laughing openly.

"Come on," Remus said as he tried to keep a straight face. He took Harry's trunk and led them out of the station. Harry followed, wondering where exactly they were going.

"I told your aunt that we would be dropping you off at Privet Drive," said Remus, answering his unspoken question. "It's safer this way."

"And how exactly are we getting there?" asked Harry. He didn't see any car that Mundungus could have stolen.

"Knight bus," Remus replied. He then added more seriously, "there's a matter we need to discuss."

As they reached the far corner of the parking lot, Moody flung out his right arm.

BANG

A violently purple, triple-decker had appeared out of thin air in front of them.

"Welcome to the Knight Bus," Stan Shunpike said as he hopped down onto the pavement. He looked around, and his eyes became wide as he saw Harry walk up.

"Ern," he called to the driver. "Look Ern, it's 'Arr -"

Moody and Tonk's both went for their wands as Stan's voice grew louder. Without thinking, Harry raised his hand and snapped his fingers. Stan's voice was abruptly cut off before he could finish saying Harry's name. The young conductor looked around in shock, as did the others, at the wandless silencing charm.

Mentally swearing, Harry shoved fifteen sickles into Stan's hand and climbed onto the bus. He spotted a seat near the back and fell into it.

He hadn't meant to do that. His control over wandless magic had advanced quickly since the night at the Ministry. It was just simple stuff, like the charm he had just done. He didn't want anyone knowing of his ability though. Few had the control or raw power necessary to do it.

Remus sat down in the chair next to him and gave Harry a quizzical look. He didn't say anything though. Moody was sitting at the front of the bus, and Harry knew the magical eye was watching him. Tonks was seated halfway up the aisle, between Moody and the other two. She too gave Harry a quizzical look that he ignored.

"How are you doing, Harry?" Remus asked suddenly.

The question wasn't unexpected, but Harry didn't really feel like sharing his feelings.

"Fine," he replied guardedly. To his surprise, a smile appeared on Remus's face. Harry instantly became cautious; something wasn't right.

"I figured you must be," Remus said in an amused voice. The smile was growing.

Harry's eyes narrowed, his hand slowly moving to his wand. The werewolf knew something.

"So," Remus continued, "mind telling me what you were doing at Gringotts?"

Harry froze just for a millisecond, before he recovered, his face an expressionless mask. But it was too late. Remus had noticed the slight movement.

"I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, Remus," he said as his hand continued moving toward his wand. He wouldn't hesitate to obliviate his former teacher.

"You know exactly what I mean, Harry," Remus replied.

"What were you doing at Gringotts?" he asked once again. Then a puzzled look came across his face. "And how did you leave Hogwarts without Dumbledore finding out?"

Harry studied Remus intently for a long minute; fire blazing in his eyes. Was Remus implying that Dumbledore wasn't aware of his trip? If Dumbledore knew, he would have to change his plans significantly.

"Does the old man know?" he finally asked, dropping the charade.

Remus looked Harry in the eyes for a moment before he replied. "No, Dumbledore doesn't know."

Harry let out a sigh of relief.

"How did you find out?" he asked. He was puzzled as to how Remus would know and not the Headmaster.

"Bill," Remus answered simply.

"He saw me?" Harry asked in surprise. He had forgotten that the oldest Weasley son worked at Gringotts. He would have to use a glamour next time. "And he didn't inform Dumbledore?"

"Right as you were leaving," Remus said, nodding his head. "He thought it would be better if I knew first. Then we could decide what to do."

At Harry's questioning look he continued, "Albus hasn't exactly won over any fans with the way he has treated you. Sirius in particular was getting very angry at his refusal to tell you anything. That, and having you take Occlumency lessons with Snape. A lot of people were confused about his decision to put you two together."

"I'll have to thank Bill," Harry said. He was rather surprised that Dumbledore was facing possible criticism for his actions. Though he doubted if the stubborn Headmaster would change his ways just because a few Order members questioned them.

Nodding at Harry's comment, Remus said, "now I'm rather curious as to what you were doing with Ripthor of the Inheritance Office."

"Why don't you ask him?" Harry replied sarcastically. He didn't want anyone to know about the family rings, though he knew Remus would put two and two together. The werewolf couldn't possibly know about Tenaroe though.

"Oh, Bill tried that already," Remus said knowledgeably, "Ripthor was rather tight lipped about the whole thing though, wouldn't say a word."

Turning to Harry, he asked in genuine interest, "how much did you pay him?"

There it is folks. And like I said, I know it's not the greatest chapter, but it has some importantstuff hidden in it.

Things will start rolling after this, and action is not far away.

If you have any questions or would care to comment, I would be happy to hear them.

Please review!