Sorry about the delay in getting this chapter out, my proofreader is a busy person.

Once again, I own none of this except the plot and any new characters, the rest belongs to the greatness that is JK Rowling.

Chapter 3 – Return of the Order

For the rest of the week, every time a new member of the order or Weasley family arrived at headquarters, Harry took it upon himself to apologize for his mistake and thank them for everything. Everyone replied much the same and was impressed by Harry's maturity about the situation. The Wednesday after they arrived, Remus found the three teens sitting in the drawing room playing a game of exploding snap. Remus paused for a few moments with a feeling of apprehension about what he was about to discuss with Harry.

"Harry, can I have a word with you alone?"

Harry looked up with concern after seeing the look on Remus's face. He nodded, excused himself from the room, and followed Remus to Remus's room. Once in the room Remus closed the door and they both sat down. They both sat in silence for a few moments pondering each other. Finally, Harry broke the silence.

"What's going on Remus? Is something wrong? Have I done something else?"

"No, no, no, it's nothing that you have done Harry, and there is nothing wrong. It's just, this is a difficult thing to talk about, and I'm not sure how you are going to react. Things have been going so much better since I brought you here and were both making some excellent progress with our feelings that I don't want to have a setback. I'm afraid that the timing of this might not be right."

Now Harry was even more confused. He had to agree that things were going much better since last week, but he was starting to feel a bit apprehensive about the direction that this conversation was going in. "Well why don't you just say what's on your mind and we'll go from there. I'm sure whatever it is we can work through it together."

Remus simply marveled at the maturity that had come over Harry since leaving the Dursley's. "Well Harry I have to talk to you about Sirius's estate." Harry's smile faltered, he took a deep breath, and nodded for Remus to continue. "Since Sirius was the sole heir of the Black estate and you, being his godson, were his only heir then the entire Black estate now belongs to you. The properties are available to you immediately but the contents of the vaults in Gringotts have been seized by the ministry since Sirius's innocence has not yet been proven. Once we have found a way to prove his innocence that will all be released to you for your use."

Harry sat stunned. "You said properties. How many properties are we talking about? I thought this house was all there was."

"No Harry, there are several estates besides this one that belong to the Black family in different parts of the country. This house since it was the primary residence for Sirius's parents was the most heavily protected and therefore the safest to use as headquarters for the Order. Speaking of the Order, I as well as Professor Dumbledore would like you to allow us to continue to use this house as the Order's headquarters. Since it is now yours technically we do need your consent to use it." Remus sat looking at Harry expectantly.

Harry pondered this new information for a moment. This was a development that he could use to his advantage. He sat thinking for a couple more moments before finally speaking. "I will consent to allow the Order to continue to use this house as before until I have a chance to speak to Professor Dumbledore and he must be the one to ask permission at that point."

Remus looked at Harry wondering what exactly the youth was planning, but didn't dwell on it. He nodded in understanding then stood up, "I will relay your thoughts to the Headmaster and make sure he speaks with you soon." With that, he left the room.

Harry moved back to the drawing room to rejoin his friends. Upon entering, Ron and Ginny both looked up expectantly. "You want to talk about it mate?" Ron understood to not push Harry into talking if he didn't want to.

Harry sat down and told them both everything that he and Remus had discussed. Ron and Ginny simply looked at Harry in awe. "Do you have any idea how much all that might be worth? It's got to be a lot if they have several estates around the country and Remus did say vaults not vault. If there are multiple vaults then it has to be a lot of money as well."

"I don't care about the money, that's never been important to me since my parents left me plenty. I'd rather have Sirius than his estate." Ron and Ginny both noticed the look of depression in Harry's eyes and moved to comfort Harry. Harry shook his head to stop them, "It's OK, I'm moving on and although it hurts still I understand why and am OK with it."

Ginny still came over, took his hand gently, and quietly said, "You realize that your not alone and can come to any of us to talk any time you want, right? We'll be here for you because we do care about you."

Harry looked into her deep brown eyes, noticing how startlingly bright and inviting they were, and nodded in understanding. "Thank you, both of you for being here for me. I'll always remember that I can talk to my friends. Ginny I know that we haven't spent much time together before this but I want you to know that I consider you a friend just as much as Ron and Hermione, OK."

Ginny nodded and smiled her infectious smile, which caused Harry to smile as well. They were both brought out of their reverie by Ron smacking Harry's shoulder, "Yeah, we're here for you mate. Any time you need to talk we're here."

"Thanks Ron and Ginny that means a lot. Ok enough being serious, let's have some fun"

They returned to playing games, laughing, and having fun. After a couple more days of relaxation passed, Saturday arrived seeming to be the same as every other day since he had arrived. Shortly after breakfast, Remus came up to Harry and pulled him aside again.

"Harry, Professor Dumbledore has agreed to ask you himself about the use of the house and would like to do it tonight after the Order meeting he has planned. Is this Ok with you?"

"Ok, I'll be waiting for him tonight then."

Many of the Order members showed up early so as to take advantage of Molly's excellent cooking. Dinner was a somewhat subdued affair what with the knowledge of an Order meeting immediately following dinner. After dinner Harry, Ron, and Ginny were sent upstairs to wait until everything was over. The meeting wasn't too long because it was only about a 45 minutes before Harry was being called back down to talk with Professor Dumbledore. Harry returned to the kitchen to see the headmaster sitting at the table patiently waiting for him with the trademark twinkle in his eye. Harry sat down and looked intently at the headmaster.

"Well Harry, I am told that you seem to be feeling better lately, you certainly do seem to look better than the last time I saw you."

"Thank You, sir. I am doing much better now that I am among friends." Harry replied stiffly. He was not about to make this conversation easy on the headmaster, he was still upset with the headmaster after the conversation in the headmasters office last month.

"Well, I have also been told that you want me to be the one to ask permission to continue using this house as our headquarters. I assume that since you made this request that you have some conditions you would like to attach to this usage."

"You are very perceptive sir. I do have one condition for you. You will stop keeping secrets from me and keep me informed about everything that is going on in regards to Voldemort. If I am to be the one who is supposed to defeat him then I need to know what he is up to so that I can be prepared. This is not negotiable." Harry said this with a conviction and finality that showed his sincerity without any doubts.

Professor Dumbledore studied his student very carefully for a few moments. "Are you saying you want to be a part of the Order? Our rules of entry cannot be circumvented Harry. The reason for only letting witches and wizards who are of age and out of school is due to the fact that we have tasks that require use of magic that an underage witch or wizard cannot perform."

Harry cut in, "Sir, we both need each other. You need me to defeat Voldemort, and I need you to train me to do it. I would hate to have to do it on my own without your help, but if my condition is not met then my trust of you will never be repaired and I will not share any information that might be useful with you. I do not have to be an active member of the Order, I can simply be a consultant, but I can no longer accept being kept in the dark in regards to my destiny. As I said this is not negotiable."

Professor Dumbledore could see that there was no way around this. "Harry the other members of the Order would not allow it."

"Do they know the full contents of the prophecy? If they did, I believe that they would understand the need to adjust the rules in this case. I think that you will also find that certain friends of mine would probably want in as well and might as well be allowed to join, as I would be telling them everything I know. I will not keep secrets from my friends any more, after last month I realize that they need to know exactly what they have gotten themselves into by being my friends."

"You intend to tell everyone the prophecy then?"

"Yes sir I do." This statement was the first of this conversation that had Harry worried. He was very afraid that once his friends found out about the prophecy that they would want to distance themselves from him. He knew that he needed them to be there for him.

Dumbledore considered the situation, the twinkle in his eyes had dimmed during this conversation. His heart told him to keep Harry in the dark as much as possible, but his head knew that Harry was right; he needed to know what was going on. "We will bring it up at the next Order meeting next week. I will bring my pensive and you may make your request to the rest of the Order. You are right though, you do need to be informed, and I will do my best to keep you informed. I do have one condition myself for this to take place though."

Harry saw this coming, "You want me to continue with learning Occlumency." This was not a question but rather a statement. The twinkle was back in the old mans eyes. "Who did you intend to teach me, sir?"

"I presume that Professor Snape is still out of the question, besides I do not believe that he would agree anyway. I also gather, by your attitude toward me, that I am also not acceptable in your eyes. Would I be correct Harry?"

"Yes sir, you would be quite correct. I realize that you trust Professor Snape, but I do not. I also have only begun to try to trust you again, but we have a long way to go. So who else can do it?"

At this point Harry became aware of another presence in the kitchen. He noticed someone sitting quietly in the corner observing the exchange between the two. The headmaster noticed that Harry had finally noticed the room's other occupant. "Harry, allow me to introduce you to your next Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor." The man in the corner slowly stood up. He was an imposing figure. He was somewhat tall with a slightly muscular build. He was clothed in what looked like black dragon hide boots and black jeans and shirt under a long black dragon hide trench coat type of a cloak. He had dark short hair and a neatly trimmed goatee. The most intimidating feature though was his eyes; they were very dark, almost as if they were being covered so that no one could see into them making them seem very cold

It was easy to see why Harry had not noticed him before, he made no noise when he moved and had been sitting in a slightly darkened corner of the room. "Harry this is Professor Smith." The man gave a very curt nod almost as Professor Snape would have. "No Harry this is not Professor Snape in disguise. He however is a very accomplished occlumens and legilimens and I have no doubt that you will find him a very capable teacher."

Harry was not sure about this man; he did make Harry feel like he felt around Snape. "I will try and let you know how it is going. Does the fact that I am meeting him now mean that you want me to start before school starts?"

"Yes Harry, I would like you to start working with Professor Smith as soon as the two of you can set up a schedule, which I would hope, would be as soon as possible."

"Ok sir, I agree to your terms. When is the next Order meeting?"

"We will have another meeting next Saturday, Hermione should have joined us by that time, and you can inform the Order and your friends of the prophecy at that time, and then make your request of induction into the order. Is this acceptable to you?"

"Yes sir, next Saturday it is."

"Very well, I have other business to attend to so I must be going." With that, the headmaster left Harry and Professor Smith alone in the kitchen.

The two looked each other over skeptically for a few moments. Mr. Smith motioned for Harry to sit down and did so himself. Harry warily sat down across from the new teacher. They continued sizing each other up for a few more minutes. Finally, the silence was broken. "I have been told about your exploits last month. Your ability is descent but you have much to learn before you can effectively take on Voldemort. I have also been informed that last year you somewhat effectively managed to teach your fellow students how to defend themselves. This DA should be continued this year as a legal club with you continuing as teacher and myself as the faculty sponsor. I will only offer suggestions and assistance when needed. My classes will be effective but there are some things that I will not be teaching in class due to the student make up of the school. I do not wish to help certain students become better duelers, which is where your DA comes in. I will be instructing you in more than just Occlumency during the summer. I will also be testing you to see how much you really do know so that your DA classes can be as effective as possible. Do you have any questions?"

"I assume the students that you do not want to learn how to duel are the Death Eater's children. How often and when do you want to meet during the summer?"

"I believe that we should meet every day for several hours after dinner. We will work on different things each day so as not to work on the same thing two days in a row. Occlumency will be very difficult to master, but I will make sure that you do master it. I will also be teaching you to defend yourself without a wand. No, not wandless magic, muggle self-defense you know the martial arts. I believe that you will find that the Death Eater's aversion to everything muggle will make this very useful in having an advantage over them, since they should have no knowledge of it. I will also expect you to begin a training program on your own to increase your endurance. Any other questions?"

"So shall we begin tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow would be acceptable. Make sure that you dress comfortably since we will be expending a great deal of energy. Until tomorrow then." With that, Mr. Smith stood and left leaving Harry to wonder what exactly he had just gotten himself into. Harry sat for a few minutes thinking about the events that had just transpired; he couldn't shake the feeling that the headmaster had just manipulated him again. He had gone into that conversation expecting to be in control of everything only to come out of it without the assurance he had been hoping for. It was up to the entire Order to decide if he would be allowed in, this would be a very difficult sell indeed. Mrs. Weasley would be the most adamant opposition to his request. She was the mother he never got a chance to have, and he really appreciated that, but she was far too overprotective in pretty much everyone's opinion. Harry was still musing over his new situation when he noticed a new arrival in the kitchen.

"Harry, is everything alright?" Ginny was slowly making her way across the room toward him with an uncertain look on her face. "I noticed that everyone had left and you hadn't come back upstairs yet. Did anything bad happen to you?"

"No, nothing bad happened; I was just caught up in my thoughts. Sorry to worry you, I just came across some new information to digest."

"Anything you want to talk about? I'm a pretty good listener."

"Well, I did just meet our new DADA teacher, and I somehow got convinced to start working with him on occlumency and other to be determined things starting tomorrow after dinner. I can't help but feel I just got manipulated again. I came down here to talk to the headmaster thinking that I held all of the cards only to end up getting extra lessons during what is supposed to be my vacation from learning new things. I thought I had a solid way into the Order…" Harry suddenly froze; he had not meant to reveal his attempt to get into the Order to his friends yet. He looked at Ginny hoping that she didn't catch his slip. He could tell by the surprised look on her face that she had definitely caught his slip.

"You're trying to get into the order? Why?" The look on Ginny's face went from surprise to suspicion very quickly. Harry could tell she was not going to let this drop.

"Ginny, I have my reasons, and they will become clear next Saturday. I just ask that you accept that until then." Harry could tell that she wanted to push for more information. "I promise that I will tell you and the rest of my friends what's going on, I just need you to wait until Saturday. OK?"

Ginny considered him for a moment, unsure whether to let it go for now or not. After a moment, she decided that she would let it go. "Fine, I will let it go for now, but I expect a fully detailed explanation on Saturday. Why Saturday though, what is so special about that day?"

"Hermione will be here by then and that is the next Order meeting, I will be able to tell all three of you at the same time and I have to make my request to the whole Order then. Professor Dumbledore said I have to ask the Order if I can join and get their permission." Even though Harry hadn't planned to inform Ginny of his plan, it felt good to confide in someone about it. Harry continued to look at Ginny, taking in the sight in front of him. He had never really noticed her before, yes he had seen her but she had always been little Ginny, Ron's little sister. As he sat there looking at her, he began to notice little things about her that he never noticed before. The way she had her fiery red hair tucked behind her right ear and tilted her head to the side, and the piercing gaze of those amazingly bright brown eyes. He could lose himself in those eyes easily. How did he never notice her before this? She had been around him for years and he had never really noticed her before. She had even fancied him and he had been oblivious to it, and now she had moved on and was over him. Well at least she was his friend. He was glad he could at least have her as a friend. "How's Dean?"

Ginny looked shocked. "What do you mean?"

"You said on the train ride home that you were interested in Dean Thomas, I was just wondering how he was doing."

Ginny smiled at this and let out a little snicker, "I was just saying that to get under Ron's skin, trying to get him to back off. I really hate how overprotective he is."

Harry couldn't help but laugh at this, "Yeah, well I think you did a pretty good job of that judging by the look on his face when you said it." He also noticed that this information actually made him feel better. Maybe he would actually get to know Ginny better. He already knew that he enjoyed her company and that talking with her made him feel better. He was definitely going to have to see where this could go, but slowly he didn't want to mess up a friendship with her. "Speaking of Ron, we ought to go up and check on him. I'm surprised that he didn't come down when you did. I actually expected to see him as soon as everybody left, but I'm glad it was just you. I really enjoyed talking to you, it made me feel better. Thanks."

Harry stood up to leave the room, completely missing the surprised look on Ginny's face followed by a huge smile. By the time Harry looked back at her, the smile had settled down and she had also stood to leave. "Your welcome Harry, you can always come to me if you want to talk. I enjoyed talking to you too." With that, they both headed upstairs to find Ron. They found Ron in the drawing room engaged in a game of wizard's chess with Bill. The game seemed to be pretty even however Harry could tell by the looks on their faces that Ron was winning. As they walked into the room, Ron looked up, "Alright there Harry?"

"Yeah Ron, everything's fine."

Harry and Ginny sat down to watch the rest of the game, which didn't last much longer. After that, the four of them visited for a while longer until Mrs. Weasley popped in to let the teens know it was time for bed. They grumbled about it as they got up to head to their respective rooms and bid each other good night.