Sorry for another extended wait, but things are getting back on track. Depression has been kicking my butt, but I'm working through things and hope to update my other stories as well. Rest assured I will finish this story, even if it takes some time. On that note, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Harry came skidding into the lobby of St Mungos, and boy did he have an audience. Half a dozen people stood just shy of the landing zone. One child in particular who managed to accidentally transfigure his nose into a pigs snout and couldn't have been older than eight pointed at Harry while laughing himself half to death. Hermione felt that it was necessary to join in. Harry sighed and pulled himself up, deciding to pretend this incident never happened. Sirius came through moments later, frowning as he looked around curiously.

"What'd I miss?"

"Absolutely nothing."

Sirius blinked as he raised an eyebrow.

"Riiiight."

Harry sighed in exasperation as Albus came through, who looked around and gazed at Harry with a knowing smile.

Harry just silently turned around and made his way to the closest available medi-witch while the others laughed amongst themselves before following him.

The medi-witch looked up from a roll of parchment and smiled at the approaching group. Thankfully for Harry, nobody seemed to recognize him.

"What seems to be the problem?"

The medi-witch looked over the boy in front of her with a frown, quickly realizing he was malnourished. The grizzly looking man behind him looked even worse, though not by much.

"Right, full check ups for both of you. Names please?"

"Harry Potter and Sirius Black."

The witch literally jumped out of her seat in surprise and a little fear at Sirius, before she noticed Dumbledore and calmed down a little. If he was with them, Sirius Black shouldn't be a threat. Still, she couldn't fully shake her unease.

"W-What about you two?"

Albus and Hermione both shook their heads, and Dumbledore spoke.

"Nothing for us, Madam. We are just keeping them company. Worry not, Mr. Black has been found innocent and is a free man."

She eyed them both critically before nodding and swiftly leading them through the lobby and down the hall, and up an elevator to the third floor. Once out of the elevator they saw healers hustling about the room, some carrying potions and strange looking plants.

"This way."

Harry and the others followed closely, and were quickly led into the closest open room. Inside was a pair of beds with an adjustable screen to divide them, and the two new patients each took a seat on their beds while Albus conjured a chair for himself and Hermione in the far corner.

"Alright, you lot wait here and healers will be over in a jiffy."

Harry smiled up at her as she turned to leave.

"Thanks."

The welcoming medi-witch smiled back and gave Harry a wave before hurrying out of the room and back to the lobby after notifying a passing healer of the situation.

Sirius waved everyone closer and drew the curtains so they couldn't be seen.

"So what's all this about Voldemort?"

Harry glanced at Dumbledore who nodded after throwing up some privacy spells.

"Well, Padfoot… He never died. Something happened that night in Godric's Hollow, when his curse rebounded. His body was destroyed, and his spirit remained."

Sirius listened closely, but suddenly froze as Harry's last words bounced around in his head.

"Sirius?"

His eyes widened, and he slowly shook his head.

"No! No way!"

Harry frowned, and Albus stifled a gasp.

"I… No, we can't speak of this here... Bugger all!"

"Sirius, what the bloody hell are you freaking out about?"

Sirius looked up at Harry with a tight expression, but his eyes were swimming in fear.

"Forget about it. I'll tell you, just… not here!"

Harry narrowed his eyes at his godfather, but the man didn't have any intention of backing down.

"Fine, but you will tell us after the festival."

Sirius nodded numbly, and pulled away the curtains to keep an eye out for incoming healers. Harry sighed and went back to his bed, while the other two sat back in their chairs. It took a few seconds of silence for Sirius to catch back up with reality after his mysterious revelation.

"Wait. What festival?"

Harry leaned back against a pillow.

"The Summer Solstice festival we were invited to by Regent Longbottom on the way out of the Wizengamot meeting. You are coming with us."

All of a sudden, Sirius was terrified again.

"What? No! I cannot go back there, Harry. Aug- Madam Longbottom would skin me alive!"

Harry curiously raised a brow at Sirius. Did he just try to refer to Regent Longbottom by her first name?

"I already asked, and she agreed. In fact, she said you are 'more than welcome'. Of course, she also said that you should know not to get up to any 'funny business' there. I can't help but wonder why, though."

Sirius looked like a conflicting torrent of emotions was crossing his face, as if he couldn't figure out if he should bolt like a scared rabbit or freeze like a deer in headlights. Harry just watched with an amused smirk.

"I find that hard to believe. Her last words to me were- uh, actually, never mind that. Just trust me, Harry. If I return to Longbottom Manor, my life is over. I'd sooner go to Lucius Malfoy's Summer Solstice party."

Harry just grinned before breaking out in laughter.

"Oh, Sirius. It's too bad you don't have any choice in the matter. She already expects you to be there… You wouldn't want to insult Madam Longbottom by backing out, would you?"

Sirius paled and looked over to Dumbledore for a brief moment, who smirked and averted his eyes in silence. Hermione was no help either, she was laughing up a storm. Sirius looked back to Harry.

"You dirty traitor!"

Harry laughed again, and grinned back at his godfather.

"All is fair in a prank war, Sirius. You know that."

Sirius just glared at Harry, though he almost seemed a bit proud underneath his utter terror of Regent Longbottom.

"If it's a war you want, Prongslet, let there be war…"

Dumbledore cleared his throat, drawing the pair out of their exchange, and bringing it to the door of the hospital room as a young medi-witch and an older medi-wizard stepped inside. The man looked over the two patients with a frown after glancing at a roll of parchment.

"Good morning Mr. Potter, and Mr. Black. My name is Journeyman Healer Malcom Foster, and this is Apprentice Healer Rebecca Wilkins. It says here both of you are suffering from prolonged malnutrition, one just released from a long stay in Azkaban. Rebecca, please see to Mr. Potter."

Rebecca nodded to Malcolm, and quickly made her way over to Harry's bedside while Malcom approached Sirius.

"Pardon me Mr. Potter, I'm going to need to cast some diagnostic spells to get a clear picture of your condition."

Harry nodded, sparing a glance to his godfather who seemed to be pouting as he listened to his own Healer. He bet Sirius was just jealous that he didn't get the attractive young medi-witch.

Rebecca got right to casting spells one after another, making notes in parchment after each one. With each spell, her expression darkened. For the first few, she looked increasingly sad. But after the first half dozen diagnostic spells, that sadness transformed into anger. At that point, she quickly threw up her occlumency shields and forced the emotion down. A couple spells later, she appeared to be done.

"My word… Mr. Potter, your condition is even worse than I feared. Whereas Mr. Black has suffered the deterioration of his body, yours did not develop properly to begin with on top of that, and received quite a large amount of untreated injuries. Please give me a few minutes to work out what potions you will need and what order they must be taken in."

Harry frowned slightly as he nodded, sparing a glance towards Sirius after Rebecca hurried out of the room.

"Well Mr. Black, you seem much better than one would expect after nearly a decade in Azkaban. I'll have you take Skele-gro to heal a number of stress fractures as well as a Bone Density Draught, Tooth Repair, Muscle Growth, and Hair Repair potions, Skin-Tight to get rid of loose skin, and Organ Repair potions since your lack of nutrients have impacted the efficiency of their operation. Fortunately for you, you won't be on these potions long term. Each potion should take no longer than an hour or two to do their work, so take each in order every two hours, and you'll be fit as a fiddle. Although, you may want to take a general nutrient potion once daily. It never hurts."

Sirius let out a relieved sigh, thankful his animagus form helped stave off the worst effects. Those released after a sentence as long as his usually needed to be on potions for a week or longer. He didn't mind taking a daily nutrient potion either, as he knew damn well he didn't pay much attention to eating healthy to begin with.

"Alright. Thanks Healer Foster, I'll do that."

Malcom nodded to Sirius and strode out of the room to collect the necessary potions, glancing at Harry and offering him a nod as well which was returned. Sirius waited until the medi-wizard was out of earshot to speak.

"That went better than expected."

Harry sighed, frowning a bit.

"Speak for yourself. I'm apparently in worse shape than a freshly released prisoner of Azkaban."

Sirius donned a frown of his own, as well as a restrained glare. Harry told him it had been handled, otherwise Sirius has a feeling he'd end up back in Azkaban again.

"When are you going to tell me how that happened?"

Harry averted his eyes from his godfather with another sigh. He glanced at Dumbledore for a split second before looking back down. Sirius didn't miss that glance, however.

"After that night, I was sent to live with my Aunt and Uncle. They were… not very welcoming."

Sirius cocked a brow in confusion.

"Aunt and Uncle…? You don't have any relations that close left in the magical-"

Sirius' eyes widened in surprise, which quickly turned to anger.

"You lived with Petunia!? I know damned well James and Lily specifically stated in their wills that you were not to live with them under any circumstance! How the-"

That was when Sirius realized why Harry had glanced at Dumbledore. With a snarl, his head swiveled towards the man, who couldn't even look Sirius in the eye. His eyes widened as he saw the healers in the doorway.

"Albus bloody Dumbledore! Have you gone mad!?"

Before Albus could even attempt to explain himself, the medi-witch Rebecca returned to the room along with Malcom, who cleared his throat to draw all of their attention, and both healers looked rather uncomfortable, though Malcom seemed more worried about Sirius than uneasy.

Sirius scowled and gave Dumbledore another glare that was easily translated as 'We are going to have words, later!' He tore his eyes away from the 'old tosser' as Sirius referred to him in his thoughts and managed to reign in his emotions despite his shattered Occlumency shields.

"My apologies, Healers. Please forgive my outburst. This is hardly the place for such things."

Malcom managed to smile as he walked to Sirius' bedside, while Rebecca walked over to Harry with a trolley full of potions.

"Think nothing of it… We heard enough to know the Chief Warlock, who is Mr. Potter's magical guardian, seems to have ignored a will and sent Mr. Potter to live with the people who did this to him. If this is true, I must report this matter to the DMLE."

"Wait!"

All heads turned to Harry.

"He was trying to keep me safe from the remaining Death Eaters by hiding me with a close blood relative, which was necessary to power a very specific ward. He didn't know this would happen."

Hermione looked nervously between those present, not sure how to handle the situation. This is not how she expected things to go today at all.

Sirius frowned and his eyes narrowed as he glanced at Dumbledore. Malcom and Rebecca exchanged a look, and then turned back to Harry.

"Be that as it may-"

While Harry knew Dumbledore had broken the law by ignoring the wills of his parents, which he didn't even know existed, Harry couldn't let him get arrested. They still needed him, and so Harry defended him.

"I am Lord Harry James Potter, an emancipated minor. I am my magical guardian. I will not press charges against him. This is a private matter between The Noble House of Dumbledore and the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter. It will be handled by the Noble House of Dumbledore and the Noble and Most Ancient House of Potter."

Malcom's widened in surprise, but he didn't look any happier. Rebecca looked to her mentor with uncertainty, watching as he sighed. Malcom knew that certain older laws allowed magical houses to handle non-violent criminal actions against them personally, but it was rarely done after a number of occasions where things did escalate to violence afterward, and tended to lead to blood feuds. Most people preferred to let the aurors handle everything. Even if he did report the matter, the DMLE wouldn't be able to do anything without the victim's consent.

"Very well. If that is what you wish. Let us return to the matter of your health."

Harry nodded and Hermione breathed a sigh of relief, as did one very nervous Dumbledore. Sirius scowled and looked towards Malcom as he approached, clearly not satisfied but willing to deal with it later. Rebecca sighed and smiled nervously as she began to speak.

"Mist- Lord Potter, I have here a list of the potions you will need to take and when. I am sorry to say, this will be a lengthy process for most of them."

Harry nodded with a frown, having expected that to be the case.

"You require an All-Purpose Nutrient Potion with every meal for a week, a dose of Bone Density Draught once every night before bed for a week, and a dose of Muscle Growth potion no less than an hour after each meal or dose of nutrient potion and no later than two hours after, also a week. Finally, you must take a single dose of the following potions: Organ Repair, Hair Repair, Tooth Repair, and Skele-gro. I recommend you take those tonight. I want you to try and avoid doing any strenuous tasks and return next week so we can see if you'll need anything further."

Harry scowled but accepted the list and pocketed it. Rebecca filled a white box with the potions he would need, ensuring each was secure, and then used a shrinking charm on the now tiny white box before handing it to Harry.

"Thanks, Healer Wilkins. Your help has been very much appreciated."

"Please do take care of yourself, Lord Potter."

Rebecca smiled weakly in response and glanced at Dumbledore with a frown before sighing and wheeling the empty cart out of the room. Harry looked over to his godfather as Healer Malcom spoke.

"You're all set Mr. Black. Have a nice day."

With a nod to Harry and a restrained scowl at Dumbledore, Healer Malcom edited the room, leaving Sirius looking as far from Albus as he could, which was at the wall opposite of him.

The Chief Warlock sighed and stood up from his seat with a frown and without his usual eye twinkle. In fact, even his eyes seemed to sag with the rest of his expression.

"We… We should be going. We have much to discuss and a party to attend."

Sirius practically growled but slid out of the hospital bed without a word, still averting his eyes away from Albus. Harry sighed and did the same, followed quickly by Hermione.

The group silently walked through St. Mungos, and finally arrived in the lobby beside the Floo. Albus gave the three behind him a short glance before returning his attention to the flames.

"Milk Duds, Hogwarts Headmaster's Office."

Harry gave Hermione a look, to which she gave a hesitant nod and followed after Dumbledore. Sirius was still scowling when Harry turned around to face him.

"I know you are angry-"

"Angry. Angry, Harry? I'm fur-"

Before Sirius could raise his voice, Harry held up a hand to stop him, and he was grateful Sirius had the sense to control himself in the lobby, even if there were fewer people around now.

"I understand. All I'm asking is… Give him a chance to make up for his mistakes. Don't forget, Sirius, I wouldn't have gone to them if you hadn't run after Peter. A lot of mistakes were made here, and he at least deserves a chance. If we start fighting amongst ourselves-"

The fireplace beside them lit up with green flame and Hermione timidly stepped out, almost peeking around the corner from inside the fireplace. Harry stopped what he was saying and sighed, glancing at Sirius before turning to Hermione.

"We're coming now. Sorry."

Hermione just nodded and stepped out, and back into the fireplace in another flash of green. Again, Harry turned back to his godfather who looked much more reasonable than he had a moment ago.

"You are right, Harry. We all made mistakes. And you paid the price for them… I am so sorry, Harry."

Harry smiled sadly and gave a little shrug.

"It's okay Sirius. I know you all did the best you could. We can't change what happened, but we can learn from our mistakes and do better this time. I'm not happy with him either, but… We should go before they start to worry."

Sirius frowned and nodded, but then he suddenly stopped in his tracks and stared at Harry as if he'd grown a second head. Sirius hadn't been quite all there after having just gotten out of Azkaban, and had just accepted everything that was happening. However, Harry just woke his godfather up from that mental state, and everything Harry said and did that morning suddenly hit Sirius like a wave of Nundu breath.

"You're no bloody child…"

Harry froze for a moment, but turned around with a grin that scared the crap out of his godfather, and then went through the floo to Dumbledore's office leaving Sirius gaping like a fish. With a sigh, he followed swiftly with an uneasy expression, wondering what in Merlin's name happened to his godson.

Once everyone sat down in Dumbledore's office each in a conjured chair, a tense silence filled the room. The Headmaster sighed and leaned forward in his seat.

"Firstly… Allow me to thank you for coming to my defense, Harry. I know you feel similarly to Sirius, even if you are not openly expressing it. I fully intend to make up for my mistakes however I can, and I can only hope that one day you will forgive me."

Much to Dumbledore's surprise, Sirius was no longer glaring daggers at him, having instead changed targets to his godson. Harry had an expression that every responsible adult grew to fear when it showed on the face of his father, which meant that some kind of prank was afoot. Before Dumbledore could speak again, Sirius broke the short silence with another glare to the Headmaster.

"Where is the real Harry?"

Harry stifled a chuckle, but swiftly put on an expression of shock and a hint of fear when Sirius turned to face him with suspicion. Dumbledore couldn't help but smile.

"Whatever do you mean, Sirius? I can assure you this is indeed Harry James Potter."

Sirius just narrowed his glare, clearly not believing that for a moment.

"That's a bloody lie if I ever heard one. He clearly doesn't act eleven!"

Dumbledore frowned and glanced at Harry, who was masterfully pulling off being a nervous wreck about to be outed as a fraud.

"Harry isn't an ordinary boy though, is he?"

Sirius frowned and looked over at Harry, who was looking frantically between the two adults. Sirius sighed and returned his glare to Dumbledore, who decided it was enough.

"This is no time for jokes, Harry."

Harry's frantic gaze settled into a pout and he crossed his arms.

"Aww. I had him all set up too. It is true though, Sirius. I'm no ordinary boy. In fact, I'm not even a boy any more."

Sirius turned green and suddenly found himself nervously glancing at Dumbledore for reassurance. The Headmaster only chuckled.

"Why, I'm nearly a man."

Sirius let out a sigh of relief he didn't know he was holding in, and Harry laughed at his reaction.

"You are eleven, Harry. Or at least you should be, unless-"

"I'm from the future!"

"The future? How many hours?"

Harry shrugged.

"I'm fifteen now, time travel gone wrong. Or maybe right, if I have anything to say about it."

Sirius blinked and looked at Dumbledore who merely nodded.

"Oh bloody hell. Messing about with time is dangerous, Harry. Even by by my standards-"

"It wasn't intentional. I got lucky and a time turner around my neck got hit with a killing curse."

"Oh bugger. Alright then, change the future it is. How long do we have?"

Dumbledore spoke.

"Four years or so if things go like they did before. But we are already working on a plan to change the future. Only Minerva and Lady Dagworth Granger will be allowed to know the details of what we do here, Sirius. Not even Remus can know."

"Oh I understand Albus. But don't think I've forgotten the horrors your actions led to while Harry was in the 'care' of Petunia."

Dumbledore lowered his gaze, regret clearly looming in his weary eyes. To his surprise Harry once again came to his defense.

"Please Sirius, let it be. I meant what I said to the healers. I will handle what happened in the past. Right now, the future is a much larger concern."

Sirius frowned but nodded regardless. Still, that got him wondering just what happened in the future.

"Tell me Harry, what happened exactly?"

Harry took a short time to explain how his years at Hogwarts went, detailing his encounter with Professor Quirrell, the basilisk, the shade of Tom Riddle, and especially when Sirius escaped from Azkaban, including using a Time Turner to save him. Then of course he told him about the tournament and Umbridge's reign of pain. Finally, he concluded with what happened at the Department of Mysteries.

"Bloody hell kid, saying you've been through a lot would be an understatement!"

"Yeah. I've gotten used to it though."

Sirius shook his head.

"Seems to me that we need to take care of that basilisk though. Not that it'll be easy."

"Yeah, it's a bit scary to have lurking under the castle."

Dumbledore nodded.

"I agree that something should be done, and quickly."

Harry's gaze shifted to the side and turned thoughtful, and then got an idea.

"I wonder if I can speak to the basilisk, now that Voldemort isn't controlling it like before."

Albus frowned and Sirius looked at Harry like he was insane.

"Prongslet, why would you want to talk to a-"

"Killing it was hard enough the first time, and it nearly killed me in the process. I'd like to avoid that."

"Oh. Well. Wait a second, speak to a basilisk? Forget why, how?"

Harry just smiled and spoke again, thinking of snakes. When hissing came out, Sirius jumped out of his seat.

"Bugger! You can't be a Parselmouth, that's- No! He didn't!"

Harry frowned.

"What's wrong, Padfoot? Is it really that surprising?"

Sirius gulped and sat back down, looking defeated.

"Of course I'm surprised. You shouldn't have the genetics for that, but Voldemort did. And if he did what I think, it would explain it."

Harry shifted in his seat to face Sirius.

"What do you think he did? Is this about what you freaked out about in St. Mungos?"

Sirius just nodded, and the silent Dumbledore sighed.

"I think… I think he created a Horcrux. It's very dark magic, where you split your soul to become immortal. The soul shards are supposed to be placed in objects, but… your scar might be one, it would explain how you speak to snakes."

Albus sighed again, and broke his silence.

"I fear you are correct, Sirius. Harry mentioned encountering a diary that contained the soul of a young Tom Riddle."

Sirius frowned and looked at Albus.

"We have to do something. There has to be a way to get that shard out of Harry's head!"

This time Harry spoke.

"Hold on. Why do you know about such dark magic, if nobody else does?"

Sirius sighed but turned back to Harry.

"My family is dark, Harry. It's why I don't associate with them anymore, it's why I ran away as a kid. I learned a bit about the dark before I got away."

"Oh. Well, we'll figure this out. One way or another."

Sirius and Albus both nodded, and suddenly Hermione spoke up.

"It's about time for the festival, isn't it?"

Harry scratched his chin.

"Oh right. Almost forgot about that."

Albus leaned forward and clasped his hands together.

"I will bring you to Longbottom Manor, if you are ready."

Sirius gulped and gave Harry a look.

"I'm not ready!"

Harry just smiled and stood.

"Too bad, Padfoot."

Hermione and Dumbledore both stood, clearly amused. Sirius just whined like a puppy and reluctantly stood as well. Dumbledore offered a hand to the group across his desk.

"Grab hold and we'll be off."

The three stepped forward and each placed a hand on his, and then they apparated out of Hogwarts, appearing in front of a massive white manor with no neighboring homes. The group approached and before they reached the front door, it opened to reveal their host, Regent Longbottom.

"Welcome, glad you could make it. Please, come in."

They all followed her inside and the front door led directly to an open hall, the walls lined with various paintings and furnishings. Augusta led them down the hall to another door which opened into what looked like a large ballroom, already filled with people. Neville spotted them and came over to greet them.

"Hello. I am Neville Longbottom, Heir to the Noble and Most Ancient House of Longbottom. Welcome to our Manor."

Harry and Hermione smiled and nodded, quickly noticing that there were few children about. Neville had to have been bored until they showed up, doing the rounds as Heir Longbottom.

"Glad we could be here, Heir Neville. I am Lord Harry Potter and this is Lady Dagworth-Granger and Sirius Black. We are pleased to be here."

"Please excuse me."

Dumbledore gave a polite nod before departing to speak with a group of older men, leaving Augusta to lead the group to a gathering of Lords and Ladies of the Wizengamot. They introduced themselves as The Lords and Ladies of Macmillan, Fawley, Doge, and Ogden, as well as Lord Barty Crouch Sr., Lord Garrick Ollivander, and Lady Griselda Marchbanks.

They resumed speaking about a new bill they wanted to put forward that would bring reforms to the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office that would help prevent muggle-baiting. They hoped to sway Harry and Hermione over to their side on the bill to add six more votes to back it up.

It didn't take much to convince Lord Potter and Lady Dagworth-Granger to support the bill, to the delight of the Wizengamot members. After that they dispersed, and Albus Dumbledore had come back over to Harry's group just moments later.

"Did you have a productive conversation?"

Harry nodded.

"Very. We were discussing the new bill they had in mind, it sounds like a great idea."

"Ah, indeed. With your help it should push through. The neutrals are likely to support it as well."

"So I hear. We shall see how it goes in the July session."

"Yes, but now I think I would like to introduce you to a few people."

Harry nodded and waved Hermione over.

"Sounds good to me."

Sirius pouted.

"This is boring!"

Dumbledore nodded back ignoring Sirius and motioned for them to follow, bringing them, and Neville who tagged along, over to a group of seven. The introductions took some time but they were all hoping to speak to the two Wizengamot newcomers about what goals they had. Hermione immediately spoke of how she wanted more rights for muggleborns, werewolves, and house elves, along with centaurs and goblins as well.

This got a positive reaction from them all, as they shared those goals to varying degrees. They warned her that they were long term goals and would take a lot of time to get any work done. Harry then agreed with those goals and said he wanted to make sure muggleborns had their home lives checked for abuse somehow, knowing he couldn't be alone in that sort of treatment.

They spoke of many things while getting to know each other before Albus brought them along to another group, where they had much the same conversation. That turned out to be a lot of the evening, going around to various groups and introducing themselves. There were a lot of people to get to know, but soon enough Madam Longbottom spoke with an amplified voice and began to tell everyone the main event would be held out back. As quickly as the large gathering could, they followed the guiding house elves outside and when Harry finally made it out, he was awed by what the Longbottoms had set up.

A huge arc of tangled wooden branches at least thirty feet tall and fifty feet wide sat in the middle of the yard. It was surrounded by enough space for everyone to dance, and then a dozen booths serving food and drinks, and some booths had various games set up.

Dumbledore wandered off again leaving Harry alone with Hermione, Sirius, and Neville. That was when Hermione summoned the courage to ask Harry to dance.

"Harry, would you like to dance with me for a bit?"

Harry blushed, just a bit.

"Er, yeah. Okay. I warn you, I'm not very good."

Beaming, Hemione didn't care as she wasn't exactly a pro herself.

"Don't worry Harry, just follow along with me and do what everyone else is doing."

Sirius grinned and slapped Harry on the back.

"Go get her Harry!"

Harry nodded after a glare to Sirius and offered her his arm, which she took. They walked over into the center of the yard underneath the wooden construct and quickly got to dancing in tune with the music that was playing on a radio through a sonorus, mostly staying in one place. After a few minutes, when Hermione thought Harry was more comfortable, they began to maneuver in a large circle through the crowd of dancing guests.

"See, you're doing fine Harry."

Harry smiled.

"If you say so. I still feel clumsy."

Hermione smiled back.

"It's not like you're stepping on my toes or anything."

She showed him how to spin her in slow motion a few times, then finally they pulled off a spin for real. Harry felt a bit more confident and led her into a few spins here and there, and Hermione seemed to be enjoying herself as well. They danced for almost an hour and things were going really well for the two of them, until a loud bang drew their attention, and everyone else's as well.

A series of pops rang out, one after another, and a group of people in Death Eater robes appeared in front of Longbottom Manor. The house itself was now on fire.

"We're under attack!"

"Run! Hurry, apparate us!"

"I can't!"

Someone screamed.

Harry took Hermione's hand in his left and pulled his wand out with his right, but he didn't have a clean shot through the crowd. Then Augusta Longbottom's voice rang out.

"Aurors are coming! Draw your wands and hold them off!"

Slowly, people began to draw their wands and run toward the front where the Death Eaters were advancing. Sirius found them in the chaos.

"Stay here, Harry. Don't forget, you aren't supposed to know magic. If you start dueling dark wizards, it'll be suspicious."

Harry was about to retaliate, but he knew Sirius was right.

"Damn it, you're right. I'll stay here with Hermione."

"Good. I'll be back."

"Be careful."

They both watched as Sirius ran off with the rest of them. They were among the few who for some reason didn't run off to fight, and this included the families that brought children. All they could see were flashes from the spells being sent off in both directions as the action broke out.

Dumbledore was one of the first to the front, the Elder Wand at the ready, waiting for the Death Eaters to realize they were all out back. Every second they had to prepare an offensive was precious. Every moment, new wands arrived and took aim, all waiting for a signal to open fire.

The Death Eaters sent another volley of spells at the manor and then several more pops of apparition rang out as the group increased to twenty. Then they finally noticed the gathering guests and began to fan out, hurling spells at them as they ran around the sides of the manor.

Dumbledore raised the strongest shield he could and the Death Eater's spells splashed against it harmlessly. Then he waved his wand and the ground underneath the attacking wizards began to crumble, making it hard for them to stand. The rest of the guests began to open fire, most of them sending stunners and disarming spells with things like Incarcerous thrown in.

The Death Eaters were good however, raising shields of both magic and conjured matter, or otherwise dodging the many spells coming at them. Only a few were tripped up by the loose footing, but narrowly avoided any consequences. Still, the Death Eaters were out of practice and not used to such a level of resistance, so they were now at a minor disadvantage.

"Kill them all!"

As ordered, the dark wizards began to send out killing curses, and one brave or perhaps mad man let loose Fiendfyre that began to morph into a pack of wolves and directed it towards the crowd.

Dumbledore raised a massive earthen wall to intercept the unforgivables and then transfigured a twenty foot tall golem of earth that intercepted the Fiendfyre and then suddenly began to transform into a cage that surrounded the cursed flames, then more earth was transfigured to envelop the cage and smother the flames.

Within seconds, the cursed fire was put out. In the moments it took, however, enemy spells destroyed the earthen wall and magical shields, killing four people. On the other hand, two Death Eaters were incapacitated by Longbottom Manor's guests. Sirius had arrived and tried to rally them.

"Keep it up! These Death eaters won't last if we all work together!"

The Elder Wand sung and a chain of spells erupted from its tip. Each spell was meant to keep their targets down, but not with lethal force. Dumbledore wanted to capture them, or otherwise make them retreat when they lost too many. The first target was blasted off his feet, high in the air, and then launched back at the ground feet first. The second was disarmed so strongly that he was also sent flying backwards, bouncing twice off the ground before coming to a stop. The third was pulled into the earth by his feet, and no spell he tried stopped him from being dragged down, so that only his head stuck out of the ground.

Sirius and the rest of the guests continued casting spells to stun, disarm, bind, or otherwise incapacitate the Death Eaters, but their spells were mostly met by shields- magical, transfigured, or conjured. A handful got through and struck down three Death Eaters, but four of their own were dead or dying. Ten more wands appeared to replace them, while the Death Eaters had no more reinforcements coming to their aid except for a few that recovered from their incapacitation.

Dumbledore projected another massive shield charm, then spawned a tornado of fire in the middle of the group that drew in Death Eaters and set them ablaze as it tossed them through the air.

The Death Eaters collectively conjured charmed water and sent it into the whirling inferno, dousing the flames bit by bit. Doing this left them vulnerable to attack, but the faster it was put out the better.

Sirius led the attack while Dumbledore was focused on wreaking havoc, sending a stunner at the nearest Death Eater with thirty more wands at his side casting similar spells.

The Death Eaters were sent scrambling to avoid spells and many were forced to cancel their water conjuration and cast shields, but the rest were able to put out the tornado of fire and regroup. There were ten left, many revived from their stunned or incapacitated states, with three knocked away from the group and seven more scattered about and trying to put out the flames remaining on them. At this point, things were looking grim for the Death Eaters, and things were only made worse for them by the arrival of the Aurors.

Fifteen Aurors portkeyed onto the boundary of the property and effectively caught the Death Eaters in a pincer. The Aurors spread out and charged toward the battle, not quite in range to start shooting spells.

"Retreat! You lot, grab those stragglers and portkey out!"

The Death Eaters sounded the retreat, and before the Aurors could fire a single spell, the Death Eaters were gone. However, there were three others who could still be around. Soon enough, the Aurors arrived and Regent Longbottom and Dumbledore both approached the Auror in charge to say three Death Eaters could still be unconscious nearby and explain what happened from the beginning. By the time the explanation was over, Harry and Hermione came over to make sure they were okay. Harry looked over at the few people collecting bodies.

"Sirius, how many people did we lose?"

Sirius frowned, and out a soothing hand on his shoulder.

"Eight. I didn't think they had Portkeys on them though, or I'd say we did good. Ten down or almost down, and then they just vanished. That'll teach them to mess with us, though."

Harry shook his head.

"Those eight lives on me. This had to be provoked by our revelations at the Wizengamot."

Sirius grabbed Harry by both shoulders, and looked into his eyes.

"This isn't your fault. This was all the Death Eaters."

He let go, then looked away and sighed. Then he paused as an idea occurred to him.

"Harry, I think I have an idea of something to propose at the next Wizengamot session."

Harry frowned.

"What is it, at a time like this?"

Sirius half smiled, but he seemed unsure of something.

"Well, you could push to allow lethal force to be used against Death Eaters, like it was during the war. After this brazen attack, it could work."

Harry's frown lessened.

"That's not a bad idea. I want to provide proof of Voldemort being out there, but to do that, we need to find a reason to get a possessed professor in front of the Wizengamot. I was thinking maybe say that his curriculum needed to be reviewed, but I don't really know."

Sirius looked a little impressed.

"That could work. He was previously the Muggle Studies professor, so you could say the Ministry wanted to make sure he was competent."

Harry kind of smiled, then looked over at Dumbledore as he approached.

"You think it could work? Well, we'll have to see what Dumbledore says."

Albus smiled as he came to a halt beside Harry.

"And what is it you have to tell me, my boy?"

Harry proceeded to tell Dumbledore the idea they'd cooked up, and he ultimately agreed that it could work.

"Very good, Harry. I'll have Aurors on standby to make sure the Wizengamot is protected."

Harry smiled.

"Alright. Hopefully, we'll expose Voldemort for everyone to see."

Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes. But, I think it is time for us to be going. Let us find Regent Longbottom and inform her."

Harry paused, but nodded and followed along as they all walked over to Augusta, who was discussing something with the lead Auror. She paused as she saw them coming and waved them over.

"Are you off, then?"

Dumbledore nodded to the elderly lady.

"Indeed we are. I'm afraid it has been a long day, and I am no longer as young as I once was."

Augusta laughed.

"Oh alright. After that display, I can't blame you. Take care of yourselves."

As a group, they all replied.

"We will."

Dumbledore led them away and Sirius joined him in side-along apparating them all to the Leaky Caldron, where Sirius booked a room and hung out with Harry while Dumbledore escorted Hermione home. A few minutes later, the Headmaster returned and they said their goodbyes to Sirius before heading back to Hogwarts for the night. They left further talk for another time, both heading straight to their rooms and Harry went to bed, while Albus stayed up a while longer thinking about how to extract the Horcrux from Harry's head, going to sleep that night with no idea what to do.