Harry shuffled deeper into his bed hiding from the sunlight falling on his face. Stupid sunlight. Wait a minute, how come Petunia let me sleep past sunrise? Harry sat up with a jolt. He wasn't at Privet Drive anymore. I left to find a way out of England.

Harry rolled out of bed, moved to the window and looked out at Charring Cross Street below him. The front of The Leaky Cauldron, across the street, glimmered with a hint of magic. He watched, fascinated by people passing by it without a second glance.

Harry dressed, hefted an old grey backpack laden with necessary items and moved out of his hotel room. He grabbed a map from the side of the reception table and walked out into the sunlight.

Crowded streets, honking cars and busy pedestrians left Harry wishing he had just stayed inside. He couldn't take one step without being jostled by the crowds and after slamming into a good load of people Harry signed in relief as he reached the subway and sat on one of the trains.

Harry idly wondered if Hedwig was all right. She'd have to fend for herself for a while until they could meet up. She wouldn't want to stay with the Weasley's because Pig annoyed her.

Less than an hour later, the train screeched to a halt and Harry steadied himself on his feet as he got off his seat and moved to one of the doors at the side. Harry walked out of the station and onto a business street. Clean building fronts and big signs everywhere dazed him. He felt out of place. Has the wizarding world left me so out of touch with the outside world?

He spotted a sign for the bank William Stanley's papers had mentioned and walked towards it with long purposeful steps as he hitched the backpack on his shoulder. Harry pushed open the glass door.

Sunlight streamed in from behind him and lit up the large open space of the bank. Papers rustled and people's voices clamored into a dull thrum.

Harry stepped forward tentatively and smiled at the old lady behind the information desk who said, "May I help you?"

"I'd like to withdraw some things that were left here for safekeeping by my grandparents." He said hesitantly and pulled an envelope from his backpack.

She smiled gently, "Do you have the papers and some identification?"

Harry brought out an old birth certificate and handed it to her along with papers he had received from William Stanley the previous day. She read both carefully, gave him another smile and handed them back. "Why don't you take a seat? I'll find someone to help you out with these."

He gave her a thankful smile and slouched to one of the blue leather couches placed in the enclosed waiting area of the bank. Harry watched other people around him. It looked like he was the only teenager in the bank. But even so, no one stared at him as though he didn't belong there.

Harry dragged his nails along the thick hem of his pants. Do I need more papers, something to show I'm a student? He only had papers from before he went to Hogwarts. Being part of the wizarding world really complicated things that ought to be simple.

"Harry Potter?" the lady from the desk came to him followed by a young blonde man. "This is Dorian Carmichael, he'll be helping you this morning."

Harry smiled politely, shook the man's hand and followed him away from the reception area and into the private corridors that held the small offices.

As Harry sat down in one of the black chairs with his backpack on his lap, Dorian asked politely, "So you want these items from storage?"

Harry nodded, "Yes, I recently found out about my grandparents."

Dorian nodded as he looked through some papers in a file and compared them to papers that Harry had handed him.

Harry waited.

And waited some more.

How long was this going to take? I'm working on a deadline here. He looked around the small office. A certificate hung proudly on the boring cream wall on his side. The table was cluttered with stationary. A Hermione-esque desk you'd see before exams.

"Alright, everything seems to be in order. I'll be right back"

That's it? Harry frowned. No questions? No need for additional proof and guardian consent? Maybe William Stanley's papers were enough legal proof, Harry mused in relief.

The door creaked as the man returned to the office, with an envelope in one hand and long thick metallic cylinder balanced in the crook of his other arm's elbow.

Harry watched in fascination as he placed both items on the desk in front of him and pulled out some forms. "Now I just need you to check the information on here, and sign them."

Harry carefully looked at all the information he had given the man. He signed the paper, pen held tightly in his hand. He hoped that no one called Privet Drive. He'd used it for formalities sake and something to put on the papers.

Dorian smiled kindly, "And that should do it." He handed Harry an envelope, a file filled with copies of the papers Harry had signed and the metal cylinder. Harry carefully placed them into his worn backpack. He held the cylinder in his hands, curiosity making him want to open it. It was a little smaller than the length of his arm but quite thick.

As soon as he was back in his hotel room, Harry upended the backpack and emptied the contents. With barely contained curiosity, he popped open the metal cylinder and turned it over. His eyebrow rose up dubiously as a large yellowing scroll fell into his hand. With tentative fingers, Harry carefully unfurled the scroll expecting a letter.

He frowned when he came across a circular symbol -about the size of his hand- filled with foreign characters.

He unrolled the scroll a bit more.

More circular symbols came to light. They all looked exactly alike, except the first few looked a bit thicker and bolder than the ones that came after. He stopped unrolling the scroll. It probably had more symbols on it.

He chose to look at the first one it closer detail. The bolded characters looked as though they had been painted over a second time. It looked rather beautiful - almost calligraphic.

A lot of time and effort had obviously gone into making it. But what is it? He turned to the sealed envelope he had gotten along with the scroll.

He skimmed through the letter a few times, unable to comprehend what had been written in it. It seemed a bit bizarre. Apparently the scroll was some sort of storage device that was activated by blood. Each design that looked thick had something stored in it.

It was…odd. But then again he had traveled through time with the help of a tiny pendant before.

Harry frowned at that but decided it was worth a try.

He grimaced but pricked his index finder with a uniform pin from his trunk. With a bit of incredulity he dragged his bleeding finger across the first of the thicker ink designs.

The blood trail shimmered, seeped into the scroll material and disappeared. Harry coughed in surprise as smoke instantly emerged from the scroll and blocked his vision. For one wild panicked moment he thought that the scroll had caught on fire. Like some sort of proof that he wasn't allowed to use the scroll.

He blinked.

Harry gasped at the previously boring scroll. A pile of things sat on top of a thinner ink design.

He immediately dragged his finger across all the other designs as well. He smiled at the small pile of items he ended up with.

Stock income papers, more writings from his grandparents, photo albums, some oddly shaped knives in a pouch, some colorful Japanese-looking clothes, an old looking map of a place he couldn't recognize a thread necklace with an intricately carved black koi fish, bottles of tiny brown pills, a figurine of a three tailed turtle and loads of odd things.

Harry found address of the monks hidden among the papers and letters.

He frowned, he had expected it to be somewhere in Japan, but to see the actual confirmation of it, made him worry. He still hadn't figured out a way to make out of England within the three day time limit especially before the Order members storm Privet Drive in search of him.

His eyes landed on the lighter designs of the scroll. Could it be used to store his things or even his trunk? It certainly would help him move around less noticed by people. Dragging a trunk around wasn't conducive to a secret runaway.

Surely there had to be instructions on putting stuff back in the scroll. He searched through the pile of papers.

Instructions on weapon maintenance? He gulped and let out a nervous chuckle. His grandmother's family was starting to see a bit too odd, even by his standards.

He found letters from his grandmother with information about most of the things that had been sealed into the scroll. Nothing about the scroll itself. Maybe she had thought that Lily wouldn't want to use the scroll. With a sign he placed all the papers carefully into a folder. No point in getting them wrinkled.

Harry glanced at the watch. He'd have to figure out the secret behind the scroll some other time. Right now he needed to get some shopping done.

As he packed the rolled up the scroll and placed it along with all the items he had obtained from it into his trunk, his mind wandered over to his most pressing problem. How exactly was he going to leave England? Muggle means were out- flying on an airplane, while convenient, would leave a paper trail that could be tracked. Wouldn't I need a visa to leave? How long would it take to get one?

He could have probably flown his broom if he still had it. In order to push away the horrible memory of his Firebolt locked away in Hogwarts, Harry considered his other possible options.

Somehow he doubted floos were used in long distance travel. Getting lost would be very easy especially for a bona fide floo klutz like him. The only magical method left -portkeys.

He didn't want to use them. Not only were they ministry regulated, but his fourth year had left him with a severe distrust of the item. But it was the only realistic way for him to leave. Maybe I can bribe someone to make an illegal portkey for me.

Harry suddenly wished he had some really cool inheritance that no one had ever mentioned before. Cool portkey necklaces that could take you anywhere in the world. Now that would have been handy. He wouldn't be averse to some super powerful magical items either. He chuckled. If only life were that simple.

He shook his head in amusement and locked his trunk securely. No point in leaving things out. He didn't want to tempt fate, luck or any other power that thought he was too far from danger. And besides, a little paranoia never hurt anyone.

Harry walked across Charring Cross and into the dingy pub. A part of him relaxed in relief at the familiar surroundings of the Leaky Pub. It held a lot of fond memories for him. He pulled his cap down making sure to cover most of his face. He didn't want to get recognized.

He followed an elderly couple through the stone gateway at the back of the pub. The sight of Diagon Alley gave him courage. It was here that he first discovered the meaning for his existence- as cliché as it sounded.

It wasn't as crowded as he expected and the few groups that were there were huddled together looking a little harried and tense. As he passed the familiar signs a large coulourful and outlandish sign at the edge grabbed his attention.

He gaped.

Harry had totally forgotten about the twins' shop. He definitely needed to keep an eye out for any Order member loitering around the area. Especially Tonks.

With another tug on his baseball cap, Harry walked up to the white building at the end of the alley. Gringotts sparkled invitingly in the sunlight.

He clenched his key tightly and walked up to one of the goblins. In the politest tone he could manage he said, "I'd like to visit my vault." He held up his key.

The goblin took it from him, mumbled something and nodded towards the vault carts as he returned the key. Harry headed towards the side of the bank where the carts were placed. He showed his key to a stout goblin who gave him a bored look.

Before he could enjoy the wind racing past his face the cart stopped in front of a familiar vault door.

The goblin stepped out, opened the vault and went back to the cart. Harry rolled his eyes at the attitude but moved to the vault and gaped. It looked a lot fuller than before. Has the pile of gold increased?

Harry stepped into the vault cautiously. His head snapped back in surprise as a paper materialized in front of him. He grabbed the paper filled with rows of transfers and bit his lip as he realized that all the money from Sirius had been transferred into his vault.

The gold pile was as tall as him. He wondered what had happened to the other items and even the vault that Sirius owned. Did they go to Tonks because she was a blood relative? Or are all his items at Grimmauld Place?

He pulled out a money sack and piled in a good amount of gold. No matter how much he put in, it didn't make a dent in the pile. After a good amount of time Harry left the vault eager to get out of the stifling silence.

His mind buzzed with thoughts during the ride to the top. Should I make a will in case something happens? No, I need to think positively. He went up to another goblin at the counter who looked at him impatiently.

Harry sighed, "I'd like to convert some gold to muggle money."

The goblin squinted at something on his desk and said, "The current conversion rate is 5.15." Harry nodded, agreeing to the rate and stuffed the wad of cash into his backpack.

Harry came out into the sunlight, walked past Gringotts, and into the Magical Menagerie shop to stock up on owl treats for Hedwig.

He then made his way into the smelly interior of Slug and Jiggers Apothecary. It was just as fascinating as his visit before first year. He headed to the man labelling potion vials. Harry pulled out a long list of potions and items he thought would be necessary during his trip. Better safe than sorry especially since Madame Pomprey won't be around.

The man's eyes widened a bit at the long list but he promptly moved to the stacks of shelves behind the counter. Harry was surprised that he hadn't been questioned but figured that the man probably got large scale orders from loads of people.

Harry was suddenly very glad at the extra money that had entered his trust vault. It definitely takes the sting out spending so much for potions.

Harry frowned at the small cloth bag the man held out to him. "All my potions are in there?" he asked skeptically.

The man rolled his eyes with a long suffering look, "All large scale potion orders are sold in bags with extension charms, boy."

Harry frowned at the condescending tone, but was relived that all the potions, bezoars and other items wouldn't occupy too much space, especially if he worked out how to work the scroll properly.

"All right then." He peered into the pouch and saw stacks of labeled boxes and containers. That definitely prevented him from accidentally dosing himself with the wrong potion.

He stuffed the pouch into his backpack and stepped out in to Diagon alley, glancing at the numerous stalls lining the walls. He kept an eye out for useful items but they all seemed to be selling protection amulets and other such things. Nothing useful for long term trips. It was rather frustrating.

Harry walked towards the intersection next to Gringotts- Knocturn alley's entrance. He stood at the threshold, looking in at the sinister looking alley that remained dark even in the sunlight.

He bit his lip gathering the courage to enter the alley.

Harry let out a defeated whoosh of air as he realized that his muggle clothes wouldn't help him blend in. He'd have to delay any trip to Knocturn unless he wore his robes. He mentally kicked himself for not thinking to pack a robe and cloak with him. Instead he headed to various book stores and loaded up on anything that looked interesting. The junk store was a veritable treasure trove of useful books.

Harry made one final stop at Terrortours, eager to know if they made portkeys. Turns out they only had portkeys to places they had tours at. But at least he was able to get a magical tent from the store. So it wasn't a complete waste of time.

He stopped at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour for an ice cream lunch. It energized him. With a pleased smile, Harry made his way to muggle London ready to take in the hordes of people and get some normal supplies.

Harry spent the morning of the second day figuring out the mechanism of the storage scroll. He had debated putting his items in a bag with an extension charm he had noticed in one of the store fronts. But the price made him stop. He'd already spent a lot on potions and other supplies. And he didn't really need it.

After hours of experimenting and good amount of head smacking Harry realized that his blood was the only way to store and remove items from the symbols. The annoying part of it, was that whenever he summoned items from the designs, everything came out. There was no way he could call out something specific if there were different things in one seal. That meant he had to separate items and store them in different seals. It was a good thing the scroll had loads of seal designs.

At least he could finally pack away his items into the scroll- he'd have to do it later that night, after he took care of other things. Some essential items-potions, food, spare clothes and gold- would go in the backpack. He'd tie the scroll, containing the rest of his things- under the backpack. That way he'd hopefully pass as a native in those lands. Or an odd traveler. That wouldn't be too bad either. For the first time, he really wished he had access to some books, information would really help him right now.

He sighed and dropped onto his bed. One thing solved, another million to go. One thing had been bugging him a lot. The fact that he wouldn't have any way to talk to anyone here when he went to…wherever it was his grandmum came from. It's not like owls could travel across dimensions.

But phoenixes did. Could. Oh, come on they were mystical creatures. Surely.

How many phoenixes do you know about then? A voice snapped in his head. Harry's eyes narrowed as he replayed his encounters with Fawkes.

And a crazy thought hit him.

Harry didn't know about the dimension traveling bit but Fawkes could travel from one place to another. Surely Fawkes could take him to the monastery. He moved to the windows and closed the curtains, shrouding the hotel room in darkness. "Fawkes." he whispered hopefully.

Nothing but his labored breathing.

Try again, his mind prodded

"Fawkes!" he repeated loudly. The room remained dark and silent.

His stomach plummeted. He was stupid. Did he really expect Dumbledore's phoenix to drop everything and come to him just because he called?

He slumped onto the bed, defeated. Well it had been a good idea, he consoled himself. Fawkes could have been his ticket out of London. And unless he found another phoenix, then he still needed a magical method to reach those monks. This would have been easier if his grandmother had mentioned how she traveled.

I wish…Siri… he sat up abruptly and knelt by his trunk. With an excited huff he slammed the lid open and removed everything until he reached the very bottom of the trunk.

It was still there.

His fingers hovered over broken shards of glass. Sharp edges glittered in the sparse light that filtered in through the closed curtains. If he could fix this mirror, surely that would solve his communication problem. He'd be able to keep in touch with Ron and Hermione even if he was a dimension away. At least I hope so.

But did Sirius leave his mirror at Grimmauld place? Sirius wouldn't have taken something like a mirror to the battle, especially since Harry never called him through it. Harry bit his lip to force down his guilt, locking away the memories.

He'd have to tell Ron and Hermione to search for Sirius's mirror. It was his only option to keep in contact in contact. He felt a bit stupid for leaving it to chance. But it was the best he could do for the moment. Maybe the monks had something. But then wouldn't his grandmum have communicated before?

He rubbed his temples wearily. It wasn't even noon and he was already willing to call it quits and just sleep the day off.

Harry put the broken shards onto a large cloth and tied it up. He needed to get it fixed and he knew the best place for it. And he could definitely do with some fresh air. But first he had some letters to write. Especially if he was heading to Hogsmeade.

At noon, Harry put in the four rolled up letters into his backpack. He carefully placed the broken mirror into his bag and left the hotel once more crossing Charring Street to the Leaky Cauldron. He held out his wand hand.

Harry took in a deep breath and pulled down his cap as the Knight bus stopped in front of him. He cut Stan off with "Hogsmeade please" and pushed the required money on to the boy's hand.

He rushed to the back of the bus and took a seat making sure to keep his face hidden in the most unsuspicious manner he could manage. He ignored everything around him and stared out the window watching the world whiz past him. He idly wondered if there was a bus service that reached outside of Britain.

"Next stop, Hogsmeade station." A voice from the front of the bus rang out, after a long series of stops.

Harry pulled his backpack and held onto his armchair as the bus stopped. He let out a breath of relief as he realized that he was still on his armchair- even if the chair had crashed into the side of the bus.

He shuffled out of the bus unsteadily, followed by two elderly people. Harry took in the oddly clear sky and sent a glance towards Hogwarts in the distance beyond the station. He was risking a lot being so close to Hogwarts, but it was a chance he needed to take.

He hiked into the wizarding town, destination firm in his mind as he avoided the people roaming about. While not as crowded as Diagon Alley, there were quote a lot of people, especially around The Three Broomsticks.

Harry headed to the post office first. Owl hoots and ruffling wings made him smile. He went up the counter and paid for three owls. On the form he filled out, he made sure to state that he wanted his letters to be delivered at midnight the next day. He'd written four letters, one to Ron and Hermione each explaining why and where he was leaving. He'd also told them to search for the mirror if they could.

There was one for Remus- he owed the last Marauder an explanation. He was sure that Remus would understand. And the last letter- had been to the Order. He'd made it as irritatingly devoid of details as he possibly could. He smiled as he pictured their reactions to it. It was a satisfying thought.

The worker had given him an odd look when he said he wanted the letters delivered at midnight tomorrow.

A bell rang as Harry pushed open the door to Dervish & Banges. A man emerged from under a messy counter. Light blue eyes under silver eyebrows glanced at Harry in curiosity.

"Welcome, how can I assist you?" the man's voice flowed to him.

Harry pulled out the cloth holding the shards of mirror, "I was wondering if you could fix this"

The man tilted his head as he took the cloth, opened it and examined the pieces. "Ahh, two way mirrors. It's been ages since I've seen any of these."

His eyes glowed as he examined each piece under a lamp light. "Yes, yes, the damage isn't too bad."

Harry stifled a snort of disbelief. Not that bad?

"The charms are still active. Yes, yes, and the connection remains. A few scratches to fill in…maybe new glass for this." the man muttered as he held his wand over the shards.

Harry watched in utter fascination as the man chanted and murmured with a soft golden hue at the tip of his light grey wand. The small bits of mirror floated over the cloth and moved around under the man's guidance.

Harry couldn't look away.

He didn't want to look away. He'd never seen magic like this before. Reparos were all good and dandy. But this, it almost seemed like healing. There were no harsh wand movements, no forcing back broken pieces into their previous place.

It seemed like the man was coaxing each piece into place with an odd gentleness. Harry didn't know how long he stood there, watching the man fit each piece of glass together, and he didn't care as the pieces reformed into a familiar mirror.

The man touched an edge with the wand. The cracks glowed an eerie white and with a small poof, they disappeared.

Harry gaped.

The man turned to him, "There. All done."

"That was…" Harry said, unable to explain his awe.

"Thank you! Not a lot of people appreciate this sort of work. Honestly, as if a reparo can fix magical items. They're so… sorry," The man looked sheepish but placed a small brown pouch alongside the mirror. "You should get a mokeskin pouch to store this mirror. It may look small but it has a great carrying capacity and only the owner can open it. Try it."

Wary after the sales-pitch, Harry placed the mirror in the smaller pouch pleasantly surprised when it fit. He watched as the store-owner failed to open the pouch. "I'll take it. Do you sell wand holsters too?"

"Oh yes!" he bent down, pulled up a black gauntlet-like object and placed it on the counter. "Adjustable straps that prevents wand breaking…"

Harry interrupted him, "How much is it?"

"Eh? Oh, it's three galleons."

"Here you go." Harry said, strapping the holster to his arm. It glowed briefly before shifting into a thin glove like substance that ran from his the middle of his wrist to his elbow. He blinked and slowly held his wand above it, unsure of where to holster it.

Small strap like structures rose from his new purchase and circled the wand. With a coating of black and a firm pull from the glove, the wand disappeared.

Harry frantically traced his fingers over the inside of glove. He sighed when he felt a long bump that could only be his wand.

He looked up to find the man smiling at him.

"The first reactions are always the best." He said simply.

"Right." Harry muttered, "Thank you."

Harry stepped into the street his eyes turned to the clear blue sky.

He blinked.

There in the distance flew a very familiar form. Hope stirred in him. With a cautious look to his surroundings he casually made his way to the Shrieking Shack. It was as deserted as ever. Good.

He stood at the gate, waiting and watching.

When he felt safe enough, he headed to the side of the shack towards one of the boarded up windows. His fingers bounced away as he tried to pry them open.

What happened?

Harry groaned as he remembered something. Hadn't the twins been unable to break into it? There's magic to keep people out.

Harry slammed his head against the wood. How annoying. It wasn't like werewolf-Remus was in there now. It was broad daylight. No moon in the sky…

"Argh!" Harry screamed as he lost his balance and fell forward with a thump. He sneezed as a cloud of dust reached his nose. Harry opened teary eyes to find himself inside a very familiar space.

Broken furniture and claw marks littered the Shrieking Shack. Harry stumbled to his knees as he looked around. He rubbed a burning scratch on the bottom of his chin. Did the building let me in? Because I knew…

No time for that, just go to the tunnel. The rational part of his mind kicked on. Harry stumbled past dusty rooms towards a musty tunnel.

Keeping his fingers on the ragged wall of the tunnel Harry walked as fast as he could. He emerged from under the Whomping Willow and breathed in the fresh air filled with the scent of trees and fresh grass.

With a timid look to the castle Harry turned the other way and walked deep into the Forbidden Forest. Sunlight dripped past the thick branches and collected on the forest floor in tiny pools of light.

Branches creaked and twigs snapped under his feet as he rushed forward in the straightest line possible. But the lack of trails and the ever present danger of centaurs made the trip hard.

He persevered for more than two hours.

Harry reached a familiar clearing- the place he had seen months ago and waited. Before he could sit down to rest, a winged form landed in front of him. Harry blinked in surprise. Did they know when they were needed? No that couldn't be it.

Harry held out a hand to the creature who bowed obligingly. Harry smiled at the threstral in front of him. If he didn't know any better, it was the same one that led him to the Ministry a month ago.

"I need your help." the boy said politely.

A blank white eye stared at him as leathery wings folded tightly onto the skeletal body. Feeling a bit like he was trying to talk to Hedwig, Harry said, "I'm trying to leave the country tomorrow. I need a way to get out without anyone knowing."

"Do you think you could help?" Harry asked gently.

He waited in silence staring into the creature's eye. "It's pretty far, I have to get to Japan by the end of tomorrow. I want to leave sometime tomorrow noon. The earlier the better maybe, I mean it's a long way…"

The threstral snorted and Harry smiled a bit. Definitely like Hedwig. "Sorry, I don't know your name." he whispered. "So will you help?"

The threstral stared at him for few minutes before it bobbed his head. "Thank you."

Harry decided it was time to leave. He looked around the clearing, unsure of which way led out.

He gave the threstral a sheepish look. "Think you can give me a ride to Charring Cross?"

Harry took its silence as a yes. The threstral stood patiently as Harry hoisted himself up. When he took hold of the soft black mane, the threstral crouched and sprung up, wings cutting through the air gently.

The threstral landed in an empty alley on the side of his hotel. He gave the threstral a gentle pat and watched as it launched into the air. He hoped Hedwig like threstrals.

X-X-X-X-X

Harry's third morning in London started with a crash to the hotel room floor. Harry cursed the large scroll that he had forgotten to put aside as he pulled himself up.

Harry made a final trip to Diagon Alley. He went around the Alley checking for anything useful before finally heading towards Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes. He gaped at the large crowd of people filing every corner of the store.

Gone were the harried expressions of people out in Diagon Alley. Laughs, giggles and carefree shouts left Harry smiling. An odd feeling of pride entered his chest- he had helped make this, a place of joy in the darkness.

He moved up to a corner where a bright red head stood on a ladder pulling down some boxes. "Fred, we're out of Edible Dark Marks"

Harry grinned. Only the twins would capitalize on something as taboo as Dark Marks.

With careful steps, Harry avoided the crowds and stood beside the ladder. He grabbed hold of a maroon sleeve.

"Is there something you need?" George asked in a jovial tone.

Harry lifted his head up, revealing emerald green eyes beneath the rim of his cap.

George let out a gasp and pushed Harry's head down. "Ah yes! I think we have a few of those in the backroom. Why don't you come with me? Verity, you're in charge!"

He dragged Harry across the store and towards a bright purple door labeled- Danger.

"I told you I'd be right out, honestly George…" a voice said from behind a stocked shelf.

"Look who dropped by." George grinned and pushed Harry forward and locked the door.

"Harry!" Fred smiled, "We didn't know that they picked you up already."

Harry shrugged sheepishly, "They didn't"

The twins looked at each other, surprised.

"You see I'm sort of leaving…"

"Leaving where?" George asked carefully.

"Someplace far, outside of Britain is all I can tell you." he answered vaguely. "I guess I just wanted to tell someone in person. At least you guys would tell Ron and Hermione that I was ok and leaving of my own fee will. I'm sending them letters, but still…"

"Is this because of…"

"…what happened at the ministry?"

"Well sort of, I just need…" Harry paused unsure of how to explain the concept of finding some long lost relative to them.

The twins sat down on a few crates, watching Harry. "I just, it's something I have to do. And I don't think the Order would let me go, so I just…"

He frowned at the identical expressions of glee on their faces. "We had a feeling …"

"This day would come…"

"You did?" Harry asked skeptically.

"The thirst for freedom…" Fred said as he stood up, hands held dramatically.

"A spectacular escape…" George joined him.

"We're so proud!"

Harry gasped in surprise as they crashed into him. "Get off, you twits."

Both twins had an eerily serious face as they stood up and shared a look. Harry found it hard to keep up with their odd shifts of emotions. "You're not using Portkeys from Radagast up in Knocturn are you?"

"What? No…no, no portkeys. I have another way to get there." Harry said, idly wondering is he should have checked Knocturn alley and gotten a portkey instead. He hadn't wanted to risk any trouble by going into Knocturn-there was no way he could pass as a normal Knocturn Alley visitor. And he had everything he needed- muggles were quite resourceful, after all.

"Good, portkeys are easy to trace. Shows up in the ministry transport department if its long distance international travel." Fred said somberly.

"Oh!" Harry muttered. He hadn't known about that aspect of Portkeys. Good thing I'm not depending on one.

"Here, you'll need this." Fred said as he handed Harry a box.

"Stuff to get you out of trouble if you can't use magic" George said smugly. Harry opened the box. His eyes widened, "This has an expansion charm on it?"

The twins smiled, "Hanging around Hermione…"

"… must be a good thing!"

Harry snorted and examined everything in the box. He pulled up a plastic bag filled with purplish-black crystal pellets. "Peruvian darkness powder?" he read.

Fred grinned, "It's effective for getaways. No light can penetrate it except for the people who use it of course."

Harry frowned at them, "You're not just selling these to people, are you?"

"Well we were planning on putting them into the mail order pranksters' escape kit…"George said.

"Don't!" Harry exclaimed. "If they work like you say, then think what would happen if then ended up in a Death Eaters hands. Especially if its mail ordered."

"We hadn't thought of that!" Fred said and frowned at the crystals.

"For really smart people you're pretty dumb" Harry retorted in amusement.

"Do you want those or not?" George threatened, hand poised to take the goody box away from Harry.

Harry laughed. His eyes softened, "Thanks…"

The twins shared another look over Harry's bowed head. "Don't worry about it. We're always keen to help you escape, even if we don't have a flying car anymore."

"Besides Ronickens wouldn't speak to us if we didn't help his bestest friend."

The three boys shared a laugh. He had breakfast with them as they filled him in on the workings of the items they had given him.

Harry glanced at his watch. It was close an hour before noon, he'd better head out. "You guys wouldn't happen to have some raw meat, would you?"

The twins shared a look, but Fred went out of the office through a door in the side and came back a few minutes later with a small cloth bag. Harry shook his head, it seemed like everything had expansion charms.

George ventured, "Dragons?"

Harry snorted as he took a bag from Fred, "Close. But not quite."

"You'll tell them, right?" Harry asked as he stood at the back door exit.

Fred gave him a serious look, "Don't worry! Just take care of yourself."

"So you can explain all this to them yourself." George said.

With an amused goodbye Harry headed to his hotel room for the final time. Harry removed a few useful items from the Twins gift box and stowed the rest into the scroll. He checked his backpack one last time- a few potions for easy reach, small bottles of pills (blood replenishers according to his grandmum), food, water, a map, owl treats, clothes, some gold coins and raw meat.

Harry took a last look around the room- in case he had left something behind and walked in to the alley that the threstral had landed in yesterday. He had barely taken a step when Hedwig swooped down onto his shoulder.

He grinned at the snowy white owl, watching as she swallowed up an owl treat. "Good girl, I knew you'd get here on time."

He stiffened as a large thud echoed through the alley. Harry let out a sigh of relief and headed towards the threstral who stood in the shadows. He patted it on the head, "Glad you could make it."

The threstral turned to Hedwig and Harry watched in amusement as both animals bumped heads. "I take it you two are friends then?"

Hedwig puffed up and cuffed Harry's ear with her wing.

He placed Hedwig on the threstral's back and pinned his invisibility cloak over him with his Gryffindor badge, like a hooded cloak. This way, no one will see a human body flying by itself.

From what he understood muggles couldn't see threstrals. As for wizards who did see them, he hoped they were superstitious enough to think it was some sort of omen that shouldn't be talked about.

Harry climbed onto the leathery back, leaned down as he tightened his grasp of the threstral's mane. "Alright, let's go." Harry whispered the address into the threstral's ear, "As fast as you can please"

Hedwig nodded off between him arms as the black sinewy body rose into the air. Harry was glad he had remembered to wear his warm clothes.

Did the threstral need to stop halfway? Had anyone ever ridden a threstral to another country? How long was this going to take? And why was the world below him nothing but a blur of colour that made him dizzy?

He wasn't sure when but somewhere along the way he fell asleep.

Harry woke up with his world tilted sideways. He gasped and his hands tightened in the mane. They were descending. Did I sleep the entire way? Without falling off? Sweet Merlin. That was dangerous.

Harry gaped at his watch as he landed on solid ground. The trip had taken less than six hours.