"This isn't working, Hermione!" Harry growled, frustrated, as he sidestepped to avoid the plate hurtling uncontrollably toward him from the ground at blinding speed. Moments later it collided with a nearby wall, shattering into millions of tiny fragments.

"Come, on, Harry. How's that old saying go? 'If at first you don't succeed'…" From the other side of the room, next to a diminishing stack of conjured plates, Hermione gestured for Harry to finish the saying.

"Yeah, well, if we're going for accuracy here it would be more along the lines of 'If after hours of practice and hundreds of tries you're still fucking things up'..."

"Fine," Hermione relented, sighing and holding up her hands in surrender. "Let's take a break. You being this frustrated isn't going to help your control anyway."

Taking a deep breath to rein in his swirling emotions, Harry slowly trudged over to Hermione, who had taken a seat on a nearby bench. They were using an old classroom to practice using their newly acquired magical abilities, and they'd been working since the crack of dawn the morning after the ritual. Neither wanted to be hindered by their new abilities with classes still in full swing. Even after almost a whole day now of nothing but practice, Harry still couldn't control even a basic levitation charm. Hermione, of course, had mastered her new abilities before lunchtime.

Hermione put a comforting arm around Harry's shoulders and nuzzled against his shoulder, hoping to help him relax a little.

"We knew the effects of the ritual could take some getting used," she gently reminded him. "And I know you don't regret performing the ritual. It's just going to take some time."

"I knew that!" Harry exclaimed, still frustrated at his lack of control. "And I definitely don't regret the ritual! But it's just so...infuriating! I feel like I'm back in first year again! But it's worse because I realize how little I can do! I'm struggling with the simplest spells! And, of course, you mastered everything right away."

Hermione sighed. "Harry, you know we're not in the same situation. I did the calculations on what the ritual has actually done, and it looks like the changes are most focused and felt in the areas we were weaker. Most of what I gained was more reserves of power, which don't bring much fundamental change to spellwork. My magical connection was strengthened some, but not nearly as much relatively as yours was. You, on the other hand, were already relatively powerful so the power boost doesn't seem as significant to you. But the way your body harnesses and controls magic has been significantly improved! With so much more magical connection than you're used to, you practically have to relearn how to execute a spell!" Hermione buried her head in Harry's shoulder, covering it with her curly, brown locks. "I know you can do it" she whispered softly in his ear.

Harry let out another deep breath. Hermione's words and closeness were helping him settle down, though he was still frustrated. He just felt so powerless.

"Have you heard any more from Sirius yet?" Hermione asked, hoping to further distract Harry.

"Not much," he answered, shaking his head. "I know he's getting closer to Hogwarts, or at least trying to. The false trails seem to be working. I swear, though, if he's seen and the Ministry sends dementors again…"

Hermione shuddered. She still had nightmares sometimes about those horrid things, and she knew Harry hated the creatures even more than most. Hopefully the Ministry would never again be that careless. Of course, with these new laws, who knew anymore? True, the laws had finally pushed Harry and her together, so they hadn't been all bad, but who knew what additions would come next? Bumridge alone was a prime example of the Ministry's misguided policies and attitude.

"Maybe you just need a break" Hermione continued. "We do still have to visit Gringotts, don't we?"

Harry slowly nodded. "You're right. We've been pretty busy lately, but we definitely shouldn't put that off any longer."

Harry stood up and tried to hide a smirk. "I think I'll go send them a letter now. I guess we'll have to continue this practice later. What a shame that is."

Pretending not to hear that final remark, Hermione smiled and innocently turned her head. "I'm sorry, what was that Harry?" Seeing his embarassed expression, she grinned but then narrowed her eyes, a more serious expression on her face. "Just remember, Harry, that you shouldn't do any more magic until you have full control of yourself again."

Harry sighed. She was right. Harry certainly didn't like it, but he knew she was right. Harry had a sinking suspicion that he'd have to get used to that feeling.

"Hermione?" Harry asked just before they were out the door, "I just thought of something else. How are we going to get there?"

She looked at him strangely. "Harry, you've been to Gringotts before. Just go to Diagon Alley, find the big white building, and go in."

"No," Harry rolled his eyes, "I mean, how are we going to leave Hogwarts and get to Gringotts? We're too young to Apparate, and even if we could I've been drilled constantly that someone can't Apparate in or out of Hogwarts."

Momentarily proud of Harry for finally remembering that tidbit for himself, Hermione stopped to think. "Well," she replied slowly, "technically, we're emancipated so we could now take Apparation classes, but I'm fairly certain that takes a while to learn, even when one's magic isn't in a state of fluctuation. I don't fancy sitting on a brookstick for hours to get there, and I don't know of any Portkeys or Floos available at the moment to us."

Harry shrugged. "Well, since we have to notify an authority anyway, why not just ask them? We can't be the first to have need for this. Maybe Dumbledore could help us out, if all else fails. " Hermione nodded. If anyone knew, Dumbledore would.

The two lovers had just exited the classroom when they came face-to-face with Ron, who looked equally surprised to see them. All three were startled into inaction for a brief moment, and Ron looked a little worried about being caught alone by Harry and Hermione. Two against one, especially against those two, would not be pretty. However, as Harry and Ron instinctively drew their wands, Hermione brandished her own and put her other hand on Harry's arm, pushing it down. It wouldn't be good for him to be firing off spells in his current magical state.

"Harry, put your wand down before you hurt yourself or one of us," Hermione murmured quietly.

"But-"

"Ron thinks he's outnumbered. We can try to bluff our way out, but even if we can't, you're in no state to be risking anything right now. We don't know what could happen or what damage you might do."

However, before anything could take place, the students were interrupted by none other than Professor McGonagall, who was staring at the three of them with a stern but confused expression. "What are you three...never mind, that's not important right now. Potter, the Headmaster requests your presence. If I were you I wouldn't keep him waiting."

"But Professor, I-"

"Mr. Weasley, I'm sure anything you need can wait an hour or so. Perhaps you should put some effort into the 14 inch essay you still have not turned in for Transfiguration." Ron sighed and turned to walk away toward the Gryffindor Common Room, though not before shooting one last questioning glance toward the pair.

"Professor, may I-"

"Yes, Ms. Gran...forgive me, Mrs. Potter, you may accompany him."

Hermione grinned, though that may have just been from McGonagall's new form of address toward her favorite student.

"Professor, do you-"

"No, Mr. Potter. I do not know why you have been asked to meet the Headmaster. What I do know, however, is that every minute you spend asking me about said meeting will only delay its happening. The password to get in, by the way, is Woolen Lemons. Don't even bother asking me why because I do not know myself. Perhaps the Headmaster is strengthening the protection of his passwords by making them less easy to guess."

Harry smiled. Leave it McGonagall. Thanking their Head of House, Harry and Hermione began briskly walking away, wondering why Dumbledore coincidentally wanted to talk them right after they decided to consult him. Maybe it was just his unrivaled genius.

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore, Order of Merlin First Class, Grand Sorcerer, Supreme Mugwump, Chief Warlock, Headmaster of Hogwarts, and famed Leader of the Light was currently deep in thought, making use of his grand intellect to help make the world a better place by answering questions many lesser minds had long pondered without success. Today, one question stood out to him among all others: How could one make the world a better place by combining lemon drops and socks, two of the most wondrous inventions of all time, into one even more magnificent item?

This was proving to be a trickier endeavor than the wise old wizard had foreseen. After all, a sock with the stickiness of a lemon drop would lose its sheer sockiness. And a lemon drop with the consistency of a sock would not travel easily down the user's throat. It was time to make use of that creativity and ingenious strategy that permeated his unparalleled thought processes.

Just as Albus had decided against stitching lemon drops to the outside of the left foot's sock, the magic of the castle alerted him that someone coming up the stairs. Sighing and promising himself that he would solve the universe's mysteries later this evening, Albus turned his attention to the two students walking toward him.

"Good afternoon, Harry my boy. I see Miss Granger...ah yes, excuse me...Mrs. Potter has opted to join us for today."

Hermione nodded, a bit nervous. Maybe Harry had a heart-to-heart with this man every year, but she was meeting him personally for the first time. It wasn't every day that a normal student like herself got to talk with arguably the most famous, powerful, and intelligent wizard of the century. "Hermione's fine, sir," she quietly remarked.

"Well, then," Dumbledore smiled, eyes twinkling, "Hermione it shall be." Hermione was Muggleborn, Albus knew. He also knew that the Muggles frequently used and created socks. They had even invented the lemon drop! Albus had researched both of these items extensively, more than any wizard alive, but perhaps there were Muggle secrets of these wondrous things that even he didn't know about. He would have to ask Hermione at some point, though now was probably not the best time. Oh well. There was no rushing genius.

"Sir," Harry began, not sure of how to begin, "Hermione and I were actually planning on talking with you at some point. Did you know this? Is that why you called for us? Or is there something else?" The only times Dumbledore seemed to talk with Harry were either right before or right after mortal danger. Harry was pretty sure he hadn't been in mortal danger before, and as good as that might seem, it left him a bit uneasy regarding his future safety.

"Ah yes. Harry," Dumbledore sighed, hating being the bearer of bad news. "I'm very sorry to be the one who has to tell you this, but it seems your relatives have gotten themselves into a bit of a mess. Last week they were apprehended and searched by both Ministry Aurors and Muggle law keepers. I believe they're known as...oh what was the word Mundungus used...co-lice? No that's not it...kaleese? No...no, that's not right either...I think it may have been Khaleesi. Yes, I'm sure he mentioned that at some point. Something about fire and dragons too. And the looming prospect of winter. Winter is coming, as I'm sure you know. I think I might have seen some snow recently. That always means Christmas is coming soon too! Anyway, forgive the musings of an old man, but does that sound right?"

It was taking all of Harry's self-control to not fall to the ground and laugh hysterically, both from the Dursleys' predicament and Dumbledore's botching of Muggle terms. Slowly turning to Hermione, who appeared to be in a similar predicament, Harry (in a very strained voice) answered, "Yes, Professor, I think that sounds about right. What happened?"

Albus noticed the boy's strained voice and tense body language. It seemed that the boy was taking this even harder than he'd anticipated. So full of love, that boy. Even for those who had treated him poorly in the past. Such wonderful forgiveness in the wizarding world's savior. Harry had to know, though. Even if that knowledge was painful for him. Albus would break it to the boy as gently as he could.

"It seems," Dumbledore answered, "that the Aurors were under the impression that Sirius Black was hiding in Number 4 Privet Drive. Now, you and I both know that the idea is preposterous, but nonetheless something led the Ministry to believe he was hiding there. Quite the unfortunate coincidence, if I may say. Apparently your Uncle, Harry, started yelling about freaks and tried to attack the Auroros with an extremely bent-up Muggle deathstick. I'm not sure what all happened after that, but I do know that it took a few days for your relatives to be recovered and obliviated. Apparently something happened to them that Obliviation couldn't heal, so they're now being treated in a Muggle care area."

"And the Khaleesi, Professor?" Harry asked, desperately trying not to keep a straight face.

"Yes, yes," Dumbledore continued, nodding, "though I'm afraid I don't quite understand Muggle customs, so I'm not sure exactly what the problem was. Apparently, your relatives were housing a number of heroines. Why it's illegal for a Muggle to have female heroes in their houses, I don't really know. They're very strange, Muggles. Similar in many ways, but their society never fails to confuse or surprise me. Anyway, there were heroines under the floorboards and a whole bunch of them in the cupboard under the stairs. The house, I do believe, was in a very poor state once the Khaleesi were done. However, I'm told that a lot of newly grown weeds were in the daisy and rose gardens and that they were removed as well. I can't think of any type of weed that is illegal for Muggles, so perhaps they were doing your relatives a favor after tearing up the house? Anyway, Harry, the bottom line is that your relatives are now spending time in a Muggle care facility and your childhood home has been devastatingly damaged."

Harry took a few deep breaths, trying to keep calm and not burst out laughing even more. It seemed Sirius had definitely done a lot more at Privet Drive than just pretend he'd been there. Harry didn't remember the Dursleys ever having 'heroines' and 'weeds' before, though he certainly wasn't complaining with how things had turned out for them. He'd have to get Sirius something really nice for Christmas this year.

Before Harry could decide on the perfect 'thank you' gift, Dumbledore asked, "Now, what was it you wanted to speak to me about, Harry?"

"Oh...yeah, that." Harry had to take a few moments for his brain to reboot. "You see, Hermione and I wanted to go to Gringotts to figure out a bunch of legal stuff. Our marriage, emancipation, things like that. We want to get an idea of what this will mean for us and how we can make it official. Plus, we need to straighten things out with money and House business and all that." Harry knew he hadn't exactly put things in the most eloquent way, but, in his defense, it's hard to talk about what you don't know, especially when you don't completely know what it is you don't know. "We'd like to visit during the next Hogsmeade trip. The only problem is that we don't know how to get ourselves to Gringotts." Hermione nodded, not trusting herself to keep her composure.

Albus nodded, brow furrowing as his great mind searched for an answer. A broomstick would be too chilly a ride. Apparition hadn't been taught to the emancipated students yet. The thestrals were on strike, something about a blonde menace trying to paint them orange. Madame Maxime's carriage was currently in France and even then it was only insured for one driver. Karkaroff was dead, and his boat probably wouldn't be available for some time yet. And Hagrid's motorcycle was in the shop. That left only one reasonable option.

"I suppose," Dumbledore ventured, inwardly grinning at Harry's and Hermione's captivated expressions, "that if you were to wear multiple layers of socks to protect yourselves from the cold, and if you had a vast storage of lemon drops as fuel, hypothetically you would be able to-"

Dumbledore's suggestion was interrupted by a loud clanging sound as his bowl of lemon drops crashed to the floor. Those were the consequences of trying to balance a bowl on the edge of one's desk in order for the bowl to be reachable while one was reclining. One of the many House-elves of Hogwarts entered with a *POP* to clean up the mess.

Hermione gasped. "Professor, couldn't a House Elf bring us to Gringotts? We wouldn't even have to go to Hogsmeade because they can travel in and out of Hogwarts!"

Now looking at Harry, she added, "There shouldn't be any problem problem with asking Dobby to help us, as long as it is his choice and he does it by his own free will instead of as servitude!"

Dumbledore sighed. "Though I like my idea better, it would indeed work for you to use your friend Dobby to help you travel. That way is probably faster anyway, since I'm not sure we could procure the necessary items very easily. You have my permission to go, of course. Just make sure you do not miss anything of much importance and at least one other person knows where you are and when you are going."

"Thank you, Professor," Hermione answered. "If that's all, then I think we'll see ourselves out."

Dumbledore nodded. "Good day to you two. I hope your trip proves beneficial. By the way, I heard about the unfortunate incidents with Professor Bumridge." Dumbledore looked at Harry in particular meaningfully.

Harry gulped. "I see, Professor."

"Anything you'd like to say, Harry? Is something wrong"

"Umm...no?"

"Alright then," Dumbledore sighed. "I have to say, I'm a little disappointed"

"But sir!" Hermione exclaimed.

Before she could continue, however, Dumbledore went on. "I just wanted to know what has been with the delays recently in your efforts. If everything's fine, though, I guess I and the rest of the staff will just have to be patient. Your ideas have proven to be significantly better than mine, I will freely admit. I leave it in your hands, my boy."

Hermione stared wide-eyed at Dumbledore. The Headmaster, realizing he may have said too much, ushered them out. Besides, now it was time to yet again devote his mind yet again to the miraculous mysteries of the universe. If he completed the lemon drop and sock hybrid, he could then give it to his staff for Christmas. Minerva, especially, would be absolutely delighted. Albus was sure of it.

Vernon Dursley sat in his new bed. He had lost quite a few pounds since being brought in. That alone would make him near unrecognizable to most of his co-workers and neighbors. Add to that the pale complexion, deer-in-the-headlights stare, and the uncontrollable nose twitching, and Vernon was a practically a new man. Not the most intelligent or good-looking of men, it had to be admitted, but Vernon had never been known for either of those traits before the incident anyway.

Dr. Simon Coddic inspected his new patient intently. No one could explain why the man was acting this way. Apparently, he would only eat vegetables such as carrots or lettuce. Anything else wouldn't even be considered. This was especially odd since all signs pointed to the fact that this man probably hadn't touched a vegetable in his life prior to the trauma. The doctor had spent many hours inspecting this man, but he couldn't come up with any logical conclusions. Maybe it was time for a second opinion. He pulled out his phone and dialed the secretary's number.

"What do you need, Si?"

"I was wondering if you could send my new intern up here to take a look at one of our three new patients."

"Amanda? Why?"

"I thought maybe a new person in the room could help. It's always nice to have second opinion, too. We still don't know anything more about this man or his condition. Maybe Amanda Huggenkiss will bring Vernon Dursley back to his senses and help him face the truth."

"I'll send her up. By the way, I think you should have a look at the woman who came in with him. I heard Mike Rotch say she was having complications."

Hanging up the phone, Si moved on to see what had changed with Vernon's wife, Petunia, who was suffering similar symptoms. However, unlike Vernon's blank stare, Petunia seemed to be suffering from a panic attack.

"Petunia, I'm Si Coddic. I'm in charge of your well-being here. What's wrong? What do you need?"

For some reason his presence only seemed to make her even more frightened. It was time to send her to an expert. The doctor knew of the perfect person, one who specialized in calming frightened patients. He reached for his phone and called the secretary again.

"Figured out what's wrong?"

"Not yet. It's going to take more than just me, though."

"Who do you have in mind?"

"We need Oliver Clozeshoff. That should help improve her mood."

"I'll call it in right now."

Dr. Coddic smiled. This job could sometimes be pretty stressful. It was a good thing he had such a great staff to help him out. He decided to visit Vernon once more. Maybe Amanda could provide some insight.

Before she checked on Vernon, Amanda had decided to see how Vernon and Petunia's boy, Dudley, was doing. Dudley, like his father, had lost a lot of weight. Thankfully, besides being still unable to move, Dudley seemed to be improving the most. Amanda had heard co-workers say he could even speak again. However, apparently what came out wasn't very nice.

Dudley had recently requested to change from his bed to a sofa so that he could see the TV better. The staff had gotten a great deal from Sofa King, the best seller on the market, and the boy's request was easily made a reality. Amanda walked over to the young Dursley and smiled kindly.

"Are you happy with the room, Dudley? Are you feeling better today?"

"Sofa King good," Dudley muttered.

Amanda frowned. "Dudley, words like that are not tolerated here. I don't care what you got away with before, but it ends now. Understand?"

Dudley just looked very confused.

"I'm sure your parents wouldn't want to hear words like that coming from their little boy. Now, who's your nurse?"

Dudley raised an eyebrow. "Hugh Jass."

Moments later, Amanda stormed out of Dudley's room. The nerve of some people! She didn't care what kind of trauma he'd been through, Amanda didn't feel the least bit of regret for slapping him. Now her hand did hurt a bit, though. Plus the slap hadn't affected Dudley much. However, Amanda certainly scared him when she said she'd bring in Petunia with Oliver Clozeshoff. Must have been a mommy's boy. Though Dudley crying and begging to be blinded seemed a bit of an overreaction. Oh well. Turning her head and looking at her posterior, Amanda decided that maybe it was time to hit the gym.

Dr. Coddic was again with Vernon. For whatever reason, something had gotten through to Vernon. He was in great stress, and a vein was pulsing in his forehead. It was quite purplish, which was very impressive. Vernon was whispering, almost as if he were trying say something.

"Go on, Vernon," the doctor encouraged, "You can do it!"

"Pot..." murmured Vernon quietly.

"What was that?"

"Pot…"

Coddic remembered that Vernon's records had written about how the man had been growing extensive amounts of marijuana in his garden. It was assumed that he had been selling it, though it was unknown how widespread the business was. Authorities were still tracking it, but the stuff was all over the place and very hard to track. Almost like magic.

"I'm sorry, Vernon, but your pot has been taken away. You can't sell that anymore. There are alternatives, you know, to using that substance."

This seemed to stress Vernon even further. The vein looked like it was ready to explode.

"Pot...Pot...POTTER!"

/:Note:/ Well, it took a while, but another chapter is up. Sorry about the wait. Between writer's block, rewrites, and data corruption, things weren't exactly in my favor. I hope you liked this chapter. Sorry for the lack of much plot, but it's kind of a transition chapter to more stuff. I also just wanted to get something out to let you guys know I'm still alive. Just a tip: always try a name out loud before naming a child, pet, or toy. Anyway, as usual, please leave a review/PM/whatever and let me know what you think. Thanks for reading!