Disclaimer: I do not own anything related to Harry Potter.

A/N- This one is fairly long, please enjoy. And as always, reviews are very much appreciated.

P.S. - There was a very helpful reviewer who pointed out a few minor mistakes to me, as well as one fairly large error on my part(I did not think through the relationship between Tonks and Bellatrix; Bella would be her aunt, not her cousin, that was entirely my mistake. I am awful with genealogy, and did not think it through carefully enough... but this has been fixed, with my apologies. Because the subject was raised, this story is being beta-ed (by my wife actually), it's just that neither of us is much of a "grammar police" kind of person, she's with me mostly to help me try to stay on track with the story and help me to bounce ideas off of. All that said, thanks very much to David305 for his review, the helpful suggestions were most appreciated. I will say about the use of "alright" though, that it will continue, and I'll tell you the same thing I did my 12th grade English teacher...if I can say it, I can write it, and the rules of grammar can bite me.

The whole room was silent as death as they stared in shock at the scruffy haired teen standing before them. Harry fidgeted under their gaze, embarrassed at the attention.

Mrs. Weasley was the first one to regain her composure, quickly standing and hurrying around the table to reach him. "Oh Harry!" she cried as she encircled him in a tight hug. "Thank goodness you're alright!" The others quickly stood as well, rushing up behind their mother with exclamations of surprise and joy. Mrs. Weasley kept right on squeezing.

After a few more moments of this, Ron spoke up. "Er…Mum? You might wanna ease up a bit. I think you're crushing him."

Mrs. Weasley immediately eased her grip, pulling back slightly and examining him head to toe for any sign of an injury. When she could find none, she smiled brightly.

"Oh Harry dear, it's so good to see you. My goodness look at you, you're all bones! Come and sit down, have something to eat." She quickly shooed the others out of the way and walked Harry over to the nearest chair, pushing him into it and pushing the nearest plate towards him. "Go ahead dear, have at it."

His eyes widening at the delicious array of food before him, Harry quickly reached out and began filling his plate. Mrs. Weasley looked on in satisfaction and the others, who had followed the two back to the table, began reclaiming their seats.

"So mate, what happened to you?" Ron asked.

"There will be none of that," Mrs. Weasley shouted, "from any of you. This boy needs to eat and regain his strength, not be pestered by you lot." Her scowl turned to a smile as she regarded Harry again, who had a full plate and was busily munching away. "Eat your fill Harry dear, I'm just going to pop into the fireplace and tell Dumbledore that you're here."

Turning her back on the group, she hurried across the room to the burning fireplace, reaching into the nearby pot for a pinch of floo powder before tossing it onto the crackling flames. "He's going to be so relieved to hear that you're alright Harry, I don't think Albus has slept a wink since you disappeared." Then she leaned forward, thrusting her head into the bright green flames and shouting "Hogwarts Headmaster!"

As soon as she was engulfed in the flames, the others leaned in towards Harry, Ron laying a hand on his shoulder in a brotherly fashion.

"It's good to see you mate," he said seriously. "We thought we'd lost you for sure this time." Harry, who had not stopped inhaling his food since he had sat down, slowed long enough to throw Ron a grateful smile.

"Thanks Ron, it's great to be back here again." Ron smiled back and, checking to see that his mother was still occupied, reached out and grabbed a fresh roll from the basket on the table.

"So Harry," the twins said, leaning in conspiratorially, "what happened?"

"Yeah," Ron chimed in, working on a mouthful of bread, "all mum and dad would say is that there was a Death Eater attack on your Aunt and Uncle's, and that you were missing. Everyone from the Order thought you had been captured. How did you manage to escape?"

Harry coughed loudly, nearly choking on the enormous bite he had just taken. He looked at each of them, wide eyed.

"A Death Eater attack? On Little Whinging?" Ron, Hermione, Ginny, and the twins blinked at each other in surprise.

"Yeah mate," Ron answered slowly, "don't you remember?" Harry shook his head grimly.

"What happened?"

Ron shrugged, "Dunno mate, why do you think we asked you? As far as we know, all the members of the Order have been out looking for signs of you, and you know Mum sure as hell isn't going to tell us anything. Anytime one of us asks, she just tells us to let Dumbledore handle it and then gives us more chores to do." He scratched at the barely there stubble on his cheek. "Been a bit annoying really."

Harry began to eat again, though much more slowly this time as he considered this new information. Death Eaters on Privet Drive? What happened to the wards? And how in the bloody hell did I end up a hundred miles away at Stonehenge?

Ron opened his mouth to speak, but stopped short as his mother withdrew from the fireplace, smiling triumphantly.

"Well that's handled then. Dumbledore was delighted to hear that you're safe Harry, he'll be along any moment-Ronald Weasley! Put that food down this instant!" Ron froze in fear and dropped the half eaten roll. She glared at him, "just because Harry is back does not mean you've wriggled your way out of your punishment."

"But Mum -"

"But nothing young man. Maybe this will teach you some responsibili – oh hello Albus." Harry turned halfway around in his seat and found himself staring into the smiling face of Albus Dumbledore.

Remus Lupin sat immobile, his head in his hands at the dingy kitchen table at Number 12, Grimmauld Place. His eyes stared blankly at the dark stained wood, the same position that he had occupied for nearly four days. Nymphadora Tonks sat next to him, in the same seat that she had occupied off and on for nearly the same amount of time, her uneaten sandwich forgotten in front of her. One hand was rubbing his back in comforting circles as she tried for what seemed like the hundredth time to bring him out of his stupor.

"Come on Remus, you have to snap out of this, we need you." No response. "Look, I'm sure he's fine. We have the whole Order searching for him; it's just a matter of time." Again, no response, and Tonks growled to herself, frustrated at her lack of progress. He had been sitting at the table like this ever since he had returned from Privet Drive.

Since Sirius' passing Remus had taken up residence at Headquarters, and so was one of the few that Dumbledore had been able to immediately contact upon realizing that the wards around Privet Drive had fallen. He, along with Dumbledore, Tonks and Kingsely Shacklebolt, who had both happened to be in the Auror office at the ministry, had all travelled to Privet Drive to help Harry. It had been apparent from the moment they arrived that they were too late.

The house that had stood at Number 4 Privet Drive was still standing, but only just. The once pristine whitewashed walls had been nearly demolished, with almost more holes than wood. Luckily the roof had been ripped off as well; otherwise the walls would probably have collapsed under the strain. The four of them had rushed forward, wands at the ready, each of them dreading what they would find inside. Tonks had gingerly opened the cracked front door, allowing the others to slip in, led by Dumbledore.

The interior of the house had been worse than the exterior, if that were even possible, and Dumbledore quickly waved his wand, casting a quick charm that would at least prevent the house from collapsing around them. They had quickly searched the small house, finding it completely deserted before regrouping in the sitting room.

"I do not know how they pierced my defenses," Dumbledore had intoned gravely, his tall frame seeming to sag as he spoke, "but it appears that Voldemort has managed to capture young Harry."

It was right about then that Remus had started to lose it, slumping against a broken wall as if he no longer possessed the strength to stand. Dumbledore had quickly dismissed them, asking Kingsley to summon other members of the order for an emergency meeting. Tonks he had advised to take Remus back to Headquarters to await the others. He would investigate the scene before returning himself. Obediently, Tonks had taken the distraught Remus and apperated them both to the doorstep of Number 12, Grimmauld Place, though every Auror instinct in her body screamed at her not to leave Dumbledore without backup.

Landing on the doorstep with Remus in tow had been difficult, and half dragging, half carrying him into the kitchen had been even more so. He had immediately slumped over, head in his hands just as he was now, and did not move for hours, despite her attempts to engage him in conversation. The arrival of the other Order members one by one did not even make him glance up. Not even Dumbledore's return could rouse him. The older wizard did not question him, merely laying a hand upon the werewolf's shoulder and whispering, "Take your time my friend." He had then nodded at Tonks, indicating that they should join the others, and the two of them had left Remus Lupin alone with his thoughts.

And so he had sat since that night, only occasionally moving to use the facilities, and not once speaking to anyone, or even looking up from the floor. Tonks had felt a deep sadness at seeing the werewolf so, and had spent the little free time she had had, between her shifts at the Ministry and meeting with the Order about the search for Harry, at the table with him. She had discovered that while he would barely touch any food he was brought, he would usually sip at the tea she brought him.

And so it was she found herself again, sipping tea while sitting next to an unresponsive werewolf… and she was now officially annoyed.

"Come on Remus, this isn't helping anyone. What good will it do Harry for you to be sitting around like this?"

The werewolf's head shifted at this, rising up from the depths of his hands to match gazes with the surprised metamorphmagus. His red-rimmed eyes stared blankly into hers.

"I've been letting Harry down his entire life. Why should now be any different?" Tonks' eyes wide in shock.

"What are you talking about Remus; how have you let Harry down?"

"I've been letting him down since the day his parents died. When I heard what had happened, and Dumbledore told me that it was Sirius who had betrayed Lily and James, I believed him. After all, I thought that I knew who the Secret Keeper had been; there was no need to listen to Sirius' side of things." Remus shook his head sadly. "Sirius spent twelve long years in that hell-hole. And that meant that Harry spent those years in a hell of his own. I don't know everything about what those muggles did to him; Sirius only told me a little, but it was enough to know that no child should ever have been forced to grow up as he did. Much less the son of one of my closest friends."

He bowed his head. "He saved Sirius from his torment, which is much more than I ever did. He gave me my best friend back. And I repaid him by letting Sirius die." He held up a hand to kill the argument already spilling from her lips. "Don't tell me that it wasn't my fault. Logically I know that, but I still feel responsible. I was trying to work out a way to talk to Harry and apologize for not being there for him, but now…" He shook his head. "Now he's gone, maybe even dead by now; just one more friend that I've let down."

Tonks was shaking her head angrily. She reached out, grasping Remus by the shoulders and turned him in his chair to face her. Her hands slowly drifted from his shoulder up to cup his rough, unshaven face. "You listen to me Remus Lupin. You didn't let Sirius down. Sirius died because my aunt is a bloody psychopath. She's the one who's responsible, no one else. And I don't want to hear another damn word to the contrary." Remus looked like he wanted to argue, but Tonks' eyes blazed and her hair turned a bright, vibrant red. He wisely kept his mouth shut.

"And you haven't let Harry down either. None of us knew what was going to happen, not even Albus expected the boy's protection to fail. There was nothing you could have done to stop them from taking Harry. But you will fail him if you keep sitting here like you have been. You can't give up hope, Remus."

Tonks sat back in her own chair, leaving the werewolf to his thoughts. An uneasy silence fell between the two as he considered her words. Finally he nodded.

"You're right of course Nymphadora. I've spent far too long wallowing in self-pity. I have to help; I can't give up on Harry. He certainly wouldn't give up on me." Tonks' smile was wide as she clapped him on the shoulder.

"That's the spirit Remus." Her smile darkened to a scowl. "And don't call me Nymphadora."

"Sorry Tonks," he chuckled, reaching for her sandwich. He needed to get his strength back quickly so he could join the effort to locate Harry. Tonks smacked him gently, laughing as he took his first bite of her lunch. They were both still laughing when a bright light entered the dim kitchen.

Dumbledore's bright, glowing phoenix patronus soared through the nearby wall, coming to rest on the table before them.

"Tonks," it intoned softly in Dumbledores voice, "Gather the Order. Emergency meeting this evening. Harry has been found. Travelling to the Burrow to meet with him now."

Remus and Tonks gaped in shock at the spot where the phoenix stood, even as it faded away into nothingness. There was a brief pause as they both glanced at one another before Tonks leapt to her feet.

"See what did I tell you Remus? I knew he'd be fine! I'd better hop to and start alerting the others!" She ran from the room, her lunch forgotten. Moments later there was a massive crash, and the bigoted screaming of the late Mrs. Black filled the house. Remus chuckled as he took another large bite, his previous melancholy replaced by a hard determination. He wasn't going to let his own grief get in his way anymore. He owed Harry and Sirius at least that much.

"Hello Harry," Dumbledore said as he took the nearest empty chair at the table, "I cannot tell you how relieved I am to see you that you are alright." Mrs. Weasley quickly bustled over, teapot in hand to pour the headmaster a cup.

"Please Albus, have some lunch, we have more than enough." Ron did not look as if he agreed with that assessment, still eying the food hungrily. At this rate there wouldn't be anything left for him. But Dumbledore waved her away, still smiling.

"Oh thank you Molly, but no. I had just finished lunch in my office when you called, I couldn't possibly eat another bite." His smile turned back on Harry and Mrs. Weasley nodded, understanding that he needed to speak to Harry and that there was no more time for small talk.

"Children! Upstairs now!" A chorus of shouts answered her; clearly none of them liked that idea.

"Come on mum, Harry's our best friend," Ron groaned, "Hermione and I should be here."

"And we're of age!" the twins insisted. "You can't stop us from being a part of this!"

"Just watch me! You may be living on your own, but as long as you are coming into my house and eating my food every day, you will do as I say!" She rounded on Ron. "And as for you young man, you are most certainly not of age, so I don't care what you think you are entitled to!"

"Molly." Dumbledore's quiet voice broke through her tirade, silencing her immediately. "Perhaps they should stay." Mrs. Weasley was floored.

"Now see here Albus, I don't want my children getting involved in this business. It's bad enough the trouble they always manage to find at school, I don't need them-"

"Molly, I am not suggesting that we involve them in Order business. But for the moment I only wish to talk with Harry about what has happened to him over the last few days. They are all naturally curious about what has happened to their friend, and I daresay that letting them stay will simply save Harry from having to repeat the story to them later. If we begin to stray into more…private matters, then I will of course ask the others to leave." Mrs. Weasley bit her lip, hesitating for a few moments before finally relenting.

"Oh alright. But if the headmaster asks you to leave, you will do so immediately and without argument, understood?" Ginny and Hermione instantly agreed, and Ron and the twins reluctantly nodded their assent as well.

"Very well then." Dumbledore's attention had not wavered from Harry as the others had argued with the Weasley matriarch, his tired eyes observing him intensely. "Shall we begin? Firstly, I hate to ask this of you Harry but could you please tell me what I caught you doing at Christmas time during your first year?"

"You found me looking into the Mirror of Erised," Harry replied smoothly. Dumbledore's shoulders seemed to sag a bit in relief.

"Thank you Harry. I hated to have to even ask, but I could not take the chance that you were not an imposter. Death Eaters could easily have captured you and used a polyjuice double to infiltrate us. Now then Harry, could you please tell me what happened on the night before your birthday?"

Harry shrugged his shoulders, "I wouldn't mind knowing that myself Professor. I don't remember anything until yesterday morning." Dumbledore's eyebrows lifted as he stared into Harry's eyes.

"Really?" Harry looked a little indignant at the question, and felt a slight twinge in his head, but it quickly disappeared.

"Really. I didn't even know that Death Eaters had been to Privet Drive until Ron told me a few minutes ago."

Dumbledore raised a placating hand. "I am sorry my boy, I do not doubt you. But this is a surprising turn of events. Shall we begin then with what you do remember?"

And so Harry spent the next ten minutes relating all that he could remember since waking up in the muggle hospital. Which, he realized while looking back on it, was actually not all that much. Dumbledore listened intently, only occasionally nodding his head thoughtfully. Ron was not so calm.

"They put needles inside of you!" he exclaimed in shock and horror when Harry described his time in the hospital, "I swear, these muggles are all absolutely barmy." Hermione shushed him and had to quickly explain what an I.V. was. "So they stab you with a needle just to give you a potion?" he asked incredulously. "Even Madam Pomfrey isn't that bad. Hell Snape isn't that bad…"

"Ronald Weasley! Language!"

Fred leaned over and smacked Ron in the back of the head. "Oy, shut it bigmouth. Some of us would like to hear the rest of it."

Ron had quieted and they had quickly moved on, Hermione gasping at the crazed police man who had chased Harry.

"My god, that's awful! I can't believe that he was actually shooting at you Harry, what if he had accidentally hit you." The Weasleys looked rather confused at Hermione's reaction, as none of them really understanding exactly what a gun was.

"That concerns me as well Ms. Granger," said Dumbledore, "but please, allow him to finish."

Hermione squeaked an apology and Harry continued.

"There really isn't much more to tell. I dodged around for a bit until he lost track of me, and hid behind one of the stones to catch my breath. I didn't know what to do; I thought I was done for. But then I thought of this place. I closed my eyes and thought about all of you and what you must have been doing right then, and it just seemed so clear to me. And I felt this squeeze, and when I opened my eyes I was here."

Hermione gasped, "Harry, you apparated!" He blinked slowly.

"Really?"

"You had to have," she continued excitedly, "I'm old enough to get my license this year, so I've been reading up on the theory. When you apparate, you are supposed to clearly focus on the location that you wish to travel to, to the exclusion of all else and you have to sort of will yourself there. There's magic involved as well, but the book stated that the magic wasn't nearly as important as being determined enough to travel there. It even describes that squeezing sensation that you mentioned. That has to be it!"

"I believe that Ms. Granger is correct," Dumbledore agreed, "and it is a remarkable achievement for one so young. Apparition is a fairly standard practice; almost any adult witch or wizard is capable of it, but they must be taught how. Harry appears to have discovered the secret on his own through an amazing feat of accidental magic. Bravo my boy. And while I am quite concerned as to how you came to leave Privet Drive, and what brought you halfway across England overnight, for now I am content that you are safe and well. Might I see that wand you said that you found?"

"Of course sir." Harry handed it over and Dumbledore accepted it carefully, turning it this way and that as he examined it. Finally he placed it on the table and pulled his own wand, pointing it at the other, muttering a few incantations. Nothing happened. Dumbledore returned the wand, which Harry quickly stowed back in his pocket.

"I can find no curses or enchantments upon the wand. It appears, despite its questionable origins, to be just a normal wand. Losing the brother to Lord Voldemort's wand might not be a bad thing, knowing how they react to each other." Harry noticed a mass flinch at the use of Voldemort's name from those at the table, though less so from Ginny. She looked more pissed off than scared. "And if this wand has chosen you as you say, then perhaps it is simply fate." Harry felt an odd twinge at the use of the word 'fate,' but the feeling passed quickly and he soon dismissed it.

"Well Harry, as you cannot return to your Aunt and Uncle's any longer, you shall remain here for the remainder of you summer holidays. We will need to discuss more permanent arrangements at some point, but that will not be for some time." Dumbledore's words drove an icy dagger straight into Harry's heart as he finally realized something. In all the excitement of returning to the Burrow and his friends, Harry had not made the connection. Death Eaters. Privet Drive.

"Sir," he asked quickly, "what happened to the Dursleys?" It was as if all of the oxygen had been sucked from the room. No one breathed. After a long pause, Dumbledore spoke.

"I truly do not know Harry. They were already gone when we arrived on the scene, and there was no trace of them. So if they did not escape with you…then we must assume that they were taken by Voldemort." Harry breathed deeply, unsure of how he felt. On the one hand, the Dursleys were absolute arseholes; they were the worst kind of bigots. But on the other hand he didn't know if anyone deserved the fate that likely awaited them. He shook his head.

"Sir, how did they penetrate the wards? You always told me how safe it was there." Dumbledore seemed to shrink, looking less like a powerful wizard and more like a sad, weary old man.

"I don't know Harry. The blood ward around that home was the most powerful protection that I have ever seen. Voldemort could have broken it, but it would have taken months of meticulous research, and even then the process would likely have taken several days and required a large number of blood rituals, none of which would have gone unnoticed. He would have had to besiege the whole street. I placed all of my trust in those wards…so much so that I did not place many other protections upon the house. However he removed your mother's protection, once he did so it would have been mere child's play to penetrate the rest of the wards." He shook his head sadly. "I…I don't know what to say Harry. I am so very sorry."

"It's alright sir, you couldn't have known what would happen."

"Thank you Harry," Dumbledore said as he stood, looking slightly unsteady on his feet. "I believe that will do for now, I am quite ready for a nap before this evening's meeting. Which reminds me Molly, please let Arthur know about it; Tonks is alerting the others." Mrs. Weasley nodded. "I had been hoping you would be able to shed more light on this situation Harry, but it seems you are as much in the dark as I. Never fear, I will continue my search to uncover what has happened to you, but for now just try to enjoy the rest of your summer. I will see all of you soon enough I daresay."

And with that he was gone, as swiftly as he had come. They all sat for a moment, everyone lost in their own thoughts, until Mrs. Weasley stood purposefully.

"Alright now, I know that we're all thrilled to have Harry back, but that doesn't mean that we can shirk our responsibilities. Fred, George, you were supposed to be back at work half an hour ago, off you get."

"Oh come on Mum," George said stretching languidly, "what's the point in owning the place if we can't skive off of work now and then?"

"Yeah, besides," Fred agreed, reaching over to wrap an arm around Harry's shoulders, "it's not every day that someone returns from the dead."

"You shut your mouth this instant young man, I'll hear no more of that kind of talk. And it is exactly that kind of attitude that landed you so few OWL's at Hogwarts. Now get back to work right now or I won't be feeding you for a week."

George sighed and Fred looked dramatically at Harry, "She knows exactly how to get to us." They both stood and made their way toward the door. "It's good to see you're alright mate, we really were quite worried about you."

"That's true," said George, "we even talked about erecting a statue of you in the middle of the store."

Fred nodded, looking wistful, "It would have been marvelous. You, bare-chested, and wrestling a Hungarian Horntail. The girls would have flocked in to buy replicas."

"Out!"

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all laughed as the twin's quickly ducked out the door, and even Harry gave a chuckle despite his embarrassed blush. Mrs. Weasley smiled kindly at him.

"Harry dear, why don't you go upstairs and lie down, I'm sure you're exhausted." She turned to the others, "And you three head outside, there's some gardening for you to take care of."

All three of them objected loudly, but Mrs. Weasley wouldn't budge.

"Not another word. Harry needs rest, not you three hounding him."

"Please Mrs. Weasley," Harry said, "I'll help with the garden, I don't mind."

"Oh that's sweet of you dear, but really I think you need to try to rest." Harry shook his head.

"No really Mrs. Weasley, I'm fine. All I've been doing is resting for the most part. Muggles tend to not let you do much else when you're in the hospital. Please, I'd rather spend the afternoon with Ron, Hermione, and Ginny." She looked thoughtful for a moment, staring intently at him as the other looked on hopefully. Finally she relented, "Oh alright. But I had better not see you over exerting yourself young man, do you hear me?"

"Yes ma'am!" he replied as he, Ginny and Hermione headed off to the garden. Ron stayed behind, shooting pitying looks to his mother as he glanced back and forth between her and the table.

"Alright, fix up a plate and take it outside with you," she sighed, "maybe this will make you think twice before you decide to sleep in." Ron beamed and leapt into action, grabbing everything he could fit onto a single plate and grabbing a glass of juice before hurrying off to join the others.

Mrs. Weasley began clearing the table, a wave of her wand depositing all of the dirty dishes in the nearby sink. Rolling up her sleeves, she dove her hands into the soapy water. She could clean all of them with magic of course, and normally would, but when she was upset she found that she much preferred doing things the muggle way.

And so she scrubbed…and scrubbed and scrubbed. She scrubbed until her fingers hurt and then kept going, tears welling up in her eyes. For days she had remained strong, pushing the children hard and herself even harder, anything to keep all of their minds off of Harry. Trying not to think about the awful things that could be happening to him, or that he might already be dead. And now that he was back home where he belonged…it was just too much, and she finally began to sob, covering her face with her still dripping hands. She stayed like that for quite some time.

Harry and the girls had barely made it to the small Weasley garden when Ron came running behind them, plate and glass in hand and shouting "Wait!" at the top of his lungs. Laughing, they obligingly stopped and waited for him to catch up. Entering the small enclosure that marked the garden, Ron made his way to a small patch of shade, his back against the wall of the house as he sank to the ground and began to tear into his lunch. Ginny glared at him, annoyed.

"Well he'll be busy for a while, so it'll be just us three doing all the work."

"It's fine Ginny, I don't mind," laughed Harry, "I'm just happy to be back here at the Burrow."

"Trust me mate," Ron choked out, his mouth full of potatoes, "we're glad to have you back. Thought you were a goner for sure this time ."

"Ronald," chastised Hermione, "could you at least try to use a little tact?" Ron shrugged.

"Well it's the truth, id'n it?" Hermione shook her head and rolled her eyes as if to say 'He's hopeless.'

Harry and Ginny both laughed as they knelt down into the dirt and began pulling weeds.

"Can I ask you something Harry?" Hermione asked as she joined them.

"Of course."

"Well," she began, slightly hesitantly, "I didn't say anything before because I didn't think it was very important what with everything else. But I can't help but notice that your glasses are missing. Do you know what happened to them? Honestly, as bad as your eyes are I'm surprised you haven't tripped over someone yet."

Ron's brow wrinkled and he look up from what little remained of his lunch to stare intently at Harry's face, looking for the trademark glasses that Harry had worn since the first moment he had met him on the Hogwart's Express.

"Bloody hell! You're right Hermione!"

"Watch your language Ronald. And of course I'm right."

"I don't know where they are Hermione," Harry said in answer to her question, "that was the first thing I looked for when I woke up; it's a reflex by now. But couldn't find them anywhere. And then I noticed that I didn't seem to need them anymore, I can see perfectly fine now."

"And you don't find that strange?" she asked, shocked. "Why didn't you inform the Headmaster?"

"Well like you said," he replied, shrugging, "it didn't seem that important. Compared to everything else at least."

"Still you should inform the Headmaster right away." He waved her off.

"I will Hermione, next time we talk I'll tell him." She glared at him. "I swear, the next time we talk. I'm not going to go running off trying to get a hold of him just for this, ok?"

She finally relented, "All right Harry."

"Anything else you wanted to ask."

"Now that you mention it," she said, "there is something else different about you. I just can't quite put my finger on it."

"It's the smell mate," Ron said, licking his fingers, "you need a bath something awful. I could probably smell you halfway to the village. It's like you bathed in troll spit for Merlin's sake."

At the mention of the word 'Merlin' Harry felt an emotion that he couldn't identify well up inside of him as it had earlier, but again it vanished as soon as it had appeared. He sniffed the air, wrinkling his nose in distaste.

"Good lord, I do," he said quickly, forestalling the objection that he knew was coming from Hermione on his behalf. "Must have been all the running. I do need a shower, but what am I going to change into? I don't have any of my things, it was all at Privet…" His voice trailed off as he considered the implications. No trunk meant no clothes, no books, and most importantly, no invisibility cloak or Marauder's map.

"No worries," Ron said, stretching out and closing his eyes, "your stuff's upstairs in my room." Harry looked surprised. "What? Dumbledore brought your stuff here right after you disappeared; left it in case they were able to find you and bring you back."

"But how? If it was still there when Voldemort attacked, then surely they would have taken it? My invisibility cloak, the map…they'd be powerful weapons in his hands." Ron shrugged.

"No idea mate. But they didn't take anything, I checked. Maybe after they couldn't find you, they were too busy worrying about what…you know…he, was going to do to them to think about stealing your stuff." Harry shrugged as well; he might never know the reasons behind it, but he supposed he should just be grateful.

"Anyway," Hermione ground out, clearly annoyed at their changing the subject, "as I was saying…there's something different about you Harry, but I just can't put my finger on it."

"It's his eyes." This came from Ginny, and the other three all turned to see her busily pulling weeds from in between the vegetables, her eyes staring hard at the dirt. Hermione blinked, and then gasped.

"Of course! How could I not have seen it before?"

"Seen what," Harry asked, concerned, "what about my eyes?"

"They're different," Ginny answered, "for one, they aren't green anymore. They're blue."

"What?" Harry was in complete shock. He liked his eyes; they were the one feature that he had inherited from his mother. And as annoying as it could be to have people constantly telling him that, he rather liked having something of hers. It had always made him feel closer to her somehow. But now apparently that was gone. He unconsciously raised a hand to the side of his face at the level of his eyes. What is happening to me?

"Harry, you have to-"

"Tell Dumbledore?" Harry snapped, "I know, thanks Hermione." She flinched and he instantly regretted his tone. He mumbled an apology and she nodded her acceptance.

"That was a nice spot Ginny," Hermione said, her voice a little tight. "I completely missed it myself. How did you know?" Ginny, still weeding furiously, merely shrugged and muttered something about thinking it was 'obvious'.

The group fell into a slightly uncomfortable silence as they continued to work, with Ron reluctantly joining them after a glare from Hermione had him fearing for his life. Within an hour they had completely finished work on the garden and were standing about chatting when they spotted them. Two gnomes had clambered over the far back wall and were trying to surreptitiously make their way forward towards the newly cleaned garden.

"We'd best go get them mate," Ron said reluctantly, "we let those two take up here and we'll be out here again tomorrow digging up their entire families." The two wizards waited until the gnomes were climbing over the garden fence before making their move, darting forward with arms outstretched. The two gnomes blanched at the sight of the approaching boys, quickly diving to opposite sides trying to make a break for it. They had no chance.

Within moments, both boys stood holding a tiny wriggling blob of flesh that was still desperately kicking and screaming in a bid for freedom. The pair made their way to the back fence, packages in hand and girls in tow. Ron threw first, tossing his in a high lob, going for more height then distance. The gnome landed in a small puff of dirt, lying still for a brief moment before rolling to its feet, shaking its tiny little fist at them, and slinking off.

"Alright mate, you're up," Ron said, smiling. Harry stepped forward and took his friends place, readying his throw. As soon as he let go with one hand to prepare for the toss, the tiny creature lurched out and bit him hard on the finger.

"OWW!" he screamed in agony, dropping the triumphant gnome, who made a fast break for the garden once more. He didn't get far. Harry caught up to him in three long strides, grasping him again with both hands. There was fear in the creature's eyes as he locked gazes with the boy who lived. Harry didn't bother with the throw this time, simply dropping the creature with both hands and lashing out with his foot, catching it in its small, wrinkled arse and sending it flying.

The moment that his foot made contact with the wailing creature, he felt a small burst of magic. And the gnome just kept going and going…until suddenly it was gone, lost over the horizon. The others stared in shock, and he found himself just as shocked as they were. Finally Ron spoke.

"Bloody hell Harry…I think you just broke the record!"