Chapter 2

By the time the graduation ceremony finished and people thought of looking for Harry he was already gone. He had received his diploma and left without staying for the celebration afterwards, having already said his goodbyes to the people that mattered he left without looking back.

From there he took the floo the Three Broomsticks and then apparated to the travel agency to take his international portkey. He was traveling under a fake name courtesy of the goblins, a small glamour took care of the rest. Once in New York he felt he could breathe a little bit easier, there were no reporter hounding him for a picture or an interview, no ministry officials trying to suck up to the savior. Here he was just Harry, a tourist on vacation, no one of consequence.

He took the first available taxi to 1406 Graymalkin Lane, Salem Center, New York. The trip itself was relaxing and he enjoyed looking at the sights and the occasional commentary by the driver. The countryside was soothing and a welcome atmosphere after leaving England. Once in Graymalkin Lane the driver told him about the Xavier Institute for Higher Learning and despite himself he found his interest being peaked.

"… I don't know why they call it that but the mansion is a school for mutants and headquarters of the X-men. I guess they are just trying to avoid bad press, there are many out there that cannot stand the idea of mutants even less a school just for them…"

"Mutants?" Of course Harry had heard them mentioned but he really did not know anything about them, so he could not pass up the opportunity to hear more.

"Yea, they are people with special abilities, some of them are super strong, others can control things like fire or ice, there are shapeshifters, teleporters, some heal and others look more animal than human. The ones in the institute are a good sort and the X-men keep the bad ones in line when they can. There are all sort of movements now, some defending them others… well they aint happy about them, I just thought you should know since the place your going is right next door and not everyone reacts well to mutants".

"Thanks, but I don't mind, I try to be very open minded and I don't really like prejudice. It might be interesting to meet them".

"Good, that's the institute to your right". It was a huge manor house surrounded by acres of land. The old feel of it and design in a way remanded him of Hogwarts, of home. He could also see kids playing outside and what appeared to be some kind of yoga class. After that came Andromeda's home. It was a massive manor house made out of white marble, the gate opened to a paved path surrounded by beautiful gardens. And while he could not see from here he knew there were two greenhouses in the back, a pool, a quidditch pitch and some stables.

By the time the taxi dropped him at the doors Andromeda was already there with a big smile on her face. "Harry, it's so good to see you. Come inside I already have a room prepared for you. You must be tired and you missed dinner, are you hungry dear?"

Holding a laugh Harry hugged her. "Yes Andromeda I am alright and I wouldn't say no to some food. I just took longer for the taxy trip than I had thought. And Teddy?"

"He is already asleep, if you had come twenty minutes early you would had seen him awake. I always put him to bed at 8pm, he can be a handful."

Walking inside he was led to a truly magnificent kitchen, any chefs would think it was their dream kitchen, it had all modern appliances and all brand new. "Wow, this is nice, how do you manage to keep everything clean and in order?"

"Oh, I hired a couple of elves. They work the gardens, the greenhouses and maintain the house clean and if Teddy is being fussy they also take care of the meals. I like to cook and do some gardening but taking care of a baby it's a full time job."

"You can hire free elves here?"

"Yes here when they banned slavery all the races where included in the act, so all house-elves here work for pay. It is a great system and it working well for me. I never liked the pureblood system back at home."

"I am glad you found help. When I transferred this house to you from the list of Black states I did no really realize it was so big. Is the allowance enough?"

"Yes Harry, more than enough, I have even started a savings account in case of emergencies. I know you don't like it when a thank you but you bringing me back into the family has proven to be a blessing, I would not have been able to afford moving otherwise and the memories…" signing she strengthen herself and went to serve Harry some food.

Harry understood were she was coming, he himself could not bring himself to go to Sirius old house. "Andromeda, you have nothing to worry about and nothing to thank me for. You are family and this is what Sirius would had wanted. If you need anything else just let me know".

"Here, eat up." She gave him a gentle smile. "And don't worry yourself, I have everything I need and more right here. How long are you staying?"

"I was planning to stay the whole summer and do some tourism. I also wanted to work on Sirius old bike, I don't know much mechanics so I will have to find someone to check it over and strengthen the spells on it."

"Good, you need to spend some time with your godson, we are all he has left"

"Yes, I want to be here for him. Sirius was never able to care for me but I want to do my best by Teddy."

"I know you will, you are a great person." Silence took over the kitchen only interrupted by the clanking of silverware. Harry felt content, eating a home cooked meal with someone who cared. He needed this, he needed to feel the love of those that really cared to soothe the hurt and betrayal he still felt.

"Harry" Andromeda's voice had a tint of concern to it which immediately put Harry on alert.

"Hmm?"

"I don't know if anyone told you this but every witch and wizard go through a magical inheritance. For everyone it is different and they can have it between the ages of 17 and 20. I know you haven't had yours and your mom got hers at nineteen while your father had his at eighteen. It is likely that your will be this year".

"What? I did not know. What is this inheritance about?" Harry had a frown on his face, why wasn't this taught at Hogwarts?

"This is usually explained by the family at some point and for muggleborns usually it is the head of house that explains, but halfbloods sometimes fall through the cracks. It's usually not a problem since most just get a power boost that leaves them aching a bit, like a good workout but I have the feeling yours will be more than that".

"More? Oh this is just great." Harry says sarcastically, it's always him isn't it? He can never be normal.

"You will probably just get a bigger boost than most but there is a chance that if the inheritance is strong enough it might awaken some of the creature blood in the Potter line. There is also the fact that we always suspected Lily wasn't completely human."

"How can that be? my mum was muggleborn".

"Yes, but muggleborns are mostly the descendants of pureblooded squibs, so there is a chance she inherited something from whatever line she came from. Also there are creatures that do mate with muggles. I don't want you to worry but be papered in case something does happen".

"And how do I get prepared for something like this?"

"Just keep yourself relaxed and eat healthy. You can do some meditation or something that keeps you calm. For me it was swimming, I never felt more relaxed than when I was in the water but for other it can be reading, cooking, dancing or even flying" the last was said with a wink and a knowing smile. Harry just smiled back, after all how bad could it be?

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