A/N: Here's chapter 5. Again, I haven't edited this. I tend to do most of my edits while I write and I haven't had time to read through it with the move and all, but I wanted to get this up before I start work tomorrow.

Thanks for the great reviews and those of you who caught my errors. I will go back and fix them. Your reviews keep me motivated.

I won't be able to update as quickly as I did before I moved now that I'm working. The commute is like an hour…but on the bright side it makes me think and outline more. I've tried to make sure to slow down and expand the story. I got in a hurry last chapter to get to some good parts and I think it hurt the chapter. Until next time.

Chapter 5: The Goblet of Fire, Part I

It had only been a week since Harry had arrived at the Dursleys. He was miserable. Things were only marginally better than last summer, but that was because Harry threatened to write to his godfather, which he had let slip was a wanted murderer. Upon finding out that Harry's godfather was a convicted murderer, Dudley began avoiding him and his Aunt and Uncle simply began ignoring him like they had just before he had started Hogwarts.

Harry waited for the sun to rise so that he could escape the house for the park. He had already made himself some toast. The mornings were always the worse because Ginny would sleep late if no one woke her. He knew he could wake her, but usually just allowed her to sleep. Ginny could be irritable if woken suddenly.

Smiling at the thought of an angry, but still not awake Ginny, Harry fought the urge to wake her up by nudging her mind. Ginny was beautiful when she was angry – her eyes flashed, her face flushed, and Harry swore her hair became a darker shade of red.

Ginny had flamed over the first two days to keep him company. Unfortunately, that only meant that instead of only Harry being bored, Ginny was bored too. The only thing to do was homework, which between the two of them, was quickly finished. Last summer they had effectively explored the immediate surroundings of Privet Drive. Harry wanted to flame to the Burrow and spend time there, but Ginny vetoed the idea saying that she had overheard her mother and father talking about the wards and that they would instantly know if someone, other than a Weasley, appeared on their property.

They were left with few options. Harry had never traveled much, except for the time when Uncle Vernon had tried to outrun the Hogwarts letters, and Ginny had not either as she had missed the family trip to Egypt. Thus for the rest of the week Ginny had stayed at the Burrow where her day was more exciting. This worked out better for both of them as one of Ginny's past times was pranking her brothers. Harry actively tried to help and contributed a few good ideas, although, it was very clear that Ginny's mind was far more devious than his own.

For whatever reason, in the week that all the Weasleys had returned to the Burrow (even Bill and Charlie were staying) had involved an enormous amount of pranks. Most of them were blamed on Fred and George, who according to the Weasleys' own rumor mill (that is everyone except Mrs. Weasley) were testing their inventions to actually sell them.

Fred and George took the pranks good naturedly (so long as you were not averse to being pranked yourself), while Percy never figured out it was Ginny and took his anger out on the twins who could never convince their older brother that they were innocent…this time. Bill and Charlie were also staying at the Burrow this summer, which gave Ginny more targets. Charlie was easy prank.

From everything Ginny had told Harry about Charlie it was evident that Ron was very much like him, although they were built differently. Where Ron was lanky and tall, Charlie was stocky and short like the twins. However, they both were very hard sleepers, notorious snorers, huge (and fast) eaters, and Ginny insisted incredibly thick about girls. Being a hard sleeper he was incredibly easy to prank. So far he had woken up purple, found himself stuck to the ceiling, and he had fallen into a tub of ice cold water when he had rolled off his bed with a little prod from Ginny. Charlie had been furious at the last prank and had demanded that Ginny quit, but she had only responded that she was trying to make up for lost time and that he should visit more often. When she told him that she missed him being there, Charlie forgot about being mad.

If Charlie had it bad, Ron had it the worse. He was not only Ginny's favorite target, but the twins as well. After a week of listening to Ginny's stories and only the pranks that Ron had experienced in one week, Harry understood why his best friend was so petrified of spiders. Nearly all the pranks the twins pulled had something to do with spiders. From his pillow and slippers turning into spiders to the actual release of tiny spiders on him while he was sleeping. Harry had made Ginny vow not to use spiders with her pranks on Ron.

Sticking to her vow, Ginny had not used spiders to prank Ron. Instead she had switched to using Hermione. Along with a large amount of help from the twins, she had found a way to charm his pillow so that it looked like Hermione. When he had woken up in the morning there had been a scream of surprise and then a loud thump as he had backed off the bed so quickly he had not thought to use his feet and instead landed on his backside.

Another time his entire room was wallpapered with Hermione's picture. It had taken Ginny three hours to finish that particular prank. By the end of the week Ron had stopped reacting to Hermione's picture or other object. Indeed, he now slept with a life-size Hermione pillow. Mrs. Weasley had said she would change it back when she did laundry as she was tired of doing it daily.

Bill was completely different. Like Ron, he was tall and lanky, but wore his hair long and had an earring in his left ear much to Mrs. Weasley's vocal distaste. He had so far frustrated Ginny and the twins attempt to prank him. According to Bill, they should have known better than to try and prank a curse breaker. This comment made both Harry and Ginny seriously start considering curse breaking as a career.

Last night Harry had suggested that Ginny stop trying complicated and devious pranks and switch to something obvious and simple. He was eagerly awaiting the result.

The moment he saw the sun start to peek through the kitchen window he left. The bit of toast was more than his usual breakfast now if he waited for the Dursleys since Dudley was on a diet. Harry snickered at the idea. For once in his life Dudley was miserable.

When he reached the park and sat down on one of the swings, he made sure Ginny was still asleep before allowing himself to think about her birthday present. It was monumentally difficult to hide anything from each other, but some details could be hidden. Ginny knew that he was excited about her present, but so far he had kept what it was a secret. The effort was almost not worth it, but he wanted to surprise Ginny. She would flip when she received the firebolt.

Ginny was better at keeping secrets than Harry, but not much better. He also knew that she had gotten him a birthday present and that she was worried that he would not like it. She had yet to realize that it did not matter what she gave him, so long as it came from her Harry would treasure it. He had been scared to wear the sweater she had made him for fear that he might spill something on it or worse.

Ginny started to rouse and he quickly pushed thoughts of her birthday away.

Good morning, Ginny, Harry sent cheerfully.

You are entirely too cheery, too early in the morning, Ginny sent back. He could sense the amusement underneath her amusement.

I'm just happy you're awake. I wish I could see you.

Silence greeted this as Ginny seemed to be giving the statement thought, You know, we could see each other. You know that no one usually sees you until the evening over there and I usually disappear for the day after breakfast here too. We could flame to the Manor; there should be more than enough there to keep us busy.

That sounds great. Has Bill woken up?

No not yet. I put a permanent sticking potion just out side of his door and on his door knob.

Snickering at the possible result, Harry found the image of Bill's hand stuck to his door while his feet were stuck to the floor hilarious.

When do you want to go to the Manor?

Harry did not bother to respond; he knew Ginny could feel his approval and his transformation as he flamed to the Manor. She giggled in his mind and sent, I'll see you there in a bit. I'm going to wait until Bill wakes up.

Transforming back to himself, Harry surveyed the room. He was back in the same room the portkey had brought them over Christmas. Harry collapsed into one of the leather armchairs and waited for Ginny. His stomach gave a rumble and he wished that he could have eaten more than toast.

A small pop announced Corfy's arrival. Corfy had large ears like Dobby, but his eyes were smaller and his nose was also not near as large.

"Would Master care for anything?" the house elf asked.

Harry was embarrassed. He did not like being called "Master" and he had never had anyone wait on him before.

"Err…no I'm alright. Thank you," just as Harry finished his stomach gave a loud rumble as if in defiance of his words.

Corfy raised his thin eyebrows, "Perhaps you should reconsider?"

"I don't want to be any trouble," mumbled Harry a slight blush starting to creep up his neck to his cheeks.

His words were greeted by a chuckle from Corfy, "Master, you do not understand. Serving you is not trouble; it is an honor and a pleasure. It has been terribly boring here for the past thirteen years and there is not enough work for us house elves." Corfy let his words sink in and when he thought his young master was willing to be served he asked, "Would you care for breakfast?" Harry nodded and allowed himself to be led to a breakfast nook that overlooked a large expanse of gardens. Corfy smiled as he busied himself with breakfast; the master of the Manor had returned and for the first time in over a decade his life had a purpose again.

………………………………

Ginny was concentrating so hard that she did not even notice Harry's conversation with Corfy. Instead, Ginny was peaking through a barely open door watching the closed door across the hall to open. Bill and Charlie were sharing the twins' room while Fred and George were in Ron's room. Bill was always the first to wake and Ginny was anxiously waiting to see if Harry's approach would work.

The door creaked open, Ginny smiled wickedly, and Bill's unshod foot came out as he moved to let go of the door he exclaimed, "What the?" His hand was stuck to the knob. Bill tried to move his feet together to give him leverage to try and pull his hand off the door or baring that reach for his wand. Unfortunately for Bill, his left foot was stuck just outside of the door. The Burrow soon echoed with Bill's voice demanding to be released.

Trying to walk as innocently as she could, Ginny leisurely walked to Bill and decided to drop most of the pretense, "Is everything all right my unprankable brother?" She batted her eyelashes at him and deviously smiled.

"You? Why you little…" he stopped mid-sentence and narrowed his eyes, "you changed tactics." Bill was very surprised. He expected both the twins and Ginny to try and pull elaborate pranks, but the joke Ginny had just trapped him in was simple and if he had not been looking for more inconspicuous signs of trouble he would have immediately saw the obvious. "So can you release me now?" he asked.

Still smiling Ginny shook her head, "Can't, it's that special glue Fred and George developed. You need to get the solvent from them. Well gotta go!" Ginny had made sure she was well out of reach of Bill's free arm before informing him of the special glue and was now on her way back to her room where she transformed and flamed to Potter Manor.

Ginny looked around the den smiling; snickering quietly she then called out, "Honey, I'm home…" It was the first time she had even thought of Potter Manor as home even if it was in jest. She heard Harry laugh from the dining room and walked through the hallway and doors to it. She was immediately enveloped by Harry.

"It has only been three days," she chided him; Harry only smiled wider into her hair. "It's good to see you too. I wish you could have seen Bill this morning. I wonder how long he will be stuck before Fred and George give him the solvent."

Harry laughed and let go of Ginny. The rest of the morning they spent exploring the Manor. The Dueling Chamber was impressive and they both wished they could practice magic. Next to the Chamber was the dining room that could easily sit the entire Weasley family along with the teachers and staff of Hogwarts. Another door from the dining room led to a large Ball Room. The other large room on the ground floor was the library, which actually spanned several floors.

It was not until mid-morning that they finished looking through the first floor and made their way to upper floors (there were three of them). They soon discovered that most of the rooms were bedrooms of varying sizes and design. Toward the center of the floor was the master bedroom suite. It actually extended up to the top of the Manor. The second floor was much like the Welcoming den and was basically a lavish sitting room. The fourth floor was devoted solely to the bedroom, bathroom, and closet space. Between these floors was a small dining room that overlooked the Manor's grounds and a large den that seemed to be furnished as an office. There were two large desks and file cabinets. The walls were lined with bookshelves.

They moved beyond the master suite into what was a large closet that seemed to be furnished with nothing but dress robes. Ginny was captivated by them and said that they were among the most beautiful robes she had ever seen. Even Harry was impressed with the selection of dress robes that were all somehow regal.

As they exited the large closet they were greeted by a small 'pop' and Ding was standing in front of them. The small elf bowed low and said, "Would the Master and Mistress care for some lunch?"

Lunch was wonderful. Not only did the elves provide a huge variety of sandwiches, but also a large selection of fresh fruit. One of the elves was always close by to whisk away a used plate or utensil or fill an emptying glass. Harry could not keep from stammering his thanks; Ginny was only managing slightly better.

The house elves mostly ignored their stammerings except for Ding who seemed to be embarrassed by Harry's and Ginny's embarrassment. After lunch Dinny took them on a short tour of the grounds. The gardens were even more magnificent close up. In the distance they could see a couple of other small, at least in comparison to the Manor, cottages that were part of the estate. The last stop they made was the quidditch pitch. Both Harry and Ginny were extremely excited upon finding out there was a pitch. Unfortunately, neither had brought their brooms, but decided to bring them the next day.

From there Dinny left them and Harry and Ginny began exploring the surrounding woods using their panther animagus forms. They had not had a lot of time to practice the forms and found that just like their phoenix forms, their panther forms opened up a whole new world to them. Their senses were far more perceptive, especially hearing and smell. Unlike their phoenix forms, they found that while they were still themselves their thoughts were simpler and more catlike. While being a phoenix definitely changed their outlook, it did not change how they thought. The simplifying of thoughts was strangely freeing and relaxing.

When the walked back into the Manor they were greeted by Corfy, "Do you have any requests for dinner?"

Ginny's eyes widened, "It's dinner time already? Oh, I've got to go. Mom will kill me!" She turned and quickly kissed Harry and then transformed so she could flame away.

Harry stood for a moment still mesmerized by the quick kiss and a stray thought crossed his mind, What is it going to be like snogging her? Shaking his head slightly, he looked down at an amused Corfy.

"I, um, I'm not really sure," he answered truthfully. He had never been asked what he wanted for dinner.

Corfy nodded and said, "No problem Master. Perhaps you would like Master James' favorite?" Harry smiled and nodded enthusiastically. It had not really occurred to him that the house elves could tell him a lot about his parents. He could not wait to find out what meal was his father's favorite.

…………………………..

Over the next couple of weeks Harry and Ginny enjoyed themselves immensely. They continued exploring their panther forms and the grounds around the Manor. In addition to this, they also practiced quidditch and played tag on their brooms taking turns on Harry's firebolt and Ginny's old Comet.

The more they learned about the house elves the more they liked them. Corfy was the oldest followed by Bonny and Dinny. Ding was the youngest and was barely old enough to remember to remember Harry's birth. Much like the Hogwarts' house elves they wore towels emblazoned with the Potter crest. No matter how many times they asked, they house elves refused not to call the Master and Mistress.

Bonny and Dinny were able to entertain Ginny and Harry for hours with stories of Harry's father and his friends. It was obvious that they considered Sirius almost as good as family in their regaling of stories. Dinny was particularly fond of retelling the story when James and Sirius had gotten caught sneaking back in late one summer night. Evidently, Harry's grandfather had caught them and had given them a lecture at a volume that would have rivaled one of Mrs. Weasley's howlers. On the other hand, Bonny liked to tell them the few stories she had about Lily, who he seemed to have been very fond of.

Where Bonny and Dinny were able to tell stories about Harry's parents, Corfy was able to go back two generations further to Harry's grandparents and great grandparents. He was also the only house elf willing to talk about how Harry's grandparents died without an order when Harry asked about them. He had hung his head with a sad expression.

"We do not like to talk about their deaths. It was a very sad day. It was shortly before young Master James and Mistress Lily went into hiding. They were…were…not here when it happened. No, we would have died to protect them," the old elf's eyes seemed to glow with intensity at his sincerity. "Important man Master Charles was and a good man," Corfy's voice began to quiver, but he continued, "Master Charles and Mistress Danielle were at big Ministry function and dark wizards attacked. Many fled but not the Master and Mistress, they stood…" He left off at that and stared at the floor.

The other wealth of information was the Daniel, the painting. Indeed, Harry and Ginny after visiting him a few times now avoided even passing the room he was in because he was eager to share all he knew with them. Daniel first had started talking about the Manor itself. He had informed them that it was almost as old as Hogwarts and that the center portion was actually the keep of an old castle and the rest of the Manor had grown up around it. The keep had been remodeled several times and from the inside it was indistinguishable from the rest of the Manor. From the outside it was not obvious until the observer examined the masonry closely.

Daniel had also informed them that while he was not old enough to remember the castle itself he was sure that it had been magnificent. When he started to go into depth about the different phases of the Manor's construction both Harry and Ginny glazed over nodding and making grunts in all the right places. It had become clear to them why Daniel's painting hung in the small room away from…the room was conveniently far away from any of the main thoroughfares of the Manor.

It was not until their third week that they explored the dungeons below the old keep. Almost half of the Dungeon had been converted into a storehouse for potion ingredients while the rest of the dungeon was a large potions lab. Harry looked around stunned. Many of the ingredients stored here were very rare. He had not even realized he had learned anything from Snape, but evidently he had.

Ginny was also looking around in wonder, "Wow! Too bad we did not know about this when we were making the animagus potion…"

…………………………….

Eyes opened and Harry found himself staring at a small fire in what was clearly a fireplace that had not been used in ages. Something was wrong. Then he saw Wormtail.

"Master, how are you feeling? What do you need?" the man simpered.

To Harry's astonishment he responded, "I need you to follow the plan. Within a year all will be done. I will have my body restored and Harry Potter will be dead. All thanks to my loyal servant who will be at Hogwarts." Harry felt pure horror as he realized who must be talking and through whose eyes he was seeing.

It was with this realization that he understood what was wrong. Ginny and he could at times see through each others' eyes and were to a certain extent always in the others mind. The sensation he was feeling was similar, but horribly different at the same time. While he was in Ginny's mind he felt as if he was surrounded by a warm blanket. He felt safe there. He felt…well Harry really did not know how to describe it, but it was not this. In this mind he felt deathly cold and far from safe. This place was evil. With all his might he tried to leave.

Harry started to panic and began searching his mind for a solution. Searching for a solution, anything that would help him escape he found a safe place he could retreat into. He thought he heard someone calling his name. Again it came a little louder and then a wave of something passed over him. It was like passing into the warmness and safety of Ginny's mind. He remembered Ginny telling him about how Tom Riddle could not find her because of the soul bond that it had been like an impenetrable wall to Riddle. Harry had found his wall.

HARRY! Ginny's voice screamed in his head.

Harry felt the connection with Voldemort disappear, Ginny? His own thoughts were weak and his scar was throbbing, but as Ginny started to talk to him the pain faded.

What was that Harry? You were so…so…distant and in pain. Ginny's voice was full of worry.

Thank you Ginny. When you called me…you helped me escape. I..I..I saw Wormtail…I think I was in Voldemort's mind.

You have to tell some one…besides me.

Who? What am I supposed to say? Hi, Professor Dumbledore my scar hurt and I had a dream that Voldemort was plotting to kill me. Harry was nearly yelling in exasperation.

Don't be short with me! Harry quailed at Ginny's tone, If you won't tell Dumbledore then write to Sirius, but I think you should write to Dumbledore too.

Sorry, I…Ginny if he's after me then…you…

Hush, Harry. Ginny could tell he was still shaken and almost without thinking she transformed and flamed to Privet Drive.

Ginny's arms wrapped around Harry from behind and pulled him close. "Shhh, Harry, I'm here. I'm not leaving. I love you." She felt Harry stiffen at her words and then relax again.

Harry's eyes had flung wide when Ginny had said she loved him. It dawned on him that it was that emotion that he had being trying to convey to Ginny for so long, but he had not known the words.

"Ginny, I love you." Ginny responded by holding him tighter and kissing the back of his head.

How long they stayed like that with Ginny holding Harry tight against her neither of them knew, but they woke up with their arms tightly wound around one another. Ginny had to leave with the dawn and make her appearance at breakfast.

Sitting down, Harry took out two pieces of parchment, an ink bottle, and a quill. It was time to take Ginny's advice.

Dear Professor Dumbledore,

Last night I had a dream that really wasn't a dream. I was inside Voldemort's mind. I don't know how that's possible since he does not have a body, but he was with Wormtail and they were discussing how his body would be restored to him and that they were going to kill someone.

I woke up and my scar was hurting just like when he was close in my first year. Do you think that this is serious?

Thanks for your help,

Harry Potter

Harry quickly folded the parchment and addressed it. Then he began writing another one to Sirius. He gave them both to Hedwig, "Be careful Hedwig and make sure no one follows you." Hedwig hooted reassuringly and soared away. Harry knew that Sirius was in hiding somewhere where it was warm since all of his letters were carried by very colorful birds.

…………………………..

Harry felt relieved after he followed Ginny's advice. The weight that had been on his shoulders seemed to dissipate as if he had given the responsibility of what Voldemort was planning to Dumbledore and Sirius. It was almost midnight. In one minute he would be fourteen. Since his eleventh birthday and Hagrid's arrival it had become a tradition for him to stay up and usher in his birthday.

At just past midnight several owls arrived at his window. One was Hedwig, looking incredibly pleased with herself. Another was a very exhausted Errol. The two other owls perched patiently on his bed he did not recognize. While the two owls were unfamiliar, the handwriting was not. The first bore a neat, loopy handwriting that was Dumbledore's. The other letter bore the opposite and was obviously from Hagrid.

Errol bore two letters and two parcels. Harry briefly wondered how the old owl had managed to make it to Privet Drive still breathing before he untied Errol's burdens and offered the bedraggled owl water before it collapsed unconscious. Hedwig bore two letters and one parcel. One of the letters and the parcel were from Hermione. Like Dumbledore her handwriting was very neat, but it was also tiny. The other letter did not have any writing on it whatsoever, but Harry knew who had sent it. All he had to do was hold the letter up and sniff and he could catch just a hint of Ginny's smell. He smiled. If he did not know better, and he did, he would swear she did it on purpose.

Harry decided to start with Dumbledore's letter first.

Dear Harry,

First, let me congratulate you on your birthday. It is amazing how wonderful they are when you are young. I hope you are enjoying your summer as best you can, although I believe that it will shortly be improving.

I would like to thank you for informing me of your dream. It is a disturbing piece of news, but not one that was unexpected. Please inform me if your scar hurts again, but do not let this incident trouble you.

We will talk once term starts.

Sincerely yours,

Albus Dumbledore

Shocking, stunning, crazy were all adjectives to how Harry was feeling after reading Dumbledore's letter.

Don't let it trouble you? Yeah…I just have the wizard whose name everyone is afraid to say plotting to kill me. Nothing to worry about. Nothing at all…

Sighing, Harry pushed the letter aside and looked at Ginny's letter. He moved to open it and then stopped deciding he would open hers last. He smiled at what Ginny would think about Dumbledore's letter…do not let this incident trouble you indeed. Snickering, Harry did not envy being in Dumbledore's shoes – Ginny was going to let him have it.

Harry prodded the parcel from Hagrid gingerly. He was a little afraid of what might be in it. Last year Hagrid had sent him a book, but not just any book. No this book bit and moved on its own. Relief washed over him when the package did not respond to his prod and he unwrapped it. It was a wallet with fangs that Harry supposed was some kind of security feature…now if only he could figure out how to get passed them. He put Hagrid's present and the accompanying birthday card on his dresser and moved on.

Ron had sent him a Chudley Cannons shirt. Harry did not understand Ron's fanaticism with the Cannons. They were awful, but they were his team. Folding the bright orange shirt, Harry opened Hermione's gift. Predictably, it was a book. The title was Why Wizards Don't Meddle with Time: Fate's Wrath. Something about the title made Harry pause and casually flip through the heavy book. So much had happened in the past three years that he had practically forgotten about the letter that was little more than a note that he had evidently sent himself. Harry tried to recall what it had been closed with…something about fate…something about Fate owing him.

Harry began to get a little nervous. Why did Hermione send me this? She could not possibly know. Only Ginny knows…

Ginny was the only one who knew about the letter. He had told her in his first year during one of their many conversations. Both of them had no idea why fate would owe him one or how the letter had been sent at all. Neither of them had cared very much at the time and the mysteries of Hogwarts had quickly driven it from both of their minds.

I'll have to read this later, Harry thought.

Errol's other burden was obviously from Mrs. Weasley and contained some of her excellent cooking. He did not really need it even with Dudley's diet as he often ate at the Manor, but Mrs. Weasley's cooking was always good.

Ginny's letter was next.

Happy Birthday Harry!

You don't get your present until tonight though. See you soon.

Love,

Your Ginny

Harry wondered how she did it…he knew that she had something for him, but had no idea what it was. The only reason Ginny did not know about the firebolt Harry had bought her was that Harry had sent Hedwig with the letter of authorization to buy it when she was asleep and only allowed himself to think about it when Ginny was asleep too. She knew that he had bought her something, something expensive and something he was sure she would like, but that was as far as she had been able to get out of Harry.

All Harry knew about Ginny's present was that it was something she had put a lot of thought in to and was very nervous about otherwise she kept that part of her mind securely closed. It was something they had discovered how to do after the Chamber of Secrets. It was kind of like partitioning off a portion of their mind with a wall and a sign that said "PRIVATE: NO ENTRANCE."

The wall itself really did not stop either Harry or Ginny from crossing through it. Their minds were far too closely connected for it to, but what it represented did. They each had to trust the other not to delve to deeply and cross the line. Unfortunately, Harry had found that it took a great deal of concentration to maintain the hypothetical wall and his often wavered in and out of existence allowing certain facts to slip through. Ginny, who had grown up the youngest child and only daughter, had a more refined ability than Harry. She had found that it was much like lying with a straight face. It was not so much the lying that was important in this case, but rather the concentration it took to keep your features impassive.

Arranging all his birthday cards on his dresser, Harry smiled broadly. They were his first birthday cards. Last year all of his had been intercepted by a well meaning Dobby. Returning to bed, he closed his eyes and slept until the sun woke him.

Once he was awake he stormed down the stairs, waved to the shocked Dursleys and ran to the park in search of an unobserved place to transform and flame to the Manor.

Harry transformed back into a human and looked around; shocked Ginny was not there to meet him. Instead, Bonny was there. "Welcome, Master, and happy birthday. Please follow me." Harry followed the elf.

Bonny led him to the same breakfast nook that Corfy had led him to the first day. Waiting there for him was a smiling Ginny. She was standing just in front of the table and when Harry entered she enveloped him in a tight hug.

"Happy birthday, Harry," she whispered to him. "Now, come on and let's eat breakfast. Then you can open your present."

The breakfast was fantastic even by the house elves' usual high standards. After he had finished and Ding had spirited away the dirty plates Ginny shyly handed him a flat package.

Harry tore the wrapping off eagerly and was surprised. It was a wizarding picture. On it were two phoenixes he recognized immediately as himself and Ginny. He smiled the picture was fantastic. It showed the two of them flying just above the tree tops on the Manor's grounds. They would dip in and out of the trees playing a game of tag. Occasionally one would burst into flame to be followed by the other. Eventually the two phoenixes perched on one of the branches in the foreground nuzzling and preening each other.

"Thank you, Ginny, this is great," said Harry meaning every word, "But how did you manage it?"

Ginny smiled, relieved that Harry liked the gift, "Your grandmother liked photography. I found her old camera and Corfy took the picture. Then I had it developed." Her smiled changed to one of true happiness and a bit of mischief, "I've also got a bit of news. I think you'll receive an owl soon from Ron telling you, but I want to tell you first."

"What is it?" asked Harry with the feeling that Ginny probably was not going to tell him.

"Can't you guess Harry?" Ginny responded, raising an eyebrow.

Harry decided to switch tactics, "Do you know how pretty you are when you do that?"

Ginny laughed and her brown eyes twinkled at the comment, "I like the flattery Harry, but you still have to guess."

Wracking his brain and hoping to pick up on Ginny's stray thoughts at the same time Harry contemplated, "I get to go to the Burrow." That would be it, going to the Burrow would be the best news possible.

"Very good Harry! But that's only part of it. Do you remember Ron saying something about the Quidditch World Cup?"

"Only about every other word on the train ride to Kings Cross," Harry answered rolling his eyes.

Ginny shook her head, "Dad got tickets! We are all going. We should pick you up some time tomorrow – so make sure you're packed and ready."

"WOW" was all Harry managed.

The spent the rest of the morning playing quidditch. When they were finished and had lunch, Ginny announced that there was only one thing they had to do before Harry had to leave and prepare the Dursleys for the Weasleys arrival.

"Harry, we need Marauder names. We didn't get to do many pranks last year with Sirius and security at the castle, but we will this year. Since your dad, Sirius, and Professor Lupin were all great pranksters we should follow in their footsteps – we're already animagi."

"That's a great idea Ginny!" Harry smiled slyly and examined Ginny's freckled face. Her animagus forms also bore freckles, "Do I get to name you?" Ginny narrowed her eyes at Harry's expression, but nodded. "Good, then I hereby name you Freckles."

"WHAT! Freckles…well if that is how you want to play it. Then if you get to name me, I get to name you." She gave him an appraising look and considered his forms, "Your name will be Ruffles." Reaching over she ruffled his hair to his questioning look.

Harry sighed. He would never escape that particular inheritance.