A Star In Heaven

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter in any way shape or form. I do not claim to own him or anything else that may in fact be the thought of the lovely writer Jo Rowling is, please don't sue me. I do however own all original characters in whole or in part that appear in this story. This story is not HBP compliant, though quite a few things are taken from that book; again I own nothing except for the plot and original characters. Thank you for reading! –GypsyJade

A/n: Words that are in italics only convey thought, words in italics but between these things "" (whose name I've momentarily forgotten) convey a spoken spell, got it? Good! On another note I do borrow dialogue from the wonderful genius that is Jo Rowling as there are certain things that can not be changed, so yes you'll recognize it, it's not mine don't sue me. Cookies for everyone!-GypsyJade

Chapter 2

One Last Return

Harry Potter hated his relatives, more than anyone he ever knew. And for The Boy Who Lived, that was really saying something. He didn't understand why Dumbledore made him return to the forsaken place that was Number 4 Privet Drive year after year, when there was in the least, another place, another family who would have loved to have him there. But every year since he was 11 he had to return to this place, with Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon and worst of all Dudley. So here he was, digging up weeds by the root in Aunt Petunia's garden, covered with dirt, bits of green…something or other all over his far too large clothes and some weird smooched pink thing he hoped hadn't been an earthworm on his knee. If there was one thing he was grateful for was the simple fact that he was outside. It was a rare occurrence when he was at his Uncle's house to be let out, after all they wouldn't want the neighbors to see him and think he was in any way shape or form related to them. And once again the simple thought of how in the world this woman he called Aunt Petunia was in fact related to his mother, sought its way into his head, causing him to chop rather dangerously at a particularly stubborn weed.

"I daresay Madam Sprout would be indeed very appalled to see you treat a plant that way Harry" the boy froze mid twack and looked up through his dirt encrusted glasses to see two very familiar and welcomed faces.
"Headmaster?" trying to wipe his glasses on his equally dirty shirt sleeve Harry only managed to make the pair chuckle before a very welcome voice cleaned them with a wave of the wand.
"Scourifigy, honestly Harry you should have known that would only make a bigger mess." Harry could only offer the other man a sheepish grin as he helped himself up off the ground.
"What are you doing here?" Harry turned back to Dumbledore after looking at the worn but slightly fuller appearance of his favorite ex professor and werewolf friend.
"I trust you received my owl Harry? I'm sorry I could not give you an exact time but it is Friday is it not?" Dumbledore's tone was rather light as were his eyes though they did hold a slight serious look as if questioning Harry, 'you did not prepare because you did not believe I would come'. Harry very suddenly felt very ashamed and shifted slightly under both wizards' gaze.

"Are you done in the garden boy? I don't want the neighbors to see you more than necessary, do you hear me!" As ironically cruel as it seemed, Harry was saved from answering by the bellowing that his dear Uncle Vernon had commenced. Harry bit his tongue as a sarcastic reply fought to make it's way out, after all who would notice him if his Uncle was not bellowing through half of the house disturbing the tranquility that had indeed settled itself on Privet Drive, along with the insufferable heat.
"I see you haven't informed your relatives that we were on the way, or else I doubt they would have you out here in this high heat…well no matter let's go inside I have a few things to discuss with them and Remus will be more than happy to help you gather any last bits of possession that might need picking up" Dumbledore's tone lacked it's normal warmth and Harry did not want to be on the receiving end of it. He led them into the kitchen only pausing slightly to make sure he didn't track anymore dirt and mud than necessary into Aunt Petunia's immaculate house for fear she would blow a fuse, as much as he didn't particularly like her, he didn't want to see her head blow off.
"Uncle Vernon? Aunt Petunia, I forgot to mention that my Headmaster would be by today to speak with you" Harry watched in morbid awe as the vein in Uncle Vernon's head pulsed rather grotesquely at the bit of information.
"And what time will those …people be here" a terrified squeak and grip on his immensely meaty arm prevented Vernon from using his normally preferred word of "freak" to describe the wizards.
"Actually, right now…I'm sure you remember the Headmaster of Hogwarts Albus Dumbledore, and this is Remus Lupin" Harry decided it was best not to mention that Remus was a werewolf for fear that Aunt Petunia might faint, though she was already on the verge of it if he could judge anything from how pale she got in the last minute.
"Harry why don't I help you upstairs…" Remus obviously did not want to be in that room for Albus' "friendly chat" with his relatives and frankly neither did he.
"Great idea…this way." Harry led him out of the kitchen passing a terrified looking Dudley trying to grasp onto and cover his rump.

"Well this is what I call under prepared" Remus rolled his eyes at Harry's messy room and proceeded to pull open his trunk trying to figure out what to load first.
"Tell me how did all this fit in here in the first place?" Harry shrugged smiling and looking around to help put his things away.
"Maybe you should go take a shower Harry…you're starting to remind me of an overgrown Mandrake" Remus chuckled as Harry threw a wad of clothes at him before heading out. On the way back to his room, properly scrubbed and bathed, Harry could quite well hear the distinct muffled sounds of Uncle Vernon's yelling downstairs and wondered if it wasn't time for them to go yet.
"I do believe I've got everything to once again fit into your trunk, though I'm not going to ask why your trainers were shoved up and under the bed." Remus rolled his eyes once again and since seeing him earlier in the garden Harry actually saw him. Remus looked quite worn if not a little fuller around the middle, newly healed gashes found themselves on his face and part of his neck as if he had been in a fight.
"Remus what happened to your…" Harry was cut off by Remus' hand, as he handed him Hedwig's cage.
"That's a story for another time, now I think we've left your relatives alone with Albus long enough" Remus shrunk Harry's trunk and pocketed it. Sighing in immediate defeat, Harry led the way downstairs holding Hedwig's cage gently.

"Ah, Harry I see you've cleaned up. Now before we go on our way, I'm afraid we will have to impose on your Aunt and Uncle's hospitality for a little while more." Dumbledore passed from the kitchen into the sitting room leaving a very flabbergasted Vernon Dursley and an unbelievably pale Petunia in his wake.
"You will, will you?" was all that Uncle Vernon could even process much less form into words at this point in his anger.
"Yes, I shall" Dumbledore flicked his wand at the three causing them to zoom through the room and sit on the couch, rather unceremoniously. Before having to be told to both Remus and Harry sat on the last armchair, Harry sitting on the arm while Remus took the chair.
"Sirius' will was uncovered last week Harry and it seems that he has left you everything he owned." The was a muffled intake of breath from the couch, but Harry refused to look their way.
"You mean…his godfather's dead!" Vernon looked about ready to explode from the news; Harry hadn't felt inclined to tell them that his one godfather had died.
"Yes, now the gold of course will join your vault at Gringotts, you also inherit all of his personal possessions; the only problem we can see is that he also left you number twelve, Grimmauld Place." An eerie silence filled the room, and Harry was sure he would fall ill, his stomach was already starting to plot against him.
"He's been left a house!" Vernon's voice betrayed his interest and greed enough that Remus shot the man a hell of a glare which caused complete silence to come from Vernon's flapping mouth, once again Vernon's fear of wizards had left him speechless.
"I don't want it, you can have it Headmaster… for Headquarters or you Remus you can have it if you want…I want nothing to do with it" Harry was finding it harder to swallow as he said so.
"As generous as that is we've vacated headquarters from number twelve for the time being until we are sure that it has indeed passed into your possession" Dumbledore nodded his head at which Remus continued though Harry thought his voice was rather tight.

"As with most purebloods the Black family decrees that traditionally the house should be handed down the direct line, to the next male with the name of 'Black' but since Sirius is gone…and his younger brother Regulus as well and neither had children of their own. It very well may be that the house has passed into the next in line for ownership, in other words: number twelve, Grimmauld Place may have passed into Bellatrix Lestrange's ownership." Harry stared in disbelief of what he was hearing, Bellatrix to own Sirius' house? The woman who killed him? His own bloody cousin sent him through that forsaken veil in the Department of Mysteries, and then gloated about it to Harry!
"No…" Dumbledore cleared his throat a bit and set Harry with a slightly amused look before replying.
"Well we would rather you had complete ownership of it as well Harry. Luckily there is a very simple test we can perform to see if the house has in fact come into your ownership" Dumbledore stood and held out his wand once again.
"What kind of test Professor?" Harry set Hedwig's cage down, having just realized he still held it in his lap.
"Well if you have inherited the house as proclaimed by the will then you have also inherited" With a flick of his wand a loud crack and a thud of something dropping onto Aunt Petunia's immaculate floors was heard. And there in the middle of the sitting room on top of the shag carpet appeared a house-elf, one with a snout for a nose, giant bat's ears and enormous bloodshot eyes, who looked rather murderous in his filthy rags.
"Kreacher…"

The Dursley's collectively shrieked and drew among themselves as if the horrid little creature would attack them at any moment. Harry did not expect this and stared at the horrible creature, one that had surely aided in some of his misery, one that he did not want to be responsible for.
"Kreacher won't, Kreacher won't, Kreacher won't!" the Dursley's squeals were drowned out by the horrible little elf's incessant screaming, and it occurred to Harry he looked very much like Dudley did at 3 years of age while throwing a tantrum.
"Kreacher belongs to Miss Bellatrix, oh yes, Kreacher belongs to the Blacks, Kreacher wants his new mistress, Kreacher won't go to the Potter brat, Kreacher won't, won't!"
Remus grabbed Harry's arm and motioned to the elf, doing his best to shout over it.
"As you can see he's reluctant to come to you, so the house is rightfully yours…now if you would have him do something to stop this horrible noise before we are all left deaf!"
Harry watched as Remus covered his ears the more Kreacher banged himself on the floor throwing a tantrum. Give him an order? Harry didn't want the horrid little creature, he didn't care what Hermione said, this was one evil house elf, who deserved nothing of freedom.

"Kreacher shut up!" there was nothing else he wanted from the horrible waste of mass, just quiet and that was exactly what he got, golden silence. Kreacher kept throwing a silent tantrum pure fury shinning in his horrible bloodshot eyes promising nothing but dark painful secrets for his newly inherited Master.
"It seems Sirius knew what he was doing; you are the rightful owner of number twelve Grimmauld Place and of Kreacher. Though if I may make a suggestion maybe it's best if you send Kreacher to work at Hogwarts with the other house-elves to keep an eye on him, we don't want him to find any sort of loophole in this entire mess" Harry looked back at Remus and then down at Kreacher who was looking as if he would rather tear him limb from limb.
"Good idea Professor, Kreacher I want you to go work in the Hogwarts kitchens with the other house-elves" with one more glare at the entire room Kreacher disappeared with a pop.
"Before we go there is one other thing I must discuss with your relatives and you might as well sit and listen as well" Dumbledore nodded to the chair Remus had been sitting in and Harry obliged sitting down and looking up at Remus in question.

"As you well know, Harry comes of age in a year's time…"Dumbledore began his tone light though Harry could almost see the chill emanating from him as he looked at the Dursley's who in turn drew closer together as if struck dumb, except Petunia who spoke for the first time since Dumbledore stepped foot into her house.
"No, he doesn't. He's a month younger than Dudley and Dudders doesn't turn eighteen until the year after next." Her voice was slightly squeaking but she did not falter. Dumbledore in turn smiled at her as one would a small child who believes to have all the answers without knowing any of the questions.
"In the muggle world perhaps, but in the Wizarding world he will come of age in a year's time." Remus answered her somewhat kindly before Dumbledore continued as if he hadn't been interrupted at all.
"Now as you may or may not know the wizard called Lord Voldemort has returned to this country. The Wizarding community is in open warfare and Harry whom Lord Voldemort has already attempted to kill on more occasions that I would like to remember is in even greater danger than the day that I left him on your doorstep fifteen years ago, with a letter explaining about his parents' murder and expressing the hope that you would care for him as though he were your own. Something you did not do. You have never treated Harry as a son, and he has known nothing but neglect and often cruelty at your hands. The only bright side to the situation is that in the least you have spared him the unfortunate damage you have inflicted upon the boy sitting between you" This truly struck Vernon and Petunia as preposterous as they searched futilely between them to see if there was someone other than Dudley there. Again Dumbledore continued not allowing them to speak.

"The magic I evoked fifteen years ago means that Harry has powerful protection while he can still call this house 'home', however miserable he has been here and however unwelcome, badly treated you have in the least albeit grudgingly allowed him houseroom. Possibly the only positive thing you have ever done for him for this means that up until the moment Harry turns seventeen Lord Voldemort cannot touch him. And so I ask you allow him return once more before his seventeenth birthday to ensure that the protection continues until then." Silence followed Dumbledore's request and looking at the Dursley's Harry was akin in their shock. Dudley looked as if he were still trying to work out when and if he had ever been mistreated, Uncle Vernon looked as if he were choking on a piece of his favorite pudding, but aunt Petunia's reaction was the queerest to Harry of all, she looked flushed, as if embarrassed at all the truth Dumbledore had said and she was the one who replied.

"Of course he shall return before his birthday…" and with that it was all settled, and looking into her horse looking face Harry finally saw what connected her to his mother and for as far as he could remember he was grateful she was his Aunt.