Author's note: Hi all. Apologies for the delay, was caught up with work. Thanks very much for your reviews - I really enjoy reading them, even if I do not have time to respond. Knowing that you enjoy my story makes writing it so much more rewarding.

Please continue reviewing. My next chapter will include responses to common questions posed by reviewers (no spoilers, but feel free to ask for clarifications, general direction of the story etc).

Chapter 5

Henry walked towards the fire.

The first years were huddled around the fire, struggling with their homework. The first two weeks had grown in intensity to such extremes that the students struggled to find time for anything other than homework and lessons. Henry knew that it was only a matter of time before they settled into a decent routine; the first few weeks, from his previous experience, were the hardest transition period.

Potions by far was the hardest class, if only because Henry had to endure Snape's taunts towards Harry. Personally, he was mildly surprised when Snape treated him respectfully, and he recalled that Regulus Black and Severus Snape had been housemates and Death Eaters who had reneged on Voldemort. Perhaps, Snape felt kinship towards the poor orphaned son of Regulus, doomed to live with insufferable Gryffindors.

"What are you working on?" asked Henry, sitting on the rug between Harry and Hannah in the Common Room. Harry was struggling with his Potions essay while Hannah was reading a book on Herbology.

"I just don't get this!" Harry said in frustration. "Why add salamander eggs to this calming draught? Salamander eggs are highly combustible when used with murtlap essence. Wouldn't it explode?"

Henry frowned and peered at his work. "No. That's because the potion is stirred with a silver spoon. Read Chapter 6," he said. "It has a chart on how incompatible ingredients may be forced to work together with different stabilisers."

"Oh," said Harry gratefully. He turned pages on the thick potions reference tome and started scribbling on his parchment from there.

"Guys," said Henry. "It's Hermione's birthday this Saturday," he said. Immediately, Harry whipped his head and turned to Henry in surprise. Hannah also looked up. Susan and Neville were nearby and moved closer to Henry. "Since we have all been working hard, I was thinking maybe we could have a small party for her."

"That would be brilliant!" said Harry.

Hannah smiled at the two boys. "That's very sweet of you. We should invite Lisa and the other Ravenclaws as well."

Henry nodded. "Since I've finished all my work for the week, shall I organise something?"

Susan looked at him with disbelief. "You've finished everything?" she gasped. "Are you even human?"

Henry smirked in a self-contented fashion. "Call me superhuman, baby."

Susan rolled her eyes. "It would be nice if you organized something for her. We haven't really seen much of the Ravenclaws outside of class this last week and I heard from Lisa that Ron Weasley and Jamie Potter were mean to Hermione in Charms."

Henry knew exactly how mean Ron Weasley could be. "I'll get a group present from Hufflepuff house by owl-ordering a few books from Flourish & Botts, if you all let me know how much your budget is."

They all nodded.

The party was magnificent. They had pretended to have forgotten all about Hermione's birthday all morning and afternoon. After lunch, Daphne and Lisa excused themselves saying they had some private stuff to discuss with Susan. They joined the a few other of their housemates and walked to the portrait of fruits near the Hufflepuff common room.

Henry stood by the portrait and opened it by tickling the pear. He gestured for the group to move ahead and enter the kitchen. Harry was already inside with Susan and the other Hufflepuff first years, ordering the house-elves to decorate properly. Lisa smiled at him and walked inside with Su Li, Anthony Goldstein and Morag MacDougal. Daphne lingered outside with Henry.

"This is very nice of you," said Daphne. She looked slightly guilty. "I'll admit. I didn't know today was Hermione's birthday until you told us."

Henry looked at her hopefully. "Is this the point where you lean forward starry-eyed and I kiss you and we live happily ever after?"

"Absolutely not," said Daphne, although her cheeks turned a hint of red.

"Aw," Henry sighed in disappointment. He showed Daphne inside and followed her. She gasped on seeing the inside. "Is it adequate?"

There was a whole large segment of the kitchen decorated with balloons and ribbons and a huge banner saying 'Happy Birthday Hermione' and a large table with sufficient chairs around it. On the table were all kinds of delicious tea-time snacks - half a dozen different varieties of pastries and cakes, lots of mini sandwiches, lemonade and orange juice and root beer.

"It is excellent," Daphne agreed.

"Shh," Susan joined them. "I hear voices."

So they did.

" - and I really don't think we should be here, Padma," Hermione was saying urgently. "Let's go back. I've got a headache and - and - and – huh?"

"Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to you... Happy birthday to Her-Mione... " They all chorused. "Happy birthday to you."

Hermione stood in complete shock at the large group and the decorations and the two presents on the table. She looked at them with teary eyes and started sobbing. Instinctively, she reached for Padma and hugged her. "Thank you," she cried.

"Henry did most of the work," said Padma.

Hermione rushed to Henry and hugged him next. "Thank you, thank you."

Henry patted her back and whispered, "Harry's been decorating all morning."

Hermione blushed slightly but moved to Harry next and stayed in his embrace for a long few seconds. Harry looked over her head and grinned at Henry.

In all, the party was a success. Professor Flitwick and Professor Sprout dropped by for a short visit, as Henry had seen it fit to obtain their permission beforehand.

"It is good to see our two houses come together like this," said Flitwick to Sprout, as they observed the youngsters enjoying themselves. "Perhaps Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff will heal the malicious house rivalries that has become so strong in these halls."

Pomona nodded. "There is something special about this year's students. Henry Black and Hermione Granger come to mind foremost."

"Aye, they do," agreed Flitwick. "Mr. Harry Potter is not far behind. I heard he defended Miss Granger and Miss Patil from a group of bullying Gryffindors including his own celebrity brother and Miss Patil's sister."

"Pity about his condition, otherwise -" sighed Sprout.

"Pomona!" Flitwick interrupted sharply, and Sprout stopped abruptly and looked ashamed of herself. They left soon after.

Henry watched them leave with a frown on his face.

"You heard them too?" whispered Harry woefully. "What's wrong with me, Henry? What do my family and the professors know that makes them despise me?"

"There's absolutely nothing wrong with you, Harry! They're wrong!" Henry said firmly. He hesitated on noticing that Neville, Hermione and Susan were also listening in; Professor Sprout's voice had carried. He glared at them and they backed off.

"Did you hear?" Anthony Goldstein joined their group and broke the tense atmosphere. "Jamie Potter and Draco Malfoy got into a fight during their first flying lessons and used brooms unsupervised."

"Let me guess," said Henry. "Both or one of them got rewarded for it?"

Anthony was mildly surprised. "Yeah. There's a rumour that Jamie Potter has been chosen to play Seeker for Gryffindor." He shook his head. "For sheer recklessness."

Henry spoke out. "He is good at flying," he agreed. "But imagine if a Ravenclaw or a Hufflepuff would have done something like that?"

"That's a disturbing thought," Susan shuddered. "Hufflepuffs acting like Gryffindors." She glared at Henry, as if fully certain that he was the only one who'd do such a thing.

Term progressed in good pace, and Henry subtly directed Harry and some of his new friends towards relevant and interesting material to read. To Neville, he quickly showed a direct link between Herbology and Potions, how a good Herbologist, if he mastered Potions, could become a skilled Healer. That made Neville very determined to do well in Potions as well. With Susan, Henry occasionally debated about issues of policy and law from History of Magic, knowing that she was very keen to follow her aunt in politics.

"So, you're saying that goblins, centaurs and other magical creatures used to walk freely in human society before 1637?" she asked in disbelief. "How on earth did they manage to remove all traces of goblins from muggle knowledge?"

Henry smiled. "They didn't," he said. "They merely went through a massive campaign to convert the truth into fiction. All muggle references to goblins and other creatures became sources of fantasy fiction and old wives' tales. Muggles know Merlin was a master of dragons, that Pellinore killed the great chimera, that Heracles killed the hydra, but they think all of that is fiction."

"Oh," said Susan. "So the International Confederation's main purpose is simply to ensure the barriers of secrecy are upheld."

"Yes," said Henry.

"But that's ridiculous!" argued Susan. "There's so much more they could achieve. They could - I don't know - they could make the world a much better place."

Henry smiled wryly. "Ask Justin or Hermione how effective the UN, muggle equivalent of the International Confederation, has been in doing all that. The ICW would have fared no better. Nationalistic countries will not give authority to a global organisation to make laws to affect them. Power hungry warlocks will play one faction against another."

One good thing about Hufflepuff house was that the senior students took an active role in helping the younger ones - especially the fourth and sixth year students who didn't have to study for OWLs or NEWTs. It wasn't unusual to see a first year pouring his or her head over a book with an older student.

As a result, Nymphadora also spent a lot of time with the first years in the common room. "I heard about your big party with the Ravenclaws," she said, joining the first years at their usual place by the fire. "It was the talk of the prefects' meeting. The Gryffindor prefect Percy Weasley was a bit disgruntled that nobody was invited from his house, the Slytherin prefect Adrian Pucey said it was a travesty to have a party for a muggleborn." She looked sharply at Henry and Harry. "Why wasn't I invited?"

"You're too old," said Harry without thinking. Henry slapped his forehead and backed away, abandoning his best friend at his time of need.

But Nymphadora chuckled at his antics. "Professor McGonagall has sanctioned an official Gryffindor house party. She seemed very put out as well by what she sees a snub to Gryffindor by Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Don't be upset if McGonagall awards very few points to you lot in the next week or two."

"Why can't they just get it that we don't care about house politics!" Cedric Diggory had been helping Megan Jones with some research and he raised his head at Nymphadora's comment.

"Aunt Amelia says it is human nature," said Susan, joining in as well. "According to her, when there's a power struggle between two big blocs, the neutral parties are always seen with suspicion."

"Like the neutral countries during the cold war in the muggle world," said Henry.

"Exactly," said Susan. "There's nothing for us to do but chin up and let them continue in their ways while maintaining our own dignity. House points are insignificant," she dolefully waved her wand. "I just want to score well in exams."

"What spell are you trying?" asked Nymphadora. "I'll give you a hand after I finish my Arithmancy project."

"Wingardium Leviosa," said Susan. "We're not supposed to be doing it until next month but I wanted to get a head-start. It's not working."

"Here, I'm done with Potions," said Henry, joining her. "Let's have a look." He pretended to read the spell details from the book. "Give it a shot."

"Wingardium Leviosa," said Susan, but the quill in front of her didn't even twitch. "See!" she sighed exasperatedly.

"Your wand movements and incantation is perfect. It should be working," said Henry. He frowned. He pushed aside the quill and pointed to his Moste Potente Potions tome. "Try it with the book."

"But that's much heavier!" Susan protested.

"Give it a shot," said Henry.

Susan complied, and to her shock and delight, the book jerked upwards but fell back almost instantly. Her mouth split in a large smile and she turned to Henry with joy. "Did you see that? I made it move! Why didn't it work earlier?"

Henry patted her hand to applaud her success. "The problem was you were focusing too hard on getting the mechanics of the spell correct without accounting for the magical force required to fight gravity. I think you might have discounted the force needed because the feather is so light. With the heavier book, you pushed your magic harder into it. Try again."

Susan nodded and managed to lift the book a bit higher. She was overjoyed at the success.

"Wow," said Nymphadora. "Took my whole year a month in Flitwick's class to manage that much. Wish I had you as a tutor, cousin."

Henry grinned at her. He looked around and saw all the first years were trying to cast the same spell with moderate degrees of success.

A month later, in Professor Flitwick's class:

"Oh, my!" Flitwick gasped at his class of Hufflepuffs and Slytherins. The Hufflepuff half had their feathers floating over their heads, while not a single Slytherin had managed to even make theirs budge. "Never before on a first attempt - marvellous - simply marvellous - hundred points to Hufflepuff for such marvellous control. Three students from my previous class of Gryffindor and Ravenclaw also showed such progress. I will expect this year's exam results to be of a higher standard."

Henry stayed behind after class was dismissed. He appeared hesitant and Flitwick smiled at him reassuringly.

"Speak what's troubling you, Mr. Black," he said.

"It's probably nothing, sir, and I am most likely mistaken," Henry said. "But I thought I should let a professor know about something I overheard while walking in the corridors this morning."

"I am all ears," said Flitwick, wandlessly charming his ears to grow as large as an elephant's.

Henry chuckled. Then, seriously, he continued. "I overheard Professor Quirrel talking to someone. He said - He said, 'The troll is ready, master. It will distract the fools during the feast. I will get the stone', and -" he noticed Flitwick's ears shrink and the professor leaned forward with complete seriousness. "And - then a voice came the back of his head, sir, from the turban - it was a horrible voice, sir, almost snake-line, - it said 'Do not fail me, Quirinus. I must have the elixir.'"

Flitwick jumped from his seat. "By the Hammer of Thor! The feast is about to start. Are you absolutely certain you have told me everything and exactly as it occurred?" He looked at Henry intently.

Henry hesitated before nodding.

"Mr. Black, head back to your dormitory and stay indoors until further notice," said Flitwick. "Do not take narrow routes and run if you hear anything unusual."

Henry nodded and Flitwick ran as fast as he could towards the great hall.

He hesitated for a moment. But just to be certain, he closed his eyes, and thought, 'Memento Mori.' Immediately, he transformed into a phoenix and flew majestically, gauging with his phoenix-sight, the magic that permeated in the halls of Hogwarts. He took the route towards the girl's toilet and increased his speed when he heard two blood curdling screams.

On entering the toilet, he saw a horrible sight. Hermione and Daphne were crouched on a corner, while Harry was standing in front of them. He had his wand out with a brilliant light that had made the troll cover its eyes and stop a few feet in front of the three.

Henry saw the troll and let out a melodious trill. The troll didn't have the streaks of black which was present in those who dabbled in dark magic. Its soul was as pristine as that of any other animal that lived solely by instincts and not by deep reflection and premeditation.

The troll stopped in its charge and turned around with confusion towards the phoenix.

Henry flew around the troll, trilling a sweet melody of peace and harmony. The troll tiled its head on one side and gave a lop-sided smile. It raised his hands towards the phoenix. Henry decided to take a chance and flew down to the troll's shoulder.

"Pretty bird-iee!" the troll mouthed in a rough but pleased voice, and he sat down to listen to the song in comfort. In less than a minute, the troll had fallen asleep and was snoring loudly.

Meanwhile, Hermione had stood up and was resting in Harry's arms, while Daphne was staring at the phoenix in disbelief. That was when the professors arrived and gasped at the sight in front of them. Henry spread his wings and soared to the ceiling, and willed his magic to flare up - he had only used it once - but he knew it was well within his capability. The next moment, he was enveloped in fire and vanished.

He stepped into the Hufflepuff common room and waited. Soon, a large exodus of students returned with spicy bits and pieces of gossip.

"- what a duel! Henry!" Justin was saying. He, Neville and Susan rushed to him. "You missed all the excitement! Professor Flitwick and Professor Dumbledore duelled Quirrell and an evil phantom that was living in Quirrell's turban! What a duel!"

"What happened?" asked Henry.

"Quirrell was a dark wizard, who would have ever thought it!" said Susan. "He let a troll into the castle and burst into the great hall during the feast but before anyone could panic, Flitwick arrived and started duelling with him, and then a misty phantom rose came out of his turban and Dumbledore joined the battle."

"Where's Harry?" asked Henry.

Suddenly, the three others gasped in horror. "He went after Hermione! We have to go after them!" But before anyone could leave, Harry stepped through the portrait with the most serene and peaceful expression on his face. He joined the others and told them what had happened.

"You're kidding me!" said Susan. "A real phoenix!"

"They saw Daphne's memory of the whole thing in Dumbledore's pensieve." Harry nodded. "Flitwick said he was awarding me a special services plaque for holding the troll back for so long!" he said.

"Good job." Henry nodded. "Guys," he began seriously, looking at the close-knit group of Hufflepuffs. "This is ridiculous. Trolls, dark wizards and phantoms. What will be next? We have to learn how to defend ourselves."

"We definitely do," Harry agreed. "If the phoenix hadn't come in time, Hermione, Daphne and I would be dead by now. I delayed it long enough by casting a Lumos at its eyes but I didn't know what else to do. We need to learn how to defend ourselves."

"And I have found a place for us to learn magic!" continued Henry. "A house-elf told me where to find the room you mentioned at the beginning of term, Harry. Tomorrow's Saturday and most of the older students will be in Hogsmeade so we shouldn't be missed, we should start at once." The others nodded.

The next day, Henry found himself back in the Room of Requirements. It was designed comfortably with bookshelves holding the material they would need to read and practice areas to try their spell-casting. They had been inside nearly all day and thoroughly enjoying learning new magic with friends.

Hermione and Padma had their heads over thick books, devouring all the information contained within. Susan, Daphne and Lisa were practising the spells they would be learning in class in the coming month. Anthony Goldstein, Su Li and Neville were brewing a potion which Su believed had a strong possibility of coming for their exams. Justin, Hannah and Megan were experimenting with a number of useful spells such as Alohomora, Reparo, Silencio and Finite Incantatem.

Henry nodded at Harry. "Once again," he said. He raised his wand. "Petrificus Totalus!"

"Protego," Harry responded immediately, trying to shield Henry's curse. He laughed out in joy when a silvery shield rose in front of him and blocked Henry. "I did it!"

"I think you've got it now," said Henry, nodding appreciatively.

"And after nearly a hundred tries, about time," said Harry, rubbing the back of his head. It had taken him hours to be able to cast the shield spell and to bring it fast enough to block Harry's curse. "It's incredible how easy all these spells come to you."

"Says the first year who mastered an OWL level spell classified as Level 1 SPP," retorted Henry.

Harry flushed with pride.

"Guys!" Hermione called out to them.

Henry and Harry walked towards Hermione and Padma.

"We found something interesting you should hear," said Padma. "Gubraithian fire is seen as an extremely precious gift by species such as giants, trolls and merfolk. That may explain why the troll was so fascinated with the phoenix."

"What's this Gubra-thing fire?" asked Harry curiously, sitting next to Hermione, who smiled fondly at his fumbling over the word.

"It's a conjured everlasting magical fire that only the most skilled wizards can create," said Hermione. "Most magical species revere fire and Gubraithian fire allows them to be able to do so during harsh weather, and in the case of merfolk, underwater." She hesitated and continued in an undertone of disappointment, "But conjuring is an extremely difficult and advanced skill that we - that - oh!"

She froze abruptly when Harry waved his wand to conjure a bouquet of orchids.

"I learnt this last night so I could give it to you," explained Harry. His cheeks turned very red as he gave the bouquet to Hermione. "Weasley, MacMillan and Jamie Potter are idiots. We don't find you irritating or annoying. You're one of our closest friends. Don't let them upset you."

Hermione hugged the flowers as a tear escaped from her eye. She gently placed the flowers on the table and collapsed against Harry, who mouthed a 'thank you' to Henry, for teaching him the conjuring spell.

Henry shared a glance with Padma and both tactfully moved aside and joined Daphne and Susan. Henry looked at Daphne hesitatingly, fiddling with his wand, but the brunette raised her head from the book she was reading and faced him sternly.

"Don't even think about it," she said.

Henry sighed mournfully.

"I wouldn't mind some flowers, Henry," Susan piped in. "Can I not have some? Pretty please?"

"Me too! Me too!" said Padma. "Can I have roses instead? Pink and red?"

"No," said Henry with tight lips.

Term progressed and Henry's group became the source of common chatter amongst the staff. They performed extremely well in academics, several leagues ahead of their peers, and they seemed completely unfazed by the house rivalries between Gryffindor and Slytherin that went around them. More interestingly, the friendship of Henry Black and Harry Potter became the source of comparison between another Black-Potter friendship in the previous generation. But while the previous generation were mischievous troublemakers, the current generation were remarkably talented magicians. However, other than some unbiased members of the staff, the rest of the school was still convinced that Jamie Potter was the more deserving of the twins.

The first Quidditch match was an exciting event. Despite it being a Gryffindor v Slytherin match, most of the school went out to see it - to see the legendary rivals clash in a less vicious battlefield, while witnessing the flying talent of Jamie Potter.

Henry, however, was with Harry alone in the Hufflepuff common room.

"They came to see him," said Harry, referring to his parents. "They didn't even bother writing to me after Professor Flitwick informed them of the troll attack. Why don't they like me?"

Henry shook his head helplessly. "I wish I knew, mate."

"I wish I knew what my terrible affliction is that Sprout was talking about," said Harry. "I wish I knew why everyone hates me."

Henry frowned. "Okay, stop it, Harry," he said sternly. "Not everyone hates you. You've got many friends. You've got Hermione. And you've got me."

Harry smiled at his words and nodded. "I'm glad," he said happily. "Everything changed that night before Christmas when we argued about Zeus and Aries. You're my best friend."

Henry sighed. "Okay, Harry. Best friend rule number one: no soppy emotional chats."

Harry rolled his eyes and playfully punched Henry.

"I wish things work out between you and Daphne," Harry said sincerely.

Henry chuckled. "That's more like it… girls," he approved of the topic. "Are you sure you don't want to go out to meet your parents?"

Harry frowned. "You can go if you want," he said. "I know you like my mum."

Henry chuckled again. "That sounds very wrong," he said.

"You know what I mean!" Harry retorted. "I'll be fine here. I'm practising Engorgio and Reducio."

Henry nodded. "Okay, if you're sure. Don't try any harmful spells on your own."

"Yes, mother."

Henry laughed as he left the common room. He didn't particularly care about the Quidditch match but he was looking forward to see James and Lily again. He knew rationally that he should hate the Potters for how they treated Harry, but the child's instincts in him made him yearn to stay close to the people who were, in some twisted technical sense, his parents.

"Hello, Henry," Lily had left her husband when she saw him and walked closer. She looked slightly disappointed to see him alone. "Are you coming to see the match?"

Henry shook his head. "No, I came to say hello to you and Mr. Potter."

"That's very sweet of you," she said, but Henry detected the sadness in her voice. "How's Harry?"

"He's fine, practising some spells," said Henry.

"Oh, is he having trouble with lessons?" enquired Lily.

Henry quashed a desire to yell at her to ask Harry on her own. "We're both doing very well in lessons," said Henry. "Harry's studying ahead. He was trying to learn Engorgio and Reducio when I last saw him."

Lily gasped. "But that's a fourth year spell!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah," agreed Henry. "Harry's very good at charms." He saw Lily's eyes brighten and recalled that she too was very good at charms during her time in Hogwarts.

"Hey, Henry. How's it going?" asked James when they joined him.

"I'm good, thank you," he replied.

"Sirius told me to let you know that they are going to France for Christmas again this year," said James.

Henry nodded, disappointed that he wouldn't be seeing Carina for much longer.

"Why don't you spend it with us again?" asked Lily eagerly. "It would be very nice to have you."

Henry smiled at her offer. But he hesitated, not knowing what Harry's plans were. In all, Harry would be happier if he stayed at Hogwarts and he could really speed up his training somewhat. "That's very tempting, Mrs. Potter," he said. "But I'd like to spend it here in Hogwarts. The castle will be so amazing over Christmas with snow. I think Harry also wants to stay."

"Oh, I suppose," said Lily, slightly disappointed.

"It was good seeing you again." He turned around and left.

Hogwarts was indeed amazing during Christmas. A very small group was staying behind. But because of that, Henry and Harry got to meet people they wouldn't otherwise have spoken to during the school year.

"Hi. I'm Katie Bell," introduced a girl from Gryffindor.

"Henry Black," said Henry. "These are Harry Potter and Leanne Moon. Congrats on winning the matches against Slytherin and Ravenclaw."

The girl smiled gratefully. "Your brother is a fantastic Seeker," Katie told Harry, who nodded nonchalantly.

Henry recalled that in his previous life, Katie and Leanne had been in a relationship towards the end of Hogwarts and wondered if this was the day when they first met each other. If that was the case, his and Harry's presence could be an unnecessary interference in the course of true love.

"Harry and I were thinking of exploring around Hogwarts," said Henry. "You girls keen to join us?"

"No, thanks," said Katie. "I'm going to the music room to play piano."

"You play piano too?" asked Leanne in surprise. "I'm grade 4."

"Grade 6," said Katie in surprise. "Do you want to join me?"

Henry waved as the two girls departed, surprised that he had never known Katie Bell liked playing music. From his memories, he knew that he had been a bit of a loser and a twat to people, not unlike Ron Weasley, in his earlier life, and it was mainly the influence of Hermione that had salvaged both of them. He was also surprised by how close Harry and Hermione had become in such a short period and wondered if he himself had been attracted to Hermione at first. Unfortunately, although he had all the memories of his past life, he could not recall emotions.

"What do you want to do, Harry?" asked Henry. "Explore, play something, or learn more magic."

Harry grinned. "Learn more magic," he said. "But something fun and interesting."

Henry matched Harry's grin. "Come on," he said. "I have an idea." They rushed to the Room of Requirments. "But you have to promise me you won't tell anyone," whispered Henry. "Not even Hermione or Susan. At least, not until we know them better. This is a forbidden magic, although it isn't dark."

Harry looked at him in surprise. "Is that necessary?" Henry nodded. "Fine," he agreed. He gasped when he read the title of the book in Henry's hands - The Beast Within by Aesalon edited by Minerva McGonagall.

"Animagus," said Henry, with a flourish. "This is a rare book, in the restricted section, and we're lucky the Room of Requirements can provide us with a copy."

That became their major project through Christmas and the rest of the term. With the rest of their friends, they learnt other magic, at a level slightly above the rest of their peers, but privately Henry was beginning to hone Harry's duelling skill while also studying the text on Animagus transformations.

One night, Harry and Henry retired early into their dormitory.

"I'm ready," said Henry. "I can cast the spell which will induce a dream to reveal your Animagus form."

Harry was surprised. "Are you sure? The book said the spell is very hard and should not be attempted unless completely mastered."

"Trust me, Harry," said Henry. He knew he could do it. He had done it before for his godson Teddy Lupin, so he could revert to his animal form during full moon nights to reduce its effect on his blood. Although Teddy didn't transform into a werewolf, he had been sired by one, and the full moon affected him quite badly, unless he changed into his animal form, which ironically was not a wolf, but in fact, a chimpanzee.

"Okay," said Harry. He lay down on his bed. "I'm ready."

Henry cast the spell, and Harry promptly fell asleep. He wondered if he should cast it on himself, as he already had his phoenix form. In his previous life, he had done it, to reveal his falcon form. But his body had rejected the transformation itself due to an adverse reaction to his battle-weary body. He shrugged and cast it on himself.

It was a similar experience as before, at least to begin with. He found himself in the pond behind the Burrow with the entire Weasley family - not as they presently were, but in his memories - going about and doing all kinds of mundane daily activities. To Henry, the scene was like something he had seen in a television before - the emotions just were not there. He waved, and Ginny waved back, with little Lily Luna Potter in her arms. There was a sad smile on her face as she waved in farewell.

Instantly, the Burrow vanished and Henry blinked in the complete darkness around him. Then he found himself in the garden of Godric's Hollow. Henry gasped, he had expected to appear in Grimmauld Place or even Hogwarts. He realized that his subconscious considered Godric's Hollow to be his true home.

Lily Potter was sitting with her husband and they were having tea, while smiling at him fondly. In front of them, Harry and Jamie were flying in their brooms and tossing a Quaffle around. He smiled when he saw little Carina running around the garden with Sirius in his canine form, while Gwenog was laughing with her baby in her arms and Remus Lupin was reading a book on a hammock. Henry smiled at the scene and kept walking. He had discovered his home and his family; next, he had to discover his true form.

"Hello?" he called out. "Anybody here? Falcon?"

Sure enough, the Merlin falcon flew towards him from the sky. In his previous life, the falcon had appeared but was unable to merge with him due to the limitations of his damaged mind, soul and body. But this time was different; despite having his phoenix form as a gift from Death himself, the falcon flew towards him at great speed; Henry smiled and closed his eyes, waiting for the impact peacefully.

The bird collided against Henry's chest; he woke up.

"Harry," he whispered to check if he was done.

"You're up!" Harry whispered excitedly. He got up and sat on Henry's bed. "Did it work?" he whispered quietly.

Henry nodded.

"Me too!" said Harry. "I'm a raven. It's a gorgeous bird, not like those ugly crows." He hesitated. "It is fitting, I suppose. Ravens are bird of ill-omen, hated universally."

"Oh, stop your self-pitying," admonished Henry. "Ravens are also associated with knowledge and wisdom. I'm a falcon."

Harry grinned. "That's great! We can fly together!"

"Calm down, Harry," said Henry. "It's going to take at least a year, maybe two, to master the transformation."

"Oh. Let's start now then."