Chapter 2 - A New Life

Harry walked up to the gate of his new school arriving early to Park Mead Primary School, Naruto and Hinata on either side, and he was sure the rest of his family were watching from somewhere to see him start his first day. He noticed the easy smiles on his parents' faces as they met up with other parents, the pride they showed when they introduce him to the other families. It made his own smile that little bit more natural, and he relaxed, even managing to offer an occasional gesture to the other kids he met. Thanks to one of the more unsung but useful parts of his ninja training, he memorised the kids' names as they were introduced, something he was told would be invaluable when he tried to make friends later.

What Harry didn't know at the time was that many of the parents had told their kids to be nice to the new kid, as his parents were helping to boost the Cranleigh economy and seemed to be well off so they didn't want to get on the new family's bad side. Of course, not all the kids wanted to go along with this, but it was enough to help smooth his entry to their school.

On his first day, Harry introduced himself to the class, just over 30 new names; plus their teacher, Mr Hallett. Mr Hallett assigned him to a seat in the 2nd row, between two girls named Stephanie Melville and Michelle Roberts. He then started off with a quick recap of what they were taught the year before, and a summary of some of the topics he expected to cover this year. He was a very tall man, and he was quick to deal with kids making too much noise, but other than that the only notable trait Harry noticed was that he could be very enthusiastic about certain topics, talking for hours about one thing or another, only to get interrupted by the bell announcing the end of class (and freedom) for the kids.

At lunchtime, Harry talked to more of the kids, finding though that he liked the girls more than the boys so far; the boys wanted to compete and try dangerous stunts in the school playground, something that had no appeal to Harry after the summer he had spent getting his fill of cool and dangerous things. Though Harry later warmed up more to the boys in his class, he grew closest to the three girls, Michelle and Stephanie, his desk neighbors from before, and their best friend Ashley Banks, who now sat behind Harry when their teacher had changed the seating arrangement. He settled in, taking the 2nd spot in all his classes, and was always happy to study or spend time with any of his new friends.

Early in October, his teacher, Mr Hallett, asked to come by and visit his parents. Harry smiled and said he would let them know, but was sure that he would be welcome to drop by Saturday afternoon if that was good for him. A quick confirmation later, and the appointment was set.

When Mr Hallett dropped in and was brought into the nice warm living room, fire blazing away in the fireplace, he noticed that there were quite a few adults waiting for him. His jaw dropped, despite his best efforts, when he was informed just how many women lived here. "You're one lucky man!" He said softly to Naruto, who only smiled and nodded, grateful that Harry's teacher had such a restrained reaction. He didn't want to have to run damage control if the man had offended his wives.

A polite request for the man's discretion was quickly granted, and they settled down to business, the teacher seeking answers to why, and how, Harry so consistently placed second in every test, and the parents seeking the teacher's evaluation of Harry's performance. They deflected his questions with an off-the-cuff mention of how cruel kids can be to anyone different, so they had advised Harry to be careful not to show off as that could put off his friends or hurt them if he outshone them too much. "It seems Harry took our words to heart", Naruto smiled, "He's always been a good boy, never wanted to hurt his friends. We'll have to talk with their parents, I suppose, and see how they want to handle it."

"So you were aware he could do much better?"

"Oh yes, we've been giving him some extra lessons at home at his request. He's even volunteered to help out with the cooking from time to time. In fact, tonight is his night to help with dinner." Hinata added.

"Well, as long as he is reaching his potential, and he does get to have fun, I'm glad to say I see no reason for concern." Hallett replied with an honest smile. He hadn't wanted to risk offending the family that was doing such good things for the local economy, but he had put off the check as long as his conscience could stand already. "Please do let me know if you have any concerns or questions in future about the school or about Harry's performance."

"Of course. Now, would you like to stay for dinner? Harry expressed a desire to do something for the teacher who has already done so much to help him settle in and make new friends, so I know he'd be thrilled if you could stay."

"I do believe I'd like that, thank you very much." And the conversation drifted naturally over other topics from there, Mr Hallett letting slip certain hints about other families without really noticing, items that the Clan used to settle in better and ruffle fewer feathers.

Another incident took place the following Saturday morning. Harry was out walking to meet Ashley, Michelle and Stephanie at a park on their side of town when a masked man in black robes and a pointed hat came out of nowhere, shouting something at him. There was a bright green light, a rushing sound, and a brief feeling of disorientation. When Harry opened his eyes, he saw a lifeless Naruto where he used to be, that then puffed into a cloud of chakra smoke, only a Clone and not his real dad having taken his place.

He looked around for the madman that had tried to hurt him, but another Naruto clone was right there in front of him, hugging him, and whispering that the man had been taken back to their home to find out why. He asked Harry if he wanted to continue to his friends, or return home, though if he did go home, he wouldn't get to see the man. "We're not going to risk your health around anyone like that." Naruto had told him firmly, making Harry smile. "Whichever you choose, Harry, we will be around watching everything until we can be sure that it's over."

Knowing he wouldn't be able to ask any questions himself took most of the appeal out of going home, and while he wanted the comfort from his mothers, he didn't want to be around the madman. "I'll continue on, Dad, besides you have told me often enough never to keep girls waiting, right?"

Naruto grinned back at his son. "Indeed, it's a good rule to live by, especially as you get older."

"Thanks, Dad, I can make it from here." Harry said, knowing there was no way that Naruto or the others would actually leave him alone, but wanting that illusion for now while he thought things over.

Anko cracked her knuckles for effect as the came into the stark room set up for questioning the prisoner. Prisoner searched and disarmed? Check. Prisoner's body secured? Check. Chakra suppressing cuffs? They probably wouldn't matter, but check. Now for the fun stuff, making sure the prisoner knew they were serious.

She walked up menacingly towards the man sneering at her, whose age she estimated around mid-30s, and sank her fist into his gut, then backhanded him, coincidentally helping him straighten up and get much needed air. No point making this take longer than it had to, and she wanted answers quickly.

"Now that you know I am serious, and that you are in trouble, let's get this interrogation started. You want to live, and I want answers. If I get what I want, we'll see about letting you have what you want. If you're very good, you may even get out of here with all your limbs intact and have a pain-free existence, so now it is time for you to convince me.

"What is your name?"

The interrogation took a few hours, their prisoner never did give them his name, proving to be very uncooperative, so they eventually resorted to trying Yamanaka techniques, the passive listening ones weren't picking up much beyond that he thought them 'disgusting Muggles' whatever those were, and that he liked the looks of the Vixens, which was only fair enough, though he felt they should be kneeling at his feet in servitude.

Once they used the active techniques, they found out a few things. Firstly, mindwalking in the mind of an adult, hostile wizard was painful to both of them, and damaging to the wizard's mind. Secondly, they discovered a variety of trivia about the man's life, along with the more useful items, like the existence of this hidden society, who Albus Dumbledore was in more detail than just a useless title on his letters, that Harry was famous for stopping a "dark lord' then disappearing, and that the wizard they had tied up was one of the dark lord's followers, a Death Eater, trying to get vengeance. Oh, there were other things too, the blood status nonsense that reminded them too much of the Bloodline Purges in Mizu, the school Hogwarts that Dumbledore ran, Diagon Alley and Knockturn Alley, shopping districts for the magicals, impressions of the village Hogsmeade, the hospital St Mungo's, and so on, a lot of it jumbled together, along with names and faces of his friends, more of these bigots, and lastly, a thought that he was looking forward to meeting one of his friends after work the following evening and telling him about his hunt for the Boy Who Lived, along with the strong impression that he would be missed and tracked if he failed to show up.

Looking at the time, and their drooling prisoner, now bleeding slightly from the ears and nose, they had to come up with a plan fast. They didn't know what means these wizards had to track them down, and thankfully the brain damage would keep anyone else from finding out from their prisoner directly, but they couldn't risk killing or keeping him too long, and that meant making sure he was found by his own kind before any sort of organised search set out.

After some urgent discussions, it was decided to take him to St Mungo's and leave him there. They forced some cheap scotch down his throat, splashing more on his clothes, cleaned him thoroughly of any sign of the interrogation and secured him in the car. Naruto drove him there, keeping an eye out all the way for any more surprises, a clone making its way to the 'muggle' entrance and then performing a quick Replacement with their prisoner, leaving him there with no remaining evidence of how he got there, or with whom he had come in contact. Naruto drove away carefully obeying all the road rules, not wanting to be pulled over and possibly linking him to the Death Eater they had left comatose outside a hospital.

Harry, meanwhile, was having an interesting time of his own. The girls he went to meet ran late, and when they arrived, they just invited him back to meet a couple of their older friends, Elizabeth, who insisted on being called "Ella," and Meaghan, to play some games. Harry went along, happy to get new friends, and found that the day was going to be supervised by a teen named Sandra Middleton. She had a nice smile for him, and introduced him to Meaghan Best, who gave him a big smile and took him to the table. They were just serving lunch for the group, then they played a few different games. Over the afternoon, they talked and got to know each other a bit better, deciding that they would like to do it again, and spend time together at school. When they called it a day Harry thanked them for having him over and left with a wave, heading out of sight before using Body Flicker to get home quickly, aware that his parents would much rather that he was home, safe and sound soon.

The talk they had when he got home was scary but exciting; hearing about the new society, and some of its wonders. He also found out that he would be getting some extra training, lessons in botany and fashion from Ino-mum that would please his friends and lessons in things called ethics and philosophy from Isaribi-mum and Kin-mum that would help him stay worthy of his friends.

The following years were a lot quieter overall for Harry and his family. They built up their forestry business further, extending and expanding the forest for a number of purposes. It allowed them to hire on more locals to work for them, further cementing their place as accepted and respected members of the community, provided more income, which was useful in its own right, and allowed them cover to create a version of their beloved Forest of Death for the later training of Harry.

They also got involved in other local businesses, both for possible profits and to extend their revitalising efforts. They would much rather live in a happy and prosperous area than a depressed one, after all, and what was a little hard work to them? Their joy at acquiring an interest in a slaughterhouse was restrained in public. It wouldn't do for people to find out their main reason was to put a pre-teen boy to work slaughtering fully grown meat animals, after all, even - perhaps especially - if it was great training for combat. There were laws against that sort of thing, both child labor laws and against producing the types of child soldiers their own world churned out by the thousands. Harry was happy enough to work, and they did reward him for his efforts and progress, and that was good enough for the Kitsunes.

Speaking of Harry, he grew and improved steadily, able to maintain a second Shadow Clone shortly after his 7th birthday. More than enough excuse for another party in his parents' eyes. The following day, he asked if he'd get to learn any new subjects this year, earning proud smiles. The proudest of all from Sakura-mum, who had become something of a fixture at the local libraries; borrowing books on all sorts of things new to the Clan in the nearly two years they'd been there, from chemistry and physics, to astronomy, to engineering, and books she had naturally brought home for the others to read.

Harry was both excited and dismayed at the list. Sure, it was great to learn all these new things, and spending more time with his mums was also a pleasure, but the length of the list was a little daunting. There was chemistry with Ayame-mum, stealth and covert ops with Yuugao-mum, Language lessons with Kurenai-mum to improve both his Japanese and English skills, as the ninja lessons were easiest in Japanese.

He was also beginning other studies; animal care with Hana-mum, feeding and grooming the Clan's dogs before getting to work later with the tamed tigers they kept. Those tigers were awesome, all big and sleek and strong, when they weren't relaxing in their smaller cat forms where they were really cute. He was also starting biology with Hana-mum, though Isaribi-mum would be taking the lead on that one. This was good, he didn't spend enough time with her yet. Oh, and that tied in with what Tsunade-mum and Haku-mum were teaching him with first aid and something called combat anatomy, where Haku-mum assured him they'd learn how the human body worked, and how to take it apart.

Tenten-mum would be teaching him how to throw just about anything, and his mums agreed she was the best. Lastly, there was Yakumo-mum. With her he would learn how to cast Genjutsu, those illusion techniques he'd experienced before with those dreams, as well as teaching him his civics, whatever those were.

As if that wasn't enough to keep him busy, he would get to start missions where he would be putting the skills into practice. These missions went from 'D-rank' to 'A-rank' and special ones called 'S-rank' which were even harder than 'A-rank' ones were.

All that, and he still had school and friends and, if ever found the time, sleep! He got started, and he was never more grateful to his parents than that moment when they calmed him down, assuring him they had helped lots of kids learn these things and they would make sure it was at a pace he could handle. He was a little doubtful at first, since it was so hard, but they were right, as his parents so often were; he could do it all as long as he tried his best, so that's just what he gave. He even worked his way through the D-rank missions and impressively started his first C-rank before the school year was out.

Speaking of school, he was having heaps of fun there, and making more friends, even if a couple of the girls were getting more giggly around him. He'd asked Ino-mum about it, but she just blushed a little and told him not to worry about it, he wasn't doing anything wrong. He did notice her and Sakura-mum get teased a little the following day, but he didn't much care. He knew by now that friends and family can tease each other in fun without everything going wrong. He was also top of the class, and some of his time with friends was spent in study groups, where he often found himself the first to understand the topic and helping the others too, which they said was making their parents happy since it brought their marks up too.

Somewhat foolishly, he was thinking he'd get to relax over the summer when he turned 8, but he didn't know there was so much more to learn! His achievement of a 3rd concurrent Shadow Clone the week school ended prompted another party, and more changes to his training. The earlier lessons on chakra nature became more relevant as they started him training in the 5 'elements' of Ninjutsu or ninja techniques; Temari-mum training him in Wind, including using it to sweep areas in the forest that they prepared for him, Kin-mum training him in Lightning (it was so cool to be able to feel where the electricity was in the house), Shizune-mum and Tsunade-mum took Earth, Isaribi-mum would teach about Water and Yugito-mum and Anko-mum took Fire. He especially liked Fire; breathing fire was Awesome!

They also stretched his mind further, Temari-mum and Ayame-mum introducing him to Accounting and Business, and they said economics would come later. Haku guided him into the world of physics, starting with basic principles and the 6 simple machines; levers, wheel and axle, pulleys, inclined planes, wedges and screws, along with examples of them in use. She said later these would be very useful when he made his own puppets, as well as helping him understand more of how the world around him worked. Shizune also introduced him to poisons, building on his earlier introduction to medicine and chemistry, showing him that while fireballs are fun, they aren't the only way to get the job done, and that there was another reason to be careful what he ate. Last, but by no means least, Ino-mum was going to teach him the fearsome Yamanaka techniques, both the mental defences and traps, and the more insidious side, techniques to listen to thoughts and to walk in someone's mind and sift their memories, on the condition that he doesn't abuse them, a condition that they would know if he violated. After impressing that upon him, she eased off her intensity and taught him in her usual style, with her and others offering their clones for his practice.

Going back to school was again a relief, a time for the real Harry to relax in body and mind while his clones were still charging ahead in his extra-curricular activities, though now they were also spending time just playing games and enjoying themselves with his family part of the time, something Harry found he sorely needed to help deal with the workload. Again he was top of the class, and now top of their year too, and he found himself putting in work to help prevent that turning to jealousy from his classmates. Sure, he knew that it was natural enough but it was still hard to take, and he often found himself surrounded by girls trying to get his attention; something for which a lot of the boys pitied him, since 'girls were icky' or something. One of his escapes from that was playing sports with the boys, and while he had to hold back his full abilities, it was both training in control and good fun.

He was a little confused when his best friends, best friends who were girls anyway, started looking a little weird at each other, but he was excited they were working hard like him, and showing the benefits, so he made sure to congratulate them when they did well; he loved seeing the smiles on their faces. He wasn't so happy about some of the other girls at school who seemed to take to sighing whenever he turned up and doing stupid things to get his attention. When he told his family about that, he was surprised to see Sakura-mum turn even pinker than her hair! When he got up the courage later to ask her, she sat him on her knee and told him that when she was young, she had done some foolish things to get a boy's attention, as had lots of other girls, but she had grown up and knew better for herself. "Don't worry, Harry, at least your fangirls don't follow you around armed like we did." She grinned when Harry shuddered at that, glad that she could finally laugh again about that time in her life with someone else, rather than being laughed at. Lastly, they were all proud of Harry's progress with the missions he was taking, the Clan having set up areas for the purpose and now running him through C-rank and even B-rank missions by the spring.

The following summer Harry knew what to expect; his training expanded further, though this time there were only two new areas of ninja techniques, with Tsunade-mum starting to teach him medical jutsu or chakra based healing techniques, and Hana-mum teaching her old Inuzuka clan's animalistic techniques. What Harry found he enjoyed most, though, was that he was spending more time with his Dad Naruto, who was teaching him crafting skills, blacksmithing was a passion he shared with Tenten-mum, but it was the father-son bonding over the other skills that stood out in his mind even as he learnt tailoring and leatherworking, and studied jewels and jewelcrafting. He was both proud and nervous that they were letting him handle such beautiful gems, even after his Dad told him the secret technique he had developed to make them from sand or dirt to ease his nerves. He had to pinch himself at that, forgetting for that moment that it would dispel his clone, the memories made the others pinch themselves too, and when he went to create the replacements, he managed to get 4 stable clones, prompting another party.

Harry himself, however, decided to throw a party at the end of summer, privately it was his happiness at getting to ease off a little. His first successful use of the chakra gathering technique was excuse enough to his parents, as it helped him increase the number of concurrent active clones, hitting 6 within a month. He was happy enough to learn and work, and he did understand why they were loading more into his summers as they were the only time he could run the longer B and A-rank missions he was up to. There just wasn't time during school term for the real Harry to disappear that long, only weekends and holidays allowed that sort of opportunity, and Harry had to admit he did like the challenge, testing himself in new ways. The lessons in Fuinjutsu, or sealing techniques, he had completed, and very quickly he finally found out. While he wasn't yet qualified to create new ones, he had managed to learn to copy all the ones he had the chakra to activate.

Once back at school, Harry noticed that he and 'his girls' as his parents called them, were excelling in school, even taking on extra by learning French from one of the teachers in special tutoring. Harry was grateful to Sakura-mum for helping him and his friends, she had a great memory and loved to share her knowledge. He had to go back to Ino-mum for advice on how the girls were acting, he was pretty sure they were flirting with him a little, and she confirmed that they were experiencing their first crush, and gave him advice on how to treat their feelings without hurting them. "Something I only wish had been done for me" she confided, smiling. Harry freely admitted he was biased, but he thought 'his' girls were at least as pretty as any others in their year. His opinion firmed up as the girls started getting their own fans, something that made him somehow proud.

Life settled down for the family, almost becoming routine, only almost though as the Clan would always try to spice things up before they could get too bored or lose their edge, their situational awareness. Harry continued to lead his year group in the classroom and outside it on the football field. His girls continued to flirt and slowly but surely, Harry learned how to flirt back, all of them having fun imitating the teens they saw. Harry was far from suave and sophisticated, since he was still so young, but he was still growing to be a charming boy, and Ino's lessons in flirting and Kurenai's in seduction went nice and slowly. While the Kitsunes saw nothing wrong with a precocious pair of experimenters, they had spent enough time in England to understand that their attitudes were most definitely not shared by everyone.

And so, they made sure that Harry didn't put the more advanced lessons into practice, something that was aided by their version of The Talk at the start of his summer holidays in '90. The Kitsune version was far more detailed, informative and mortifying than Harry's worst nightmares. Ino-mum's tips on flirting were embarrassing enough, though useful, as were her insights into younger minds. Her instructions on foreplay, accompanied by Kurenai-mum's seduction training took it to the next level. Having Anko-mum and Tsunade-mum playing the part of demonstration aids however would stay with him forever! He took ages to be able to look at them without blushing, though he would be grateful for their help in later years, not that he'd willingly admit it!

After that, Harry swore that he would stick to holding hands and hugs at most, because there was No Way he was ready for That. It was something of a relief when his parents threw him into the deep end with a simulated S-rank. Sure, getting stuck in mud, baked by Fire techniques, near-drowned by Water and cut by Wind blades was many kinds of awful, but it didn't compare to the horror he felt at the prospect that his parents would give him another Talk.

The rest of the training was much less harrowing, and his last year at Park Mead went reasonably quietly except for one event that brought home to Harry just how much he had changed, and how much further he had to go with his training. He was walking home one evening, having just left his girls, and spotted an older boy, somewhere around 16 by his looks, pinning a girl against the wall in an alley, they were far enough down it to be out of easy sight from the street, and the girl was in some pain where the boy was gripping her shoulder. Harry's heart started pumping harder and his breath quickened as adrenaline flooded his system in response to his rage. He hated bullies, especially boys who picked on girls. Sure he knew girls could be just as lethal as boys, his mums proved that beyond a doubt, but it wasn't something he could train out of himself, it wasn't something he wanted to change. So when the boy reached out to slip a hand underneath her shirt, he gave in to his anger, and let his training take over. There, he was right behind the target, thus, he hit pressure points, causing the target's legs to buckle, now, he started kicking in the precise places and times that Haku-mum detailed for inflicting maximum pain for minimum damage. And- he blinked, restrained completely in ninja wire with the Clan surrounding him, watching him, talking him out of it. How did he get here? Oh, of course, the Clan brought him here, because they saw what he was doing to- Harry had the urge to vomit, suddenly, a reaction, he remembered, nothing to be ashamed of, they had said, but still it burned, less because of his reaction than what spawned it. He had lost his self-control, applied the lessons they taught him to cause pain.

He looked up at last, and saw the understanding. They talked him through the encounter, what he saw, what he did, why he did it. They added later that they had had to heal up the bully because Harry's strikes would show that there was someone with advanced training involved, and none of them wanted Harry persecuted because of that. They did, however, manage to convince the bully, and the girl, not to spread what happened, even encouraging them to view the encounter as a weird dream, one that might just convince the boy not to go touching uninvited. Anko-mum and Harry shared a grim smile at that. Harry still wasn't happy with himself for losing control, but he'd be lying if he said he didn't want exactly that outcome.

One exchange in their conversations stood out for Harry. Naruto asked Harry to name an important lesson he learned from the incident. Harry thought about it for a few seconds. "There is always more to learn about the world, about control, and about myself."

Naruto nodded and added, "and girls."

He never did get all of the details, but nothing much ever came of it, the boy became slightly less of a jerk, the girl obviously just wrote it off as a nightmare, but for Harry it was an important lesson in how seductive anger can be, and how if he didn't rule his emotions, he risked them ruling him.

After that incident they encouraged Harry to find healthy ways to release his stress. He sampled music of many genres, browsed through tv shows, went on walks or runs, sang and danced to any music that interested him, created or practiced appreciating art, anything he or they could think of to find what methods worked for him. When he found that a variety of harmless practical jokes worked for him, there was talk that he was a True Kitsune already, and they set about developing his hobby into a skill to be proud of. When that was followed by his love of massage, several of the Angels looked askance at Naruto, wondering just how many of his personality traits were transferred with his bloodline. They were somewhat relieved when his third method of relaxation turned out to be movies, as that didn't remind them of Naruto, or not too much.

At last, the summer of '91 came around, and Harry's parents sat him down, reminding him of the magical people and their society, and how they took in children at 11 to start lessons in magic at a school called Hogwarts. In all honesty, Harry hadn't much thought about this in years, he was far too busy, and having far too much fun, to dwell on that. Now, though, he was wondering why they hadn't approached him yet if they expect him to go to them for next year. It was only months away. Otherwise, he was hoping to go to the same school as his best friends, learn and have fun, until it was time for him to go to work too. Harry was proud that since learning the chakra gathering technique, the number of clones he could maintain had shot up to 12, and he expected to continue increasing that as long as he got the time to train his body and mind.

Yuugao-mum reminded him, however, that it was almost certain the magical people would come for him. That weird old man that tried to take him back to Them was, after all, the Headmaster for the school, and seemed to want something from Harry, which presumably would be easier if Harry went to Hogwarts, and the other magicals considered Harry the 'famous' Boy Who Lived, which was reason enough for that masked madman to try to kill him. The idea that they wouldn't demand 'their hero' go to their school was laughable at best. His mums and dad gave reasons why going to Hogwarts as expected would be a good idea, if only to get answers on just what was going on, as well as going over why it would be a bad idea, going off alone into unknown dangers at the top of the list. They made it clear that while they would give him advice, they would let him make the choice, and stand by him.

May turned into June, June turned into July, and the tension at the Kitsune home mounted steadily higher. The Clan were confident in their reading of the people involved, but it was getting stupidly close to the time Harry would have to go this Hogwarts place, and still no word. With barely a week left of July, they finally got their first official contact from the Wizarding World, a letter written on parchment and delivered by an owl of all things! While a clone kept it restrained, the Clan read the letter, surprised by the contents. For a start, the writer assumed that Harry had access to his own trained owl to make a reply, a ridiculous assumption to make of anyone outside their own society, and the list of clothes and equipment included items totally unknown to the Clan, like dragonhide gloves, or merely exceedingly strange, like 'plain work robes'. It was quickly decided to write back to this Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall.

'Dear Deputy Headmistress McGonagall or to Whom it May Concern,

We have received your letter regarding Harry Potter's 'acceptance' to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

If this is a joke, then it is in poor taste.

We have never applied to send Harry to any such school, and indeed we have doubts that it even exists. Certainly it is not listed anywhere among the better schools, and we have no intention to send our precious son to a school where his only qualification upon completion is as some sort of entertainer. We intend to give our son the very best in life, so you can see why your school doesn't measure up, as you sent no information as to provided courses or past results, no proof, and no way for us to get this equipment even if it exists.

If you intend to ensure his enrolment, you will have to provide more of an introduction than some form letter. We are available to meet to discuss the matter should you wish to convince us after all that your school is the place for our Harry.

Yours sincerely,

Naruto Todd,

Adoptive father and legal guardian of Harry Potter, acting on his behalf.

Harry approached the captive owl and after tying the letter to its leg like the last had arrived, he tried something, feeling a little silly. "Will you take this letter for me?" The owl nodded. Feeling more confident now that he knew the owl seemed smart enough to understand him he continued without the earlier unease. "Will you take it to Deputy Headmistress Minerva McGonagall?" Again a nod. "Will you take it to Prime Minister Major?" The owl shook its head and Harry smiled, relieved that the owl passed this test. "Ok, thank you, here you go." He stepped back and the clone escorted the owl to the edge of the forest before letting it go, eyes watching it until it disappeared over the horizon.

"Well, that's that done. Now to see if it does any good." Sakura-mum remarked to no one in particular.

The next day, a tall woman appeared in the nearby park, immediately spotted by hidden clones set out to look for incoming strangers. She was wearing an old style of dress, sensible and conservative shoes, and a hat to match. Her approach to the Kitsune home was monitored every step, and they didn't keep her waiting long when she rang the bell. Naruto answered the door with a polite expression.

"Good morning, sir, would you happen to be Naruto Todd?"

"Yes, I am. May I enquire after your name, madam?" Naruto asked politely, following their plan. First stage was designed to provoke a visit, hopefully a peaceful attempt on the school's part to convince them to allow Harry to attend, but they had planned, as best they could in the face of their ignorance, in case the response was not as friendly. They wouldn't be who they were if they didn't try to plan for the worst, which is why Harry would not be setting foot within a mile of this woman until they had some measure of her.

"Of course, Mr Todd, my name is Minerva McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress. May I come in that I may discuss the matters you raised in your letter? I confess that I would rather talk about this somewhere other than on your front doorstep where anyone may see."

Naruto invited her in and led her through to the sitting room, one of their public rooms, offering her a seat and enquiring if she would like any refreshments, giving her a level of politeness they had never granted one Albus Dumbledore. Then again, that particular person had never granted them that either.

Over the course of the next hour, Mistress McGonagall demonstrated more magic, and answered more questions, than in any ten normal introductions to the Wizarding World. Only one other in her recent memory asked more, but still, at least there she had met the prospective student she was meant to invite. Here over an hour had passed, and they still hadn't produced Harry Potter. She was just about to ask when she caught the barest of nods, and in walked the Boy-Who-Lived at last.

Naruto caught her attention again, "Thank you for answering our questions. We are now satisfied that what you call magic is, indeed, real, and fully expect that the school, this Hogwarts, is likewise. In addition, the way you have behaved has inspired sufficient trust for us to allow you to meet Harry. After the way the last wizard to visit us behaved, we were reluctant to expose Harry to more of the same." Naruto appeared at least somewhat embarrassed for treating her that way. "Harry, this is Mistress McGonagall, she's the Deputy Headmistress we wrote to yesterday, and also the Professor of the Transfiguration course, wasn't it, Mistress McGonagall?"

McGonagall smiled and nodded, her Scottish brogue more pronounced as her joy at seeing Harry fit and well flowed through her, putting aside her questions about the last wizard visitor. "Indeed it is, Mister Todd, thank you. Ah, Mister Potter, your adoptive father has had many questions for me. I have been teaching for many years now, and some of them surprised me. May I expect more from you?" Her words and stern face were offset by her warm eyes and welcoming tone.

Harry blushed a little at being pegged so well. "Yes, Mistress McGonagall, I do have questions. First, may I see some magic for myself? I would also like to know how you know I'm a wizard, what courses you offer, and what jobs I could get after completing my Hogwarts education. Until your letter arrived, I was expecting to attend high school with all my friends, and the girls will be crushed if I don't go." He replied.

Minerva smiled at this, thinking to herself that little Harry was already getting the kind of attention that most of her older male students could only dream of. It helped that he was quite the handsome boy for his age.

As she performed for Harry, changing the colours of her clothes all black and back again, before transfiguring an empty chair into a cat that jumped up on Harry's lap, purring, she examined Harry closer. "Mr Potter, I had the good fortune of teaching both your parents, and I must say you remind me of both of them. You certainly have your father's black hair, though better behaved than his ever was, but also your mother's eyes and jawline."

Harry smiled at this, and resolved to himself to ask her more later about his parents, since he still didn't even have a photo of them, but first he had to find out if it was even worth going to Hogwarts, worth entering into a society where killing a child was something so casually attempted.

"Thank you, Mistress McGonagall." Harry smiled at her. "The demonstrations were impressive, as I'm sure they were meant to be. They sure made me curious to learn more. However, are there any reasons - other than missing out on some abilities - why I should bother attending any magical school? I have lived my life without magic, so continuing without it wouldn't be that big a deal for me."

Minerva McGonagall was surprised by young Harry, as she thought of him, a condition she would find oft repeated over the years. "That's a very good question, young man. While I would certainly enjoy teaching you, as you have already demonstrated a keen mind, I understand that wouldn't be a compelling reason to you to attend. As it happens, though, there does exist a very good reason for training, especially for those living as you do among the Muggles, a word for those without magic. As I expect you will have noticed, most often when your emotions are strongest, your magic may escape, acting upon your intent but unformed, chaotic. As you age, your magic gets stronger, and this accidental magic as we call it grows in strength too. There are cases of young wizards and witches who have killed themselves or those around them with their accidental magic, particularly in adolescence when the emotions run even higher and new urges make their appearance.

"Accidental magic is a danger in another way, too, as our world remains hidden from the Muggles, protected by the International Statute of Secrecy which exacts severe punishments upon those whose actions may expose us. Lastly, underage wizards, which is anyone under 17, may not perform magic out of school as it is against the Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery."

"Doesn't that mean I won't be able show my family what I learn until I'm about to enter my last year, six years of tuition paid, that almost anything I do at that school would be a mystery to my family? That's hardly a sensible arrangement. Would you pay someone for 6 years with no guarantee that it's doing anything at all?" Harry paused and blushed. "Um, sorry, Mistress McGonagall, I guess it's not up to you, is it? I shouldn't blame you for something you haven't done." He added with an undertone, thinking darkly of the Dursleys.

"Quite alright, Mister Potter. And there are clauses that do allow the performance of magic by those underage under certain circumstances. Firstly, magic may be performed in self-defence or defence of other wizards or witches when necessary to save a life. Secondly, magic performed by those too young for formal training is assumed to be uncontrolled magic and therefore not something that deserves punishment. Thirdly, if the child is under appropriate supervision when the magic is performed, and it does not break the International Statute of Secrecy, demonstrations and practice are permissible if the appropriate licence is obtained. Generally, a witch or wizard in good standing would not find it too difficult to get that licence to supervise their child, and I believe many do."

Naruto furrowed his brow at that. "Hmm, forgive me, Mistress McGonagall, but doesn't that disadvantage those like our Harry who aren't raised by wizards? While I understand that it could be useful to have a wizard on hand to help if the student makes mistakes, and that is a good reason to handle it that way, is any effort made to provide those raised by Muggles with the opportunity to continue their studies too? A Hogwarts program, perhaps?"

"I'm sorry to say, Mr Todd, that we don't have a program like that. This is actually the first time I've even heard such a suggestion, which may go some way towards explaining why we don't have it, however. While I cannot say if it will ever go ahead, it would certainly get my support. Sadly, I do not have high hopes of seeing it any time soon."

"What about if we organised such a group?"

"As I said, you would certainly get my support." Minerva smiled, happy to be able to offer it. "And should it happen to be that you find yourself in need of a witch for your program, it would be my honour to provide that supervision, for at least some of the holidays. After all, everyone needs some time off, and this would be taking some of mine."

Naruto nodded, "That's fine, indeed you are offering more than we could expect. From what we've gathered today, you have a lot of duties already. We are certainly thankful for your offer, and will keep it in mind." Naruto looked to Harry.

"Well, Harry, you've got a week to decide if you want to go. Do you have any other questions?"

"Yes, Dad. Mistress McGonagall, are there other books or places we can get more information on things? For that matter, how do I even get my school things?"

"Mr Potter, for you and other muggle-raised children, I run visits to Diagon Alley, the magical shopping district in London, where you may purchase all your school supplies and browse Flourish & Blotts for extra books. My next trip was with two muggleborns, one who, like yourself, also has a great curiosity for the Wizarding World. I dare say you two would be great friends when attend. Shall I pick you and your parents up as well?"

Naruto spoke up here, "If it is in London, we can make the trip ourselves, if you will provide us directions. That way, we won't be a burden to you for every little time we want to visit the shops."

"Of course, Mr Todd, I would be happy to. Diagon Alley is accessible through the Leaky Cauldron, a pub on Charing Cross Road, between a bookshop and a record shop. If you like, I can meet your party Saturday morning at 10am outside Leicester Square, which is rather close by." Minerva offered. "It's where I had arranged to meet the others, in fact." At Naruto's nod, she nodded back, pleased. "Very well, I shall see you then, Mr Todd, Mr Potter. I am sure it will be an educational experience."

Minerva reflected to herself as she walked to a secure place to Apparate to the Ministry, that she had enjoyed getting to meet young Mr. Potter. (She would not think of him by that ridiculous title he'd been given.) He had Lily's brains, and her heart. She wondered if he had inherited his father's love of pranks, then shuddered to herself, praying it had skipped Harry. After all, Severus was going to be his Professor, Merlin help them. Suddenly, she was much less eager to have Harry at Hogwarts, though no less eager to have him under her, an eager student with great potential.

As she walked to the Floo, her professional mask was firmly in place. The Ministry's attitudes still rankled with her. Calling out her destination, she stepped through, relaxing slightly and walking from her office through to her quarters, hanging her hat and letting her hair down, smiling to herself as she pictured the reactions of her students to that action, especially a certain pair of redheads. Her smile disappeared again as she recalled some of their more unpleasant activities in the name of fun. To her frustration, they were nearly impossible to catch in the act during their more spiteful pranks, and without that, Albus refused to take action. In a deliberate attempt to brighten her mood, she thought of James and Lily's boy, and how glad she was that he hadn't stayed with those atrocious Dursleys. He was growing up into a fine boy already, and looked to have gotten the best of both his parents. In a few years, he would be turning quite a few heads due to his looks, not just his fame, she would lay money on it.

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