Chapter 19 - Moments of Revelation

Harry was nervous, again, for however much he wanted to drop the secrecy, he didn't want them to reject him, and with so much still to tell, well that just meant more opportunity for problems, or at least that's what his nerves were yelling at him.

Hinata and the others walked in, with a signal he made clones enough for each one of them to hug him and whisper words of comfort. "You're awesome, you know that?"

"Who, Harry?" Naruto asked, smiling.

"All of you, of course."

From Amelia Bones, Harry had learned about Pensieves, enchanted artifacts that would allow people to view memories. She had demonstrated the process on herself, with one of her first dinner spent with the Clan. Today, Harry was going to start with his memory of the fight in the Chamber of Secrets, using a memory projection technique rather than the rare magical artefact which they couldn't borrow anyway.

After that, he would add the slaughter of the Acromantula colony, starting with their decision to attack the students. There was no point letting anyone think he did the wrong thing when it would be so easy to prevent that misunderstanding. The memory of the overheard conversation, explaining that he'd then stationed a clone to warn him if they changed their minds, and his memory of Rubeus Hagrid's arrest and realisation that now the giant spiders could do just that.

Naturally, this would all lead to the revelation of what else he could do. Before he had time to really get nervous again, his mothers were rubbing his shoulders to comfort him. The ringing of the doorbell brought him out nicely. His parents guided him out to meet their guests as a host should. Now that there was work he could do, he wouldn't slide back. It was the inactivity and the helplessness that had done it.

"Harry!" Athena yelled as she dashed forward, hugging him. Hermione just laughed and hugged one of the other Harry's. Matthew and Elizabeth Granger got their own greetings. They reflected that Harry's clones did make greeting guests go faster, heading on through to the lounge.

"Now, girls, don't take too long before you follow." Matt's admonishment was rather gentle, all things considered.

Hermione smiled, she was happy to do that, while Athena, still only nine, tried to turn on her cuteness to change their minds. Unlike her sister, she didn't get to see big brother Harry nearly enough. Despite herself, Athena was convinced to head in by Harry simply taking her hand and walking in. Matt Granger just chuckled and handed over a pound to his wife when they arrived less than a minute later.

"Always bet on Harry, dear." She teased.

The rest of their guests turned up over the next half an hour. The Clan had emphasised in their invitations to Harry's girls and their families that this was intended to be an all day affair and thus turning up at an exact time wasn't necessary, just let them know if they were running too late. They needn't have bothered, everyone turned up early since they didn't want to miss the story of the Chamber, now that they knew it had a happy ending. Since Mary and Remus were living with the Clan, they were also invited.

With the arrival of their last guests, the Patils, everyone was there, and Amelia Bones in her role as senior Ministry employee stepped out to get everyone's attention. "Now that we're all assembled, it is my duty to share with the Banks family, the Best family, the Fletcher family, the Melville family, the Middleton family and the Roberts family something that was shared with the Grangers around two years ago.

"Magic is real. The other families here today have at least one member able to cast spells, some of them the parents are like you, unable to perform magic, while in other families magic has run for generations." Drawing her wand, Amelia ran through a few simple spells, ending with conjuring cups which she filled with an Aguamenti.

The named families looked around with interest, and only a little alarm, when one by one the other witches and wizards present showed their own wands, ending with Harry. He remembered the day a year ago that the families found out he was studying at a second school, and the odd looks he got, and wondered at their reaction now. "It's real. The other school I go to is called Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. What I told you about it before is all true, but incomplete."

Amelia took over again. "As you might imagine, there's a good reason you had heard none of this before. That reason is our society took steps three centuries ago to hide ourselves away, keeping knowledge of magic from the general population that had been persecuting us. Anyone who found out about our world would have to keep the secret, one way or another. The most successful and easiest for a long time has been to remove the memories of any Muggle who discovered us with a spell. It's much more difficult to persuade people to keep the Statute of Secrecy when magic makes it easy to force compliance."

"What's a Muggle?" Meaghan called out.

"That's what their society calls those without magic. It's rather insulting, like the way a lot of them feel about us." Harry replied. "Not all, though. Some of the families here may be unfamiliar with our society, but they are learning, and they will respect you as people. I wouldn't associate with them if they didn't."

"And you said you have a spell to mess with our minds, stealing our memories?" Sandra asked.

"We do, and that horror is shared by Harry." Harry nodded, thankful Amelia pointed that out. "There are people in your society who are allowed to know about magic for one reason or another. For example, there are the Grangers, both are dentists, while their daughters are witches, known as Muggle-borns because of their parents." Amelia then described some of the wonder of her world, how at eleven they started schooling at Hogwarts, and more about the Statute of Secrecy and laws.

Some time later, the questions had been ended by Harry announcing it was time to show what really happened in the Chamber of Secrets. A quick description of the affair horrified the parents, none of them would have condoned leaving their children in Hogwarts if they'd believed there was a Basilisk. In addition, the non-magical parents were torn between being grateful their own kids hadn't been at risk and outraged at the bigotry that existed in the Wizarding World. They were silenced when Harry's memory began as he cast the Illusion technique on a blank wall.

He showed them that Halloween, overhearing Draco gloating about the coming attacks on his classmates, showed the Petrified students, showed finding the Chamber in a girls' bathroom. "Just my luck." he muttered.

While all there knew about Harry's clones, seeing them prepare in such an organised fashion was unexpected. When they walked around blindfolded so easily in a room that seemed an odd combination of pitch black and yet lit enough to see, that definitely got their curiosity. The conversation with Riddle, who grew to be a magical terrorist, they heard, was more of an eye opener, but the battle itself stole the show.

Gasps and screams as Harry's clones dodged and weaved, their attacks awe-inspiring but blunted by the creature's defences, finally culminating with three clones jumping into the beast's open mouth. The memory also covered Harry carrying out first Ginny, then the unknown woman. Harry had talked to Mary about this, and she had agreed to let them see, though she refused to watch herself. It ended with Harry spinning a fine yarn for the supposedly wise Headmaster.

Amelia, given her job, recovered first. "So Harry, you found an echo of You-Know-Who, slew a creature that can kill you with its eyes, not to mention its deadly venom, you rescued not one but two girls, and then managed to cover that up so it looked like you just got lucky. How in Merlin's name did you manage all that?"

The others present agreed, that was incredible.

"That ties into the other secret I am finally free to reveal." Harry began, appearing more confident than he felt. "As Madame Bones is aware, my parents have been training me. The extent of my training was under-reported however, and is the reason why I can create the Shadow Clones, as they are called, as well as many other 'impossible' things.

"The simple reason is my parents aren't 'Muggles' but Ninja. Where they came from, many people are able to enhance their bodies or perform special techniques called jutsu, that here were approximated by magic. The fireball I threw, for example, was created through the manipulation of 'Chakra', a type of energy fundamental to most things Ninja. From my reading, I've learned there are various fire spells, though they aren't as good as the fire jutsu I know. On the other hand, the chakra-based techniques can't substitute for a levitation spell and they have other limits compared to magic.

"Since I moved here I've been learning to perform the techniques my parents taught me, but I couldn't have started without the surgery they performed on me. They gave me what they called a bloodline from Naruto, and I now share some of his genes." He noticed the puzzled faces, adding "In simple terms, I'm now really part of his family, not just adopted, and have been for years. I still have the traits from James and Lily Potter, but with some Naruto added on."

Naruto took over here, "The surgery, while invasive and risky if performed without a great ninja-medic, would have gone fine since we have successfully performed it hundreds of times. Unfortunately, while we knew from Dumbledore's note that accompanied baby Harry, that Harry had people after him, we didn't know of magic at the time. We'd only arrived in England a month or so before we found and took him away from those awful people. The problem is that magic and chakra do not like each other. During the surgery, we found that out the hard way, to Harry's cost. The magic fought against the change to Harry's very body, and we couldn't abort halfway through the surgery . The conflict between the old and new pattern would have killed him. Pressing on nearly did that anyway.

"While on the table, his heart stopped and a terrible scream came from this scar on his forehead."

"He died?!" That exclamation came from the magicals in the audience.

"For about five seconds, his heart had stopped, before we got it going again. The blood flow to his brain was not interrupted, no chance of brain damage, and we got him closed up and mostly healed by the morning. A few days later and he was better than new. He had the Uzumaki stamina, regeneration and chakra, that last one allowing all the chakra techniques he later learned."

"It also meant we could teach him these," Tsunade smiled, heading over to Matthew Granger. "There's a muscle enhancement medical technique, one for strengthening bones, and so on. With your permission, I would like to demonstrate on you. It won't take long, and it shouldn't hurt at all."

He looked at his wife, getting her read on it, then nodded at the blonde. "Go ahead." He gasped as Tsunade's hands glowed green, a colour that had many of the magicals uneasy, then grinned when she finished a minute later. "Wow! I feel great!" He proceeded to pick up Elizabeth and twirl her around, smiling. "Is there anything I should know? I just realised, I didn't bother to ask about side-effects or warnings."

"Not much. The new strength and resilience mean you should take care with how much force you apply, but they're yours now. If you exercise and eat correctly, you will keep the strength. If not, it will fade as normal. Likewise, your bones are stronger and healthier, and also take maintenance. Without that, they will return to their previous condition in around ten years."

Looking around, she added, "We won't perform any of these techniques on those who have magic. The conflict between them can be agonising, as Harry reported. Starting at Hogwarts, he was experiencing nerve damage from casting spells. We managed to produce a Seal, which is a type of rather complex chakra technique, that solved the problem for him, so when he's trying to cast, his chakra doesn't get in the way."

"But where do these techniques come from?"

"They came with us," she sighed. "We came here from somewhere else, call it another world or dimension. We called it the Elemental Nations. We needed a holiday, and wanted to understand the technology we summoned to our world that we used, things like radios and gas masks and even cup noodles. So to do that, we researched a way to send ourselves to the technology, rather than the other way around. It took a while, and more clones died scouting than I want to remember, but this is the first world we tried. It was colder than where we left, but we did arrive in the start of winter. We've been studying science and technology, and all the new cultures here."

Sakura grinned. "This place is almost heaven to us. Millions of new books to read, a million more every year, so much to learn and discover, we never get bored! Right this moment, we're taking classes on engineering, physics, languages..."

"It's not all good," Yuugao added, "we got a nasty surprise reading about the Manhattan Project. It was a shock seeing how crowded and large the cities are, all the machinery around making them possible. This world is far more advanced in technology than our own. Of course, that was why we came, but we didn't know, couldn't know, what that really meant until we got here."

Naruto got them back on track. "Still, we're here, we are Harry's family, and we'll do just about anything to help him. Our world is harsher in some ways than Great Britain, and we take a while to trust. We hope you understand why we took so long to say anything, and don't hold it against Harry. He was keeping quiet to protect us, doing what he could to help those he loved."

Harry was red at this. Like most boys, he still had some issues being praised for his emotions. Naruto let him off the hook. "Harry, demonstrate a couple of jutsu for everyone."

He nodded, showing the hand seals as he prepared to cast one for his girls. A second later, the ceiling disappeared into black, and yellow text scrolled over a background of stars in the opening to a famous movie from the 70s. He stopped a minute later, grinning at the expressions.

"That was you?! Of course it was!" Hermione had dashed up to hug him, breaking off when she realised all eyes were on her, including her parents. "Harry played a lot of movies right there in the Great Hall of Hogwarts! And the teachers never said anything."

"They never saw them. There was a second illusion letting them see a normal Hogwarts evening. It was my second big prank at the school. The first was the walls. Glazing them took a precisely controlled Fire jutsu to melt the stone just right. I'd noticed girls complaining about having to keep mending their robes."

Daphne smirked, "So what else can you do, Harry?" Harry started with an easy demonstration of strength, speed and precision, running on his hands while he had one of his parents sitting on each foot. The cups of tea they were holding were rock steady throughout.

"There are the weapons I was taught to use, too, you saw the sword, here is the usual weapon of choice, the kunai." He produced it, letting their guests see it in a non-threatening setting. "As it happens, Madam Bones may be interested in a recent use of the kunai and shuriken."

Saying no more, he started up the Pensieve, playing his memory of the assault in the Forbidden Forest. He started with the overheard conversation, Amelia and other wizard-raised paling when they realised the voices were Acromantulas. He skipped to the next memory, where the argument was ending over whether or not they would get some snacks from the castle. The leader, Aragog, had just given his permission 'as long as I can get some sleep', when Harry paused it. "This next bit is bloody, so I thought I would warn you before it started."

No one left which surprised him a little but he shrugged mentally and resumed the playback. First, they saw the giant spiders, up to fifteen feet long, by the hundred, then they saw small spinning bits of metal, shuriken, and longer knives, kunai, being used to deadly effect. It didn't take long at all.

Harry walked over to Amelia, he had an unusual request.

"Madam Bones, as you saw, those spiders weren't that much of a challenge in the end. I captured some of the young ones and have them restrained securely, and I was thinking that it might be worthwhile to raise some for ingredients. There's already a market for the venom, and I recovered the spider silk and everything else from the colony to test it all.

"We can do it safely, but we don't know if it's worth doing. There's no point if it just causes trouble, and that certainly includes if it causes trouble for you."

Amelia couldn't answer that right there, but agreed to look into it for him.

Their various guests were relieved when they all took a break, the refreshments neatly taking their minds off their weighty topics. The girls took Harry off as soon as they could to talk to him. "So is this the last of your great secrets, Harry? After so many times you've surprised us, I hope there isn't anything else. I want to be able to trust that you are, well, you." Hermione nodded with Ashley who had asked the question plaintively.

"Well, there's only the details of what jutsu I can use. My parents insisted I master the one to extend my tongue, saying something about 'you'll thank us later'." He extended his tongue to show them, picking up a pen from the nearby table. The girls were startled, but smiled soon after. Harry scraped his tongue against his teeth to deal with the taste of the plastic, which the girls noticed.

"That's not so bad, Harry. I'm sure it could be useful." Hannah was looking to reassure him, while Hermione's mind wandered slightly.

"I was also given a detailed and highly embarrassing version of the Talk before I went off to Hogwarts. My parents said it was so I would know what was going on with my body, and something about 'not disappointing anyone.' I figure they also used it to help me get used to being embarrassed and still getting the job done so no enemy could use it against me. That's something they would think. Anyway, who has any questions?"

"Is this why I never got anywhere with learning the Shadow Clone technique, you called it?"

"Exactly right, your chakra coils are incomplete, at best, and our magic would get in the way, Hermione."

"And is anyone looking for a way to get past that?"

"My parents are all great doctors and medical researchers. They're trying to find out, but they - we, actually - lack information on magic and how it operates. The ideal solution would be something to temporarily turn off a person's magic just while they're in surgery."

Michelle sighed, this wasn't something she could cure and she knew it. Nor would the Clan give her or the other non-magicals chakra while the magicals couldn't accept the gift, though they had already agreed to give check-ups to their friends and strengthen the muscles and bones for whoever wanted it. She walked over and turned on some music. "Dance with me, Harry?"

He nodded, and the other girls followed her out onto the dance floor, enjoying a slow dance with their surprising young man. As she headed out onto the floor, Susan asked Harry if they could tell the rest of their circle of friends like Justin and Ernie. "Yes, my love, we can, now that you know. I felt my sweet ladies deserved to know first, since you have entrusted your heart."

She melted at that, pulling his head down and French kissing him for the first time, sucking his tongue and moaning. Her moans drew the attention of the other girls, and one by one, most of them decided to give it a try.

Hermione was hugging him tight, glad for her extra age lending her more inches so she didn't have to bend her neck as they kissed. Her age had another effect, though, her body telling her to go further with this sexy boy. The thought that he might know how to use that tongue just amplified his effect on her. She opened her eyes some time later, surprised that she was now straddling his lap and caressing him. "Wow!"

"You said it, dear Hermione! Just wow." Harry grinned at her, hands still in 'safe' places despite the temptations on offer. Her hands had roamed unconsciously as they kissed, making his restraint even more difficult. He had enough will to wait, however tempting all of his girls were to him, and he refused to move faster than they wanted. Making them happy was what made him happy, the essence of love of all kinds.

In the end, the guests stayed for the party, one where the Clan, Remus and a few of their other guests tried to provide the best jokes. After talking with the Clan, Remus found himself in awe. Not only could they allow him to roam their forest during the full moon, and restrain him before he put anyone else in danger, something they had had to demonstrate several times before he let himself believe it, but they could run with him in their animal forms, something he had lost in the war along with the rest of the Marauders.

Their promise that they would look into curing his condition hadn't really sunk in, since he didn't have any direct experience of their abilities in the field, but at least they were trying. It seemed like the Wizarding World would rather forget about his kind entirely, or kill them all and be done with it, and the Muggles couldn't cure it since they weren't allowed to know about it. Looked at from that perspective, it almost didn't matter how good the Kitsunes were, it was still a massive improvement to Remus' chances of a normal life.

In talks with Amelia and the other parents, Harry found more stories of James and Lily, brought out by Remus' jokes, and tales of Prefect patrols with Harry's mother.

Amelia later remembered to thank Harry for showing her what happened to the Acromantula colony, since she could now call off the search teams who were still out there trying to find out the truth. She asked, and received, permission to tell them that the colony had been eradicated, and that the Boy-Who-Lived was satisfied with the result, implying more that he had commissioned their destruction rather than trying to say he did it himself. Seeing some of the casual strength displayed by the Clan, she was growing more confident that they could raise Acromantulas safely. That would be something to bear in mind, she thought, but she still needed to consult with the other department so she gave the correct advice on the Ministry's position.

And thinking on legal matters, she had been introduced to Mary Davidson, Riddle's victim who had been dosed with the Draught of Living Death. The Clan were obviously hovering protectively, more for Mary's benefit than because they distrusted Amelia, she thought, and she had to admit they were obviously able to provide constant care and support. They had also helped her transfer to a different university, where she wouldn't get questions about her abrupt disappearance, and leads on a part-time job too. All of that showed a level of trust she wouldn't have expected, something Naruto explained by saying that the Clan's techniques do work on her.

Over the next week, Harry spent time with all his friends, including one funny time with his male friends in his year. After getting them to agree to keep it quiet via their shared Oaths, he demonstrated the Clones for them, and gave them the talk about chakra, magic, and them not getting along.

"Great, you mean there's a way we could have fun with our mates while still getting all the boring stuff done, but we can never get it?" Terry Boot asked.

"Think of it as your most important group research assignment, Terry," Harry smiled. "If you pass, you get something better than an O on your final exam. You get a better life. Trust me, it's great being able to be in a dozen places at once, and I can't wait to share that joy with you guys."

"You're such a Hufflepuff!" Oliver Rivers from Gryffindor laughed. "Right guys?"

They agreed, chuckling, and the comment was no longer the insult it would have been even two years ago. Not in this group, at least. The Badgers' fortunes were on the rise, and in their minds, that was due to the Boy-Who-Lived.

They were suitably impressed with the real stories of the Troll, the Acromantulas and the Basilisk, and ate popcorn while watching Harry's memories of the events. That led to discussions on best action movies, which thanks to Harry they could now all enjoy.

That weekend, while his clones were busy having fun with the guys, or training with his parents or best of all, spending time with his girls, the real Harry had taken time off his physical exercise for a meeting with Lucius Malfoy.

Lucius had insisted that for his meeting with an unnamed buyer, they meet in a neutral location, somewhere other than his home. Harry and his parents figured that he didn't want to invite a stranger into his home given all the things magic could do, but the truth was Malfoy didn't trust this not to be a sting operation from the DMLE.

He turned up precisely on time, everything about him reflecting his confidence and arrogance. Harry and the Clan had arrived an hour early, scouting the place Amelia's contact had arranged. The place was in Knockturn Alley, the more disreputable counterpart to Diagon, though the interior of the pub was cleaner and in better condition than the Leaky Cauldron. With the suspicious patrons, it paid to keep them from suspecting the food and drink on offer.

They had already spotted a number of thieves and general low-lifes in the pub under disguises that were poor by Clan standards. Harry had already made a note to pass on the information to Amelia, his own disguise being maintained by his parents to leave Harry free to cast magic if needed.

Malfoy took his seat after running a basic detection spell on the area for any active magic. It would alert him if the chairs, tables, cutlery or, importantly, the buyer was using any magic, reacting and powered by the very magic it sought. Since it didn't push any magic at Harry, it didn't even ripple his Disguise jutsu.

With coaching from his parents, Harry opened negotiations with the older man. After some discreet questioning, Malfoy was surprised that they wanted to buy one of his elves.

"I had wondered what property of mine would be so sensitive that you wouldn't meet openly. Now, I see that it's not the item that causes your caution, but the buyer." His superior smirk said he knew that he would be making extra money on the deal.

"Or perhaps it is a courtesy to the seller. Or then again, it just may be the item in question. What is important here is concluding the deal, Mr Malfoy." Harry's response was calculated to pierce the man's confidence, then redirect his attention back to the sale. It was delivered as precisely as possible, but using a cultural framework that didn't match his target.

Lucius sneered, "That's Lord Malfoy to you. Now, did you have a specific one in mind."

"Not particularly, any of them will do." Harry was hoping that this would lead Lucius to sell off the worst of them, which he thought was likely to be the one that had been Petrified by the basilisk.

"Of course they will. As for price, I'm sure you would be happy to pay thirteen hundred. As a Malfoy elf, they are naturally superior."

And so the haggling began. Malfoy had been pre-empted when he was about to stand up to leave by Harry getting there first. Here, at least, the Clan's training paid off. The normal rate for a house elf was a thousand Galleons, and Malfoy had always intended to get a premium for whatever he sold. He was not used to having to haggle with someone who was not in the least affected by his reputation, nor prepared to do so against someone with more experience to boot.

Later, he was never sure quite how, but the mysterious buyer had managed to talk him down to only seven hundred and fifty Galleons. For that price, he was going to get rid of Dobby. That was the worst of the filthy beasts, it had been utterly incompetent all year, and then got itself caught by the basilisk at Hogwarts of all places. He would be well rid of it, always breaking plates.

"Dobby!" The beast arrived with a Crack!, filthy as ever. "You are now sold to this wizard. Do you understand?"

"Yes, Master, Dobby understands!" The little creature's head nodded rapidly along with that, and he looked fearful as it sunk in that now he was being sold off. There was a terrifying moment of freedom before the house elf felt his new bond form. As bad as his life with the Malfoys had been, things could always get worse. The Malfoys had made sure to emphasise that every time they punished him or made him punish himself.

His new owner told him to come along as the group headed out of Knockturn Alley and out through the Leaky Cauldron, shocking Dobby when they went out to Muggle London. Old Master never would have done that, or at least never took poor Dobby. Dobby made himself invisible just before they left the pub, prompting his new owner to stop and ask where he was. Dobby explained that Dobby was invisible so the Muggles wouldn't see Dobby.

New Master nodded, leading Dobby to a Muggle contraption, telling him to get in and then tied down poor Dobby. Dobby nearly cried until New Master told him to be quiet. Dobby did that, and noticed that New Master was also strapping himself in, as were the two in the front. New Master then turned to Dobby and explained that the straps were for Dobby's safety, and Dobby wanted to cry again that New Master cared about Dobby.

Dobby stayed there while he was taken to New Master's family, the longest trip he'd ever been on. As they pulled into the Kitsune Compound, Dobby's eyes grew even wider, and he was speechless as they took him inside.

Naruto picked up the excitable little creature, putting him in a high chair as he and Harry dropped their disguises. "Now, Dobby, we are your new family."

"Oh Master Harry Potter is the greatest wizard ever!" Dobby gushed. "Dobby is so proud to be Master Harry Potter sir's house elf!"

After waiting for him to wind down, Harry started with questioning Dobby. What can he do? What can't he do? His preferences for food, shelter, entertainment and working conditions. The questioning took time mostly because Dobby seemed unable to believe that he was allowed to dislike anything they gave him. They had to stop him from punishing himself several times over that.

After that, they then started asking about the Malfoy family, trying to discover just what the Malfoy's former slave knew.

From their research, they'd discovered that house elves couldn't testify in any wizarding court because they would tell any lie for their masters if ordered, and there was no magic available that could compel them to tell the truth. Their bond overrode it all.

Still, hearing about the cache of Dark items in the living room was good, it meant that if they could supply Amelia with a legitimate lead, she could 'discover' the items, putting more pressure on Lucius. They also found out just where the Malfoy Manor was, and that the man was planning to propose more anti-Muggle or anti-Muggle Born legislation. He also gloated to his wife and son about the court freeing him again. He explained to his son that money had paid his way free, not being 'under the Imperius'.

"Dad, that means that even if we do get the Aurors to find the items, he'll just pay off the court again. At most, we'll be draining their vault a little."

The most useful information from Dobby for the moment was the wards on Malfoy Manor were rather more impressive in reputation than in practice.

"Thank you, Dobby. We'll have a size appropriate room for you soon. In the meantime, there are some rules of the household. The first is to keep our secrets. This is one we all keep as best we can. Secondly, on punishments, you must not punish yourself until further notice. If you believe you did something wrong, tell us. It is unlikely that we will punish you, and either way, that will be the end of the matter. Thirdly, your appearance and general treatment. I read that giving clothes is the way to fire an elf whose services are no longer desired. I also read that elves are often required to get clothes in order to clean them. Obviously, there is some conflict, so how exactly does giving clothes and laundry work?"

"Dobby can do your laundry, Master Harry Potter!"

"Yes, Dobby, but how do we get the dirty laundry to you if we can't give you the clothes to be washed?"

"Dobby can pick up dirty laundry, Master Harry Potter, Dobby can, as long as clothes are left to be picked up."

"Thank you, Dobby. In time, we would like for you to wear something better than the dirty pillowcase, once you have had time to pick out what you want. Next, can you call me 'Harry' or 'Harry Potter' instead of 'Master Harry Potter'. I was raised in a civilised society that doesn't tolerate slavery, and being called your Master hurts me."

"Yes, Ma- Yes, Harry Potter. Dobby will try."

"That's all I want, Dobby. Sometime later, I hope you will accept freedom to become an equal part of my family, but!" Harry added quickly, "That will wait until you can accept that freedom is a good thing for you. The point of preferring freedom is that it lets you be happy. Until you are happier free, I will wait."

"Lastly, a standing order. If any of our instructions confuse you, will hurt you, put you in danger, cannot be done or upset you, you will tell us so and explain why. You're our responsibility now that you're part of the family. Do you understand everything so far?"

"Yes, M- Harry Potter, Dobby understands."

"Good, Dobby, and good work catching yourself." Harry smiled, "Habits are sneaky things like that. Now, let's get you cleaned up and fed."

Harry had realised almost as quickly as his family that Dobby would need careful treatment. Doing what he could to help the little guy was almost like going back to help himself before his parents rescued him, and Harry hoped that Dobby would, in time, grow to be happy, healthy and free. There was a lot of indoctrination in the Wizarding World that house elves must have a bond to a witch or wizard, but no records that any house elf had ever suffered without it beyond what would be expected from a brainwashed slave suddenly freed.

That night, Dobby started his new life with Harry Potter. He wasn't allowed to do the cooking, which upset him, but they explained that their family enjoyed cooking and that Dobby didn't yet know their recipes. He was allowed to watch, and saw Harry and Naruto both giving every sign of enjoying cooking for their family. And they were right. Dobby didn't know how to cook what they did, but Dobby was prepared to learn. Dobby was confused at how many Harry Potters he saw. They tried telling him, but Dobby didn't understand. When Dobby went to bash his head against the wall, he saw Harry Potters shaking their heads. Then Dobby remembered that he was not allowed to punish himself.

It was all so confusing, and as scary as that was, but Dobby was hopeful for the first time he could remember.

While Dobby was still settling in, Harry had been invited over to stay with the Brown family for a couple of days. They obviously wanted to make sure that their little girl wasn't making a mistake getting involved in a group relationship, and that showed with how closely her parents were watching him.

Or it could have been the whole Boy-Who-Lived thing. Or both. What mattered was that they were watching him with Lavender, so he couldn't show any disrespect to her. That much was easy enough, since he did respect her as a person, and her interest in fashion was one Harry shared. He got to talk with her about colours and lines, impressing her when he displayed some of the clothing he had made. That led to an impromptu gift to Miss and Mrs Brown of a couple of minor items. Calling it a bribe would have been rude... no matter how accurate it was. Harry passing off the top he'd made Mrs Brown as Mr Brown's idea was simply good politics, and only 'stretching the truth'.

The visits from Sally-Anne were a real eye opener. Where Lavender was often flirty, outgoing and living up to her image from school of being an extrovert, Sally-Anne was quieter but still sweet and friendly. Her blue eyes and dimples set off her round face well, framed by dark brown hair that she had obviously given extra attention for visiting Lavender (and Harry). One inadvertent hint too many in their conversations that Harry had secrets, and she stunned them both by offering to keep his secrets as long as he shared them.

Before Harry said a word, she had her hand on her wand, "I, Sally-Anne Perks, swear to protect Harry James Potter's secrets on my life and magic." The flash of magic sealed her Oath, and Harry's eyes widened.

"You realise what you did, right?" Harry asked cautiously.

"Of course, and you saw I meant it, Harry!" Sally-Anne's blue eyes flashed.

"Yes, Sally-Anne, I did see that. And thank you for your offer, too. I was just worried it was something you might come to regret. Now, you have to take action if someone else tries to discover my secrets too."

"Oh. Well, that's fine, Harry. I just wanted you to know you can trust me, and now you know." She smiled brightly, eagerly.

"Someone seems to have been a misplaced Hufflepuff." Harry grinned.

"That's fine, someone else was a misplaced Gryffindor." Sally-Anne teased right back.

"You don't know the half of it, Sally-Anne, not yet." Lavender giggled and settled in, cuddling up to her Harry as story time started.

When Harry described his first Halloween, Lavender squeezed him tight, feeling sorry for him losing his parents like that. Sally-Anne joined the hug, pressing her thin body to him, trying to give him some comfort as Harry relived the pain.

"My parents helped me recover my early memories. Did I ever tell you? I can now remember times when they held me, fed me, talked to me. There are times, like when I'm having trouble sleeping and all sorts of stupid thoughts run through my head, that I'm not sure if that's a blessing or a curse instead. In the mornings, I know better, but getting to know what they did for me makes me aware of what I lost that night."

"We're here for you, Harry. You've been so good to Lav, and I hope we can be good friends. And friends stand by each other."

Lavender turned her head, looking at Sally-Anne. Maybe the girl had listened too much to her and Parvati praising Harry. Sally-Anne looked back fearlessly. She knew she was impulsive but that didn't mean she was stupid. She knew what the look meant, and that Lavender would think Sally-Anne wanted Harry too. Well, let her. They'd shared a lot of other things, why not share Harry, too?

Ten minutes later, Harry had produced a Shadow Clone to support his story of his life, and Sally-Anne grinned, while Lavender just smiled, shaking her head. A quick visit to the bathroom gave the pair a chance to talk.

"Ok, girl, you want in, don't you?"

"You know how good he is. Can you tell me why I shouldn't when we don't even have to fight over who gets him?"

"Yes, I can. Harry won't accept a new girl if it will hurt the girls he already loves."

"Oh."

"Yes, 'oh'. You'll need the approval of the others first, mine too, before he'd even think of letting you in on our relationship. If you're the same impulsive girl I remember who insisted on trying every single food at the Welcoming Feast, then some of the girls will wonder if you'll hurt Harry with an impulse some day."

"Since I am still that girl, I guess you're right. What can I do? Harry is a really nice guy."

"Just be patient, I guess. Give the girls time to see they don't have anything to worry about, ok?"

Sally-Anne just hugged Lavender in reply. After checking their appearance, they headed back out to Harry, who had needed to stomp on the urge to listen in on their conversation.

"So, those were the highlights, Sally-Anne. I'm sure there's stuff I forgot to include, but I know I'll remember it later." Harry was interrupted by the growl of his stomach, announcing that he needed lunch.

"Ok, Harry," Sally-Anne giggled, "let's get you some food before you starve."

Conversation was light over lunch after Sally-Anne casually mentioned to Lavender's parents that she had been let in on Harry's secrets. Sally-Anne had already asked if they knew, and was delighted to have joined the club. She was hoping to go all the way if she could. Her mind hiccuped at that unintentional slip, providing hazy images of the well built Harry and her that only mostly dissipated when Harry asked her to pass the potatoes.

Harry had clones at other homes that weekend, of course. Now that the cat was out of the bag as far as the families were concerned, and Harry had indicated his willingness, the girls were free to invite Harry over at any time, whether or not he was already invited to someone else's house at the same time.

Cho Chang had invited him over along with a few of their friends that Saturday. She'd explained in the letter that her parents didn't want to have all Cho's friends over at once, just too many kids around to deal with. Harry was always welcome, since he had saved the school, was how they had put it. He was more comfortable with being rewarded for something he knew he did, than with the fame for surviving.

They chatted and snacked as he settled in, Padma was there with them since Cho had chosen a few Ravenclaws to be the other guests, including Sue Li, a somewhat shorter Chinese girl, and Lisa Turpin, a blue-eyed blonde, both in Harry's year, and little Luna. Lisa had introduced Cho to Trivial Pursuit, a board game involving questions on general knowledge. That placed the older girl at a disadvantage for once, and she had taken it as a challenge. Luna on the other hand was more laid back about it. She was quick at learning the answers as they came up, but if she didn't know, she would pick the craziest of the available answers, making them all crack up laughing.

They had a great time, even when the girls decided to have a flirting contest of sorts with Harry as the judge. Naturally, he made Padma the winner since she was his girlfriend unlike the other girls, earning him a kiss and some mostly innocent touching from the girl, along with good natured groans from the other girls. She did let the other girls get consolation hugs after they begged.

Sue and Lisa took it a step further, double-teaming Harry for their hugs to get double the time.

After that, Cho put on some music and Sue pulled Harry and Padma out to dance. Padma held him close and whispered to Harry "May I ask them if they're willing to keep your secrets soon, Harry? That way I can get some more alone time with you."

"Okay, Padma, you can ask if you think of a way that they won't spread the rumour that I have secrets." Harry grinned. "Think of it as an intellectual challenge."

"Hmm, that's a good question. The first one that comes to mind is asking them to keep the following question secret, before revealing the question, that way it does protect your secrets. The only risk is that they might spread the rumour that I have secrets, and that's not that big a deal to me, Harry. I'm still just a foreign girl to a lot of the students at Hogwarts, so it will fit in with their impression of me if I've got a secret."

Harry sighed, he knew Padma was right about how she was viewed, but that didn't mean he liked it. A lot of their world was like that, and it had done more than anything else to strip the lustre from the awesome idea of learning magic. It started for Harry with Dumbledore, as a lot of things in their society did. Dumbledore had seen nothing wrong with dumping a baby on a doorstep on a cold night. Nothing wrong with placing that baby with people who were sure to resent the disruption to their lives, even if they didn't hate magic. He also did nothing to stop the bigotry or bullying or assaults.

Padma pulled him out of this depressing train of thought by a quick kiss. Harry smiled afterwards. "Thanks I needed that."

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