A/N: I just decided to post the rest of the story today. It's finished now and my mind wants to let this story go to move on to new ideas. So here it is:

Back Home

Harry stepped out of the Floo at Grimmauld Place and bumped right into Sirius.

"Woah! Pup! You're here!"

Harry got an excited hug.

"Were you waiting?"

"Nah, just stretching my legs after breakfast."

Remus, who was lounging on a couch, coughed, "Liar."

Harry sniggered and said, "Remus! Hi. Wow, you look astoundingly good for the day after the full moon."

The man nodded, looking quite pleased, "Yes, the goblins fixed me up some last week. It made a bit of a difference."

"Now who's the liar?" Sirius groused. "A bit. Pffft."

They laughed.

"Did you have any difficulties with Minerva?" Sirius asked.

"No. At first she was rather distracted because of Dumbledore's upcoming trial, and then just relieved when I told her that we had the Prophet handled. And after I handed her the official withdrawal signed by my magical guardian in blood, she couldn't do anything anyway."

"True. Well, you're back! What should we do now?"

"Er, eat lunch?"

"But we just ate! But okay, let's go eat lunch. Follow me, good sirs!"

Sirius' good mood was infectious, so they spent an enjoyable and relaxed time with one another.

At one point Harry asked what had happened with the portrait of Sirius' mum and the Reparo Maxima.

"Oh pup, that's quite the story. You see, she was hidden and silenced behind the flag already when that part of the house was hit with the repair spell for the first time.

"It repaired her quite a bit and she had no way to know what was happening. So, imagine my surprise when a sane but confused Walburga Black greeted me after I dismantled the whole setup."

"No way! Why hadn't we thought of that?"

"Because she always was like the first version of her that you met. I had no reason to think she had changed."

"But she changed now?"

"Yeah. And we're not sure why. Was it her portrait that we repaired so thoroughly, or had spells or potions somehow altered her while alive and it transferred to the portrait? We don't know. And neither does she."

"Wow! – Have you found something similar when repairing other wizarding portraits?" Harry asked Remus.

"Hm, they seem to be more clear-headed after. But that could be just the fact that they got woken up by me and got their minds together after a while."

"Very strange. But why didn't I – oh, right. I arrived via Floo. So, what kind of character does she have now?"

Sirius shrugged, "I would say that of a Pure-blood witch. She's standoffish, judgemental and sneers at everything. But she's reasonable and reserved. So, a huge improvement I would say. Oh, and she wants to meet you."

"She does?"

"You're the heir, aren't you?"

"Oh dear."

Sirius cackled, "Yes, there'll be lessons for you in your future, that's for sure."

"After I sit my O.W.L.s!"

"I think she can agree to that. I'll introduce you this evening."

After eating, the three of them sat down in the drawing room and made a study plan for Harry. He decided to buckle down and sit his O.W.L.s as soon as he felt ready. Sirius and Remus promised to help him, and it would be more of a brush-up on all the subjects than learning them anew anyway. He didn't even need the Hogwarts Library with the Black one at hand.

"So, all of us could tackle the rooftop garden. This should cover most of the more common magical plants that are native to this island, and those are the basis for that O.W.L.," Remus suggested. "And it desperately needs attention anyway."

"Good idea. For the rest of Herbology, I'll just study the books again and recall the practical lessons from back then. Should be easy. Even if I didn't really need any of this in my LF. Only in one case... Er, now that I think about it… that knowledge probably saved my life."

"Yes, it's important to know this stuff, believe me," Sirius added, looking rather earnest and Remus chuckled but didn't elaborate.

"Then we have the lab, where you can brew to your heart's content, but remember to always activate the alarm ward should you be in there alone. Better ask me to come along. I might be able to show you a thing or two."

"I'm sure you can. Snape is a horrible teacher. I still have no idea why things are prepared the way they are, or what stirring a certain amount of times does for example. Not that they asked about it in the O.W.L.s, now that I think of it, or I would never have been able to achieve an E.E."

Sirius blinked, "How can you not know those things? They're basic knowledge... Okay... No one taught you the basics. But Muggle-born usually do know this stuff, right Moony?"

"Yes, I think so. Lily did for sure. But she was friends with Snape before coming to Hogwarts…hm…I must confess I never thought about it. Potions is the subject I hated the most, because of the fumes and my poor sensitive nose. Potion brewing is for my nose like Molly's screeching is for my ears..."

The others winced.

"Merlin, I'm glad to have escaped Hogwarts. She is a menace. I just hope she concentrates on Ron and forgets about me for a while," Harry reflected.

"I think Minerva can invoke something so that the staff and students don't talk about internal matters to outsiders, now that I think of it," Remus said thoughtfully.

"She can? Dumbledore could? Wow, that explains so much! Like the news of the death of Quirrell or the existence of the Basilisk never getting out," Harry scowled. "Dumbledore is a gift that keeps on giving."

"Well, at least in this regard it'd be helpful, wouldn't you agree cub?"

"True. If she actually thinks of it."

"Good point. I'll contact her immediately," Remus rushed out of the room.

"Ok. He might get her to put a lid on this, in time. I just left and aside from my friends, only my roommates know of this and they agreed to keep it quiet. Even if John and Rajiv were more occupied with splitting my just arrived new and old school robes between them," Harry grinned remembering it. Those boys had absolutely no qualms with accepting hand-me-downs. And Molly had been right about that; one shouldn't waste good clothes (as long as they were still good).

"Well, we can only hope. Now back to potion brewing. I'll accompany you for the next few weeks and give you those basics you missed. I probably have my old primer somewhere... Or better take Regulus', now that I think of it. I might've hexed mine to make unfortunate noises."

Harry sniggered, "If you say so."

"Ahem. So, that's Herbology and Potions. What else? Oh! Astronomy! That is my forte as a Black. We'll meet during the night on our roof, and we do have a room that shows the night sky of the northern and the southern hemispheres and its constellations. One can even look at the sky as it was on different dates, even thousands of years ago."

"Wow! I never found that room. That sounds amazing."

"Merlin, am I glad you travelled back in time to learn about things like this."

"Not as much as I am, believe me."

Sirius smiled at his (god-)son, "Now, what else? For History you can read the book and try to stuff the knowledge in your head. Remus and I can quiz you later."

"I'm just sad I'll miss Bagshot's lessons. But not enough to stay at school."

"Would you even have had her?"

"Only one of the two lessons a week."

"Wow, half Binns, half Bagshot?"

"Yup. It's like two different subjects."

"I can Imagine."

The door then opened, and Remus returned, "What did I miss?"

"We covered Astronomy and History. The first one I'll handle, and the second one Harry self-studies and we quiz him."

"Sounds good. I Floo-called Minerva and she's already implemented a lockdown on the information that Harry left, so it shouldn't get out."

"With Molly at school it probably would have," Harry scowled.

"You're a celebrity. More than one person would have informed the press, cub."

"Yeah, okay."

Sirius cackled, "You look so much like a sullen teenager right now."

"I am a sullen teenager right now."

The other two laughed and Remus moved the topic along, "I would advise you to takeMuggle Studies but not revise for it."

"Sure, but I'll space the exams out. I don't want to go through the same stress as the twins did."

"Yes. Sensible. Okay. What else? Transfiguration. I would say Sirius should handle that one. It's more of a refresher, right?"

"Yeah, it should be quick."

"Want to learn to become an Animagus, pup?"

"Yes! Wow. I tried once but I kept swallowing that Mandrake leaf..."

"Well, you could stick it magically to the inside of your cheek, buuuut..."

"Yeeees?"

"Well, we faced the same problem when we learned, so we decided to take the expensive route."

"There is one?"

"Yup."

"Damn."

"I'll get the ingredients and as soon as I deem you confident enough, we'll brew the potion."

"Hear, hear! Padfoot is becoming an educator."

"Oh, shut up you flea-bitten mongrel."

"Oh dear. Talking about yourself now?"

Half an hour later, after both the drawing room and their looks had been put to rights again (necessary because a prank war had spontaneously erupted) they sat back down and Sirius commented, "Well, now you know why we developed our Reparo Maxima in the first place, pup."

Harry, who was still laughing, just nodded.

"At this pace, we'll never get through all the subjects," Remus groused.

"And whose fault is that?"

"Yours, Pads."

Harry intervened quickly before they could start again, "Okay, we covered Potions, Herbology, Transfiguration, Muggle Studies, Astronomy, and History. And I believe I can just brush up on Charms and DADA. And maybe on Care. Don't know yet."

"I can take you through Runes and Arithmancy if you want," Remus offered. "And we can all always add some duelling practice."

"Thanks! Well, that's it. I probably could start with Muggle Studies right away, but l better wait a bit."

Remus nodded, "I'll look into it. Maybe you can take the test while incognito. But I agree. You better wait for a bit."

Sirius clapped his hands and said, "Well, that's for the serious stuff, right? Let's go up to the roof. It might be one of the last warm days of the year."

That evening, Harry got to meet Lady Black. He wasn't very impressed with her, but was relieved she had been fixed somehow. He agreed to learn what he had to know as a Head of the Black family and Sirius had been roped into attending those lectures as well. She didn't trust he remembered everything and also didn't trust her crazy self to have done an adequate job either.

Alone (only getting occasionally quizzed):

DADA
History
Charms
Maybe CoMC

With Remus:
Runes
Arithmancy

Sirius:
Astronomy
Transfigurations
Potions

Together:
Herbology
Duelling

No studying:
Muggle Studies

The First Week Home

Harry spent the next week studying alone or with Remus or Sirius. They also dueled, brewed potions, tended the rooftop garden, and studied the night sky on said rooftop or in the most impressive room of the house; it was like a planetarium on steroids, as Harry had called it. It was great and the only 'thing' Harry really missed was the twins and sometimes Luna.

Fortunately, all three called Harry regularly via the mirror so it wasn't too bad. On Monday, Luna apparently told the surprised twins that she would join them when they planned to call Harry in the Room of Requirements, so she did.

He learned from them that Neville and Eloise were fifth-year prefects now, that the unqualified teachers slowly got replaced with more competent ones, and that school was getting better every day. Only the headmaster's job wasn't addressed at all. McGonagall probably wanted to await the result of the upcoming trial. But most importantly, no one seemed to miss Harry or seemed to realise he had actually left school. Neville, Seamus, Dean, Rajiv, and John just changed the topic, or something, the few times someone asked about him. This was made easier as the students didn't take all classes together with all of their Housemates and a second House of the same year in the main subjects anymore.

The total number of students of the same year of all four Houses was often randomly divided by three now, which led to rather mixed classes and one only ever saw part of their housemates. Harry just wondered how Ron hadn't noticed his disappearance yet. That boy was just so incredibly obtuse sometimes. Well, he was also always on the run from his mother. Maybe that was why.

The next time they talked (two days later) Harry asked about those mixed classes in more detail, and George explained and began to pelt them with numbers.

The reason for the new class compositions was the unbreakable rule of a max of 25 students per class, and there were now sixty-six students on average each year. Therefore it made more sense to divide a year by three, which would yield twenty-two students per class so fewer teachers were needed. However, the sixth and seventh years could still work with the old model because they didn't gain many new students and the lower ones had twenty-three students on average per house and year. Harry asked rather concerned if the poor kids now only ever saw their housemates in class, but Luna could ease his worries. The kids all got randomly assigned one of the four classes of a subject, so each class had students from each house, normally.

"Now I understand why an extra teacher and a teacher's assistant are necessary for each subject," Harry marvelled. "And I don't envy the ones trying to fit all of this into a master schedule for a school week."

"True. Hopefully, they have some magical help," George nodded.

"It also explains why Gryffindors so rarely shared classes with Hufflepuff. Those were the two biggest Houses in the past, right?" Fred said thoughtfully. "And that maximum of 25 would have often been breached."

"And I always thought Dumbledore paired us with Slytherin because he liked to sow discord," Harry said.

"It was probably just the lesser of two evils. I think Ravenclaws and Gryffindors can get extremely competitive but have very different priorities and Slytherins might push Hufflepuff to the back too badly," Lune said thoughtfully.

"You could be on to something, little Raven," George grinned at Luna. "Not many pranksters in your House. And Slytherins don't whine. They retaliate."

"Except for Malfoy," Harry muttered.

"That one isn't very cunning, is he?" Fred said.

"He probably yelled at the hat that he needed to get into Slytherin, or else," Harry mused.

"Ha, and I begged it not to put me there, but anywhere else," Fred confessed.

"No! You too?" Harry gaped.

George started laughing, "So I'm the only true Gryffindor here?"

"Liar! The hat wanted you in Ravenclaw of all Houses!" Fred called out and got hit with a silencing spell by his twin.

"Quiet, you tattletale! That was my deepest darkest secret! The shame!"

Harry and Luna were highly entertained while the twins roughhoused about a bit.

Luckily, Luna had saved the mirror and was holding it up so Harry could watch.

He asked her, grinning at the sight of the twins, casting prank spells at one another, "So, did anyone miss me yet?"

"Oh, yes. Ginny Weasley noticed that she hadn't seen you for days and it was the talk in all the Houses, but the teachers, when asked, just said that you had decided to be homeschooled a while ago and that knowledge was protected by Hogwarts and couldn't be shared with the outside."

"Bet that went down well."

"With most, it did when Neville, Dean and Seamus started reminding them how you hated being the centre of attention and that it hadn't gotten any better over time. Many got quite thoughtful for a while and the rumours died down."

"That's a relief! "

Harry realised only later that he had confessed his own secret about his sorting, and no one had blown a gasket. He wondered how Ron would have reacted. And when he took heart and confessed it to Sirius and Remus that evening, Sirius confessed that he had begged the hat in exactly the same way. 'Not Slytherin!'

Remus, when asked about his sorting, smiled enigmatically, and kept his counsel much to Sirius' disgust.

But Harry cheered the man up by stage-whispering to him, "I bet the hat wanted Remus in Hufflepuff and Moony rebelled."

"How did you–," Remus stopped talking abruptly and scowled at Harry. "He was a lone wolf then without a pack. No one to be loyal to," he grumbled.

In the mornings they enjoyed reading the Daily Prophet which was slowly shaping up. The reporters and editors seemed to see it as a challenge to have as little colour appear in their papers as possible. Well except for the advertisements, naturally. But even those were adapting and started to only make true claims. And the reporters found so much legitimate dirt with just a little bit of digging that there was no lack of topics to fill their papers.

Especially Fudge's and Dumbledore's reputations were relentlessly pummelled with irrefutable facts. Even Dumbledore's former relationship with Grindelwald became known thanks to an anonymous tip from a concerned reader.

And then, on the morning of the 21st day of September, Dumbledore's long-awaited trial date was announced for the 24th of the same month. This time it would be held by the goblins with the Wizengamot in attendance to bear witness.

"So, the exact opposite of my trial?" Sirius asked.

"I think the only similarity would be that it'll also be held at Gringotts," Remus said thoughtfully. "And that the press can only report the truth."

"Can we watch it?" Harry asked.

"Yes. It'll be open to the public. I think that's the only way they can handle a trial of such a high-profile and well-liked person."

"Well-liked? Not so much anymore, right? Since his connection to Grindelwald got out, Remus," Harry remarked and wondered, "Won't they need me on the witness stand?"

"Probably not. My guess is they'll concentrate on the widespread theft and fraud, as well as the corruption of a member of the horde," Sirius guessed.

"And maybe they'll add all of Albus' other misdeeds as an addendum," Remus added.

"That would be preferable," Harry nodded. "I'll write to Grobhook and ask him later."

"So, we'll all go, right?" Sirius asked.

"Yes! I certainly want to. Er, I could activate my disguise. Then no one would be any the wiser."

"Just make sure you wear different underwear than you usually do," Sirius scowled. "Moody will surely attend."

They laughed.

Harry commissioned four more secret-keeping amulets with the necessary necklaces from Gringotts for the twins, Luna, and Snape. He wasn't yet sure about the last one but wanted to have the option. And he had promised Snape during that nightly call with Sirius when Harry was in Hogwarts, hadn't he? It had been the evening of the day Dumbledore had been arrested, he recalled.

Not that he needed one with Luna. But she might appreciate the added safety, he figured.

But all of these conversations had to happen face-to-face anyway, so Harry put the topic out of his mind and the newly arrived pendants and necklaces in his wallet.

Dumbledore's Trial

They met earlier at the breakfast table than was normal for them for a Sunday morning, but no one could sleep with the looming trial. So they quietly read the Prophet, which seemed rather excited about the upcoming trial.

They didn't talk much but agreed that Remus and Sirius would ignore Harry who could easily Apparate to and from the Alley as there was no trace on his wand, as he reminded Remus.

Soon 'Will Turner' was sitting in the packed visitor stands of the huge courtroom of Gringotts. He counted himself lucky that the goblins seemed to have detected his disguise as goblin-made and let him through without any fuss. Many others weren't so lucky and were therefore quite unhappy.

It really was the trial of the century. And Harry was incredibly glad that the press had prepared the public, so Dumbledore's slate wasn't so squeaky clean anymore as it had been in Harry's LF where even Skeeter's book hadn't been able to tarnish the man's reputation for long, after the man's death.

The mass of people surrounding him was rather loud and Harry hoped he would be able to follow the proceedings but then he remembered how Remus had told him that Sirius' voice had always been louder than the spectators.

It took some time, but after half an hour, the whole Wizengamot had found their places on a special stand reserved for them. Another stand held the goblin court that presided over the accused with one old goblin sitting on an impossibly high, pillar-like stand behind a small desk wielding a gavel.

In the middle of the arena-like room stood an empty chair with shackles that reminded Harry of his own 'trial' in his LF. The one he had avoided so easily this time around. But somehow the whole setting caused a feeling of déjà vu in Harry who was reminded of that saying, 'History doesn't repeat itself, it rhymes,' or something similar.

But before he could sink deeper in his thoughts about time, history, fate and such, a small door to the side opened and Dumbledore was led in. He was wearing a simple brown robe and they had cut off his hair. Or better, they had shorn it! The beard too! The man was nearly unrecognisable.

Murmuring branded up all around Harry. People had a hard time connecting the picture they had in their heads of the very colourful, long-haired and -bearded wise man who seemed to be larger than life, with this haggard-looking, lanky one with dead eyes that towered over his goblin guards but still managed to look frail.

When Dumbledore saw that he had an audience he tried to stand straighter and pull some of his former authoritative aura around his person, but it didn't work very well.

"We are all here for you, Albus!" a voice that Harry easily identified as Molly Weasley's yelled from somewhere in the stands.

"I'm not!" a jokester added and soon many voices protested their supposed support.

There was quite the ruckus on the stands which was ignored, and Harry wondered if there was a one-way silencing spell on them. It would explain why Dumbledore hadn't reacted to Molly's call at all.

The old man was led to the chair without making any problems and pushed onto it, which seemed to hurt his sense of propriety.

Harry started feeling bad for the lonely old man, chained to a chair sitting all by himself in the middle of his peers and the public that had looked up to him for so long. No one should be made into such a spectacle, right? Dumbledore had the betterment of the wizarding world as a goal, even if his methods were questionable.

But Harry's compassion dwindled quickly when the judge read the long list of charges.

The residents of Grimmauld Place had guessed correctly. The trial was primarily about money. Harry hadn't been the only one swindled out of his funds, possessions, and his properties. Overall, Dumbledore was accused of defrauding a staggering amount of more than two and a half million Galleons and in addition to that, possessions worth about the same amount. To achieve it he had used many different, mostly illegal means like mental and emotional manipulation. With witches and wizards, Muggles, and even with some goblins, via spells or potions, as well as bribery, misuse of office, the list went on. For example, he was accused of stealing methodically from Muggle-born and -raised children and did everything he could to keep them in the dark about their heritage. The goblins naturally concentrated more on the effect this had on the economy than the plain moral wrongness of all this.

Harry was watching Dumbledore while the charges were read, and the man seemed to struggle to keep his cool. It did sound incredibly bad when the long list was read in such a dispassionate tone of voice. And those were only the things Gringotts could prove without a smidgen of any doubt.

It wasn't just the things of 'what' he had done, no, it also was the staggering number of repeat offences.

Even the few hardcore Dumbledore fans grew quiet after a while.

After the extremely long list was read, Dumbledore was asked, "How do you plead?"

And one could see that the man was struggling. He had obviously planned for an 'not guilty' but knew he had committed all those misdeeds and Gringotts would make a big spectacle of proving each and every one of them.

Another thing was that he had been told that if he pleaded 'not guilty', he would have to take Veritaserum or, if he declined that, the goblin equivalent that often was fatal to wizards and witches.

As much as Dumbledore appreciated the drama of the idea of this happening, he wouldn't want to die like this.

And if he took Veritaserum they might find out all of the other things he had done for the betterment of their world.

"How do you plead, wizard?" the goblin snapped at Dumbledore.

"It was for the Greater Good!"

"One last time, guilty or not guilty?"

"Guilty." Dumbledore sank into himself, looking much smaller than before.

Meanwhile, the stands were nearly rioting. People wanted to know more than this 'Greater Good' excuse. But the goblin guards quickly managed to ensure some form of decorum in the witches and wizards watching.

Harry decided to leave. No more answers except the sentencing would be forthcoming now, and he felt hollow. Somehow, he had expected more than this. Especially for his own peace of mind – for closure.

Later Sirius and Remus found him sitting on a couch in the drawing room of Grimmauld Place and staring at the ceiling.

"Pup? Are you alright?"

"Don't know yet. What was the verdict, or better the sentence?"

"The mines for life. No possibility of parole. All of his money and possessions seized to first pay back the people he had stolen from, and should there be any left, it'll go to the Peverell Foundation that he had stopped in '81."

"Good. So, he'll spend the rest of his days digging tunnels with the toad and the rat. Seems fitting," Harry said in a detached voice.

"I think this calls for food from our favourite Indian place!" Sirius said ginning but still managed to eye Harry a little worriedly.

Remus nodded and asked, "Like our surprise dinner in August?"

Even Harry had to smile faintly at the memory and nodded.

"I'll be back!" Remus called and disappeared.

Sirius sank onto another couch, "Is it just me, or was this somehow anticlimactic?"

"Yes."

The Animagus chuckled, "The latter?"

"Yes! This was so unsatisfactory."

"True. And I really would have liked to know the nitty-gritty stuff. For example, why did he pay so much money to your relatives after making them compliant with magic."

"Oh. I thought about that. He didn't really make them compliant, did he? He made them hate me. I'm pretty sure the money was meant as a two-way incentive for them," Harry seemed to come back to himself a bit. "This much money must have kept them from getting rid of me via an orphanage or killing me. Both were real possibilities with them under the influence of such strong and negative enchantments."

"And if they had killed you or sent you away, no more money... I see."

"Yeah..."

"That is horrible."

"And rather devious," Harry nodded. "It does fit his manipulative nature though."

For the rest of the evening, they put Dumbledore out of their minds and enjoyed the awesome food.

After the Trial

It took Harry some time to get back into the groove. But after a few days, he had returned to the habit of studying for most of the day.

And if he got bored, he worked on his new longtime project. Harry wanted to bring Tonks and Remus together again because he wanted Teddy back! So, Tonks got invited to Grimmauld Place quite often for duelling practice and dinner. The funny thing was that Sirius quickly caught on to Harry's plan and helped it along quite a bit, but Remus stayed clueless.

And Tonks didn't seem averse to the idea of spending more time at Grimmauld Place either. So, she soon was a fixture in the house with access to the library, all the other rooms, and the rooftop garden. By now she really had understood that this was Sirius' home and treated it accordingly, much to Harry's relief. It was good to see that some people could change and learn. He had lost hope a couple of times with all of them in the beginning. But Remus, Tonks, Sirius, Shacklebolt and even Snape taught him otherwise.

A still disguised Snape visited the next Friday evening after the trial and they learned from him that Riddle was doing poorly, and more and more of his Death Eaters were abandoning him as he had no way to keep them subservient with no magic to hurt them via their Dark Marks. Already Malfoy and his goons Crabbe and Goyle had left him, and Nott Snr seemed to be close, Snape suspected, and others were whispering about jumping ship as well.

"So you have seen him recently? How is he doing?" Harry asked his former Potions Professor.

Snape blinked as if realising that a teenager had listened in and said, "Will you tell me why you changed, Mr Potter?"

"Yup, you'll get to know the reason why I behave like a grown-up, I promise."

"Very well. To your question, yes, I have seen him. He looks even paler than before, if you can believe it and his skin is getting flaky. But most importantly, his magic didn't return. He says it will and that he has plans to get it back. Unfortunately, he doesn't elaborate on the 'how'."

"That would be too bad. Did you hear anything at all?"

"Only that he has access to the possessions of some of his incarcerated Death Eaters. But not whom or what."

"Okay, that's vague," Harry said thoughtfully.

"He doesn't really trust me."

"Yeah, I get that. What did he say about Dumbledore?"

"He was of two minds. On the one hand, he was quite gleeful and on the other, he was angry it hadn't been him to take him down, but some 'dirty vermin'.

"What an arse."

"Indeed."

"Did he hurt you again?"

"Fortunately, no. He doesn't have many followers left, so he started being a bit more careful. It surprised me. I thought he was too far gone to consider such things."

"Good. That was scary enough."

Snape nodded.

"But is he a danger right now?" Sirius wanted to know.

"Not until he manages to get his magic back. If that ever happens."

"Good. Now on another topic, Severus. How does Hogwarts make sure every student gets taught or at least has access to the basics in potions brewing?"

Snape looked confused, "They either get taught at home or get instructions by the visiting teacher and the beginners manual. Why do you ask?"

Harry facepalmed, "Hagrid did neither. No instructions and no manual."

"I don't understand. Hagrid isn't approved to make first contact. What an absurd idea. Why..." Snape's voice trailed off. "He didn't..."

"Yep."

"No."

"It really was Hagrid who visited me and my relatives – whom Dumbledore was influencing quite badly by the way – and told me about magic. He was also the one to escort me to Diagon Alley.

It was quite entertaining to watch how Snape tried to keep his cool.

"Are you saying you had no idea what I was talking about in your first Potions lesson?"

"Yup." Harry popped the 'p'.

Snape jumped up from his seat in the drawing room and quickly walked to the window where he stood for a while, looking outside.

The other three gave him some time to collect himself.

"I have been had," the man muttered then.

"Like many," Harry agreed.

Snape turned and stared at Harry, "It was wrong how I treated you. Even if my hatred was magnified artificially, my behaviour was inexcusable. I'm sorry."

Harry was quite astonished by the point-blank apology, "Um, ok. I accept."

"Just like that?"

"Well, yeah. You see, to me, it was quite some time ago... Hm. Maybe it's time for my story. But to tell you, I need you to agree to wear this secret-keeping pendant."

Harry explained its functions and Snape readily agreed to attach it to his necklace.

Harry had forgotten the man had one already. Sneaky goblins, selling me one anyways, he sniggered internally.

Soon, Snape listened attentively to Harry's tale. Sirius and Remus did so, too. Even if they knew it already, they said hearing it just once wasn't enough.

Harry ended with his description of the new timeline since waking up and the changes his deeds had wrought. "... and now Dumbledore works in the mines with Umbridge and Pettigrew."

After he had stopped talking all four of them sat there for a while, letting the story sink in.

Severus found his voice first, "I'm glad you returned. The events you describe are nearly unfathomable, but I can picture them anyway."

Harry nodded.

"I would say that Albus has much to answer for..."

"I'm pretty sure the goblins are working with Bones to get more information out of him. Unfortunately, he pled guilty, so there was no reason to interrogate him."

"A pity."

"Yeah. But at least I had some knowledge about the Horcruxes and I've incapacitated Riddle."

"True. And my memories at the moment of my death..."

Harry nodded a bit unsure. What was there to say?

"We three were all dead, now that I think of it," Sirius said earnestly.

"By the way, did you get anything back via the Ritual of Recall?" Harry quickly changed the topic.

"Yes, quite a bit. It seems Prince Manor stood empty for some time and some enterprising magical folks found a way through the wards. Long story short, nearly the whole inventory got stolen. Fortunately, the goblins do this ritual in a huge cavern. But they are still sorting through it and will return it as soon as the wards of the manor have been updated. I'm not sure it was worth the hassle, but at least some blood and hair were returned. The main reason I did the ritual in the first place. Who knew I would also get a massive household..."

The others winced. What a mess.

"Do you have any idea who took your blood without your consent?" Harry asked. It was the most powerful possession one could steal after all.

"No idea. And there is no way to figure it out, unfortunately."

"So, all of us had our blood taken. Well, I hope it was Albus," Sirius mused. "At least he cannot do any more harm with any he still has stashed somewhere."

"I wonder if there is a ritual that returns everything a person has stolen..." Harry said thoughtfully.

Sirius barked a laugh, "If there were, we could get back everything Dung ever took from anybody."

"That would make any thieving profession rather redundant, wouldn't it?" Snape said thoughtfully.

The others chuckled.

"Oh, before I forget. Did the governors of Hogwarts ever show their faces in the last month?" Sirius wanted to know.

Snape sneered, "Yes."

"Merlin. That bad?" Sirius winced.

"They seem to try to make up for their exceedingly lax handling of their jobs in the last decades in just a week. Just when Albus is gone, and the Charter enforces compliance again."

"Oh wow, too little too late, hm?"

"Exactly. NOW they want to monitor the points, the detentions, the bullying, and such. Two especially are on quite the rampage. Augusta Longbottom and Lucius Malfoy have joined forces, if you can believe it. It's like both have something to prove. "

"They probably do," Harry mused. "Malfoy needs to establish his standing as an upstanding member of the upper wizarding society with Riddle out and about, and Mrs Longbottom must have gotten a letter from Neville informing her of all that was wrong at Hogwarts in September, and she probably felt caught in the act of not acting. If that makes any sense."

"It does. And now both are overcompensating. She even sits in my class, monitoring it. And I'll leave as soon as Rachel can take over. A student of mine who likes teaching for some reason."

"And then you'll only supply Hogwarts?" Harry asked curiously. "Will you stay living there?"

"Only as long as the Dark Lord exists. As soon as he is gone, I'll leave Hogwarts. I thought about buying a small cottage in Hogsmeade, but why bother? Floo travel makes me accessible everywhere on the island."

"True," Sirius nodded. "Oh, have you seen my Potions Lab? You could even move here."

"You think it's big enough for the twins and him together?" Harry asked big-eyed.

Snape raised an eyebrow, "The Weasley twins? They're going to move here?"

"Oh! That is right. Yes! They plan on homeschooling after November I believe. I forgot. Eh, but please keep that to yourself at Hogwarts. But the Lab certainly is big enough," Sirius said, looking quite excited.

Harry expected Snape to scoff, but the man looked thoughtful, "As strange as it may sound, I can actually see myself working along with them. Especially Fred Weasley. This school year, he shines in my class. And he has his... oh. Sorry. That is his information, and I don't know if he shared it."

"You mean he comes to Potions class even if he already has... Man, this is awkward, you're right. I think we all know about his exam results, but we don't know if the other has the same information!"

"Exactly. Well anyway, Fred Weasley is a prodigy, and his brother isn't far from being one either, so I can see it. But can they?"

"Yes," Harry said with conviction. "They respect your expertise a lot and now that you've gotten nicer..."

Eyebrow.

Sirius grinned, "It's like we are rebuilding the Order with only the ones I like."

"I'm touched," Snape said dryly.

"You should be! For now, we have the four of us, the twins, and Tonksie. Who else should we invite?"

Harry cautioned, "Do we really have to found a new Order? I would suggest we wait a bit. Maybe someone will take Riddle out."

"I can say, as long as the Carrows and Yaxley are present whenever he 'calls' me, there is no way I can get to him. But I keep trying."

"Can he still call you without magic?"

"No. They pretend he can and send an owl."

Harry snorted. "I just don't get why they still stay with him. Where does this utter devotion come from? It seems so unlikely."

"It does. They are the dregs of his organisation. The sadists, who enjoy inflicting pain above all. And they see a chance that he'll regain his power and they then can act out their sick desires freely then."

"Gah. That's disgusting."

"Indeed."

The next week went like the others did since Harry's return to Grimmauld. In his talk with the twins, he told them about the idea of Snape moving in as well,, and they were all for it.

They planned their meeting in Diagon Alley for October the 8th as that was the Sunday and the teachers – scheduled to watch the students that weekend – were known to be much laxer in their task on Sundays so the three should be able to sneak off more easily.

The twins also told Harry how they were buckling down in all their chosen subjects and had been allowed to also attend the Alchemy workshop in November. The teachers were quite impressed but kept the twins' secrets. Lucky for them, their year didn't need any of the new staff in their subjects, except for Transfiguration, and those decided to keep their mouths shut, it seemed. So their mum still had no idea about their accomplishments, but she was busy with the lower years and with hounding Ron. Even Ginny was forgotten for the moment. Not that the girl minded.

Sometimes their mother's wilful blindness was a blessing. The twins told Harry that their mum was still defending 'Albus' and believed he had pled guilty to save the wizarding world somehow. It didn't make much sense to them.

Harry guessed she just didn't want to face the fact that she might have been wrong about Dumbledore.