A week later, Harry awoke with a luxurious stretch. He looked over at the two dozen books he had floating in the corner. He had yet to figure out the trick for ending the spell for one specific book, but he felt like it was coming. It was only a matter of focus and concentration, which was slowly building with his nightly meditations. Failing that, he had spent the past week adding lanes to his mental bowling alley so that he could keep more items levitating. He was pleased to note that he wasn't feeling any sort of drain from the books, other than a strain on his focus when he constructed new lanes at night.

As for Albus, there had been no retaliation for the water balloon prank. Rather, the old man had beamed and congratulated Harry for a job well done. Followed by a warning that it would be ill advised to attempt the same trick twice. Harry wasn't sure what protections Albus had put in place, but he was certain they would be effective. For now, Harry was happy to simply relax and bask in his victory.

Of course, all of that was not at the forefront of Harry's mind this morning. Rather, he was focused on one simple fact. While the bar had been set incredibly low, the fact remained that waking up in a comfortable bed, in a room where he could freely practice wandless magic, in a house full of people who cared for him, made this the best birthday of his entire life.

The brand-new thirteen-year-old wizard arose, bathed, dressed, and prepared for the day. With a happy smile, he walked out of his room and down the hall toward the dining room. Before entering he paused as he overheard Albus speaking with an exasperated tone.

"… is just a bit too much. I'm all for Harry getting a cake, but there are only five individuals here who are going to have a slice. Well, six if you can convince Jean to have a slice."

A scoff could be heard, which Harry recognized as coming from the House Elf named Jean. It was the closest the extremely proper being would come to expressing rudeness.

Harry turned his attention back to the sound of a piece of furniture scraping against the floor, followed by a second piece of furniture, followed by clunking sound of wood on wood. Once completed, Dobby began to speak in a highly aggressive tone.

"Albussy will not be ruining Harry Potter Sir's birthday. Harry Potter Sir deserves a cake fitting of his wonderfulness. Unless…" Dobby's tone turned silently threatening. "… unless Albussy is saying that Harry Potter Sir is not wonderful?"

Harry snuck silently into the room to see what was happening, and possibly break up whatever was going on. He was surprised to see Dobby standing on top of a chair, that was precariously balanced on the arms of another chair. The apparent reason was so that Dobby could stand up and see eye to eye with Albus. The two were locked in a silent stare-off. Neither one backing down. As the silence stretched on, Harry started to wonder if he should intervene. Before it came to that, Albus raised his hands in front of himself, palms out in a placating manner.

"Alright, Dobby. You win. You get Harry's birthdays. But I get Halloweens! We can figure out how to share Christmas. Deal?"

Dobby stared at Albus shrewdly, and then nodded his head once. "Deal!"

Harry watched, bemused, as the two shook hands. When he let out a small chuckle, the two turned to face Harry. At which point, Dobby began to excitedly wish Harry a very Happy Birthday and usher him to the table.

As Harry listened to Dobby's effusive praise, he looked at the cake that had been the object of dispute. He honestly could say that Albus had a point. The thing was huge. The table had been clearly expanded (and hopefully strengthened) to hold the behemoth. It was at least six feet tall, composed of a dozen or so layers. Around the rims of each layer were intricate pictures painted with frosting. Harry saw lightning bolts, his glasses, silken socks, the basilisk (taking up a full layer), the Sword of Gryffindor (taking up another layer), Hedwig, and countless copies of Harry's face. The top layer was a faithful recreation of Harry's head. Harry wondered, assuming the cake could be kept magically fresh until finished, if there was even a chance that the whole thing could be consumed before his next birthday rolled around.

Harry then remembered that Albus had said there were five individuals who could eat the cake. There was Harry, Albus, Dobby, and Pierre. Who else? Harry looked around the table, and saw an older gentleman sitting next to Pierre. A closer look at the duo, who were chuckling at Dobby's antics, made it clear the two were related. The older gentleman had the same sharp features, though his brown curly hair had a great deal of grey mixed in, and they both had the same eyes that spoke of a life filled with laughter. So, probably Pierre's father.

"Thank you, Dobby," spoke Harry, interrupting the stream of praise. "The cake looks amazing. You've already made it the best birthday of my life. I can't wait until it's time to have a piece."

As Dobby beamed, Harry turned to the older man and spoke. "Hello, I don't believe we have met. Are you Pierre's father?"

The old man smiled pleasantly and nodded. "Indeed I am. Philippe Bordale at your service. It is a pleasure to meet you and to be the second to wish you a very happy thirteenth birthday. I would have, of course, never dreamed to take that honor away from young Dobby. You have a very devoted friend in him."

Dobby's face blushed a shade of green and Harry smiled at the elf.

Turning back to Philippe, he responded to the man. "Thank you. And thank you for letting us stay here in your lovely home."

"But, of course, I owe Albus much, and this is the first time he has ever allowed me to repay him even slightly. Consider my home open to you for as long as it remains in my family."

Harry frowned slightly in confusion. "That is very generous, but what did Albus do? He just said he assisted you in the war…"

Philippe chuckled in fond exasperation. "Albus does have an unfortunate tendency to downplay his achievements. The 'assistance' he provided was…"

Albus cleared his throat. "I don't think now is the time to dwell on the past, Philippe. Today is a celebration of Harry's birthday and all the hopes that brings for the future."

Philippe smiled and nodded. Harry looked between the two men, and then shrugged. He could always ask later. For now, he had a birthday to celebrate.

The party had been small but enjoyable. The cake, despite everyone having at least one large delicious slice, looked as if it had been untouched. Luckily Dobby was able to store it away in stasis in one of Albus's trunks. Harry supposed it would be nice to have a constant supply of cake whenever the mood struck him, and really hoped he started making some friends who could help to chip away at the monstrosity.

He had also received several presents in the post. From the twins, he received a newspaper clipping of them in Egypt. Their parents had apparently won a lottery of some sort and the entire family was spending a month in Egypt to spend time with the eldest Weasley son, Bill. It was odd seeing Ron standing there, but Harry felt pleased to discover that he no longer felt any anger towards his former friend. Oh, he was certainly still due an apology (if it ever came) and he no longer felt the bond of friendship, but he no longer felt the anger. Of course, that didn't stop Harry from taking perverse joy in the picture the twins had included where Ron was wrapped up as mummy and dyed in Slytherin colors.

From Hermione, there was an awkwardly written postcard to wish him a Happy Birthday. Then again, it had only been a week since he last saw her.

From Minerva, he had received a bound book. Harry was delighted to see that it was a complete collection of the detention reports for his mum and dad. He had asked for something that would really help him to relate with his parents as real people. He was looking forward to cracking the book open later.

From Gilderoy, he had received an eye-roll worthy picture of the man. It was autographed with the caption "From one Unforgettable Hero to another".

From Dobby, in addition to the cake, he received a set of mismatched silken socks. One sock with the pattern of snitches on it, and the other with a pattern of Eiffel towers on it.

When it came to Albus, he led Harry to Albus's room where the gift was stored.

"Harry, I am immensely proud of the progress you have made with your magic. Your passion for exploring magic's mysteries has been a joy to witness and has even revitalized my own studies. When the summer is over, we will have to do some formal training, simply to make sure you are aware of the theory the rest of the world works with. For now, though, I would like to give you a book that falls well outside of the normal theory. It's a collection of the personal thoughts and discoveries on the topic of wards, as written by Perenelle Flamel. She bequeathed it to me upon her passing, and it means a great deal to me. Treat it with care."

As Albus went to hand the book to Harry, Harry backed away slightly and refused to accept the book. "Albus, this is too much. I can't just take something your friend left to you."

Albus smiled sadly. "Knowing Perenelle, she probably would have insisted I give it to you. Her and Nicolas were great believers in the infinite possibility of magic, and they would have loved to have seen another young man embracing that philosophy. It's a shame that you never got to meet each other."

Harry hesitantly stepped forward as he looked into the faraway look in Albus's eyes. "What were they like?"

Albus sat down on his bed, while Harry leaned against Albus's desk.

"They were… extraordinary. Kind… wise… funny… and incredibly stubborn. Though, I suppose it takes a certain stubbornness to live over six centuries. Most of all, we were friends. We even had our own traditions. Oh, and the research was extraordinary. It was a delight to work with people who believed that the impossible can be simple if you just have the right idea. Of course, they had good reason to believe in that philosophy."

"What was the reason?"

Albus chuckled. "Well… I suppose Nicolas wouldn't mind me sharing this with you. Just don't spread this around. Do you know that the Philosopher's Stone came into existence because Nicolas didn't understand sarcasm?"

"What!?"

Harry was pleased to see Albus's familiar eye twinkle return. "You see, when he was first learning the art of alchemy, there was a running joke when it came to the Philosopher's Stone. Whenever an alchemist was asked to perform an impossible feat or a possible task with an impossible deadline, they would say something like, 'sure, let me first whip up a Philosopher's Stone really quick and then I'll get right on that'. Except they said it in a more old-fashioned dialect. Unfortunately, poor Nicolas didn't catch the sarcasm, and so he assumed it must be so obvious of a task that no one even bothered to teach it. He didn't want admit his secret shame, that he didn't even know how to make a basic Philosopher's Stone, so he figured it out on his own."

Harry couldn't stop himself from chuckling. "So, one of the greatest magical discoveries in history was just…"

"… the product of being too ignorant to realize it was impossible. Yes."

"So, what was the trick?"

"Nicolas told me that if I was meant to find out, then magic would make sure I figured it out. Magic, in her infinite wisdom, has yet to decide I am meant to know."

Harry smiled. "Were the Flamels the ones who taught you your teaching style?"

Albus smirked. "They were an inspiration, yes."

Harry laughed. "I wish I could 'thank' them for that. So, what sort of traditions did you have?"

Albus's eyes focused on the distance as his smile dimmed slightly. "During our first Christmas together researching Dragon's Blood, I was not expecting us to exchange presents. Perenelle surprised me by having knitted me a pair of warm woolen socks. So, I panicked and got three bottles of Butterbeer from a nearby tavern. Every year after that, she would send me a pair of knitted woolen socks and I would send them two bottles of Butterbeer. Then, as the 25th rolled into the 26th, we would all open our bottles and take a drink in friendship. Wherever I was in the world, I would make sure that I had a bottle handy when midnight arrived at the Flamel house. We rarely could be together on Christmas, but it was a way of feeling like I was back in front of their fireplace and laughing with friends."

"That sounds nice."

"It was… I just assumed that it would by my passing that ended the tradition, not theirs."

Harry frowned, as something pinged on his memory. "When did they…"

Albus gave Harry a long, regretful look, and then sighed. "I am afraid I mislead you at the end of your first year. You see, I had indeed talked with Nicolas about the Stone. We agreed, if I felt like I couldn't protect it, then it should be destroyed. He and Perenelle also had enough Elixir of Life to put their affairs in order. All of that was true, but I mislead you on the timing. We had made our agreement when he approached me to protect the Stone from Tom and his minions. As for getting their affairs in order… they mislead me as well."

Albus's eyes took on a look of unadulterated weariness. "I went to visit them after the troll incident… And that incident was not one of my best moments. I had been so certain that Quirinus had made up the troll, to force a pointless search, so I wanted to clear the room to let him think he had fooled me. Had I thought there really was a troll, I would have kept everyone in the Great Hall where they could be protected and then done a headcount to find stragglers. Instead, I outsmarted myself and you managed to save the day from my hubris. Always remember Harry, being smart does not inoculate you from moments of extreme stupidity."

Albus shook his head in clear annoyance. "Nonetheless, after you saved the day, I went to inform Nicolas and Perenelle of the events. When I arrived at their home, I was greeted by their House Elf. She handed me a letter and led me to their garden. There, I found their graves. In their letter, they apologized for the deception, but they had already had their affairs in order, for a very long time. When Tom became a threat, they decided that was a good time to finally call it a day. They sabotaged the Stone, so it would never again create the Elixir or Life or anything else. And they arranged to pass on when the school year began. They knew that I only agreed to watch after the stone in hopes of saving their lives, and they were sorry for letting me think that was a possibility. As they said in their letter, they were 'ready to go to bed after a very very long day'."

Harry leaned against the desk, his mind trying to remember something it felt was important. As Harry thought, Albus sat still as he stared unseeingly into the distance and clearly lost in his memories.

After several minutes, the thought came to Harry. "Warm, woolen socks…"

Albus's eyes focused on Harry.

"When I asked what you saw in the mirror, you said you saw yourself with warm, woolen socks. That was the first Christmas you didn't get to celebrate your tradition, wasn't it?"

Albus nodded sadly. "Yes. Like you, the mirror shows me my family. However, it is both the family of my blood and of my heart. They are all happy and healthy and have forgiven me for… they have forgiven me. Nicolas and Perenelle were there as well. Nicolas was holding three Butterbeers and Perenelle was holding a pair of warm, woolen socks. A pair of socks that I knew I was never going to receive again. The Mirror of Erised… I can easily see how people waste away in front of it."

Harry stood up, walked over to Albus, and awkwardly patted his shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Albus looked into Harry's eyes, and smiled. "Thank you, Harry."

"So… a book on wards, huh?"

And with that, Albus's eyes twinkled with joy.

The next morning, Albus surprised Harry with an unexpected declaration.

"You're going to do what?"

"Teach you how to apparate. It's high time, don't you think?"

Harry looked at the man with narrowed eyes. "Didn't those two brochures say that I had to be seventeen?"

Albus smiled with a twinkle. "Didn't I tell you not to read the whole brochure?"

"I didn't, but it was in bold letters at the top of each page. It was hard not to notice. It also doesn't change the fact that this doesn't seem… overly legal."

Albus shrugged. "You are only saying that because it is in fact not entirely legal, but you are forgetting something vitally important."

"… Please don't say it's legal for us because 'we're Harry Potter and Albus Dumbledore'."

Albus huffed. "Fine. Though it's worked as a defense for me for several decades. If you need some sort of law to hang your hat on… if we wanted to press things, we could call you my apprentice and so you fall under the protection of laws that predate the licensing laws for Apparating. You have to squint a bit to get my interpretation of the law, but the interpretation can be made."

Harry stared at the old man for several long seconds, and then relaxed his shoulders. "OK, it's not like I was going to really fight you on this. Can you first tell me the real reason why I am not going to get into trouble?"

Albus smiled. "You're too popular. I'm too powerful. And the law is too minor for any magical government to want to deal with the first two factors to hassle you for being too young. Assuming you can perform the magic flawlessly."

Harry sighed. "So, it's really because I'm Harry Potter and you're Albus Dumbledore?"

Albus shrugged. "If it makes you feel better, it's probably 90% Albus Dumbledore and 10% Harry Potter."

Harry rolled his eyes. "Well, that's something, I guess. So, how do I Apparate?"

Albus patted Harry's shoulder with a chuckle. "We've been popping all over the country for nearly two months now, and you have been controlling your portion of each trip. You already know how to do the important part, the only thing you are missing is starting the journey and setting the destination."

Harry looked up into Albus's eyes. "And how do I do that?"

"Let me just cast a spell on you to keep people from noticing you." Albus then tapped Harry's head with his wand. "And now, just picture the apparition straw you keep expanding. Then place one end at where you want to end up. Then form the other end of the straw next to you and have it swallow you."

Harry, trusting that Albus knew what he was talking about, simply nodded and closed his eyes. In his mind, he tried to picture the straw's endpoints. He was so used to expanding the straw, that it was instinctual at this point. He knew he could expand it from within, but he was having trouble with both creating the endpoints and making them big enough to fit his body.

Harry could feel his magic reaching out, trying to fulfil his desires, but it just seemed to fizzle out. He knew what he wanted it to do, but he just couldn't control it properly. It was almost like he was learning wandless levitation all over again…

Oh!

Harry entered his bowling alley and pressed the button to end all active levitations, wincing slightly when he heard the loud screech from his bedroom. He had forgotten Hedwig was sleeping on her perch, and two dozen books hitting the ground was bound to irritate her. He knew he would pay for that later.

Shunting his dread to one of his mental rooms, he returned to his bowling alley. Standing at his primary lane, he looked at the shelf of bowling balls. All of them were labelled "Levitate". As he stared, he brought forth every memory of his experiences with expanding the straw during apparition. The memories seem to swirl as streams of silver light and coalesce into a solid object as a new shelf formed. Once the streams of memory finished solidifying, he saw a single ball sitting on the shelf, labelled "Teleport".

He picked up the ball and stood at the ready. Staring down the lane, he let his mind focus on a destination. The pins changed colors until they matched the picture of his destination.

Albus said that Harry could already do this, and the man had been proven right repeatedly. All Harry needed was to start and stop the spell. He knew how to do that with levitation, so this was no different.

Harry took a deep breath as he began his approach to the throw line, his arm arcing back. As his arm moved forward, the ball began to grow rapidly and started to suck Harry inside of it. This was fine, as Harry needed to send himself down the lane. When the ball was thrown down the lane, Harry sat comfortably inside the ball. It was different from when he would expand the straw instinctively, it was like the ball was doing all the work for him. He simply stayed focused on the pins at the end of the journey, keeping the ball on course.

When the ball finally hit the pins, the pins stayed untouched, as the ball dissolved around him and he gently stood up. The bowling alley filled with a refreshing song of pure joy and love. The ball's particles seemed to dance in the air to the tune while shimmering with ethereal beauty.

Harry opened his eyes and smiled broadly. It had worked. He had apparated.

A little less than half an hour later, Albus interrupted Harry's silent reverie.

"You know, Harry, I was expecting you to transport yourself to the other side of the room. This…" Albus waved his arm out to indicate the surroundings. "… this is a bit extreme. Impressive though."

Harry looked out across the lawn surrounding the Mirror Tower, as he inhaled the fresh air and ran a hand across the surface of one of the leaves that was integrated with the architecture of the tower. For the past half hour, as he relaxed into his mind, he could hear the music of the tower. It had been incredibly refreshing.

"Well, you said I could do it, so I knew I could. It's still a bit hard to believe I apparated on my first attempt."

Albus walked to the railing, to look over the same scene. After a deep breath and a chuckle, he responded. "You certainly chose a wonderful destination, as I always love Paris. Though, technically, you didn't apparate."

Harry looked over at his tutor, eyes full of curiosity. "Did I somehow make myself into a portkey or something?"

Albus grinned. "Now, that is an idea worthy of examination. I don't know if anyone has ever tried transforming a person into a portkey, or any living being for that matter… well, that's a thought for another time. What you did was… different. I have the seen magic that swirls around apparition, portkey activation, Floo travel, the Knight Bus's leaps, House Elf transportation, and most every type of magical transport. Initially, your magic looked exactly like the start of an apparition attempt. It began to twist around your body as a cyclone, and then faded. That happened several times more, and then your magic stopped doing anything. For ten minutes you simply stood there, clearly in a meditative state. Your magic then flared in a way I've never seen before, and you were gone."

Harry smiled proudly. "I guess I'm just naturally gifted at transportation magic."

Albus's eyes twinkled. "Perhaps, I suppose your Floo travel style is just too advanced for us poor mortals to comprehend?"

Harry barked out a short laugh. "I don't want to make people feel overly inferior."

"You're very kind."

"… So, what did my magic look like?"

Albus paused in consideration. "It was unique, but if I were to compare it to something… it looked like the starfield view from the cockpit of the Millennium Falcon when it jumps to light speed."

Harry's eyebrows rose in surprise. He looked over at Albus, and saw the man had a slightly sour look on his face. "You're filled with envy right now, aren't you?"

"You have no idea!"

The two laughed lightly, and then stood silently overlooking the scene of people picnicking on the grass or lazily flying on brooms and carpets.

"Since I can teleport in my own unique way, do I need to learn how to apparate?"

Albus shrugged slightly. "That is up to you, Harry. But I would recommend it."

"Why?"

"Where did you teleport to?"

"Right here, well, a couple steps to the left."

"Did you know that, while this is not the most protected area, there are wards in place to specifically prevent unauthorized apparating to the area surrounding the tower? And additional, stronger wards, to prevent apparating onto the Mirror Tower itself?"

"No… I didn't have any problems getting here though."

"Exactly. Your new method of travel lets you bypass the normal wards that prevent people from apparating into or out of a location. Of course, House Elves also bypass those wards, but there are rarely used wards that prevent House Elf transportation techniques. I would need to study your method closer to see if it is negatively impacted by existing wards, for instance I have no idea how your method would work at Hogwarts. Still, what that gives you is a potentially powerful ability that might come in handy as a secret weapon. As such, if I were in your position, I would master this new ability first and then learn the standard ability. That way you can teleport at will while also having an emergency technique at hand when the well-known techniques fail."

Harry nodded slowly as he pondered the advice.

"Are those wards the reason why it took you so long to get here?"

"Yes, I needed to make my way from the alley, to the patch of grass, tap the plaque, and then make my way up the tower. Luckily, the spell I cast on you was working at full strength, so no one noticed you standing here."

"Ah… how did you find me?"

"Dobby."

Harry chuckled. "Of course, I should have known… out of curiosity, what is up with the two of you? I was half expecting to see Dobby start yanking your beard over my birthday cake."

Albus smiled in return. "I doubt it would have gone that far, though not enough to bet money on him refraining from physical violence. Dobby is merely learning how to navigate the unfamiliar waters of being a Free Elf. When I told him to call me Albussy, I knew that I was implicitly giving him permission to treat me as a peer. He's now trying to figure out the pecking order of your servants."

"But… he's not my servant. Is he?"

Albus wavered his hand in the air. "Yes and no. He's not technically your servant. He's a Free Elf, and quite happy about that. However, a lifetime of servitude colors one's perspective of the world."

"I'm confused. Am I his master or not?"

"No, you are not his master. Dobby is a Free Elf and has no master. You would do well to remember that, lest you hurt his feelings."

Harry frowned in confusion. "Am I his employer then?"

Albus smirked. "If you are, you pay an exceedingly low wage of nothing. No, you are something different. Do you know what drives a House Elf?"

Harry shook his head to indicate his ignorance.

Albus nodded in understanding. "I thought not. To be fair, most people are unaware of this. Most people would say that House Elves are driven by their desire to please their masters. And yet, I don't think you could claim Dobby was overly excited to please the Malfoys. Dobby's actions were compelled by magic, but that magic could not compel his thoughts, feelings, and drive. Others would say they are driven by a desire to work. And yet, I have known some House Elves who avoid housework unless specifically ordered to do so. What truly drives a House Elf is a desire to support their family."

"Wouldn't their masters be their family?"

"If the masters are smart, yes. However, the elf chooses who they consider to be family. A House Elf is only compelled to obey their masters, they are not compelled to like their masters. The smart owners will make sure that the House Elf feels like a part of the family, as they will get a much more efficient servant who will anticipate their needs and not look for loopholes in their master's orders. It's part of the reason why you rarely see Pierre ordering Jean. Jean loves Pierre and Philippe as his dear family and gains a soul deep satisfaction from taking care of them. If a House Elf like Jean were to be freed and unable to be with his family, then he would likely fall into a deep depression and be dead within a year. I've seen it happen before."

Harry nodded, while thinking of Dobby. "I guess Dobby did not think of the Malfoys as being family then. I can't really see Draco treating any non-Pureblood or non-human as anything close to family. And Dobby certainly doesn't seem depressed. He's more interested in taking care of me and… and he's decided that I'm his family, hasn't he?"

Albus smiled with amusement. "Irrevocably, yes. From my conversations with him, I have gathered that it was initially pure hero worship. As you kept being kind to him over the course of your second year, you continuously raised that pedestal you were on. When you freed him, you were like a god to him. But the true shift came when you welcomed him to sit with you for meals. That was when his near religious devotion transformed into an unbreakable familial bond."

Harry felt his heart warming a little at the thought. "What about you? Are you his family?"

"No, not yet, at least. Perhaps someday I will be promoted to family. For now, Dobby thinks of me as a… I suppose the best description would be a work friend."

Harry laughed briefly, as the idea of Albus and Dobby gossiping around a coffee machine flitted through his mind.

"So, is Dobby typical of House Elves who are freed from owners they don't like?"

Albus's eyes twinkled. "I don't think Dobby could ever be considered typical. But, yes, House Elves in that situation tend to do well with freedom, assuming they can find a way of caring for themselves. Large institutions like Hogwarts are usual destinations for freed elves, where they can get their needs met through employment. Not that House Elves are freed often, as I have only known a handful in my long life. Dobby of course gets his needs met through the two of us, as we pay for his room and board."

Albus's smile dimmed. "Ideally, I would see every House Elf free to live their lives as they see fit, building their own families like Dobby has with you. For that to happen though, would require a massive shift in the underlying mentality of the House Elves and a monumental change in how they raise their young. As it is right now, even if I somehow tricked every owner to give clothes to their House Elves, nearly every one of those House Elves would immediately ask to be bonded with their owners once again. That's not a hypothetical by the way, historically a House Elf is accidentally freed an average of once every five years. The overwhelming majority of them volunteer to be bonded again within a minute. There are even families out there who offer freedom on an annual basis and have never had an elf volunteer to accept that freedom."

Harry frowned. "What about the elves under the care of bad people like Malfoy?"

Albus's voice took on a sardonic tone. "Society won't punish them for their crimes against innocent people, do you really think society is going to punish them for how they treat non-humans?"

The dark look of Albus's face shifted to hopefulness. "Still… the future is unwritten, if you decide this is a topic worth fighting for, you can talk with Dobby and perhaps find a solution to the problem. For now, though, take heart that you have fulfilled the dreams of one rather excitable little House Elf."

Harry smiled, and the pair lapsed into a comfortable silence. After an hour of enjoying the feeling of his magic almost humming to an unknown tune, as if the magic of the Mirror Tower was harmonizing with his soul, Harry's stomach growled.

Harry looked over at Albus's serene face and felt a small smirk play across his lips.

"Hey Albus… Time for lunch, I think. Let's head back to see what Jean has made. Try to keep up."

With that, Harry closed his eyes. Ten seconds later, he disappeared from the spot with nary a twist or a whisper.

Albus rolled his eyes as he started his walk to leave the tower and the wards.

"I'm sure that's not going to get annoying at all."