A/N: Thanks to E.B. Hall who has taken up the task of attempting to beta my chapters before I post every two days.

Thanks as always to all of you as well for your reads and comments. I may not always have time to respond but I do read them all.

Harry was in a massive funk following his meeting with Hermione, and his mood lasted almost a week before a missive from Gringotts forced his attention elsewhere.

With a sealed envelope grasped in his hand, Harry strolled into the small, shared study in the Tonks house where Sirius was looking over information regarding the Black family holdings. "This just arrived for you Padfoot." Harry handed the thin letter to his Godfather. "Gringotts seal on it."

Sirius set his work to one side and took the offered letter. Tearing the envelope open, he examined the contents. "The Goblins want to meet with me 'at my earliest convenience'… or 'immediately' as they actually mean. There's no mention of why they want to see me but it's probably best not to keep them waiting. Go and get your formal robes on, Sparky - responding to a request like this will be a good experience for when you become head of house."

Harry grumbled to himself as he left the room. Sirius had insisted on calling him 'Sparky' for the last week. He knew that any complaints about the name would fall on deaf ears and likely prolong the period in which Sirius was amused by it. Five minutes later, Harry, wearing his finest robes complete with the crests of Houses Potter and Black over his heart, returned to the study to find Sirius waiting patiently for him.

"Are you going to apply my glamour before we go?"

"No need. The letter's a portkey with an activation phrase. It'll take us straight to Gringotts."

Harry took hold of the letter offered to him and felt the familiar jerk from behind his navel as Sirius muttered the required words. He stumbled slightly upon landing but was pleased that he'd managed to remain on his feet. It had taken him years to get used to magical methods of transportation and the changes to his body (thanks to his traversal through time) had done him no favours. He'd had to relearn how to arrive gracefully using both portkeys and the floo system. Sirius had insisted on helping with this by making him floo between the Tonks' home and Grimmauld Place over and over until he could emerge from the fireplace without sliding across the room on his face, and by making him portkey until he felt like vomiting. Harry could completely understand the need to arrive in places without looking like a fool but was disgruntled by the amount of joy on Sirius' face every time he hit him with a surprise portkey – "to make sure you can land properly when caught unawares! It was a Death Eater tactic in the last war!" he insisted. Harry wasn't sure whether this was true or not but chose to manfully ignore the sniggers from both Sirius and Ted at each of his failures.

Looking around he could see that they'd landed not in a communal arrival area, but instead directly in someone's office.

"Where are we, Sirius?"

"The Black account manager's office – the last time I was here was before I was sent to Azkaban. It must be something major for us to be brought straight here…"

Sirius trailed off as the doors opened wide, admitting the Black account manager, Bogrod. "Ah, Lord Black – and you've brought a guest along too I see."

"Account Manager Bogrod," Sirius nodded politely in greeting. "I hope that's not a problem. I felt it would stand him in good stead for the future." Sirius gestured towards Harry. "This is Harry Black-Potter, heir to both House Potter and House Black."

Harry stepped forward and gave a short bow. "Greetings Account Manager Bogrod. May the blood of your enemies wet your blades."

"And may your vaults be ever overflowing Heir Black-Potter." Bogrod moved over to his desk and studied Harry. "Bedlam did mention your knowledge of Goblin etiquette. It's uncommon to find a Wizard who will recognise our customs, let alone one as young as yourself."

"Well Account Manager," began Harry. "As I see it Goblins are as much a part of magical society as wizards." Harry allowed a grin to creep onto his face. "Plus, you'd have to be pretty stupid not to respect the culture of the people looking after all of your money."

A flash of… something passed across Bogrod's face too quickly for Harry to recognise before he threw back his head and let out a bellowing laugh. "Indeed Heir Black-Potter. I do believe we'll get along quite nicely."

"Please, call me Harry."

"Very well, and you may call me Bogrod." With that, he indicated for Sirius and Harry to take a seat.

Sirius watched this interaction with his mouth slightly ajar and shook his head in disbelief at the way his godson had put the notoriously pernickety Goblin at ease. "Bogrod – can I ask why my presence was requested today?"

"Certainly Lord Black," Bogrod was immediately all business again. "Due to a lack of funds in the LeStrange vault, a number of valuable objects were going to be transferred to you as part of the dowry repayment. In the course of determining the value of these objects, we discovered a number that were infused with dark magic. One, in particular, was of great concern to us – it appears to hold a fragment of someone's soul. We have a ritual that can remove the taint…"

"You found another one?" Sirius interrupted.

"Another one?" Bogrod's visage clouded over with anger. "What do you mean?"

"There was an item in the Black Townhouse – a locket that reeked of dark magic. May I call my elf?" With Bogrod's agreement, Sirius called "Kreacher!" and a thin, hunched figure dressed in a clean tea towel bearing the Black family crest, appeared in front of them. "How may Kreacher serve master?"

"I need you to tell Bogrod about the locket and what happened with Regulus".

Kreacher recounted the history of the Black family's dealings with the locket, from Voldemort's request for an elf to Regulus' self-sacrifice. "Master Regulus called it a 'Horcrux' and charged Kreacher to destroy it. Kreacher has tried to follow his Master's command, but he has failed!" with that, he flung himself at the desk and tried to smash his head against it in punishment, but Harry reached out and caught him before he could get there. "Kreacher, the Goblins know how to cleanse the locket. With their help, you can fulfil Regulus' last order."

Kreacher froze. "Goblins can help?"

"Yes, we can." Bogrod turned to Sirius. "Lord Black, can you instruct your elf to bring the item here? We can secure both objects until the ritual has been prepared." A nod from Sirius was enough for Kreacher to disappear with a pop, only to return a few moments later with a sealed box.

"We put the locket in there. It seems to have an aura that negatively affects those around it so we stored it safely away until we could discover how to dispose of it." Sirius paused and looked over at Harry who gave a small gesture to proceed. "We've been doing some research to see if we could find anymore – we couldn't believe this was the only one that he had made, and the proof seems to have been in the LeStrange vault."

"And what did you learn?"

"We think there are more out there. Our best guess is he was aiming for a powerful magical number – most likely seven – although we don't think he got that far before Harry here got the better of him. We think we've found indications of two, maybe three more."

Bogrod pondered this information. "Thank you, Lord Black. Would you please wait here a moment? There are others that need to be informed of this." He stood from his comfortable seat behind the desk and strode from the room leaving Harry and Sirius alone. Harry looked over at Sirius and raised an eyebrow, receiving a shrug of the shoulders in return.

A few moments later Bogrod returned accompanied by Bedlam and a large, dangerous-looking Goblin who Harry immediately recognised as Chief Ragnok, Director of Gringotts. Harry's eyes widened a fraction - an audience with Ragnok was a rarity for a Goblin, let alone two human wizards.

"Lord Black, Heir Black-Potter – this is Chief Ragnok, the leader of the Goblin Nation." Bogrod said deferentially.

Harry and Sirius both gave deep bows. "Chief Ragnok, it is truly an honour." Sirius said respectfully, "May the blood of your enemies wet your blades."

"And may your vaults be ever overflowing." Ragnok returned their bow with a slight tip of his head. "Bogrod here has informed me you have information regarding the item that was discovered in the LeStrange vault. I want to hear what you have to say for myself."

Sirius repeated what he had told Bogrod and, once finished, waited in silence as Ragnok scrutinised him. Abruptly the Goblin Chief leant forward.

"Lord Black, this is the first time we have met. Tell me, do you think me foolish? An idiot perhaps?"

"No… I…" Sirius stammered, suddenly concerned about whether he and Harry would make it out of the bank alive.

"Then why do you insist on wasting my time with fabrication? I can tell the essence of your story is truthful, but you are being deceitful as to how you have come to acquire this information." Ragnok then turned to include Harry in his glare. "I believe Heir Black-Potter here has something to share. Perhaps we can start with why you insist on greeting us with a message we at Gringotts use to indicate someone who has wronged the Goblin Nation."

Harry started in shock, internally cursing at himself for falling for the deception that had clearly been laid by Gringotts France when they agreed to 'help' him. The fury in Ragnok's scowl reminded Harry vividly that, whilst the Goblins controlled the financial side of the wizarding world, they were primarily warriors and ones to be feared and respected at that. Harry chewed his bottom lip, unknowingly mimicking an action he'd seen Hermione do many times over the years when faced with a problem that required deep thought and consideration. He shot a fleeting look at Sirius and saw a measure of fear in his eyes, before glancing over at the doors just in time to see two heavily armoured Goblins with large, sharp axes pulling them shut. He pulled his attention back to the hulking Goblin in front of him.

"Nothing to say, Heir Black-Potter? Let me tell you what I think." Ragnok stepped toward Harry, forcing him to meet his eyes. Harry's gaze flickered briefly again to Sirius who now found himself being watched carefully by the Black and Potter account managers. "The reports I've had of you indicate that you're exceptionally mature for someone of your age. You're courteous to all Goblins you encounter unlike most of your kind. If you hadn't proved your identity at your first meeting with Bedlam I'd suspect an imposter, but you know things don't you Heir Black-Potter? Things you have no business knowing – especially if you have spent the first eight years of your life ignorant of the wizarding world. The question I need answered here and now is how do you know these things? Bear in mind that your response will determine the manner in which you and Lord Black here, leave this establishment."

Harry realised the choice he had to make was no choice at all. Bring them in on his plans or potentially lose his life to a very angry Goblin Chief. They could be powerful allies, but their help always came at a price. What Harry was unable to determine was, what was this going to cost him? He took one final look around the room and, judging by the faces of his 'hosts' he understood that another partial truth would likely result in a one-way trip to the dragon pens. He took a deep breath, knowing once again he was being forced to reveal things he'd wanted to keep secret.

"What I'm about to tell you is known only by five others. If this information got out, I'd be obliviated at the very least and possibly tossed through the veil in the Department of Mysteries." Harry paused, drew himself up to his full height and looked steadily at Ragnok. "I will tell you the whole truth, but I need your word that this goes no further than those already in this room." Both Bogrod and Bedlam were incensed at the insinuation that they would leak privileged client information but stayed their response at a gesture from their leader.

"Very well Heir Black-Potter. You have my word, but we will want something in return. That something will depend on what you have to say, now sit and start talking."

Later that evening Sirius and Harry relayed the day's events to a gobsmacked trio of Andi, Ted and Amelia. "What did the Goblins want in return for their silence Harry?" Ted asked.

"Political support in the future – something I was planning on giving them anyway as part of an effort to strengthen ties with other magical races – and the occasional piece of future knowledge to help them 'fortify' their profits. I thought I was going to lose my head when I told them about my encounter with their dragon… I can't help but feel we got off lightly."

"Based on my dealings with them I'd have to agree." Interjected Amelia. "I can only think that their desire to see the end of Voldemort worked in your favour. They certainly wouldn't receive anything like the cooperation you're giving them in a country led by him. For what it's worth, I think you made the right call."

"More like the only call." Sirius sighed. "There was little chance of us getting out of there any other way. Still, the Goblins have agreed to help recover the Horcruxes – good job too, I wasn't sure how we would get past whatever wards and curses are around the ring. They're going to recover it and store it alongside the cup and locket ready for disposal."

"Why aren't they just destroying them?" queried Andi.

"I asked them not to just yet," said Harry. "I think Dumbledore needs to be there to see the destruction actually taking place – I don't think he'll believe us and stop interfering any other way. Once all the Horcruxes have been collected we'll finish them in one go."

With summer now well underway Harry's thoughts returned to Hogwarts. He was lying on his back in the garden, looking up and watching wispy clouds meander their way across the blue sky when a familiar voice broke his contemplation.

"Wotcher Harry!"

"Hey, Dora – how was school?"

"Pretty good – hard work though. N.E.W.T. years are brutal." Dora scrunched up her face as though the memories were causing her physical pain. "I need to carry five subjects at Exceeds Expectations if I want to be an Auror and the Professors have really ramped up the workloads." She flopped down onto the grass next to Harry, gave him a nudge and grinned at him. "Not that you'll need to worry about that for a few years yet!"

"Sounds like you barely had time to breathe this year, let alone get any pranks in?"

"I know! If I wasn't so focused on making the Academy, I'd think it was a bit of a waste, but I'm not even close to being the main troublemaker at Hogwarts anymore. I've been well and truly eclipsed by a couple of Gryffindors."

Harry smirked knowing full well who Tonks was talking about. "What did they do?"

"There's an enormous clock tower in one of the courtyards at Hogwarts and they somehow made it blow raspberries on the hour rather than the sound of the normal 'bongs'. It was clever stuff, during the daytime it was loud enough to hear in Hogsmeade but at night it quietened right down. Took the Professors three weeks to stop it."

Harry burst out with laughter. "Amazing. Sirius will enjoy that one."

"You all ready to be an ickle firstie?" Dora winked at Harry.

"Between you and Sirius I think I probably know more about the castle than most of the other first years. I've been borrowing your old textbooks as well and reading up in advance – reckon I'll be OK."

"Just remember you've got your big sis there to show you the ropes. Any idea what house you'd like? I'm not biased or anything, but the Sett is pretty comfy."

"The Sett?" questioned Harry.

"Yeah, it's what we call the 'Puff common room. Y'know, like a badger's home. Hufflepuff tends to get looked down on by the other houses – we've got a real mix of people and abilities, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a better group of friends anywhere."

"What about the other houses?" Harry asked, pretending to be clueless.

"Well," said Dora, thinking. "The four houses are supposed to take kids that have certain traits – loyalty and hard work for Hufflepuff, ambition and cunning for Slytherin, intelligence and wit for Ravenclaw and courage and determination for Gryffindor, but it's not that straightforward. I know plenty of people who could fit in any of the houses if they'd been sorted there. Plus, everyone has their own opinions of the other houses anyway."

"Like what?" said Harry, genuinely curious to hear an outsider's view of Gryffindor.

"Ravenclaws tend to do well in class but they're greedy about knowledge and horde information, rather than sharing it with others. Around exam time it's a nightmare trying to get hold of books in the library as the 'Claws have got them all checked out. Some of them can be pretty standoffish and think they're better than everyone else. On the whole, they're generally respected for what they achieve but they're often closer to Slytherin than anyone else personality-wise."

Dora paused, a pondering expression on her face. "Slytherin is almost entirely full of purebloods with the odd half-blood dropped in, so tends to have a lot of kids whose parents were on You-Know-Who's side in the last war. They can be pretty sneaky, just like anyone else really, but over the last few years, some have started spouting nonsense about blood purity again – never in front of a Professor, but enough of the students have heard it. It's got to be coming from their parents… Anyway, I think they get a bit of a bum deal at times. There are some honestly good people in Slytherin – I just hope they don't get drowned out by the idiots. Mum was one when she was in school."

"And Gryffindor?" Harry asked.

"'Where dwell the brave at heart!' they like to say. The kids there tend to be headstrong, get into trouble more than almost anyone else and can be incredibly reckless. But they stand up for what they believe in and are generally liked. They've got this long-running feud with Slytherin – no one can remember why it started – but the sniping between the houses loses them more points each year than anything else. We 'Puffs tend to get along with everyone, but we're almost universally seen as cast-offs – the students that didn't fit into other houses, but we're friendly and fairly relaxed. There are no expectations on a Hufflepuff to be the top student or to be particularly brave or cunning, so we get overlooked for almost everything. Still, I wouldn't trade my time in the Sett for anything."

Dora turned to face Harry. "So? Any thoughts on where you'll end up?"

"Honestly, Gryffindor is appealing – both my parents and Sirius were there, but I reckon I'll be sorted into either Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff. I like learning – I always did well at school before I was 'convinced' by my uncle to not be better than my cousin, and I would like to think I'm loyal to my friends and work hard…"

"Not Slytherin then?" teased Dora.

"Can you imagine? In a house full of Death Eater children? I'll be lynched within minutes of stepping into the common room!"

On Harry's birthday, he, Sirius and Andi returned to Gringotts to formalise his acceptance as the head of House Potter and to start the ball rolling on claiming House Peverell. It was a simple ceremony overseen by Bedlam that allowed Harry to appoint Andi as his proxy in the event he was unavailable. They'd decided as a group that having another voice on the Wizengamot alongside Sirius', would serve them better than just having Sirius himself vote on Harry's behalf. "Two of us singing from the same frog-choir book makes it easier to be heard" as Sirius so eloquently put it.

As they weren't planning on announcing Harry's new standing until the scheduled meeting of the Wizengamot at the Winter Solstice in December, Harry knew he had time before his actions would come to public attention. In reality, very little would change as a result of his acceptance until he came of age – he still would not be able to access the main family vaults, nor sit in his own seats on the court, but regaining just a small measure of control over his life made Harry feel immeasurably better about the future.

"Lord Black-Potter, may I be the first to offer you congratulations on behalf of Gringotts." Bedlam bowed to Harry. "We all hope this will be the start of a long and profitable relationship for both parties."

"My thanks Account Manager Bedlam to both you and Gringotts, but I thought we'd been over this already – regardless of any other agreements we may have, to my friends, I am always Harry. I'd like to think that we are friends?"

"Of course, Harry, my thanks to you in return. I would be personally honoured to call you a friend." Bedlam paused for a moment, then shuffled some parchment on his desk and pulled one to the top of the pile. "Now that the ceremony is out of the way, there is one more piece of business we have for discussion. About the storybooks, you asked us to investigate…"

"Yes! Did you manage to trace it back to Dumbledore?" Harry asked eagerly.

"Actually Harry, Dumbledore had nothing to do with the books."

Harry sat back, surprised at the news. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. We followed the money from the publishers back to the original author and asked them a few questions. As it turns out, they'd overheard a rather tipsy Rubeus Hagrid talking about the night he collected you from your parent's house and took things from there. Albus Dumbledore was not involved at all in this case."

"Well, I'll be damned… I was so sure he was involved."

Sirius cleared his throat. "At the risk of sounding like a responsible adult here Harry, I think you may need to consider that not everything is the fault of Dumbledore. From what you've told me I can see how it would be easy to lay the blame for most things at his feet but perhaps you need to step back and look at things with fresh eyes?"

Bedlam nodded in agreement and handed Harry the parchment he'd been holding. "Take this away, look over the details and let me know how you want to proceed."

Harry thanked Bedlam once again before leaving with Sirius. It appeared he had a lot to think about.

Recommendation time! "Hedwig Slightly Unhinged" by Temporal Knight is well worth checking out.

I've got a couple of recs that I'm hesitant to post due to them not being complete and how long it has been since they were last updated. They're all ones I regularly go back and read despite their unfinished states - would you like to see these recs? Perhaps as a single drop on one chapter?