"AM I SHORTER!" Lupin and Snape were both staring at him incredulously.

"Yes, Potter, because that is the most important thing that we are dealing with right now." Snape drawled and Hadrian glared at the man.

"It's important to me, I just got those inches." He knew he was whining like a child but he had hoped to be taller this time around. He grabbed the blood glamor ring and put it on, then took it off and put it back on again, repeating the process several more times. He was still taller than his glamored self but only by about half an inch, not the two he had gained before. As long as he wasn't shorter than his original timeline he would deal with it.

"If I may, your highness?" Hadrian turned to see Bowguard standing not too far from him. He didn't know what it wanted but nodded for it to proceed anyway. "The kitsune are also known for being defensive about their height. they make sure whenever anyone does any research on them, not that there's much, that they always state their height including their ears, making them the same average height to humans." Hadrian got the impression that Bowguard was trying to make him feel better but it most definitely was not working.

"Also." now Deoguard was contributing. "You aren't even considered a child in their eyes. For beings who can live well over a millenia sometimes over two, you are but a toddler and still have far longer to grow. It is likely you didn't shrink further because of the amount of power you hold. In the kitsunes perspective you have reached your second majority. The first is three tails, the second is five and the third and final is nine. Those who possess nine tails are called the Tenko. There are only a handful of tenko that exist, one of which currently acts as their leader and representative on the council. She is called Kuzunoha and is one of the oldest Tenko in the world.

Hadrian just stared at the two creatures not wanting to tell them that what they had said really wasn't helpful. He could see Snape visibly shaking from suppressed laughter but decided to ignore it. He turned back to the mirror. He was glad that his human appearance hadn't changed all that much as he had grown very fond of the way he looked. It was a good representation of all three of his parents and that was something he treasured, but adding the very slightly pointed ears and sharper canines was also a subtle nod to his creature heritage, with how they were it just felt right. For the first time he felt truly comfortable as himself. He knew after this it would be even harder to keep the glamor on now.

Looking at himself he tried transforming again. It was a weird sensation. He could feel his ear canal relocating and his tails sprouting from the base of his spine. It wasn't painful like the first time but it was uncomfortable in a way he couldn't put into words. He continued past the halfway transformation and felt his bones begin to grind and shift as he got smaller. Looking back to the mirror he now found a small black fox with long messy fur and five tails sitting on its haunches. He stood and did a little spin. The majority of his fur was the same raven black as it always was but his paws, belly, and the tips of his ears and tails were white, along with a small streak where his scar would be on his head.

He was startled when a hand started scratching the top of his head right behind his ears, but quickly he relaxed into the touch, closing his eyes and tilting his head so the scratching was in just the right spot. After a small amount of time he felt a rumbling come from his chest and his blissed out mind suddenly became very clear. Was he purring? He realized that, yes, he was, and quickly he moved away from who he thought was moony only to see onyx eyes staring back at him. He would never be able to live this down. He decided that this never happened and the way Snape coughed and stood he understood that this would never be spoken of again.

Harry transformed back to his fully human form, it was getting easier with every time he did it. His mind flashed to the difficulty of his animagus transformation. He had been meditating every night and had achieved some partial transformations but never the whole thing, but something seemed different now, like a barrier had been removed. Would he be able to complete a full transformation now? He may as well try. Closing his eyes he tried for his animagus form and just like that, he shifted. He couldn't understand how it had been so difficult for him to do before. It felt as easy as breathing switching through his forms. He felt a weird tingle of cool magic wash over his shoulder. He opened his eyes to look in the mirror and what looked back was his phoenix form. He stared for another minute before turning back again.

The realization was instantaneous. he shrugged his shirt off of his shoulder and unwrapped the bandages. The injury from buckbeak had been completely healed, leaving only a small scar. He hadn't thought about it before but that actually made a lot of sense. Phoenix injuries healed almost instantly. Oliver will be ecstatic to know he can play quidditch again.

"And the black phoenix form came from where exactly?" Hadrian turned to the two professors, who were giving him a very unimpressed look.

"It's my animagus form." Snape pinched the bridge of his nose, while Moony was beaming at him. The smile he had was dripping with pride and it made something in Hadrian's stomach flutter.

"And just how long have you had this form?" Snape drawled. Hadrian shuffled from foot to foot, not making eye contact.

"Today was the first time I got the full transformation. Before that I had only been able to do partial transformations." Snape nodded and the clock chimed again indicating the hour. " How is it eight o'clock already?"

"You had the longest transformation so far at thirty eight minutes." Bowguard said, stepping forward. Hadrian was shocked he didn't realize it had been that long. He had less than an hour left before he would need to go back to the dorms.

"I should be getting back to the tower. Staying here any longer than this will seem suspicious." Bowguard and Deoguard came to stand in front of Harry before taking a knee.

"We can talk at a later date. With you being connected to Avalon you are also connected to us. If you ever want us for anything you need only call and we will find you. For now there are a few more things that would be best to say before you go." Harry just nodded at the two creatures and they continued.

"The connection with your kin race is very strong. Your magic and body have changed to reflect that. One of the changes is that Kitsune who reach their second majority become fire elementals. You are no different. You now have a natural affinity with fire allowing you to control and manifest it at will. However it can also manifest on accident. Kitsune, unused to their power, often set things on fire when upset or angry, so it would be best to be careful." That wasn't helpful. He was known for having a bit of a temper and the last thing he wanted was to set things on fire. Suddenly the image of Dumbledore's beard catching fire popped into his head, making a malicious grin spread across his face. Maybe accidentally setting things on fire might not be too bad. He was brought back to the conversation by Bowguard continuing.

"The last thing that needs to be said before you leave is that Judging from your magic, it would seem that you don't age the same as humans." Hadrian saw both Snape and Lupin stiffen slightly out of the corner of his eye. "The rate that you age seems slower than most. It's about half the speed of normal humans, though kitsune normally stop aging altogether when they reach the age of fifty. Giving them the appearance of always being in their mid twenties."

"So I age at half the speed of regular humans?"

"Roughly, yes." Hadrian was excited. He had felt so overwhelmed recently, like he had no time to do or learn anything he needed to. He thought having a time turner would help, but quickly realized that using it too often would age him too quickly, since your body still goes through the hours you turn back, so decided to reserve its use for really important things. But with his aging slower it means he can repeat every day. Actualy, It might be more accurate to say that he has to repeat every day so he can age at the same rate as everyone else. This was great. He could spend one day normally, going through his classes and maintaining his golden boy image while on the other he can just spend all his time learning all the things he is behind on.

A knock came from the door and everyone startled. Moony quickly turned to the door, then back to the rest of them with a panicked expression, mouthing 'Albus.' Quickly, with Harry's urging, the bowguard fled back to the trunk, the Deoguard raced out the window, and Harry turned himself invisible. Snape and Lupin traded startled looks at the almost instantaneous disappearance of the other occupants before Snape too disappeared, deciding to use Lupin's office as his escape. The second the office door was closed dumbledore strode into the room. He looked around looking slightly confused.

"I thought I had heard that Harry came for some extra training." The headmaster sent Moony a reproachful look that made Harry seethe inside; he felt his fangs elongate and his tails flick in agitation. His temper cooled instantly at that realization. He looked over to the tea table and his eyes landed on the glamor ring. Bugger, he had forgotten about that. His ring glasses and robe were still over there. If Dumbles saw them it would be a problem. So he slowly made his way over.

"He did. But he left when the clock reminded us of the time." he gestured to the grandfather clock in the corner of the room. Harry froze as Dumbledore's eyes flicked over to him, only for the older man to look through him to the clock behind then back to Remus. "His bow-ahem. His boggart turned into a dementor. He had a rather adverse reaction to it, and with the incident on the train and all the dementors around at the moment he asked if I could teach him the patronus." Dumbles nodded genially.

Harry was now by the table and quickly picked up his glasses and ring. The second he touched them they went invisible with him and he let out a sigh of relief before moving over to his robe and did the same.

"Remus, my boy, I understand your desire to remain close to Harry, but I feel I must remind you that it is unwise to approach Harry with the intention to get closer to him. It will only hurt both of you when the time comes for you to part. Allowing your wolf to bond with the boy would be a mistake."Dumbledore sent him a stern look and it took every bit of Hadrian's self control not to set the nosy bastard's beard on fire.

"That will not be a problem, headmaster. With the amount of time we put in today he already managed to cast it. It was rather impressive. He reminds me a lot of Lily in his determination." Hadrian felt the breath leave his lungs. No one had ever said he was like his mother. Not one person. It was always James he was compared to. He felt the sting of tears gather in his eyes and fought to keep them down. Looking at Dumbledore he noticed that his face had lightened and his twinkle had brightened.

"I see, so there are no more tutoring sessions scheduled for young harry?" Remus shook his head. "I see. And you didn't speak with him about his family." Remus shook his head again and the old goat sent him a beaming smile that Hadrian wanted to wipe from his face, permanently. Without another word the headmaster walked out of the room.

Deciding not to let Lupin know he was spying, Harry shadowed to the closest passageway to the Gryffindor tower and stepped out, making sure the portraits noticed him so that they had something to inform the headmaster about. He then made his way to the common room. He still had around twenty minutes till curfew so he was on time.

Lucius was sitting in his office sipping a large glass of fire whisky staring down at the letter that had been occupying his desk for the past hour. It was a letter sent by Lord black containing a 'solution' to the Dumbledore problem. He had sent Nott a missive a while ago, asking if he was free to talk about it, but so far he had received nothing back. Lucius took a large gulp of his drink just as the floo flared.

"Bad Day?" he scowled over at the fireplace, finding irritatingly smug cobalt blue eyes staring back at him. He didn't reply; instead he downed the rest of his drink, poured two more, and handed the second over to Nott, who walked over to the sitting area in the corner and waited for him to follow. With a huff Lucius picked up the letter from Lord Black and dumped it in the other man's lap as he walked past to take the seat opposite. There was a minute of silence as Nott read the letter before he looked up.

"He's handing over another proxy? Are we sure this isn't a group of people using Lord Black as a point of contact?" Lucius took a sip of his new drink as he thought about it.

"It could be multiple people, but that's not really the problem. Who is Lord Black? By all rights the title should go to Draco." Nott rolled his eyes and Lucius glared. "That's not what I meant. Lord Black already told me that the main reason he gave the proxy to me was because it looked like it should go to Draco. Meaning no one questioned it. There is a clause in the Black family charter that states, after ten years in Azkaban any family member is then deemed unfit to hold the Lordship. Which is how it was passed on from Sirius. However it should have fallen to Draco but it didn't. Bella has the same problem as Sirius with her being in Azkaban for over ten years, and Andromeda was formally and magically disowned. There is no one else."

"You don't think that Regulus might still be alive, do you?" Lucius shook his head.

"No, the tapestry showed him as dead years ago."

"Have you checked the family tree for anything recently?" Lucius shook his head again.

"Walburga moved it to grimmauld place, and since the new Lord came forward the house has been locked down." Nott pursed his lips before taking a sip of his drink. A soft knock came from the door and Narcissa walked in. Nott bowed his head in greeting as she walked over.

"Draco sent us a letter." she brandished a rather thick looking letter and handed it over to her husband, taking the seat next to him. He opened the heavy envelope and took out its contents. His eyes were drawn to the second letter that was sent within Dracos. More specifically his eyes were drawn to the royal purple ink that his name was written in. turning it over he found it sealed with the Potter family crest. Ignoring Draco's letter for the moment, he opened Heir Potter's letter and began to read.

Dea r Lord Lucius Abraxas Malfoy

Marquess Of Ithnion

I write to you in response to your formal correspondence of thanks, I do not find insult with your written correspondence as I am aware of the machinations of a certain old wizard keeping you from performing the formalities in person. With this in mind I make a request of you to allow the formalities to be conveyed in writing, as it would not do to have certain people believe that I am privy to information they do not wish me to have. Please understand that I am not snubbing our traditions or your House and I would not ask this if the circumstances were different, however I believe keeping certain people ignorant of my knowledge would be beneficial to us all. I sincerely hope that you agree.

Y ou mentioned others who wish to show thanks, I ask that if you trust them with the knowledge that written correspondence is best that you inform them. I should make you aware that I have spoken with Gregory Goyle, Millicent Bulstrode, Pansy Parkinson, Heir Crabbe, Heir Zabini, Heiress Greengrass, Heir Nott, and Heir Malfoy today and they are privy to a few more details that may be enlightening. Also all written correspondence is completely safe and in no way an issue.

Yours Faithfully

Lord Hadrian Jameson Potter

Margrave of Thornfair, Viscount of Whiteshade

Lucius had to reread the last part more than once. 'Yours Faithfully Lord Hadrian Jameson Potter, Margrave of Thornfair, Viscount of Whiteshade.' Lucius had fucked up. He had used both an incorrect name and title for the boy. How in magic's name did he not know he was called Hadrian. Writing the wrong title is one thing but using the incorrect name would be seen as an insult no matter how you look at it.

"Are you alright?" His wifes soft voice broke him from his thoughts and he looked to Nott.

"What is Heir Potter's full name? Do you know it?" Nott looked utterly bewildered as he answered.

"Harry James Potter?" He phrased his answer like a question and Lucius was shocked. How did no one know the boy's name? Narcissa pried the letter from his hands and began to read.

"Darling, I think you might be focusing on the wrong thing here, or did you miss the second title?"

"It's only an additional Viscount title. It's hardly important compared to the fact that I addressed him with what is essentially a nickname. It would be like him addressing me as Lucy!"

"For any other Viscount title I might agree however, he is the Viscount of Whiteshade." Nott's jaw fell open as he grabbed the letter to read it over. Lucius thought for a moment before his eyes widened.

"He's Lord Gryffindor. That's three founder's families with Lords again." Nott quickly sped through the letter before looking back at the Malfoys.

"Are you not even going to mention the blatant distrust of Dumbledore? And the fact that this clearly states he is trying to hide his true feelings towards the man. Also Lucius, I don't think Lord Potter took it as an insult. He responded calmly and wrote his full name with titles at the end, as long as you don't do it again, now that you know, it shouldn't be a problem." Lucius took another sip of his drink and nodded.

"You're right. It didn't seem like he took it personally."

"Now that that's sorted, how did he claim the Gryffindor Lordship when his father couldn't?" Narcissa cut in.

"There might be conditions, like how we all know the Potters hold the Peverell line but no one has been able to claim it in over two hundred years because of conditions no one outside the family knows. Can we get to the actual contents of the letter now? Are you not curious about his blatant distrust of Dumbledore?" Nott asked. Lucius took the letter from the other man and read through it again while Narcissa answered Nott.

"We aren't all that surprised by it. Before the end of last year he gave us a warning, that the headmaster was spying on us. He also told us how the man was doing it, so that we could fix it. He gave us that warning discreetly while making a big scene so no onlookers would question his loyalty to Dumbledore. Honestly with how he has handled everything up until now I'm more curious how he convinced the hat to put him in Gryffindor when he is clearly suited for slytherin."

"He has asked us to keep his cover by allowing the headmaster to believe he is still ignorant." Lucius said not looking up from the letter. "He has also asked me to tell others of his predicament. He is opening up to the headmaster's opposition, hoping for our cooperation." He placed the letter down and picked up the parchment from Draco that had been forgotten and skimmed through it, his eyebrows rising the further down he got before his face morphed into one of fury. Narcissa and Theodorus shared a look before Narcissa placed a gentle hand on her husband's knee. He passed Draco's letter to his wife and sat waiting. He knew she would be just as furious as him, if not more so.

"That twinkle eyed bastard. How dare he interfere with an Heir like this. He has no right!" Narcissa's fury was practically palpable. Nott looked between the two blonds and Lucius took Draco's letter out of his wifes grip, passing it over for the other man to read.

"He had the Heir to one of the most prominent wizarding families sent to muggles who kept him ignorant of magic until the day he received his Hogwarts letter. Then continued to keep him away from his heritage." Nott was also pissed. "Surely we can get this rectified. If we go to the papers…" Lucius cut him off.

"I'm sure we could, however, it is clear that Lord Potter is hiding the fact that he knows all of this from the headmaster. It would seem he has a plan and what he has asked is that we keep the act going. Honestly I look forward to seeing whatever he has planned." Nott didn't look fully convinced but nodded anyway.

"Who will you be informing about his situation?" Lucius sat thinking for a while.

"I'm not sure I should inform anyone." Nott gaped. "The two most vocal were Lord Flint and I. He wouldnt understand the situation and would see it as a slight to his house. Without my backing he doesn't have enough power to force Dumbledore's compliance. If I tell him that I have dropped it he won't even bother bringing it up at the meeting. This way, as long as I phrase it right, Lord Flint wouldn't take it as a slight from Lord Potter but instead Dumbledore. I will give pieces of information when I feel it is necessary but the Headmasters information network is large and I believe the most important thing to Lord Potter is keeping him ignorant." they both nodded along with his words.

"I'll see if I can get any information from my son. In Lord Potter's letter it said he had talked to all of the Slytherins in his year." a thoughtful expression took over his face. "Clover." a house elf in a smart black pressed pillowcase popped into the room and faced her master.

"What can Clover be doing for master Nott, Sir?"

"Get me my mailbox from my office." without a word she nodded and popped away, returning a moment later with a wooden box. Nott opened it, looked through the contents before pulling out a letter and opening it. He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "It would seem my son will be of no help, unless you would like to hear all about the book Lord Potter lent to him." Lucius shook his head. Everyone knew the younger Nott's obsession with books and Lucius didn't want to read the love letter Heir Nott wrote about it.

"Should I call Benedict? Heiress Greengrass more than likely sent her father more information than either of our children." Nott nodded. It wasn't long before Benedict stepped through the floo and walked over with a letter in hand. Narcissa rose gracefully from her seat to get another glass of fire whiskey for Lord Greengrass and a glass of wine for herself before retaking her seat next to Lucius.

"I was just about to contact you when I received your missive.'' He passed the letter over for Lucius to read while Narcissa passed Benedict the glass of fire whiskey along with the letters from Draco and Lord Potter. Lucius saw Nott hold out his son's letter but Greengrass just raised an eyebrow at it and Theo put it back on the table.

The letter from Heiress Greengrass was more of a report than a letter, telling her father Lord Potter's political leanings along with her own observations of his behavior. She even hinted at his family not treating him well. She also confirmed his thoughts about keeping Dumbledore in the dark as much as possible. He handed the letter over for Nott to read also.

"His letter supports everything my daughter wrote." they all nodded. "So, Potter is self aware and it would appear he is not on the light side of the war either." Greengrass paused before continuing hesitantly. "What happens if the Dark Lord returns?" they all side-eyed Nott, whose face was unnervingly blank.

"We can only hope that that monster doesn't come back." they all rubbed their left forearm. "He was such a brilliant man and I hope with everything I am, that if he does come back, that he comes back whole and sane, For all our sakes."