A/N: Here is chapter two. Right now I'm mostly writing this story at work while in my downtime. Updates may be frequent or sporadic, in all honesty, only time and motivation will tell.

One Step at a Time

A man wearing a cloak that seemed like black fog rolling down his body sat at his desk deep in the department of mysteries. His aged and scared face was revealed only to the empty office in which he sat. Such was the life of an unspeakable. The cloaks themselves were meant to protect the identity of the workers, even from each other. No one knew who worked in the department, aside from the director, and that was by design. The department as a whole, while technically in the ministry, was far older than the governmental agency itself. Even some of the employees who 'worked' in the department didn't really work there. Augustus Rookwood being the prime example. The director knew he was marked, knew you could only take such a mark willingly, but had 'employed him' so he could be observed and contained as much as possible.

Sighing, the man took a deep pull from a steaming cup of coffee, he was exhausted and sleep would be in the near future for him but he had a few things to do before he could finally call it a night, or rather, at this point, the day before he started thinking back.

7 hours prior, Croaker was just getting ready to call it a night when one of the many magical detectors monitoring the United Kingdom softly started pinging in his office. Immediately it drew his attention as usually, the vast array of them were silenced due their annoyance at going off every few seconds. While the above ministry had long since forgotten how magical instances were recorded in the 'Books of Record' for law enforcement or clerical purposes the Director of the Department of Mysteries was not so ignorant. Whether it be the conception of a new magical, the death of one, a marriage, the usage of magic by an underage wizard, an apparition, or any other number of things they were all tracked through these devices in his office. There were only a small few, which rarely activated that were deemed to be of interest and therefore, allowed to alert him.

Walking over to the shelf containing the ping Croker's eyes widened when he saw which one of the few devices had gone off.

Quickly he levitated the device over to another table in the corner and gently placed it in a receptacle in its upper corner. Slowly, a map of the entire U.K. became visible on its surface. He held his breath as the map slowly started to shift to the center of Scotland before it then slowly started to zoom in on a very familiar area. The greater area of Hogwarts and Hogsmead before it once more centered on Hogwarts.

After a few more moments of tense anticipation, Croaker watched as a holographic representation of Hogwarts materialized on the table top, two glowing dots being stationary in the Hospital Wing clearly visible.

Excited, he threw his hood over his face, designed to completely obscure it and change his voice as he strode over to his fireplace, the only one in existence capable of transporting an individual to any floo, regardless of security precautions, and having grabbed a pinch of floo powder throwing it into the fire, he exclaimed, "Hogwarts Hospital Wing!" and was whisked away in a fury of green flames.

The once steaming cup of coffee now sat mockingly cold in front of him as he allowed it to cool too much while thinking of the previous night's events. Sighing, his eyes shift over to the only other thing currently occupying his desk. A glass jar with a pitch black cloud that would put his robes to shame with bands of gold and red swirling around it sitting atop a greyish cloud.

Sighing one more time, Croker asked the empty room "Albus… Tom… What have you done"

"Tell me, Daphne, what do you know of soul bonds". Madam Pomfrey prompted once more.

The question still shocked her the second time she heard it almost as much as her current position, that of being semi-clothed atop a still naked Harry inside the hospital wing.

"My family believes in the old ways Madam" she eked out as her eyes shifted down to a confused and uncomfortable looking Harry. His face, she noted was getting increasingly more flushed by the second as he tried to look anywhere but at her.

"And you Mr. Potter," the matron asked gently. His eyes snapped towards hers when he heard his name.

"Umm… Sorry?"

The aged healer chuckled at his discomfort. "All alright you two, I'll give you a few minutes to get dressed. When you're done just remove the privacy screen. Afterward, we're going to have, what I feel, may be an interesting conversation."

The two teens watched as the Hogwarts healer rose and left them in privacy. Their eyes lingered where she had left before they both slowly and simultaneously turned toward each other. Emerald eyes once more met azure and they both stilled, locked in a sort of trance for a few seconds before finally, Daphne eepd once more and looked away.

It took her a few seconds before she found her voice, albeit onc Harry could barely make out as she spoke lowly, "Uhh. Umm.. close your eyes, I'll get up and get dressed, once I'm done I'll do the same for you". Not trusting his own voice Harry just nodded and proceeded to make a show of screwing his eyes shut tightly.

Daphne watched him for a few moments to make sure he wasn't going to peak before she slowly stood up. All while transferring the thin blanket to more effectively cover Harry. She looked around and quickly found her school uniform, laundered and neatly folded on the table at the foot of the bed, once more glanced at Harry to ensure his eyes were closed, and then proceeded to begin getting dressed. Once done she chanced another glance at Harry to make sure his eyes were still closed and wasn't disappointed. If he peaked he was quick about it and didn't gawk. But, maybe, she thought, he had been respectful of her. That thought made a shy smile on her face appear. After another moment of contemplation, she cleared her throat to hopefully produce more than a whisper this time "It's okay, you can open you're eyes now… Harry".

Slowly his face relaxed from its scrunched-up state and he blinked a few times in her direction as he tried to readjust to the light. He offered her a soft smile, before commenting "My turn. Why don't you wait outside?"

"Umm. I… I Can't… It might be too far."

"Huh"

"It'll be explained in a bit, please just… get decent first"

Not waiting for any additional response Daphne turned around to face the window and closed her eyes for good measure. After a few seconds she heard the springs from the mattress give a quiet groan as he got up and collected his clothes from their place at the foot table where they had rested next to hers.

After what felt like an eternity she heard Harry chuckle and proclaim, "All done, well mostly, you can look now".

Slowly, and with a little trepidation at the 'mostly' comment she turned around to face Harry. Her eyes went wide at seeing him holding a green and silver trimmed tie aloft in his right hand. Slowly she looked down, she knew she put her tie back on when she got dressed. She always made sure to have a neat and orderly appearance, even on weekends when most students wore often too baggy and mismatched clothing, comfy they called it, slobbish she thought, when she realized the tie she sported was trimmed with red and gold coloring. Her entire body felt like it was one giant blush as she looked back up at the still-smirking boy who lived.

Making an eep sound she quickly went to remove the tie when she felt her hands staied. Looking back up from her work she saw Harry's chest and then face as she looked into his eyes he said, "Keep it, I have more"

Would she ever stop this infernal blushing she thought. And could help please stop flirting right now, it was too much.

Emerging from behind the privacy screens Madam Pomfrey noted the deep blush sported by her pupil and the wrong tie securely around her neck, while her most frequent and secretly favorite patient sported a green and silver tie with a cheeky smile plastered on his face.

The healer internally sighed in relief, while they may not realize it, it seemed the soul bond was agreeing with them and helping them subtly along. They may just survive this after all.

When both students stopped in front of the matron she gave them another once over with a more keen eye before she asked, "how are the two of you feeling"

Harry being polite indicated for Daphne to go first.

She seemed to think about it for a minute before she realized she felt fine, which, by her recollection of last night's events she should at least be still in bed feeling exhausted from the output of magical energy she performed. She voiced such, "I… I feel fine, I shouldn't, considering I almost worked myself into complete magical exhaustion last night, but I… It doesn't make sense".

Nodding but not yet elaborating on her thoughts, the matron turned to Harry who seemed to finally be in serious contemplation since he awoke to these strange set of circumstances this morning. Frowning, he looked down at his injured hand when he realized the dull pain that had been there these last weeks in detention was no longer present. Gasping at its blemish-free skin he once more looked to the matron questioningly.

Nodding she prompted, "Well…"

"I… I feel better than I ever have before. My hand, my head…" he drifted off into contemplation when he noticed something else was missing. His glasses! He could barely see a foot in front of his face without them but now, he wasn't even sure where they ended up and he could see completely fine.

Nodding in understanding the Matron finally pulled him from his shock,

"Yes Mr. Potter, I dare say, you're at the healthiest you've ever been, in no small part thanks to Miss…err… Daphne here." Sighing, she continued, "Last night when you came in you were in a bad way, Mr. Potter. You had lost a lot of blood and soon after arrival lost consciousness. Daphne and I were able to successfully stabilize you, and then successfully heal you of, not only the cursed scar that was being etched into your hand." He looked away ashamedly, "But the cursed scar that adorned your forehead, I dare say that may have been what was affecting your vision all these years, amongst other things" she finished knowingly.

Gasping Harry's hand shot to his forehead. Smooth skin was where he always felt the raised and angry scar that he always knew to be a part of him, that often enough caused headaches, that exploded with pain anytime Voldermort was near.

Gaping mouth with eyes full of adoration, Harry turned to Daphne who shyly kept her eyes down. Overcome with emotion Harry moved over to her and gently pulled her into a hug, whispering into her ear, "Thank you, I… Just… Thank you. I can never repay you".

A little too morosely for the miracle he considered she performed, she replied, "Don't thank me just yet."

"Let us take this into my office. We can have a light breakfast while we chat, hmm" Without awaiting their reply she turned and walked towards the opposing room.

Once food had been consumed by all and a fresh cup of tea served to each the matron once more turned to Daphne and asked.

"So…" She stalled for a second before steeling herself, "Daphne, as simply as you can for Mr. Potters's benefit, can you tell me what you know of soul bonds" she finished.

"Well…" She glanced nervously at Harry, "Ummm…" Words failed her.

Madam Pomfrey taking pity on her shy student, softy spoke, "It's okay Daphne, just try and be a healer right now. Like you were last night. Act like your explaining it to a muggle-born student or the first time okay?"

After a few minutes, Daphne nodded once resolutely and sat just a little straighter in her chair.

"In the magical world, there are several types of bonds. Most common are the friendship, familial, and marriage bond. The friendship bond forms over several years or after particularly trying events. It can be between best friends who spend years in each other's company, teammates who go through a lot of adversity, or soldiers who weather a war together. Often times those who form such bonds can instinctively tell moods or know what another might do in particular situations, in rare cases these bonds can develop into the second type, the familial"

Taking a sip of her tea she continued, "The familial bond, is formed between family members such as close brothers and sisters, or between parent or child. This is established when great love is shared between those involved, but not of the romantic inclination. Loving their family for who they are regardless of faults and living being close during their formative years. They often share the same benefits of the aforementioned friendship bond but on a deeper level, it is theorized that such a bond can establish a sort of mental link between the two, being able to share thoughts or words across their mind while in close proximity but due to the private nature of such a bond it has never really been confirmed."

Another sip of tea and a deep breath, "Next is the marriage bond. This is the only bond that does not form naturally. It does not take the years necessary for a friendship or familial bond to occur. Instead, when a magical couple wed, they can opt to be bonded during the wedding ceremony. The benefits are similar to the friendship bond. There are two major differences, however, one positive and one negative. The positive is that a lesbian couple who perform the bonding can eventually conceive children with the help of some potions that otherwise wouldn't work without it. The Negative, if one of the spouses were to pass away the other would feel that loss for the remainder of their life, re-marrying isn't possible by law, and in that regard, divorce certainly isn't even thought of amongst those who choose it. The marriage bond while still popular among certain pureblood families has fallen out of use for the remainder of the wizarding population."

"Other types of bonds certainly exist, such as the familiar bond between a wizard or witch and a pet. These vary, some saying they can converse between the two while others just know what they need or when they are needed. Or the bond of servitude like that between a house elf and magical whereby the house elf binds themselves to a magical so that they can have magic to sustain their life force, in short, a symbiotic relationship."

Harry's eyes widened at that one, he'd have to have Daphne tell Hermione this information.

Daphne paused here, collecting her thoughts and the matron allowed her this leeway.

After some moments Daphne continued in a near whisper, "But the most sacred, and most rare, is that of a soul bond." A shuddering breath, and a readjustment of her posture she continued a little louder, "A soul bond can not be formed like any other, whether it be over time or ceremony. It is said to be a gift from Mother Magic Herself, a match made in heaven, predestined to accomplish a great many things. Little is known about them, however, because of their rarity. In fact, a lot of people no longer believe they ever existed in the first place as there are only vague mentions in past records."

Taking another calming breath and sip of tea, Daphne got a faraway look in her eyes for a moment before continuing, "A prevailing theory amongst those who still believe, however, is that a soul bond is a much stronger amalgamation of all the previously mentioned bonds. Even that of servant, with the distinct difference in that both are servant and master, equally. Interestingly enough, there are still laws and procedures on the books within the ministry that cover soul-bound couples, for example, the couple is likewise recorded in the book of marriage. Likewise, there are dozens of other laws with varying protections depending on specific circumstances."

Madam Pomfrey could tell she was finished with her explanation, and satisfied with what she heard, she turned towards Harry, "What Miss…Err. Daphne, said I could not have said better myself. Do you have any questions about what she covered".

Looking at the kind face the matron was offering him, and then at the now slumping and nervous-looking Daphne, Harry could only shake his head no while responding, "No, at least I don't think so, but why the lesson Madam."

"Because Mr. Potter", she began while pulling a small red book and a scroll of parchment from her desk drawer, "Last night while you two were unconscious I received a visitor from the Department of Mysteries. Director Croaker, to be specific. Ironically, he's the leading department expert in soul magic." Harry's eyes shot up from looking at the items on her desk, "He confirmed, that the book of souls and the book of marriage within the ministry updated late last night prompting his visit. He left this book and scroll for you both, he said they would help you. Ultimately, However, as of a little after 11 pm last night, you have both become soul bonded."

The rest of the morning passed in a blur for Harry. His short-lived relief at being healed from his cursed scars was overcome with an overload of information and a life-altering bonding that he didn't even know that possible until moments before he was told he was subject to such a thing.

He vaguely registered Professor McGonagall arriving at the hospital wing and escorting him and Daphne towards a seemingly empty corridor on the 4th floor before she stopped at a portrait and said "Griffon" before it opened up to reveal a cozy-looking living room. He even started to register some of her words of "your things", "your room", "quarantine", "No visitors", and soft "congratulations" before she exited the hole they just came in.

Harry stood dumbly staring at the portrait hole his head of house just exited for several minutes before he finally started to come to his senses. Still standing in the entryway he started looking around, starting from his left and going clockwise he noticed the small fireplace, framed by bookshelves on both sides, two desks stood against the far left wall, the back wall directly in front of him had 2 doors, continuing around he noted that the right side had a small, but well-equipped kitchen with a small dining table in its center. Eyes shifting back to the center of the room he noted the small sofa in front of the fireplace that currently had a petite girl curled in on herself quietly sobbing.

Seeing the pretty Slytherin in tears tore Harry out of his daze quickly. Sighing he slowly walked over to her sitting form. Kneeling in front of her for a few moments before he quietly spoke, "I'm… I'm sorry Daphne".

Her head snapped up at hearing his voice, tears still pooling in her eyes, though a hiccup she asked, "Why are you sorry".

"Because… Somehow you ended up saddled with this bond, with me… My life's a bit of a mess right now if you couldn't tell. I'm sure you didn't ever want to deal with anything close to it, no sane person would. I feel responsible, if I had just kept going to the hospital wing instead of stopping to listen to that beautiful music you'd of been happily doing whatever it is you had planned for today instead of being stuck here with me".

Daphne, despite her tear-streaked face and puffy eyes, bushed once more. Why, by Merlin, did he have to keep mentioning her singing? She took a few moments to compose herself, Harry patiently waiting in front of her. It looked mildly uncomfortable she noted to be kneeling there. Taking a deep breath she composed herself and patted the seat beside her.

Harry taking the hint, rose slowly from the ground and sat down next to her. He waited a few more minutes before she quietly said, "It's not your fault Harry, I think… I think it may have been mine. I… I don't know if the spell I cast on you".

He cut her off, "Don't. Daphne, that was… The best thing that has ever happened to me in my entire life. I won't let you diminish it or say it was wrong because, to me, it was the best gift I could have ever been given."

"Perhaps", she began, "It was always meant to be. My family… We…" he looked at her encouragingly and after a moment she continued, "We still practice the old ways".

She was met with a blank stare.

She wasn't surprised the Gryffindor golden boy, and Dumbledore's supposed favorite weren't even aware of them and began to explain, "The old ways are kind of like the original religion of witches and wizards which are centered around the solstices and changing of the seasons. It used to be more widely practiced. One of the reasons a lot of the old families, blood purity stances aside, don't like the headmaster is due to this. Since he became headmaster of the school all the old celebrations witches and wizards had celebrated since the beginning were slowly replaced with their muggle equivalent. My great-grandfather before he passed away used to tell us stories of the celebrations put on here in his day and lamented how the children here now were forbidden from parting in them while on school grounds. Worse yet, these practices were slowly demonized as dark. This occurred partly because pretty much all the blood purist idiots still abided by them more so the anyone else. But it was in no small part the fault of the administration that saw them slowly becoming associated with the dark and, therefore, increasingly shunned by others. Harry, my family's not dark, hadn't been for several generations, having learned their lesson when our bloodline was... Anyway, It would be more accurate to call us grey. We could never follow the blood purity nonsense as Mother Magic's gift is Hers to give to whoever She sees fit, but we also don't follow the 'light' blindly forward forsaking all that made us who we are, while excusing those who would abuse others."

"Talk about information overload today", Harry quipped causing Daphne to blush for the umpteenth time.

"Prat" she exclaimed while swatting his arm with a small smile on her face. Leaning back he gave a long exhale.

They both sat in silence for a few minutes wearing contemplative faces. Until he finally started to chuckle a little.

Turning towards him Daphne raised an eyebrow in question.

Through his laughter, he said "Man imagine everyone's faces when they find out"

She paled stopping his laughter dead in its tracks, "Oh Merlin, I have no clue how my parents are going to react. Let alone the rest of the castle".

"Yeah, hence my laughter. Look Daph", he paused turning serious, "I know I'm pretty used to the stares, sneers, and derision by now. But will you be okay? I don't think I've ever heard a bad word about you in all my time here".

Pinking at the nickname and concern laced in his voice she turned to look away for a minute to gather herself before responding quietly, "I… I don't know. I really only have one friend here, Tracey who's in Slytherin with me, and my younger sister, Tori, who's a Puff", pausing a moment, tears welling in her eyes again she continued, "They call me the Ice Queen in my house. I… In my second year, an older boy kept bothering me. So I hexed him in a sensitive area when he couldn't take no for an answer. Sure the boys have left me alone after, but I basically became a leper with that same action. My housemates are only cordial in the halls with me, but once we are in the common room it… difficult to stick around for any length of time. And the rest of the school is reluctant to be friendly to a 'snake'" She looked away again afraid of what she'd see in his eyes.

"Well", Harry began, "I guess from this point on if they have a problem with you then they have a problem with me. I won't let you go through this alone Daph." He offered her a small smile, one she easily returned.

They were interrupted by a gurgling sound. Embarrassment flared across Daphne's face, Harry's smile didn't falter and his face portrayed no judgment.

Getting up he stated, "Let's see what the pantry has to offer eh" as he offered her his hand. Daphne grabbed it and followed him into the small kitchen-dining room combo only to be led to a chair which he pulled out for her. Once seated he asked "Any requests".

A shy, "grilled cheese and tomato soup would be lovely" left her lips and he was instantly in motion effortlessly navigating the kitchen. She watched as he set to work and in no time at all a bowl of steaming tomato soup and a plate of grilled cheese sandwiches sat in front of her. Offering her thanks she daintily dug into her meal while he ate at a leisurely pace. Once both were finished she raised her wand and levitated the plates and bowls over to the sink where they magically started to wash themselves.

Looking out the window across the room over the desks Daphne stated "It's weird to think this will be our room until we leave soon" Harry almost choked on the glass of water he was drinking from sputtering wildly for a few moments trying to catch his breath. He was finally able to squeak out a "Huh" with a red face when Daphne the concern left her face only to be replaced by confusion.

"Didn't you listen to Processor McGonagall" she quired, a shake of his head the only response she got.

"Well, considering our bond. And the legal ramifications behind it, we allotted student married quarters. She mentioned that for the next 48 hours were under magical quarantine" Here she blushed once more, "We're not to allow visitors to stay past curfew or be here without our presence, and that the house elves already brought all of our things into..." she stared off once more and her entire face was fire engine red as she said "our bedroom"

Taking a deep breath to steady his already scrambled brain and taking pity on her already elevated levels of embarrassment Harry replied, "That's okay Daph, I can sleep on the sofa for now."

Several calming breaths of her own later she finally replied to his kind offer, if only above a whisper, "It's not that simple Harry. This… Our bond is newly formed. It's fragile right now and needs time to stabilize. If it doesn't and we don't allow it to the results could be deadly. I'm pretty sure if we look into that book the unspeakables gave us it would confirm it. And if I'm right, we really shouldn't be without…" she trailed off uncomfortably, prompting Harry to give her an encouraging, "Go on, I won't judge or make fun".

Sighing, she continued, "We really shouldn't be without physical contact, that is to say, skin-to-skin contact for longer than a few hours at most. As it stands right now we may be nearing that limit before we start to feel ill". She finished quickly.

"Okay", Harry said, mind already in overdrive at the thought of seeing this beautiful woman in a similar state like earlier this morning, "How about…" he began gathering his Gryffindor courage, "How about we get down to our skivvies and just have a snuggle on the sofa. Kind of like ripping a plaster off. If we don't make it weird it won't be right"

"Why Mr. Potter how forward of you!" she exclaimed, but he could see in her eyes she was channeling what little courage she had with no small amount of humor in her eyes.

"Well, what do you say Mrs. Potter", she paled and blushed all at the same time, had he been too forward.

Several silent and tense seconds went by before she finally returned to a normal color.

"Sorry, it's still kind of surreal that were considered married", taking a calming breath she nodded, "That sounds reasonable, but no funny business Mr. I still remember that freezing charm from second year."

For what it was worth Harry paled as he replied, "Scouts honor"

"whats a scout"

It was awkward at first. The two of them had gone into the bathroom separately to get undressed down to their underwear. Eventually, however, they both ended up snuggled up on the sofa, Harry playing big spoon to Daphne's little while slightly seated.

After the first several minutes of awkwardness, they both started to relax and the bond radiated a comfort between them. Despite Daphne's terribly shy nature, she was able to relax and feel safe in his arms. While likewise, Harry felt content and at peace, Voldermort and Umbridge not even getting a passing thought.

It was a half-hour into this bliss when Harry heard humming coming from his partner. He dared not say a word as she slowly started to hum louder, slowly he recognized the melody as the same one he heard the night prior. Eventually, it came to an end and Harry let the silence around them stay for a few moments longer before he could no longer contain it.

"it was you," he said, not in an accusing way, but reverently.

She stiffened in his arms for a moment before relaxing again when he gave her a reassuring squeeze.

"Yes, it was. I like to sing. I've never done it in front of anyone before though. I…" letting out a soft sigh she continued confiding in this man's warm embrace, "It's embarrassing. I can only sing in my Gaelic accent, one that I've tried to lose since first year when it caused me issues in my house", she finished, the fact she was bullied for it in the snake pit going unsaid but understood by him.

"You don't have to hide that from me Daph, you can be you with me. Merlin knows I'd like to be anyone but Harry Potter, but I've come to realize over time that its who I am. I would be dishonoring my parent's memory if I tried to change it."

A moment passed when she looked back into his emerald eyes, full of emotions she wasn't sure she could name she simply said, "Thank you, Harry"

He didn't comment one way or the other on the way her thanks came out with a heavy Scottish brogue.

An Hour almost passed before they decided that, while they cuddled here at least, they could peruse the book the Department of Mysteries lent them. Daphne lent forward and grabbed it off the coffee table and opened it to its first chapter, Harry reading over her shoulder, he nodded into her shoulder and snuggled a bit closer any time he was done with a page and depending on where she was at would either turn it right away or it would be a few more seconds after.

The book was a wealth of knowledge on soul bonds, the preamble made it clear that only those who were bonded in such a way could even read it lead some credibility that both were capable of the task.

It mostly confirmed that the contact they currently enjoyed would be required for at least every 6 hours for the first 48 hours, after that it could be accomplished overnight while the couple slept. It suggests that they do it completely in the nude, but mercifully a side note said this wasn't necessary for the bond to be healthy and that the coupled individuals should take personal comfort into consideration.

The one uncomfortable section related to intercourse, and it heavily stated that normal contraceptive potions and spells wouldn't work and instead provided a few alternatives that were obscure but easy and foolproof. If Daphne felt the tightening in Harry's boxers during this section she didn't comment on it.

The last section was of the most interest however, it went over the ministry laws that applied to them and the protections they were afforded. Anyone caught interfering in their bond or attempting to interfere in it could see a one-way ticket through something called the veil of death. A fate they both shuddered at. Apparently, they were both now considered adults in the wizarding world. In Harry's case he could claim all family titles and assets as soon as he made his way to Gringotts, he wouldn't even need to wait till the age of 21 to take up his hereditary seat on the Wizengamot. For all intents and purposes, they didn't even need to stay in school to pass their minimum O.W.L.S. in order to retain their wands.

Harry smirked and then chuckled to himself, as soon as he got to the bank they would be Lord and Lady Potter. Madam Umbridge would technically then, be his subordinate on the Wizengamot and in social stations. Dumbledore couldn't force him back to the Dursleys for another summer of torture, hell being a member of the Wizengamot he can even file a grievance and demand a trial for Sirius

Eventually, they got up to make dinner together, not even bothering to get dressed again. Comfortable enough now in their underwear at least. Once the table was set and food was being consumed Harry paused mid-meal and with a mischievous glint in his eye, he asked Daphne,

"So tomorrow", Harry started, "Fancy sneaking out of the castle?"