Chapter 7

AN: This was written the week the World lost Terry Pratchett, and I along with many others will miss his humor. I do not own any of the characters here, except the ones I do.

Even with the almost perfect memory that Harry had, the next day flew by in a blur that he found difficult to understand. When he woke up, there was a suit hanging from the back of his bedroom door, with a tie, waistcoat, and cufflinks, none of which Harry knew how to properly put on. Luckily Ted came in while he was looking at the clothes and proceeded to help him get dressed. After finishing that difficult chore, at least in Harry's opinion it was, the two well-dressed males made their way down the stairs following the smell of food emanating from the kitchen. Sitting down to breakfast, Harry couldn't help but notice that the adults kept glancing at him and then looking away, as if trying to hide a secret. Once everyone was finished and the mess cleaned up, everyone met in the sitting room for one last moment before they split up for the day. Andi knelt in front of Harry and looked him in the eyes before taking a breath to speak.

"Harry," She spoke softly. "I want to give you something for luck today as you go through the ordeal you will be subjected too."

She pulled an old golden pocket watch from inside her purse. On the front of it was the scene from the tapestry behind the information desk in his mindscape. The majestic Stagg and Doe, the sad Wolf, and the mischievous Dog stood together in a forest clearing challenging all who would come against them. Harry's hands shook in reverence as he knew that this was important to him, though he did not know why. Andi's next words enlightened him as to why he felt that way.

"This watch was part of a set that your father had made for his friends and your mom. He called them the Marauder's fortune since his group of friends was known as the Marauders during their time at Hogwarts." Andi told him. "It was designed by your mother, and has enchantments on it that she designed herself since she was probably the smartest witch to come along since Rowena Ravenclaw. She was a certifiable prodigy at Charms, Rune-crafting, and Potions, with none of her peers being her equal in those areas. The mechanics of the watch were made by the finest Gnome craftsman in the mountains above Geneva, Switzerland. Your Father was a master of Transfiguration and he crafted the scene on the outside of the protective case. Between your mother's charms and runes, and your father's transfiguration skills, the watches were acknowledged as magical marvels. The protection charms that were placed upon them made sure that no one who wished the Potter's or their friends harm or deception could get near to the owner of one of these watches without overwhelming force.

It was finding this watch that convinced me that my cousin Sirius was innocent of the charges they sent him to Azkaban for. If Sirius were the one who betrayed your parents, then the dog on the cover would be gone. Instead, it is the rat that represented Peter Pettigrew that has disappeared from the face of the watch. Unfortunately, this watch is not enough evidence to get Sirius out of prison; I approached Barty Crouch with my questions right after your parents died, but he brushed me off, saying that Sirius had made a full confession to the Aurors, and the Muggles backed up his confession by saying that Peter Pettigrew screamed out that he had killed James and Lily before Sirius cast a spell that obliterated all but the tip of Peter's finger and killed twelve Muggles in the explosion. What I found extremely strange about it was that the two who arrested him were a desk clerk in the DMLE who became our current Minister for Magic, and the other was a man who was on the Magical Occurrence Repair and Obliviation Squad who used that arrest to establish himself as an adventurer and fighter of evil, and has written a series of books to tell everyone how great he is. Neither of them where trained for the field, and both of them just happened to be on the street where it happened, at the moment after it happened, which just seems a little too convenient to me. Sorry, that was my own personal rant there."

Andi sighed and then pressed on with her presentation. "It is said that only a true Marauder can access all of the watches secrets, and since you are the son of two of them, I think that you will be able to use it like it was intended. The one feature that Sirius told me about was that it can be used as a reusable portkey when you are in danger. To operate it, you hold the lid release button down while keeping the watch cover closed, then you think about where you want to go; or if they are not hidden by charms or runic array, then who you want to go to and the portkey will take you to the nearest safe point relative to your desired destination. What made these true marvels of magic is that a portkey normally can only go to a specific destination and back to where it originated. Lily, James, and their friend Remus Lupin came up with a way to make the portkey adaptable and able to respond to the users thoughts. After James and Lily died, Remus disappeared and so no one has learned how to duplicate their accomplishment. Remember to carry this with you at all times, and in case of an emergency, use it to get to safety and we will get to you as soon as we can."

Harry took the precious watch that his dad and mom had created, holding it as if it was the Holy Grail. What everyone around him realized, was that for the first time that he could recall, he now held something in his hands that had once been held by both of his parents. Harry could be forgiven for the tears in his eyes as he gazed upon his new, most precious possession. Once again Harry's very powerful magic acted upon his desire that he would never be able to lose his new watch to theft, confiscation, or to damage by any means. A pulse went out from his core, alerting everyone in the room that something magical had happened, though the results of his wishes would not be known for some time. Deep inside Harry, the central core of his mindscape which housed not only Harry's magical core but also his potential for different magics, was fighting with the black webbing; trying to make the tear in it bigger. Elric and the spirit manifestation of Hedwig both watched as Harry's core struggled to escape the confines put upon it by Albus Dumbledore.

"Now is not the time for more of Harry's magic to escape," said Hedwig. "If he gains more access to his magic it will bring Whiskers down upon him before he is ready to escape. If that happens, I don't know that any of us can protect him from the manipulative old man."

"Do you have any suggestions?" Elric asked. "Every day that Harry experiences happiness and freedom is another day that I watch as he becomes more comfortable with what he truly is and seeks to expand his knowledge and power in both worlds. Right now, Harry is leaking only about three percent of his magic and yet he is massively powerful when he so chooses to access it. Whiskers put that tear in his restriction spell of Harry's core, and designed it to eventually open to five percent so that Harry would have enough magic to attend Hogwarts. If Harry accesses more than five percent of his power this early, then Whiskers may decide to permanently seal Harry's powers away from him so that he can't threaten his standing or reputation in the magical world. That would eventually make Harry unstable, and could possibly cause a massive backlash of magic, destroying everyone around him in an area the size of London. If only there was a way to expand the magic he has access to without changing the percentage that is leaking."

"Elric, you are a genius!" Hedwig cried as she leapt to give him a hug. "All we have to do is to expand Harry's magical core. If we expand his core, we can increase his power exponentially yet at the same time allow Whiskers to see what he expects to see as far as the percentage of magic that is leaking out of Harry."

Elric looked at Harry's Guardian with a skeptical and questioning look on his face. "Forgive me My Lady, but although I was written by the greatest wizard in the last 2000 years, I have no knowledge of any way in which the magical core of someone can be expanded. If it is possible, then perhaps that knowledge should stay hidden since every pureblood family would seek to attempt it to eliminate squibs from their line."

"Worry not Elric, for the only way it is possible to accomplish this feat is for me as an immortal to merge part of myself with his core." Hedwig stated calmly. "Though I do not know for sure how much his magical core will be strengthened and expanded, I do know that I'm being guided in this as if it were a preordained part of his destiny. After the festivities of today are over, I will need to take my physical body to a place that is safe from all who would take advantage of a newly reborn Phoenix during the three days that I am without my powers. In order to increase Harry's magical core, I will have to force my burning day ahead by about twenty years or so. I know just such a place, hidden far away from where any humans travel, and I am owed favors from several beings, one of whom will consent to guard me. The only true downside to this process is that I will not be able to distract the manipulative old man while I am gone, and his monitors on Harry will most likely urge him to seek out Harry and find out what is going on. I will need to speak to Fawkes to find out Whiskers schedule, to make sure that there is no chance of him being in his office when the alarms go off." With her decision made, Hedwig faded out of Harry's mindscape, leaving Elric to head into Harry's library construct and help Harry's subconscious librarian/knowledge Guardian sort through the gathering memories in order of importance and need for Harry's continuing growth.

While Harry was aware that Lady Abigail, Ms. Prudence, Ted and Andi Tonks, accompanied him into a stately old building and stood before a judge who asked him questions about his home life with his uncle Vernon and aunt Petunia Dursley, which he answered in total honesty; all of the new experiences took a backseat to holding the wondrous watch that his parents created. It was only the judge announcing that as historical retainers of the Potter family, the Smythe sisters had now gained guardianship of the future Lord Harry James Potter, and were instructed by the court to teach him what he needed to know as a future peer of the realm. Harry looked at the beaming faces of Lady Abigail and Ms. Prudence and realized that his luck had truly changed for the better. Many hugs and joyful sniffles later, and after Harry was told to call his guardians Abby and Pru, and to call the Tonks's uncle Ted and aunt Andi since they were distantly related; the happy group met up with Dora and the Grangers at a pizza parlor to celebrate Harry's good fortune. This led to a late-night of celebration that was so boisterous and ran so long, that the whole group ended up back on Downing Street, with the adults needing to sleep off their over exuberance in toasting Harry's release from the clutches of the Dursleys right under the nose of Albus Dumbledore.

The next day at the crack of noon, the three families gathered together to decide what to do for the rest of the summer. Dora and Hermione were all for spending their vacation with Harry, whether in libraries or just having fun visiting places around England such as the zoo, several different amusement parks, and even the beach. The Grangers had suggested heading to France to visit some beaches on the French Riviera that they like to vacation at, but Ted advised against that since he felt that it might tip off Albus Dumbledore as to the fact that he had lost control of Harry Potter's life. It was decided that for the next two weeks the three children would travel with Abby and Pru to the different libraries that they were already scheduled to visit. At the end of that time it would be Harry's eighth birthday, and all of them agreed to meet together for a camping holiday at one of the beaches in southern England. Ted and Andi said that they would provide the tents and necessities for camping, while Pru and Abby, as the two sisters insisted they be called since they were all friends, said that they would shop for food and also for proper beach wear for Harry. Dan insisted on picking their destination, as he wanted to introduce Harry to one of his hobbies which was kite flying and so they needed a beach with, 'the proper wind and space' to really enjoy the experience. The rest of the adults consented to his demand, though Andi couldn't help but notice the almost hidden grin that Emma was trying to suppress, and left him in charge of picking the location to expose Harry to his first view of the sea and to celebrate his birthday for the first time that he could remember.

The following two weeks flew by as if on fast forward on a VCR. Every day was spent in a library in the morning and early afternoon, followed by a visit to the park, or cinema, or even to a theater where they saw a Chinese acrobat troop that did things that none of the children or adults had ever seen. There was the stack of performers, one on top of the other until they reached all the way to the light bars above the stage. Two men and a woman who juggled knives and fought with swords and spears, all while Abby and Pru commented about their sanity, or lack thereof. The most amazing part of the show though, at least to Harry, came near the end when a man came out and seemed to defy gravity with his flips, kicks, and incredible jumps to hit the targets that his fellow performers were holding up for him. Harry analyzed the artist's moves over and over in his mind, determined that one day he would be able to move like that man.

While the days were busy, the nights did not slow much for the three friends as Harry, with the help of Hedwig and Elric, began to teach his two best friends to organize their minds like he had done with his. It was a truly frustrating process for Harry, as he wanted desperately to share it with his friends so that they could learn like him. There were times where he felt that they were so close to a break through that he decided to push them, and every time their concentration fell apart. The night before they were supposed to leave for the beach, Harry felt like he had failed his friends and was close to breaking down. He was about to cry out in frustration, when he was enveloped into a Hermy-hug, but from two directions at once. The two girls had seen the anguish and frustration building in Harry night after night, and decided that they needed to show him their support.

"Harry," Dora crooned in his ear. "It's okay that we haven't picked up on this yet. We have only been learning for a couple of weeks and you said it took you many months before you had your break through. You just need to have a little patience with us, and we will get it since you are a wonderful teacher." Hedwig squawked from the back of the desk chair that she was perched on and Dora quickly added, "And of course, you are a fantastic teacher too."

Hermione giggled a bit at the phoenix's ruffled feathers, and then spoke her piece. "Tomorrow we are going to the beach and I have heard that it is wonderful to use meditation there as the crashing of the waves and the cries of the birds seem to help in focusing inward. It is possible that we might have a break through there in the outdoors where we failed in here." That sounded reasonable to the other two friends and so with a heartfelt goodnight, they parted for their rooms, their sleep soon filled with dreams of the adventure they would have in the coming weeks.

On the 30th of July, all three families met at the Grangers house with the excitement of Harry and his friends bubbling over and infecting the adults. Everyone was anxious to leave so that they could get to the campsite and set up before dark, all they were waiting for was Dan to show up with their ride. At that moment, a very large vehicle pulled around the corner and aimed right for the Granger's house. It was Dan, who had rented a fifteen passenger van to take them all to the sea in comfort. When Dan mentioned that they were heading to Newquay which was five hours away, Ted leaned over to Andi and said something that had her laughing and agreeing whole heartedly. Harry caught the words to bad, serious, flying, and no time, but they wouldn't share with him or Hermione when they were questioned. It was the longest Harry had ever been in any kind of vehicle, but yet he didn't even notice the time going by. The adults had taken the first three rows of seats, leaving Dora, Hermione and Harry alone in the back to entertain themselves. When they appeared to get too loud for the adults and their conversation, Andi turned and waved her wand, and it was if there was a wall separating the front of the van from the back. The three best friends spent the rest of the trip alternating between singing songs and in Harry's case, learning about beach safety since he had just recently learned how to swim in a pool. Hermione made sure to explain to him all the differences and dangers of the ocean waves verses the calm of a pool, telling Harry that although he might realize that intellectually, the reality was an entirely different thing altogether.

At first, the kids were disappointed after arriving because, as Harry put it, they thought that they would be camping on the beach, able to walk out the door of the tent and right into the morning surf. Instead, they were at a holiday park that was on the other side of the town center from the beach. Dan raised their spirits with a tour of the park, including the pool and recreation areas that had all kinds of activities for them to enjoy if they weren't at the beach. He also had the entire group in stitches as he told them stories about his days as a boy, camping with his family at parks like the one they were at. One of his most memorable stories was the time his brother decided to tie up their dog to the center pole of the WW2 canvas American Army surplus tent that his granddad had purchased right after the wars end.

The owner of the park had four semi domesticated cats and one large tomcat named Greebo who was a survivor of countless battles for dominance with neighborhood cats, visiting dogs, and any other animal big or small who challenged him, and treated the park as his own personal kingdom. In the middle of the night, the big tomcat decided to investigate the new dog in his kingdom, and so he worked his way under one of the sides of the tent. While Greebo was used to being the scariest thing on four legs for miles around, he had never met any opponent like the Granger family dog that they had named Mouse. Mouse was the result of a mastiff that somehow got impregnated by a giant wolf of some kind. Mouse was the runt of the litter, and was afraid of everything as a puppy, which is why he was named Mouse. However, while Mouse may have been the runt of the litter, by the time he was full grown he towered over all of his litter mates and he had the best combination of traits from his Sire and Dame. He had all the power and menace of an alpha wolf, with the size and loyal, loving personality that mastiffs were known for.