Sirius Black's Secret Love

Chapter Three - Harry's Summer Surprise

Harry Potter was looking forward to a dreadful summer. He arrived home to Number 4 Privet Drive to absolute silence from his aunt, uncle and cousin. It was as if they thought if they remained silent that he would simply disappear and no longer be a burden to them. He was hoping that Dumbledore would allow him to stay with the Weasleys, but was discouraged by what Ron had said before they left Hogwarts. Dumbledore was against that for his own reasons. Harry knew that meant for his own safety he needed to be with his blood relations even though they treated him like common pond scum. He knew that he should be using his summer holiday as a time to study for his upcoming Ordinary Wizarding Level exams (O.W.L.s), but he just couldn't get himself motivated to concentrate on his studies.

The first full day he was home the Dursleys did talk. Just not to him. They talked with Dudley incessantly about how he was doing at Smeltings Academy. It seems this past year Duddikins grew one inch taller and actually lost ten pounds due to the strict diet that the school nurse had him on. She thought he should have lost more weight, but somehow or another he seemed to acquire food that was not part of the regimen. Harry figured that Dudley bullied other kids to give him their food. Since Dudley was still on a restricted diet, Petunia was once again forcing the entire family to share his pain. The evening meal consisted of one serving spoonful of white rice, five green beans and two strawberries. Harry went to bed with his stomach still growling from hunger and realizing that his aunt, uncle and cousin would probably do everything they could to ignore him for two solid months.

Harry wondered if the Dursleys' current maltreatment of him had anything to do with the last time he had seen them. Right before he left last summer, his cousin Dudley had a tongue that was a foot-long. This was thanks to some magical toffee made by Fred and George Weasley. Harry had never asked Mr. Weasley about whether or not he had performed a memory charm on the Dursleys after he had restored Dudley's tongue to its normal state. He didn't dare bring up the subject with the Dursleys nor anything else that mattered to him, because it all dealt with the magical world. And the Dursleys hated everything that had to do with magic.

Harry found himself pacing his bedroom floor that night. He was worried about what was happening with Lord Voldemort and his forces. He had been having trouble sleeping ever since the third task of the Triwizard Tournament because inevitably Harry would relive one of the most painful nights in his life. He had been magically transported to a graveyard and watched helplessly as the evil wizard was restored to a human-like body by a powerful potion using a bone from Voldemort's dead father, the severed hand of Peter Pettigrew, and Harry's own blood. He kept reliving the pain of seeing Cedric Diggory being murdered as well as being forced to duel with Voldemort. The cold, murderous laugh of that evil wizard sent shivers down his spine even in his sleep. He always awoke from this dream with his bed soaked with sweat and his pillow drenched with tears.

Harry was anxious to know what was happening in the wizarding world. Dumbledore had given orders to Snape, Hagrid, Sirius and Bill and Molly Weasley in order to marshal forces against Voldemort and his followers. Harry wondered what those orders entailed and knew that he probably wouldn't hear anything for a while from anyone. He knew that Dumbledore had tried to manage the information regarding dangers to Harry's safety like everything else: on a need to know basis.

Harry had found out certain things like the fact that Sirius Black was his godfather by accidentally overhearing conversations. Sometimes eavesdropping seemed to be the only way that Harry found things out - things that he wound up needing to know in order to stay alive. He desperately wanted to hear from Sirius, but he thought that it was probably too dangerous for Sirius to detail anything to Harry in a letter lest Voldemort's minions intercept it. He also remembered Sirius warning him not to use Hedwig to contact him. Harry's white snowy owl was beautiful, but it also stood out and could call too much attention, which might jeopardize everything. When he was at school he could use some of the other owls at the owlery. At home he only had Hedwig and Harry couldn't risk endangering Sirius by writing to him, there was far too much at stake. No, Harry would just have to be patient and wait to hear from Sirius even if it meant burning a hole in the floor from pacing himself to sleep. He was beginning to feel drowsy and crawled into bed willing himself to have a dreamless sleep.

The next morning Harry dragged himself out of his bed feeling exhausted and starving. As he entered the kitchen he heard his Aunt Petunia on the phone. It was normal for her to have the phone permanently attached to one ear and one eye peering out the window spying on her neighbours.

"Certainly. He will be there at nine o'clock....That's no problem. Just say the word if you'd like to have him help you all summer long. Otherwise he's just a nuisance to me lying around the house moping. Well, I'll talk to you later, good-bye."

Harry had made himself some toast and was just sitting down to the breakfast table when Aunt Petunia turned and spoke to him for the first time since he had come home.

"Harry, Mrs. Figg called and asked if you could come over today and help her around the house. She's getting frail and could use someone with a strong back. I told her you'd be happy to help her."

Harry's initial response to hearing Mrs. Figg's name was reflexive. He gave out a little sigh and rolled his eyes. Not the crazy old cat woman again, he thought.

Dudley openly sniggered.

Aunt Petunia snapped at Harry, "She'll be expecting you at nine o'clock sharp. Mrs. Figg has helped this family out for many years and we expect that you will return this favour for her."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia," he droned.

Petunia then turned to Vernon and began gossiping about Mrs. Figg and how she had heard from the neighbourhood grapevine that she had a sister with terminal cancer and might be leaving to stay with her soon.

"They say the two haven't spoken to each other in over twenty years," she gasped.

Harry excused himself from the breakfast table and began walking up the stairs to finish getting ready. Dudley followed him and started in on his favourite hobby, tormenting Harry.

"Ooooooh, maybe she'll have you change all the litter boxes. She must have about one hundred of them. Maybe you'll be giving all her precious kitties baths. You aren't afraid of licking a few cats are you?"

Harry wasn't paying any attention to this. Instead he was thinking about something that had puzzled him last summer. Mr. Weasley's borrowed tent at the Quidditch World Cup had been furnished on the inside to look exactly like Mrs. Figg's house. He had forgotten that, but now he began to wonder about Mrs. Figg and who she really was. His mind was racing and it seemed that he didn't even remember getting ready or walking the distance from the Dursley household to Mrs. Figg's house. He did notice an inordinate number of cats that seemed to be watching him from a distance. They didn't come forward, but instead it appeared that they would nod their heads ever so slightly in his direction.

He raised his hand to knock on Mrs. Figg's door, but she opened it before his hand connected with the wood. Before him stood the woman who had watched him during his childhood. A woman that Harry had always dreaded seeing because he thought she was mad. Here now was a woman that Harry looked at as if for the first time. She was an old lady with white hair piled on her head in a large bun and wore gold-framed spectacles and a housedress decorated with small flowers. Then Harry began to sense that Mrs. Figg was not what she appeared to be.

"Harry, it's so good to see you again."

"Mrs. Figg, I, er....," Harry stammered. He tried to think of how to ask all the questions that were nagging him.

"Yes, Harry?"

"Are you Arabella Figg?" he blurted out.

A slow smile started to come across her face. "Why yes, Harry. That is my name. Why don't you come in? Maybe have some tea?"

Harry was right. Mrs. Figg was a witch and she knew Dumbledore. Sirius had been told to contact her and tell her about Voldemort's resurrection. Now, maybe, just maybe Harry would find out answers to the many burning questions he had.

"Please, come into my kitchen."

Harry followed her into the small kitchen and saw a man sitting at the table. He was a handsome middle-aged man dressed in a white dress shirt and black slacks, he had a full head of hair that was cut short and had been black but was going quickly grey and a full moustache. Something about the man looked familiar, but Harry couldn't place him. The man stood as he walked into the room and smiled.

"Hello Harry."

Harry squinted and then recognized the voice. His jaw dropped and he quickly ran into the man's outstretched arms.

"Sirius! I didn't recognize you."

"That's kind of the idea. I must say this was all Bella's doing."

Mrs. Figg snorted, "Well, it took me for a shock when I first saw him. You'd have thought he just had escaped from Azkaban. He was still wearing those ratty old robes and hadn't had a decent shave or haircut in years. Honestly, Harry, I know you sent him some food last year. Couldn't you have sent him a comb or brush?"

Harry blushed at that. He hadn't thought of that kind of thing, but she was right. Sirius should have tried to improve his appearance.

"As I was telling Sirius, people are looking for the madman with shaggy hair or the young man with long hair they remember all those years ago before you were unjustly imprisoned. They are not looking for a mature man with grey hair."

Sirius nodded as he smoothed one hand over his hair. "Bella made me go prematurely grey, but I've been told that grey hair makes men look distinguished. And she's been feeding me well, too."

"Oh Sirius," she blushed and turned away to the stove to fetch the kettle.

Harry just grinned at his godfather. "You look great."

"Well, I also worried that I wouldn't be able to trust that the Death Eaters wouldn't be made aware of my Animagus form now that Pettigrew has reasserted himself in their circle. I simply need to be able to be in human form but not readily recognizable."

Harry started to feel like he was going to burst with all his questions.

"Tell me, what's going on? I've been dying to know. I haven't heard anything and..."

Mrs. Figg poured the tea into the cups and placed some blueberry scones on the table.

"First of all Harry," she began, "we don't know much yet, and we won't be able to share all of our information with you. There are certain things we won't be able to tell you and that is for your own protection. You should know that the story about Voldemort's return has finally hit The Daily Prophet. It was in this morning's paper."

"Can I see a copy of it?" Harry asked urgently.

"I'm sorry," she said shaking her head. "I don't get owl post here in the house. I think it is far too risky in this Muggle neighbourhood to have them flying about. Instead I subscribe to hearing The Daily Prophet over the Wizarding Wireless Network. This morning's broadcast was particularly nasty in its accusations regarding Headmaster Dumbledore. They seemed to slant it as if he were trying to cover for you and that there wasn't any evidence to support the truth about Voldemort having risen. I'm sure that one of your friends will send you a copy soon. Please bring it over when you get it."

"Was it Rita Skeeter who wrote that piece?" Harry said with dread.

"No. One of the bad things about hearing the broadcast of it is that you hear the reporter's voices read their articles. I cannot stand that Harpy! No, this was the managing editor Hearst Seldes."

Harry looked down at his teacup. He wasn't sure what to say and then he just blurted it out.

"Skeeter's an Animagus. A beetle. Hermione captured her the night of the Third Task. She was spying on us in the infirmary."

Sirius blanched. "She was there?"

"Yeah, but Hermione had figured it out beforehand and was watching out for her. That's how Skeeter had gotten some of those 'scoops' like when my scar was hurting me and about Hagrid being a half-giant. She had heard or seen us from inside Hogwarts grounds after Dumbledore had banned her. She had been a beetle on the wall."

"Where is she now?" Sirius asked coldly.

"I'm not sure. Hermione threatened Rita Skeeter with exposing her as an unregistered Animagus and having violated the rules of Hogwarts. She told her to keep her pen to herself for a whole year. Hermione planned to let her go when she returned to London, but I'm not sure if she did though."

"I need to speak with Dumbledore about this," Sirius said as he walked over to the stove. He turned on the fire in the back burner and cast floo powder into the flames and called out "Albus Dumbledore."

Soon the truncated head of Dumbledore appeared in the flames.

"Albus, are you aware of Rita Skeeter being an Animagus?"

"Yes, I have that matter well in hand," he said smiling. "A clever young lady had deduced how that reporter had been breaking my rules and continued to visit our grounds. That will not be a problem in the future. Is there anything else?"

"That's all. Thank you," Sirius said as the headmaster's head popped out of the flames. He turned to Harry and sighed, "I was afraid that she'd tell about my being there and cause all of you to be arrested for harbouring a fugitive. But I trust that Dumbledore will know how to handle this sticky situation."

Mrs. Figg sighed, "A beetle, huh? That figures. Except I think a cockroach would have been more appropriate." She shook her head and then continued, "Getting back to the matter of your security, Harry. The first thing you need to know is that you cannot visit the Weasleys this summer. It is far too dangerous. You must stay in the care of the Dursleys as there is an ancient charm attached to them and you are safest there when you are not at Hogwarts. I must tell you that I was assigned to your protection after your parents were killed. Your safety is my responsibility."

"Arabella was one of our finest Aurors," said Sirius. "She has incredible talents and knows what she is talking about."

"Why then didn't you..." Harry began.

"Let you know about your being a wizard?"

"Well...yeah."

"Because I was only able to see you once or twice a year. I couldn't risk making the Dursleys suspect me and my motives, so I was at their mercy. I had tried to establish a close relationship with your aunt and uncle when you were a baby, but..." she paused as if searching for the right words, "they are very difficult people."

Harry nodded in agreement.

"It was hard to only see you so infrequently, so I spent that time trying to make sure you knew who my cats were. They are my sentries and provide surveillance throughout the neighbourhood. I thought that if you recognized them that you might seek comfort with them and tell them your secrets."

Harry looked up at her with a puzzled look in his face.

Mrs. Figg went on, "Search your memory and you will see that there were times when the Dursleys were treating you horribly and you'd stroke one of my cats and tell them all about your problems. Things soon after became bearable. They might not have improved dramatically, but they were bearable."

Harry's brow furrowed as he tried to remember.

"Okay, here's one. Remember when you were eight and Dudley locked you in his closet one hot summer day? It was only at dinnertime when your Aunt Petunia wondered why you hadn't come to the table that Dudley let you out. That night you climbed a tree and told Mr. Paws what happened. The next day Dudley became upset when he couldn't find his key to repeat that torture."

Harry slowly nodded.

"Accio!"

A small key chain made of clay with the name Dudley painted on it came flying through the air from down the hallway. There was a single brass key on it. Mrs. Figg handed the key chain to Harry.

"I wished I could have done more for you. I could only intervene when your safety was at risk. I couldn't chance having you suffocate to death in a sweltering closet. I would have liked to have raised you myself, but Dumbledore felt it was safer with me watching over you without being distracted by caring for you, too."

Harry's eyes began to fill with tears. Mrs. Figg rose from her chair and hugged Harry. She hugged him like a mother or grandmother. Only Mrs. Weasley had given him a hug like that, which made him feel loved and cared for.

A new question began to form in Harry's mind.

"Mrs. Figg, is there a Mr. Figg?" Harry asked.

She nodded and gave a small smile. "There was. Robert was a kind and thoughtful man and a wonderful husband," then her face darkened. "He was murdered by Death Eaters a year before your parents were killed. I blame myself for his death as I believe that I was the real target. I changed plans at the last moment and followed a hunch of mine. That meant I wasn't there when he was attacked."

Harry reached his hand out to her. "I'm sorry."

Mrs. Figg reached back and patted his hand. "Thank you. There were many lives that were ruined due to the ruthless actions of Voldemort. I was devastated by the loss of Robert. So much so that it led to my miscarrying what would have been a daughter. So when Dumbledore asked me to oversee your security, it gave me the opportunity to protect a small child and it gave me the chance to have some solitude to grieve in peace."

Harry began to wonder how she could have been pregnant fifteen years ago given her advanced age. He watched as she slowly wiped a tear from her eye and then looked straight at Harry with a new determination in her eyes.
"The most important thing for you right now is to prepare yourself for your O.W.L.s."

Harry groaned.

"I know, I know. But you must know that this coming year at Hogwarts will again be fraught with danger for you. It is for your own protection that you become as educated in survival techniques as is possible. Charms, hexes, transfiguration, and so on." Then she gave a cryptic smile, "I thought it might be easier for you to study here than in your room pacing at nights. Your aunt will be pleased because she won't have to see you during the day and you can come here study in peace and spend time with your godfather."

"I heard her say something that you would be leaving to visit a sister soon?" Harry asked as he reached for a second scone.

Mrs. Figg smiled. "I am going away from here, but not to see any sister. I'm going to be your new Defence Against the Dark Arts instructor. You can start calling me Professor Figg."

Harry's eyes grew wide at that thought and then he smiled.

"Sirius will be staying here and standing guard here as my 'nephew' who will be house sitting for me." She then stood up from the table, "If you don't mind, I'm feeling positively ancient right now. I think I'll resume my true form and besides, I think you ought to get used to seeing me the way I'll appear during the school year so it won't be too much of a shock for you."

She reached into her pocket and drew out a small bottle with a clear potion inside and placed three drops of the liquid under her tongue. Harry watched as she transformed in the matter of a few seconds into a woman that Harry guessed was in her forties. She took off her glasses and released a hairpin that allowed her hair to fall down past her waist. She straightened her back and shoulders and seemed to grow at least two inches taller.

"Ahhhh, that's much better."

Harry was amazed to see how beautiful she was. Sirius also seemed to be captivated by her beauty.

"Yesterday Sirius and I went to Diagon Alley. It was the first time in many years that I had gone there. We needed to get him a new wand along with other supplies for him to stay here and for me to teach my classes."

"Did Mr. Ollivander..." Harry wasn't sure what to ask.

Sirius smiled and shook his head. "We didn't want to risk that. Mr. Ollivander is one of the most perceptive wizards around."

"Dumbledore arranged to have Hagrid help Mr. Ollivander to procure the hair from a new unicorn in the Forbidden Forest along with getting some wood for the wands. Mr. Ollivander's apprentice is shrewd, but he had never met Sirius before. We were able to pass him off as my boyfriend Joseph O'Brien from Australia." She then waved her hand in the air and mimicked herself, "I have been telling him that he must get a wand from Ollivander's as they are simply the best. I promised to buy him a new one as a present."

"It worked?" Harry asked.

"Like a charm," Sirius replied putting on a thick Australian accent.

"That ruse worked throughout Diagon Alley. No one got to ask him very much as I would monopolize any conversation and simply take him by the arm and lead him away from any store before too long. People were glad to see me once again - laughing and smiling. I doubt anyone recognized that the man on my arm was someone they hadn't seen in fourteen years and that now appears twenty years older than his true form."

Professor Figg then became deadly serious, "Harry, I must implore you. No one is to know that you have known me outside of Hogwarts. Part of that is so no one thinks that I'm playing favourites and more importantly it has to do with your security and now Sirius' security. He will be here and I need not remind you that he is still wanted by the Ministry of Magic. If anyone suspects that we knew each other before Hogwarts, then Sirius may wind up back in Azkaban or worse."

Sirius nodded, "That includes Ron and Hermione. You cannot tell them."

Harry understood and nodded. "Okay. I won't do anything that might endanger you. I understand how dangerous it's been for you these last two years. Living in this house has got to be like Paradise for you compared to living in a cave and eating rats."

Professor Figg shook her head and shuddered.

"Why yes, it is much nicer staying here," Sirius replied.

"Speaking of school," said Professor Figg. "We need to start discussing your lessons this summer. We need to take full advantage of this time before school starts and try to bring you up to speed as best as we can."

"What do you mean?" asked Harry.

"I mean that we need to prepare you for the worst and give you the best defensive skills possible so that you can use them to survive any attacks."

Harry gulped. Of course he was still at risk from Voldemort. It was just that at times he wished he could be like any fifteen-year old boy and not have to worry about an evil wizard who wanted him dead.

"Why does he want to kill me so much?"

Professor Figg gave a rueful smile, "Right now Harry you represent the only weapon we have against Fear. You represent Hope. Voldemort's power lives and breeds in Fear and shrinks in the face of Hope. Because of that and because Voldemort has been unable to vanquish you in the three times he has met with you - he will be desperate and that means he'll want to see you dead anyway possible."

Harry thought about the three times Professor Figg mentioned. The night his parents were killed, the end of his first year when Harry stopped Quirrell and Voldemort from getting the Philosopher's Stone and the night in the graveyard. Professor Figg didn't know about Harry's encounter with the ghost of Tom Riddle in the Chamber of Secrets. So really, it was four times...

"The night he duelled with you in the graveyard, do you realize what else he had planned for that night?" she asked.

Harry started to feel dread in the pit of his stomach. He wasn't sure that he wanted to hear what she had to say. He shook his head slowly.

"After killing you, we think that he had planned to have his Death Eaters join him and use the Portkey and be transported to Hogwarts. They would then attack as many people as possible. It would have been chaos and everyone in the wizarding world would be utterly terrified. More than they were when he had been at the height of his powers."

The enormity of what Professor Figg had said weighed heavily on Harry.

"You saved Hogwarts," Sirius said simply.

Harry felt dazed.

"So what do we do now?" he asked.

Professor Figg gave a bittersweet smile, "Well, our mission is to protect you. Part of that is to make sure you are as aware as possible of every type of attack or deception to expect. You've seen how Polyjuice Potion can transform someone."

Harry thought of not only Bartemius Crouch, Jr. who had masqueraded as "Mad-Eye" Moody last year, but his own experience of becoming Goyle in his second year. He nodded towards Professor Figg.

"Harry you need to be very cautious - almost to the point of being paranoid. You need to collect all of your loose hair and your nail clippings to be make sure that no one can get them. That means every morning you'll need to use your wand on your bed linens, comb, brush and bathroom drain to collect all your lost hair and then destroy it."

Harry blinked and his eyes grew wide at that.

"But only Gryffindors would be able to..."

Professor Figg smiled again. "Do you think it's impossible for Voldemort to enlist Gryffindors or to get someone to impersonate a Gryffindor to get at you?"

He shook his head.

"We'll also have to tell your closest friends about protecting their hair that closely. I'll be talking about this in my classes, but probably not emphasize it as strongly with everyone as I am with you. I daresay that by the end of the year we may see many of the students sporting long hair styles - similar to our beloved headmaster."

Harry thought of Bill Weasley's long hair being held in a ponytail and then understood why he hadn't had a hair cut in years. Bill's working in Egypt for Gringotts as a curse breaker would know that his hair could be used for magic against him, if he wasn't careful.

Professor Figg looked appraisingly at Harry and placed her hand under his chin. She turned his head from side to side.

"I reckon you'll need to start shaving soon. You'll have to save that hair as well." She gave a small smile, "I wouldn't recommend you trying to avoid shaving. It takes several years for facial hair to grow in evenly and unless you want to have mangy peach fuzz all over your face..."

Sirius chimed in, "And believe me, girls don't go for the mangy look."

Harry blushed and Sirius roared with laughter, which made Harry even more embarrassed. Sirius then looked at Harry carefully.

"You haven't been holding out on me, have you? Do you have a girlfriend?"

Harry quickly shook his head and started staring at the floor. He wanted desperately to have the topic changed.

Sirius then quietly asked, "Harry are you interested in anyone at school?"

Harry thought of Cho and his heart ached. "Maybe," he croaked.

"Harry, it's not a crime for you to care for a girl. It's normal and frankly it's healthy to want to love someone and to be loved back. I'd be surprised if you didn't take a shine to someone. However, what we have to worry about is having anyone you care about becoming targets for Voldemort."

Harry sighed heavily. He thought it was one of the most difficult tasks to summon the courage to ask Cho to the Yule Ball. Now Sirius and Professor Figg were telling him that he needed to tell her to collect her loose hair because Death Eaters would target her. And it was all because he thought she was cute. That'll be oh so much easier to talk to her about, Harry thought.

Professor Figg then cleared her throat, "Harry, you'll also have to come up with a secret signal for your closest friends."

"Signal? What do you mean?"

"Something simple that won't be noticed, but that will alert you that Ron truly is Ron and Hermione isn't someone disguised as Hermione. When you see them on the Hogwarts Express you'll need to talk with them privately - determine first that they truly are who they appear to be. Ask them to tell you something only your true friends would know. Then figure out a signal. It needs to be something small that no one else will notice. Like maybe a sniff or licking their lips and saying Ummm, before anything else. Just so that if you saw Hermione and she didn't lick her lips at the first sight you will immediately become suspicious. And I think we need to have signals between us. How about me pulling on an earlobe and start a sentence with 'So.' You can push your glasses up and say, 'Umm.' We only need to do this when we speak together privately, so don't worry about this in class or when you see me in the hall."

Harry was shaking his head ever so slightly. Why couldn't he just be a normal fifteen-year old boy?

Sirius placed his hand on Harry's shoulder.

"I know it's tough on you. But know that we're here for you now and we'll help you manage this. You've survived so much already, you just have to stay strong."

Harry nodded and was glad that Sirius was here. It wasn't as good as leaving the Dursleys forever, but the thought of being with his godfather during the daytime over the summer holidays seemed like Heaven to him.

"Professor Figg, do you have anything else I could eat? I'm still hungry. Dudley's been put on this strict diet and my Aunt Petunia thinks everyone should have to eat the same paltry amount."

Professor Figg shook her head and started muttering under her breath. "They brought this all upon themselves in how they raised that insufferable, bullying git. I can't wait until the day we can all leave this neighbourhood and then I'll tell Petunia and Vernon exactly what I think of them." She took a deep breath and then turned to Harry. "What would you like for lunch? A hamburger? Pizza?"

"Yeah, whatever is easiest. I'm just really hungry and don't want to be starved again this summer," said Harry.

"You won't be. I'll work it out that you can stay here for dinners also. Petunia should be so happy, she won't have to make any meals for you or see you during the day."

"I wish I could have come before during the summer," he said wistfully.

"Me, too," Professor Figg agreed. "But Dumbledore hadn't given the permission before this. Tomorrow, you should bring your wand with you. We'll be starting in lessons for you."

"But I can't do magic outside of school. I'll be expelled," said Harry worriedly.

"Harry, I'll let you in on a little secret. The Ministry's monitoring system is not omnipotent. It's site specific and even then it can't distinguish who is inside doing what. Tell me that you haven't seen anyone on the Hogwarts Express doing magic."

Harry nodded sheepishly as he thought of the hexes that were put on Malfoy, Crabbe and Goyle a few days ago. That was certainly magic outside of school by underage wizards and not one of his friends thought twice about it when they did it.

"See? Site specific. And the monitor on your aunt and uncle's house is not very good either. It couldn't tell the difference between a spell you performed and one done by a house-elf. And I must tell you that the Ministry does not have any monitors on this house. I have too many sentries watching my house that would alert me. I've also got charms and enchantments around my house. So don't worry about performing magic here."

Professor Figg stood and started to fix lunch by directing her wand to the refrigerator to bring out hamburger and make it into patties. It reminded Harry of watching Mrs. Weasley cook dinner with utensils and food flying through the air. Soon there was the mouth-watering smell of hamburger sizzling on a frying pan.

"I will also tell you that I vehemently disagree with that decree regarding restricting magic by underage wizards. I think it's ludicrous to think that parents and other elders have nothing of value to teach their children. Only the faculty during the school year? Puh-leeze - that's just elitist. I fully understand not performing magic in front of Muggles, but a complete ban on magic outside of school? That's just plain wrong in my opinion."

Harry grinned. He was beginning to really like Professor Figg and wished that she had been this forthcoming with him when he was younger.

"Harry," Sirius piped in, "We bought your textbooks and school supplies for next year when we were at Diagon Alley."

"Why did you do that?"

"Because there are far too many people out there in the Wizarding World that could wish harm to you," continued Sirius. "I know you like to go there each year and meet up with Ron and Hermione, but it's far too risky right now."

"And as the person in charge of your security - I must say it is not worth risking your life over," Professor Figg said solemnly.

"And Hogsmeade? Will I be able to go there?" Harry asked.

"Possibly, but I would have to accompany you. Act as your own personal Auror bodyguard," she replied.

"Then why can't we go to Diagon Alley together?"

"Because you won't have met each other until after school has started - remember? As far as everyone else is concerned, we have no history together. Otherwise, Sirius will be endangered."

"Okay," Harry nodded. "But what do I tell Ron and Hermione? They'll want to meet together to go shopping."

Professor Figg placed the cooked hamburgers on the table and waved ketchup, mustard and pickles out of the refrigerator.

"You can tell them that Dumbledore was afraid for your safety and found someone to get all of your school supplies and that you're already using your new books. No need to tell them the details - the disappointment of not being able to go shopping with you will be enough."

Harry started chewing on his hamburger and realized that his disappointment about not being able to have some fun with his friends paled in comparison to the real threats that the Wizarding World faced due to Voldemort's return. This was just a small price that had to be paid.

End notes: Thank you to all the readers who submitted comments on chapter 2. Thanks to J.A. Hookway, Mione Anne Potter, padfoot1979, PhoenixFeather42, and Sugargirl. I will admit to padfoot1979 that in all honesty, I did not know about Aristotle referring to Diogenes as "The Dog." Maybe there's something more than meets the eye as to why I wanted to put that joke in there. Hmmm. Anyway, stay tuned. Chapter 4 is entitled: The Disinformation Campaign Begins. You'll see how the Daily Prophet attacks and attempts to discredit both Harry Potter and Dumbledore.