Harry wandered back up to the common room, still feeling more than a bit confused as he did so. Snape arranging breakfast for him? How had that happened? It implied more concern for him than Harry had thought the Potions master was capable of... after all, he had said that he planned to get some himself...

Abruptly, the house-elf Snape had called to bring him breakfast appeared in the middle of the room, holding a large tray. "Here is Harry Potter sir's breakfast," it said.

"Thank you," Harry replied. He glanced around. "Could you please put it on the table by the fireplace?"

The house-elf did so, and then before Harry could thank it again, disappeared. Harry shrugged, sat down, and began to eat.

He was halfway through breakfast when a tapping at the window alerted him to the fact that there were owls outside. Getting up, he walked over and opened it, greeting Hedwig happily and taking the letters all three owls held out to him. The other two owls - the ones he'd sent to Hermione, Lupin and Sirius two nights ago - flew off immediately; Hedwig settled on the back of the chair he'd been sitting in and peered at his breakfast.

Harry grinned as he picked up a piece of bacon and gave it to her, followed by a bit of sausage. "Here you go, Hedwig. Thank you for the letter," he added, putting all four letters he'd received to one side and returning his attention to finishing breakfast.

Almost the moment he'd finished, a house-elf - a different one - appeared, picked up the tray, and disappeared again. Harry blinked in surprise; he was used to Dobby staying to talk for a bit.

Shrugging to himself, Harry settled himself a bit deeper into the chair and picked up his mail.

The letters were from Ron, Hermione, Sirius, and Lupin. After a moment's thought, he decided to open the one from Ron first.

Harry,

Do you have any idea why Fred and George started cackling when they received your letter? I'm telling you, those two are starting to worry me, mate. And yes, we've all asked them - at different times - where they got the money, but they've refused to tell any of us. Even Dad doesn't know. I'm wondering if they didn't place a few other bets on the World Cup before Bagman showed up.

As for us not being allowed to come... Hermione said she wasn't too surprised about it, said that it would make it too obvious. Don't you hate it when she's always right?

Dad's been busier than ever over the past couple of days, but he still won't tell us what's going on. He's not arriving home until really late at night, and is leaving way too early in the morning. I'm starting to get a bit worried about it all.

Harry had a pretty good idea about the answer to that. After all, if Arthur Weasley was in charge of the raids on the Dark Arts caches, then Snape and Dumbledore had undoubtedly let him know that Lucius Malfoy had gained access to wherever they were stored; and Mr. Weasley was most likely working on trying to solve that as well as find the other caches. And with only two or three important ones left to go - out of some unknown number - the pressure on him would be even greater.

Unfortunately, Harry had the definite feeling that he couldn't tell any of this to Ron. He really hated keeping secrets from his friends - especially secrets that concerned them personally - but if Mr. Weasley wasn't telling any of them, there had to be a good reason.

He still hated it.

Shaking his head in an effort to push that thought out of his mind, Harry turned his attention to the rest of the letter.

More visions? Ugh, that must be awful. What are they about?

Glad you like the book; I've also let Mum know that you like the jumper, which she's quite happy about, of course.

And that's good news about Snuffles; I bet he was getting very tired of rats - though I bet we can guess one rat he'd like to take a bite out of... For that matter, I'd be surprised if Professor Lupin doesn't still feel the same way. Do you have any idea what's happening with that?

Really wish you could come here; we're all going to miss you the rest of the summer.

-- Ron

Harry sighed. Personally, he wished that he could visit the Weasleys as well; but with Voldemort knowing about Mr. Weasley's involvement in the fight against him, it could end up making them too tempting a target.

He'd reply to Ron a bit later, Harry decided after a moment, as he put the letter back down on the table. Hedwig would probably appreciate a bit of a rest before going out again. He absentmindedly stroked the top of her head as he picked up and opened Hermione's letter.

Harry,

I'm glad you liked the present - and I've sent a letter to Viktor letting him know. When school starts, you should probably do the same, however.

I also received a letter from Professor Dumbledore about your relocation. It's good to hear that the Dursleys weren't responsible - but the fact that it is because of your visions worries me. Why are they responsible? Is it just because you've had more of them lately?

There's something else I think you need to consider, Harry. Remember how we're referring to Professor Lupin's friend, the one staying with him? Remember why? If our letters are ever intercepted, it won't be obvious.

I don't think you should mention your current location (or even give hints) in any more letters, not even ones to those of us who know. While it's unlikely that any of our owls will be intercepted, there is always the chance, and I think it's too dangerous to risk it. So better not to give any more details about where you are or who is there with you.

(And speaking of the friend in question - that is good news. I'm sure Professor Lupin will have him healthier in no time.)

It's good to know that you've been working on your homework. Remember, we have O.W.Ls coming up, and it's important that you do well on them. I've been working on a study schedule so that we can start studying early and won't have to cram during the month before exams.

There was quite a bit to do in Bulgaria; I'm writing a longer letter about it, and I'll send copies to both you and Ron a bit later.

See you in September, and write back!

-- Hermione

Harry studied the letter with a faint frown on his face - especially the part about being careful what he wrote.

If it had been anyone other than Hermione - or perhaps Sirius - who had written that, he would have said that they were being paranoid. But the fact that it was Hermione writing it meant that it was advice that he'd better pay attention to - and mention to Ron as well. The last thing he wanted was for any of the Death Eaters - much less Voldemort himself - to find out where he was.

Okay, so no mentioning that I'm at Hogwarts. That shouldn't be too hard, unless something interesting happens - other than the lessons from Snape, since I already agreed not to talk about them at all. And considering the fact that it's summer, I doubt that anything terribly interesting will happen anyway, especially when there's no one here except for Snape and Filch.

The other problem from the letter was the mention of his visions. He'd known that Hermione wouldn't be satisfied with what he'd written before... Now all he had to worry about was what else he could tell her.

Then Harry's eyes suddenly widened as he remembered something. Oh, Merlin... I meant to ask Snape about the chill I get from the vision-curses!

In his confusion over Snape's concern for him, he'd completely forgotten about his intentions to question the Potions master about it.

Well, I'll just have to ask him during this afternoon's lesson.

And speaking of this afternoon's lesson - I'd better finish reading the letters from Lupin and Sirius quickly so that I can get to work on the healing potions assignment...

Picking up the letter from Sirius, he quickly read through it.

Harry,

Yes, your mother was in Gryffindor; our seventh year was one of the few times we had a Head Boy and Girl from the same House. As I'm sure Moony told you in the letter sent with your gifts, your father gave it to your mother as a graduation present; he had it specially made by the best jeweller in Hogsmeade. He felt it was the perfect gift; her name-flower in Gryffindor's colours. I'm glad you like it; and I'll ask Moony to check through his attic, see if he has anything else that belonged to your parents.

And yes, I am doing quite well. Moony's an excellent cook (not terribly surprising, since he's had to make do for himself since we graduated), and he's trying to fatten me up.

As for what I've been doing... I'm sorry, Harry, but I can't talk about it - especially not in a letter. Dumbledore will no doubt tell you if he thinks you need to know.

We'll probably see you sometime in September; until then, take care - and be careful. Let Dumbledore know if your scar starts hurting.

Love,

Snuffles

Harry sighed. He wasn't terribly surprised that Sirius wouldn't tell him what was going on, but he had hoped...

Of course, he reflected after a moment, it's that whole 'can't write about it in a letter' thing again. Which makes as much sense as, if not more than, not mentioning Sirius's name or my being at Hogwarts in letters either. He heaved another sigh. He really wanted to know what Sirius was doing. After all, he was getting a certain amount of information on what was going on from his visions, and it was very frustrating not being told more.

That, however, prompted another thought. If it's not safe to talk about any of those things in letters, then I really shouldn't talk about my visions in them either, Harry decided. After all, if Voldemort learns that I can see what he's doing, he may try to prevent it, and we'd lose whatever information I can get. As a bonus, of course, this would mean that he wouldn't have to discuss his visions with Hermione until September, by which time he would hopefully have come up with something to tell her.

Feeling much more satisfied with himself than he had a few minutes ago, Harry turned his attention to the letter from Lupin.

Dear Harry,

Thank you very much for your reply to my letter. I'm glad you like the safe-box (and, as I said, not really surprised you've never seen one before). It can be quite useful - especially for things such as... oh, dream journals and the like - that you don't want anyone else to look at.

Obviously Sirius had mentioned the visions and the journal to Lupin. And keeping the journal in the safe-box probably would be a good idea, especially once school started again.

As for your Aunt Petunia... yes, we met - once, at your parents' wedding. I got the distinct feeling from her attitude that the only reason she was there was because your grandparents (Lily's parents) had insisted on it. She was... rather unpleasant, and I'm afraid Padfoot didn't help matters any when he decided that she would be a perfect target for a bit of Marauder mayhem (after which Lily refused to speak to him for a week). After that, I don't think that she would have anything to do with magic if you told her she was a witch herself (which she isn't, of course).

At any rate, as I said, it was good to hear back from you. I hope things are going well for you.

Please don't hesitate to ask me any other questions you might have about your parents - I would be glad to tell you about them.

-- Remus Lupin (Moony)

Well, if Sirius's pranks were anything like those of Fred and George, Harry had to admit that he couldn't really blame his aunt for not wanting to deal with them.

That wasn't the most important part of the letter, however - not to Harry, at least.

Lupin had essentially given him free rein to ask questions about his parents.

His first instinct was to start writing a reply to Lupin immediately; however, as he glanced around the room, his eyes fell on 101 Useful Potions.

Snape would be - justifiably - furious with him if he didn't complete the assignment first.

Heaving another sigh, Harry put Lupin's letter to one side with the others, and reached for the book, his notes from yesterday, and some blank parchment. He had less than four hours to complete it and eat lunch.

---

Snape looked up from the model he'd created of the wards on the Ministry storage facility as he heard a knock on his door. "Come in, Mr. Potter," he called, putting the model to one side. Time to concentrate on something else.

Potter opened the door and walked in. He glanced around, and then headed over to the wooden chairs in front of Snape's desk, pulling two rolls of parchment out of his bag as he did so. "Here are the assignments, sir," he said, handing them to Snape as he sat down.

Unrolling them, Snape rapidly skimmed through both scrolls, and then put them to one side. "Better, Potter," he told the boy, and then leaned back slightly in his chair.

"Now, as I recall, your definition for Defence Against the Dark Arts was: learning to protect oneself against magic aimed at harming one, and against Dark Creatures, correct?"

"Yes, sir," Potter replied. Snape was pleased to see that he had already taken a quill and more parchment out of his bag, and appeared ready to take notes.

"We have already begun to discuss the various types of magic that fall under the category of Dark Arts, and how even the most apparently innocuous spell can be classified that way, under the right circumstances; and we will continue with that subject somewhat later. Today, we will be concentrating on the matter of Dark Creatures."

Potter nodded slowly. Judging from the expression on his face, he was remembering when Snape had taught Lupin's Defence class in his third year.

"We will begin the same way; what is the definition of Dark Creatures?" Snape asked. This wouldn't be nearly as difficult for Potter to answer as the definition of Dark Arts had been.

Potter thought for a moment - which was already an improvement from his unfortunate tendency to speak before thinking - and then replied, "Magical creatures that present a dangerous threat to humans."

Interesting, Snape thought, studying the boy for a moment. "Why did you specify 'a dangerous threat'?" he inquired. "Grindylows, to take an example you dealt with in your third year, are not that dangerous as long as one remembers that their fingers can be broken easily - yet they are classified as Dark Creatures."

"But if you don't remember - or don't know - then they can drown you," Potter countered. "To Muggles, and to unsupervised children, they are a dangerous threat. It's the same with boggarts. As long as a wizard knows what they are, they aren't much of a threat - but to anyone who doesn't - and even wizards might not recognize a boggart, depending on what it is they're most frightened of - they're dangerous. And to a powerful wizard who knows how to deal with them, even werewolves, vampires, basilisks, and dragons can be handled without too much danger."

Snape nodded thoughtfully. Very well argued... there's definitely hope for you, Potter. "Your argument has some valid points, Mr. Potter. As it happens, your definition - although it once again does not entirely take into account the various classifications the Ministry has come up with - is effectively accurate.

"Now, having read through Everything You Need to Know About Dark Creatures, how does the author classify the various Dark Creatures listed, and why?" Neither answer was actually specified in the text, but Potter should be able to figure them out if he gave it a bit of thought.

Potter thought about it for a minute or two, and then gave a decisive nod. "They're classified by both species and native environment, sir," he replied. "And the reason they're classified that way is to highlight the common strengths, weaknesses, and methods of dealing with them."

As with Potter's method for identifying the potions yesterday, the answer was good enough to be counted as correct - but lacked depth. "Why?" Snape prompted.

"Professor?" Potter looked confused.

"Why would the author wish to highlight those things in particular, Potter?" he elaborated. "Based on your answer, you obviously believe it was done consciously, which means that there was a definite purpose behind it. I want you to go further and tell me what that purpose was."

Potter hesitated for a moment, then shook his head. "Sorry, sir, I don't know."

Yes, I have definitely got my work cut out for me. Snape eyed Potter thoughtfully, working out the best tactic to lead him to the answer without actually giving it to him. "Why do you think the book is called Everything You Need to Know About Dark Creatures?" he asked after a moment. "It isn't that large a book, and while it is intended for the use of students, rather than fully trained wizards, it does not contain all the details of the creatures listed, nor does it contain descriptions for every known Dark Creature. The most common ones, yes, as well as a few that are both rarer and dangerous - but by no means does it have all of them." He gave Potter a pointed look.

Potter's expression grew distant and Snape waited patiently as the boy put the pieces together.

"Because if you encounter a Dark Creature you don't know about, you should at least be able to guess at some of its weaknesses based on its environment," Potter offered finally.

Snape nodded slowly. "Correct. In that sort of situation, you may not be right, but you have a much greater chance of it than if you were to make a random guess.

"Since we are agreed on that, what are some of the strengths and weaknesses of a creature of the air in their native environment?"

"Well, strengths... speed and maneuvrability, for one," Potter said thoughtfully. "After all, most wizards aren't Quidditch-level flyers." The statement was made without being a boast; Potter didn't sound very much like his father just then. "The ability and mindset to act in three dimensions is another - humans have to learn that, but for creatures of the air it's innate." He paused for a moment, then gave another nod. "Those are the most general strengths."

"Also, in general their eyesight is much better than that of a human," Snape added. "At least, when it comes to seeing movement over long distances. And they have a greater resistance to cold." He was reasonably pleased, however, that Potter had mentioned the matter of acting in three dimensions - though he didn't let it show on his face. Then again, the boy was a Quidditch player - it was to be expected that he would have a much clearer understanding than most of air creatures. "What of their weaknesses?" he prompted.

"Weather, though that probably wouldn't have quite as much effect on bigger creatures like dragons as it would on... pixies, for instance," Potter answered rapidly. "Unexpected gusts of wind - that could probably be done by magic--"

"Spells dealing with the weather are taught in Advanced Charms," Snape put in, pleased again; this time, Potter had gone that step farther to thinking about how to take advantage of those weaknesses in a combat situation.

Potter nodded in understanding, and continued, "Thermals... a source of heat under their flight path could push them upwards. Depending on whether or not they're equally at home on land, if there's a thick forest available, it can cause problems. Anything that might serve to snare their wings..."

"Good," Snape replied. "Now, what about Dark Creatures native to the desert?"

---

"Your assignment for tonight," Snape said, as Harry started putting his notes into his bookbag, "is to write out a list of features that can be used to pinpoint a creature's natural environment - with examples. You may use the textbook as a reference, but do not rely upon it to have all the answers. You should also consider everything we have discussed today."

"Yes, sir," Harry replied. Another list, he thought ruefully. Well, at least this one should be quicker to do, even if I do need to add examples.

"Good. I will see you tomorrow at one o'clock - bring How to Defend Yourself Without a Wand and plenty of parchment," the Potions master said, before turning his attention to a peculiar looking model on his desk.

Harry hesitated for a moment, and then blurted out, "Professor?"

Snape - who had been in what passed for a reasonably good mood the entire lesson - looked back up at him with an increasingly familiar glare of irritation. "What is it, Potter?"

"I... meant to ask you about it this morning, but I didn't really have the chance--"

"Potter," Snape interrupted, "I do have things other than your problems that need to be dealt with, and I don't have time for your babbling. What are you trying to ask?"

Harry took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to get rid of the nervousness he felt - which had only increased with Snape's sudden tirade. "When I woke up from the vision this morning, I felt this... weird... chill," he explained carefully. "It was the same type of chill I've been feeling all month, especially Friday and Saturday. Then, when I was drinking the dose of Levatio Potion, the warmth from the potion seemed to... attack... that chill, and get rid of it. I was wondering if the chill was the effects of the Cruciatus curse."

The irritation visible on Snape's face faded into a thoughtful expression. "The potion 'felt' warm, you said?"

"Once I swallowed it, yes," Harry confirmed. "It felt almost like the probing you did, only warmer, and it got rid of the chill."

Snape was silent for a moment or two. "Yes," he said finally, "it sounds as though that is precisely what you are sensing when you feel that 'chill'." He paused, then continued, "In addition to your assignment, I would like you to write out a description of how the chill feels to you, how it affects you - including information on how strong it is after a vision, and everything you can remember about feeling it earlier this summer. It would be helpful if you also include a description of how the Levatio Potion affected it. Be as specific as you can."

Harry felt puzzled, wondering why Snape wanted this; and his expression must have made it obvious, because Snape added, "Not all Sensitives 'feel' things the same way, or to the same degree, Potter. Any information you can give me about what and how you sense them will help me decide how to instruct you."

"Yes, sir," Harry replied. Well, I guess I'm not going to be finished today's work as quickly as I thought... Maybe if I do my assignment tonight, and write out the information on the vision-chill tomorrow...

"Now, as I do have work to do, I will see you tomorrow."

Harry nodded - although he doubted Snape had seen, since the Potions master had immediately gone back to studying the model - and slipped out of the office. If he hurried, he would probably still have time to write letters to Professor Lupin and the others before dinner.

Snape frowned thoughtfully as he heard the door to his office close behind the boy.

So, Potter sensed the effects of the Cruciatus curse as a 'weird chill' - on himself, at least.

Standing up, the Potions master walked over to his bookcase, opened it to reveal the hidden shelves, and took down the book Dumbledore had given him when he'd first started learning how to deal with his own gift.

A very well-written book, it contained enough information on the Sensitive's gift and its uses to serve as a strong foundation for future learning. Opening it up, Snape quickly skimmed through the table of contents, nodding absently as he took note of several topics he wished to discuss in-depth with Potter.

Then, returning his gaze to the shelves, it occurred to Snape that Potter was really going to need his own copy of this book - and, in fact, of most of his library on the Sensitive's gift.

His frown deepened. Neither he nor Potter could afford to be noticed buying books dealing with the Sensitive's gift; and given both Fudge's stubborn refusal to believe Voldemort was back, and his dislike and distrust of Dumbledore, the headmaster couldn't buy the books either. Not without alerting the Ministry that there was something 'unusual' going on.

For the moment, he thought with a grimace of distaste, as he brought the book back to his desk, I suppose I will simply have to make my library available to Potter. Then another thought occurred to him, and his eyes flickered over the contents of the secret shelves again. Yes, that will do perfectly, he decided, pleased. Much better than cleaning cauldrons - this way, perhaps he will actually learn something during detentions.

Satisfied with his decision, Snape took out a roll of parchment and began taking notes for Potter's lesson tomorrow.

---

Arthur Weasley took a deep breath and let it out in a sigh. "You're sure of this?" he asked, tapping the parchment in front of him with one finger. He really, really hoped the answer would be 'no', but at the same time, he didn't think he was going to be quite that lucky.

"Of course I'm sure, Arthur," Mad-Eye Moody replied. Arthur had the definite feeling the only reason the ex-Auror didn't sound insulted was because Moody knew what he'd been thinking.

"All right... Thank you, Alastor. I'll send this off to Hogwarts." Folding the parchment containing the list of suspected missing items up, he sealed it and put it to one side. "We also have some additional information."

"Oh?" Moody inquired.

"Apparently You-Know-Who needs items from only two or three other caches," Arthur told him.

Moody blinked in surprise, and then demanded, "Who did this information come from?"

Arthur shrugged. "Dumbledore didn't tell me," he replied. "We were using the Floo Network, and I think he didn't want to risk interception."

Moody nodded in understanding and agreement. "In that case, it probably has something to do with either Snape or Potter," he commented.

Arthur shrugged again.

"Now," Moody continued, "if there are only two or three more caches the Death Eaters need to access, I'd better get Black and Fletcher working. I'll talk to you later."

"Yes," Arthur agreed, also standing up - though a hint of distaste crossed his face at the mention of Mundungus Fletcher. "And judging by some of the items on here," he tapped the sealed list again, "you'd best tell them to hurry."

Sitting back down as Moody left, he was about to call in the Hogwarts owl Dumbledore had lent him for secure communications when the fire went green and Molly's face appeared in the centre of the flames. "Arthur, are you there?"

"Right here, Molly," he replied, moving his chair over in front of the hearth. "Is something wrong?" Have the twins pulled another prank on Ron and Ginny? he wondered. Some of their 'experiments' were starting to get more than a little bit out of hand.

"No, dear, nothing's wrong - I was just wondering if you'll be coming home for dinner," she replied.

Glancing at the clock on the wall, Arthur was surprised to see that it was, indeed, almost dinnertime. "I'm afraid I'll be a bit late, Molly," he replied. "There are a few more things I need to get done." He paused, thinking for a moment. He had to send the list off to Professor Snape, finish the report on those enchanted bath toys... "I shouldn't be more than half an hour, unless something else comes up. If it does, I'll call, all right?"

"Very well, I'll expect you home then--" Molly began. Then he heard a rather loud explosion from the Floo, and Molly winced. "Oh, dear... it sounds like Fred and George are at it again. I'd better go see what they've done now." With that, her head disappeared and the flames returned to normal.

As he moved back to his desk and summoned the Hogwarts owl, Arthur couldn't help but continue to wonder where - and how - the twins had gotten the money to continue their joke business. Both Fred and George were being uncommonly reticent about the whole thing.

Well, we will undoubtedly find out sooner or later, he decided, as he scribbled a quick note apologizing for the delay in relaying the list. I just hope it didn't involve anything illegal... Slipping both the note and the list into an envelope, he addressed it and then handed it to the owl who had just swooped into his office from the hallway.

"Take this directly to Professor Severus Snape at Hogwarts," he ordered. "As fast as possible, please."

The owl nodded and gave a hoot of acknowledgement before taking off again, and then Arthur pulled the report of yesterday's incident out of his inbox and began reviewing it. With any luck, nothing else would come up and he'd be out of here in time for dinner.

---

Snape looked up from his copying as an owl flew in through the dungeon's owl passage and dropped an envelope on his desk.

"Thank you," he said politely, then opened his top desk drawer and tossed it an owl treat before turning his attention to the envelope.

It had been sealed with the impression of the Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office, which meant that this was most likely the list of missing items Arthur Weasley had promised for last night.

Opening the envelope, he saw his suspicions were correct. It contained a sealed missive - undoubtedly the list - and a note in Mr. Weasley's handwriting. Putting the list to one side for a moment, he read the note first.

Professor Snape,

I apologize for the delay in getting this list to you; however, Alastor Moody was unavailable yesterday afternoon, and his input was necessary to create this list. I am sure you will understand when you read it.

We have received the information from Dumbledore concerning the fact that You-Know-Who needs items from only two or three more caches; Moody has already departed to inform our friends of that fact.

No friends of mine, Snape thought sourly. He'd never thought all that highly of Mundungus Fletcher, and the less said about the werewolf and the mutt, the better.

Please convey the information within to Headmaster Dumbledore as soon as possible.

Sincerely,

Arthur Weasley
Misuse of Muggle Artefacts Office
Ministry of Magic

With a slight frown on his face, Snape opened the list and scanned through it.

One item immediately jumped out at him, and it was that which led him to understand precisely why Arthur Weasley's note had appeared so insultingly urgent.

1 large crystal phial, containing a viscuous dark gray fluid; tentatively identified by Alastor Moody as Dementor's blood.

Dementor's blood was used only for the very Darkest of the Dark Arts. Snape himself had only used it once, in an experiment to produce a very powerful despair-inducing potion - powerful enough to induce suicidal tendencies in the cheeriest Hufflepuff - before he had left Voldemort and gone over to Dumbledore. It had been an exceedingly unpleasant experience; he had just begun to come into his full power as a Sensitive - though he hadn't known it at the time - and that had greatly increased the effects he was subject to from the magic present in the Dementor's blood.

Which may be another reason, aside from his parents' deaths, why Potter is so badly affected by Dementors, the Potions master thought absently, as he continued to scan the list. It would certainly make sense, considering how twisted their magic is.

There was nothing on the rest of the list that particularly stood out. All of it was Dark, of course, but none were even half as bad as the possible - or rather, probable (since Moody had been the one to identify it) - Dementor's blood. But unless Voldemort was planning on doing several different things with the contents of the caches - which was, admittedly, always possible - Snape couldn't tell from the list what the Dark Lord had planned. Undoubtedly the critical ingredients were: in a cache the Death Eaters had seized before Weasley's people found it; missing from the list because they hadn't been noticed among the Ministry-seized items; and/or in the two or three caches neither group had as yet.

Gesturing with his wand, Snape created a copy of the list and stored it in his warded bottom desk drawer, along with his marking book and the lesson plans for Potter's tutorials.

Then, picking up both Arthur Weasley's note and the original of the list, he stood up and headed toward Dumbledore's office to send them off.

---

Harry slumped down in his chair in the Gryffindor common room with a heavy sigh.

It had taken him almost four hours - from right after dinner until now - to finish his Dark Creatures assignment. There were a lot more distinguishing characteristics than he had originally thought, and he'd even found himself making the occasional note on potential weaknesses indicated by some of the characteristics - like the vulnerability of fur to fire. He wasn't sure what Snape would think about those notes, but he'd decided to leave them in, just in case; Snape had seemed pleased during the lesson when he'd made comments about how to fight creatures off based on their environmental weaknesses...

He'd managed to finish his letters to Sirius and Professor Lupin before Dobby had brought dinner, and once he'd finished, he'd asked Dobby to arrange for one of the owls to take them. The house-elf had been so delighted to have something to do for Harry that he'd taken the empty tray and the letters and disappeared immediately, not even staying to chat to Harry for a few minutes afterwards.

Now he just had to write his letters to Ron and Hermione, so that he could send them before breakfast tomorrow. Sirius and Hermione's letters had made him think, and he wanted to let Ron know about the new precautions - and get Hermione to stop bugging him about his visions - as soon as possible.

Ron,

Fred and George were cackling? Uh oh... that doesn't sound too good. With any luck, it was just my comment about waiting to use my present (a Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes sample pack, of course) until school starts. As for the money... I don't think they could have had a chance to bet anything else - your dad was keeping a pretty good eye on them.

On to something more serious... Hermione pointed out to me that in our letters, we should probably treat my location the same way as we treat Snuffles - keep things secret, just in case. The same thing goes for what I See, okay?

I did ask Snuffles what he was doing, but he said he couldn't talk about it in a letter - which was actually what convinced me Hermione was right. (And yes, it does get annoying sometimes - but she wouldn't be Hermione otherwise.)

Say hi to your Mum and Dad, as well as Fred, George and Ginny for me, please.

-- Harry

He hoped Ron wouldn't notice that he'd avoided any comments on what Mr. Weasley was doing. He might have to keep secrets from Ron and Hermione, but Harry didn't want to have to lie to them - especially not about their own families.

Hermione,

I thought about what you said in your letter - not writing anything about where I am - and I think you're right. I've written Ron and told him to avoid it as well. Also, after reading my latest letter from Snuffles, I think it would be better to avoid mention of my you-know-whats along with that, just in case. I'll tell you more about them in September.

I'm glad to hear you had a good time on your trip to Bulgaria, and look forward to reading the details you promised. Remind me to write to Viktor in September, will you, in case I forget?

Snuffles says that he's doing well, and that Moony is indeed fattening him up.

As for the study schedule - Hermione, it's summertime! You're supposed to be relaxing, not worried about school work! Save it for September as well. Besides, you know you'll ace the O.W.Ls.

-- Harry

P.S. Before I forget again, I have a bit of good news - Winky's no longer drinking butterbeer. She's apparently starting to get better, though it will take some time - she's still terribly upset about what happened to Mr. Crouch.

Re-reading the letter, Harry felt fairly satisfied with it. Hermione would probably realize that he was trying to avoid talking to her about his visions - she knew him quite well, after all - but she'd also realize that he was right, especially as it concerned a point that she herself had made.

With any luck, the rest of the letter would make her happier, especially the news about Winky. Harry had completely forgotten to tell Hermione about her in his last letter, but Dobby had mentioned that Winky said hello when he'd delivered dinner, and it had reminded Harry that he'd meant to let Hermione know.

Glancing at his watch, Harry grimaced. It was almost eleven o'clock; the lesson had run somewhat late, and then between the letters, dinner, and his assignment...

Standing up, he picked up the letters to Ron and Hermione and headed up to his dorm to go to sleep.

---

Yawning - he was getting too old to be staying up to all hours of the night - Dumbledore walked into the small cave he was sharing with Hagrid while he helped smooth out the negotiations. He was about to sit down on his cot when he noticed that his message-box was blinking.

Wondering what Severus could have sent now, Dumbledore opened the box and pulled out several sheets of parchment. The one on top was an explanatory note from Severus; a very hastily written note, judging from the untidy scrawl.

Albus,

I believe the wards have just moved to second place on the research priority list. I will continue to check into it as I have time, but one of the items stolen from the secured facility - according to this list - was a large phial of what Moody believes is Dementor's blood. I don't need to tell you the kind of spells and potions that can be created using it.

If you can think of anything from the rest of this list that might be used in conjunction with the Dementor's blood, please let me know - nothing has come to mind. I have a copy of the list safely put away.

Based on the tutorial sessions of the past two days, Potter will need more work than might have been suggested by our Floo conversation, but less than I feared.

-- S.S.

Dumbledore sighed quietly as he sat down on his cot to read the list. It seemed that he was unlikely to get any sleep at all tonight.

Dementor's blood... I fear we may be in for far worse times than I had thought.