Prologue
Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was deep in thought. He just couldn't understand it. How could a 15 year old boy bypass the three most powerful rune-wards in history, it just didn't make any sense.
He began counting on his fingers, "First he could remember everything that had wrong in Privet drive. The memory wards should have prevented that. Second he went off of the property last summer. The wards should have stopped that to. Worse is even though I just revived them the boy still goes on his daily runs. I had to set Tonks on guard duty every morning just so that someone can watch him. It's an shame really" he added as an afterthought "that the clumsy metamorpmagus is the only fit Order member" he continued to tick things off on his fingers, "and third he breaks into the bloody ministry of magic, the Department of Mystery's, no less. I would have to take weeks to get in without permission even if i knew where the runes were and what spells were used on them," he grumbled silently "and there goes that boy and passes straight through the front door."
He continued to follow that train of thought about what happened after the event with the veil. "That boy doesn't have a clue just how powerful he is," Dumbledore snorted, "The inner circle of Death Eaters has been crucioed so many times that they barely yelp when he does it to them, and there goes the boy, and has her screaming on the floor for whole ten seconds, the boy really doesn't have a clue."
Now Dumbledore sat straighter up in his chair "Now, to the main question: what to do with the boy?"
Chapter 1
Harry was running, he wasn't running away from grief like Hermione thought, or away from the Dursleys like Ron thought, or into the arms of Death Eaters like the entire order seemed to think. He was running to build up his body and stamina, plain and simple. It also didn't hurt that it helped clearing his mind.
Running also gave him some time to rant to himself about Dumbledore. He seemed to be doing pretty well at that because occasionally he would hear a stifled giggle from Tonks who had been assigned to watch over him when he went out for a run. He knew it was her because she would often stumble or downright fall on her face while running after him. He sometimes speculated if it was always she on duty at this time be mere chance or if she was the only one fit enough to keep up with him, he thought the latter.
He was approaching the park where he would turn back. He found a bench and sat down. Soon after he heard footsteps behind him, then he remebered his guard. "Care to join me Nymphadora?" he heard a gasp of recognition and much to his surprise she took of her cloak and sat down with him.
"You know I should really hex you for that" she said.
"Oh be nice," Harry whined "Dumbledore told everyone I'm in a trauma."
Tonks looked little surprised and asked "How did you know?"
Harry sighed and said "I didn't but you just confirmed it, but as for how I acted like it when we last met... and I haven't got any letters from anyone, manipulative old codger." he added the last bit under his breath.
Tonks winced at the old mans new nickname and asked "Ok now lets stop joking and get onto the serious stuff. How the hell did you know I was there?"
Harry just raised an eyebrow and said "Nymphadora Tonks the clumsy metamorphmagus asks me how I knew she was there. I must say I am not surprised that you did almost fail on the stealth test at the auror academy, because i could have heard you a mile off but..." then he was grabbed and hold nose to nose with an angry metamorphmagus "Y... you...you heard me... but how?" she asked and Harry answered calmly
"It was difficult to miss what with you stumbling and falling all the time!"
Then Tonk reached down the front of her shirt and Harry stared awed as she took out her necklace, Harry had the courtesy to blush as he stared at her chest "hem hem, up here."
Harry looked up at her face as she showed Harry her necklace "This" she said "is an amulet of silence, Dumbledore made it for me because I'm always so loud, you shouldn't't even be able to hear me say this to you" she said as she took it of and passed it to Harry,
Harry took one look and murmured out loud "Bindrune... reverted Anuz for no sound... Sowilo so it works on every one but the wearer... And Hagalaz for protection... so they cant find you?" While he was talking to himself Tonks was thinking 'How did he learn all this, I graduated with a NEWT in Runes and I don't.'
Then she noticed that his scar was glowing soft, blood red light while he was doing this. Harry shook his head, as though to get out of some sort of trance and said "How the hell did i know that?"
Then looked at Tonks to see her looking at him with a stunned expression on her face "Tonks" no answer "Hello Tonks " not a move "Nympadora" she didn't't even a vince, Harry grimaced and got a dangerous glint in his eye he looking around to see if anyone was there. As no one was out yet he got up and stood in front of her and yelled "AUROR TONKS YOU MUST KEEP CONSTANT VIGILANCE AT ALL COSTS... NOW WAKE UP AND GIVE ME TWENTY."
Tonks was done with first five push-ups when she stopped to look around, only to see a laughing Harry rolling around on the earth. "Sorry Tonks but you wouldn't snap out of it" Harry gasped between laughs "but as I was saying how the hell did I know that."
Tonks gasped and asked "You don't take runes?"
"No" Harry answered
"But then how?" she asked "and why was your scar glowing?" "It was glowing?" Harry asked "I remember feeling a little strange there, like the answers were flowing out of the scar."
Tonks gasped and asked Harry "I know it will sound a little strange but how does your scar look in your own eyes"
"Like a lightning bolt." Harry answered puzzled,
"Hmm... "Tonks said "now try drawing it in the dirt."
Harry did so and asked Tonks "What now?"
Tonks answered "Look away and think of it as a rune then look at it again."
Harry looked at her puzzled, and then looked away for a minute and then back at the rune, "Sowilo means sun, stands for," he snorted and said, "ironicly it stands for goals, honor, guidance hope... The last hope of the wizarding world has the rune of hope on his forehead."
Tonks just stared at him as his scar started glowing and when he was done ranting she asked "What do you mean, last hope of the wizarding world?"
"You mean you don't know?" Harry asked and mumbled under his breath "I have to give the old man more credit, that is one thing he didn't lie to me about." That was true every thing he said in his office after Sirius's death had been a lie, he hadn't let anyone send mail to Harry, why hadn't he sent harry any mail? He hadn't told Harry anything about what was going on in the war or anything for that matter.
Meanwhile Tonks was asking herself what Harry was talking about,
"You see Tonks, the prophesy you were guarding last year was about me having to kill Tom or the other way around." Harry answered.
"Who is Tom?" Tonks asked
"Tom Marvolo Riddle orphaned halfblood Hogwarts student 50 years ago took up the name lord Voldemort during school and has held it since." Harry explained.
Tonks gasped "You-Know-Who is an half blood?"
"Yes but can't an heir of the pure and most noble house of the Black say a half-bloods name?"
Tonks looked horrified of the mere thought of saying Voldemorts name and said "Of course I can say the name of an half-blood V...Vvv...Vvvvol...Tom Riddle!"
"Good for you Tonks, now I want to try something." he stood up and walked over to an muddy spot and drew a near perfect circle in the mud and then he drew another one sightly bigger over it and began to focus Tonks could see his scar glow like always when he tried to read a rune then he began drawing some runes between the circles and murmur to him self .
"Hagalaz" he drew a rune at the 12 point of the circle
"Uruz" he drew another one at the 3 point
"Thurisaz" he drew another one at the 6 point
"Elhaz" and he drew another at the 9 point closing the circle, at last he said "Ingwaz"and drew another rune in the middle of the circle.
Then he stood up and stepped into the circle and asked "Tonks do you have a knife?" Tonks watched memorized while Harry who had just a few minutes ago learnt that he could read runes build his first rune ward. It wasn't too difficult to understand. She herself understood most of it then he stood up and asked for a knife. She just nodded and handed him a dagger.
He stood there with dagger in one hand and the other palm up in front of him then his hand began to glow, glow the very same light she had seen his scar glow just minutes ago. Then after he seemed satisfied he made a cut in his palm and let the blood drip onto the rune he stood on. The blood glowed red and as soon as it touched the rune it began slither around, following the pattern of the rune and as soon as the blood had gone over all the rune it flashed red once and both the rune and the circle disappeared.
Tonks stared at harry as he stood still where the middle of the circle had been and them said "Come Tonks hit me for saying your birth name."
Tonks looked startled and just stared "Come on Nymph hit me," Tonks was using all her will power to not go and beat him to death "Come on Nymphy Nympy Nymphy what are you afraid of. That I might hit the mighty Auror Nymphadora Tonks back. You really..."
Then there was a sound of a gong ringing through the air, Tonks just stood there watching Harry standing there calmly and she tried again to hit him. It was like the air itself turned into honey or something and her fist stopped softly with a sound of a gong just few centimeters in front of Harry who just watched with humor in his eyes before exclaiming "It worked."
Tonks found herself staring at the boy-who-lived not just for stating the obvious but cause most 15 minute wards could just stand one blow, this one stood proud after the second waiting for the next blow. She noticed Harry kicking at the earth there was another flash and the rune became visible again "broke the powering rune" Harry said making Tonks look down on the rune, yes there was a small brake in the Rune where Harry had kicked.
"Tonks what time is it ?"
"11, why"
"Shit i have to get back, and you need to as well, before the next guard comes to take over."
"Yes we better."Tonks said
"Tonks can you get me your old Acient Rune class books, I want to understand this gift better." Harry asked
"Ok i can do that," Tonks answered then stood up and began running towards Privet drive. When they were nearly there Tonks asked a question that she hadn't stopped wondering over since after she showed him the amulet.
"Harry how did you know what the runes meant. Each rune means many different things. It depends entirely on what the maker was thinking when he made it. It could have been a memory block with exacly the same bindrune."
Harry thought for a moment and answered "It was, kind of the same feeling, but yet different to being in Snapes or Toms mind. It was like using legimency on the rune."
Tonks was gobsmacked 'This isn't supposed to be possible' she thought.
When they came to Privet drive, Harry went inside and Tonks stood outside thinking to herself 'Should i tell the Order? No, its Harrys secret for now and I'd hate to see what would happen to me after he learns of offensive Rune magic." she mused.