PREPARING

It was my first day back.

Last holidays were the happiest, with me staying over at the burrow.

These holidays were however not going to be so smooth.

It was time for my godfather to be on the loose.

One of the biggest regrets the first time around for me had been Sirius.

His death was a symbol that cemented the thought that all those around me would die one way or the other in order for me to live.

For me personally, it was not his death that was the biggest regret, but his life.

A brilliant wizard had his life thrashed just for being different.

A brave soldier imprisoned with the worst that magic had to offer for a crime that was never committed.

A head of a Very noble and ancient house reduced to live in seclusion and hiding due to the schemes of the greatest dark wizard hidden under the pretence of their greatest shield against the dark.

I had much to do in these holidays and not a lot of time to do it.

I already had a timetable made by Hermione for the first month of our holidays.

It was her suggestion, that considering the relative non-urgency that I will probably have for a month after the school year ends, I should focus that time on completing and advancing the school work.

After this month we both would then have ample time to spend on the various trips or plans that we might have to complete before heading back to Hogwarts.

I wholeheartedly agreed with her. This time around I had not been as insincere about my studies as I had previously been.

An additional reason for us to study so long into the holidays was the additional subjects we had on our plate.

We had additional work for Healing, considering that starting next year we will be more focused on the practical aspect. Afterall, we were going to sit for our Healing O.W. L's next year.

In addition to that we would now have two more additional subjects next year.

As was tradition, before leaving the school for our holidays we had to consult and confirm the additional subjects that we would be taking the following year.

Unlike last time, Hermione had not gone over the top and tried to attend every subject that was available for grabs. It did not however mean that she had stopped at a modest two that was the average.

Hermione had opted for Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, Muggle Studies and Study of Ancient Runes.

I myself had opted for Arithmancy, Study of Ancient Runes, Care of Magical Creatures and Divination.

As per her own thoughts, Hermione had opted for these subjects for both knowledge and relaxation.

Arithmancy and Study of Ancient Runes were the important subjects that could not be dropped by anyone with even a tiny bit of ambition to progress in the magical world, so the choice was an obvious one.

Care for Magical Creatures was selected by her because she was purely fascinated to learn more about the various magical animals and could be seen as a hobby undertaking for her considering that there was not much practical aspect to it when it came to the exams.

Muggle Studies was opted by her purely so that she could have an extra free period to catch up with anything that she might have missed while attending other important classes.

I on the other hand had opted for Divination instead of Muggle Studies. Who better than me could actually understand the importance and impact of prophecies? It was an additional benefit that it was such an easy class to score an outstanding when I took my O.W. Ls in the fifth year.

Both of us had already started our Ancient Runes studies last year itself. Even if it was purely theoretical, we had a head start.

This holiday, apart from revising on the topic that we had already covered last year, we would be beginning our studies on Arithmancy.

As per our plans, we would regularly meet at Hermione's house for the next month. We would usually spend our time either studying, watching muggle shows on the television or when we would feel too cooped up, we would take a stroll around the park.

This month I had most of my meals with Hermione and her parents.

At the end of the month, both of us said our goodbyes and decided to meet up back in the alley a week before the school reopened.

Now I had three weeks left to complete the various tasks at hand.

The first thing I did was call upon Dobby and had him take me to Gringotts.

Because I already had been acknowledged as the Heir for an Ancient and Noble house, I had a personal accounts manager and a separate hall where I could make my transactions without being interrupted.

This alone however would have not given me the right to apparate directly into the premises of Gringotts. It was my friendship with the Goblin king that had given me this special privilege.

The first step towards my successful rescue of my grandfather was dependent on the help that I could get from the goblins.

I met the manager of the Black family vault and explained it to him that I would like the help of the goblins to provide help to Sirius Black without informing him of my identity. I instructed them to convey it to Sirius that the Black heir is aware of his innocence and has no thoughts of obstructing him about any of the financial matters related to the Black family vault. The only thing that I request of him is to not disrupt the marriage alliance that I have with the Greengrass.

He was after all the current head of the Black family. If he had some misconception and decided to break the contract, it would severely affect my plans and Daphne. Though he is on the run and not able to represent himself in the magical world freely, he would have no problem in securing the Black family assets and the decisions of its members.

After this, I made my way to the head teller to request an audience with the king. I was informed to come two weeks later.

For the next two weeks, I travelled everyday between the various properties that were now repaired and cleaned by Dobby.

These were going to be my secret bases in the fight to come. I had to once again taken the help of the Goblins to find good wizards that could help me cast a fidelius charm on all the properties except the Grimmauld place.

I had decided to leave it alone, so that Dumble's could once again make it his base. Afterall, it was not possible to hide it from me again.

I liked it when I was aware of the Hands in the opponent's hand.