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He blames himself," Helga said, a frown on her face, "It is not his fault. No doubt more of his upbringing."

"We should judge him on the merits of his own character, not on the flaws of his protectors and guardians," Gryffindor argued. "And his character is the strongest we have seen in 900 years by far."

Slytherin remained silent for a few moments before opening his eyes and staring right at Harry's scar, "He is marked by he who sought my heritage and failed. It is a mark that has governed his destiny and still to this day seeps his power." He paused a moment and closed his eyes, "There is a cunning here he has been afraid to tap into because of the machinations of others. He has allowed himself to be manipulated." Harry rose to defend himself, his mind stripped bare and raw emotion showing through, when a laugh arose from Gryffindor.

"Courage indeed! He would curse you if he had the ability Salazar." Harry looked at Slytherin, a glint in his eye and almost detected a hint of respect coming from the darker wizard.

"He recognizes, deep down in his heart, even if he has not admitted it to himself, that there is more to the world than the light and dark. He knows there are shades of gray. He himself is a shade of gray." Finally the four were silent, and Harry looked at them all as they one by one opened their eyes and stared at him.

"We have judged your character. Your spirit. We are ready to render our verdicts, Helga, if you will begin." Harry turned to the shorter Hufflepuff and gazed into her brown eyes. It was oddly calming to him.

"Your warm heart and strength of character have joyed me greatly. I, Helga Hufflepuff, do hereby judge you as worthy to accept my ancestral line." Harry's eyes went wide and the notion. He had passed at least one of the Founder's tests...he turned to Ravenclaw who kept her eyes fixed on him.

"He has much to learn but his potential is far too great to ignore," she said, stroking her chin thoughtfully. "I Rowena Ravenclaw, do hereby judge you as worthy to accept my ancestral line." Harry smiled again, his mind swimming with possibilities. He turned to Slytherin, not expecting much.

"Saving the boy's lack of confidence in his own ability and strength," Salazar began, "I cannot find a flaw with him. Certainly not like the last one's to come before us. I, Salazar Slytherin, do hereby judge you as worthy to accept my ancestral line." Harry was bowled over by the admission, and mentally chuckled at what Hermione would say. Finally, he turned to Gryffindor...

"I must say this is a surprise," the Scottish man spoke with a heavy accent, "I never thought we'd see the day when someone like you would grace our presence. I, Godric Gryffindor, do hereby judge you as worthy to accept my ancestral line." Harry smiled and saw the room light up for the first time since he had awoken. Alternating colors of flames appeared in the room, varying from green, to red, to blue, to yellow, and back again in quick succession.

"Harry James Potter," Gryffindor continued, "son of James Winston Potter, Lord of the Houses of Black, Potter, Warrens, Seldon & Draven, you have been judged worthy to receive the ancestral lines of all the Founders Four. As a result, when you go forth from this place you will received our signet rings and bear all the power they carry."

"You can circumvent the governors of Hogwarts," Helga chimed in, and Harry's eyes widened at this.

"You can help shape wizarding law for years to come," Salazar joined in.

"And you can protect those you care about," Rowena added.

"In addition," Godric continued, "You shall be bestowed with ten gifts in total: Two from each of us and one from us collectively." He looked at Hufflepuff, a gesture followed by Harry, who smiled at the elder woman.

"To you my heir I grant you the power of Charms. Many of the Charms you already know were invented or perfected by my line, and when you receive my gift you will be able to cast them effortlessly. I also give you the gift of tongues. You already speak Salazar's language, but with my language you will speak the ancient tongues of the goblins, the tongues of the elves long since departed from this world, and many other races."

"To you my heir," Ravenclaw began, "I grant you the gift of runic magic. It is a lost art in your time, and those who practice it barely scratch the surface of its power. I grant you the understanding of its power and its consequences. Further, I grant you the gift of control, over your mind and emotions. You shall leave this place fully trained in the mind arts that I invented."

"To you my heir," Slytherin continued, more than a hint of joy in his voice at the mayhem this was likely to cause, "I grant the knowledge of potion-making. As with Lady Hufflepuff and Charms, I and my line are the creators of many of the potions that exist today. Secondly, I grant you the knowledge of curses and their counters. They are viewed by many as so called dark arts...but I know you shall use them to dispense true justice, not merely fight a pointless war."

"And to you my heir," Gryffindor finished, "I grant you the knowledge of Transfiguration, including the ability to become an Animagus. Your father had this ability when he faced me some years ago and were it not for his close-mindedness, I might have considered granting him a similar gift. Finally I grant you the gift years of neglect has denied you, that of a sound body to match your sound mind. When you leave this place your flaws will be erased. Which leads us to our collective gifts." He paused and raised his wand, a gesture followed by the others, leaving Harry a bit dumbfounded and awestruck.

"For to long has your soul labored under the weight of these curses. Some were placed there to dampen your powers. Others were placed there to block your memories. One was even placed there to terrify others at your mere presence. And the one granted to you by the one you know as Voldemort seeps away at your strength and may one day threaten your very life. We shall lift these curses forever more, and set you free from their burden. Furthermore, you shall have access to all of our remaining worldly possessions that the goblins have stored for us. No doubt many of them have left their care these many centuries, but you will know them and what they can be used for, when the time is right. Now, Harry James Potter, Heir of the Founders, do you accept these gifts."

"I do," Harry said, muttering the only words he could.

"Very well...so mote it be." The four founders began to chant in a druidic language that Harry didn't understand, but the words rang through his ears, shaking him to his very magical core.

Suddenly Harry was wracked by a great pain as he felt the weight of fifteen years of curses being lifted from his spirit one by one. Knowledge flooded his mind, and he swore he could feel his physical body change slightly at the surge of power. Magic swirled around his soul, penetrating every fiber of his being, and pain slowly gave way to a semblance of calm. Harry felt himself being levitated off the ground, supported by the essence of his new powers. After what seemed like a lifetime of power surging through him, he felt himself sink back down onto the floor, his mind shutting down, and blackness overtook him.

A/N: This is not a typical super!Harry destroys everything in his path story. There is still some vulnerability here as Harry adjusts to his new powers and deals with the rest of the world. It's also going to be a long story, and Dumbles will probably be more evil than I would normally have him but such is life in my crazy brain.

Please review, I greatly appreciate the positive response this story has generated thus far.