Zaid Zaid 5 11 2003-04-21T18:52:00Z 2003-04-21T19:05:00Z 3 2025 8913 222 71 14179 9.2720
Disclaimer: All characters belong to J.K. Rowling. We all bow down to her. I own nothing.
Author's Note: Second chapter. Its more of a second part of the first chapter. Read and Review.
Rating: R [vulgarity I guess and some innuendo I tend to add]
Chapter Two
Breakfast at the Dursleys' today was as usual as it could possibly be. Aunt Petunia was still adamant in enforcing a diet on Dudley, who was able to wriggle his way out of her persuasions due to his incessant whining. He even had backing from Uncle Vernon who did not want a continuation of the horrid meals she had prepared for the whole family last summer. Harry observed the events in the house as an outsider. Even after living together for over a decade, he still could not call it home. To him, home was a place where one was safe, where one was accepted. To him, home was Hogwarts.
So it seemed rather out of the blue when Uncle Vernon directed his attention to Harry.
"So Harry, are you going to you friend's," he sneered on the word, "house again this summer?"
Harry was able to hide his shock of being addressed long enough to answer, "No, not at all. They're kinda busy and I think Hermione is still in Bulgaria." He definitely did not want his uncle finding out about his isolation due to the events in the previous school year.
"Aw, the freak got abandoned by his own friends." Dudley sneered at him across the table.
Harry was used to Dudley's jeering and set out to ignoring him. He simply closed himself off from his piercing words and kept his mind empty. He had rediscovered this method to clear his mind and enjoy the empty calm that flowed through him. He found it useful when he wanted to concentrate on a task without any distractions.
Today however, the empty calm had given off a different effect.
Harry was suddenly assaulted by bright flashes all around him. He bolted from his chair, quickly glancing around, wary of a Death Eater attack. He could see…weaves…of some sort. They covered the entire room, in many different patterns, in bright colours. Merlin, it's bright in here. He studied his breakfast, thinking it might have been poisoned. His observations were cut short by Vernon's shout, telling him to cut his freakish behaviour out. The weaves were gone now. His eyes still were uncomfortable due to the intensity of the light. Harry turned his attention to his relatives, who were looking at him alarmingly, afraid of him performing anything freak-worthy. He hurriedly apologized for his actions, giving an excuse he had seen a bee. They took it at face value, and Dudley sniggered at Harry's fear for the insect.
Harry finished his breakfast and carried out his daily chores, worried about the sudden chain of events as Vernon left for work and Dudley retreated to the den to watch some telly.
~*~
The scene at The Burrow was hectic over the summer.
Fred and George had locked themselves in their room, only coming out to shower or get their meals. The only hint of what exactly they were doing were the number of owls that flew to and from their window, mostly sending out for important ingredients. The household also became accustomed to the frequent loud explosions that occurred. The whole family was curious on what the twins were working on but the whole operation was clouded in secrecy, as they refused to entertain any questions.
There was also the added tension between the family and Percy. After the events the past year, Percy had been appointed to Barty Crouch's former position. He had then proceeded to be bossier then usual, and often ended up arguing with the rest off the family over Harry's explanation of the what had led to Cedric's death during the Tournament and the apparent rebirth of Voldemort. Percy simply refused to accept that the Dark Lord had returned and reasoned out that Harry was just hallucinating. He firmly stuck to his belief that enthusiastic rebel wizards that still supported You Know Who had attacked Harry in a vain attempt to raise terror and instability and that Voldemort was still gone. Thus, his relationship with the other family members was very strained due to their contrasting beliefs.
Ginny and Molly were stuck cleaning up after the Weasley males. The only two females had been bonding for the whole summer, strengthening their relationship. Molly was delighted by Ginny's maturity. Ginny, for her part, had opened up to her mother on the events that took place during her first year that led to the Chamber of Secrets. This resulted in many tears, hugs and promises not to withhold any problems in the future. Ginny also had to reassure Molly that she would remain in contact by letters throughout the school year.
All of this left Ron for the most part alone with his thoughts.
Quidditch. Ron's main thought in his head was about how he could get the open position of Keeper in the Gryffindor team due to Oliver Wood's graduation. He was hoping on the twins and Harry to put in a good word for him. He also noticed the lack of activity on the Dark Lord's front. There had been no sightings of You-Know-Who and newspaper reports had only printed small stories on minor, infrequent Death Eater attacks, claiming them only acts of foolishness. Cornelius Fudge had held a press conference stating that the Ministry was investigating Harry Potter's involvement in Cedric Diggory's death. He had squashed any rumors of You-Know-Who's uprising. It was evident that Fudge was hoping to use Harry as a distraction, and make him take the blame.
Ron also thought about his best friends. Hermione had gone off to Bulgaria to visit Krum. He was very unhappy of Hermione's choice to travel and had made known his displeasure in his letters, only to receive a Howler from her telling…no…shouting at him to mind his own bloody business. That incident had sent the whole household into bouts of giggles. He read Hermione's latest letter from Bulgaria, informing him she was returning home after a wonderful holiday and that she was going to Diagon Alley next week. He made a note to tell his parents so that they could meet up to purchase their school supplies together.
The last piece of news was that Hermione had been made a prefect. Ron groaned at the prospect that she would be ordering everyone about even more then before, with the new responsibility. He was also displeased that when he had discovered that he had not been appointed as a Prefect. He knew though that the other Gryffindor prefect was most definitely Harry Potter. First, House Seeker. Then, Hogwarts' Champion. Now, Prefect too. Ron felt jealous that Harry always claimed glory, and wished that he could at least get some glory of his own.
~*~
Hermione crashed onto her bed, exhausted after the tiring flight home.
"Just leave the bags there, Dad. I'll unpack them later."
She had just returned from Bulgaria, after the weeklong holiday with Viktor Krum. She had thought it a great educational opportunity to gain new experiences and learn about different cultures. However, in retrospect, she should have taken Ron's advice and stayed home. In her opinion, the whole trip was disappointing. She had fallen out with Krum. She had found out that Viktor Krum, in his natural habitat, was every bit the typical celebrity. He tended to misuse his fame to get what he wanted and seemed very unfriendly to his fans that followed him. He acted cold and looked down on them. Hermione was also uncomfortable with his closeness. It seemed to her that all he wanted to do was snog and parade her to the masses as his, expecting her to treat it as though it was an honour to be with him. The atmosphere in his house was also hostile. It seemed his parents disliked Muggle-borns and set out to convince Viktor that she was not good enough for him.
But the final nail in the coffin was when he mistreated his house elf. Before, she had simply disguised her discomfort to be perceived as a grateful guest. However she had lost her head when she saw how he laughed at the plight of the help, amused as they kept beating their heads on the floor. She had then proceeded to 'rip him a new one' and ceremoniously decided to cut the trip short and return home as soon as possible.
She could just see Ron looking smugly at her, saying 'I told you so'. At least she had another week before that encounter. She then decided to ask in her next letter if she could stay at The Burrow for the last week of summer. She always liked the loving family environment of the Weasleys and it would serve as a nice relaxing time before the rigours of school. There was just something special about big families that appealed to her. She wondered if Dumbledore would allow Harry to come over to Ron's. She had not received any letters from the Boy Who Lived and was certain that he had been isolated by the Headmaster for safety against attacks. She was still unhappy that they could not have celebrated his birthday today together. She doubted that those horrid relatives of his had even remembered it. Sometimes, she was amazed at how a quiet, gentle boy had grown up amid the craziness that was the Dursleys.
Hermione's thoughts then turned to the latest Hogwarts' letter she had received. She was very proud that she had been appointed a prefect. The letter had also mentioned all the other students who were chosen as prefects. Unsurprisingly to her, Harry's name was on that list as the other Gryffindor choice. The only damper was Draco Malfoy succeeding in obtaining a Prefect's badge. Hermione was already envisioning how the blonde-haired boy would abuse his powers for his own pleasure and how much it would infuriate Ron that he had been elected.
Ron. Now there's a jealous prat. Hermione still could not believe that Ron had accused Harry of chasing after glory in the tournament. After all they had been through, it was simply far-fetched to consider Harry an advocate of fame and it irked her that Ron did not trust his best friend. She was also deeply displeased in the manner in which both boys had acted in the weeks leading up to the Yule's Ball. Imagine leaving me as a backup! I don't think they view me as a girl at all! That had been one of the major reasons she had accepted Viktor's proposal for the ball. He was the only one who had figured out she was mildly attractive.
Harry. I hope he's okay. Hermione worried about her best friend. She wondered how he was handling the events that occurred during the third task. She still was unsure what had transpired after the duo had grabbed the trophy, but was certain that whatever had happened would surely surpass what her imagination would come up with. He's had such a rough year. First, with the Goblet. Then the tasks. Not to mention the horrendous news articles. Hermione blushed, remembering the rumours that had been passed around about their so-called coupling. None of that. I don't 'like' Harry that way. Besides he's already got enough on his plate without any more issues bothering him. Especially after Cedric's death. She was sure that the murder weighed heavily on Harry. He always seemed to hold himself responsible for such incidents, acting unknowingly as a martyr. Knowing that there wasn't anything else she could do,Hermione silently prayed for Harry and his safety.
~*~
A/N: Not my best work. Its more of a chapter 1b. I sorta rushed the chapter as writing it was hard. Linking the passages was tough for me and in my opinion, this seemed disappointing. I may edit the story if I feel I can improve it. I just had to have this out soon as I'm almost through with the third chapter. [my writing jumps around a lot]. Reviews and criticism welcome.