Sirius is dead.

That was the horrible truth.

He's not coming back.

That's a fact.

It's all my fault.

That was what he had been telling himself all summer long.

Harry Potter was in his room at Number 4, Privet Drive. It was July 14th, around eleven o'clock at night, and he had been back from Hogwarts for two weeks now. It wasn't like he had done much in that time. He had mostly been in his room, like he was at the moment. Lying on the bed or on the floor, sitting in his battered old chair, he didn't much care for it. He only exited his room to use the bathroom or shower and to eat, that was it. He pondered about his life into the late hours of the night and barely slept afterwards. He didn't utter a word to the Dursleys. Harry didn't bother going outside either, because of the cloudy and foggy weather that had been haunting Britain all summer.

The Dursleys are the only family I have left.

That was yet another depressing thought that made Harry feel sick. Why were all these things happening to him? He had lost his parents when he was still an infant and was effectively raised by people who didn't care about him at all. Harry had saved his cousin Dudley from a Dementor's Kiss last summer, and even that had earned him a lot of yelling. He had never even known what having a family meant. He did consider the Weasleys his family, but even with al the parent- or brotherlike love he received, it wasn't the same. And then there was Sirius… his godfather, the one person who seemed destined to become the father he never had. He was his family, the person that connected Harry with his parents more than the Dursleys or even the Weasleys ever could have done. Until Sirius too had been brutally taken away from him, only a few weeks ago.

I miss him.

Tears prickled in his eyes. Harry felt horrible. He was convinced that his godfather's death was his fault. Hadn't Harry been the one who had fallen for Voldemort's trap? And it didn't end there. His godfather had been killed, but he had led five of his best friends into the trap along with him. He had put their lives in danger. Neville's wand and nose had both been broken. Ginny broke her ankle. Ron had been attacked by some freaky brains. Hermione had nearly been killed. For one terrifying moment, Harry actually thought she was dead. He hadn't even told his two best friends about the prophecy yet. They didn't know he was destined to kill or be killed.

Hermione.

Harry wondered how she was doing. Hermione had been injured the worst and she was his best friend, after all. Harry had heard Madam Pomfrey mention how she had sustained minor damage to some of her organs. Hermione had sent him two letters earlier in the summer, informing him she was feeling better and inquiring about how he was doing, but Harry hadn't replied. He was consumed by guilt. He hadn't responded to Ron's letter from last week either.

It could have been a coincidence, but just as he was thinking about Hermione, he saw something approaching outside his window. Even through the thick layers of night mist, he could see the figure growing bigger and bigger, until he saw what it was: his own owl, Hedwig. Harry silently opened the window and let her inside the room, letting some of the cold night air in too. He gently put her in her cage and gave her a few owl treats. It was then that he noticed: she carried a letter with her. In previous years, this would have been a joyous moment for the young wizard, but he didn't much care about it now. That is, until he saw that it was a letter from his female best friend. Harry perked up slowly and opened it.

Dear Harry,

I know this is a tough time for you. You loved Sirius and I can't even imagine how horrible you must feel right now. But I know you well enough, and I can tell you're still blaming yourself for everything that happened in the Department of Mysteries. Not only with Sirius, but the rest of us too. Let me tell you this: it wasn't your fault, Harry. Anyone who had a parent or the closest thing they have to it be abducted, would have done the same thing. We checked before we went to the Ministry and we were deceived by a lie. You could not have known, none of us could. Please, don't feel guilty about what happened to Sirius and us. Ron, Neville, Ginny, Luna and myself don't blame you at all and Sirius would not have wanted you to lock yourself up like this.

Will you please write back to me, Harry? I've known you for nearly five years now and I've never seen you not respond to one of my letters. I'm very worried about you. You're one of the people I care about the most in this world, and it pains me to see you suffer like this.

Love

Hermione

There were a few dark spots around the final couple of sentences. Had Hermione been crying when she was writing the letter? It seemed like she had. Merlin, Harry thought, I've really been blind. He was touched by how much she cared for him. Only now did he realize how much he had pained his friends by keeping silent in the past few weeks. Only now did he see what he was doing to them. How could I have been so stupid?

"Hedwig", Harry said. "I'm going to let you out now. Have a good hunt, eat a bit, get some rest. Come back in the morning, I will have five letters ready for you to deliver. Okay?"

Hedwig hooted softly in response. She hopped onto his arm, while Harry carried her to the window to let her out. A minute later, he was watching her disappear into the night sky. It was well past midnight by now, but Harry knew he needed to do this. He took his quill and a new piece of parchment, and started writing.

Dear Hermione,

I'm sorry that you didn't hear anything from me for the past two weeks. I really don't know what got into me. The only thing I know is that I've been feeling horrible ever since we went to the Department of Mysteries last month. I still feel like it was my fault. What would Sirius have been doing there anyway? Instead of thinking rationally, I stormed out there like a madman and took the five of you with me. All of you could have been killed because of my inabiltity to think clearly. It's true that Kreacher is a nasty piece of work and he's to blame as well for lying to us, but still… I feel responsible for what happened.

A few tears started leaking from Harry's eyes, putting small spots on the brown parchment. It was as if some of the stress and emotion he'd been keeping in for these past few weeks were finally being released, even if it was only a little bit. He couldn't understand why he hadn't written her earlier. But he had to continue.

Again, I'm sorry about not writing you earlier. You did not deserve that. None of you did. It feels like I haven't lived these past few weeks. I'm just sitting in my room all day without much to do, except thinking. The Dursleys don't talk to me, but I guess that isn't such a bad thing. I haven't been outside since we came back from Hogwarts either. But enough about me, what about you? I overheard Madam Pomfrey when we were still at school, and she said the wound you sustained was very nasty. Is your condition still improving?

Thanks for writing to me, Hermione. It means a lot to me, it really does. I don't deserve a friend like you.

See you soon and take care,

Harry

Harry sighed. Writing that letter alone had drained him, but he couldn't stop now. Ron, Ginny, Neville and Luna deserved a letter as well. He wanted to know how Ginny's ankle was and if Ron was feeling all right after the brain attack. And what about Luna? Had Neville already gotten himself a new wand?

By the time he had finished the four letters, the sky outside his window was already getting lighter. For the first time that summer, the mist seemed to have cleared. He could hear birds singing. Harry looked at the clock. Five in the morning. He supposed he could take a nap before Hedwig came back… and within minutes, the exhausted teenage boy was fast asleep.


Yeah, that's right: it's another summer story! Guess I really like this particular time of year… anyway, we're in the summer after fifth year this time around, and this will be my first go at completely rewriting a part of the novels. No trying to get Slughorn back to Hogwarts, no encounter with Malfoy in Diagon Alley and so on. Small details and facts from the novels might be used, however. I hope you'll be with me all the way! If I get even half as much support as I got for Summer Day, I'll be a happy man.

Also, I'll do my best not to use huge and abrupt time skips. I have learned from that mistake after writing the final chapter of my last story, I can remember someone commenting in the reviews that I needed to work on that.

By the way. Obvious Bryan Adams reference is obvious… I'll go and slap myself right now.