A/N: Please vote on my poll, also my story recommendation for this chapter is A Slytherin Black Sheep by Lyta Padfoot.
"And Take That's Back for Good is still number one, with Sweet Child of Mine by Guns and Roses taking second place in the charts," said the newsreader in a rather monotonous voice.
Harry Potter wasn't your average teenager. Lying on his aunts garden underneath the living room window so he might get a snippet of news from 'his world', his head was filled with thoughts of not girls and music but dark lords and spells.
His aunt had forbidden him to watch the news, apart from the fact she didn't want to be disturbed by Harry, she also thought it unnatural for him to be interested in such things, stating that Dudley didn't even know who the prime minister was. This wasn't a great shock to Harry, as Dudley was one of the least intelligent people around. However as a wizard, and the saviour of the wizarding world at that, he was desperate for news of his world, be it bad or good, as he was in isolation with his muggle relatives.
Just as it seemed like there was nothing interesting or worth listening to, and he might be wasting his time lying on the rather uncomfortable ground, a light bulb went off in his head. The news had just given him a very good idea.
Concentrating hard to hear the newsreaders dull voice from the open window, he could just about distinguish the story. It seemed that someone accused of being guilty had gone directly to the police station to prove their innocence. They were successful in doing so.
When listening, his godfather came to mind. Sirius Black was wrongfully accused of betraying his parents, after being framed by Peter Pettigrew and consequently he spent over a decade in Azkaban. Of course, Sirius couldn't go straight to the ministry, if he did then he would most likely be given the Dementors kiss straight away by a Fudge lackey. How they called themselves a government, he really didn't know. In the muggle world they would never let a government be so corrupt.
Noticing his aunt stand up to draw the blinds, he realized the news must be over, indeed, a talk show was starting. As quickly as he could, he got up and out of the flowerbeds before his Aunt saw him in the position he was in. it would only cause unnecessary questions, the answers to which she wouldn't like.
Walking into the house, he hoped to avoid the expected confrontation, yet he didn't. With the normal disgusted look on her face, his aunt said - "What are you doing? Where have you been?"
Harry tried to think of a good explanation. Saying nothing would only prove to make his aunt even madder, and telling the truth would be even worse, no doubt she would think it was unnatural or freakish. Something simple would probably be better; it was always better to not say too much when it came to the Dursleys. "Erm," muttered Harry. "I went to the park." Hopefully that was alright for his Aunt, and she probably couldn't relate it to magic at all.
"Hmm," snorted Aunt Petunia. "Dinner is gong to served in a few minutes, you can wash the dishes up after we've eaten."
"Okay," said Harry admitting defeat and heading up the stairs to his room. He really wasn't in the mood to argue, more the mood to plan.
After washing up, he went back downstairs and sat at the table for a rather awkward meal. After pushing a piece of lasagne around his plate for ten minutes, he stood up and washed the dishes. The Dursleys all got up and left to do their various things, for Dudley, this mainly involved eating a lot of sweets and watching TV for hours on end.
He needed a walk, some time to organise his thoughts and after his aunts screamed protests that he had already been out, and wasn't that enough, he decided there was something wrong with her. She had been a lot more high strung than normal, and he wouldn't put it past a wizard to be behind it, even if they had meant well. A few minutes of walking and contemplating everything followed, from the mundane such as if Hermione and Ron really did have feelings for each other like everyone said, to the life changing like the recent confrontation with Voldemort at the graveyard.
Soon, he found himself at the local park and sat down on a bench, watching some little children play, all the while wishing that his life was as simple as theirs, as carefree.
"You beat him up good, Big D," laughed a voice Harry recognised as Piers Polkiss, one of the teenagers constantly following Dudley around in his little gang. Rolling his eyes inwardly, he wondered what little kid they had been terrorizing today.
Dudley's gang made their way over to Harry, recognising him.
"Yes?" asked Harry in his best sarcastic voice.
"Why's he so weird?" Harry heard a dumb looking kid ask Dudley.
"You don't want to know," replied Dudley with what he thought was a knowledgeable look. Harry had to try incredibly hard not to laugh at this.
"Humph," snorted the boy who had asked Dudley the question, not looking impressed.
"Always has been a freak," added Piers rather unhelpfully, who never had liked Harry, especially since the snake incident at the zoo, just before Harry started Hogwarts.
Harry got up, bored of them and not in the mood to retaliate. Deciding to go back to the Dursleys (he had always thought of Hogwarts as home, ever since he started there), he started to walk back in the twilight.
Glancing behind himself, he saw Dudley a short distance behind. However, he had no chance to say anything, because he was suddenly enveloped with a familiar horribly cold feeling. The feeling of Dementors…