***Disclaimer: Anything/anyone you recognize from the 'Harry Potter' books is J.K. Rowling's. The plot is mine and anything/anyone you don't recognize is mine also!***

            Summer had never been better for Harry Potter, as he sat on his bed and looked contentedly at the three birthday cards that be had received.  For one thing, the Dursleys had almost stopped treating him like he was a disgusting bug that they wanted to squish; and for another, it was only two weeks until he returned to Hogwarts.  He had received cards from one of his best friends: Hermione Granger, Hagrid, and Dobby.  Along with their cards, Harry had received a new homework planner from Hermione, a bundle of oddly colored and shaped pies and sweets from Hagrid, and a pair of socks from Dobby (one was blue with dragons magically flying around on it, while the other was black with orange jack-o-lanterns gleaming on it).

            He placed the three cards on his bedside table and frowned at them.  For some odd reason he hadn't gotten a birthday card from his other best friend, Ron Weasley.  He got up and crossed his bedroom over to the window and looked out into the night, as though expecting to see some sign of an owl flying towards him bearing a note from Ron.  He wasn't upset about not getting a card or present, he had spent too many years with the Dursleys to care about that, but he hadn't heard from Ron all summer.

            And as though his thoughts had made it come, a shape emerged in the distance and as it passed over one of the street-lamps, Harry saw that it was Errol, the Weasley family owl, accompanied by Pig, Ron's owl.  Errol soared inside and collapsed onto Harry's bed, but Pig, trying to fly free of his burden, managed to lift the package up three inches, before he fell back with a thud.  Errol was very old, and long journeys usually tired him, so Harry untied the package on the owls' leg and helped Errol up to his snowy owl, Hedwig's, empty cage, where the owl hooted gratefully and began to sip some water.  Pig, meanwhile, attempted to zoom around the room, but only accomplished knocking over a lamp.

            Praying that the Dursleys hadn't heard the crash of his lamp, he quickly went back over to his bed and began to unwrap the package from Ron.  Inside, it contained a note:

Harry-

            How's your summer going?  I'm having a great summer here in London. Hermione's coming to stay today.  Sorry that I haven't written to you all summer, but Dumbledore doesn't want too many owls going in and out...you know what I mean?

            Mum wants you to come and stay here with us, but we don't know how to get you here.  Lupin reckons you should take the Knight Bus.  What do you think of Tuesday at about 7pm?  If the muggles will let you, then write back and I'll meet you on the Knight Bus Tuesday in front of your Aunt and Uncle's house.  If the muggles won't let you, then write back and I'll meet you on the Knight Bus Tuesday in front of your Aunt and Uncle's house, anyway.

            Hope you like the present and I'll see you on Tuesday.

-Ron

            Harry was sure that his Aunt and Uncle would let him go, they would be quite happy to get rid of him early.  So, he scribbled a note to Ron saying that he would check with his uncle, rolled up the parchment, and attached it to Pig's leg.  Then, he went over to Errol and sent him off through the open window along with Pig.

            Next, he turned to his presents.  Ron had given him a handsome watch, which not only told him the time, but the date, temperature, and the percent of magic that was in the atmosphere.  It now read 4.24%.  Mrs. Weasley, on the other hand, had given him a large box that contained some of her home-made mince pies along with some sweets of all varieties.  Feeling grateful that he would have something sweet to sustain him through Dudley's diet for the next two days, he hid the lot under the loose floorboard under his bed.

            Harry put Ron's card with the rest, sat down on his bed and looked at them.  Never in his life had he felt so happy to be a part of a group of people who cared for him…especially now that Sirius was gone.  He knew that he had all of those friends who looked forward to seeing him in two days time and it made him feel really good.  He slumped down onto his pillows and immediately fell to sleep.