Author Notes— I appreciate that you have chosen to read my story! I have been advisedto reiterate that none of the characters belong to me. Enjoy!

Another Terrible Summer

It was a particularly rainy, humid day. This was not good for Harry Potter, resident magician at Number 4, Private Drive. He sat by his window, which had recently been replaced after loosing a fight with a flying car. The rain made a spack-spack noise as they beat gently but ceaselessly against the glass before his face.

"Hoo-hoot," came the soft musings of Headwig as he contemplated his sorrowful master. Harry looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"I bet you want to go outside, eh, Headwig?" he said to the snow-white owl. Sighing, he returned his gaze to the dark sky and the street with standing water on certain portions of its surface.

What was worse than spending more than a week of the summer inside while it poured down rain was that he had to spend it with his adoptive family, the Dursleys…

"Where's my Smelting Stick?"

"Dudderkins, have you lost something?"

"I can't find my Smelting Stick?"

"What's all the shouting about?"

"I CAN'T FIND MY STICK!"

"Oh, please calm down, Dudderkins! I'll find it!"

There was a sudden pause in the loud conversation. Relieved, Harry removed the pillows from his ears and tossed them back onto the bed. Searching under his bed, he located one of his schoolbooks: Intermediate Spells. Leafing through the pages, he caught the names of a few spells he was to learn over the course of this year; diffindo, glacius, stupefy, and accio were among them.

Suddenly, this rare moment of peace was broken by a loud clamor. "I found my Smelting Stick!" came Dudley Dursley's shout. Not a moment later, there was a great flurry of blows against Harry's wooden door.

When the racket subsided and Dudley skipped away, laughing cheerily to himself, Harry resumed his post by the window. It was turning out to be a very long summer.

The next day, Harry came downstairs to the bellows of Uncle Vernon. He walked to the breakfast table, where he found the Dursleys in their usual summer morning routine Aunt Petunia was going on and on about something the neighbors were up to, while Vernon, not paying any attention at all, went through the mail with disturbing intensity. Dudley was sitting in his seat, his voluminous bottom overflowing over the edges of the chair, staring with equal intensity at the television before his face, which was showing some bizarre, mindless program.

"Oh…" said Vernon with apparent disgust. "This one's for you…" He tossed a gray envelope to his nephew. Harry caught it before it slid over the end of the table and flipped it over slowly. There, in bright crimson wax, was the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry seal.

Harry quickly rushed into the seclusion of the living room and plopped down on the couch. Then, with boundless eagerness, he tore through the top of the envelope and removed the letter that was neatly folded, most likely by magic, within. He read:

Dear Mr. Potter:

I am very pleased to present you with your schedule for the upcoming school year. This year will present you with many new opportunities, most notably the return of the Dueling Club. Please have a parent/guardian sign them.

Sincerely,

Albus Dumbledor

HouseGryffindor

Period 1TransfigurationsMacGonnagal

Period 2History of MagicBen

Period 3Care of Magical CreaturesHagrid

Period 4CharmsFlitwick

Period 5Defense Against the Dark ArtsChiron

Period 6PotionsSnape

Period 7HerbologySprout

Period 8DivinationTrelawney

"I wonder who Professor Chiron is?" thought Harry. The rest of his professors he recognized. For some strange reason, there was a different D.A.D.A. teacher every year at Hogwarts.

The days whittled by slowly, but finally there were three days until Harry's departure for King's Cross. One issue weighed heavily on his mind: could he get a signature for the Dueling Club?

In his second year at Hogwarts, Professors Lockhart and Snape started the Dueling Club, but after numerous incidents followed by Lockhart's memory loss ended the club. Harry wanted to participate this time around.

However, getting the Dursleys to sign anything was a hassle. If it were up to them, Harry would be at Saint Brutus's Academy, being beaten with a wand instead of casting spells with one. He remembered his failure to obtain a signature to allow him to go to Hogsmede. He had gotten around this by donning his invisibility cloak. Somehow, he didn't think he could duel invisibly. This was truly a predicament.

A.N.— Thank you for reading! Please review!