Chapter 1 - Escape from the Dursleys
A green-eyed boy with unruly black hair that appeared as if it had not been combed for decades stared once more at the ceiling -- which was his favorite past time these days. What was there to do? He had already read and reread all the books assigned for the seventh years. His international standard broomstick which everyone fancied was locked safely at Hogwarts and besides, he would not be able to fly here at the Dursleys even if he had it with him.
His life was too dull.
And, no, he refused to dwell on his nightmares during his waking hours. It was enough that he was forced to endure them in his dreams. Sirius was dead...for more than a year now. Even if he continued blaming himself or other people, he wouldn't be back. That cynicism gave him enough strength to carry on ... to be numb from the pain ... to be oblivious of anything else.
His life was too dangerous.
He was like a walking death wish or something. Be friends with him and you would soon find yourself in a very difficult situation -- one that a tiny mistake could cost you your life. Last school year had been hell and he had spent almost a month inside the hospital wing after a very nasty attack at their last Hogsmeade visit. Hermione, Ron, Neville and Ginny also suffered severe injuries although not as bad as his. Not that his friends cared though. They still prefer to be with him even if their lives were at stake. He was the only one who had some qualms about it. His friends were too young with bright futures waiting for them to come. Unlike him. As long as he was breathing, Voldemort would hunt him down unless he was able to do it first.
But he was at a disadvantage. Voldemort knew where he resides. Voldemort knew where he studies. The only thing that prevented him from attacking him was the ancient protection that Dumbledore had placed at his house and the even more ancient protection at Hogwarts. But aside from that, he was quite alone.
He was tired of being cooped up like a prisoner. He could not go anywhere without permission and chaperone -- like a little kid who could not be trusted to go anywhere alone. But he understood. It was for the best interests of everyone.
Unfortunately, he was tired of it all. Come to think of it, he was tired of living his own life. Maybe it was time to escape. Maybe it was time for him to live a normal life for once. To enjoy his youth and be forever rid of those magical stuff which was so much a part of his life but was unluckily tied up with the dangers and innumerable death threats. To hell with his N.E.W.T.s!
But how could he escape. For all he knew, deatheaters were just outside his home...waiting for him to come out alone and unprotected. And what about the Order members who were also guarding him? Where was the smartest witch in his class when you needed her? But of course, Hermione would not approve. She would probably inform Dumbledore about it faster than he could tell her the whole plan. Several Order members would then whisk him off to another hiding place with more watchers that would reduce the probability of his escape to a great extent. No, he could not ask for her help. What about Ron? He was another great friend but not as smart as Hermione. He was good at strategies, though.
He'd better do this alone. It was not fair to involve others in what Hermione would call a foolish endeavor. It would simply complicate matters more. Besides, he was already seventeen. He was allowed to do magic outside of school and the ministry would not be able to track him down through their device that detects underage use of magic.
Just then, he heard the loud rantings of his Uncle Vernon which, for him, was his normal way of speaking.
"GET DOWN HERE, BOY, AND PACK YOUR STUFF! WE'RE LEAVING!"
He curiously went down and saw the enormous travelling bags being carried into the car by his even more enormous cousin Dudley.
"Where are we going, Uncle Vernon?" he asked.
"WE'RE GOING TO VISIT MARGE AND WE'RE NOT LEAVING YOU HERE TO RUIN OUR HOUSE!" his uncle roared back.
"Can't I just stay here? I promise that the house would be the same as it was when you come back." said Harry anxiously. Visiting his aunt Marge might be more hellish than staying here and being with her might just trigger him to do accidental magic again and in his world, using magic in front of muggles was usually frowned upon..
"NO! AND THAT'S FINAL! I DON'T WANT YOUR --- YOUR LOT TO GO BARGING IN US AND CLAIM THAT WE'VE BEEN MALTREATING YOU!" yelled Uncle Vernon and his face were already turning purple with his abnormal temper.
Harry started to argue but then he changed he mind. Was he stupid? This was his chance to escape! As fast as the wind, he ran back to his bedroom, stuffed all his necessities inside his trunk and shrunk it so that it would fit his pockets. Then he packed some muggle clothes in a small travelling bag for effect and he carefully hid the invisibility cloak on one of its larger side compartments where he could reach it easily when the need arises. Of course, his wand was tucked neatly inside his back pocket for easy access. Moody might be right in saying that some wizards had lost their buttocks that way but he was not about to risk their safety by hiding it anywhere else. He let out Hedwig from his cage and instructed him to just discreetly follow them from a distance.
He heard the roaring of the car's engine and quickly headed downstairs. His aunt and uncle were already giving him nasty glances as he slid at the backseat beside his cousin who was holding his guitar sideways. It did not leave him enough space to sit on but he could live with that. What he couldn't take was the ear-splitting sound from Dudley's mediocre strumming. Harry had fiddled with his guitar when they were all out and even to his untrained ears, he knew he sounded better. He looked at his aunt and uncle, hoping that they also find the noise repulsive enough to order him to stop but they seemed to find his music soothing to their ears.
"You know, mum, there's a really neat band in town and me and my friends are going to form one. I just knew we would be great." said Dudley enthusiastically in between his offensive guitar playing. Harry rolled his eyes at that.
"Really, son, but do you think you could still fit that in your heavy schedule? I mean, you have boxing matches and you still have your studies to think about." said Aunt Petunia mildly.
"Don't worry, mum. I could manage. Besides, we could be rich and famous through our music. Wouldn't you like that?" said Dudley in his usual charming manner. He knew he would get his way.
"Yeah, right." grumbled Harry but thankfully, nobody heard him.
"That's my boy! Aim for that top, I say. Not like some people I know who has no ambition at all aside from learning pathetic magic tricks." leered Uncle Vernon at Harry, leaving everyone with no doubt to the identity of the person he was referring to.
'My pathetic magic tricks would be your salvation some day.' Harry wanted to say but he kept his mouth shut instead. There was just no sense in arguing with these sick people.
Uncle Vernon suddenly put on the brakes and Harry pulled out his wand instantaneously, thinking that there was some danger ahead.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING, YOU STUPID BOY?" yelled Uncle Vernon, his eyes flashing angrily at his wand. "WE'RE JUST GOING TO GRAB A QUICK LUNCH!"
"Oh, sorry." said Harry apologetically and hid his wand again.
"Now, listen to me, boy. That's a public restaurant out there and I don't want you to embarrass my whole family in front of that crowd. Do you hear me?" said his uncle while glaring menacingly at him.
"Yes, Uncle Vernon." agreed Harry but his mind was quickly planning his escape route once they were inside the restaurant. For sure, there's a back door there or something. Almost all restaurant have that.
Harry was the last to emerge from the car and no one noticed when he shrunk his other bag and stuffed it inside his left pocket. Whistling softly to himself, he followed the three inside the crowded dining place.
Their meal was a very pleasant one -- meaning no arguments and distasteful references to Harry's parents or his magical abilities. But maybe it was just due to Vernon's nonstop chatter about his work and Aunt Petunia's endless commentary about their neighbor's shocking love life. Harry and Dudley just pretended to listen to them to keep them happy. Finally, when the meal was over, Harry politely excused himself to go to the bathroom. There, he pulled out the bag where his invisibility cloak was hidden, took out the cloak, shrunk the bag once more and placed it back to its previous location.
Then he waited patiently for someone to open the door for him. It would simply be disastrous if the door would open all by itself. A few minutes later, two seemingly drunk persons entered the bathroom. There was no mistaking the acrid odor of liquor and cigarette that lingered on their bodies. Both had small tribal tattoos on their right hands and looked about three or four years older than himself. One of them went straight to the toilet to puke and the other one carefully guarded the door. Harry felt like hexing the one person who was hindering his escape but he decided to be cool about it instead.
"You gotta pull yourself together, man. We got a show to pull off tonight remember?" said the one guarding the door.
"I can't do it, man. I'm pissed off. Marge's dumped me because of our stupid band!" said the other who was currently throwing up at the nearest toilet bowl.
"Stupid?!? Our band? That bitch - who does she think she is?"
"Only the girl of my dreams, Chuck, and I couldn't take it. She wanted me to drop from the band because we're no good. She said we couldn't even get the third place at the Battle of the Bands and we don't look like real rockers at all."
"Damn her! Not all rockers need to have long hairs. That's stereotyping! We are unique remember? We're not like the other bands." Chuck swore under his breath before he continued. "So you're dropping because of her?!? After all we've been through? We've been in this band for ages and you only met her a few weeks ago. You need to sort our your priorities, Billy, I'm outta here." said the door guardian angrily and opened the door violently.
Harry almost fell sorry for the man but he seized the opportunity and quickly stepped out. The one called Billy seemed to break off from his reverie and hurried to follow his companion.
"Wait, Chuck, I think I just need more time to think that's all.
Chuck turned around and gave him a genuine smile. "Now you're talking, man. Come on."
Harry found himself following the two despite his earlier misgivings. There was something definitely intriguing about them and to be honest, he was plainly curious about how bad their music was to make that -- that Marge dump Billy. Marge... hmm...such a coincidence! He wondered if all the Marge's in this world were that narrow-minded.
Before they reached the exit, Harry risked a glance to their table and was not surprised to see that his relatives had left without even looking for him. 'Glad to be rid of me, I suppose.' he thought matter-of-factly. 'I'm on my own now.'
He continued to follow the two and was relieved to find that their means of transportation was big enough to accommodate him without them being the wiser. He hastily sneaked into the back door of the van when they were not looking.
"Let's show them what we're made of and if that bitch still would not budge then I'm sorry to say mate but I don't think she's worth it." said Chuck in a serious tone as they both entered the vehicle.
Harry silently agreed. What self-respecting woman would base her love life on how their band played their music?
"Hey, Matt, all set?" said Chuck to the one driving the van.
"Yeah, I'm nervous, though. This is our first real performance after the Battle of the Bands." replied Matt. He looked about the same age as the other two and Harry noticed that he also had the same tribal tattoo on his right hand. Whoever Marge was, she was right. The three did not really look like the typical rockers with long hairs and pale faces with glazed expressions. They did not even wear black leather jackets and skull necklaces. They seemed ordinary.
Finally, the ride was over and the three opened the back door hastily to get their equipments. Harry watched expectantly as the three struggled to set up the stage in preparation for the show. but he carefully stayed out of the way to avoid tripping on the tangled loops of cords and extension on the stage that connected the electric guitars, amplifiers and other stuff. When all was set, he settled on one vacant chair near the stage and prepared to listen.
"Ladies and gentlemen, may I present to you ---- VOLDIE'S DOWNFALL!!!!" shouted the emcee and everyone broke into a welcoming applause.
Harry nearly fell down his seat in disbelief. 'Where the hell did they get that name?'