Chapter 1
Harry lay on his bed scowling at the ceiling. It was only a week. He could stand a week. He slammed his fist onto the bed and sat up. It was only because he thought that Dumbledore would have wanted him to stay here for a little while that he went back to the Dursley's before Bill and Fleur's wedding. He didn't want to be here and it was only with a thin shred of control that he kept himself from throwing everything he owned into his trunk and leaving.
Standing and going to his window, Harry leaned against the sill and stared outside. It was up to him now. He had to find the rest of the Horcruxes. It was up to him. He looked intently down at the street as a feeling of helplessness overwhelmed him. He was only seventeen… what chance did he really have? He repeated everything Dumbledore had told him in his head, as if to divine any special information out of them. As he was musing, Harry saw a girl walk down the other side of the street. She appeared about his age and was vaguely familiar. She was quite pretty and Harry thought that he should know where he knew her from. She was walking slowly, as if in thought, and her long straight blond hair blew in the slight breeze, wafting behind her hips like the train of a gown. She walked gracefully, swaying slightly as she walked.
Harry frowned and stared down at her, trying to remember. The only place he really could have seen her was Hogwarts, since he didn't get out much around Privet Drive. She was dressed like a perfect Muggle teenager, in stylish jeans and a flattering green t-shirt. But that didn't mean anything. Plenty of people who went to Hogwarts came from a Muggle background and would know how to dress in public. He considered this and started running through everyone he knew at Hogwarts, starting with his own house, Gryffindor. Who could she…"Ah!" Harry exclaimed as he finally remembered. She was in Gryffindor and he had seen her in the common room a couple times, though he didn't know her name. Smiling to himself, he looked at her again to find that she had stopped and was looking curiously at number four. She wasn't going to come up and knock was she? Harry shuddered to think how the Dursely's would react to that. But as he looked she crossed the street and up the walk to the front door.
What was she doing? He didn't even know her name and he didn't think he'd ever even spoken to her before. Harry stood in the middle of the room, ears straining to hear the ring of the doorbell. No, he thought desperately, please no. The doorbell rang. Harry resisted the urge to swear and opened his door to listen to what was certainly going to be an interesting and short conversation.
He heard Uncle Vernon grunt as he got up from reading the newspaper in the living room and go to the door. The door creaked slightly as it was opened and Harry heard a musical voice say, "Hi, are you Mr. Dursely?"
"Yes, what do you want?" Uncle Vernon said, grumpy from being interrupted from his newspaper by a teenage girl.
"I was just wondering if I could speak with a boy I was told lives here, Harry Potter?"
Harry could practically hear Uncle Vernon's face turn purple as he bellowed "No Harry Potter lives here!"
"Oh please?" the voice said fetchingly. "It would only be a few moments, if it makes you uncomfortable."
To Harry's surprise, he didn't hear the door slam.
The voice spoke again, "I promise there won't be any problems."
And even more surprisingly he heard Uncle Vernon grumble, "Well, fine. But make it quick." And he stepped aside to let the young witch in.
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Authors Note: Ok... this is my first fanfic ever so please be kind, though of course constructive criticism is always good. Please R&R :)
