Nearly ten years had passed since the Dursleys had woken up to find their nephew and a baby girl on the front step, but Privet Drive had hardly changed at all. The sun rose on the same tidy front gardens and lit up the brass number four on the Dursleys' front door; it crept into their living room, which was almost exactly the same as it had been on the night when Mr. Dursley had seen that fateful news report about the owls. Only the photographs on the mantelpiece really showed how much time had passed. Ten years ago, there had been lots of pictures of what looked like a large pink beach ball wearing different-colored bonnets - but Dudley Dursley was no longer a baby, and now the photographs showed a large blond boy riding his first bicycle, on a carousel at the fair, playing a computer game with his father, being hugged and kissed by his mother. The room held no sign at all that another boy and girl lived in the house, too.

Yet Harry Potter and Siri Black was still there, asleep at the moment, but not for long. Aunt Petunia, which Siri was also forced to call he that, was awake and it was her shrill voice that made the first noise of the day. A noise witch drove Siri insane!

"Up! Get up! Now!"

The

Harry woke with a start. His aunt rapped on the door again.

"Up!" she screeched. Harry heard her walking toward the kitchen and then the sound of the frying pan being put on the stove. He rolled onto his back and tried to remember the dream he had been having. It had been a good one. There had been a flying motorcycle in it. He had a funny feeling he'd had the same dream before. He then turned round and shook Siri - who was some how still asleep. Blearily, she opened her eyes and turned to face Harry in the bed they shared. " morning" she greeted her voice still laced with sleep.

Their aunt was back outside the door.

"Are you up yet?" she demanded.

"Nearly," said Harry as Siri sat up rubbing her sleep filled eyes.

"Well, get a move on, I want you to look after the bacon. And don't you dare let it burn, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday."

Harry groaned and Siri rolled on to her back in disbelief.

"What did you say?" his aunt snapped through the door.

"Nothing, nothing..."

Dudley's birthday - how could they have forgotten? Harry got slowly out of bed and started looking for socks. He found a pair under the bed along with Siri's, after pulling a spider off one of them, he put them on. Harry and Siri were used to spiders, because the cupboard under the stairs was full of them, and that was where they slept slept cramped together on a small single. Siri soon followed as she did not wish to feel her aunts rage.

When they were dressed they went down the hall into the kitchen, Siri stumbling behind as she was clearly not a morning person. The table was almost hidden beneath all Dudley's birthday presents. It looked as though Dudley had gotten the new computer he wanted, not to mention the second television and the racing bike. Exactly why Dudley wanted a racing bike was a mystery to both Harry and Siri, as Dudley was very fat and hated exercise - unless of course it involved punching somebody. Dudley's favorite punching bag used to be Harry, but he couldn't often catch him and stopped shortly after Siri punched him in face, she got in so much trouble for that but it was worth it. Harry didn't look it, but he was very fast. Siri could also be gas but she preferred not to run unless she had to.

Perhaps it had something to do with living in a dark cupboard, but Harry had always been small and skinny for his age. He looked even smaller and skinnier than he really was because all he had to wear were old clothes of Dudley's, and Dudley was about four times bigger than he was. Harry had a thin face, knobbly knees, black hair, and bright green eyes. He wore round glasses held together with a lot of Scotch tape because of all the times Dudley had punched him on the nose.

Siri also had dark locks but they grew into bouncy curls, she had plump pink lips and high cheek bones, along with a slightly curved figure that was bound to keep growing. Her bright blue eyes also shown with hidden humour that only Harry had the pleasure of hearing. The only thing Harry liked about his own appearance was a very thin scar on his forehead that was shaped like a bolt of lightning, Siri had this too. He had had it as long as he could remember, and the first question he could ever remember asking his Aunt Petunia was how he had gotten it.

"In the car crash when both your parents died," she had said. "And don't ask questions."

Don't ask questions - that was the first rule for a quiet life with the Dursleys. Unfortunately Siri loved to ask questions and often got in trouble for doing so.

Uncle Vernon entered the kitchen as Harry was turning over the bacon and Siri pored fresh orange juice to the jungle of a family.

"Comb your hair!" he barked, by way of a morning greeting. Siri mocked him as he turned to the table casing Harry to chuckle before turning back to the bacon.

About once a week, Uncle Vernon looked over the top of his newspaper and shouted that Harry needed a haircut. Harry must have had more haircuts than the rest of the boys in his class put together, but it made no difference, his hair simply grew that way - all over the place. They had tried to get Siri to cut her hair too but she had put up such a fuss, kicking and screaming on the way to the hair dressers.

Harry was frying eggs and Siri was taking tomatoes out the the time Dudley arrived in the kitchen with his mother. Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small, watery blue eyes, and thick blond hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head. Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel - Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig, Siri just decided he was too ugly to be allowed on the planet and should be exiled...immediately!

Siri took the last of the tomatoes and sausages from the oven and lightly bumped Harry on the leg as she saunter into the lounge. Harry put the plates of egg and bacon on the table, which was difficult as there wasn't much room. Dudley, meanwhile, was counting his presents. His face fell. Siri grimaced, she knew what was coming and it wasn't going to be pretty.

"Thirty-six," he said, looking up at his mother and father with his piggy eyes. "That's two less than last year."

"Darling, you haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's here under this big one from Mummy and Daddy." They tried to pacify him like one does to toddler.

"All right, thirty-seven then," said Dudley, going red in the face. Harry, who could see a huge Dudley tantrum coming on, began wolfing down his bacon as fast as possible in case Dudley turned the table over. Siri soon joined him not wanting to waste her bacon, bacon was life.

Aunt Petunia obviously scented danger, too, because she said quickly, "And we'll buy you another two presents while we're out today. How's that, popkin? Two more presents. Is that all right" it was sicking watching parents scared of there own children.

Dudley thought for a moment. It looked like hard work. Finally he said slowly, "So I'll have thirty... thirty..."

Harry and Siri shared a knowing look. Dudley was thick and it was debatable if he even had a brain.

"Thirty-nine, sweetums," said Aunt Petunia.

"Oh." Dudley sat down heavily and grabbed the nearest parcel. "All right then."

Uncle Vernon chuckled. He was proud of his obese, greedy and spoilt child.

"Little tyke wants his money's worth, just like his father. 'Atta boy, Dudley!" He ruffled Dudley's hair.

At that moment the telephone rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it while Harry, Siri and Uncle Vernon watched Dudley unwrap the racing bike, a video camera, a remote control airplane, sixteen new computer games, and a VCR. He was ripping the paper off a gold wristwatch when Aunt Petunia came back from the telephone looking both angry and worried.

"Bad news, Vernon," she said. "Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take him or the girl." She jerked her head in Their direction.

Dudley's mouth fell open in horror, but Harry's heart gave a leap. Siri just grinned. Every year on Dudley's birthday, his parents took him and a friend out for the day, to adventure parks, hamburger restaurants, or the movies. Every year, They were left behind with Mrs. Figg, a mad old lady who lived two streets away. Harry hated it there. The whole house smelled of cabbage and Mrs. Figg made him look at photographs of all the cats she'd ever owned. Siri just hated the cats, they made her cringe.

"Now what?" said Aunt Petunia, looking furiously at them as though they had planned this. Siri couldn't care less about Mrs fight, as she made her feel on edge as though there was something not quiet right with knew he ought to feel sorry that Mrs. Figg had broken her leg, but it wasn't easy when he reminded himself it would be a whole year before he had to look at Tibbles, Snowy, Mr. Paws, and Tufty again.

"We could phone Marge," Uncle Vernon suggested.

"Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates the them."

"Feeling mutual" whispered Harry so that only Siri could hear. She grinned back in response.

The Dursleys often spoke about Harry and Siri like this, as though they weren't there - or rather, as though they were something very nasty that couldn't understand them, like a slug. This always made them agitated, they were people thank you very much!

"What about what's-her-name, your friend - Yvonne?"

"On vacation in Majorca," snapped Aunt Petunia.

"You could just leave us here," Harry put in hopefully (they would be able to watch what they wanted on television for a change and maybe even have a go on Dudley's computer).

Aunt Petunia looked as though she'd just swallowed a lemon.

"And come back and find the house in ruins?" she snarled.

"I won't blow up the house," said Harry, but they weren't listening. Even though it was more likely that Siri would be the one to do so.

"I suppose we could take them to the zoo," said Aunt Petunia slowly, "... and leave him in the car..."

"That car's new, he's not sitting in it alone..."

"We're hardly going to break a cat" Argued Siri only to be the recipient of a sharpe glare.

Dudley began to cry loudly. In fact, he wasn't really crying - it had been years since he'd really cried - but he knew that if he screwed up his face and wailed, his mother would give him anything he wanted.

"Dinky Duddydums, don't cry, Mummy won't let them spoil your special day!" she cried, flinging her arms around him.

"I... don't... want... Them... t-t-to come!" Dudley yelled between huge, pretend sobs. "He always sp-spoils everything! And she's horrible!" He shot Harry a nasty grin through the gap in his mother's arms only to stop once he noticed Siri glowering back at him.

Just then, the doorbell rang - "Oh, good Lord, they're here!" said Aunt Petunia frantically - and a moment later, Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkiss, walked in with his mother. Piers was a scrawny boy with a face like a rat. He was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs while Dudley hit them. He also tried to kiss Siri claiming that she was his girlfriend, he regretted that. Dudley stopped pretending to cry at once.

Half an hour later, Harry and Siri, who couldn't believe their luck, were sitting in the back of the Dursleys' car with Piers and Dudley, on the way to the zoo for the first time in his life. Their aunt and uncle hadn't been able to think of anything else to do with them, but before they'd left, Uncle Vernon had taken both of them aside.

"I'm warning you," he had said, putting his large purple face right up close to Harry's Siri tenses incase he tried anything, "I'm warning you now, boy - any funny business, anything at all - and you'll be in that cupboard from now until Christmas. That goes for you to girl!"

"I'm not going to do anything," said Harry, "honestly..."

Siri just stood, she knew it was no use.

But Uncle Vernon didn't believe him. No one ever did.

The problem was, strange things often happened around them and it was just no good telling the Dursleys they didn't make them happen.

Once, Aunt Petunia, tired of Harry coming back from the barbers looking as though he hadn't been at all, had taken a pair of kitchen scissors and cut his hair so short he was almost bald except for his bangs, which she left "to hide that horrible scar." Dudley had laughed himself silly at Harry, who spent a sleepless night next toe Siri imagining school the next day, where he was already laughed at for his baggy clothes and taped glasses. Next morning, however, he had gotten up to find his hair exactly as it had been before Aunt Petunia had sheared it off. He had been given a week in his cupboard for this, even though he had tried to explain that he couldn't explain how it had grown back so quickly.

Another time, Aunt Petunia had been trying to force Siri into a revolting old sweater of Dudley's (brown with orange puff balls). The harder she tried to pull it over her head, the smaller it seemed to become, until finally it might have fitted a hand puppet, but certainly wouldn't fit Siri. Aunt Petunia had decided it must have shrunk in the wash and, to her great relief, Siri wasn't punished.

On the other hand, he'd gotten into terrible trouble for being found on the roof of the school kitchens. Dudley's gang had been chasing him as usual when, as much to Harry's surprise as anyone else's, there he was sitting on the chimney. The Dursleys had received a very angry letter from Harry's headmistress telling them Harry had been climbing school buildings. But all he'd tried to do (as he shouted at Uncle Vernon through the locked door of his cupboard) was jump behind the big trash cans outside the kitchen doors. Harry supposed that the wind must have caught him in mid-jump.

But today, nothing was going to go wrong. It was even worth being with Dudley and Piers to be spending the day somewhere that wasn't school, their cupboard, or Mrs. Figg's cabbage-smelling living room.

While he drove, Uncle Vernon complained to Aunt Petunia. He liked to complain about things: people at work, Harry, the council, Siri, the bank, and Harry were just a few of his favorite subjects. This morning, it was motorcycles.

"... roaring along like maniacs, the young hoodlums," he said, as a motorcycle overtook them.

"I had a dream about a motorcycle," said Harry, remembering suddenly. "It was flying."

Siri nudged him, but the damage had be done.

Uncle Vernon nearly crashed into the car in front. He turned right around in his seat and yelled at Harry, his face like a gigantic beet with a mustache: "MOTORCYCLES DON'T FLY!"

Dudley and Piers sniggered.

"I know they don't," said Harry. "It was only a dream."

But he wished he hadn't said anything. If there was one thing the Dursleys hated even more than his asking questions, it was them talking about anything acting in a way it shouldn't, no matter if it was in a dream or even a cartoon - they seemed to think they might get dangerous ideas, not that Siri didn't already have them.

It was a very sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded with families. The Dursleys bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice creams at the entrance and then, because the smiling lady in the van had asked Harry and Siri what he wanted before they could hurry him away, they bought them a cheap lemon ice pop. It wasn't bad, either, Harry thought, licking it as they watched a gorilla scratching its head who looked remarkably like Dudley, except that it wasn't blond. Siri however disagreed declaring quietly to Harry that the gorilla was way to smart to be Dudley.

They had the best morning they had in a long time. They was careful to walk a little way apart from the Dursleys so that Dudley and Piers, who were starting to get bored with the animals by lunchtime, wouldn't fall back on their favorite hobby of hitting him. This also allowed them to talk quietly amongst them selves, this was what they loved, their ability to talk about any thing and everything without ever getting bored of each other .They ate in the zoo restaurant, and when Dudley had a tantrum because his knickerbocker glory didn't have enough ice cream on top, Uncle Vernon bought him another one and They were allowed to finish the first.

Harry felt, afterward, that he should have known it was all too good to last. Siri who didn't allow her hopes to get up so much was not very surprised.

After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man-crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can - but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep.

Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils.

"Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge.

"Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on.

"This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away.

Harry moved in front of the tank and looked intently at the snake. He wouldn't have been surprised if it had died of boredom itself - no company except stupid people drumming their fingers on the glass trying to disturb it all day long. It was worse than having a cupboard as a bedroom, where the only visitor was Siri and Aunt Petunia hammering on the door to wake you up; at least he got to visit the rest of the house.

The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes. Slowly, very slowly, it raised its head until its eyes were on a level with their eyes.

It winked.

Harry stared. Then he looked quickly around to see if anyone was watching. They weren't. He then looked a Siri who also seemed looked back at the snake and winked, too.

The snake jerked its head toward Uncle Vernon and Dudley, then raised its eyes to the ceiling. It gave them a look that said quite plainly:

"I get that all the time."

"I know," Harry murmured through the glass, though he wasn't sure the snake could hear him. "It must be really annoying."

"Most be horrible to live with it" commented Siri, who was also doubtful that snake could hear them.

The snake nodded vigorously.

"Where do you come from, anyway?" Harry asked.

The snake jabbed its tail at a little sign next to the glass. Both of them peered at it.

Boa Constrictor, Brazil.

"Was it nice there?" Asked Siri, who was desperate to see different countries.

The boa constrictor jabbed its tail at the sign again and they read on: This specimen was bred in the zoo. "Oh, I see - so you've never been to Brazil?"

As the snake shook its head, a deafening shout behind Harry made both of them jump. "DUDLEY! MR. DURSLEY! COME AND LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!"

Dudley came waddling toward them as fast as he could.

"Out of the way, you," he said, punching Harry in the ribs. Caught by surprise, Harry fell hard on the concrete floor, taking Siri with him in an domino affect. What came next happened so fast no one saw how it happened - one second, Piers and Dudley were leaning right up close to the glass, the next, they had leapt back with howls of horror.

Harry and Siri sat up and gasped; the glass front of the boa constrictor's tank had vanished. The great snake was uncoiling itself rapidly, slithering out onto the floor. People throughout the reptile house screamed and started running for the exits.

As the snake slid swiftly past them, Harry could have sworn a low, hissing voice said, "Brazil, here I come... Thanksss, amigo."

The keeper of the reptile house was in shock.

"But the glass," he kept saying, "where did the glass go?"

The zoo director himself made Aunt Petunia a cup of strong, sweet tea while he apologized over and over again. Piers and Dudley could only gibber. As far as they had seen, the snake hadn't done anything except snap playfully at their heels as it passed, but by the time they were all back in Uncle Vernon's car, Dudley was telling them how it had nearly bitten off his leg, while Piers was swearing it had tried to squeeze him to death. But worst of all, for them at least, was Piers calming down enough to say, "they were talking to it, weren't you?"

Uncle Vernon waited until Piers was safely out of the house before starting on them. He was so angry he could hardly speak. He managed to say, "Go - cupboard - stay - no meals," before he collapsed into a chair, and Aunt Petunia had to run and get him a large brandy.

They lay together in his dark cupboard much later, Harry wishing he had a watch while Siri was asleep on his chest. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, they

couldn't risk sneaking to the kitchen for some food.

They had lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as each of them could remember, ever since they had been a baby and their parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died and neither could Siri. Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead. This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. Siri too had the same vision yet couldn't quiet place where it had come from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions. There were no photographs of them in the house. It was the same for Siri, they knew she wasn't related to him but that was it.

When they had been younger, They had dreamed and dreamed of some unknown relation coming to take him away, but it had never happened; the Dursleys were his only family and it was assumed that Siri had no other family. They used to make up games inbetween gardening and would pretend to be rescued, but it was just that, games. Yet sometimes they thought (or maybe it was foolish hope) that strangers in the street seemed to know them. Very strange strangers they were, too. A tiny man in a violet top hat had bowed to them once while out shopping with Aunt Petunia and Dudley. After asking Harry and Siri furiously if they knew the man, Aunt Petunia had rushed them out of the shop without buying anything. A wild-looking old woman dressed all in green had waved merrily at the both of them once on a bus. A bald man in a very long purple coat had actually shaken both their hand in the street the other day and then walked away without a word. The weirdest thing about all these people was the way they seemed to vanish the second they tried to get a closer look.

At school, they had no one except each other . Everybody knew that Dudley's gang hated that odd Harry Potter and Siri Black in their baggy old clothes and broken glasses, and nobody liked to disagree with Dudley's gang.