Although Harry had a horrible feeling that it wasn't for him, he picked it up and unrolled it part of the way. just in case it was. His heart sank when he read:
Dear Mr. Dursley......
"It's for you," said Harry flatly, and he flung the letter at Dudley.
Dear Mr. Dursley,
We have just become aware that a Reduction spell was done in your house at forty-three past nine this morning. Although you do have Mr. Harry Potter, an underage wizard, in your household, our sources show that it was not he who performed it, but you.
The letter went on and on for quite some time, but (in other words) this is what it said:
We did not send you a letter when you turned 11 because you are so dumb you didn't show any signs of magic until now. However, you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardy, which your cousin currently attends. Please come to the school with your cousin Harry on September 1st , and we shall perform a spell enabling you to be informed of all that had been taught to the fourth years up to this point.
Enclosed is a list of all the stuff you need for your 5th year. Harry will show you how to get to Diagon Alley.
Sincerely,
Prof. M. McGonagall
Deputy Headmistress
Dudley looked up from the letter, horrified. "But I don't want to be to this - this SCHOOL!!" He looked like he was going to throw a fit.
"But Dudley, dear," said Aunt Petunia, "think of all the wonderful things you can do!"
"You can't do magic while you're underage, remember?" Harry cut in. "I got that letter in my second year."
Dudley's face looked even madder. "It's not FAIR!" he bellowed. "How can I be a-a wizard???"
"Well, you know my sister was a....a.....well, you know...." said Aunt Petunia, turning scarlet.
"But - but -" Dudley struggled for words.
"Er - Harry, Dudley," said Uncle Vernon. "Go upstairs, you two." He looked at Aunt Petunia. "We need to talk."
Harry and Dudley left the kitchen. A silent fight, similar to the one taken place three years ago outside the same door took place. Again, Dudley won, so Harry listened at the crack of the door.
"Well, should we let him go, Vernon?" he could hear Aunt Petunia's worried voice saying.
"We swore we wouldn't have one in the house...." muttered Uncle Vernon. "But what can we do? Really - if the boy has this....abnormality - we should at least make the best of it. We can just tell the neighbors and Smeltings that we put him in a different school. If they ask what school, we'll just tell them to mind there own business. Nosy people...." he muttered some more. "Yes, yes, that's the best thing to do. Maybe he'll learn some spell to help me get more orders for my drills...." he seemed to be thinking up this plan as he went. "Yes - well 'Diagon Alley' - what's on earth's that?"
Harry and Dudley heard his shoes coming towards them, so they shot upstairs as fast as they could, Dudley into his room, Harry into his.
Uncle Vernon walked into Dudley's room, and Harry heard him call, "Er-Harry! Come in here!" It was the first time in quite a while that Harry could recall that his uncle had called him by his first name.
He entered Dudley's room and sat awkwardly on the floor. "Er-" said Uncle Vernon again. "What is this-this Diagon Alley place?"
"Well, it's a place where, um, wizards" (he supposed it was safe to say 'wizard' and 'magic' inside number 4, Privet Drive from now on) "can buy all there supplies. That's where you can get all that stuff for school." He pointed at the letter (and list), which Uncle Vernon still had clutched in his purple fist.
"Well, where is it?" Uncle Vernon snapped.
"It's - well, it's sort of in London," said Harry uncomfortabely.
"What do you mean, sort of in London?" he demanded.
"You - you have to go behind this little pub, and - well, it would be easier to just show you," he admitted.
"Fine," his uncle snapped again. "We can go today. But what about money? We don't have any of this wizard money rubbish."
Fear stole into Harry's heart. If they went to Gringotts' to exchange money, how would Harry get money out of his own safe without the Dursley's seeing? Then he had an idea - Ron. He could explain the situation and ask Ron to get some money out for him.
"There's, um, a bank," Harry said. "You can take some Mug - some normal money there and exchange it."
"All right, then," said Uncle Vernon crisply. "Can you show the way?" He said this grudgingly, as if he hated to ask Harry for any favors.
"I suppose so," said Harry.
And so they went downstairs, Aunt Petunia in tow......