Chapter 1

A week later Harry woke to his aunt banging on his door. Usually, he would be woken by her shrieks to get up and make breakfast. This morning Harry noticed that she sounded more… agitated? No that's not it. He thought. He finally settled on nervous and excited and only then realized what she was saying.

"Get up you!" his aunt shrieked through the door. "It's your seventeenth birthday, get up!" Harry stopped as he sat up, shocked. His aunt and uncle had never remembered his birthday before. He couldn't think of a reason for them to start caring about his birthday much less be happy about it.

"Get up and get to the shower!" his aunt continued. "Those people," her voice sounded as if this description was hardly fitting, "will be hear soon, and they are not to be given the impression you have been mistreated. You better have packed already, and don't you forget anything. Who knows what kind of dangerous things you might have…" her voice trailed off as she went down the stairs.

It took Harry another moment for his brain to work out everything she had said. Of course, he thought to himself as he walked to the bathroom, that's why she's so happy. Dumbledore, and here Harry had to swallow against the lump in his throat. He told them last summer that I would be leaving for good on my seventeenth birthday and going to live at Grimmauld Place. They probably looked it up and marked the calendar as soon as we left, Harry thought bitterly as he showered.

He was of course just as happy to be leaving, as the Dursleys were to see him go. He had been so excited the previous day that no one could have stopped him from packing. He had managed to fit everything into his trunk including Hedwig's cage, but it had been a close fit, even with the charm that Hermione had used at the end of last year. Harry was a little shocked when he realized how much stuff he had obtained in the last six years. Harry dragged the trunk down the stairs just in time to see his aunt step back from the window.

"Ah" was all she said. She looked him over, glancing distastefully at his hair. He seemed to check out though, because she waved him towards the dining room table where a full breakfast had been laid out for him. Harry gratefully ate it without a word to suggest it was out of the ordinary. Mrs. Weasly had written that he was to be picked up in the morning so the breakfast was just another part of making a good impression.

His Uncle Vernon grunted at him as he sat down and slid an envelope towards him across the table. Curious, Harry opened it to find a birthday card with a five pound note inside. He nodded his thanks to Uncle Vernon, who just grunted again as his aunt turned around.

"How will they come to pick you up this time?" She asked sounding a little nervous.

Harry glanced at the fireplace, which had been unblocked for the day, and shrugged. "Probably apparate." He said.

"What's that?" his uncle asked.

"Disappearing from one place and reappearing in another," Harry answered calmly as his uncle's eyes bulged. Aunt Petunia automatically reached for the window shade to close it and stopped.

"Would they be watching the house?" she asked cautiously, a note of panic slipping into her voiced. Harry shrugged again. "Well what's that then?" She asked pointing a shaking finger at the window. Harry looked and felt his jaw drop.

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Hope you enjoyed the beginning. Please review. I'll have the next chapter up soon.