When Harry was half way down, he waved his wand and a black broom appeared in his hand. He promptly mounted the broom and shot up like a bullet, doing spins and loops and even doing a cartwheel on his broom. This was the most carefree and reckless any of them had seen Harry, ever.
"Blimey mate, you almost gave me a heart attack," Ron complained when Harry flew level with him.
"Hey, it's not my fault, I just have a flair for the dramatics," he answered back after a minute of laughter.
"I know one thing about our third year, Slytherin is going to win the Cup," came Dudley's response once Harry's laughter had subsided.
The twins and Percy had flown up to them and the former wore matching grins on their faces.
"I see- we have- another prankster- among us."
"I'm not the only prankster, Dudley used to be one, even Draco Malfoy enjoys a prank or two. Who do you think did the prank love letter from McGonagall to Dumbledore?"
At the revelation that the son of someone their father hated was a prankster like them, and even responsible for their favourite prank in memory, they looked at Draco in a new light.
After talking for a minute more they began to play Quidditch. Due to the low number of players they would have 2 keepers and 2 teams of chasers. Fred and Ron were chosen as the keepers and so the teams were George and Harry vs Dudley and Percy.
The game started off slow, but picked up pace as Dudley and Percy managed to score a goal past Fred, which then kicked off Harry's and George's competitive sides. As they flew next to one another they schemed a plan, using what little they knew about the others' play style. This coordination put Percy and Dudley at a swift disadvantage as they scored three goals in fifteen minutes.
Dudley called for a time out after the score was 3-1 and started to try to make a plan with Percy. Just as the time out was over they had a small idea of just how to win.
The match resumed and, after another goal from Harry, the two boys put their plan into motion as Percy grabbed the ball and sped off to the other side of the field then, as George went to take possession of the Quaffle, passed it to Dudley. This caused George to change course and Harry to fly between his cousin and the goal posts, exactly what they wanted, as Dudley passed back to Percy, who took his shot, and he scored.
This began a turn in their luck as the score quickly reached 4-3, then 4-6, and finally ending up with a victory for Dudley and Percy with a score of 7-8.
The two boys celebrated their victory and their respective families were proud of them.
"Good game," Harry called over to Dudley as they landed. While on the way to dinner, the shouts from Mrs Weasley about it were what ended the game, Percy approached Harry and tried to give him the broom back now that the game was over. Harry looked confused for a moment before realisation lit up in his eyes.
"The broom is yours, Percy, I didn't know if you'd want it so I was going to wait until you showed interest or when we were leaving." Harry reassured Percy that he didn't need to pay anything for it and he saw his eyes brighten a bit, little did Harry know that that light in Percy's eyes hadn't appeared since before his sister had died.
They ate and talked about many things, including about Harry's ability to cast a Patronus, which he offered to teach them if they wanted, and had a great night, this was the structure of many days of the weeks ahead in late July.
By the last day of their journey to the Burrow only Arthur had managed a Patronus, his had taken the shape of a rubber duck, which had made everyone laugh.
Harry's head had never been clearer, he truly felt free now. Of course he wasn't fully better yet, but he was well on the road to recovery.
As August arrived, and the weather became colder, Harry and his family spent some time watching the TV once he and Dudley had returned from their time at the Burrow. They were watching the news, as Petunia often did at this time of night, and among the usual nonsense was a news report that shocked all of them.
"In other news, we now have confirmation that the serial killer known as Sirius Black has escaped prison. He is carrying a gun and is known to be extremely dangerous. Please call the number on screen below to report any sightings of this criminally insane man."
Petunia was terrified about the premise of a mass murderer wandering about their small street. She looked out of the window and saw nothing but a stray black dog. Harry's reaction to seeing the face of Sirius Black was shock and confusion. "He was at my parent's wedding," Harry thought to himself on repeat for the rest of the night.
Two weeks of August had passed and Dudley had just come back from Diagon Alley with Harry after buying all of the things they would need for the next year. This allowed them two weeks of freedom before school resumed. Rather than do something exciting, as the two boys had had enough excitement at school this passing year, Petunia decided to take them on a relaxation holiday that did the trio a world of good. The boys didn't exactly want to go to a spa however, once they were there they couldn't argue with the results.
While Harry and his family were enjoying themselves a scheme began. Behind the scenes, Tom Riddle found himself going through the most ancient tomes on Necromancy and Alchemy.
"The legacy of Lord Voldemort will truly be immortal," he whispered quietly to himself as he read on.
The time would come sooner rather than later, he would win and this time there would be no obstacles to his victory. Fifty years of planning had culminated in the path he walked now.
No force would be able to stop him, not this close to his grand apotheosis.
