Chapter 1: A Shadow of Fear

Harry Potter was sitting on a picnic table leaned over a slightly ruffled newspaper he'd fished from a trash can. He looked through it for the hundredth time before he huffed and balled it up. Useless. Suddenly a dog barked and jumped up on the table and began licking at his face excitedly.

"Urk! Snuffles get down you-" Harry shouted before he shoved the dog who complied and sat on the ground with his tongue lolling out.

"Hey." Dudley said as he came up on Harry's other side and sat down. He noticed the paper and frowned worriedly "anything?"

"Nothing." Harry griped as he gripped at his hair. Dudley looked at him and sighed.

"You look awful Harry."

"I'm fine."

"No, you're not. You haven't had a good night's sleep in a month." Dudley said with his sternest frown. Harry scowled and turned to the dog with a glare.

"Snitch."

"He did have to!" Dudley jumped to defend the canine who whined and dropped himself across Harry's feet, giving him a sorrowful glance. "The whole house can hear you sometimes… dad's been… saying things."

"What kind of things?"

"Well, you know the usual: 'give him something to cry about.' 'Making him sleep in the garden shed.'" Dudley listed tiredly. "Course he's just blowing off steam. Not like he'd actually do anything with Snuffles around"

"Yeah." Harry said quietly as he unconsciously grabbed a fistful of Snuffles fur. The dog whined and sat up to give Harry another slobbery kiss. The boy smiled weakly and gave the massive dog a scratch behind the ear. Dudley watched his cousin and sighed. He could never begin to know how Harry was feeling. What he'd seen in that graveyard. What that must have felt like. Harry had described Voldemort to him. He didn't know how you could fight against something like that. It sounded like a nightmare. He had a new respect for his aunt and uncle and how brave they must have been. Suddenly something gripped his stomach and he shuddered. "You alright?" Dudley stared at Harry and snorted. Harry could lose a leg and he would ask him if he was okay.

"I'm fine. Let's go to Tescos." Dudley offered.

"I don't really want a Monster." Harry said mopingly.

"Me neither. But you've never had a slush." Dudley parried. "In this heatwave we definitely need them." Harry blinked before he gave a lopsided grin.

The trio walked down the dusty street in the sunset. The heat was visibly rising off the asphalt in ripples. Harry sipped his drink loudly then tsked.

"Why's it all ice?" he complained as he poked his straw into the drink again.

"You gotta mix it up." Dudley said as he stirred his.

"But then the flavours will all mix up." Harry gripped.

"That's the point!" Dudley said. "That's why I got us Cherry and Cola. Once you mix it all up it tastes like Cherry Coke."

"I've never had a Cherry Coke." Harry commented. Dudley gave a horrified groan.

"Alright, that's it! We are going to write a list of everything you've missed out on because of Vernon and we're doing them!" Dudley griped.

"Starting with videogames?" Harry asked hopefully. Dudley had gotten a Super Nintendo Entertainment System for his birthday and some of the games looked really neat.

"Yes! Definitely! You'll love Starwing!" the teen cried excitedly. Then suddenly thunder rumbled from above. The pair stopped in their tracks and looked up.

"What the hell?" Dudley questioned before the sky opened up. The pair yelped and rushed for a bus stop. "So much for the heatwave!" Dudley said before he frowned. His breath was fogging in front of him. Harry stared as the grass around them started freezing over. Suddenly Sirius transformed and pulled out his wand.

"Both of you RUN!" he shouted. Both boys didn't need to be told twice. But it wasn't soon enough. Two massive Dementors descended from above. Sirius rushed and pushed both boys behind him. But there was nowhere to go. The pair began trying to corral the trio into the bus station shelter.

"Expecto Patronum!" Sirius shouted as a lion leapt out of his wand and roared furiously. "GO!'' Harry shouted before he and Dudley made a break for it. The pair ran a block before Harry looked back and gasped. Sirius was struggling two against one.

"Harry!" Dudley shouted in a panic before Harry took a step forward.

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!" he screamed before his stag burst out of his wand in a flash of light that left Dudley blinking back stars. The wind and the rain slowed to a stop as the heat slowly returned making the rain rise up like a mist. "Sirius!" Harry shouted in a panic as he rushed to his slowly rising godfather.

"Thank you, Harry… they still affect me quite strongly." Sirius said tiredly. Dudley ran to his limping uncle's other side and shivered.

"What the fuck were those things?"

"Dementors…"

"How do you fight something you can't see?!"

"What?" Harry asked in confusion.

"Muggles can't see Dementors Harry." Sirius explained tiredly.

"I had no idea." Harry muttered. Dudley shuddered.

"Am I wrong in guessing they don't look pretty?" he asked.

"no. " Harry conceded.

"They have clammy cold scabby hands with massive claws. They have no discernible legs and.'' Sirius' eyes went a bit hollow as his muttering became inaudible. Then suddenly he turned into a dog making both boys drop him in shock. The dog curled up and shuddered as he made whimpering noises.

"Sirius." Harry tried, reaching to put a hand on the dog. He snarled and tried to snap at him then dash away. "Snuffles!"

"What the hell was that?" Dudley asked as he watched the dog run away. Harry stood up and frowned worriedly.

"Sirius spent 13 years in Azkaban being tortured by those things. We've never really talked about it so I have no idea what they made him see or hear but." Harry turned to Dudley with a pained look. "Every time Dementors get too close to me I can hear Voldemort killing my mum."

"Holy shit." Dudley whispered in horror.

"There you are!" a voice suddenly cried. Harry and Dudley both turned towards the voice. Harry yelped and tried to shove his wand away but Arabella Figg held up her hand. "Best keep that out young Harry. They might be back and Sirius seems to be incapacitated at the moment."

"Wait… you're a witch?!" Dudley asked in shock.

"A Squib dear."

"Ha!" Dudley said before he gave Harry a grin. "Best not tell Mum."

"Mrs. Figg… why didn't you say anything?" Harry said in shock.

"How would you have liked me to word it dear?" the old woman asked with a chuckle. "'Hello Harry dear, you're a wizard. Oh no I can't prove it to you.' Besides! Dumbledore wanted you raised away from all that. Better for you he said."

"Dumbledore is a barmy codger." Dudley snarked in irritation. He was still very upset with the old man. The woman huffed before she looked up to the sky again.

"We need to get you boys inside."

"What about Sirius?" Harry asked as he looked over his shoulder in the direction the frightened dog had bolted.

"I'm sure someone will be around to catch him and calm him down. Now come along, and keep that out." Arabella reminded, gesturing to Harry's wand.