Disclaimer: Harry Potter and it's characters are the property of J.K. Rowling. This story is just for fun.

A/N: Chapters will be longer once the story gets moving. Reviews are appreciated.

Harry Potter and the Sword of Gryffindor

Chapter 2: Unexpected House Guests

Harry Potter sat cross-legged in the middle of his bed with his nose buried in the Daily Prophet. The bright afternoon sunshine lit the small room of number four Privet Drive with a golden glow, but Harry barely noticed. His attention was focused entirely on the article before him. Apparently the Ministry of Magic was having no more luck at keeping dark wizards in Azkaban now than they did when Sirius had escaped. The large headline read:

DEATH EATERS ESCAPE AZKABAN

Is history repeating itself? Late last night, the Death Eaters who were sentenced to Azkaban for trespass and attempted theft at the Ministry last year in June, escaped. This is the second time in recent years that a group of Death Eaters have managed to breach the walls of what had once been regarded as a high security prison. Have the Aurors lost their touch?

Minister for Magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, spoke today in response to the public outcry from the magical world. "Well, what did you expect?" said the Minister. "Without the Dementors guarding Azkaban, the prison is vulnerable. Even the best Aurors could not have changed the outcome. Those Death Eaters had outside help, and with You-Know-Who on the loose, we don't have the manpower to maintain security levels at the prison with the same standards the Dementors upheld. It was bound to happen."

The magical population was not pleased. Most likely these Death Eaters have gone to join up with He Who Must Not Be Named. The night of their escape, several figures were spotted in the area, including what appeared to be a couple of Dementors. It looks like the Aurors have their work cut out for them if they hope to stop the spread of chaos and Dark Marks.

"The Ministry has made too many mistakes. It's impossible to ignore them anymore," said one Auror, who declined to give his name. "If they hadn't made such a mockery of Harry Potter, we wouldn't even be in this situation."

And where does the 'Chosen One' fit into all of this? Whether or not Harry Potter will be the one to defeat He Who Must Not Be Named still remains to be seen. As it stands at the moment, the magical population are more inclined to rally behind The Boy Who Lived than the catastrophe that is the Ministry of Magic.

Harry slowly lowered the newspaper and stared at the ceiling without really seeing it. A lot had happened since that terrible night atop the astronomy tower, or at least that was what the Ministry wanted everyone to believe. In Harry's opinion, the Ministry, and the Aurors included, had been doing nothing but running around in circles. Voldemort was on the loose, the Death Eaters were still at large, and Snape was still missing... His injurys from that night had healed, but the pain in his heart at the loss of Professor Dumbledore remained. Often it had haunted his dreams, the scene playing over and over again in his mind. He could picture it even now. Snape's wand pointed at Dumbledore, the Killing Curse knocking the Headmaster off the astronomy tower, and the look in the former Potions Master's cold, black eyes. Snape had not even thought twice about killing a fellow member of the Order of the Phoenix. Some things were beyond forgiveness. Dumbledore had trusted Snape, and Snape had not only betrayed the Headmaster, he had betrayed Lily, James, Sirius, and so many others...It was time that Snape got what he deserved...

"Only it won't be from the Ministry," said Harry bitterly. "They can't seem to get their hands on anyone who isn't standing right in front of them. It looks like I'm going to be the one who has to stop Snape, and that's exactly the way I want it. It's the least I can do for Dumbledore after everything he's done for me...

The news about the Death Eaters escaping Azkaban did not really surprise Harry. He had figured it would happen sooner or later. To him, it was merely another obstacle on the road to his final confrontation with Voldemort. Even the news that many in the magical community had put their faith in him instead of the Ministry did not bring him the comfort that it once would have. He had accepted the fate that he had chosen for himself, and no matter how much support he recieved, he would still be alone when the final battle came. He thought of Ron and Hermione and smiled. Well, maybe not completely alone. Not that he wanted to put them in any danger. If Harry had had his way, they would be going to Hogwarts this year and staying as far away from him as possible. Unfortunately, once Hermione got an idea into her head, it was impossible to change her mind. Harry had not forgotten S.P.E.W. His only hope was that, at the end of the day, all three of them would still be in one piece.

"I think Ron was right about Hermione," said Harry softly. "She is mental." Seeing as Ron had backed Hermione up on this suicidal notion, it was pretty safe to say that Ron was mental too.

Harry looked up at the sound of voices drifting into the room from his open window and frowned. The voices sounded as if they were close by, and they were arguing. It could not be the Dursleys. They were all still sitting in the living room the last time Harry had bothered to check. Uncle Vernon had not mentioned anything about visitors today, which he surely would have after what had happened to the Masons.

Harry sat bolt upright and quickly scrambled off the bed. He leaped over to the window, upsetting Hedwig's cage which stood on the desk, and pressed his face to the glass. Harry felt his heart leap into his throat. Ron and Hermione were standing on the Dursley's doorstep.