A/N: I do not own any of the characters or events. All characters and places belong to J.K Rowling. I do realize that there are some mistakes in details and I wrote this a couple of years ago. This is the first fanfic I have written. Any comments and critiques are appreciated! Enjoy!
Chapter 1
It was a hot, humid July day and Harry Potter was getting ready for his seventh and final year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Little did he know it would be the most challenging—and the most traumatizing—year he ever had. He had been teased, outnumbered, and betrayed before, but nothing could prepare him for what would happen this year.
Harry was in his room packing his things for his trip to the Weasleys' for the rest of the summer. He had already told Uncle Vernon about visiting Ron for the month of August, and he told Uncle Vernon that Mrs. Weasley would take him, Ron, and Ginny to King's Cross station and they would catch the Hogwarts Express on Platform 9¾ on September first. Harry would also spend his 17th birthday at the Weasleys'. Uncle Vernon, as well as the rest of the Dursleys, was over the moon about Harry leaving. If it was possible, Harry was even more excited.
A sudden cooing startled Harry out of his thoughts.
"Hedwig, you know I can't let you out. Uncle Vernon said I can't send letters to friends or let you out to hunt." As Harry said this, he thought of how he couldn't wait until he was 17 and had come of age in the wizarding world. It was only a week away and Ron's family was taking him to get his license to Apparate the day after his birthday. Ron was going to retake his test too so he could get his Apparating license. Hermione had obviously already gotten hers so she would go with them.
Harry heard a knock at the front door downstairs and assumed it was Ron. A couple of seconds later, Harry heard the door open and faint thumps on the stairs. However, when he looked up, he was surprised. Surprised because he wasn't looking at Ron's pale face and orange hair, but at the mildly tanned face and bushy brown hair of Hermione Granger.