DISCLAIMER- I don't own the creations of JK Rowling

Chapter-5: The strange letters

Summer holidays had already started. The Dursleys were quite fussy about their son attending high school. Dudley and his best friend (Harry called him a henchman) Piers had received acceptance letters from Smeltings, uncle Vernon's old alma mater. Harry, on the other hand, had already attended Stonewall high, the local public school for a year in theory, but more in practice.

Vernon and Petunia were bland about their son. When they received news that Harry performed well in school, they ignored it and when Dudley had poor marks, they commented about the poor standards of the school. They felt that Smeltings would evaluate their son more accurately.

After the encounters with Mr Prince, his aunt and uncle's behavior changed, though he did not know if there was a connection between the two. He was not treated equal to Dudley, but he himself was happy on the thought that if he was treated like his cousin, he would become like Dudley.

He was now a boy with height normal for his age, with an athletic frame, developed from jogging. Petunia did not mind him taking porridge, milk and fruit juice, Dudley never liked those. His cousin, on the other hand, resembled Vernon - a big, beefy frame but with Petunia's hair.

Ever since his life changed for the better almost five years ago, Vernon had tried a new plan to push Harry beyond the boy's limits. The school principal had announced that though Harry was not a prodigy, yet he could grasp things beyond the mental capacity of his peers. Now, he was studying things that were two years ahead of what children of his age studied. He himself studied hard, knowing that studies would help him to get away from his relatives sooner. It would surely give him a life better than working at the local mechanic's shed or shops, only scope of employment locally.

At home, he and his relatives mostly avoided each other. After he did the chores assigned to him by Petunia, they stayed out of each other's path. At school, he had a few friends, one too close. He watched Dudley receive many presents on his birthday. At the mention of Harry's birthday, Vernon had shrugged off, saying that they did not know the date but Harry was happy that when Petunia cooked special things, a small bit of it was given to Harry.

Harry had a normal life, except for a few odd things. He suspected that he was somehow famous, he knew from the gossip news Petunia liked to follow- people know celebrities, but not the other way round. Some strange people on the street seemed to know him, but he did not know them.

These people were of different appearances but had three common features- they seemed to dress oddly, seemed to recognize Harry only after looking at the scar on his forehead and either walked away or seemed to vanish into thin air when Harry tried to get a second look at them.

He had tried to ask his aunt about the lightning-shaped scar, got the answer that it was from the same "bad man" who killed his parents. However, he did not know why the scar was so unusual- it was thin, had a black colour and did not fade even after all the years. They did not even tell where the house was, or what happened to the "bad man".

Asking the Dursleys was futile, they never liked Harry asking questions, particularly about his past and parents. In fact, Harry didn't even know how they looked like, he had seen no pictures of them and were never talked about. He did not miss them because he hardly remembered them and knew that the dead do not come back.

He tried to keep away from the house as much as he could. Dudley's gang visited the house every day. After the lynching the boys had received years ago at the school, they and Harry had taken to a solution of mutual avoidance. Harry kept most of time in the library, studying for the coming year.

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The day had started like every normal day. Harry woke up in the morning and went to the breakfast table, helping himself to some food, everyone else were minding their own businesses. The three Dursleys appeared blind to Harry's appearance at the table, but he was used to this kind of care, so began eating the food without any sound.

Uncle Vernon was in his usual routine. He was a very predictable man. Apart from work and home, his world revolved around the newspaper, the daily news and boxing on the television. When the sound of the incoming mail was heard from the table, he said "Get the mail, boy."

Harry went to the door and found three arrivals- a postcard from Marge, a bill of some kind and an envelope without any postage stamp, addressed to, he gasped, Mr Harry James Potter. He took the envelope in his left hand, it was a heavy parchment one, addressed in green ink and with no postage stamps. He blinked again, then came back to the table, handing over the other two to Vernon.

He sat at the chair and turned over the yellow envelope. On the other side, there was a purple seal with a large capital H and four animals at the four edges, but he did not make out what those were. Even before he could open it, suddenly Vernon's large hand reached across the table and jerked it away.

"Reading other's letters is bad manner, hope we taught you that." growled his uncle.

Harry tried to protest "It was addressed to me, it is my letter. Please give it to me."

But Vernon was not listening, he chuckled "You have nobody to write to you, forgot that?"

He took the letter out, which was written in the same sort of parchment. He had hardly read the first line when his face went white, he looked at his wife and gasped "Petunia, it's from them !"

Within a moment, Petunia's eyes were wide in terror, her face pale too.

Harry screamed "Let me see my letter, who are they? Give it to me!"

Dudley joined in the scene "What's so special, let me see it."

It was perhaps for the first time that both Harry and Dudley found out how strong Vernon was. He grabbed Harry by the waist and lifted him up with one hand, Dudley was similarly lifted by two hands seconds later and he threw both of them into the living room one after the other, shutting the door behind them. Dudley was stunned, he had never received treatment like that.

Harry knew that he could not prevent Dudley from listening at the keyhole, so he tried from under the door. It was a futile attempt, his aunt and uncle were talking in barely audible whispers.

After almost fifteen minutes, the door opened. Vernon looked normal and spoke first "Dudley, if you want to go to your friends house, start moving. Boy, ask your aunt about the days chores and start it. After you finish the work, you can go to the library."

"What was in my letter? Where is it?" asked Harry stubbornly. Petunia was about to say something, but Vernon stopped her with his hand and faced Harry, with a smile on his lips and a glint in his eye.

"Oh, I have burnt it. It was addressed to you by mistake. It was from a lunatic asylum, they thought you are one of their inmates. Surely you are not abnormal?" he chuckled.

Harry shook his head mutely, Vernon cheerfully said "So, what are you waiting for? Get going." He himself went towards the phone, then shook his head and turned back.

The rest of the day was normal, but only one small incident happened during the night. After dinner, Harry passed his uncle and aunt's bedroom and heard them conversing.

"Vernon, you should have phoned Little Whinging Post Office. They may try again."

"Petunia dear, I went there myself before going to work. I found the postman who was delivering the mail. Can you believe it, the letter was lying at our doorstep, so he picked it up and dropped it with our regular mail. Gave the idiot a piece of my mind, hope he learnt a lesson."

"If they try to contact again?" the voice was anxious.

"I am not having one in the house, Petunia. We will not reply, they will give up all hope. We took the boy in with that letter ten years ago, that's enough for us."

Harry was puzzled, but felt too sleepy and helpless at that point. Why would his uncle and aunt be scared of an asylum? When he went to bed, the conversation had almost leaked out of his memory.

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The next day proved even odd. They had all sat down at the breakfast table and were eating quietly, when a loud screeching sound was heard and a grey owl flew in through the kitchen window, it was clutching a yellow envelope similar to yesterday in its beak.

The bird circled the room, landed on the breakfast table at and empty space and dropped the letter. It then looked at the four people, gave a soft hooting noise and tapped the letter with its beak.

A second later, complete chaos erupted. Vernon gave a loud bellow, threw his teacup at the owl, then grabbed the new stick of Dudley and lashed out at the bird. Both Harry and Dudley dived for the letter, Vernon grabbed it with one hand and tried to hit the bird with the stick. The owl's eyes surveyed the scene for a moment, then it screeched and flew out of the window, the same way it came, leaving behind a few feathers.

Vernon stuck the letter in his pocket, grabbed Harry and Dudley, doing exactly what he did yesterday. He then took out the letter and began to read it, tearing at his moustache at the same time. After he read the letter for a few times, he suddenly gave a triumphant yell.

He looked at his surprised wife and smiled "Haven't you seen the nicest thing about it, dear?" and seeing the blank look on her face, he continued "They want a reply by July 31st, if we can.."

Seeing the happy look on his wife's face, he smiled again and walked a few paces around the room. He then burnt the letter and opened the door to the living room, smiling at the two puzzled boys. He spoke "All right, you three pack your clothes. We will leave for a few days."

Three different voices spoke together "Where?"

"Majorca. Tonight, we will be staying at London, I will try to contact the Spanish authorities for our visas. Hurry up, we have not got all day. You two, take your school ID cards and get going."

An hour later, the four set off in a car towards London. Vernon had whacked Dudley around the head for attempting to pack his computer in the trunk. He had asked Petunia to drive the car, himself sitting at the back with a binocular in his hand, looking through it every now and then.

Harry was thinking why would a lunatic asylum use owls to deliver letters, plus whether owls can be so well-trained but he knew that no one would answer his questions.

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The stay in London lasted only for one night. The drive from Little Whinging to London took some time. Vernon found out a hotel for them and asked three of them to stay, then went out, probably to talk to the Spanish authorities for a visa. He returned in the evening, looking tired but happy. Harry was too tired for the day, so he went to sleep after watching a cartoon show that Dudley was seeing too.

One thing was good, Vernon was confused a little and had booked a four-bedded room, it had comfortable beds for all of them. They changed in the attached bathroom before relaxing.

He felt sure about one thing. He had never been to London before, but from the sheer size and bustle of the city, along with the traffic on the road- it would be very hard to follow them or their car. However, he and his relatives were proved wrong the very next morning.

The next morning, everything started normally for a few moments. Petunia was thinking about sightseeing, Vernon phoned the reception for tea and threatened Dudley to let him watch the news before switching over to cartoons. Harry was looking out of the windows when hell broke loose.

The room service boy came in with tea, cookies and a parchment envelope. "Excuse me, but there is a letter addressed to Mr. Harry James Potter, with your room number on it. Someone had left it in the reception this morning. Is he amongst you?"

Vernon suddenly went red, said "I'll take it." grabbed the letter and went out of the room. The service boy was puzzled at this behavior, but he shrugged, left the tray on the table and went out.

Vernon did not return till half an hour. He smiled nervously at the three of them, then said "What are you waiting for? Get packing. I have paid the bills and will be moving out as soon as we can." For the next five minutes, he shouted at Dudley, who was refusing to turn off the television.

He then took the car and himself drove it, looking at a road atlas he had collected from somewhere. He was very happy and humming to himself. Nobody dared ask him about the letter.

Petunia spoke in a small voice "Vernon, the trip to Majorca?"

He smiled "Oh, I have a better plan. We would be going to South Africa, it is farther away and more interesting. I have asked someone to make arrangements; we will return to London on the day of our flight. I will keep contact by phone to keep track of the progress."

London was soon left behind, they drove for a few hours and reached the coastline. Vernon parked the car on a coastal road, a little outside of a small town and went to the place. It was already afternoon, some grey clouds were gathering in the horizon. Harry had never seen the sea before, so was actually enjoying the view and sound of crashing waves silently.

Vernon returned after an hour, at the back seat of a two-wheeler driven by a rough-looking middle-aged man with beard and tattoos, clutching a large package in his hand. He got back at the driver's seat and followed the man driving the motorbike. Soon, they halted at a spot.

The place was by the sea, however a small shack was visible on a small rock a little out. The man took them on a boat and rowed them to the rock. Vernon was looking very cheerful. He said " There is forecast for a storm tonight, nice weather. Don't worry, I have got food for all."

The shack had a bed and few furnishing. Vernon's food turned out to be a large loaf of bread, a wheel of cheddar, pork pies and beer, besides bottled water. "Healthy British food." He remarked.

There was a single lantern for lighting, with an empty fireplace. There were nothing to make a good fire, the food packets would burn in a few moments. Dudley tried to complain about the lack of a television, but a furious glare from his red-faced father turned him quiet.

The storm really rose in the late evening, it was really fierce- with strong winds and waves. Petunia had found some moldy blankets. She and Vernon went to sleep on the bed, Dudley went to sleep on the sofa and Harry climbed up on the table, using his assigned blanket as a pillow. Harry had a single pork pie to eat against Dudley's five, but he was happy with that.

The journey and the food was enough for Harry to drift off to sleep, the raging storm and waves lashing against the rocks could not shake off the tiredness. However, after some time, Harry awoke with a jump. He looked at the watch on Dudley's wrist, it was hardly past midnight. He realized that the storm was still raging on, but another sound was being made- someone was knocking at the door rather loudly.