THC, Round 6, Gryffindor, Potions, Themed.

Theme: [Isolation] - to set apart from others. Can be imposed or self-inflicted.

Prompt: [Event] Camping Trip

Word Count: 1020

Beta(s): Aya

Notes: Mentions of neglect.

Harry Potter was leant against a relatively small tree as he watched his family roasting marshmallows. They smelt good. Dudley was making a mess all around his mouth and Petunia was constantly making a fuss over it. Vernon was more interested in his beer than the actual campfire that had been provided by the campsite. However, the eight-year-old boy didn't even move a muscle as he watched them.

Instead, Harry enjoyed being left alone. Away from the ridicule and jobs. There weren't any dishes to wash up, or clothes to sort, wash, dry, and put away. No garden to prune, mow, or flowers to water. Here everything was sorted out by those hosting.

This was the best holiday he had ever been on.

Of course, his aunt and uncle didn't want to bring him, but they didn't have a choice. Leaving an eight-year-old home alone for a week would have been too suspicious. That and they didn't trust him, scared he'd blow the house up or something. Mrs. Figg was sick with a summer cold otherwise he'd be there instead.

At first, Harry wished they had left him there alone, things would have been peaceful, though, now he was glad they brought him along. Being out in nature was more relaxing than he could have ever imagined.

Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath of fresh air with a tint of campfire smoke. The sound of the birds tweeting centred him. The feel of the comfortable grass under his butt made him never want to sit on an uncomfortable chair again.

"Harry."

His eyes snapped open at his name and he looked up at Petunia standing mere feet from him.

"Be useful and go collect more firewood, the fire's looking low."

Harry glanced at the fire - it was booming and didn't look like it needed more fuel. It wasn't worth pointing out lest he get a swat for back talking, he nodded and instantly stood up. "Of course, Aunt Petunia."

Without another word, she walked off and returned to the fire, leaving Harry once again in peace.

Harry looked around sheepishly for a second before wandering away from the campsite to find the woodpile they had been told about earlier. He was sure it was somewhere in this direction. He was sure it didn't matter how long he took, unless the fire died out, he wouldn't be missed.

The branches crunched under his feet with every step he took. The sound was oddly comforting. If he was making this much noise by walking, then surely he would hear if his aunt or uncle followed him out for any reason. His shoulders relaxed at the thought of being alone again.

Harry didn't rush when he found the wood pile. He took his time going through the selection of sizes; the big logs that he'll likely only be able to carry one, the thick branches which he could take a few, and lots of smaller branches where he could take a whole arm full. It didn't matter what decision he made, it would be wrong and he'll be sent back again. He smiled at the thought.

He chose a few medium sized branches and some larger small ones. None smaller that the width of his chest; they didn't need to start a fire, just keep it going. Some of the ones he chose were quite long but he liked the challenge of carrying them back.

He looked at the three piles of wood he had made, fully expecting to come back and pick them up for the Dursley's after dropping this one off. He picked up the biggest pile, knowing that he'll likely get more tired with each trip. The only thing left was to return to his families campsite to drop them off. He walked back with a little bounce in his step, already loving everything about this camping trip. He hadn't even slept over yet! His mind showed him many ideas of what he could do while he was here.

Unfortunately, by the time he had gotten back with as much wood as he could carry, his peaceful time had come to an end.

They were packing up.

"What's going on?"

"We're going home," Uncle Vernon said, pointing to his small unpacked bag.

Knowing better than to question, he placed the logs and sticks down and collected his light bag. Longingly, he looked around; wishing that he could stay here for the night, or maybe the weekend, or the whole week… What he really wished was that he could stay and live here forever. Away from his family, away from everybody.

Maybe they were wanting to leave him behind while he was collecting wood. Not like he would mind at all. Living among nature would be a dream come true. Sighing to himself, Harry begrudgingly went to pack what little he brought back in the ratty knapsack.

Nine years later found Harry Potter leant against a large tree, enjoying the momentary quiet out in the middle of nowhere. He got five seconds before Ron and Hermione started to argue again. The two of them had been increasingly bickering back and forth for the last few days. He knew hunting for Horcruxes was a stressful situation, and a dangerous one too, but he hadn't thought about how it might affect his friends.

Sometimes, he had wished he had done this alone. Left Ron and Hermione behind. He knew it was a stupid thought. Firstly, he would have died without them, he was sure of that, and secondly, they wouldn't have been much safer not being around him anyway. Nobody was safe.

Still, camping with them in various places made him want a quiet life. One where he didn't have to save everybody, one where he wasn't constantly listening to people arguing, and one where he could camp without any issues and have to move around constantly to cover their tracks.

He made a promise to himself that once this was over he would go camping and enjoy it fully.

Thankfully, Ginny had made that promise come true 18 months later.