Chapter 2-The Mysterious Letter
Harry sat up and looked around his tiny room, deep in thought. He glanced at his bedside clock and observed that it was 2:00 in the morning. With an exhausted groan, he rolled out of bed and lifted up the loose floorboard underneath it, revealing tons of sweets and spell books that he had stashed there at the beginning of the summer. Grabbing a box of Bertie Bott's Everyflavor Beans and "Quidditch Through the Ages," he flopped back onto his bed and began to read, cautiously sorting through his beans with his fingers, looking for a nice marmalade or strawberry jam one and trying to avoid the funny green ones that there seemed to be a lot of.
After about an hour of reading and jellybean eating, Harry couldn't help but glance at the framed picture that sat next to his bedside clock. It was a picture of his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, both of them with one arm around Harry, waving merrily. He couldn't express how much he valued their friendship and couldn't wait until school started so that he could create mischief with them again.
They had grown even closer to him (if that was humanly possible) in the adventure that they had come across in the previous year. Having faced Lord Voldemort once again and being put to the ultimate test to defeat him, they had used the power of their bond of friendship to reduce him to a repulsive creature, barely alive and losing power every day. Harry knew, along with everyone else in the wizarding world, that Vodemort would not be able to rise to power again and that he and his two friends had come as close as possible to defeating "You Know Who" for good.
He smiled at the thought of them and then remembered his dream. Now that he thought about it, the idea of Hermione as being more than his friend had never really crossed his mind before this. Maybe once in his fourth year, but never this intense. He'd known her for so long and was just now, in his seventh year, realizing that he did indeed have feelings for the muggle-born know-it-all. He didn't know how to react, what he should do, or why she had been dead in his dream. What did Voldemort have to do with any of this when Harry knew that he and his friends had reduced the dark lord to almost nothing the year before?
Suddenly, a snowy white owl flew through his window and scuffed him painfully on the head with its wing, interrupting Harry's thoughts before settling on his bedpost and fixing him with a penetrating stare.
"Ouch!" he yelled in surprise and rubbed his head tenderly. "Hedwig! What'cha do that for?" but a rather loud snore issued from the Dursley's bedroom and he quieted down immediately. Hedwig just continued to gaze at him intently until Harry realized that the owl had brought him a letter. He picked it up and turned it over, examining its unfamiliar scrawl. Its envelope was a deep purple color and had golden writing that seemed to glow when you turned it a certain way. He turned on his bedside lamp and discovered a yellow wax seal on the back of the envelope, with an intricate design on it; fairy wings. He tore open the envelope and drew out a sheet of the same heavy purple parchment and gold ink:
Dear Harry,
I know that you have no idea who I am, but please heed my warning. Trying to stop you from going back to Hogwarts would be stupid, since I know that people have tried and failed in the past. Just be warned, Harry, that danger lurks there. Hogwarts is not at all as safe as you may think. Never let your guard down and be cautious as to whom you trust. I cannot tell you anymore but don't ignore this word of caution.
-A Friend
Harry reread the letter over and over, searching for some hint as to who it was from. He pushed up the bridge or his glasses with his forefinger and looked at the back for a return address, but to no avail. The only clue was the design of the wings, pressed in the yellow wax and shimmering in the lamp light.
PLEASE REVIEW!!! Still more to come, I really hope more people read this…
Harry sat up and looked around his tiny room, deep in thought. He glanced at his bedside clock and observed that it was 2:00 in the morning. With an exhausted groan, he rolled out of bed and lifted up the loose floorboard underneath it, revealing tons of sweets and spell books that he had stashed there at the beginning of the summer. Grabbing a box of Bertie Bott's Everyflavor Beans and "Quidditch Through the Ages," he flopped back onto his bed and began to read, cautiously sorting through his beans with his fingers, looking for a nice marmalade or strawberry jam one and trying to avoid the funny green ones that there seemed to be a lot of.
After about an hour of reading and jellybean eating, Harry couldn't help but glance at the framed picture that sat next to his bedside clock. It was a picture of his two best friends, Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger, both of them with one arm around Harry, waving merrily. He couldn't express how much he valued their friendship and couldn't wait until school started so that he could create mischief with them again.
They had grown even closer to him (if that was humanly possible) in the adventure that they had come across in the previous year. Having faced Lord Voldemort once again and being put to the ultimate test to defeat him, they had used the power of their bond of friendship to reduce him to a repulsive creature, barely alive and losing power every day. Harry knew, along with everyone else in the wizarding world, that Vodemort would not be able to rise to power again and that he and his two friends had come as close as possible to defeating "You Know Who" for good.
He smiled at the thought of them and then remembered his dream. Now that he thought about it, the idea of Hermione as being more than his friend had never really crossed his mind before this. Maybe once in his fourth year, but never this intense. He'd known her for so long and was just now, in his seventh year, realizing that he did indeed have feelings for the muggle-born know-it-all. He didn't know how to react, what he should do, or why she had been dead in his dream. What did Voldemort have to do with any of this when Harry knew that he and his friends had reduced the dark lord to almost nothing the year before?
Suddenly, a snowy white owl flew through his window and scuffed him painfully on the head with its wing, interrupting Harry's thoughts before settling on his bedpost and fixing him with a penetrating stare.
"Ouch!" he yelled in surprise and rubbed his head tenderly. "Hedwig! What'cha do that for?" but a rather loud snore issued from the Dursley's bedroom and he quieted down immediately. Hedwig just continued to gaze at him intently until Harry realized that the owl had brought him a letter. He picked it up and turned it over, examining its unfamiliar scrawl. Its envelope was a deep purple color and had golden writing that seemed to glow when you turned it a certain way. He turned on his bedside lamp and discovered a yellow wax seal on the back of the envelope, with an intricate design on it; fairy wings. He tore open the envelope and drew out a sheet of the same heavy purple parchment and gold ink:
Dear Harry,
I know that you have no idea who I am, but please heed my warning. Trying to stop you from going back to Hogwarts would be stupid, since I know that people have tried and failed in the past. Just be warned, Harry, that danger lurks there. Hogwarts is not at all as safe as you may think. Never let your guard down and be cautious as to whom you trust. I cannot tell you anymore but don't ignore this word of caution.
-A Friend
Harry reread the letter over and over, searching for some hint as to who it was from. He pushed up the bridge or his glasses with his forefinger and looked at the back for a return address, but to no avail. The only clue was the design of the wings, pressed in the yellow wax and shimmering in the lamp light.
PLEASE REVIEW!!! Still more to come, I really hope more people read this…