DISCLAIMER: Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to type I go. To make a story that I don't own, hi-ho, hi-ho, hi-ho, hi-ho, hi-ho.........That song never ends, does it?

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CHAPTER 3: SHIPPED OFF AGAIN

Harry didn't believe it.

"You're lying," he said. "It's not true."

"Why isn't it true?" Mrs. Figg asked simply.

"Because I'm not supposed to have any contact with Ron and Hermione," Harry reminded. "Why would Dumbledore do something as stupid as have people I'm forbidden to see just a couple of blocks away from my house?"

"Stupid, yes," Mrs. Figg nodded. "But would you expect it?"

That question stumped Harry. "What?"

"Would you expect Dumbledore to have Ron and Hermione living with me?" she smiled.

"Well, no, but that's so obvious!" Harry cried, growing frustrated. "Dumbledore's not that stupid!"

"You're right," Mrs. Figg sighed. "Dumbledore isn't that stupid. Which is why Ron and Hermione aren't here. But I will tell you one thing. They aren't at the Burrow. Dumbledore knew that you would leave the Dursleys and head to the Burrow."

"I knew you were lying," Harry said, although Mrs. Figg had gotten his hopes up.

"Mmhmm," Mrs. Figg nodded, not believing him. "Now, I think you should head up to bed."

"But I'm not tired," Harry said with a yawn.

"You may be of age now, but you still need to go to bed at a reasonable hour," she smiled. "Now, let's get your things upstairs." She grabbed Hedwig's cage and one end of Harry's trunk. "Come on, I'm not doing all the work."

Harry lifted up the other end of his trunk and followed Mrs. Figg upstairs to the guest room, which contained a queen-sized bed, a very cofortable- looking couch, and a large bureau with mirror.

"I'd better go and write to Dumbledore and tell him you're here," Mrs. Figg sighed. "Good night."

"'Night," Harry said, and shut the door. He pulled on the neck hole of his shirt. "You can come out now."

Mylzaya slithered out and Harry placed him on the couch.

"Is this where we're ssssstaying?" Mylzaya asked, looking around at her surroundings. "It's quite more appropriate than the backyard of your house."

"For the meantime, yes," Harry said. He noticed a large wicker basket on the floor. Inside was balls of yarn and knitting needles. He emptied the basket of its contents and put it over beside his bed. "Mylzaya, you'll have to live in here."

"But why, Masssssster?" the snake asked, not sounding thrilled about having to stay in a basket. "Why can't I sssstay on the couch?'

"You can, once I let Arabella know that you're here," Harry assured. "And I want you to sleep in here, so I know you won't get into trouble."

"All right," Mylzaya sighed, and slipped in. "Good night, Massster."

Harry stripped out of his clothes and pulled on his pajamas. For being the middle of summer, Harry was strangely cold. He crawled into bed and, after pulling the covers over him, fell asleep.

***************

"Be quiet! You'll wake him!"

"So? The sooner he wakes up the sooner we can talk to him! You want to talk to him, don't you?"

Harry moaned, and rolled over, burying his face in his pillow. He had trouble sleeping last night, because he kept dreaming that Mylzaya had told Voldemort that Harry was at Mrs. Figg's house, and he had come to killl them both, as Mylzaya just watched and laughed.

There was the sound of clattering from the kitchen, and the smell of eggs. Growing hungry, Harry rolled onto his back, and found himself looking into a pair of big brown eyes topped with flaming red hair.

"Ron?" Harry gaped, reaching for his glasses.

Sure enough, it was Ron, leaning over Harry with a huge grin on his freckled face. Even with Ron sitting Harry saw a noticeable difference in his friend's height.

"Good to see you, mate!" Ron said, clapping Harry on the shoulder.

"Good to see you, too," Harry yawned. "But where's-?"

He didn't even need to finish. Standing by the door, looking very happy was Hermione.

"Hi, Hermione," Harry grinned. She smiled back and ran over to give him a hug.

"Arabella told us last night that you came, and we wanted to see you right away," Hermione said, sitting down. "But she said no, and said that you were sleeping, but I knew you wouldn't mind if we woke you up."

"She told me that you two were here, but I didn't believe her," Harry said.

"Yeah, she told us about that," Ron laughed. "She wanted to keep it so that all three of us were living here, but that you didn't know, but we knew that wouldn't last."

"You would end up blowing your cover," Harry joked.

"Or you would be nosy and wander around and discover us," Hermione teased. "We really wanted to come and see you, or at least write to you."

"But because of that stupid rule Dumbledore made, we couldn't," Ron complained.

"But everything's fine now," Harry said. He leaned over and opened the wicker basket beside his bed. But it was empty. "Uh-oh."

"What's wrong?" Ron asked.

"Mylzaya's gone," Harry said. He jumped out of bed and began searching frantically. "Mylzaya!" he hissed in Parseltongue.

"Who's Mylzaya?" Hermione wondered.

Before Harry could explain, a scream errupted from the kitchen.

"Arabella!" Hermione cried.

"Mylzaya!" Harry yelled, and bolted out of the room. He skidded to a stop in the kitchen, and Ron and Hermione bumped into him. Mrs. Figg was standing on the table, her face white. Curled up on the chair was Mylzaya, hissing at her.

"Hahaha," Mylzaya laughed. "Foolish human." She bared his fangs at her, and snapped at her feet.

"Mylzaya! No!" Harry snatched up the snake and looked her in the eye. "Don't do that! Don't threaten my friends!"

"I'm sssssorry, Massssster," Mylzaya apologized. "But I was hungry. I came down to find some food."

"I told you I wanted the others to know about you before you wandered around," Harry sighed. He noticed the others were staring at him. "Oh, this is Mylzaya."

"You have a pet snake?" Mrs. Figg gaped, climbing down shakily as Harry placed Mylzaya on his shoulder.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "She somehow got into the Dursleys' house and scared the pants off them. Then she followed me here."

"Harry, do you know what people are going to think?" Ron asked. Harry shook his head.

"Harry, everyone already knows you're a Parselmouth, and that didn't go over very well," Hermione said. "Just think what everyone would say if you had a pet snake."

"Oh," Harry realized. "Right. But I'm going to keep Mylzaya. She seems attached to me. And I'll keep her in the dormitory."

"Imagine the look on Malfoy's face if you put that snake down his robes," Ron said with a dreamy expression. Hermione looked at him sternly.

"I won't allow that," she said. "Oh, Harry, you haven't heard my exciting news." She pointed at a badge pinned neatly on her blouse.

"So? You're a prefect again," Harry said, until he realized what it said. "Oh, you're Head Girl."

She nodded eagerly. "Isn't is it wonderful?"

"Yeah, it's great, Hermione," he looked at Ron. "Not Head Boy?"

"Me? Head Boy?" Ron gave a hollow laugh. "Yeah, right. Me and Mum both nearly had heart failure when we found out I was prefect. As if I would be Head Boy."

"Well, then who is it?" Harry wondered.

"I don't know," Hermione shrugged, sitting down at the table. "But if it's Draco Malfoy..."

"That wouldn't be Lucius's son, would it?" Mrs. Figg wondered, setting a platter of scrambled eggs in front of them, along with bacon, toast, and hash.

"Unfortunately, yeah," Ron said, piling food onto his plate. "And it's our last year for me to do something horrible to him. Because I plan to stay as far away from him as possible for the rest of my life after school."

Mrs. Figg sat down and started to eat her own breakfast.

"Mrs. Fi-I mean, Arabella, how could you not tell me that my best friends were just a few blocks away from me?" Harry wondered, giving Mylzaya a scrap of bacon.

"You're not supposed to have any contact with them," she reminded, covering her toast with jam.

"But I'm in the same house as them!" Harry pointed out. "What are you going to do with me, throw me out so I'm not around them?"

"No, of course not," Mrs. Figg shook her head. "But you can't stay here."

"Arabella, I think under the current circumstances, Dumbledore will allow it," Hermione said. "I mean, he has nowhere else to stay."

Harry beamed at Hermione. She could be so smart.

Mrs. Figg sighed. "I need to go and write to Dumbledore about this."

"Arabella, there is no reason to keep up the charades."

Harry spun around so quickly that he fell off his seat. "Professor Dumbledore?"

Indeed it was, standing in the doorway casually, donned in a dressing gown and night cap.

"Naturally," he smiled, conjuring a chair and sitting down beside Hermione. He looked at Harry. "You seemed extremely furious with me all summer, screaming at me all the time."

"How did you know?" Harry wondered. "How did you know that I tried to write to Ron?"

"Ah, Harry, didn't you know that I am an Animagus?" Dumbledore's eyes twinkled.

That didn't surprise Harry in the slightest. "I wasn't allowed to look out the window, but you were free to go around turning into animals?"

"Harry, I had good reason," Dumbledore said. "I had to make sure you weren't doing anything risky. Of course, I was risking my own life in the process."

"Professor, where am I supposed to stay?" Harry asked. "I can't stay with the Dursleys, and I can't-"

"You will stay with me, of course," Dumbledore interrupted.

"With-with you?" Harry stared, taken aback.

"Of course," Dumbledore nodded. "You will stay with me at my house. We'll leave as soon as possible."

"But what about Ron and Hermione?" Harry wondered.

"Due to safety precautions, they will stay here with Arabella," Dumbledore said.

"Hey, Harry's here!"

Harry looked back at the doorway. It was Nymphadela Tonks, an Auror for the Ministry. Her hair was long, going down to the base of her spine, and it was lime green.

"Tonks!" Harry cried.

"Hi, Harry," she smiled, giving him a hug. "Good to see you again. Are you staying with Arabella, too?"

"No, Tonks, Harry will be coming to stay with me," Dumbledore said.

"Oh," Tonks's face fell. "That's too bad. We could have had a lot of fun."

"You're staying here?" Harry gaped. "Arabella, how many people were staying here that I didn't know about?"

"This is everyone," Mrs. Figg said, pouring Tonks some orange juice. "Harry, why don't you get all your things downstairs so you and Albus can leave. Ron, Hermione, why don't you help him."

The three of them went up to the guest room, finding Hedwig sitting in her cage. Harry made his friends wait in the hall while he quickly got dressed.

"Harry, it's too bad that you can't stay," Ron said, grabbing an end of Harry's trunk as Hermione took Hedwig.

"Yeah, well it's too bad that you two can't come with me to Dumbledore's," Harry sighed, picking up the other end of his trunk.

"Massssster, are we leaving?" Mylzaya asked as they headed downstairs.

"I'm afraid so," Harry hissed in return. Hermione glanced at him, disapproving that he had a pet snake.

"Ready to go?" Dumbledore asked, now dressed in deep burgandy robes.

"Yeah," Harry nodded. "I'm ready."

"See you, Harry," Tonks said. "It was nice to see you again."

"Good-bye, Harry," Mrs. Figg shook his hand. "I'm sorry that you can't stay."

"It's okay," Harry shrugged.

"Bye, Harry," Hermione gave him a hug.

"See you on September first, mate," Ron said.

Dumbledore took Hedwig's cage from Hermione and pulled a chipped tea cup from his pocket as Ron dropped his end of the trunk.

"Grab on, Harry," Dumbledore said, holding out the old china. Harry took hold of the handle.

"Well, bye then," Harry said to everyone, as Dumbledore counted down, "Three...two..."

And in a swirling array of colors, they left Mrs. Figg's living room.