Disclaimer: It would be cool to own Harry Potter. But I don't. Points to JKR, who has Harry chained to the wall next to her She does.
A/N: Hello again! It's the revised edition of Summer Nights! There weren't any plot elements that I changed, just the typos and nitpicks. Please read the prologue to this story, Last Goodbye!
Summer Nights
Chapter One Letters and Internal Struggles
Harry Potter lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. The midday sun beat down on his face. A glass of lemonade sat on his bedside table, and his arms behind his head acted as a pillow. His body was comfortable, but his mind was in anguish. Harry closed his eyes as another one of his headaches started. His scar burned for a few moments, and then left a dull pain. His scar had been hurting on and off for a while, so he had started to ignore it.
He reached over for his lemonade, which was now covered in condensation. He took a long gulp to soothe his aching throat, and then wiped his wet hands on the bedspread. It was swelteringly hot outside, and he was happy to be inside where it was cool and air-conditioned.
Just as he was about to lie back down on his bed, he heard an all-too-familiar voice at his door. "Harry, is there anything you need?" He looked over at his Aunt Petunia, and shook his head. "Are you sure? Anything at all, I can get it for you." She didn't look him in the eye, but instead glanced around his room.
"No thank you, I'm peachy," Harry said dully. One thing he was thankful for was that his aunt didn't start calling him the pet names she still called Dudley. If she ever called him Harry-Warrykins, he would have to fly his broomstick all the way to Iceland, even if it meant expulsion from Hogwarts.
Hogwarts. Harry leaned back down on his bed as Aunt Petunia closed the door behind her. Going back to school was the only thing he was looking forward to. At Hogwarts he had friends who understood him. At the Dursley's, he was bored out of his mind. They had started to treat him almost as nice as they treated Dudley. However, their forced kindness was only to keep him happy so he wouldn't write to the Order of the Phoenix and complain, therefore putting the Dursleys' reputations and lives at risk.
Just then, several thumps came from outside his window, one after the other. The source of the sound appeared to be a ball of feathers throwing itself against the windowpane.
Harry grinned for the first time all day, and opened the window. "Pig!" He exclaimed, as the tiny owl dropped two letters on his bed and started zipping around his room at top speed. Harry caught Pig and put him in the empty cage on the floor. "Here, have some food and water, Hedwig won't mind," he said to the bird, "she's out hunting for mice."
Harry grabbed one of the letters Pig had delivered and ripped it open quickly when he saw it was from his best friend, Ron.
Dear Harry,
What's up, mate? Are you bored at your aunt and uncle's? I talked to Mum and Dad about having you over sometime soon, and they said it would be all right. You could come over around the middle of July, I think. And Ginny wants Hermione to come over too, so maybe you both can stay for the rest of the summer. I reckon they're planning something for your 16th birthday. Probably a party! That would be bloody brilliant, you should see the stuff Fred and George have invented that they want to test out. And a warning: DON'T ACCEPT ANYTHING FROM THEM!!! We've all been involuntary test subjects for their pranks. They're making lots of money though, like you saw with their dragon skin jackets at the train station. They're looking for a place to live that's near their shop, but for now they're living at the Burrow.
Still no word from Percy. I think he might be embarrassed for not believing Dad that You-Know-Who is really back, now that the Ministry is on our side. And we haven't heard too much about the war either. Or at least, Fred, George, Ginny and I haven't. Mum and Dad aren't telling us anything, but what else is new?
Hope you can come and stay,
Ron
Harry was overjoyed for the first time since he had left Hogwarts. He would be leaving the Dursleys for the rest of the summer, and he would have his very first birthday party! He was slightly troubled when he saw that Percy still wasn't speaking to anyone in his family, and that there was no news on the war with Lord Voldemort. But no news is good news, Harry thought.
He looked back over the letter. Ginny wanted Hermione to come over? What about Ron? Wasn't Hermione his friend too? But, knowing the two of them, they probably got into another row after Harry had left the train station.
Once he had finished triumphing over the fun summer ahead of him, he saw that he had another letter that Pig had delivered. It read:
Dear Harry,
How's your summer been going? I've been fine, except that one of Fred and George's trick candies dyed my teeth green for a week!
Ron says he's told you that you can come and stay at the Burrow for the summer. We might also be going to the place we went last year later on this summer. (I can't say where, in case the letter is intercepted) Hermione's coming as well, as I'm sure you know.
And speaking of Hermione and Ron, he's been acting funny lately. He blushes whenever her name is mentioned. Do you have any idea why? I know I don't….
Anyway, I hope your family is treating you all right. I'm sure they are, after what Moody said to them in King's Cross at the end of term! I'll see you soon
Ginny
Harry blinked several times. Ginny had written him a letter? And what was she talking about with Ron and Hermione? They were his best friends and he didn't notice anything strange going on between them. But he had been rather busy last year.
Harry sighed. The previous month had taken its toll on him. It would have been bad enough with just his O.W.L.s, Umbridge, Dumbledore, and the war to worry about. But the loss of his godfather, along with the prophecy he had discovered, were almost too much to bear.
He sat up, and tried to shake off the sudden depression that had befallen him. He got his quill and some parchment from his desk, and started to write a reply to Ron and Ginny.
"Ron! Ginny! Get down here and set the table!" Mrs. Weasley's voice echoed through the slightly run-down house that was the Burrow.
Three stories up, Ron Weasley looked up from the bit of parchment he had been staring at for the past several minutes, and got up from his desk. He crumpled the parchment up and threw it away, but not before glancing at the solitary words written at the top: "Dear Hermione,". He ambled down the stairs, skipping a few steps at a time with his long legs. When he got to the foot of the stairs, he saw that his sister was already putting silverware on the table.
"Ron," Ginny said, looking him up and down, "You have ink smudged all over your face." Ron quickly splashed water on his face from the sink. "Trying to think of what to write to Hermione again?" She said, with a sly smile.
"No," Ron said, a bit too quickly. Ginny shared a knowing smile with her mother. "What?" Ron said, trying to sound puzzled. Ginny just shook her head.
Before Ron had a chance to act even more confused, two loud cracking sounds came from the living room. "Hello, all!" said Fred as he and his twin strode into the room.
"A really good day for business, isn't it?" George added as they sat down at the table.
"Oh no, you don't!" Mrs. Weasley pulled them out of their seats. "If you're still going to live in this house, then you are going to earn your keep! Help Ron and Ginny set the table."
"Gosh, Mum, we just can't, we have to…" George looked at Fred for an excuse.
"Go back to the shop! Yes, that's it, we forgot…something." The twins then Disapparated with a loud crack back to their shop in Diagon Alley.
Mrs. Weasley sighed. "I've given up chasing after them. They're almost grown up and moved out." She looked wistfully out the window.
Ron and Ginny looked at each other, amused. Their mother was yelling at Fred and George half of the time, but they would all miss the pair around the house.
As Ron got the plates out of the cupboard, a very small ball of feathers whizzed past him, causing him to drop all of the tableware he had been holding. "Damn you, bloody owl!" Pig was still zooming around the house, excited to deliver a letter. Ginny caught him in midair.
"It's from Harry!" she squealed, and ripped it open before seeing whom it was addressed to. This time it was Ron who shared a knowing glance with his mother. "And it's for both of us, Ron," she said. She read it out loud.
Dear Ron and Ginny,
I've been fine, with many thanks to Moody and everyone for scaring the Dursley's like that. They've at least started to leave me alone.
Thank you for the offer, and yes, of course I would love to spend the rest of the summer with you! Anything could be better than here. Just make the arrangements and I'll be there!
I'm looking forward to seeing the both of you, and Hermione. Hopefully I'll see you sooner rather than later.
Your Friend,
Harry
Ginny read the letter over and over again. He would love to spend the summer with her? He's looking forward to seeing her? It was all so confusing. She had fancied him when she was a little girl, but she had only fancied the famous Harry Potter, the Boy Who Lived. And now, it almost seemed as if he fancied her! Of course, the letter had been addressed to herself and Ron, and Ron was his best friend. And she supposed she was reading between the lines a bit. She sighed. She was starting to feel a headache coming on, both from excitement and anxiousness.
Ron read the letter from Harry quickly after Ginny read it aloud. After dinner, he ran up to his room and scribbled a note back to Harry.
Harry-
Glad you can come. Ginny's over the moon about it, ha ha! We can't write the exact directions or date for when you'll be coming over, in case the letter is intercepted, but be packed and ready at all times, and we'll get you out of there.
-Ron
Ron leaned back in his chair. He had one easy note done; now all he had to do was write to Hermione. Ron took a deep breath. Sure, they had kissed at the train station after everyone had left, so what? No, it wasn't "So what". It had been wonderful.
He laid down on his Chudley Cannons-quilted bed. Kissing Hermione had been one of the happiest moments of his life. Not being able to see her was gnawing at him like a flesh-eating slug. He had to communicate with her sometime this summer, before he went mad. He was fighting an internal struggle.
Come on, Ron, don't be such a wanker, just pick up the quill and write her!
But what if she writes back and says that she's sorry she ever kissed me, and she likes Viktor much better?
She would never do that to you. And she's still your best friend! Friends write each other all the time.
Yeah, she's my friend. My friend that I snog on the side!
Well, snogging her was bloody terrific, and if you want to do it again, you have to maintain contact with her.
That's easy for you to say.
Ron buried his head under the pillow. Writing Hermione a letter was harder than he thought it would be.