Harry Potter and the Fountain of Magical Brethren
Chapter 1: The Moment of Truth
The Dursleys were sitting around the dinner table, enjoying a nice steak dinner, for this was their last night to spoil their son, Dudley, before he left with his Junior Heavyweight Inter-School Boxing Team for a competition in London. He was only to be gone a week, which was not nearly long enough for his cousin, Harry Potter. To Harry, the only amount of time that would be satisfactory would be an eternity. For harry could not be more different from his obese and bullying cousin, nor from his shrill Aunt Petunia or gruff Uncle Vernon.
Indeed, the Dursleys despised Harry so much that they had not even remembered that tomorrow would be his 16th birthday, although by this point, Harry was not at all surprised. The only aspect of his birthday to which he was looking forward was the fact that he would soon be hearing from all his friends in the wizarding world, and these friends were all that kept him going throughout the bleak summer. He had been receiving regular owls from Remus Lupin, checking that Harry was being treated well by his horrible Muggle relatives. He had also heard from his best friends, Ron and Hermione; though they could not give him much information in these owls, they tried to keep him as informed as possible about the goings on in the Order of the Phoenix. Harry could also tell that they were trying to avoid the subject of his recently deceased godfather, Sirius Black.
Though their letters were full of encouraging words that Harry realized pertained to his feelings about Sirius, they did not mention the incident directly, for Harry was still grieving for his godfather. He was often plagued by nightmares where a startled-looking Sirius drifted beyond a mysterious tattered veil, just out of reach. Upon waking up from the dreams in the middle of the night, he would feel consumed by his sadness, although the idea of confiding in his aunt and uncle was laughable. The nighttime was the only time that he would allow himself to shed tears over his loss. Sirius had been the closest thing Harry had ever had to a parent, and it sickened him that he had had such little time out of Azkaban, and that there were so many ways that his death could have been prevented. However, to avoid the torment of his cousin, Harry did not allow himself to think too much about Sirius during the days, instead devoting his time to reading up on methods of dueling, attacking his grueling mountain of homework, and studying his Occlumency as if his life depended upon it. As Harry knew firsthand, someone's life could indeed depend upon it. After Dumbledore had revealed to Harry earlier in the summer that he must be the one to defeat Voldemort, he had begun to study some spells that he thought might be helpful, though he regretted not being able to practice them due to the Restriction of Underage Wizardry.
When Harry was finished eating, he retired straight away to his cramped bedroom. The Dursleys were certainly fine with this; not only was Harry's presence truly unwelcome at their table, but they had pretty much left Harry alone all summer due to some threats they had received from members of the Order when picking harry up from the train the previous term.
After several hours spent reading, Harry glanced up at his clock, and saw that it was after midnight. Not that being siteen would be any different from being fifteen, but he expected to hear from his friends soon. Sure enough, as he went to open his window for some fresh air, he saw some owls flying in the distance. As they drew closer, he began to recognize a few of them. Eventually, Hedwig, his snowy owl, was the first owl to glide gradefully through the window, followed by Ron's owl, Pigwidgeon, who hovered precariously over Hewig's water dish before dropping his package with a splash. An unfamiliar barred owl landed next to Hedwig, and then an owl Harry recognized as a barn owl belonging to the school. Grinning, Harry reached for Ron's present, removing the soggy packaging. He read the letter first:
Harry-
Happy Birthday, mate! I picked this up at Quality Quidditch Supplies one day when we were visiting Fred and George at the joke shop. It's going really well! They send along their birthday wishes and these samples of their newest product. They're Babbling Tablets, and when you put them in someone's drink they can't stop talking for the next hour! As you know, Hermione's here and we think you'll be able to come join us soon.
Ron
Harry unrolled a large poster of the Chudley Cannons, Ron's favorite Quidditch team. He hung it up behind his door so that his relatives would not be disturbed by the picture, consisting of orange blurs zooming around the Quidditch field. Only in the magical world did the figures in pictures actually move. He net opened the package that Hedwig carried, recognizing the handwriting to be that of Hermione Granger.
Dear Harry,
I hope you're having a lovely birthday, and that you find this book interesting. I read it through several times, and I think that you will get a lot of use out of it. Things are going well here, though I'm ever so worried about our scores on our OWLs! Every time I see an owl, I can barely breathe! Ron probably told you- we think you might be able to come to the Burrow soon. My whole family is staying there because our house is being renovated. Anyway, hope to see you soon! Good luck on the OWLs!
Hermione
As Harry unwrapped the packaging, he read the title of the book Hermione had given him: Ten Steps to Achieving the Career of Your Dreams. Harry snorted and put it in his trunk, making a mental note to at least skim through it later, for he knew that Hermione might test him on its contents. He turned to the unfamiliar owl and saw that the handwriting on the letter belonged to Remus Lupin. He opened it hastily.
Dear Harry,
Happy Birthday! We at the Order have been looking through our old keepsakes and thought that you might want to have these. We will be coming for you on August 4th, so have your trunk packed. See you soon.
Remus Lupin
Intrigued, Harry opened the parcel and found some documents and tow blxes. His heart leapt as he realized that the documents were hish parents' marriage license and his own birth certificate. Upon opening the boxes, he was stunned to see two gleaming wands, which he had assumed had been destroyed along with his parents. Though he did not know if these would be of any use to him, any reminder of his parents' lives made Harry feel more that they were real people instead of merely thoughts that often occupied his mind. At long last he reached for the letter bearing the Hogwarts crest. His heart racing, he opened what he knew to be his OWL results, accompanying the usual letter telling him what supplies to get for next year. He was very nervous to see these, for they would decide whether he would become an Auror, his dream career.
Mr. Potter,
Enclosed are the results of your Ordinary Wizarding Levels. There is also a list of the classes you are eligible to take. Please send an owl back as soon as possible, indicating which of the courses you will be taking. Enjoy the remainder of your holidays.
Griselda Marchbanks, Head of the Wizarding Examinations Authority
Transfiguration: Exceeds Expectations
Charms: Exceeds Expectations
Care of Magical Creatures: Outstanding
Astronomy: Poor
Defense Against the Dark Arts: Outstanding
Divination: Dreadful
Herbology: Acceptable
Potions: Exceeds Expectations
History of Magic: Dreadful
Total: 6/9
NEWT Classes Recommmended:
NEWT Transfiguration
NEWTCharms
Advanced Care of Magical Creatures
NEWT Defense Against the Dark Arts
Harry felt disappointment was over him as he realized that his Potions score was not enough to secure him a spot in the NEWT class. Now he would not be able to become an Auror. It angered him that Snape set such high standards when he had truly studied as hard as he could. With a sigh, he went nearly identical letters to everyone who had sent him gifts, thanking them for their thoughtfulness. He then went to sleep hoping against hope that it would be a dreamless night.