ok my first fanfic people...plz review and let me kno how i did...this ones a mere introduction but the story will get better after (hopefully!)...ALL FLAMES APPRECIATED (well of course nice reviews are always preferred) i want an honest opinion ok? now thanks to my beta, this chapter sounds better than when i first wrote it!..here goes..

Disclaimer: It belongs to either J.K. Rowling or Archiecomics...the unseen and unheard of characters are mine though....hehe i own something at least!

Chapter 1

The evening drew to a close. The room in number 4, Privet Drive grew steadily darker. Harry Potter lay on his bed oblivious to the fact that it was pitch dark. He made no attempt to turn on the light, or even to change and get into bed. He just lay there thinking.

A soft rustle at his window interrupted his thoughts as Hedwig flew in carrying Lupin's reply. When Hedwig perched herself on top of her cage, Harry got up and took the reply from her. She quickly gulped down some water and then took off again into the night.

Harry unfolded the parchment. Lupin's neat handwriting told him that the situation was under control now. There were a few aurors who had to be taken over to St. Mungo's and apart from a few injuries everything was fine. Unfortunately, the deatheaters had escaped. The letter ended in the usual way reminding Harry to be careful, to continue practising his Occlumency and to be on the watch for potential attacks when outside the house. Although the letter did not say that the Advance Guard were still doing their duty, i.e. following Harry around, Harry knew better. The other day he saw Sturgis Pudmore meandering his way through the bushes (obviously drunk), and Mrs. Figg, who always looked for chances to come up and talk to Harry. As he folded up the parchment again, a sigh escaped his lips.

The summer at the Dursley's had been miserable so far. Even though he knew perfectly well why he had to stay there, he still wanted to get as far away as possible. Aunt Petunia stayed out of Harry's way as much as possible. The only time they spent together was when he helped her in the kitchen. She had continued to keep her mouth firmly shut as Harry bombarded her with questions about her promise to Dumbledore. Uncle Vernon's temper rose considerably whenever he saw him around. Last summer's incidents had made it crystal clear to him that the wizarding world contained highly cracked delinquents and he was not willing to continue taking part in it any longer. Dudley's attempts to taunt Harry always failed whenever Harry drew out his wand, which he made a point of keeping with him constantly, since Voldemort had shown himself at the Ministry of Magic.

Voldemort had started on his attacks as if he had never gone fifteen years ago. Harry tried his very best to listen to as much of the muggle news as possible; sometimes by sitting on the stairs while the television blared on with the 6 o'clock news every evening, or sometimes by sitting outside the living room window, waving occasionally to Mrs. Figg, who went to the supermarket to buy more cat food.

He felt at a complete loss. Although he kept in touch with his friends and members of the Order, he could not help them in any way. To his frustration, he was still underage to join and in more danger than any of the others. He was still number one on the lists of Voldemort's glory- seeking deatheaters, who wanted nothing more than to bring their master's enemy to him.

Harry felt trapped. He felt trapped, the same has Sirius had felt for the last year of his life. Trapped like Sirius in 12, Grimmauld Place...NO....he mustn't think about Sirius. His eyes filled with tears for the umpteenth time as Sirius Black took over his mind...He blinked his tears back furiously. It was his own fault that Sirius was no longer here. No matter how many times Dumbledore or Lupin or anyone else told him otherwise, he still couldn't help but feel guilty.

It had been over a week since anyone had contacted Harry. He understood that there wasn't supposed to be any unnecessary attention drawn towards Privet Drive. It was quite possible that one of Voldemort's spies could intercept the owls, if they were too frequent. It was best to keep a low profile.

A week into August, Harry sat dolefully on his bed and busied himself by finishing an essay for charms while munching on a piece of the birthday cake the Weasleys had sent him. He used to have a great time eating the cake in front of Dudley while watching his face break out in cold sweat (Dudley was STILL on the diet, which was having no effect on his rapidly widening build), but even that had lost its appeal.

After Harry finished his essay and began to get ready for bed, something tiny zoomed in through the window and smacked hard into the wall opposite. When he made his way over to the tiny ball of fluff, he realised it was Pidwidgeon, Ron's hyper owl. He had a small cut above his left wing and a nastily crumpled letter tied to his claw. Harry quickly scooped up Pig and placed him in Hedwig's cage. After placing a dish of water next to him, he went out of his room and crept slowly towards his aunt and uncle's bedroom. As they were downstairs watching T.V., Harry hoped to quietly borrow the first aid kit in order to treat Pig. He hadn't had many experiences with bandages as the Dursleys never bothered to treat him after Dudley's gang had recruited Harry as their punch bag before he began Hogwarts. Thankfully, he wasn't anymore but back then the school nurse had helped him though and she had told him how to clean the wound and bandage it.

He wondered how Pig had got hurt in the first place. Perhaps an unexpected collision with a branch... After all, Pig flew so fast it was a wonder he didn't crash into things more often...

Uncle Vernon's thundering footsteps brought Harry out of his reverie. He quickly picked up the box and dashed to his room hoping to go unnoticed. But Vernon Dursley caught him in the landing. After a quick glance at Harry's hand, which was clutching the white box, he grabbed Harry by the collar and hissed, "What the hell do you think you're doing boy?" Harry swallowed but managed a cool reply, "My friend's owl is hurt. He needs to be tended to."

Vernon's moustache quivered with anger. He screamed, "DAMN BOY! Do you think I care about your ruddy owl? I don't care if he DIES in your room!" he tightened his grip on Harry's collar, which made it harder for him to breathe, "I don't ever want to see you sneaking around my house again, you hear?" Harry coughed in reply and pulled himself free from the iron grip. He then looked Uncle Vernon straight in the eyes and said in a low voice,

"Don't you ever touch me again! My friends are waiting for my reply and if they don't get one soon, I'm pretty sure they'll think something's up". He folded his arms and smiled up serenely as Uncle Vernon's eyes widened slightly. Harry didn't need a pensive to see that Vernon was recalling his last encounter with Mad Eye Moody. Why, even Harry himself was replaying the scene at the station in which Moody issued a little threat about Harry's safekeeping to his uncle.

Uncle Vernon grunted something in reply and then headed off.

Harry slammed the door in his room, making Pig jump in fright. He patched up Pig as best as he could and allowed him to rest. He decided that Pig should rest for a couple of days and he can send Hedwig back to Ron with an answer. With that thought in his head, he turned around and picked up the letter from his bed. When he unrolled the parchment and began reading it, he noticed it was very much crumpled and even ripped at the corners. Harry frowned. It wasn't like Ron to send a letter in an abysmal state. Then his eyes snapped open as he remembered something similar happening to Hedwig last term at Hogwarts. He strode over to his window and peered out into the darkness. No one. He then shut the window and pulled the curtains.

The owl had been intercepted.

ok plz review and tell me honestly how that was....xx..ooh im sleepy ...zzzzzz