Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter

Harry Potter Living Life

Chapter 1

Harry sat in a very stiff chair in the Dursley's living room on Sunday evening. He was very bored, and the whole house smelled terrible. The reason there was a bad stench in the air was what Aunt Petunia was cooking. Fish. Harry hated fish, it was his least favorite found next to vomit-flavored jellybeans.

"Harry!" yelled his annoying Aunt. "Set the table!"

"Yes, Aunt Petunia," Harry said as he walked slowly towards the kichen.

When he entered the room, he found Dudley in one of his temper-tantrums. "I told you the last time we had fish never to make it again!" he yelled, stomping his feet. "I specifically told you that I hate fish!"

"It's good for ones appearance, my little Dudders!" Harry's Aunt said trying to calm down her son, "It will help you keep that charming and lean look of yours and all of the girls will be lining up at the door to date you." Then she noticed Harry in the doorway. "Set the table, now!" she spat at him.

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."

As Harry began to set the table, he heard the front door open.

"I'm home!" called Harry's very mean, very annoying, very large Uncle Vernon.

"I made your favorite!" exclaimed Uncle Vernon's wife as she hugged what she could, for he was very large, and kissed him on the cheek.

"I've been looking forward to fish all week!" Uncle Vernon stated to Aunt Petunia. He sat down at the end of the table on picked up his fork and knife. Aunt Petunia put fish on each of their plates, more on Harry's than Dudley's; fish was the only food that Aunt Petunia would give Harry a lot of, this was because she knew how much Harry hated it.

Harry looked at his food; he took a few bites thinking that he should eat it rather that starve.

After Harry and his relatives finished their dinner, Harry went up to his room. He was anxious, for the night to come was his Birthday, more like Birthnight, and he would be turning seventeen years old. He changed into his pajamas and got into bed, laying there staring at his watch, which read 8:00, waiting for four hours to pass by and wondering weather or not he would throw up the fish he had stuffed down earlier.

10:50, 11:30, 11:40, 11:45, 11:50, 11:55, 11:58, 11:59 and eight seconds, 11:59 and five seconds, 11:59 and one second……………….

"I'm seventeen," Harry whispered to himself, for he didn't want to wake the Dursley's up. At that moment, four owls soared in through Harry's bedroom window. They landed on his bed, next to him. Harry took the card that a very small owl, Pigwidgen, was holding. It read:

Green Eyes,

Happy Birthday!

How are the muggles treating you?

I hope that you are well.

Here is a gift for you, I hope you like it.

Guy With Red Hair

Harry thought that the letter was quite amusing; Green Eyes, mean people, Guy With Red Hair. It was a pretty good idea of Ron to put the letter in code; for the most unlikely event, if the owl was to be intercepted. Harry took the package from the tiny owl and ripped it open.

Enclosed was candy. Half eaten candy that is. There was an opened chocolate frog package – the frog was missing a leg. A lollypop looked like it had been licked. A cauldron cake was missing two bites. It looked like every piece of candy was meddled with in one way or another.

Harry laughed to himself – he knew how much Ron loved to eat, especially candy.

Harry looked at the other three owls as he put Pigwidgen on to of Hedwig's cadge, who was hooting at the very hyper owl. He took a letter from a big brown owl that was carrying a medium sized parcel.

Black hair,

Happy Birthday! You are now seventeen years old. Congratulations! I wonder, are you still planning on not going back to Hog School? Freckle Face and I will do whatever you do; we will always be with you - no matter what. Enclosed is a gift that I bought for you, and at a reasonable price, too. It may come in handy – who really knows? Be careful when you open it, I can be sharp at times. I hope that you like it.

Love From,

Bushy Hair

It seemed as though both Ron and Hermione thought it best to put their letters in disguise. Good thinking, too; what with Harry being Harry and the whole Wizarding World wanting something to do with him and all.

Harry took the package from the owl that had held Hermione's letter and opened it. "Wow," Harry muttered.

Enclosed was a switchblade. The handle was looked like it was made out of wood, but when Harry pushed the button that was on the side of it, a sharp shinning blade came out. Harry looked at it from all angles. He saw his initials engraved on the blade near the handle – HJP. Harry pressed the button again and the blade went inside the handle. He stood up and put the weapon into the back pocket of his jeans, thinking that might get the chance to use it on someone from the dark side – Voldemort, Death Eaters, Inferi.

Harry looked at the two remaining owls, wondering who they could be from. He took a letter from a tanish brown coloured owl and opened it. It looked as though the person who wrote it was in a hurry.

Hiya, er, I don't know wha' ter call ya, well you kno who ya are,

Happy Birthday!

It's not every year one fellow turns seventeen, eh?

I can't quite say that I am looking forward to another year at the Castile, but I can't wait 'till I see ya again!

Things are kinda quiet around here, what with Dumbledore gone and all.

It's kinda sad really.

Yer Very Tall Friend

Harry got a sad feeling from Hagrid's letter. He couldn't imagine going back to Hogwarts with no Dumbledore to await him. He noticed that Hagrid's owl was holding a rather large square package. Harry took it and ripped off the paper. A book entitled 'How to Survive the Worst' was enclosed. Harry flipped through it and saw the titles of some of the chapters - Curses, Wounds, Deaths. "Hmmm," Harry simply said and set the book aside.

The last owl was an auburn colour. It held no letter, just a very long parcel. Harry took the parcel from the owl and it immediately flew away through the still open window. Harry opened the mysterious package and what came out was a shock. A sward. "Wow," Harry said again.

The sward looked exactly like Godric Gryffindor's sward that Harry had used in his second year at Hogwarts to kill a baskalisc. The only two differences were that the sward didn't have 'Godric Gryffindor' imprinted on it – it read 'Harry Potter'. Harry's sward also was also a little longer than Gryffindor's.

"Who could this be from?" Harry asked himself unbelievingly as he swung the sward around.