Harry Potter was a mere fifteen minutes from becoming of age in the wizarding world. In fifteen minutes he would be an adult in the eyes of his world and would be able to practice magic outside of school. And in fifteen minutes, the blood protection that Harry enjoyed while living at the house of his only remaining relatives would cease to exist.

Harry was sitting on the end of his bed concentrating very hard on an empty spot in the middle of the room. Suddenly, as if by magic, a large comfortable chair appeared out of thin air in that very spot. Harry approached it, studied it for a second, and then without a word, but with a flick of his wand, vanished it.

In normal times, an underage wizard performing magic might have to look out for an owl from the ministry of magic alerting him of his disregard for the rules and threatening penalty. But Harry realized very early in the summer that these were not normal times. The Wizarding World was at war and there was chaos. The ministry had better things to worry about than a nearly seventeen year old wizard performing simple spells in the privacy of his own bedroom. Harry thought that this at least showed that the ministry might be starting to get it's priorities in line.

The chair appeared a few more times and then vanished again and Harry looked at the clock. Ten minutes. In ten minutes he could get out of here and join his friends Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger at the Weasley's home, the Burrow. Ron and Hermione had been corresponding with Harry daily since the end of term. They had offered and almost insisted to accompany Harry to Privet Drive as he made his last visit to the Dursleys. But Harry had declined their offer. He needed time to himself to think, to reflect. Plus, he didn't need to deal with the hassle that his relatives would have caused when they saw two extra wizards pop up on their doorstep. He promised that he would come straight to the Burrow on his seventeenth birthday and they reluctantly agreed.

Mostly, Ron and Hermione would give him an accounting of their day. Ron's older brother Bill and his fiancé Fleur Delacour were getting married in a week and so Hermione and Ron often spoke of the preparations that were going into the wedding. The magical wards around the Burrow were being strengthened significantly so that there were no disturbances on the day of the wedding. Ron and Hermione, like Harry, were also spending their days practicing non verbal spells. Harry couldn't get his last encounter with Snape out of his mind and vowed that when he saw him again, he would be ready to duel with him. It seemed that he wouldn't have a chance without mastering non verbal spells.

They were also still searching for R.A.B. The person who had left the fake horcrux that had led to Dumbledore's ultimate death. Hermione had sent Harry a letter this very morning that hinted to him that she may have found out this small but vital piece of information. But they had decided not discuss any details about horcruxes over owl post. The last thing Harry wanted was to alert Voldemort to the fact that he was after the remaining pieces of his soul.

Harry checked the clock again. Five minutes. In five minutes he would say goodbye to this house for the last time. In the meantime he picked up the day's Daily Prophet. On the front cover, there was a chilling headline.

DEMENTOR ATTACKS ON THE RISE

The Dementors of Azkaban have all abandoned their posts and have been making there presence felt throughout London. Sources from the office of the ministry have reported that no less than 75 dementor attacks have occurred in the last fortnight. A spokesman from the office of the minister of magic, Rufus Scrimgeour, has stated that they are doing everything in their power to control these vial beasts. As of now, there is no known way to kill a dementor. Although they can be effectively repelled with the Patronus Charm. For more information on how to perform the Patronus Charm, see page 5.

Harry knew, from past experience, that Dementors were truly reprehensible creatures. It was troubling to think about the pour witches and wizards who were stripped of their souls with no way to defend themselves. It was difficult to learn an advanced spell like the Patronus without any assistance, but Harry hoped that more people would learn to use it effectively. But Dementors were not the only problem that was plaguing the wizarding world currently. Although Voldemort and his Death Eaters had been disturbingly quiet lately, it was clear that he was putting the dark creatures that he employed on his side to work. Two Giants had caused considerable damage to a small muggle town. Werewolf bitings were being reported daily, and now the Dementors were starting to leave their mark.

The governors had still not decided whether or not Hogwarts would re-open, but any thought Harry had of returning was squashed with ever headline he read in the prophet. People were dying daily and something had to be done quickly. Harry's mind quickly wandered to the credo that he often found himself repeating: the locket .., the cup ... the snake ... something of Gryffindor's or Ravenclaw's. But before he could dwell on it, his alarm clock started blaring. Harry had set it just in case he had fallen asleep, although there was little chance of that happening since he had not had a proper night's rest since the beginning of the summer holiday. It was officially July 31st. Harry was now seventeen. He was an adult. And it was time to go.

He went over to Hedwig's cage and woke the beautiful owl up. Hedwig silently shook away her slumber. Even she had been trained after years at the Dursleys not to make any noise. Harry quickly opened the window and told Hedwig to meet him at the burrow. She flew away into the night sky and Harry trained an eye on her until she disappeared into the darkness.

Harry turned around and surveyed his room. He had never really been able to make this room his own, so now that he was leaving it, he wasn't necessarily feeling sentimental about it. He was already packed and ready to go. He didn't have many possessions, apart from the things that lay at Grimmauld Place that he inherited from Sirius. Everything he owned fit neatly into his school trunk. Harry opened his trunk and put a last few objects in it and then promptly shrunk the trunk and put it in his pocket. He almost didn't realize that he had shrunk the trunk non-verbally. He was starting to do non-verbal spells without even thinking about it.

Harry made his way into the hallway and heard the familiar snores coming from his uncle's and cousin's rooms. He had decided that he would leave in the middle of the night without saying goodbye to the Dursleys. Harry was sure that this would not bother them in the least as they had hardly spoke to him at all since he had returned from Hogwarts. In fact, his Aunt Petunia had not said a single word to him the whole time but had taken to giving him odd looks every time their paths crossed. Uncle Vernon had not technically said a word to Harry either. Although Vernon could often be heard saying "Petunia, the boy knows that he's to be gone as soon as he turns seventeen right?". Harry had gotten the hint. It would be better this way. He had nothing to say to them anyway.

Ron had suggested that since he could do magic, Harry could finally get some sort of revenge on the Dursleys. He told Harry that his brothers, Fred and George, would be more than happy to equip him with all sorts of treats that would make the Dursleys remember him long after he was gone. But it just didn't seem worth it to Harry anymore. After all, Dumbledore had said it best. As cruel as they were to him, as much as they made his life hell at times, they had kept him alive by allowing him to stay with them. There was something to be said for that. Not much, Harry considered, but something.

Harry continued through the hallway and down the steps, remembering to avoid the creaky step. The front door was now in his sights and a warm feeling started to come over him. This was really it, he was really leaving. But before he was able to grasp the front door, he heard a hushed sniffle and noticed a light coming from the living room. Quietly, he drew his wand and floated towards the distraction making sure that he wasn't heard. As he got closer and the light started to bring the room into focus, Harry noticed that it was his Aunt Petunia. She was sorting through a box and was sobbing a little, but not obviously.

Harry crept closer until he was almost right over her shoulder. Although, she still hadn't been alerted to his presence. He noticed that she had something in her hand and upon closer inspection he realized it was a Hogwarts letter.

"What are you doing with my letter?" Harry asked. He kept his voice down so as not to wake up his uncle and cousin. However, Petunia gave a startled squeak as she whipped around throwing the letter back into the box that she was hovering over.

"What are you doing up at this hour?" She demanded completely ignoring Harry's question. Harry figured she probably didn't realize that he was leaving since he had shrunk his trunk and placed it in his pocket.

"In case you didn't remember…" Harry started. "It's my birthday. I'm leaving now for good." Petunia seemed to come to herself a little. Although she didn't give any indication that this news surprised her.

"Right, yes well take care of yourself." She replied. "And you'd do well to heed your uncle's advice and not return her again." She turned her back and looked down at the box again.

"Don't worry," Harry replied. "I would never have come back here in the first place if Dumbledore didn't insist it. And Uncle Vernon doesn't scare me. So if the need ever arises for me to darken your doorstep again, gold help me, I will." Petunia didn't say anything to that and didn't even turn back around. Harry took that as his cue to leave. He started back towards the front door, but was interrupted one more time.

"And you tell Dumbledore, that we're not to hear from him either." Petunia squawked. "I have fulfilled my end of the bargain."

"Well I can guarantee you that you won't hear from Dumbledore again." Harry replied. "He's gone,… dead."

"What?" Petunia shrieked. This time Harry was sure that Uncle Vernon would wake up. He settled for a second and waited for his uncle's voice, but simply heard his continued snores echoing throughout the house.

"He was killed at the end of last term."

Petunia looked absolutely terrified at this news. Her face had gone completely white which was saying something since her complexion was a pale as any Harry had ever seen to begin with.

"He promised protection for my family," She started. "Even after you were gone."

"I wish you all good luck." Harry said sincerely. "But no one is safe now. There is a war going on. It's going to affect everyone. I'm leaving now and hopefully that will make you less of a target. But everyone is in danger as long as Voldemort is alive. But I can promise you that I will do my best to kill him once and for all."

"You?" Petunia spat. "What are you going to be able to do?"

"I know you know things about the wizarding world." Harry began. "More than you will let on. I don't know who you have gotten your information from, but you must know that there is a reason why Dumbledore has tried all these years to protect me. I am the one who has to eliminate Voldemort." Petunia looked honestly shocked by this revelation. Her jaw dropped and she continued to stare at Harry without saying a word.

"And I believe that belongs to me." Harry said as he flicked his wand and the Hogwarts letter came flying out of the box and into Harry's hand. Petunia's expression turned from shock to horror as Harry examined the letter.

Ms. Petunia Evans

It was his aunt's name on the letter not his own.

"You,…you're a witch?"

"Of course I'm not." Petunia said as she approached Harry and snatched the letter out of his hand. She stared at it again for a second and then continued. "I wasn't anything like my freak sister. The letter was a mistake and there was no way that I would have ever embraced that life. "

"But, you could have?" Harry asked. "You could have gone to Hogwarts? You could have become a witch." Harry had his eyes trained on his aunt now, but she was looking anywhere but at him.

"They tormented me." Petunia said after a few moments of silence. Harry could now see the tears begin to well up in her eyes. "Every time her freak friends came to visit… including your father." Petunia seemed to realize her vulnerability and quickly straightened herself up.

"I knew I didn't want to be like them." She continued. "I didn't want that life." Harry didn't respond. He had seen in a pensive how cruel his father and Sirius could be. In that moment, he felt sorry for his aunt. She had probably feared going to Hogwarts, because she thought her sisters friends would continue to pick on her. Harry knew what it was like to be picked on. It seemed clear to him now, why his aunt treated him the way she did. But that didn't make it right.

The room stood deathly quiet for another couple of moments. Harry was going to say something to his aunt, but really didn't know what. Maybe there was nothing left to say. He would go on with the tasks that were set before him, and his relatives would get on with their life.

"Here take this." Petunia said, handing Harry what looked to be a letter. Harry noticed that this letter was also addressed to his aunt. But he also noticed that the return address was Lily Potter.

"This is the last letter I received from your mother." Petunia explained. "Maybe it will help you." And that was the last words Harry would exchange with his aunt. She turned around and went back to examining her box. Harry whispered a quick "thank you" and then continued to the front door. However, one more thing catapulted into his mind before he left. He had forgotten something in his room.

He made his way back to the smallest bedroom at number 4 Privet Drive and lifted up the loose floorboard where he had hid so many things over the years and grabbed the fake locket horcrux. R.A.B. The locket .., the cup ... the snake ... something of Gryffindor's or Ravenclaw's. This is all his life encompassed from now on.

Back in the hallway, he heard the thunderous snores of his uncle and cousin one last time. He crept up to their respective doors and with a silent spell, both doors slowly opened. Harry grinned to himself for the first time in what seemed like ages. He just couldn't resist. He whispered two incantations in succession and kept walking down the hall. A fresh pig's tail for each of them. No less than they deserved.

Harry finally made it down the stairs, not bothering to notice if his aunt was still there. He wasn't sure if there were members of the Order watching his house or not. To Harry's knowledge, he, Ron and Hermione were the only people that knew about the horcruxes and about the prophecy. After Dumbledore's death, the Order may have figured that there were better things to do than guard Harry.

He opened the door and pushed himself through the threshold and with one last glance at his cupboard; Harry Potter left the Dursleys for the last time.