The Boy-Who-Squibbed Chapter 6: Summer plans, a harry potter fanfic

The first summer Harry spent on campus had been relaxing and peaceful, and when his friends had returned they had all come together and picked up right where they left off. They quickly started up a new campaign to fill their evenings and their bonds of friendship grew stronger. As the end of the year approached, ideas started being passed around of meeting up during the break. They had been hesitant, though, because it was unclear if Harry would be allowed to go. After a few days of tiptoeing around the subject, Harry decided that nothing would be done unless he spoke to the headmaster. So, one day after classes he visited the Jacobs' office. He entered the reception area and approached Mrs Banks who was, as always, at her desk in front of the office's door.

While some of the students found Mrs Banks intimidating, Harry had built a relationship with her over the summer as he would speak to her whenever he came for his weekly meetings with Headmaster Jacobs. She was a very kind woman, if intense about her work. She would always ask how Harry was doing and would pay attention when he spoke to her, which was evidenced by the fact that whenever she met him next, she would ask follow-up questions about what he mentioned the day before. Out of curiosity Harry had begun to ask her questions about her life and learned that she had been married, but that her husband had sadly passed on during his time in the military. He had served with Jacobs and they had been close friends so she had become acquainted with the headmaster as well. When Jacobs took charge of the school he had asked Mrs Banks to help him due to her experience as a secretary in both private business and the military. She accepted, due to the trust she had in the man, and came here to work at Stonewall. She had no children of her own so she lived in quarters on campus along with some of the staff. She had told Harry that over the years she had come to see Stonewall as her home and the faculty and children as family. Which made Harry feel closer to her due to his own feelings about the school.

Due to the relationship they had started to build over the summer, Harry approached her desk without fear and requested a meeting with the headmaster. Mrs Banks had looked through her agenda for his schedule and then paged into the man's office,

"Headmaster Jacobs, Harry Potter wishes to meet with you," she said in a crisp professional tone.

The headmaster opened the door to welcome Harry into the office a short time later. Harry thanked the secretary and entered, taking a seat across from the desk, as he had become accustomed to doing throughout the summer.

"How can I help Mr Potter?" Jacobs asked as he sat as well.

Harry took a moment to compose himself. He had no fear of Mrs Banks, but Arthur Jacobs was a different story, Harry had carefully considered what he would say during this conversation hoping that he would be able to convince the man.

"Sir, I wanted to speak about this summer," Harry began, "I am grateful for all you have done to help with my living situation, being able to be away from my relatives has helped me so much. During this coming break, however, I have been speaking with my friends and we wanted to know if it would be possible for me to spend some of the time with them, sir." When he finished speaking Harry sat on the edge of his seat, waiting for the headmaster's response.

Harry squirmed slightly as Jacobs looked at him with his calm yet firm gaze. Eventually, he opened his mouth to respond,

"Harry, as much as I would like to approve of this request I cannot. When I spoke to your guardians and they approved your staying here over the summer they signed a document giving us the responsibility of your care, but we do not have the authority to give that responsibility to another party without your aunt and uncle's consent," the headmaster explained.

Harry considered his reasoning, then asked, "Could you tell them that this is a school-sponsored outing to get their approval?"

Jacobs eyes narrowed and he spoke in a warning tone, "Careful Harry, I bent the truth when I spoke to your relatives at the end of last year because it was necessary to do for your protection, but I never lied. Honesty is still one of the core values of Stonewall and we do not compromise our values because it would be convenient for us."

Harry immediately backed down and dipped his head in shame, "I am sorry, sir, I shouldn't have suggested it."

The headmaster's gaze softened and he spoke, "It is alright Harry, you are young and you are here to learn. It is alright to make mistakes as long as you learn from them."

Harry's gaze lifted again to look at his role model, who nodded encouragingly to the boy.

"Listen, Harry," the headmaster spoke, "you have made great strides in your education and character. If the chance to be with your friends over the summer means so much to you, then you should tell your relatives and get them to approve it. I will do everything in my power to keep my word to protect your enrollment here at Stonewall, so you go and fight for what you want in life."

Harry sat up straighter, emboldened by the man's words. "Thank you, sir, I will."

The next day he spent most of his free time planning out his conversation. He had told his friends about what he was going to do and they had all reacted in their own way.

Travis patted Harry on the shoulder in solidarity and said solemnly, "You can do it, Harry. Just be straight with them and don't take no for an answer."

Liam had been nervous but offered encouragement. "You're brave for doing this Harry, and whatever happens we'll be there for you."

Finally, Nish was expectedly flippant about it, "Don't worry Harry, if they say no we can just kidnap you like we planned last summer."

Harry thanked his three friends for their support, and after classes had ended, gone to the phone room to call his parents. The phone room was constructed with a few cubicles, each with a phone for the students to use in contacting family. The use of the phones was restricted so that you needed permission from a faculty member to make a call. Harry had been given permission from the headmaster for this, so as he entered the room he approached the desk of the staff on duty and showed his note. The teacher accepted the note and after checking a list directed Harry to an open booth. As Harry entered the cubicle he saw that they contained a plastic chair and a counter that was attached to the walls, on the counter was a simple black phone. Sitting down, Harry took a moment to calm his nerves. He wished that his dog, Huan, was here, petting the dog was always calming for Harry. For a moment Harry distracted himself as he remembered how the dog got its name.

Harry hadn't bothered giving the animal a name over the summer. For him, it was always just the stray dog that he would occasionally visit. When the second year had started, however, Harry had brought his friends to meet the animal and they had all been ecstatic to meet the creature. Though he had never claimed ownership they all said that the dog was clearly Harry's and asked what its name was.

"I don't know," Harry said, "it didn't have any kind of collar, I just figured it was a stray and I didn't name it because I figured it would move on eventually."

"Did you feed it?" Liam asked.

"Yeah," Harry said, "when I first found it, it looked really hungry, then I started always grabbing some extra food at meals to bring here. I didn't want it to starve."

"Well there is the problem, I think I read somewhere that if you feed a dog regularly you will train it to stay with you, expecting food," Liam explained. "For all intents and purposes, Harry, this is your dog. So, you have to name it."

What followed was a spirited discussion about what the dog should be named. First, of course, they had to know whether it was a boy or girl, but that became apparent when they gave him a belly rub. With the gender issue resolved they began thinking up possible names. Harry had never named anything before so he just blurted out the first name that came to his head,

"Snuffles perhaps?"

"Snuffles?" Nish said in shock, "What a terrible name. If you wanted to give him a name that people will laugh at, I once heard this American country song called 'A Boy Named Sue.' It could even be an inside joke because most people would just think he is a girl dog until they see him lift his leg."

"No," Travis interjected, "you can't be that cruel to an animal. Give him a good British name. What about Gromit, after that clay dog from the telly."

"I think it should be something grander," Liam added, "In Tolkein's Silmarillion he writes about a great dog of legend named Huan. He was famous for his great deeds in both hunting and battle."

The dog had then stood and sat down next to Liam giving the boy a quick lick.

"Well, the dog has obviously made his choice," Nish said in a serious voice making the group of friends chuckle.

Harry pulled himself out of his memory and back to the present with a shake of his head. He had come here for a reason and he wouldn't put it off any longer. Reaching out, Harry picked up the receiver and began dialling the number for his aunt and uncle's home phone. He sat silently as the phone rang, a part of him hoping that it wouldn't be answered until suddenly there was a click and he heard the voice of his aunt.

"Hello?" Petunia said in a polite tone.

Harry froze slightly at the word. He had heard his aunt speak that way before but it had never been directed at him before. Shaking off his stupor Harry responded.

"Hello, Aunt Petunia,"

The line was silent for a moment, as though neither party knew how to continue the conversation, then his aunt's voice came back on the line though now it was in the disdainful hiss he was familiar with.

"What do you want, boy?"

Harry took a deep breath to calm the emotions that her tone brought out of him. The fear and self-loathing they had ingrained in him by their treatment. Once he felt he had more control of himself, he spoke in a calm respectful tone. As much as it pained him to speak to his relative this way, he knew that he was trying to ask something of her, so acting confrontational would only put his desires out of reach.

"Aunt Petunia, I am calling about the upcoming summer break," Harry began only to be interrupted by his aunt.

"You are staying at that school, we already signed the papers for you to continue the summer program that you were in last year. Judging by the way you acted when you came home for the two weeks before the start of this year it seemed to have done you some good."

As the headmaster had mentioned he was only able to keep Harry on the campus of Stonewall for the majority of the summer, the last two weeks he had to return to the Dursleys' house. His time there had been rough but he knew it would be short, so Harry had spent the entire time quietly and stoically going along with the Dursleys counting the days to when he would be able to return to his true home, Stonewall. It had honestly not been too hard, he still woke well before the rest of the Dursley family so he was able to continue his running that he had started with Mr Atkins. The rest of his days were spent completing the lists of chores he was given, which he would take his time with so that they were all perfectly completed to prevent his relatives from finding any fault with his work, and any extra time was spent at the Little Whinging public library, which had the dual purpose of being a haven from Dudley and his gang who avoided it like the plague and letting him continue reading the books on the list Liam had left him.

"I understand," Harry responded, "I was hoping though, that you might give me permission to leave the campus for a time to spend part of the summer break with the friends I have made here."

"Absolutely not," Petunia responded immediately, making Harry's stomach drop, "Why would I ever let you spend time away from the supervision of the staff at Stonewall to spend time with whatever hooligan friends you made there? You would no doubt be out and about vandalizing some corner of a town bringing embarrassment to us."

Harry couldn't help the spike of anger that flared at hearing his friends be insulted. Before he could reign himself in he spoke,

"No, they are nothing like that." He calmed himself once more and continued,

"My friends are all well behaved, none of them is in the Summer Rehabilitation Program like I am," Harry explained hoping that his loss of control would be ignored. He knew the name of the program from some of the paperwork he had been shown when the headmaster explained the program, he hoped that the terminology would help to improve his aunt's view of his friends.

"They may not need the program but you clearly do," his aunt responded. Harry's heart sank, he had ruined his chance by being unable to control his temper. Once more anger started to build, but now it was directed at himself. "You will be spending the summer at that school where hopefully they can help you get rid of that attitude. We luckily won't have to see you again until the end of August."

When she said that however, an idea appeared in Harry's head. A final desperate hope filled him as he made one more attempt.

"What about then?" he asked, doing his best to sound respectful again.

"What?" his aunt snapped.

"What about during those two weeks, when I have to leave campus, could I spend some of that time with my friends. Then you wouldn't have to deal with me, and you could even meet them and judge for yourself." Harry explained.

His aunt was silent for a moment then seemed to speak to herself, "It has been nice not having you burdening us." She was quiet for a bit more, then asked, "and you wouldn't be expecting us to pay for anything would you?"

"No," Harry said quickly, "We don't want to do anything costly, so I am sure my friends' families would not need any money from you."

More silence followed until finally, Petunia said, "I will consider it with Vernon."

Harry was filled with joy, he couldn't hold in a relieved, "Thank you, Aunt Petunia,"

"Yes, yes," Petunia said, "I will leave a message for you with our final decision."

With that, the call ended and Harry excitedly exited the room to find his friends. A few minutes later they were all sitting on the lawn next to the building that Huan had settled behind. As they spoke the dog lounged next to Harry while the boy absently scratched his side.

"So it worked," Liam said happily.

"Yep, we will be able to get together near the end of the summer break," Harry said. "At least I hope so, my aunt said that she would talk to my uncle and then call the schools with their decision."

"Well, there is no use waiting for that decision. It is out of our hands so let's pretend we already know and plan what we want to do," Nish said.

So the boys began to talk excitedly about the places they wanted to visit and things they planned to do. The next day Harry was called to the office and given a message from Aunt Petunia, it read,

"Have your friend's parents come and pick you up, we will see then."

Now it was nearing the end of summer and Harry was boarding the train that would take him back to Little Whinging. He would be staying one night with his relatives then tomorrow Nish would be coming with his parents to pick him up for the week he and his friends had planned together. They would all be staying at Nish's house because it was the most central, his house was in London itself and Liam, Travis, and Harry all lived in towns surrounding the city, and he would have enough space for all of them. Nish had three older siblings and when they had all lived at home they had shared the two bedrooms between them, the three boys in one and their sister having the other room to herself. Now, however, Nish's two older brothers had moved away, one was in university and the other had an apprenticeship, so Nish had the room to himself. Harry was a bit nervous to meet Nish's parents, but from the stories Nish shared of them, they seemed to be pleasant people.

Before any of their plans could take place though, Nish's parents would need to pass the scrutiny of the Dursleys. And as the train came to a stop Harry couldn't help but begin to feel nervous at the thought of his relatives meeting Nish's family. Uncle Vernon was not waiting on the platform, but Harry hadn't been expecting him to be there anyway. Harry knew that the big man would be waiting for him outside the station in his car just as he had been the year before. Stepping off the train Harry shifted his duffle bag onto his shoulder so that it was more secure. The weight of the bag didn't trouble him. He regularly exercised with Mr Atkins throughout his time at Stonewall, just as he had the previous summer, and the man had added some basic strength exercises to their routine, though they hadn't used any kinds of weights due to Mr Atkins saying that his body needed to develop more before he would get any real benefit from it. Despite his increased mass, however, he still appeared scrawny due to the oversized clothing that he received second hand from Dudley.

As Harry stepped outside he spotted the Dursleys silver station wagon and began to walk toward it. His uncle must have spotted him as well because, as he approached the car, he heard the locks click open allowing him to open the hatchback and place his bags inside before he walked to the rear passenger-side door to enter himself. As soon as the door was shut, his uncle turned on the car and began to pull out of the car park.

"Glad to see you didn't dawdle around in the station," Vernon said gruffly.

"Your welcome, Uncle Vernon," Harry said back with a calm respectful tone which he had mentally practised all through the summer in the hopes it would help his chances of being allowed to be with his friends.

After a few more minutes of driving, Vernon spoke once more. Which surprised Harry because, for the most part, his uncle seemed to despise talking to him.

"So if I understand correctly, one of your delinquent friends will be coming to pick you up tomorrow," Vernon said.

Harry's jaw clenched as he held back the frustration he felt at the disrespectful way his uncle referred to his friends. He struggled for a moment but then he remembered the call with Petunia when he had first proposed the idea and how an outburst at that time had nearly ruined his and his friends' plans. Taking a deep breath to calm himself, Harry spoke, once more using the respectful tone he had practised.

"Yes, they plan to arrive at 11:00, though it will depend on the traffic. " Harry confirmed, "And, thank you again for letting me spend time with them."

"Humph," Vernon grunted, "don't get ahead of yourself, I half expect a tattooed hooligan to show up, planning to whisk you away on a motorcycle. If your friends or their families seem like the wrong sort there is no way we are going to risk being associated with them."

For a moment Harry didn't respond but as he sat he noticed his uncle glancing into the rearview mirror as though he expected an answer,

"Yes uncle," Harry said, not letting any of his emotions into his voice.

When they arrived at 4 Privet Drive, Harry got out and collected his bags. Vernon didn't wait for him and walked toward the house though he didn't enter and held the door open for Harry just in case people might be watching. Once Harry was inside, Vernon reached toward the narrow table that the Dursleys kept in their entry hall and grabbed a paper off of it.

"One other thing," Vernon said, holding the paper out to Harry, "If you wish to leave tomorrow, you have to complete these chores. This is still your home so you need to help maintain it."

In his mind, Harry scoffed at the idea of Privet Drive being his home. He had never felt welcome here and now that he had lived at Stonewall for nearly two years, and felt what it was like to be safe and comfortable, he would never think of this place as home again. If his aunt and uncle wished to force him to do chores so that he could be with his friends he would play along. Accepting the list he looked it over. It contained most of his regular chores, the majority of which were about maintaining the garden. The additions were things like sharpening the tools and organizing the shed, probably so it would be easier for the Dursleys to do upkeep until he came back. Looking outside I saw that he still had a reasonable amount of daylight left, so not wanting to waste a second he gave a quick, "Yes, uncle," and got to work.

He dropped his duffle off in the cupboard that he slept in. As he grew the little room seemed to get more and more cramped but he could deal with the discomfort for the short time that he spent there. He didn't bother changing out of his current clothes, nothing he owned was in good condition so he didn't mind wearing it while he worked outside. Harry started by weeding the flowerbeds in front of the house and working his way around the building. Once he was finished with that he pulled out the lawnmower and cut the grass, and then he trimmed the edge of the lawn with a strimmer. By the time this was done he was running out of light so he spent the rest of the evening working on organizing the garden shed. Soon the sky had gone dark, and Harry went inside so that he could sleep and finish the list of chores tomorrow morning. When he walked inside Harry was surprised to find a plate with a sandwich that consisted of a single slice of meat and cheese between two slices of bread next to a glass of water. He shrugged and ate the measly dinner before washing the plate and glass and heading to the cupboard under the stairs. He got dressed in his pyjamas but left the clothes he had used while working folded at the foot of his bed so that he could use them again. Looking at his bed he saw that it looked untouched since he had made it last fall, so Harry grabbed the thin blanket and took it outside before shaking it out so that the dust that had accumulated on it flew off to be carried away by the breeze. This done he went back inside and lied down to fall asleep.

The next morning he woke early like usual, though instead of doing his exercise routine he got right to work finishing the chores he had been assigned. He needed to be done by 11:00, when Nish's parents would arrive, which meant he had five hours to sharpen the gardening tools, clean the patio, and scrub the outsides of the windows. He threw himself into the work, vigorously completing each task. When he was finally finished, Harry wiped the sweat from his brow and walked inside at 10:30 to find his aunt cleaning up after breakfast and his uncle still sitting at the table reading the Sunday paper.

"I've finished my chores," Harry said when he entered the kitchen, being very careful not to track any mud or dirt into the house.

"Hmph," his uncle grunted in acknowledgement.

"May I go get ready to leave?' Harry asked, putting on his practised respectful tone.

"Yes, yes," Vernon said absently.

Harry made his way to the cupboard under the stairs and grabbed a change of clothing, then made his way to the nearest washroom to clean up. When he was done with his grooming Harry went downstairs and stashed his dirty clothes in the corner of the cupboard where he would be able to clean them when he returned in a week. He then packed his toiletries into his duffle and zipped it back up. He hadn't needed to pack anything else because he hadn't unpacked after getting back from Stonewall. Hauling his duffle up onto his shoulder, he closed the door to the cupboard and went to the entry hall to wait. Harry placed his bag on the floor and sat on the stairs, straining his ears to catch the sound of an approaching car.

Finally, at five past eleven, Harry heard a car in front of the house and looked out the nearest window. Stopped at the curb was a station wagon a few years older than the Dursley's own. It was a dark blue with wood panelling and, as Harry watched, the passenger door opened and Nish climbed out causing a smile to sprout on his face. Walking quickly to the kitchen Harry said to his aunt and uncle,

"They're here,"

His uncle looked up from his paper to check the clock and scoffed, "Can't even be bothered to show up on time."

Harry's smile vanished and he clenched his jaw once more in frustration.

"Now Vernon," Petunia said chidingly, "we need to at least meet them."

"Very well," the rotund man sighed.

At that moment the doorbell rang. Vernon heaved himself out of his chair and waddled past Harry to answer the door. When he opened it he was confronted by a smiling moustachioed Indian man. Harry, who had followed behind his uncle, could immediately see similarities between the man and his first friend. Looking down Harry saw Nish himself standing behind his father and the two boys shared a wave.

Vernon scrutinized the man in front of him sceptically, like he was trying to find some fault in him. Finally, he spoke,

"Hm, an immigrant, I hope you are here legally."

Harry's face was overcome with shock at the rudeness of his uncle, the shock quickly vanished replaced by a wave of burning anger. How dare his uncle look down on someone else when he was so filled with flaws himself. Harry's anger was doused however when he heard the other man's response.

"Actually," Nish's father said in slightly accented English, "I was born and raised in London, my parents immigrated when they were young and had me here, which I couldn't be more grateful for." The smile never left the man's face as he held out a hand for Vernon to shake, "Aarush Kumar," the man introduced himself, "and you must be Harry's uncle."

Vernon was caught flat-footed by the response he received from the other man. Taking the hand warily, he shook it then asked another question.

"So you are from London you say, which part?"

"My family and I live just south of Hampstead in Kentish town," Aarush said amiably, "we own a restaurant there so if you are ever in the area please come give it a try, we have some of the best curries in the city."

"I won't fall for that," Vernon said, "I'm in sales myself, so I know anyone who says they have the best must be lying."

"Ah, but then you also know that you can't exaggerate too much, so when I make a claim like that my curry must be in the top ten at least."

Vernon chuckled at the man's comeback. After a slight pause, Aarush continued.

"You are in sales though, you must tell me what business."

"Grunnings, we have the finest industrial drill bits."

When Vernon finished talking Aarush raised an eyebrow, "Really, the finest eh?"

After a moment, Vernon caught on and began laughing earnestly.

"Haha, you caught me there," Vernon said, his stomach jiggling, "you must come in and meet my wife," Vernon pulled the other man into the house and they both made their way to the kitchen.

Harry was dumbfounded at what had just happened. As he stared after the two men he heard Nish's voice say,

"I told you my dad knows how to handle a racist,"

Harry turned to Nish and smiled. The two boys shared a quick hug with a few quick pats on the back then pulled apart.

"Now I see why you weren't worried at all once my relatives said they would meet your parents," Harry said.

"Yep, my dad can become anybody's friend in a couple of seconds. Now let's get your stuff in the car."

Following his friend's suggestion, Harry carried his duffle to the car where Nish opened the back so he could throw it in. When the back opened, however, Harry leapt back in fright when Travis and Liam jumped out at him with a shout.

"What?" Harry said in shock as the three boys laughed.

Liam was the first to calm down enough to speak so he explained,

"We got to Nish's place yesterday so we all decided to come get you together."

"Yeah," Travis said now that his laughter had settled down as well, "and Nish figured that if we weren't able to get you peacefully we could sneak you out the back."

"Exactly," Liam said, "Nothing was going to stop this gathering of the Heroes of Stonewall Keep."

The boys all started laughing at the name. During this year's campaign in D&D they had named their party the Heroes of Stonewall Keep and Liam liked it so much that he started calling their friend group that in real life. The other three boys accepted it but they rarely used the name themselves, however, Liam was determined to make it stick so he would take every opportunity to call the name out. The boys chatted for a few minutes more before Nish pointed out that his dad had reappeared in the doorway. Liam and Travis got back into the car and Nish and Harry walked back to the two men who were still chatting.

"Well, as much as I would like to stay for tea the traffic will only get worse the later we leave," Aarush said.

"I understand completely," Vernon said, "hopefully when you drop Harry back off we will have some more time to chat."

"That sounds lovely," Nish's father replied.

"Let me have some final words with the boy and I will let you be on your way," Vernon said.

Nish and his father left for the car and Vernon placed a firm hand on Harry's shoulder.

"Now listen here boy," Vernon said, the joviality gone from his voice, "You behave while you are with that nice family. Don't do anything to embarrass us, understand."

"Yes, uncle," Harry responded flatly.

"Good," Vernon said then with that he pushed Harry toward the car.

As Harry stepped out the door and made his way to the car he couldn't help but feel lighter with each step. More and more he was breaking free of the shackle of 4 Privet Drive. Now he would get to spend the summer with his friends, he felt free. When he was halfway to the car he broke into a run for the remaining distance and his friends threw the door open as he jumped in. They laughed with joy as they began driving away, happily talking about what plans they had for the coming days.

Special thanks to ACreativeMindAtWorkHere for being the beta reader.