Chapter 17 marked the end of Year 1.

My frequency of releasing the chapters is going to go down henceforth. I'll try my level best to release a chapter once every week or 10 days. Thank you all for your support! Enjoy.. Here is Chapter 18 :)

Daisy had been doing this for a while now. One could argue that she had been doing this ever since she found out that Harry was a wizard, and that there was a whole world full of magic, magical creatures, people using magic for everyday tasks and so on. She had started spending a lot of time on her own, imagining all the things she would do if she was a witch. Daisy's whole mindset had turned upside down when she found out about Harry. It all started from wondering about all the things Harry would be learning about, all the things that magic could accomplish. Amidst all the trouble she was having in school, she had figured out a way to mentally transport herself into a whole world of imagination. She had spent so much time in these imaginations, that she had even started to create stories in her imagination and put herself into various situations. A few months in, she met this charming boy who would become a friend that she never had ever since Harry left. It was only during this period that she ever really stopped her imagination. But then this boy disappeared without even saying goodbye, and she went back to her world of imagination. And recent events had just taken things up a notch if it was even possible. On one unfortunate evening, Daisy's favourite teacher, Mrs Smith was attacked by 2 men. It was then that Daisy had realized that her favourite teacher was secretly a witch. Mrs Smith then told about the world of magic, what all people could do. She even talked about how Harry Potter, her best friend, was a famous personality in the magical world. Daisy had also asked Mrs Smith if John was a wizard, to which Mrs Smith had replied yes. Daisy wondered whether this had anything to do with why he had disappeared. Mrs Smith also told Daisy about how muggles are not supposed to find out about magic, and that Daisy had to be extremely careful not to reveal it to anyone. In the first few days after the attack, Daisy replayed the moments before her unconsciousness again and again. What was terrifying at first, soon became a fascination. Daisy's world of imagination was going to take a break again, and this time it'd be because Harry was coming home.

She bombarded Harry with a million questions from the moment he set foot on 4, Privet Drive. Harry, who himself was excited about how his first year had gone, answered every single question Daisy had. The most interesting thing about the 2 was that they both decided to keep certain information from each other. And coincidentally, it was about one man. Harry had chosen to skip some details about his life, You-Know-Who, the legend he had, the Philosopher's Stone, Quirrell and so on. But he had entirely omitted John from the things he told Daisy. It was an instinctive decision, he told himself. He never really decided what to tell and what not to. He didn't really have an answer for why he didn't mention John. Daisy, on the other hand, had mentioned absolutely nothing about John or the attack on Mrs Smith to Harry. In the first two weeks after Harry came home, Daisy spent every single minute she spent with Harry asking all varieties of questions. It was only after that she realized that there was this whole thing she had never mentioned. Perhaps, it was because she didn't really know how to approach the subject. And the fact that Mrs Smith had gone out of town didn't really help the matters.

But, the day came when these 2 talked about a certain John Smith.

"Harry, just like here, even in the magical world, there must be fights that happen, right? Have you ever seen a fight between 2 people, which involved only magic?" asked Daisy one lazy afternoon to Harry, who had gotten used to questions by now, but wasn't sure how to answer this particular one. He could say yes, but then Daisy would ask him the details about it. And that would mean bringing up John, and he didn't want to do that.

"Fight? As in a duel? I have only seen older students practice duelling, never seen an actual duel," lied Harry in response.

"Guess what? I have," replied a beaming Daisy.

"What? You have seen a duel? When? Where?" asked a suddenly curious and bemused Harry.

"Well, a few weeks back," she replied.

"A few weeks back? What are you talking about?" asked a now mildly concerned Harry.

"There's something I haven't told you," she replied.

She then went on to tell Harry about how 2 men attacked Mrs Smith while Daisy and she were talking on the street, and how within the first few minutes, one of the men attacked Daisy and she fell unconscious. She told Harry about all the things that Mrs Smith told her. Harry's mind was travelling at million thoughts per second. The moment he heard Mrs Smith, he got reminded of John and how his Aunt, actually his twin sister, also got attacked a few weeks back.

"Daisy, so you're saying Mrs Smith, who is your teacher, is also a witch? By any chance, is her name Jane Smith?" asked Harry.

"Yeah, how did you know?" asked Daisy. She was genuinely surprised that Harry knew about Mrs Smith, but it dawned on her immediately that John was probably somebody Harry might know.

"I… I have a friend at Hogwarts, his name is John… John Smith. His si… his Aunt was also attacked by death… some bad people a few weeks back," replied Harry.

"You know John?" asked Daisy.

"Wait, you know John?" asked Harry in reply.

"I do," replied Daisy.

There was a look of shock on Harry's face. After a few seconds of silence, Daisy continued, "He came here a few months back, to visit Mrs Smith. We sort of became friends, but he disappeared after a month."

"He came here? When was this exactly?" asked Harry.

"Just before Easter, I guess? Why? What happened?"

"Nothing, he never told us what he did. He told us that he visited his Aunt, but we had no idea they lived here," he replied. But what he actually was thinking was very different. John was in St Mungos at that time. So, was that a lie? Why did he lie and why did he come here of all places, he wondered.

"So, John, do you know him well?" asked Daisy.

"Yeah… Yeah I know him well, he's one of my best friends along with Ron and Hermione," replied Harry.

They spent the rest of their day talking about the various spells Harry had learned at Hogwarts.

As the days went by, Harry realised more and more how much he needed the summer holidays. He wasn't really interested in coming to Hogwarts last year, but as time went by, and as Harry discovered new things and new people, he started to enjoy his life at Hogwarts. But now that he was back home, there was a sense of relaxation and homeliness that he enjoyed. Hogwarts and the world of magic were extremely interesting, but coming back home, to his familiar territory and to people like Dudley and Daisy, whom he had known ever since he was a child was a completely different feeling. There was also the fact that Aunt Petunia and Dudley gave a King's welcome to Harry when he arrived home. Aunt Petunia, for the first couple of weeks, made all of Harry's favourite dishes. She was also eager to hear all about his classes, friends, and his life at Hogwarts. Harry skipped some parts of his life that could have been perceived as dangerous but told her almost everything else.

Aunt Petunia was a mother to Harry. If there was one thing he was always grateful for, it was that Aunt Petunia never made Harry feel like missing his mother. After Uncle Vernon's death, Aunt Petunia had taken a job as a baker in the nearby bakery. In the few years after that, she opened a bakery of her own, a business that had moderate success over the years. The other great thing about his muggle life was Dudley. Dudley, who was originally responsible for Harry going to Hogwarts, told him about all the new pranks he pulled on people in his school. He also wanted Harry to start using his magic in the house, but Harry told him that it'd take at least 5 more years for that. There was something that was bothering him though. Few weeks into the summer holidays, Harry was yet to receive a letter from his friends. John had told him that he wouldn't be writing to Harry, but Hermione and Ron had promised otherwise. Harry had written to Hermione and Ron, but he didn't get a response for that either.

One fine afternoon he got a call from Hermione, but it was Dudley who picked up the phone,

"Hello, is this Harry Potter's house?" asked Hermione.

"Hi, this is?"

"Hermione… Hermione Granger" replied Hermione.

"No, sorry, this is Dudley Dursley's house, bye!" replied Dudley. Harry, who was cleaning the dishes, heard Dudley's part of the conversation and came to the hall.

"Dudley, who is it?" asked Harry in a whisper.

"Oh! This is the number he gave, sorry for disturbing you," replied Hermione.

"Hermione," whispered Dudley looking at Harry.

"Hermione?" whispered Harry but then he raised his voice, "Hermione? Wait, that's Hermione on the phone?" asked Harry. Dudley nodded and proceeded to speak on the phone.

"Your boyfriend is not home," he said to Hermione. With that Harry flung himself on Dudley, pushing him aside to take the receiver for himself. After a mild tussle, Harry had his hands on the receiver.

"Hermione! Sorry about that, it was my idiot cousin," said Harry as he glared angrily at Dudley.

"Harry! How are you?"

"I'm fine Hermione, how are you?"

"I'm doing great, why aren't you responding to our letters?" asked Hermione.

"Your letters? I haven't received a single one from either you or Ron," replied Harry.

"What are you talking about Harry?"

"Wait, you have sent me letters?"

"Yeah, so did Ron, but we never received any reply from you."

"I wrote a letter to both of you a few weeks back, but since I never received any response, I thought you must be busy with something else," replied Harry.

As the confusion died down, Harry and Hermione talked on the phone about what they had been doing during the holidays. Harry even mentioned John and how he had met with Daisy during the time he was supposed to be in St Mungos.

The day after his birthday, Harry got a visit from a house-elf.

Harry was sitting in his room, reading a book on famous quidditch games. That's when it happened. There was a loud crack and out of thin air appeared a little creature with large, bat-like ears and bulging green eyes the size of tennis balls. Harry noticed that it was wearing what looked like an old pillowcase, with rips for arm and leg holes.

"Er… Hello?" said Harry nervously.

"Harry Potter!" said the creature in a high pitched voice. "So long has Dobby wanted to meet you, sir… Such an honour it is..."

"Oh! Thank you… Uh… Who are you?" asked Harry.

"Dobby, sir… Dobby the house-elf," replied Dobby. Harry had very briefly known about house-elves, but this was the first time he had seen one in the flesh.

"Hello Dobby, pleased to meet you," said Harry politely, well, he didn't know what else to say. "Please, have a seat," he added.

With that, Dobby burst into tears. "S… Sit down! Never… Never ever…"

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to offend you or anything," replied Harry quickly not knowing how to react to a crying house-elf in his bedroom.

"Offend Dobby!" choked Dobby. "Dobby has never been asked to sit down by a wizard… like an equal..."

A conversation that began like this ended with Dobby telling Harry that he mustn't go to Hogwarts that year because his life was in danger. Harry's life was in danger from You-Know-Who. Dobby kept telling Harry that his life was in danger, but how, he never did.

And then Dobby revealed something else.

"Dobby, I have to go to Hogwarts. I like my muggle life, but I can't stay here. I have a lot of friends there and there are loads of people who'll protect me if Vol… If You-Know-Who attacks somehow," replied Harry.

"Friends who don't even write to Harry Potter?" said Dobby slyly.

"They have been, but I haven't..." said Harry but stopped when he realized something. "How do you know I haven't been receiving letters?" asked Harry.

"Harry Potter mustn't be angry with Dobby. Dobby did it for the best..."

"Have you been stopping my letters?"

"Dobby has them here, sir," said Dobby. Stepping nimbly out of Harry's reach, he pulled a thick wad of envelopes from the inside of the pillowcase he was wearing. Harry could make out Hermione's neat writing, Ron's untidy scrawl, and even a scribble that looked as though it was from the Hogwarts gamekeeper, Hagrid.

"Harry Potter mustn't be angry… Dobby hoped… if Harry Potter thought his friends had forgotten him… Harry Potter might not want to go back to school, sir…"

Harry wasn't listening. He made a grab for the letters, but Dobby jumped out of reach.

"Harry Potter will have them, sir, if he gives Dobby his word that he will not return to Hogwarts. Ah, sir, this is a danger you must not face! Say you won't go back, sir!"

Harry was growing increasingly impatient with how things were turning out with this house elf. He decided that the best thing would be to shut him up.

"Ok, I will not put myself in danger," replied Harry. After a reassuring stare, the house-elf handed Harry the letters and left with a pop.

The next day, Harry decided to call Hermione and tell her the events of the previous evening. He also wrote a letter to Ron and told him that he never received any letters from him. After a few days, Harry got a reply from Ron. Ron had invited Harry to his house, "The Burrow". He had also mentioned that they would directly go to Hogwarts from there.

So, after a few more days, Harry said his goodbyes to Aunt Petunia, Dudley and Daisy and went to "The Burrow" to spend the rest of his holidays.

2000 miles away from England, in a swimming pool in Seyðisfjörður were John and Jane Smith.

"I love this place," exclaimed Jane.

"I still can't believe it's sunny here at 9 PM," replied John smiling.

The twins had spent over a month in some of the most beautiful cities of Iceland. They would spend most of their day roaming around the city. It had become a routine for them, to spend their day outside, come back to the place that they had rented, spend a couple of hours in the pool and then go to the nearby pub. It was the best few weeks they had had in a long time.

But as the days went by, John's thoughts went from enjoyment to concern.

"Is that Rúnarsson guy coming today?" asked John as he sat down in the pub.

"No, not today, but we'll hang out tomorrow," replied Jane. "Why?"

"No reason," replied John.

"What's on your mind?" asked Jane.

"Nothing, I was just asking randomly," replied John.

"Yeah, when was the last time you were interested in who I was with?"

John sat there silently.

"That's right, never! So, why suddenly ask me about a guy you haven't even met?" asked Jane.

"I… I was hoping to talk to you about… about the coming year," replied John.

"Okay..."

The twins sat there staring at each other, and then Jane spoke again.

"What do you want me to say?" asked Jane.

"I want you to tell me what our plan is," replied John.

"How am I supposed to answer that? We don't have a plan, John!"

"Well, then let's make one," said John.

"I am coming to Hogwarts, I'm the new Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and apart from that I don't know what we can do," replied Jane.

"You being the next Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher wasn't something we expected. I mean, how were we supposed to know that Dumbledore would offer you the job? But that is all! We have the opportunity here to make the best use of this gift, and we still don't know what we are going to do," replied John.

"The only thing we can do is wait," replied Jane.

"Wait for what? Ginny to die?" asked John. There was silence at the table and after finishing his drink, John walked out of the pub.

PS - New year, a new beginning!