Eventually it was time for Sirius to leave, which he reluctantly did. Harry tried not to get too down about it because he knew that in just two weeks they would see each other again. Daphne and Harry accompanied him to the front gates to see him off and stayed until Sirius had walked past the wards and apparated away.
"He's not what I expected." Daphne said once Sirius was gone.
"How so?" Harry asked.
"It's amazing that after all that time in Azkaban he can still laugh and smile. He must have a very strong will."
"It helped that he was innocent." Harry commented. "Remus says that Azkaban changed him into a more serious version of himself, but prison could never break him." Daphne nodded at Harry's statement and wrapped her arm around Harry, bringing him into a hug. They stayed that way for a few moments before Harry said "Last night here, what do you want to do?"
"Let's take a walk by the lake, it's one of my favorite places." Daphne said. "It reminds me of you."
Harry smiled and led her down to the lake where they had often sat and talked over the last year. As they did they both reflected on how things had dramatically changed since the beginning of the year. The previous September they rarely spoke to each other, Harry spent his time with Ron & Hermione, Daphne alone or with her Slytherin classmates, neither of them seriously worried about the future, and the world was at peace. Now they both hated to spend too much time apart, their group of friends consisted mainly of themselves, Neville, and Hermione, and they both spent much of their time worrying about what was to come now that the war with Voldemort was restarting. There were definitely things they would change about the past year if they had the chance but both were happier now than they had been before despite the problems they faced.
For Harry their situation made him think of his parents and what they must have felt when they were teenagers. Like them, James Potter and Lily Evans had been forced to balance their love for each other with the stresses that life during wartime forced on them. Harry wished they were still alive so he could talk to them and ask them how they did it, but sadly he could not. The pain of losing that part of his family was eased by the realization that he had gained in his friends and godfather a replacement family that would be there for in a way the Dursley's, though they were his relatives, never would.
Hours later the night ended with the couple going to their respective dorms for their last night in the castle of the year. Tomorrow morning they would leave the safety of Hogwarts and be forced to face a wizarding world that had been vastly changed in the past few days and the uncertainty that went with it. They both hoped they would be able to protect the other during this new challenge.
...
"Get in the car, boy. I can feel those freaks staring at me!" Uncle Vernon demanded as Harry approached his relatives. Harry sighed in frustration while he loaded his belongings into the trunk before getting in to the back seat where Dudley was shoving a candy bar into his mouth. His aunt in the front seat meanwhile was apparently trying to ignore the fact that he existed at all. When everything was put up and Harry had closed the car door Vernon sped off away from King's Cross Station and all of the freakishness it contained.
Neither Harry or Sirius was happy about the fact that Dumbledore was sending him back to the Dursley's at all this summer, but at the moment there was little they could do. Sirius was in the process of becoming his guardian, at least as far as the magical world was concerned, but his request was taking longer than it should have due to the massive changes going on in the Ministry of Magic. So, for now, Dumbledore had the power to force him back into his relatives home but even he knew that he could not keep Sirius and his godson apart for too long. Dumbledore insisted that he was only acting in Harry's best interest and that #4 Privet Drive offered him far better protection than anywhere else but Harry had a hard time believing that. Harry didn't believe Dumbledore had any idea what life with the Dursley's had been like for him, or if he did know then the Headmaster had just been ignoring it. Either way, Harry was still stuck with his relatives for the next two weeks and he wasn't happy about it.
As the car and its passengers made their way out of London and towards Little Whinging Harry was glad for the silence that came with his relatives ignoring him. He thought about the train ride out of Hogwarts that had been in some ways less eventful than others. Malfoy almost always made it a point to come find him on the train and try and insult him for one reason or another, but this time he hadn't seen the Slytherin at all. That, and the fact that he didn't have to deal with hours of Quidditch trivia from Ron, made the trip a lot more peaceful than others. He had instead spent the time with Daphne, promising her that he would write and come see her as soon as possible.
"Freak, things will be different this summer…" Vernon said looking back at Harry through the rear view mirror. "No more slacking off like usual."
"I won't be your slave anymore Uncle." Harry answered. "Besides, I will be gone in two weeks. Less if I have anything to say about it."
"What are you on about?" Vernon asked. "That Bumble-oar freak said you'd have to stay all summer."
"And when did he say that?" Harry asked, wondering what it was the Dumbledore was up to.
"It was in a letter we got yesterday. Some big, ruddy bird nearly set the house on fire delivering it." Vernon rambled. "That's the problem with you freaks, always have to use the stupidest way available to do anything. Why not just use normal post? Or pick up a bloody telephone and call! But no, you lot has to try and burn my expensive couch to a crisp just to send a simple message!" Harry was barely paying attention to his uncle at this point, he was much to angry to worry about his annoying relatives. He recognized it as another one of Dumbledore's silly little games, but what was the point in this? All it would do would be to anger him and his godfather. He knew Dumbledore had not given up on the belief that it was important for him to stay with the Dursley's, but Harry was still a little shocked that the Professor would lie to him in an attempt to remain in control of the situation. Sirius was going to be livid when he figured out what had happened.
....
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