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"See you, Harry," said Ron, clapping him on the back.

"'Bye, Harry!" said Hermione, and she did something she had never done before, and kissed him on the cheek.

"Harry – thanks," George muttered, while Fred Nodded fervently at his side.

Harry winked at them, turned to Uncle Vernon, and followed him silently from the station. There was no point worrying yet, he told himself, as he got back into the back of the Dursley's car.

(Page 734 GOF)

It was another miserable summer for Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. You could see him now, tending to the lawn and flowerbeds on Number Four, Privet Drive. It seemed strange to work outdoors at this hour, with the blazing sun at its hi-point, when normal people would hurry indoors and blast the air-conditioner on 'Hi-cool'. However, Harry Potter is not an ordinary boy.

Harry Potter is a wizard. Not just any wizard, but the Boy-Who-Lived: the one who fought Voldemort four times and lived to tell the tale. The Hogwarts Champion of the Triwizard Tournament.

Harry cringed at the thought.

"Maybe if I reacted faster. Maybe if I realized that it was a trap. Maybe if I didn't ask... him to take the cup with me."

He pulled at a stubborn weed furiously, as if he were taking his anger out on the plant.

"Why did it have to be me? Why did I have to be chosen?"

"Oh yeah, its because I'm the bloody Boy-Who-Lived. The one Voldemort has been trying to kill for the past four years. Why can't I just be normal?"

"Its because you aren't normal," an unknown voice calmly stated.

Whipping around quickly, he branded a pair of shearing scissors at the man.

"Woah, my boy! Its just me"

"Hello, Headmaster."

"Call me Albus, Harry."

"Its not going to be easy, you know."

"Nothing is ever easy."

"Tell me about it."

"Harry, I understand your burdens are really great, but you must persevere. The fate of the world is in your hands."

"Why can't I be normal though? I never asked for this! I just want to go to school like an ordinary boy, maybe get a girlfriend there, marry, have kids, and die. Why can't I have that!"

"Maybe we should take this someplace more private. We're attracting a lot of unwanted attention."

Harry scanned the street with his eyes and found that many residents were poking their heads out of the windows and doors looking at the curious sight.

Harry nodded and began to follow his headmaster to a more concealed location to portkey away.

"Grab this," Dumbledore said brandishing a molding newspaper.

Apprehensively, he grabbed it and felt the familiar pull around his navel as he was whisked away.

TBC