"chapter 2 the vanishing glass" hermione read

Nearly ten years had passed since the Dursleys had woken up to find their nephew on the front step, but Privet Drive had hardly changed at all. The sun rose on the same tidy front gar-dens and lit up the brass number four on the Dursleys' front door; it crept into their living room, which was almost exactly the same as it had been on the night when Mr. Dursley had seen that fateful news report about the owls.

Only the photographs on the mantelpiece really showed how much time had passed. Ten years ago, there had been lots of pictures of what looked like a large pink beach ball wearing different-colored bonnets

every student in the room started to laugh even sirius, remus just shook his head somethings made

— but Dudley Dursley was no longer a baby, and now the photographs showed a large blond boy riding his first bicycle, on a carousel at the fair, playing a computer game with his father, being hugged and kissed by his mother. The room held no sign at all that another boy lived in the house, too. Yet Harry Potter was still there, asleep at the moment, but not for long. His Aunt Petunia was awake and it was her shrill voice that made the first noise of the day.

"oh god that's terrible" snape said. Harry looked confused "i knew your mom before we went to Hogwarts she was my friend and my neighbor." harry nodded still freaking out about what everyone would say about him sleeping in the cubroom

"Up! Get up! Now!"

Harry woke with a start. His aunt rapped on the door again. "Up!" she screeched. Harry heard her walking toward the kitchen and then the sound of the frying pan being put on the stove. He rolled onto his back and tried to remember the dream he had been having. It had been a good one. There had been a flying motorcycle in it. He had a funny feeling he'd had the same dream before.

"my boy how many dreams like this do you have where you feel like you've had it before?" Dumbledore asked him politely. Harry thought for a moment should he tell everyone about his mom's scream... "about one more I cant really remember that much just a green light" harry said quietly. All the adults looked at him and then said nothing so hermione kept reading

His aunt was back outside the door.

"Are you up yet?" she demanded.

"Nearly," said Harry.

"Well, get a move on, I want you to look after the bacon. And don't you dare let it burn, I want everything perfect on Duddy's birthday."

Harry groaned.

"What did you say?" his aunt snapped through the door.

"Nothing, nothing . . ."

Mrs Weasley made a groan "how long have you cooked for?" "i don't know since I was like 7" harry said shrugging " is that why you always offer to help in the kitchen?" Mrs Weasley asked politely "yeah I just enjoy doing it now." harry said smiling at Mrs Weasley "plus you cook very good so I want to learn it from you more then my aunt" Mrs Weasley beamed and then gave him a hug. All the adults were looking at harry wondering what else his younger self has been through. Ginny and harry shared a look because both have been on the receiving end of her cooking lectures saying don't interrupt her and harry just got a golden pass.

Dudley's birthday — how could he have forgotten? Harry got slowly out of bed and started looking for socks. He found a pair under his bed and, after pulling a spider off one of them, put them on.

"ewwe spiders why?" Ron asked harry "is that why your not scared of them?" harry just shrugged.

Harry was used to spiders, because the cupboard under the stairs was full of them, and that was where he slept.

All the adults looked at harry and hermione said "why didn't you tell us, were suppose to be your friends?" harry stared for a second at her while molly was hyperventilating "i don't know I just never thought about it I got my own your after my letters so I didn't care really" "oh harry dear you've got your own room now at our house is it okay charlie if we change your room?" charlie shrugged it didn't matter to him. "no I like sharing ron's room its okay its like were in our dorm here again" harry s face was as red as the weaslys hair. Snape was staring at him maybe he isn't like his dad to modest he would of wanted his own room but like lily didn't care if he did or did not. Snape was confused and malfoy was giddy potter not such a hot shot. Ha ha he thought but no way a muggle should treat a wizard that was wrong. Molly was lost for words why didn't harry want his won room she saw him as a son she was still going to make him his own room. Dumbledore was baffled he left that letter saying to treat him as there own he highly doubted that they would do that to there own son.

When he was dressed he went down the hall into the kitchen. The table was almost hidden beneath all Dudley's birthday presents. It looked as though Dudley had gotten the new computer he wanted, not to mention the second television and the racing bike. Exactly why Dudley wanted a racing bike was a mystery to Harry, as Dudley was very fat and hated exercise — unless of course it involved punching somebody.

Dudley's favorite punching bag was Harry, but he couldn't often catch him. Harry didn't look it, but he was very fast. Perhaps it had something to do with living in a dark cupboard, but Harry had always been small and skinny for his age.

"no that's because of your dad" sirius said smiling. Harry just smiled back.

He looked even smaller and skinnier than he really was because all he had to wear were old clothes of Dudley's, and Dudley was about four times bigger than he was. Harry had a thin face, knobbly knees, black hair, and bright green eyes. He wore round glasses held together with a lot of Scotch tape because of all the times Dudley had punched him on the nose. The only thing Harry liked about his own appearance was a very thin scar on his forehead that was shaped like a bolt of lightning.

"you liked it?" Ron asked siriusly(pun intended) "well I didn't know what it meant!" harry said stressed. "i think its cool" Ginny said. " I can understand" hermione said. "when I was 6 I figured out if I thought of what I wanted in my room and couldn't find it it would float to me on my bed. My mom saw it and freaked out and told me never to do that again. I liked it but I had to do it in secret until September 5 yrs later. I found out I was a witch from professor McGonagall my mom was then happy and let me do it all the time in the house of course." harry nodded "same here it was the one thing that made me different in school and I liked it."

He had had it as long as he could remember, and the first question he could ever remember asking his Aunt Petunia was how he had gotten it.

"In the car crash when your parents died," she had said. "And don't ask questions."

Don't ask questions — that was the first rule for a quiet life with the Dursleys.

"Mr. potter is that why you never ask questions?" professor McGonagall asked "old habits die hard" harry said smiling slyly. "you need to start asking them more then" professor snape said scaring the shit out of everyone in the room. "okay" harry nodded.

Uncle Vernon entered the kitchen as Harry was turning over the bacon.

"Comb your hair!" he barked, by way of a morning greeting.

"not going to work!" sirius said singing

About once a week, Uncle Vernon looked over the top of his newspaper and shouted that Harry needed a haircut. Harry must have had more haircuts than the rest of the boys in his class put together, but it made no difference, his hair simply grew that way — all over the place.

Harry was frying eggs by the time Dudley arrived in the kitchen with his mother. Dudley looked a lot like Uncle Vernon. He had a large pink face, not much neck, small, watery blue eyes, and thick

blond hair that lay smoothly on his thick, fat head. Aunt Petunia often said that Dudley looked like a baby angel — Harry often said that Dudley looked like a pig in a wig.

"harry where did this come from?" fred and george said laughing. Harry just shrugged.

Harry put the plates of egg and bacon on the table, which was difficult as there wasn't much room. Dudley, meanwhile, was counting his presents. His face fell.

"Thirty-six," he said, looking up at his mother and father. "That's two less than last year."

"Darling, you haven't counted Auntie Marge's present, see, it's here under this big one from Mommy and Daddy." "All right, thirty-seven then," said Dudley, going red in the face.

Harry, who could see a huge Dudley tantrum coming on, began wolfing down his bacon as fast as possible in case Dudley turned the table over.

"is that why you eat so fast?" hermione said interrupting herself. "old habits die hard" harry said once again with a smile on his face

Aunt Petunia obviously scented danger, too, because she said quickly, "And we'll buy you another two presents while we're out today. How's that, popkin? Two more presents. Is that all right?"

Dudley thought for a moment. It looked like hard work. Finally he said slowly, "So I'll have thirty . . . thirty . . ." "Thirty-nine, sweetums," said Aunt Petunia.

"idiot couldn't count" Severus, remus, and hermione all said at the same time and while the others looked on hermione quickly started reading again.

"Oh." Dudley sat down heavily and grabbed the nearest parcel.

"All right then."

Uncle Vernon chuckled. "Little tyke wants his money's worth, just like his father. 'Atta boy, Dudley!" He ruffled Dudley's hair.

" and they encouraging it" Mrs Weasley stated.

At that moment the telephone rang and Aunt Petunia went to answer it while Harry and Uncle Vernon watched Dudley unwrap the racing bike, a video camera, a remote control airplane, sixteen new computer games, and a VCR. He was ripping the paper off a gold wristwatch when Aunt Petunia came back from the telephone looking both angry and worried.

"Bad news, Vernon," she said. "Mrs. Figg's broken her leg. She can't take him." She jerked her head in Harry's direction. Dudley's mouth fell open in horror, but Harry's heart gave a leap. Every year on Dudley's birthday, his parents took him and a friend out for the day, to adventure parks, hamburger restaurants, or the movies. Every year, Harry was left behind with Mrs. Figg, a mad old lady who lived two streets away. Harry hated it there. The whole house smelled of cabbage and Mrs. Figg made him look at photographs of all the cats she'd ever owned.

"so you never been to any of them?" hermione asked "to a zoo!" harry said. "I will take you and Ron this summer I promise. I've been saving up money from my summer job." harry just nodded

"Now what?" said Aunt Petunia, looking furiously at Harry as though he'd planned this. Harry knew he ought to feel sorry that Mrs. Figg had broken her leg, but it wasn't easy when he reminded himself it would be a whole year before he had to look at Tibbies, Snowy, Mr. Paws, and Tufty again.

"she was doing that to make sure you were okay." dumbledore said. " I know now." harry nodded

"We could phone Marge," Uncle Vernon suggested.

"Don't be silly, Vernon, she hates the boy."

The Dursleys often spoke about Harry like this, as though he wasn't there — or rather, as though he was something very nasty that couldn't understand them, like a slug.

"What about what's-her-name, your friend — Yvonne?" "On vacation in Majorca," snapped Aunt Petunia. "You could just leave me here," Harry put in hopefully (he'd be able to watch what he wanted on television for a change and maybe even have a go on Dudley's computer).

"yeah right!" Ron said

Aunt Petunia looked as though she'd just swallowed a lemon.

"And come back and find the house in ruins?" she snarled.

"I won't blow up the house," said Harry, but they weren't listening.

"I suppose we could take him to the zoo," said Aunt Petunia slowly, ". . . and leave him in the car. . . ."

"That cars new, he's not sitting in it alone. . . ." Dudley began to cry loudly. In fact, he wasn't really crying — it had been years since he'd really cried — but he knew that if he screwed up his face and wailed, his mother would give him any-thing he wanted.

"Dinky Duddydums,

"that's classic" said the twins and sirius.

don't cry, Mummy won't let him spoil your special day!" she cried, flinging her arms around him. "I . . . don't . . . want . . . him . . . t-t-to come!" Dudley yelled between huge, pretend sobs. "He always sp-spoils everything!" He shot Harry a nasty grin through the gap in his mothers arms.

Just then, the doorbell rang — "Oh, good Lord, they're here!" said Aunt Petunia frantically — and a moment later, Dudley's best friend, Piers Polkiss, walked in with his mother. Piers was a scrawny boy with a face like a rat. He was usually the one who held people's arms behind their backs while Dudley hit them. Dudley stopped pretending to cry at once.

"oh will he hit you if you cried dinky duddydums?" fred and george joked.

Half an hour later, Harry, who couldn't believe his luck, was sitting in the back of the Dursleys' car with Piers and Dudley, on the way to the zoo for the first time in his life. His aunt and uncle hadn't been able to think of anything else to do with him, but before they'd left, Uncle Vernon had taken Harry aside.

"I'm warning you," he had said, putting his large purple face right up close to Harry's, "I'm warning you now, boy — any funny business, anything at all — and you'll be in that cupboard from

now until Christmas."

"would he?" hermione asked "always" was all harry would say. Hermione continued.

I'm not going to do anything," said Harry, "honestly . . ." But Uncle Vernon didn't believe him. No one ever did. The problem was, strange things often happened around Harry and it was just no good telling the Dursleys he didn't make them happen.

Once, Aunt Petunia, tired of Harry coming back from the barbers looking as though he hadn't been at all, had taken a pair of kitchen scissors and cut his hair so short he was almost bald except for his bangs, which she left "to hide that horrible scar." Dudley had laughed himself silly at Harry, who spent a sleepless night imagining school the next day, where he was already laughed at for his baggy clothes and taped glasses.

Next morning, however, he had gotten up to find his hair exactly as it had been before Aunt Petunia had sheared it off. He had been given a week in his cupboard for this, even though he had tried to explain that he couldn't explain how it had grown back so quickly.

Another time, Aunt Petunia had been trying to force him into a revolting old sweater of Dudley's (brown with orange puff balls). The harder she tried to pull it over his head, the smaller it seemed to become, until finally it might have fitted a hand puppet, but certainly wouldn't fit Harry. Aunt Petunia had decided it must have shrunk in the wash and, to his great relief, Harry wasn't punished.

On the other hand, he'd gotten into terrible trouble for being found on the roof of the school kitchens. Dudley's gang had been chasing him as usual when, as much to Harry's surprise as anyone else's, there he was sitting on the chimney. The Dursleys had received a very angry letter from Harry's headmistress telling them Harry had been climbing school buildings. But all he'd tried to do (as he shouted at Uncle Vernon through the locked door of his cupboard) was jump behind the big trash cans outside the kitchen doors. Harry supposed that the wind must have caught him in mid-jump.

"you floated, lily could do the same thing, tuna should now that and not of punished you at all because of that she is just jealous." snape said. Harry smiled he was more in common with his mom then he thought. "thank you professor" snape just nodded.

But today, nothing was going to go wrong.

"harry!?" Ron and hermione said. "what?" harry asked confused "why would you say that every time you say that then something will go wrong!" hermione explained "i know that now!" harry pretty much shouted. He hated when people told him that.

It was even worth being with Dudley and Piers to be spending the day somewhere that wasn't school, his cupboard, or Mrs. Figg's cabbage-smelling living room.

"that's sad mate." Ron said sadly, harry just shrugged.

While he drove, Uncle Vernon complained to Aunt Petunia. He liked to complain about things: people at work, Harry, the council, Harry, the bank, and Harry were just a few of his favorite subjects. This morning, it was motorcycles. ". . . roaring along like maniacs, the young hoodlums," he said,

as a motorcycle overtook them. "I had a dream about a motorcycle," said Harry, remembering suddenly. "It was flying."

hermione just shock her head as she read that sentence along with half the adults.

Uncle Vernon nearly crashed into the car in front. He turned right around in his seat and yelled at Harry, his face like a gigantic beet with a mustache: "MOTORCYCLES DON'T FLY!"

Dudley and Piers sniggered. "I know they don't," said Harry. "It was only a dream." But he wished he hadn't said anything. If there was one thing the Dursleys hated even more than his asking questions, it was his talking about anything acting in a way it shouldn't, no matter if it was in a dream or even a cartoon — they seemed to think he might get dangerous ideas.

It was a very sunny Saturday and the zoo was crowded with families. The Dursleys bought Dudley and Piers large chocolate ice creams at the entrance and then, because the smiling lady in the van had asked Harry what he wanted before they could hurry him away, they bought him a cheap lemon ice pop. It wasn't bad, either,

"your mom like those" snape and remus both said. "yeah" harry said nodding "yeah and James couldn't understand why." remus continued. Harry looked at remus and snape and smiled maybe reading these books weren't going to be as bad as he though it would be. Maybe he needed it. Then a though struck him all the illegal stuff they took a part in especially the dragon. "hermione, Ron can I talk to you in private please!" hermione and Ron both thought it was weird but a door saying private popped up and they all walked into it.

"um you do know they all are going to hear all our trouble making stuff and we all could be punished!" harry said panicking. " oh no oh no!" hermione kept saying "bloody hell my moms going to ground me for life because of this." Ron also said panicking. All of a sudden a note popped out of no where it read:

dear troublemakers:

its Ron, you do not have to worry they have to understand desperate times desperate measures plus we all had them sign a note before they came into the room saying they were not allowed to punish you three. Trust me mom still scares me 25 years later. Love Ron. "Okay I can keep reading then." hermione said walking to the book and three sat down and she started reading.

Harry thought, licking it as they watched a gorilla scratching its head who looked remarkably like Dudley, except that it wasn't blond.

"come on harry where did this side go?" the twins pleaded as almost everyone laughed at his analogs.

Harry had the best morning he'd had in a long time. He was careful to walk a little way apart from the Dursleys so that Dudley and Piers, who were starting to get bored with the animals by lunchtime, wouldn't fall back on their favorite hobby of hitting him. They ate in the zoo restaurant, and when Dudley had a tantrum because his Knickerbocker glory didn't have enough ice cream on top, Uncle Vernon bought him another one and Harry was allowed to finish the first. Harry felt, afterward, that he should have known it was all too good to last.

"harry!?" Ron and hermione said. "what I know I shouldn't of said that." hermione shook her head and continued reading.

After lunch they went to the reptile house. It was cool and dark in there, with lit windows all along the walls. Behind the glass, all sorts of lizards and snakes were crawling and slithering over bits of wood and stone. Dudley and Piers wanted to see huge, poisonous cobras and thick, man-crushing pythons. Dudley quickly found the largest snake in the place. It could have wrapped its body twice around Uncle Vernon's car and crushed it into a trash can — but at the moment it didn't look in the mood. In fact, it was fast asleep. Dudley stood with his nose pressed against the glass, staring at the glistening brown coils.

"Make it move," he whined at his father. Uncle Vernon tapped on the glass, but the snake didn't budge. "Do it again," Dudley ordered. Uncle Vernon rapped the glass smartly with his knuckles, but the snake just snoozed on. "This is boring," Dudley moaned. He shuffled away. Harry moved in front of the tank and looked intently at the snake. He wouldn't have been surprised if it had died of boredom itself — no company except stupid people drumming their fingers on the glass trying to disturb it all day long. It was worse than having a cupboard as a bedroom, where the only visitor was Aunt Petunia hammering on the door to wake you up; at least he got to visit the rest of the house.

The snake suddenly opened its beady eyes. Slowly, very slowly, it raised its head until its eyes were on a level with Harry's. It winked.

Harry stared. Then he looked quickly around to see if anyone was watching. They weren't. He looked back at the snake and winked, too.

"harry only you would wink back at a snake and feel bad for it." hermione said "i was 10 that's all I'm saying" harry smirked. Wait til they hear he let it out. Though now he though about it it reminded him of Voldemort's snake.

The snake jerked its head toward Uncle Vernon and Dudley, then raised its eyes to the ceiling. It gave Harry a look that said quite plainly:

"I get that all the time." "I know," Harry murmured through the glass, though he wasn't

sure the snake could hear him. "It must be really annoying." The snake nodded vigorously.

"Where do you come from, anyway?" Harry asked. The snake jabbed its tail at a little sign next to the glass. Harry peered at it.

Boa Constrictor, Brazil.

"Was it nice there?"

The boa constrictor jabbed its tail at the sign again and Harry read on: This specimen was bred in the zoo. "Oh, I see — so you've never been to Brazil?"

As the snake shook its head, a deafening shout behind Harry made both of them jump. "DUDLEY! MR. DURSLEY! COME AND LOOK AT THIS SNAKE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT IT'S DOING!"

Dudley came waddling toward them as fast as he could. "Out of the way, you," he said, punching Harry in the ribs. Caught by surprise, Harry fell hard on the concrete floor. What came next happened so fast no one saw how it happened — one second, Piers and Dudley were leaning right up close to the glass,

the next, they had leapt back with howls of horror.

Harry sat up and gasped; the glass front of the boa constrictor's tank had vanished. The great snake was uncoiling itself rapidly, slithering out onto the floor. People throughout the reptile house screamed and started running for the exits.

As the snake slid swiftly past him, Harry could have sworn a low, hissing voice said, "Brazil, here I come. . . . Thanksss, amigo."

"so you set it lose?" Ron asked "no I was trying to lock them in with it!" harry joked not knowing what to say. "very slytherin of you." malfoy said. Everyone look at him confused. "what it is!" malfoy said. Harry just laughed along with neville and luna.

The keeper of the reptile house was in shock. "But the glass," he kept saying, "where did the glass go?"

The zoo director himself made Aunt Petunia a cup of strong, sweet tea while he apologized over and over again. Piers and Dudley could only gibber. As far as Harry had seen, the snake hadn't done anything except snap playfully at their heels as it passed, but by the time they were all back in Uncle Vernon's car, Dudley was telling them how it had nearly bitten off his leg, while Piers was swearing it had tried to squeeze him to death. But worst of all, for Harry at least, was Piers calming down enough to say, "Harry was talking to it, weren't you, Harry?"

Uncle Vernon waited until Piers was safely out of the house before starting on Harry. He was so angry he could hardly speak. He managed to say, "Go — cupboard — stay — no meals," before he collapsed into a chair, and Aunt Petunia had to run and get him a large brandy.

Harry lay in his dark cupboard much later, wishing he had a watch. He didn't know what time it was and he couldn't be sure the Dursleys were asleep yet. Until they were, he couldn't risk sneaking to

the kitchen for some food.

"harry my boy you never have to sneak for food again anytime your hungry tell me and I'll make you and Ron something okay my dear?" Mrs. Weasley said so sweetly that harry just nodded and said "thank you Mrs Weasley.

He'd lived with the Dursleys almost ten years, ten miserable years, as long as he could remember, ever since he'd been a baby and his parents had died in that car crash. He couldn't remember being in the car when his parents had died. Sometimes, when he strained his memory during long hours in his cupboard, he came up with a strange vision: a blinding flash of green light and a burning pain on his forehead.

"my boy, is that another one you remember?" dumbledore asked politely. "yes I think that's it." harry spoke surely.

This, he supposed, was the crash, though he couldn't imagine where all the green light came from. He couldn't remember his parents at all. His aunt and uncle never spoke about them, and of course he was forbidden to ask questions.

There were no photographs of them in the house. When he had been younger, Harry had dreamed and dreamed of some unknown relation coming to take him away, but it had never happened; the Dursleys were his only family. Yet sometimes he thought (or maybe hoped) that strangers in the street seemed to

know him. Very strange strangers they were, too. A tiny man in a violet top hat had bowed to him once while out shopping with Aunt Petunia and Dudley. After asking Harry furiously if he knew the man, Aunt Petunia had rushed them out of the shop without buying anything. A wild-looking old woman dressed all in green had waved merrily at him once on a bus. A bald man in a very long purple coat had actually shaken his hand in the street the other day and then walked away without a word. The weirdest thing about all these people was the way they seemed to vanish the second Harry tried to get a closer look.

At school, Harry had no one. Everybody knew that Dudley's gang hated that odd Harry Potter in his baggy old clothes and broken glasses, and nobody liked to disagree with Dudley's gang.

"well that's chapter 2 here remus." hermione said handing remus the book. "do you want to read one more chapter or go to bed and read in the morning?" remus asked his cub. " I suppose we could read one more chapter..." harry said shrugging. "then its off to bed." Mrs Weasley said. "Mr. Weasley did you write anything down?" hermione asked. "no honestly I forgot to. okay well next chapter I write more down if I hear any." hermione nodded and remus read "chapter 3 the letters from no one."

PLEASE READ AND REVIEW AND MAYBE COMMENT I NEED TO KNOW WHAT I DOING WRONG HERE!