Chapter 1 – The Worst Birthday

Once Harry had run away from the Dursleys' and begun attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he had thought that he would never have to hear the name again. He hadn't taken into account that a Dudley free muggle summer camp would still play host to its share of would be Dudleys. Some were taller, all were slimmer, some had brown hair, some had curls, but they were just as Dudley as Dudley nonetheless.

Why couldn't he have been a William or a Charles or an Andrew? He could endure being Bob the Slob, he wouldn't bat a lightly mascara'd eyelash at Jake the Snake, heck, Harry figured he could even smile at Hester the Molester. But no, he had to be:

"Harry Fairy!"

Harry ducked his head under the table just in time to avoid the spoonful of green peas speeding toward him. He popped back up and continued his lunch without pause, allowing himself the teeniest shoulder shimmy and a small but indignant harrumph. He was prepared for a summer without friends, he had been through enough of them, only now, he knew that he had a group of best friends to return to once the summer was over.

Harry held back the frown that threatened to wash over him, it wouldn't do to have the camp bullies think they had finally got to him, especially after he had lasted so long already. The problem was that Harry was beginning to wonder if he really did have friends to return to once the school year began anew. Did he even have Ron to count on once he left the muggle camp?

Harry had sent Ron home with most of his wizarding things, including his beloved owl, Twinkle. His other friends - who thought that Harry would be spending the summer with his relatives - agreed not to send post too often so as not to startle the Dursleys, and Ron - knowing where Harry would really be - agreed that frequent owl post would be suspicious. Harry hadn't expected his friends to ignore him completely. Even Hagrid hadn't written and Harry was certain he'd have heard from the lovable giant man by now. He missed his friends and his school so much it was like having a constant tummy ache.

As August 1st approached, Harry's homesickness was doubled with anxiety, he hadn't received anything from Ron so he didn't know how he would get to The Burrow to spend the rest of the holidays, or if Ron's parents had even agreed to allow him to stay.

"They haven't forgotten me," Harry whispered to himself as he made his way to his afternoon riding class.

Summer camp was really a wonderful experience for Harry. He had signed up for lessons in crafts, horseback riding, swimming, and music, and outside of mealtimes, he was able to easily avoid the bullies and keep to himself throughout the day.

Harry approached his favourite horse, who whinnied as Harry petted him down, sensing his nervousness.

"It's my birthday today," Harry whispered to the stallion, "And I'm leaving tomorrow, but I don't know if I have somewhere to go."

Harry branched away from the group and edged as close to the forest as he could get without being noticed. Unlike the Forbidden Forest at Hogwarts, this one was home to few wild animals - none with magical properties - and many species of bird, including owls which could be heard hooting throughout the night. Harry kept his eyes open for any owls that might be in search of him, perhaps carrying large bulky packages, or cakes, or a birthday balloon, but he was disappointed once again when nothing seemed amiss. He trotted back to the group to take his turn at the beginners' jump.

Harry turned to face the challenge and coaxed his horse to a gallop. He peered at the small hedge he was to jump - and found that the hedge was staring back. Two enormous green eyes had appeared among the leaves. Harry, apparently, wasn't the only one to notice this strange occurrence, the steed stopped dead in his tracks, launching Harry high into the air. Harry's eyes widened, and he sent an ear piercing shriek echoing throughout the riding area. In near slow motion Harry watched the ground approach, and then he did something that brought memories of his friend Neville Longbottom to mind, he bounced. Not once, not twice, but three times.

Winded and not trusting that he could climb to his feet, Harry rolled over onto his stomach and looked back in the troublesome hedges; the huge eyes blinked and vanished.

Within an hour Harry was lying in the hospital wing, presumably to rest. He had spent a considerable amount of that time being examined by the camp's doctors and nurses, and having the one bruise on his elbow X-rayed for good measure.

"I'm fine," Harry pouted.

The doctor shook his incredulous head and left him alone. Within seconds a huge barn owl swooped into the room, dropping a letter onto Harry's lap.

"Yea!" Harry squealed, his friends had remembered his birthday after all! He tore into the letter and gasped.

Dear Mr.Potter,

We have received intelligence that a Human Spring Charm was used in a Muggle location, witnessed by several Muggles, this afternoon at twenty-three minutes past two.

As you know, underage wizards are not permitted to perform spells outside school, and further spellwork on your part may lead to expulsion from said school (Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Sorcery, 1875, Paragraph C).

We would also ask you to remember that any magical activity that risks notice by members of the non-magical community (Muggles) is a serious offense under section 13 of the International Confederation of Warlocks' Statute of Secrecy.

Enjoy your holidays!

Yours Sincerely,

Mafalda Hopkirk

IMPROPER USE OF MAGIC OFFICE

Ministry of Magic

Harry looked up from the letter and 'eeeked' in the back of his throat. His magic had saved him from a terrible fall but had nearly got him kicked out of Hogwarts! Any hope of using magic to contact Ron or make his way to the Weasleys' disappeared. He would rather wander the streets alone for the next month than risk his return to school. Perhaps it wasn't too late to sign up for the second month of camp?

If only he could contact this Mafalda Hopkirk and explain that he didn't mean to bounce, it just happened. There was a pen and notepad at the bedside table, all he needed was an owl. He glanced around the room hoping the Ministry owl had remained but saw nothing. The window was closed so Harry climbed out of bed and popped his head through the swinging hospital wing doors to peek into the hallway, where the owl had to have gone. It was empty.

"Humph!" Harry exclaimed, his hope of clearing up this nasty letter gone, if only he had Twinkle. Harry pouted his bottom lip with as much displeasure as he could manage and padded back to his starched linen bed, the trouble was, there was already someone sitting on it.