Completely oblivious to the facts in the letters that Albus Dumbledore and Remus Lupin had read and were now earnestly discussing, Harry rolled over, and then realized with a start that he'd rolled just a little too far that time as he fell out of bed. Harry groaned and got up to reach for his glasses and watch. It had been a rough night, Voldemort and his followers, the Death Eaters, had been up and about. They'd been having fun torturing Muggles, planning various raids, and so forth; Harry, on the other hand, had had no fun at all. There were times when he appreciated his link to Voldemort, and he'd owled Dumbledore to warn him those few times, but the rest of the time he hated the nightmares, the dreams, and the fact that he could feel it every time Voldemort used the Cruciatus curse. Voldemort had been especially angry last night, and his displeasure with his followers left Harry feeling very sore and very tired.

As Harry glanced at his watch, he realized that today was his 15th birthday. This cheered him up a bit and he looked around for his owl, Hedwig. Hedwig was at the window, tapping her beak against the glass impatiently, and flitting above her was Pig, who looked very excited. Harry laughed, when was the last time Pig hadn't looked excited? He opened the window to let the two owls in.

Hedwig was carrying a rather large package. Harry untied it and let her return to her cage. Pig was carrying a letter, which Harry assumed must be from Ron. He took it and sent Pig to Hedwig, then he opened the letter first.

Hi Harry!

Happy Birthday! Hermione's here for the week, and we want to let you know that you're welcome to come stay with us for the rest of the summer. Dumbledore said that you could come so we want you to come today! Mum and Dad said that after the fiasco before the Quidditch Cup last summer they were going to come by car, but they're going to come whether you have your aunt and uncle's permission or not, so don't worry. Be ready by three, okay?

Ron

Harry grinned as he read Ron's letter, then he turned to the package that he had taken from Hedwig. When he opened it, he found another letter and a smaller box. He opened the letter:

Harry!

Many thanks from Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes! We've put the money you've given us to good use, and put in an ad in the Daily Prophet. For now we're a strictly mail order business, but we hope to have enough money for a shop after we finish school. Here's a birthday and thank-you gift for you. Couldn't have gotten this far without you, thanks a lot and Happy Birthday, Harry!

Fred and George Weasley?

Proprietors, Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes

Harry opened the box to find a collection of sweets from the twins; he knew he wouldn't be eating these, but he had a few unsuspecting friends to give them to. Then he turned to the next package. It was from Hagrid, and it included some more of his infamous rock cakes as well as a note wishing him a happy birthday. The last package contained another letter, a box of his favorite sweets and a book on defending yourself against the dark arts-it looked more advanced than your average school book, too. He turned to the letter that accompanied it:

Dear Harry,

I hope this letter finds you well. I've got good news for you, Dumbledore wants me back to teach DADA and I've decided to accept, so I'll be coming back to the school next year. Sirius will be coming with me, he's posing as my loyal companion. I hope no one finds it strange that a werewolf keeps a dog as a pet, though.

The sweets are from Sirius and the book is from me. Dumbledore also said that he wants me to give you extra DADA training, so I expect that book read by the time you come back to school! (Well, the first five chapters, anyway. I know how summer holidays are.)

Happy Birthday, Harry!

Professor Remus Lupin and Sirius

Harry happily bit into a Chocolate Frog; all in all it was looking to be a very fine birthday. Then he got up and set about packing his things.

Despite the fact that the Weasley twins had played a very awful and very abnormal joke on Dudley last summer, the Dursleys weren't all that bad this year. Harry supposed that it was probably their fear of Sirius that kept them from doing anything but assign extra difficult chores. He actually didn't mind the work so much, anyway. It kept him from thinking about what had happened at the end of the Triwizard Tournament. He shook off the thoughts, today was a day to be happy, not to dwell on the past.

***

The doorbell rang, but whoever it was probably hadn't quite gotten the hang of it yet and the constant ringing was making Vernon Dursley very angry. He yelled for Dudley to answer the door, "Dudley! Get the door, now!" Dudley hurried, almost running, it seemed that his diet had been a success.

A rather embarrassed red-headed man and woman stood in front of the door. "Er.. hello, are you Dudley?" asked the man.

Dudley reddened with embarrassment and anger when he recognized the man as the one who had come to fetch Harry last summer. "Hello," he answered, rather timidly.

"We've come to fetch Harry," explained the woman.

Dudley's eyes opened in shock and he called his father over. Vernon, deciding that he didn't want the neighbors to get any more suspicious than they already were, called Harry down after dragging the Weasleys in. "Harry! Get down here, now!"

"Coming, Uncle Vernon!" came the slightly annoyed response. Harry figured that the Weasleys must have arrived and decided to bring his trunk down with him. He'd already sent Hedwig on to the Weasleys that morning.

"Good afternoon, Mr. and Mrs. Weasely," Harry greeted the couple.

"Hullo, Harry. Everything all right?" responded Mrs. Weasley, warmly.

"I'm fine, Mrs. Weasley. Can we go now?"

"Hullo Harry, yes that would be a good idea," interjected Mr Weasley, after a nervous look at a fuming Vernon. And with that, the witch, wizard, and wizard-in-training took their leave.

***

After they had gotten to the Burrow, Harry turned to the two Weasleys. "Thank you for coming to get me. This summer hasn't been too bad, but I definitely prefer your house and company," he said, smiling happily at them.

"You're quite welcome, dear. We're glad to have you. Now go on up, the boys are waiting for you, and I know Hermione and Ginny are quite anxious as well," Molly Weasley replied with a warm smile and a hug.

Harry took his trunk and began to climb up the stairs, but was interrupted. "Harry, hold up. Let me help you. Wingardium Leviosa!" commanded Arthur Weasley.

Harry grinned. "Thanks, Mr. Weasley." Harry took his floating trunk and set it down in Ron's room. Ron wasn't in his room, but he could hear several excited voices coming from the twins' room, so headed there.

"Hullo everyone, what's new?" he asked.

Everyone there, Fred and George, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny, looked up, guiltily. "Hello, Harry," they all chimed together.

"Harry! What've you done with your hair?" exclaimed Ron, after giving Harry a look over.

Harry was confused, he hadn't been able to look in a mirror lately, but he hadn't done anything to it. "What do you mean, Ron? I didn't do anything..." Harry's voice trailed off as he saw that no one really believed him.

Hermione recovered first. "Ronald Weasley! What sort of thing is that to ask your best friend when this is the first time you've seen him in over a month?"

Ron blushed a little. "Sorry, Hermione, you're right. It doesn't matter, Harry. How's your summer been? Oh, and Happy Birthday!"

Harry smiled. "Thanks Ron. Summer's been the usual, though the Dursleys haven't been as bad as usual, thank goodness."

Fred and George, who'd been watching the little exchange with amusement, suddenly piped up, "Hey Harry, how'd you like our package?" They grinned mischievously.

Harry laughed and replied, "It was excellent, thanks, but I'm saving those things for school! Goodness only knows what you've done to those things."

Fred and George laughed as well. "Smart thinking, Harry. That's probably for the best," they replied in unison.

Now it was Ginny's turn to interject into the conversation. "Oh, you two are impossible, you know that? Hi, Harry, it's good to see you again. Happy birthday." Ginny grinned shyly.

Harry smiled at her, "Thanks, Gin. It's good to see you again, too." And the thing of it was, Harry really was glad to see her again. Ginny was a very steady person, and he was beginning to appreciate that in her, especially since his own life was just so unpredictable and crazy. He was glad that he would be able to see her more often this summer.

"Well, Exploding Snap, anyone? Too close to supper for Quidditch," asked George. They all agreed and had so much fun that Mrs. Weasley had to come in and get them for supper as they hadn't heard her calling for them. The group headed downstairs to find the downstairs decorated and a sign reading, 'Happy Birthday, Harry!' There were also people there, waiting: Professors Dumbledore and Lupin, Sirius, and Hagrid.

Harry gaped in shock. He couldn't believe it. They were having a party, for him! It was the first time anyone had ever thrown him a birthday party. He was so happy he thought that he would burst. "Wow," he said, "is all of this really for me?"

Remus Lupin laughed. "Yes Harry, it really, truly, is all for you."

"Wow," Harry repeated, still gazing around the room in shock.

Sirius barked (he was there as Snuffles), and Remus leaned in and hugged him. "You know, you could catch flies if you don't close your mouth. Come and eat. Have you started reading that book I sent?" he whispered the last part.

Harry grinned again and shut his mouth, only to open it again to reply, "Yes, sir. Started this morning after I finished packing."

"Good lad, now sit down!"

Sirius transformed, and after nearly giving Molly Weasley a heart attack until the trio of friends reminded her that Black was innocent, came over to give Harry a fierce hug. "Happy Birthday, Harry! Isn't it grand that I'll be able to keep an eye on you at school next year?"

Harry laughed and returned the hug, "Yes, Sirius. I'm very excited about it. It'll be great, and now I won't have to worry about you."

At this Sirius drew back and glared at Harry. "It's my job to worry about you, not your job to worry about me, you hear? No more of that. Your safety is my number one priority, and I won't hear any arguments about it."

Harry scowled and replied, "Yes, Sirius. Can we please eat now?"

"Of course, dear. Come and sit!" came Molly's voice.

Harry found himself sitting between Professor Dumbledore and Remus Lupin and across from Sirius and Ginny. Professor Dumbledore told them all stories about the trouble that the Marauders used to get in at school, much to Remus' and Sirius' dismay (and Molly's). Fred and George were thrilled to be in the same room as Misters Mooney and Padfoot, and they begged for more stories after Remus tried to get Dumbledore to stop saying, "Really Headmaster, at this rate, I'll never get anyone to listen to me when I'm teaching." Harry smirked at that comment and only one person sitting at the table noticed who he resembled when he did that.

The conversations and laughter went on until nearly midnight, which was when Harry could feel himself nodding off, despite his best efforts. Molly Weasley noticed this and started sending people on their way, saying that Harry needed his rest and so did everyone else for they were going to Diagon Alley in the morning, as they would be taking advantage of the fact that Dumbledore had brought them their school letters early.

Before they left, Dumbledore and Remus turned to Harry. "Harry, you're going to come to Hogwarts a week early, all right? Something important's come up, and we need you there," Remus said.

Harry looked a little confused and more than a little concerned, but he nodded his assent and bid them goodnight. Then he climbed up the stairs and fell into his bed, asleep before his head hit the pillow.