𝑜𝓃𝓁𝓎 𝓉𝒽𝑒 𝓎𝑜𝓊𝓃𝑔. - golden trio era au

₀₂ ♙ 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐨𝐬

♙

𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐨𝐬

♙

By the time Harry was finally granted freedom from his cupboard to roam as he liked - excluding going to the bathroom and school - it coincided with the arrival of the Summer holidays making it the longest he had ever been trapped in there. Dawn had almost been caught once sneaking food to him in the middle of the night. Vernon had come down to fetch a glass of water and miraculously, he had not managed to spot Dawn hiding behind a door balancing about three plates of food and a glass of orange juice on her arms.

Dudley was to be attending Smeltings, a prestigious secondary school that their father had gone to. Realistically, he was supposed to have started there last year, but after a nasty bout of chicken pox and some poor grades a few years ago he had been held back. Smeltings was a boys-only school. So, Dawn, who was also starting secondary school that year, had been hand picked by their grandmother (on Vernon's side) to take a place at Parkside Academy for girls. Harry, however, wasn't going anywhere that needed tuition. He was going to the local public school, Stonewall High. It was dark, dreary and all around looked like a prison. If Dawn ever had to pass it, she would take the long way around just to avoid the place. Petunia and Vernon always cut costs when it came to Harry.

One morning Dawn was sat in her usual armchair, engrossed in a book as normal, except not the last one, she had long finished that. This one told the story was about a young girl who bore the weight of the world on her shoulders but was never recognised for her achievements, always overshadowed by men. She was usually quite impartial to romance, but there was none of that here until the second book. There was one difference to her usual routine, she had a clothes peg clipped to her nose and she was breathing softly through her mouth. Her mother was cooking something incredibly horrid smelling and she hadn't dared to ask what it was. Harry did not share the same sentiments.

"What's this?" Dawn startled, not realising he had been there. She pursed her lips, as Petunia did not approve of him asking questions, and then promptly coughed her lungs up, having forgot she had a peg on her nose and momentarily couldn't breathe.

"Your new school uniform," said Petunia curtly. Harry looked in the bowl again.

"Oh," he said. "I didn't realise it had to be so wet."

"Don't be stupid," she snapped. "I'm dyeing some of Dudley's old things grey for you. It'll look just like everyone else's when I've finished." Harry and Dawn looked at each other and doubt flashed across both their faces, but they chose not to say anything.

Dudley and Vernon made their entrance, noses wrinkled at Petunia's concoction. As he usually did, Vernon assumed his position at the table and unfolded his newspaper, making that weird gruff grunt that men often do. Meanwhile, Dudley had taken to carrying his new Smeltings stick with him everywhere and carelessly banged it against the table legs, narrowly missing Harry's ankle.

"Dawn, darling, why don't you come and have breakfast at the table for a change?" Petunia suggested, taking her own seat next to Dudley. Vernon always occupied the head of the table, his wife and son to his right, Petunia being closest to him. Harry sat on the far end of his left. It meant he was away from Vernon but within kicking range of Dudley. The seat in between them usually remained unoccupied but was intended for Dawn. She had a strong preference for her armchair. Dawn grumbled something unintelligible. "Darling, you know how I feel about the mumbling." she chided.

Dawn sighed and carefully tucked her bookmark, which was crafted of laminated, pressed bluebells, daisies and thistles, in-between the pages and settled it down on the arm of the chair, abandoning its soft comforts in favour of her mother's wishes. Petunia nodded approvingly. Just as they were about to start eating, the most fateful, world stopping thing happened;