Jimmy

Chapter 1: A Light in the Darkness

Harry Potter walked down the street, scuffing his battered shoes against the pavement, kicking rocks as he went. It was his first day of his second year of school--his and Dudley's. For once, he actually had new things: new pencils, new paper, new notebooks, new crayons. And they belonged to him. Never mind that the knapsack he had to carry them in was a thrift store reject, battered and fraying. Never mind that his clothes were bigger than he was. Never mind that they were old, too. Never mind that Uncle Vernon was driving Dudley to school in a shiny black car while he had to walk, all on his own. It was the first day of a new school year. And everything Harry had in his knapsack belonged to him.

"Hello!"

Harry kept walking. Whoever it was probably wasn't talking to him. Nobody ever talked to him.

"I said hello! Hey, wait up!"

Harry stopped and turned. Two girls ran up to meet him. One of them had long, bushy brown hair and big brown eyes. The other's hair was sleek, a darker brown than the first's, with bright blue eyes. The girls' noses were covered with a smattering of freckles. The sleek-haired girl wore a pair of khaki pants and a dark blue collared shirt with pink high-top sneakers. The bushy-haired girl wore a grey pleated skirt and a pale blue collared shirt with black Mary Janes and grey socks.

"Were you talking to me?" Harry asked, pushing his new glasses up his nose. They were big, round, and ugly, but they worked.

"Who else would we be talking to?" the sleek-haired girl said with a grin. "I'm Becky. This is my cousin Janey."

"My real name's too long for most people," Janey added. "Plus Becky has trouble with her R's, and there are R's in my first name. It isn't Jane--that's my middle name. What's your name?"

"Harry."

Becky frowned. "Do you have a middle name?"

"Without any R's?" Janey added, causing Becky to stick her tongue out.

Harry nodded. "My middle name is James."

"Then we'll call you Jimmy," Becky announced. "Come on and walk with us."

"If you really don't mind..." Harry said eagerly, hoping they wouldn't. It would be so nice to have friends.

"We don't," Becky assured him. "Come on."

Harry grinned. Both girls grinned back at him, and Harry noticed that Janey was missing her two front teeth. Harry's left front tooth had come out the week before, and his right front tooth was really loose. Becky had all her teeth. The three of them walked up to the imposing brick building, skirting the playground where a group of children played happily in a world Harry knew he would never belong to.

Janey tugged Harry's sleeve. "Jimmy, Becky, look! They posted our classroom assignments already!"

The three small children crowded around the bulletin board. "I can't see," Becky complained."

"Neither can I," Harry informed her.

"I bet I can," Janey bragged. She stood on her tiptoes and craned her neck. "Nope. Becky, give me a boost."

She climbed on her cousin's shoulders and peered at the sign. "What's your last name, Jimmy?"

"Potter."

"Hmm...Hey, we're all in the same class--Ms. Stites, room 104."

"I had her last year for music," Harry told them as Janey climbed off Becky's shoulders. "She's nice."

"Come on!" Becky cried and ran for the classroom. Janey and Harry ran after her.