Masked Reality

Chapter One

A cold, damp mist wrapped itself around Harry's tightly folded arms. The overlarge wool jacket covering the whole upper half of his body wasn't helping to keep out the chill of the dark winter night. Ice cold wind lashed at his face, his dry eyes merely covered by a pair of circular glasses that had lasted him through so many years were now continuously slipping off the bridge of his nose and just barely missing a trajectory leading straight onto the hard cement.

Harry let out a chattering sigh, causing long and slender winter fingers to creep into his mouth and down his throat. He coughed and had to stop walking for a moment to catch his breath, which seemed difficult because it felt as though he was swallowing shards of glass.

A scream echoed through the night air, and out of the sky flew a fluff of white. Harry only recognized it as his Snowy Owl, Hedwig, when she landed on his shoulder and ruffled her feathers in a disapproving way.

"I know, Hed, but I can't seem to find the Dursley's house!" Harry shouted to the Owl. She stared at him for a moment, then lifted herself off his shoulder and took to a low glide just above the sidewalk Harry was walking on. He assumed she wanted him to follow, so he did just that.

After what seemed like an hour, Harry finally caught a glimpse of his Aunt and Uncle's house. He stopped short, looking up at the two-story with a sense of foreboding. He knew exactly what was going to happen as soon as he stepped inside. His Aunt Petunia would see him and go ballistic, yelling at him to take off his wet clothes and not to step on the clean carpet until his boots were off. Then Uncle Vernon would barge in, see Harry, and begin insulting his appearance and his careless use of time. Of course his cousin Dudley would sit and watch intently with a pig-like grin on his face as he munched on some freshly baked cupcakes.

Hedwig, who had by now returned to her perch on his shoulder, noticed Harry's unease and nuzzled him gently to show that she at least cared for her owner. Harry sighed again, this time not caring how much the wind stung the back of his throat, and stepped up to the door.

He was ready to let himself in, when another owl swooped down from the black sky and landed on Harry's vacant shoulder. He staggered at this one's weight, catching Hedwig off-guard. She let out an angry screech and flew up to Harry's window on the second story to wait for him to let her in when he got to his room.

This one appeared to be a barn owl, very large and soft and warm and cuddly. Harry was very tempted to stuff his face in it until his nose was no longer numb, but decided instead to take the letter in its mouth. After he had done so, it followed Hedwig up to Harry's window, apparently ready for a treat or two for its trouble before it took to the skies again.

Harry briefly glanced at the writing on the letter's envelope, which was scratchy and not easily comprehensible. He knew at once that it was from his good friend Rubeus Hagrid, the Gamekeeper at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which was Harry's current school. He was only on vacation at the time being, stuck once again at his horrible relative's house. He was still angry that he couldn't be staying with Sirius Black, his Godfather and falsely accused murderer of Muggles and Wizards and his worst enemy's best friend, Voldemort.

Suddenly the front door flew open. Aunt Petunia was staring out at Harry with beady eyes from under an unattractive green facemask. Her hair was up in bright pink and yellow curlers, and she was wearing a floral robe that ended just below her bony knees. She shivered as the winter wind began whipping at her.

"Come inside, now!" she shouted, her teeth chattering. Harry rolled his eyes and walked into the heated house, and Petunia slammed the door shut behind him. She still stared at him menacingly as he removed his hand-me-down coat (originally Dudley's) and started up the stairs. He was greeted at the top by none other than Vernon.

"Look here, boy." He spoke each word with pure hatred. "You take any more late-night walks in the middle of the freezing cold without telling anyone and I'll make sure we bolt every door and window so you can't get back in." He had been holding Harry by the collar; Harry pushed him away and said nothing. He proceeded to make his way down the hallway and into his room. After he slammed his bedroom door, which used to be Dudley's toy room, Vernon half-roared and smacked the door so hard it rattled and threatened to come off its hinges.

Harry eyed the door angrily and kicked it in response. He then locked it and headed for his window to let Hedwig and the barn owl in. With one last large smack on the door from Vernon, he stomped down the hallway to the master bedroom and Harry heard no more of him.

The two owls hopped happily in and Harry shut the window after them. The barn owl quickly found the bag of treats, and Hedwig decided that she liked the other owl and shared with him instead of giving him threatening glares. Harry watched them for a few moments, then looked at Hagrid's letter in his hand and opened it.

It read:

Dear Harry,

I hear you've been down lately, so I decided to send you a healthy and reliable owl so you can let Hedwig rest for a while. Just remember to send it back when you're finished; it's school property, you know. One other thing, this year you've got a woman for your Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher! She's pretty, mind you, so don't go getting a crush on her. You save those for your fellow schoolmates... how about Hermione?

Well, I got to be getting back to my work. This year you're gonna be learning about a lot of strange and majestic creatures. Don't want to spoil nothing, so be ready for anything when you come to school this year!

Until you arrive,

Hagrid

Harry smiled to himself and chuckled. Hagrid usually didn't talk about girls with Harry, so this letter was something new. He glanced over at the barn owl again, who was now on Hedwig's perch and slowly closing its eyes. Hedwig had changed her mind and was shooting daggers at it with multiple piercing stares. The owl didn't seem to notice.

Harry looked back at the letter and noticed something a little odd. Hagrid hadn't said anything about what had happened last year. He hadn't said 'be sure to stay away from you-know-who' or 'if you see that git Malfoy, trip him for me'. He didn't even say 'take care'! Although it was slightly unusual, Harry decided it wasn't that important and carefully tucked the letter away with all the others he'd gotten from Hagrid, as well as Sirius and his two best friends, Ron and Hermione, under his bed.

He chose to write a letter to Hagrid in response to the letter.

Hagrid,

Thank you for the owl; it's a cold night tonight and I could do with something warm and comfortable. That will be quite a turn to have a woman as our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher this year. I hope she's permanent!

He decided at the very last moment to mention briefly what he'd thought about when reading Hagrid's letter.

Oh, by the way, have you had a chance to see if Dumbledore's going to stay as headmaster? And, out of curiosity, is Draco Malfoy still going to attend Hogwarts now that Dumbledore knows his father's a Death Eater?

Have you heard anything else about You-Know-Who since my encounter with him when he killed Cedric?

Thanks Hagrid,

Harry

Harry nodded his own approval at the letter when he reread it. Sealing it inside an envelope and scribbling Hagrid's name and address on it, he walked over to the barn owl and patted its head softly to wake it up. The owl looked mildly annoyed at its interruption, but brightened when Harry put the letter in its talon because mail owls love delivering mail whenever they get the chance.

He opened his window and let the owl fly out into the night, watching it after it had disappeared from sight. Hedwig was looking at him like he'd just clipped her wings. Harry looked over at his owl after shutting the window. He grinned. "Sorry about that, Hed, but at least you'll get more time to rest and eat."

A few days later, the familiar barn owl rapped at Harry's window. He eagerly opened it and the owl flew in, dropping a letter on his bed as it landed on Harry's desk and started eating a few of Hedwig's treats. Hedwig had begun to loathe the owl, and kept squawking her dislike as she watched from her perch.

Harry ignored them and ripped open the envelope. He pulled out a small piece of parchment and unfolded it. It was a brief letter.

Harry?

What have you been eating lately? Of course Dumbledore's still headmaster. I know most of us don't like Lucius Malfoy or his son, but what made you so positive he's a Death Eater?

And that last remark was a very cruel joke. You-Know-Who never killed Cedric, he drowned during a late-night swim when a Grindylow caught hold of him, remember?

Don't go saying horrible things like that, it makes me worry about you.

Hagrid

Harry felt his mind go blank as he reread the letter. How could Hagrid be saying this? How could he have already forgotten about the monstrous events that took place not even half a year ago? Why was Hagrid saying these things? It was as if... he'd been brainwashed.