Harry Potter and the Potter Grimoire

Chapter 1: Gifts!

DISCLAIMER: this is a work of fanfiction. Thus, Harry Potter is not owned by me. Secondly, This is an AU world, and as such things will be different.

Chapter 1

Rain pelted his feathers as he struggled through the wind, though he paid it no mind. His mind was on his task. He must deliver his package, and soon. He could feel his wings slowing, the square package drooping from his leg. With a squeak of protest, the owl forced himself to flap harder. He was nearly there.

It was raining in Surrey. That in itself was not odd. What was odd was that Harry Potter had no chores to do. When the rain came in, he was outside mowing the lawn, his last chore of the day. Harry pushed the mower as swiftly as he could, mowing the already immaculate grass so he could escape the water. After putting the mower away, he went inside, chucking his grass stained trainers off by the door. He went into the kitchen, made himself a sandwich, and ran up to his room, safe in the knowledge that his aunt and uncle were out of the house along with his cousin.

He ate his sandwich, feeding the crust to his snowy owl Hedwig as he looked out the window at the rain. He thought of his past year, and meeting his Godfather. Harry thought of his third year other than that as well. Remus was a great teacher, and the rest of his subjects went rather well now that he thought about it.

He looked at the calendar by his door, above his desk. The dates up to July Thirtieth were crossed out, with July Thirty-first circled. Hedwig let out a small hoot.
"I know girl. Soon we get to leave. I can't wait to see the World Cup." The boy spoke to his owl as if she could answer, which she may have as she hooted back.

"You know I don't have any more crust for you Hedwig. You can see that." Harry smiled at his companion, who turned her head as if ignoring her master's statement.

Harry was about to make another remark to his owl when a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, followed by a crack of thunder that shook the house. Harry's attention was drawn to the window, and his eyes widened.

The owl panted, as much as an owl can pant. He glided along as many thermals as he could find, trying to preserve his strength. He could see the house, but the storm seemed to increase in strength upon his destination being found. Wind blasted him to either side, nearly tearing him from his course. Finally, nature seemed to take pity upon the poor creature, and a burst of wind erupted behind him, propelling him toward the boy who stared at the owl through the window. He tried to open his wings, to slow his descent, but it was useless, he was exhausted.

Harry looked wide-eyed as the owl flew toward the window, battling the storm with every flap. Finally, it seemed the owl's preservation would pay off as it suddenly accelerated towards the window. Harry opened the window just before the bird would have hit it. With an exhausted hoot, the bird crashed into the hard wood floor rolling to a stop. Harry shut the window, and dropped by the bird's side trying to see the damage to the brown owl. The bird seemed fine, if just exhausted. At least to Harry's unexperienced eyes.
"Woah. I have never seen an owl fly through a storm like that. You rest up, and I'll take this." Harry spoke to the owl as he gently removed the package. As soon as the package was free from the owl, it slowly grew as was standard for most packages delivered via owl. Setting the package on his bed, Harry scooped the owl gently up, and set him on a spare sweater that was laying on the desk. "This will have to do... Hedwig doesn't share very well I'm afraid." The owl ruffled her feathers proudly, as if she was shrugging.

Once the owl was resting, Harry turned his attention to the package. Wrapped in brown paper, it seemed to be a book, with a letter atop it. Harry grabbed the letter, and tore it open.

Dear Harry,

Greetings from your godfather. I am away from the country, and by the time this owl gets to you, I will have moved yet again. I am sorry that I could not take you with me, but your education and friendships are important. A life on the run is not a life Harry, as much as I would love it to be. I am going to hunt a rat while I run. If I can find him, I will be free, and we can see what happens then. But until then Harry, keep your chin up. Your parents wouldn't want you to do worry too much about your godfather.