Storms of Discontent

It was rather irritating to find out that Dumbledore had the power to help him, and still did nothing. To be fair, Dumbledore had not denied that it was out of his power, and even said that it was for Harry's betterment. Regardless, Harry was rather annoyed that Dumbledore could have potentially had Harry stay somewhere else, and still sent him to the Dursleys. He was beginning to understand why the Tom Marvolo Riddle of the diary had been so untrusting of Dumbledore. Of course, not to the same extent as Riddle had, but he wasn't nearly as blind to the headmaster's failings now as he was a few months prior.

Harry quickly stepped into the youngest Dursley's bedroom, looking around. It was a mess; clothes were thrown across the room, toys littered the floor, drawers were wide open. In the center of the room lay Dudley Dursley. Even while sleeping his resemblance to a swine remained, possibly even more than while awake; Harry couldn't help but compare Dudley's snores to the squeals of a dying pig.

Harry searched around the room, his eyes finally landing on a small box ten minutes later. It was the box Dudley had been using to store the money he stole from his father's wallet. Why he stole the cash, Harry would never know. He simply had to look at something and his mummy and daddy would buy it for their precious Diddykins. Harry opened the box slowly and took out the bills. There were around seventy to eighty bills, totaling up around five thousand pounds. Harry quietly swiped 5 hundred pound notes, as well as 5 twenties.

It's more than fair.

Harry had always known when Dudley had been stealing money from Uncle Vernon; it was always around the same time he got locked in his cupboard for thievery by his uncle and aunt. He suspected that they both knew it had been Dudley, but they wouldn't let that stop them from punishing the Harry. Harry quickly felt rage build up in his mind, caused by the unfairness of it all.

Boom.

Harry once again cursed his luck, turning around to see if Dudley had been awakened by the noise. It has been a clap of thunder, something that for some reason occurred every few weeks at Privet Drive; it was made particularly strange due to the fact that it was currently summer.

Aunt Petunia had informed him, with the usual snobbish air, that it was merely the weather releasing its frustration that there was a freak in their lovely town. He responded by asking his dear aunt whether she thought he might be able to get the lightning to smite her using his freakish powers. As far as he knew, that wasn't possible, but there was no need to tell her that. He hadn't received food for half a week after that comment.

It wasn't the only strange occurrence that had occurred in Privet Drive, and that was likely the reason his Aunt Petunia had believed him. Over the last few years, there has been rain, thunder, lightning, snow, and much more at the most unexpected of times. Even disregarding the weather, there had been other strange occurrences at Number 4, Privet Drive, but Harry knew that to be his magic occasionally acting up in fits of accidental magic.

Thankfully, Harry's whale of a cousin still lay asleep in his bed, undisturbed by the thunder. Considering the loudness of his snoring, Harry wasn't entirely surprised. Pocketing the money, Harry quickly made his way back to his room. From there, he took his Invisibility Cloak and wand, both of which would be useful when arrived in Diagon Alley.

He had already let Hedwig out last night, telling her to fly off to the Burrow where he would see her tomorrow. It had taken half an hour of convincing before he had gotten her to go, although she hadn't left without nibbling his ears affectionately.

During the summer, Harry had been allowed to keep Hedwig in his room without a cage. It was mainly because Harry had pointed out that the neighbors might get suspicious if his owl suddenly started hooting non-stop (as Hedwig frequently hooted in annoyance at being forced into a cage). It had been a great summer of bonding between the two of them, as Hedwig had barely left his side during the summer, with the obvious exception being when she had to send letters.

His plan on arriving at the Leaky Cauldron was rather simple. He knew the street that the pub was located, having accidentally memorized it due to staying there for weeks last summer. It had been on a busy muggle street called Charing Cross Road, although the part that the Leaky Cauldron was in was covered from top to bottom with Muggle Repelling Wards, as well as Notice-Me-Not charms that had been adapted to only affect muggles. Harry had learnt this from Tom, the barman of the Leaky Cauldron, and was planning on using the information today.

He couldn't take the Knight Bus, as Stan Shunpike had a hard time keeping his mouth shut. There was no adult that Harry knew that would allow him to go (except for Sirius, who was quite likely on the other side of the earth at the moment), so that was out of question as well. Therefore, Harry had decided that he would use the London Underground Subway as means of transportation. It might not be as fast as the Knight Bus, but it was nothing to scoff at, especially considering it was made without the use of magic.

Harry made his way out of the house with one of his school bags, which contained his cloak, robes, and some food he had pilfered from the Dursley's refrigerator. In his right hand he held his wand, which was concealed by his sleeve. In his pocket, he had the six hundred pounds he had stolen from Dudley.

Truthfully he had no clue what the rate for the subway was, having only ever been on it once before. That had been with Hagrid, who had shoved more than a hundred pounds into the coin slot in an attempt to get the two of them through the bars and onto the subway. He hadn't bothered to take the bills that remained in the coin slot, telling him that it had only been a few galleons.

Harry really hoped he wouldn't be seen by any of the muggles nearby; they still thought he was a delinquent, thanks to the Dursleys.