Title: Running Free
Summary: This is the story of Hadrian James Potter-Lupin. AU, SLASH HPFG
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter.
PROLOGUE:
Harry lived in the cupboard under the stairs for as long as he can remember. And he always knew that he was different, well perhaps not always. For him it was normal to have really developed senses, but his uncle and aunt told him every day that he was unnatural, a freak. Unnatural in everything he did: his reflexes were too fast, he heard too much, his eyes were too brilliant and even his intelligence was not normal. Of course it is quite logical for the child to then question himself and to even test their difference.
It was then that he became aware of unnatural things happening around him. Like his teacher's hair turning blue or appearing on the roof of his school in the blink of an eye after running from his cousin Dudley and his gang.
All this confirmed his guardians' statement and the little boy grew up to know that he was different. But that didn't mean he was a freak! Harry was always sure of that. He may be different, but he was still a good boy!
Now, for the first time Harry had doubts. Maybe he was a freak after all...
CHAPTER 1:
"Wake up, boy. Wake up."
Seven-year-old Harry Potter slowly opened his eyes. The comforting darkness of his cupboard gave him hope and strength for the day. It was Sunday! And while it may be the favorite day for all other kids, for little Harry it was the worst day of the week. His uncle didn't work on Sundays!
Like a man condemned he entered the kitchen to make the Dursleys their breakfast. And as he finally turned with a plate full of bacon to the table, only to stumble over Dudley's outstretched foot, it was like a bad sign for a wretched day ahead.
"You horrible, useless boy! How could you waste perfectly good bacon with your worthlessness? Do I have to beat the freakiness out of you again?"
And so began the little boy's beating as a form of breakfast entertaining. Sadly it would not be the last! For while it was indeed his cousin Dudley's fault that he stumbled that morning, Harry felt quite disoriented for the rest of the day. Harry had no idea what it was that made him feel so under the weather, as he had never been sick before. Either way he was quite happy to crawl back into his cupboard in the evening. And while he normally would have loved to see the full moon tonight, the first since his birthday this year, the boy knew he would be too tired to pick the lock on his door like he normally did. It was a useful skill to have when one wanted to steal some food from the fridge and Harry really loved to watch the moon and the stars. It always gave him a feeling of peace and he really needed that!
But as said, this evening he was too exhausted. So he settled to sleep while listening to the Dursley's chattering in the living room.
The sun still settles quite late in the end of summer. So it was a good two hours after little Harry fell into his fitful sleep, that he woke up to feel his muscles cramping and a headache coming in full swing. He didn't know what was happening when his skin began to itch, and he really couldn't keep the scream in when the first bone cracked.
For an outsider it would perhaps look like the Dursley's cared for their nephew when they ran to his cupboard after hearing the scream. But in truth they really didn't like their evening program on television disturbed. And what if the neighbors heard the freak? Whatever they intended to do, they weren't prepared for what they saw when they opened the cupboard door.
And the last thing Harry Potter saw before blackness took him was the horrified expression on his aunt's face.