"But what should we do, we can't just turn him out on the street Vernon," Petunia said as she cradled the child in her arms.

"We can hardly keep him, what would the neighbours say? Have you even thought about the fact that he will probably end up like THEM?" Vernon spat, "and think what a bad influence he will be on Dudley and Jasmine, he could be a threat to them." He knew the best way to convince Petunia of something was to bring up their two children, both of whom she adored.

Petunia stopped her pacing and squinted down at the bundle in her arms. Harry wasn't crying, he was looking quietly at this new person, with big green eyes that she knew so well. She swallowed and took a shaking breath to keep the tears at bay. She had never forgiven her sister for being a witch and leaving her behind but Lily had still been her sister. And now she was gone. The last thing that Petunia could do was to take in her nephew. The sisters had had sporadic contact, which Vernon never knew, and one of those times had been shortly after Harry's birth. Lily had practically radiated with joy and love, and Petunia knew that she could make up all those years of fighting and past mistakes by taking in Harry. Harry was the only thing left to remind her of Lily.

"No Vernon, I'm sorry, but we have to keep him."

Vernon sighed he knew that once Petunia made up her mind about something, she would stick to it. "Alright, but he will earn his keep in this house and he will not be a wizard," he said and Petunia nodded absently.

Harry spent the next few months adjusting to his new life, with two new cousins. Jasmine, who was a month younger and Dudley, who was a year older and already resembled a bulldozer. He would knock over both Harry and Jasmine in his hurry to take whatever toy they had, he would scream, scratch, bite, pull their hair and kick to get his own way, so Harry and Jasmine naturally grew up to be allies.

Petunia watched him carefully in the first few months for any signs of abnormalities or similarities to Lily but she found none, and in her grief she grew to resent the small, messy-haired boy. She couldn't see any traces of her beloved sister in him, apart from the eyes. The same eyes he shared with his cousin, her daughter Jasmine.

Vernon spent no time with "The Boy" he didn't want anything to do with him and so Harry soon learned not to expect any attention from the big fat man, nor bedtime cuddles or hugs from the thin angry woman.

In fact Vernon barely spent any time with his own children either. He didn't really know what to do with them. He had never really wanted children but Petunia had so desperately wanted children and he soon warmed to the idea of having an heir, someone he could mould and shape. He had been happy when Dudley was born and he thought that children were now crossed off his list. You can imagine his surprise when Petunia announced two months later that she was expecting again. The pregnancy was surprisingly easy compared to the first one and nine months later Petunia gave birth to a perfect, little baby girl. Vernon was happy but he had a very long discussion with Petunia about having enough children now.

To Vernon, his children were another way to show off. He loved dressing up his family and driving them around the estate in his new company car or pushing his daughter in her stroller to the newsagent and have everyone cooing over her. In his mind their purpose was to further advance his life. Of course he loved them in his own way, but why couldn't he do both?

Time passed by in Privet Drive and life went on. The children grew taller, and in Dudley's case wider. Then one day they all started school. Vernon who was trying to land a new deal had the brilliant idea of sending Jasmine to ballet lessons, which were also attended by his client's daughter, Sarah. Jasmine took to dancing like a duck to water and soon her afternoons were spent going to rehearsals and the weekends to recitals. Both Vernon and Petunia loved that they had a little prima ballerina in their family and told anyone who would listen how talented she was.

Soon after Harry started primary school he moved into the cupboard under the stairs. Until then he had been sharing a room with Jasmine but Vernon had put his foot down.

At first Harry had been really scared, it was small and dusty, there were spiders, and at night he could hear the creaking of the stairs and the unfamiliar sounds of a new place. Over time he grew used to the sounds and the spiders and with Jasmine's vivid imagination could picture himself in different adventures: exploring caves deep under the ground, sleeping in a tent in the jungle, or the desert – whatever struck his fancy, or a rocket to the moon. These fantasies were a comfort his favourite one was that it was a time machine and that he was travelling through time back to when he still had his own parents or that someone would come and take him away.

Jasmine was still his best friend and only ally in the whole world, and much to her parents' dismay Jasmine spent every waking moment with Harry when she wasn't at school or dancing.

Most of the time Harry didn't care that the other Dursleys didn't like him, he had Jasmine and for him that was enough. They pretended to be brother and sister and that Dudley was an evil space monster who was hibernating in their home. Harry was expected to do chores from a young age and he did them quietly because he hated it when he was grounded in his cupboard, it also helped that Jasmine would usually find a way to help him somehow or keep him entertained while he worked.

Petunia and Vernon watched helplessly as their daughter and Harry spent all their time together. It was abundantly clear that Harry was just as abnormal as his parents had been and that he possessed magic. They had only spoken about it once when Harry had ended on the school roof, which had been only one incident in a series. So when the opportunity arose to send their beloved daughter to a ballet summer camp in an elite academy in London in the summer before she turned eleven, they were only too happy. And so Harry and Jasmine said their teary goodbyes in their secret hiding place in the park. And she left. Then the letters began to arrive.

In the madness that ensued Harry wished that Jasmine was there. Or that he could contact her in some way but she was still in London. Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon and Dudley had visited twice and each time Harry was left with Mrs. Figg.

Harry could barely contain his excitement the day Jasmine was due to arrive back home. His Hogwarts trunk was packed and ready to go. He spent his time imagining what would happen if Jasmine were a witch, and also on her way to Hogwarts because for the first time in their lives they were going to be separated. Harry tried not to think about it too much, he would miss her so much.

When Jasmine arrived she was hurried into the sitting room where her parents sat her down and had a serious talk about Harry being a wizard and that Jasmine would now have to keep away from him for her own safety. Jasmine could barely believe her ears and only accepted that it wasn't some elaborate joke when she saw Harry's books, uniform and most importantly Hedwig. She adored Hedwig from the first time she laid eyes on her.

She dreaded the day Harry would leave and so tried to spend every second with Harry. They spent most of their remaining days under the giant hollow tree in the park. It was a small clearing surrounded by bushes and shrubs and trees. They had found it years ago and used it as an escape from Dudley and his gang, and so far they remained undiscovered.

They had to say their goodbyes the evening before Harry left because Jasmine was spending the night at Sarah's since she wouldn't be travelling to London the next day with the rest of the family.

They hugged for a long time, both with tears in their eyes when they separated. She waved one last time, turning back to the door for a minute. Their identical eyes met and a silent promise was exchanged between them.