Disclaimer: As always, anything that you happen to recognize regrettably does not belong to me but to the most divine, J. K. Rowling.
Chapter 1: Disappointments
"Ruddy owls!" Uncle Vernon yelled in the early morning of July 31st. Four heads popped up in the darkness of their room as they prepared for the arrival of their dear uncle. "If you can't control those owls, they will have to go!"
"They're bored." Harry tried to explain yet another time to his dim witted uncle. "If only they could be let out at night to fly-"
Uncle Vernon just slammed the door as he left their room disgruntled. This was the third time this week they were awoken by the yells of their relative. They themselves hardly ever woke up to the hoots of Hedwig and Lily, the two owls that shared their cramped room. This was of course because they were quite use to hearing owls on a regular basis and therefore had no trouble sleeping through the noise.
The owls though, weren't the only non-human occupants of Number 4 Privet Drive. In fact, this room was also inhabited by a young green snake and a snow-white cat. They however, were not locked up in their cages. Annabelle, the cat, had escaped this travesty by being what their Uncle Vernon had classified as normal and Devious, the snake, had managed to stay hidden from his master's unfortunate relatives. The owls, one of black and one of white, were of the most unlucky circumstances. Padlocked in their cages, they were starting to get more than slightly restless.
"Pathetic human." Devious hissed as he slithered out from the thin blanket and onto the stomach of a shaggy black haired boy. "Can I not bite him master, just this once perhaps?"
"As much as I wish I could say yes, I doubt that would do us much good." Julian answered his friend with a smile.
"Give it a rest you two, go back to sleep." Another voice joined in, this one distinctly more feminine. Dorinda, a wavy black haired girl, turned over and snuggled into her sister. This one had thick red locks instead and was staring at her owl, Lily, in sadness.
"Only a little longer girl, I promise." Rose whispered but her owl gave her a look of contempt and put her head beneath her wing.
The fact that they had owls or spoke to snakes however was not the only reasons their relatives disliked them. The Dursley's disliked anything that could be considered not normal in anyway. They prided themselves on being exceptionally regular. They had a perfect lawn, a tidy house and a single son. And so did the other twenty houses on their block. However, the Dursley's had one discrepancy in their perfect life, one that they were constantly trying to hide from their nosy neighbors.
The Dursley's household in fact, housed four other children and they were extraordinarily not normal. The Potters were magical. Wizards and witches that attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Unfortunately for both parties, it was the summer and the four Potter's were now home on vacation and practically all of the magical belongings had been locked away in their old bedroom, the cupboard beneath the stairs.
Dorinda, the smartest of the four had managed to sneak a single book in her jacket before Uncle Vernon could lock away the rest of their belongings. It was all gone, their wands, Harry's broomstick and all of their text books. It almost seemed like a dream now without all the constant reminders that it had indeed been real. It would have helped of course if their friends from Hogwarts had written but not one of them had received a single letter. It was beginning to get to them in a way and frustrations were all starting to rise.
"Still awake Harry?" Julian sighed awhile later as the sun started to stream in through their bedroom window.
"Yes, couldn't sleep." Harry answered, turning over slowly to look at his brother. He was careful not to bump into Rose too much. He didn't wish to wake her. They all had the pleasure of sleeping on a single bed, which after every year was beginning to get more and more difficult to accomplish.
"Having nightmares again?" Julian asked in concern. "About Voldemort I bet?"
"Yeah." Harry whispered. All his nightmares were about Voldemort lately, ever since their latest confrontation.
When the Potters were barely a year old, an evil wizard, Voldemort, had attempted to kill them. However, when the killing curse was cast, it was Voldemort who supposedly died instead. In the first year at Hogwarts though, they had discovered that Voldemort had only lost his body and was in every aspect still alive. They made it through horrifying traps and Harry once again met Voldemort face to face and survived. The same however could not be said about their Professor of Defense Against the Dark Arts, Quirrell.
"Well try not to think about it too much." Julian suggested with another sigh. "After all, today is to be a day of celebration."
"Yeah I know." Harry finally smiled as he reached for his glasses. "Happy Birthday, Julian."
"Happy Birthday, Harry." Julian replied as a mischievous glint entered his eyes. He looked at Harry with a devilish grin and motioned towards their sisters. Harry nodded knowingly as the two boys attacked.
"I want more bacon." Dudley blubbered from his seat at the table. His bottom flared out over both edges of his chair.
"There's more in the frying pan, sweetums," said Aunt Petunia, turning misty eyes on her massive son. "We must build you up while we've got the chance."
"Nonsense, I never went hungry when I went to Smeltings." Uncle Vernon disagreed as he readily stuffed his mouth as well.
"Pass the frying pan." Dudley demanded turning and smiling at Harry.
"Ah now, now Dudley, you seem to have forgotten the magic word." Julian waved his finger in his cousin's face.
This meek little sentence however viewed by the Dursley's was quite heart stopping. Dudley managed to fall off his chair and went crashing to the floor. The kitchen practically shook. Aunt Petunia screamed in horror as she clasped her hands to her mouth and Uncle Vernon all but jumped to his feet in anger. The veins on his neck were throbbing. Dorinda shook her head at the stupidity of her brother, Rose grimaced in anticipation and Harry sighed due to the smile on Julian's face. It would undoubtedly make things worse for them.
"What have I told you about saying that word in this house!" Uncle Vernon roared, spit was spraying the table generously. "How dare you threaten Dudley with your abnormality!"
"If only I had." Julian mumbled dreamily. He couldn't even begin to imagine the reactions of his relatives if he had actually threatened Dudley with the use of magic.
"Think its funny do you boy! I will not tolerate any mention of that word or your abnormality in this house!" Uncle Vernon thundered, slamming his fist down on the table.
"Alright calm down will you." Julian agreed as Dudley's cup of milk spilt over from the force of Uncle Vernon's fist. Rose scooted her chair back as the milk threatened to spill on her.
"Clean up this mess." Uncle Vernon demanded as he took his seat once more. Rose got up at once to clean it but Harry pushed her back down in her seat. He instead went to grab the rag. "As we all know, today is a very important day."
They knew it was hopeless to actually think that Uncle Vernon might have remembered their birthday but they couldn't help but lift their heads in surprise at his declaration. Uncle Vernon had a bit of egg dangling off his big black mustache. His double chin wiggled against his little neck that he had left and once again, they all couldn't be happier that they didn't look at all like their relatives.
Uncle Vernon was a large man whose face was permanently a puce color. His son, Dudley, was well on his way to being his father's clone. He was short, stout and pathetically dim witted. Aunt Petunia was bony and horse faced with thin brown hair. Her face always seemed to be scrunched up as if she had smelled something particularly revolting.
They were all quite skinny and short perhaps from the lack of a proper diet growing up. Dorinda, Julian and Harry all had jet-black hair. Harry's was messy as if he had just stepped off his broomstick while his brother's was shaggy and wavier like Dorinda's. Rose was the sole inheritor of their mother, Lily's, thick red locks. They all had been genetically blessed with the stunning emerald green eyes of their mother, Harry's being bespectacled. Above their eyes, on their otherwise unblemished skin, lay four jagged cuts. This was perhaps their most identifying feature in the wizarding world, it served as a reminder to all, of their first encounter with Voldemort.
An unfortunate event that led them to have to live with their horrid relatives due to the devastating murders of their parents, the tension in the house only grew as they themselves got older.
"Now this could very well be the day I make the biggest deal of my career at Grunnings." Uncle Vernon continued. The siblings all shared a series of dramatic eye rolls. "I think we should run through the schedule one more time."
"Been over it enough I think." Julian muttered, taking another bite of his toast bitterly. Vernon just gave him an annoyed glare.
"We shall all be in position at eight o'clock, Petunia you will be-"Uncle Vernon began again.
"In the lounge, waiting to welcome them graciously to our home." Aunt Petunia replied, a horribly fake smile smashed into her thin face.
"Good, good!" Uncle Vernon clapped his chubby hands together. "And Dudley?"
"I will be waiting at the door." Dudley answered, his face transforming into a simpering grin. "May I take your coats Mr. and Mrs. Mason?"
"Oh they will love him!" Aunt Petunia cried as Dorinda mock threw up in her napkin. They all snickered quietly but stopped as soon as Uncle Vernon rounded on them.
"And you Dorinda?" Vernon's eyes glinted dangerously but Dorinda sighed nonplussed.
"I will be up in the room, making no noise and pretending that I do not exist." Dorinda said just as she had rehearsed. Julian hid a smile.
"Exactly." Uncle Vernon said happily. "I will then lead them into the lounge, introduce you Petunia and pour them drinks. At eight fifteen-"
"I will announce dinner." Aunt Petunia interjected.
"And you Dudley?" Uncle Vernon urged.
"May I take you through to the dining room Mrs. Mason?" said Dudley, offering his horrendously fat arm to the invisible woman.
"My perfect little gentleman." Aunt Petunia squealed, practically in tears. It was honestly becoming a bit too much for the rest of them.
"And you Julian?" Uncle Vernon asked viciously. For he knew surely that if any of the deviled Potters were going to ruin this night, surely it would be Julian.
"I will be up in the room, making no noise and pretending I do not exist." Julian grinned. "Pity, I always valued the fact that I existed."
"Precisely, now we should all try to get in a few compliments. Any suggestions Petunia?" Uncle Vernon ignored Julian's sarcasm.
"Vernon tells me you're an excellent golfer Mr. Mason…do tell me where you got your dress Mrs. Mason?" Aunt Petunia suggested sickly.
"Perfect. Dudley?" Vernon looked at his son proudly.
"How about, we had to write an essay at school about our hero Mr. Mason and I wrote about you." Dudley's face was too sweet to bear. Aunt Petunia began to sob hysterically while all four of the Potter's hid their faces from view as they burst into fits of laughter.
"And you, boy." Uncle Vernon gestured to Harry, who was trying his best to keep his face straight as he emerged from beneath the table.
"I'll be in the room, making no noise and pretending that I do not exist." Harry repeated.
"Too right you will!" Uncle Vernon agreed. "And Rose, you'll be?"
"In the room as well, making no noise and pretending that I do not exist." Rose recited, her face resigned.
"The Masons do not know anything about you four and I wish to keep it that way." Uncle Vernon said as the other two Dursley's nodded disdainfully. "After dinner, we'll head to the lounge and I will bring the subject of drills up. If all goes to plan, I will have the deal signed before the news at ten and we'll be shopping for a vacation home in Majorca this time tomorrow."
"Can't wait." Dorinda mumbled, standing up.
"Right well I'm off to pick up the dinner jackets for Dudley and me in town. You four stay out of your Aunt's way." Uncle Vernon snarled as he left the room.
Silently, they all headed out the back door. It was a beautiful day out. The sun was shining bright and warm in the sky. They squeezed onto the wooden bench that sat in the small garden, no one talked for a moment. But soon, Julian broke the silence.
"Doubt they'll like us anymore in Majorca than they do here." He spoke honestly as he closed his eyes and soaked up the sun.
"Probably not but who honestly cares." Dorinda sighed and stood up to pace around the garden. Sitting so close to her siblings in this heat was highly unwelcome by her own body. "Nobody apparently."
"It's our birthday, our twelfth birthday. We should be celebrating." Rose reminded them but her voice faltered. She hadn't received a single letter from her friend Blaise or even Hagrid and admittedly it hurt her feelings.
"Celebrating what exactly, the fact that we haven't any friends?" Harry replied bitterly. His anger over the lack of letters from Ron and Hermione was apparent.
"I'd imagine I wouldn't even mind the sight of Malfoy at this moment." Dorinda chuckled darkly. Draco Malfoy was Julian's best friend but the rest of the family didn't care for him much.
"I knew you chaps would get along one day." Julian responded cheerfully. He turned his head towards Harry however when the boy suddenly got up and was staring peculiarly into the hedge. "Harry?"
"Did you see that?" Harry asked, perplexed. He had been staring off into the hedge just a moment before and he could have sworn he had seen two large green eyes staring back at him. "I swear I saw that hedge looking at me."
"Going a bit mad in the sun brother?" Julian inquired in concern, staring into the now vacant hedge. No eyes were in sight.
"I know what day it is." Dudley appeared in the garden suddenly, singing.
"What?" Harry asked confusedly as he refused to take his eyes off the hedge.
"I know what day it is." Dudley repeated happily.
"Oh dear cousin, have you finally learned the days of the week?" Dorinda said snidely. Her contempt was obvious on her face.
"Today is your guys' birthday." Dudley sneered. "How come you didn't get any cards or presents? Don't you have any friends at that freak school?"
"Better not let your mum hear you talking about out school Dudley." Rose advised him quietly, glancing back towards the kitchen.
"Why are you staring at that hedge?" Dudley asked towards Harry as he hitched up his trousers which were falling off his fat bottom.
"I'm trying to decide what the best spell would be to set it on fire." Harry said in a most serious voice. Dudley stumbled back at once, his face alight with fear as he looked at all of their serious faces.
"You can't, dad told you you're not allowed to do magic. He said he would chuck you out and you haven't got any friends! There isn't anyone else to take you lot!" Dudley yelled, terrified.
"Jiggery pokery! Hocus pocus! Squiggly wiggily!" Rose suddenly yelled in a fierce voice. The other Potter's looked surprised at their quiet sister's outburst.
"Mum!" Dudley yelled as he tripped trying to cower back towards the house. "Mom they're doing you know what!"
Aunt Petunia knew of course that Rose hadn't really performed any magic as Dudley wasn't hurt but that didn't stop her from aiming a soapy frying pan at their heads. They all quickly ducked out of the way but Aunt Petunia wasn't finished with them yet. They were given a list of chores that needed to be finished and they wouldn't be allowed to eat again until they were finished.
While they slaved over their chores, Dudley pranced around with ice cream in his chubby hands. More than once, Julian had accidently tripped the prat and in doing so, more chores had been added to their already long list. The sun burnt the back of their necks and their muscles ached. It had surprised them all; even Rose that she had rose to Dudley's bait. It just wasn't her at all but she supposed that it was due to the fact that Dudley had hit a nerve about not having any friends.
It wasn't until half past seven in the evening when at last, Aunt Petunia called them inside. They were all sweaty, dirty and exhausted from the long day of work. On top of the fridge was the dessert for the night, a pudding topped with whipped cream and in the oven was a loin of roast pork.
"Get in here and walk on the newspaper!" Aunt Petunia ushered them all in, they were grateful for the cool shade the kitchen brought. "Eat quickly; the Masons will be here soon."
Aunt Petunia pointed to the single plate that had two pieces of bread for them each and four lumps of cheese. It hardly was a decent dinner after all the work they had done today but they didn't complain. Their stomachs were growling in anticipation, so they hurried and shoved the food down their throats. Quickly, they left the kitchen before Aunt Petunia could begin to berate them more. As they passed the lounge they saw Uncle Vernon and Dudley putting on their dinner jackets. The door bell rang as soon as they reached the top of the stairs and Uncle Vernon's puce face looked up at them.
"Remember one sound!" Uncle Vernon reminded them as he sliced his finger across his throat.
They tiptoed over to their room and went to collapse on their inviting bed.
Only problem was, there was already someone on it.
And that someone had large green eyes.
AN: Hello, so here we go with the first chapter to the second installment to the Potters story. I hope it is up to standard and that perhaps I might actually receive a few reviews for it. Thanks for all the support through the years.
Mettea