Disclaimer: Harry Potter and the franchise does not belong to me. If anything is recognized, it belongs to J. K. Rowling.

If you have reason to believe my story is very similar to another story, that is accidental, and in no way am I trying to take another's work.

Warnings: Brief mentions of child abuse, AU

Heads Up: Not British-if any mistakes are glaringly obvious, reviews are golden…

See bottom for a few more notes.

Harry Potter was an unusual child.

Most children in the town of Little Whinging were rambunctious, playful and very normal.

However, from the moment he was placed on the doorstep of his aunt's house at just 15 months old, he was very somber. His eyes held too much knowledge, and pain, and trauma, and it affected the adults who came to see Dudley (and saw him as well, though not on purpose) accordingly.

By the time Harry was five, he was used to being ignored, talked about, shoved around and talked down to.

He had been cooking since he could reach the stove at age four, and essentially became a maid or servant in his own house.

Under normal circumstances, Harry would be diligently doing the weeding outside in the garden, and he would go to bed to stay in the cupboard under the stairs until he was almost eleven. Then he would be moved, and not out of a realization that this was child abuse, but with the paranoid thought that their family was being monitored would he receive Dudley's second bedroom. Then he would meet a half-giant out on a hut on a sea and learn about being a wizard for the first time.

However, Harry accidentally changed the script. Instead of weeding that day, he decided to save it for the day after (which was pre-determined to be cooler) and wandered off in direction of a small playground not far from Privet Drive. He wasn't aware he would change everything in that moment of decision, and if asked if he would change it, he would reply that the past is the past.

And so off Harry Potter went, studying the worn playground, and the crunch of the leaves under his torn trainers, changing his destiny with just a few steps and some delayed chores.

Notes

Very short! Well, it's more of a prologue than anything else. The other chapters will be a bit longer.

First published work! Any constructive criticism anyone? Reviews are good for both you and me ^_^

If you have any basic questions, check my profile for quick answers.

Works to Read: amber-chick has a story called Reactions to the Legend. It's a funny story about an AU where Pettigrew is caught after the graveyard fourth year, and Remus and Sirius take care of Harry. Both guardians are overprotective of Harry, and Harry accidentally mentions a blip from his first year that startles the adults. The guardians 'request' he tell them of his first two years, and it goes from there.
-Read if you enjoy the reactions of adults who care for Harry and are (extremely) upset on his behalf-

I do not have explicit permission from the author to post this recommendation-they seem to be absent and cannot give it to me. I do not take credit, and any reviews should be posted to their story.