Before you read on, please take note of the warnings given. These are put there for a reason, so that there will be no surprises when something comes up later and you suddenly realise you are reading a SLASH story. Please don't send me reviews saying that you can no longer read on after four or something chapters because you suddenly discovered this was a GAY or MALE/MALE fan fiction.

Title: From The Beginning

Fandom: Harry Potter

Pairing: Harry Potter/ Blaise Zabini (doesn't come in at the beginning, far too young of course!)

Timeline: First Year and on to Seventh (though possibly not in the one fic)

Rating: M…ish, more so later on

Summary: Having never declared their allegiances, the Potter's are classified as neither Light nor Dark, but rather more of a Grey family. This leads to the wizarding world viewing them as less than adequate, some as traitors, and some as little more than a hindrance in the face of greater things. When the Longbottom's are killed, and Neville becomes the Boy Who Lived, what awaits Harry and his younger twin siblings in a world where any who differ from the norm have no hope?

Warnings: SLASH, as in a relationship between two males, if this is an uncomfortable subject, or you have a problem with the writing of such things, please leave now as the author will not tolerate any flaming because of this fact. AU, a lot of parts will be taken directly from the books, and follow parts of the CANON story line, as such there will be some SPOILERS. There is a blatant use of OOCness with canon characters, and some OCs are introduced throughout.

Disclaimer: The author lays no claim to the character of Harry Potter, or any canon characters used within this fan fiction. The author does, however, lay claim to any Original Characters introduced, ideas that differ from the canon storyline and anything else that the reader does not recognise, unless stated otherwise. As this is a fan fic that starts at the beginning, some bits and pieces from the books, and perhaps even the movies, are used. These parts should be fairly obvious and belong to J K Rowling and whoever it was that made the movies. There. The author cannot be sued.

Speech Key

"blah blah blah." Normal speech.

"blah blah blah." Familiar speech, could also be word emphasis or spells.

Blah blah blah Word emphasis, spells, or letters

A/N: I've been reading a ton of fics where they start from Harry's first year, and I've always told myself that I might one day attempt one myself, keeping it as original as is possible after the thousands that have been written so far. Here's to hoping I can do it! I took the liberty of changing Harry's middle name. My right as a fan fic author, of course. Isn't it such a grand right? And the idea of a familiar being able to change at will was partly inspired by the book Northern Lights by Phillip Pullman and the movie based on that book, The Golden Compass. Oh, and just so you know, the chapters may move slowly in the beginning, since they're following the first book a fair bit. Just a little warning if you don't like that sort of thing, but I won't be just jumping into the action with summary's for everything else.

This is not beta'd. I haven't actually sent this to my wonderful beta, Jess, yet. If she sends it back with any changes I'll be updating this version with the new one.

I've also yet to decide whether or not to make this one big story, or several stories. Time will only tell, I guess. And without further ado, because this intro is long enough, I give you….

Year One

Chapter One-- Acceptance Letters

October 1st, 1985, was in part a horrible day for the Wizarding world. Two of Wizarding Britain's best Auror's were killed at the hand of Lord Voldemort, the Dark Lord himself. But on the other hand, it was close to being the best day in their history. The Dark Lord was somehow destroyed by their four-year-old son, Neville Longbottom. And all the child got was a curious scar, shaped like a lightening bolt, upon his forehead. Young Neville was given to his Grandmother, Augusta Longbottom, to care for until he was old enough to begin training with Albus Dumbledore and the Order of the Phoenix. For these people rightly believed that Voldemort was not truly gone, no one so Dark could be killed so easily.

And that was a misconception for the world. Light or Dark, there were prejudices so great that few could overcome them. Indeed, only a handful of families had managed to refuse any declaration of allegiance. Granted, said families removed themselves from Britain in order to keep their young children safe from angry Light supporters. One such family, was the Potter's.

James Raphael Potter had married the love of his teenage years, Lily Marie Evans, only six years previously. The couple had adamantly refused to side with the Light, as many of their friends had done, but neither did they wish to side with the Dark. It had little to do with the so-called 'Evilness' that that side seemed to possess, and more to do with the fact that they had just had their first child. Little Harry Gabriel Potter was more special than anyone would ever give him credit for, at least, not until he was much older. For the sake of this precious child, James and Lily quickly removed themselves from any area of conflict, retiring to Japan where they were guaranteed safety.

Only a year later, Lily gave birth to a beautiful pair of twins, named Adriel Lily Potter and Michael Tyson Potter. These two were just as precious and just as special as their elder brother, but just like him, no one would truly know. They stayed in Japan only until a brief, and rather vague, rumour reached the country of the supposed defeat of Voldemort. The other British families who had found peace and safety in the beautiful country, quickly made their way back to their homeland, glad that the horror was finally over.

But when the Potter's returned, they were truly horrified. Before they had left, they had personally met Voldemort, and been given the rare privilege of calling him by his given name, that of Tom Marvolo Riddle. They held no hate for him, nor did they sneer at any Dark families they may have come across. They certainly disagreed with the prejudice against Muggleborns, as Lily herself was one, but agreed heartily with the danger Muggles possessed. So many untrue tales had been spun about Voldemort and his Death Eaters, fuelled by many Dark families who thought that the ways proposed by the Dark Lord would be too slow in gaining them their freedom from the fear of Muggles, and the 'dirty' blood that continued to mix with theirs. So England now viewed the Dark with great fear, and persecuted many who did not deserve the hate.

In fact, their dear friend Remus John Lupin, a werewolf since his childhood years, and his mate, Sirius Orion Black, had been sentenced to ten years in Azkaban without so much as a trial. They fought against it of course, but when Dumbledore demanded they stay, the Ministry refused to even budge against the decision. They could do little more than visit as often as they dared, and gift Sirius with the title of Godfather to Harry and Remus to Adriel. Severus Snape, a dear childhood friend of Lily, was given the title of Godfather to Michael.

The years may have passed, far too swift for the family, and though they were still pressured into declaring their allegiances, they refused to so much as budge. In fact, Lily took up a job in the Department of Magical Creature Relations, helping to ease the tense and worried aura that surrounded the staff there. James refused to continue his Auror training, and took to maintaining the large grounds of the Potter estate, and making it as suitable as possible for any variety of magical creatures.

Harry, Adriel and Michael grew up in the most sound home within Scotland, far enough away that the politics of the Wizarding world rarely even touched them. They grew up with an assortment of odd friends, including vampires and werewolves, who took up permanent residence in the Potter estate, which was warded to protect both the inhabitants and the surrounding lands and villages. It was a wonderful way to grow, and they rarely wanted anything, but the time soon came for them to leave the tranquil paradise they had been gifted, and it came for one of them in the form of Harry's acceptance letter.

Harry yawned, stretching his arms over his head and arching his back. He blinked in the morning light and huffed in annoyance. His deep, emerald green eyes, narrowed at the sprawled figure, sleeping contentedly at the foot of the large queen sized bed. He sat up and pushed the black covers down, slipping his feet out the side and hissing at the cold floor. As he stood, he stretched once more, blearily looking around his room. He could feel, or more correctly, sense, that something was about to change.

There were only a few days left until his eleventh birthday, four to be exact, and his mother and father had been nervously leaving all the windows open from the moment they awoke. At first this had been odd, since the estate was heavily warded, but he had simply shrugged it off as another little quirk his parents had. Sighing, he turned and poked the figure on top of his covers.

There was a low, rumbling growl, before the figure hissed. The large squarish head rose and gold eyes instantly latched on to him. He grinned, as the beautiful Anistro stretched languidly before jumping nimbly onto the floor. Looking much like a Snow Leopard in their natural form, Anistro's were capable of changing their shape and form at will, and this one had been by his side since his family's time in Japan.

"Morning, Kerus."

The leopard snarled in response, flicking its tail and glaring at him. "You ruined my sleep, young Master."

Harry smirked, completely unrepentant. "Sorry, Ker." He turned and made his way over to his dresser, pulling open one of the top drawers. "But you know what mum said, you're not supposed to sleep on any of the beds."

"I am your familiar."

"And that is the only reason she even lets you sleep in the house. It's best for both of us if you stick to her rules." Harry frowned, pulling out a pair of jeans and a shirt before slamming the drawer shut. He turned and raised an eyebrow at the Anistro who had changed into a silver and black Peregrine Falcon. "At least no one can say I can't take you to Hogwarts with me."

"But you have yet to receive your acceptance letter." The falcon stretched its wings, before settling them once more. The golden eyes watched him unblinkingly, which was rather odd if one was not used to it. "Should you not make sure that the letter will come first?"

Emerald eyes blinked, before they shifted out of focus for a split second. Harry shook his head in an effort to dispel the strange foggy vision from his mind. He could see, quite clearly, a tawny owl winging its way across the land from Hogwarts. The vision was layered over his real eyesight, but he followed the owl as it glided up warm air pockets. Shaking his head again, he glared at the falcon, who merely gave an odd sort of chirping noise, which he took as laughter. Sniffing, he quickly slipped out of the grey shirt and pants he wore to bed, and pulled on the dark blue jeans and the white shirt. It was his favourite shirt, even though his mother was always trying to throw it out. Somehow, the item always found its way back to him. He suspected that Kerus had something to do with it.

Across the front, emblazoned in cursive black writing was 'If a mask and black robes makes a Death Eater...' and on the back, 'then what does a mask, black robes and a tutu make?', which was accompanied by a drawing of a masked Death Eater pirouetting in a pink tutu. His mother believed that to make fun of Death Eaters would incite anger from both sides, rather than make people see that they were truly foolish in their prejudices.

"Are you sure it's wise to wear this right now?" Kerus winged his way over to him, settling on his shoulder and rubbing his feathery head against Harry's cheek. "With your mother as worried as she is?"

Harry shrugged one shoulder, careful not to upset the creature who had been accompanying him since his second birthday. "Mum'll be too worried about the letter to even notice, unless Uncle Sev is over again." He made his way out of his room, heading down the stairs onto the second floor, before stepping into the family dining room. "Besides, it's not like any one is really gonna see it any more in a few months time."

Ignoring the pointed glare from the Anistro, Harry gleefully inhaled the wondrous smells that always permeated this part of the Potter Manor. While they did have house elves, around about seven of the odd little creatures, his mother much preferred to cook for her own family, since they would only be using the small family dining room. Compared to the dining room, this one was small enough to be cosy, but large enough that everyone could be seated comfortably. Coloured in soft browns and creams, it gave off an aura of homeliness, something he knew he would miss when confronted with the large stone walled Great Hall at Hogwarts. He could barely stand the huge dining room on the first floor.

His mother looked up as he pulled his chair out, slipping onto it. Her green eyes, lighter and more common than his, crinkled at the corners as she smiled at him. "Good morning, Harry, Kerus."

Harry grinned at her, admiring the way the soft lighting of the room danced through the fiery red strands of her hair like flickering flames. "Morning, mum."

"Lily, I hope this morning has greeted you kindly?"

Ignoring the frown on Harry's face at the formal way his familiar always greeted her, Lily gave a brilliant smile to the falcon. "Oh yes, Kerus, it has greeted me most splendidly!"

Kerus hopped onto the table, changing into a small grey tabby cat. He sat back and cocked his head to the side. "You have seen what Harry has seen?"

"Harry, happens to still be here," Harry mumbled, a frown creasing his brow.

"Of the owl that is on its way? Yes, James is just making sure the wards allow it in now." She glanced back at Harry, giving a light laugh as she set a glass of orange juice in front of him. "Stop frowning, Harry. It is not such a bad thing."

He sighed and looked up at her. "Not here, no, because everyone knows that you passed on your Sight to me. But at Hogwarts?" He anxiously shifted in his seat, gripping his hands tightly. "The other kids will think me weird enough, but to add that?"

Lily sighed and walked around the table. She crouched down and placed a chaste kiss on his forehead, one lightly tanned hand stroking his raven locks. Looking him in the eyes, she said softly, "Haven't I told you not to worry so much over what other's think of you?" At his nod, she smiled a little. "Then why are you worrying then? You will be fine at Hogwarts, you don't need to tell anyone about your Sight who does not already now." She plucked at his shirt as she stood back up. "And I thought I asked you not to wear that anymore?"

Harry glared at Kerus who was giving off little snickering coughs. "I like it."

"And so do I!"

"Dad!" Harry jumped up and wrapped his arms around his father, grinning widely up at the man whose glasses wear slightly askew and whose wild raven locks stuck up in odd directions.

"'Lo, Harry, how's my big boy?"

Harry merely grinned again, before his emerald eyes latched on to the two figures walking through the door, sleepily rubbing at their eyes with fisted hands. "Morning Mike, Addy. Sleep well?"

The twins glared at him with identical hazel eyes, though Michael wore a pair of wire framed glasses. Harry and his sister had only had sight problems when they were much younger, but it seemed to have corrected itself naturally. Their own familiars, a pair of pitch-black cats of an unknown origin gave a hiss in annoyance. Kerus merely jumped down from the table and changed back into his snow leopard form. Harry rolled his eyes, butting his familiar out of the way with his knee, and pulling out the two chairs beside his own. His sister, Adriel, yawned as she slumped into her seat, her twin, Michael, slowly following suit.

"No, we did not sleep well and you damn well know it!"

"Adriel!" Lily admonished as she set the plates of toast and pancakes onto the table top.

Michael frowned, his hazel eyes glaring at Harry. "Harry set some stupid prank up in our room."

"Kept us up most of the night." Adriel huffed in annoyance. "Was rather muggle like."

"Yeah, with the little white figures who kept popping up every time we tried to get into bed."

"Took hours to find the off switch."

Harry merely grinned back at them, nudging Adriel with his shoulder. "But it was funny!"

"Harry!" Lily put her hands on her hips and sternly looked down at him. "Why on earth would you want to prank your brother and sister?"

James pressed his lips together trying hard not to laugh out loud, which was making it all the more difficult for Harry to try and look sorry for the prank. Which he wasn't sorry for anyway. "Well, mum, I--."

"An owl!"

Michael giddily pointed at the open window on the left hand side of the room, where a tawny owl was indeed gliding over to them. Kerus changed back into his falcon form, gold eyes watching the larger bird. The owl flew through the window and circled the room once, before landing in front of Harry, who bit his lip in anticipation. The large amber eyes blinked slowly at him, as the owl dropped the letter it had been carrying in its beak. It gave a single hoot before taking off back through the window.

"Come on, Harry! Open it!" Michael was practically bouncing in his seat, eyes fixed on his elder brother.

"Go on, dear, open it up." His mother sat back down and gave him a gentle smile as he gingerly picked the letter up.

Mr H Potter

The Forest Room on the Third Floor

Ancestral home of the Potter Family

Scotland

His dad had told him about how the letters were always addressed quite personally, but for the sender to know his room was done in a forest theme? It was just odd, and a little more than strange. He glanced over the purple wax seal bearing a coat of arms; a lion, an eagle, a badger and a snake surrounding a large letter 'H'. Slipping his thumb under the seal, he carefully broke it before pulling out the thick parchment the letter was written on. In emerald ink, just like the address, the flowing writing continued.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore

(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Harry raised an eyebrow and mentally snorted at all the titles Dumbledore had to his name. He could sense Kerus' irritation at the knowledge that they would be under the proverbial thumb of a man who was severely prejudiced and yet, was someone who claimed there was no black or white.

Dear Mr Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

Harry wordlessly handed his parents the first sheet, ignoring the list of things he'd need for school. He watched as their eyes skimmed over the first line before they turned beaming faces on him. It was then that he allowed the satisfied smirk to slip onto his face. "I'm going to Hogwarts."

"That you are, Harry. Imagine! All the pranks you could get up to! Oh, I have a few things I'm sure Sirius would love me to give you…" James trailed off at the pointed glare from Lily. Hs shrugged and began to heap pancakes onto his plate.

Lily smiled again at Harry, pride and relief shining in her eyes. "I may have known it was coming Harry, but it's good to have it in writing! I suppose we'll be going to Diagon Alley on your birthday then." She waved the letter, handing it over to Michael and Adriel, who quickly snatched at it and read it several times. She looked over at the open window. "I only wish those owls would stay behind, would make it so much easier to reply…I wonder why it was so late?"

James shrugged, quickly swallowing his mouthful of pancake. "Dunno, Lils. Want me to run up to the Owlery?"

"No, no." Lily waved her hand through the air, standing up from the table once more. "I'll go and do it. You lot enjoy breakfast."

"You sure?"

"Yes, James. The stairs are fixed, aren't they?" At his nod, she bent down and gave him a peck on the cheek. "Then I'm sure I'll be fine, won't I?"

Harry couldn't keep the grin off his face as he left the table after a filling breakfast. Kerus trotted at his heels, the large paws making no sound as they padded over the polished wooden floors. The pair made their way down another flight of stairs, finally leaving the five-story manor that had been the home of the Potter family for almost a thousand years. A sweet breeze ruffled the shaggy raven locks and whipped them over emerald eyes. Harry was endlessly proud of the fact that his hair was a cross between his father's messy locks, and his mother's smooth strands. It left him with hair so black that in the right light, one might be able to see hues of deep blue. The hair was still hard to control, but with the right style, he was able to keep it only slightly messy, looking more like he'd just rolled out of bed and merely ran a hand through it.

Kerus yawned, flashing white fangs. "Are you going riding?"

"Nah. I thought I might visit the Gryffs. Dad says they've given birth to a couple of new foals."

"Is that wise?"

Harry looked down at the leopard, smirking at the obviously worried aura rolling off the big cat. "Nothing to worry about, Ker."

Kerus growled lightly, but continued to pad along beside him. The Anistro flicked its tail as they neared the area designated for the Hippogriffs and Griffons who had taken up residency within the estate grounds. He could see the small grey Hippogriff foals darting about the adults, screeches permeating the air. He changed into his own Hippogriff form, with a silver body and black edged wings. The actual Gryffs were likely to know it was him immediately, but he felt much more comfortable knowing that he could protect Harry better in this form.

The minute they were close enough, Harry caught the eye of the ever watchful Head and bowed low, never breaking that contact. When the steel grey hippogriff bowed as well, the rest of the herd merely nodded their heads, content to ignore him and Kerus for now. Harry smiled widely and walked over to the Head, scratching behind the tufted ears and listening to the cooing noises it gave.

He spent the rest of his day merely watching the playful foals, feeling the very second when Kerus finally relaxed and shifted back to his leopard form. He was content to simply bask in the warm sun and the ever-present feeling of love that surrounded the Gryffs. There were more hippogriffs than there were griffon's, which saddened his father immensely. Griffon's were far too afraid to venture from whatever rocky mountain they had taken refuge in to even fly to the Potter estate. Ministry poachers were everywhere, ready and waiting to cull any Gryff who made the mistake of leaving their safe havens. But the numbers were slowly, gradually, increasing, with four Griffon cubs having been born since the estate had become a refuge.

As he watched the sun set, knowing that soon he would need to head back to the manor, which was obvious since his stomach was growling for food, Harry sent a prayer to whoever may be watching him, that the children of Hogwarts were not cruel enough to use his Sight against him. He never realised that as he sent that prayer out, his mother and father were desperately hoping that Albus Dumbledore would not use the ability to achieve his own ends.

A/N: Harry and Lily's Sight is both conscious and unconscious. At times, merely a word will trigger a vision, which is usually a present event, that will overlap their real sight and leave a foggy edge to what they are seeing. No sound can be heard, but Lily has taught Harry to tune himself in whenever possible so that the general idea of what is taking place can be understood. It's not like prophesising or anything, rather they merely have a higher brain function, which allows them to tap into the undercurrents of time and magic. Once Harry arrives at Hogwarts, he won't have the time to pay attention to these visions, so he will, in no way, have an advantage over the other students.