Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey, November 2, 2.30 am 2009

Two sets off footsteps could be herd echoing along the pavement of Privet Drive in the cold early morning. A man and woman could be seen walking slowly along the street and if it weren't for the time of day and what could be best described as murderous expressions on their faces you would be forgiven for thinking this was nothing more than a romantic outing for the couple. And a couple they were in every sense of the word for Marcus Cole and Kari Wade had known each other since primary school along with their childhood friend Lily Evens. The three friends had no idea what impact their friendship would have later in life.

Marcus and Kari had always known there was something special about their friend Lily they had no idea how right they were. Their first clue was when Lily turned eleven and she told them about going to a special boarding school in Scotland. Over the next seven years Marcus and Kari didn't get to see Lily as much as they would have liked but the three friends kept in touch via letter as best they could it was during this time that Lily confided in them that her relationship with her sister was all but over. Their second clue was when Lily had introduced her boyfriend, James Potter.

James Potter was the son of Lord and Lady Potter and heir to one of the oldest and wealthiest landed aristocratic families in all of the British Isles. Marcus and Kari looked at each other nodded then proceeded to ask Lily some very tough questions because there was something they were clearly missing. It was common knowledge the Potters had money and lots of it so the idea of their son James being sent to a special private boarding school in the Scottish highlands wasn't too hard to believe. What Marcus and Kari had trouble believing was that their friend Lily Evens who was about as common as one could possibly be just happened to go to the same boarding school. Something didn't quite add up. The fact that James and Lily were clearly head over heels for each other wasn't worth mentioning.

The two friends got their questions answered and then some when months later James invited them to join Lily and some of his friends for Christmas at Potter Manor. The visit had started ordinarily enough but soon changed when James introduced his friends Sirius 'Padfoot' Black, Peter 'Wormtail' Pettigrew and Remus 'Moony' Lupin. James explained he was called 'Prongs'. Marcus and Kari had taken in instant and intense dislike to Peter for there was something about the man that rubbed both of them the wrong way. Then they had learned about the secret world of magic, witches and wizards.

"Lils, Kari and I always knew you were special but a witch, seriously?" Marcus asked.

Lily grinned at her childhood friends "No he's serious..." She said pointing to Sirius.

"No I'm not. I'm Sirius but rarely ever serious." Black replied looking amused.

The laughter that had flowed around the table at the horrid play on words was just what everyone needed. It was when Lord Potter had wanted to talk to the two friends in private that their lives were changed once again as if learning about magic wasn't life changing enough.

Lord Potter revealed to them that the British government was far more aware of the magical world than what the magical world realised. There were a number of reasons for this, firstly while the Potters were a very old magical family they also held a peerage in the muggle world and had done so almost as long as the House of Potter had existed therefore they were the official magical advisors to the current reigning monarch which since her coronation in 1952 was Queen Elisabeth II.

Since the late 1950's the muggle-born witches and wizards that left the magical world did so safe in the knowledge that their return to the muggle world would not be in vain. In 1955 Lord Potter had met Queen Elisabeth with an idea to try and save the magical world of Britain for it had stagnated and was stuck several centuries in the past and eventually it would collapse in on itself. The plan known as Potter's Gambit was simple in theory but in practice was not so easy. It would see the recruitment of as many of the disillusioned muggle-born witches and wizards as possible and give them jobs within the British muggle government and armed forces.

It had taken decades but the muggle government now had sufficient magicals scattered throughout the various ministries and departments that they could take over the running of magical Britain and do a much better job. The two friends and asked why Lord Potter was telling them all this. The man had simply smiled saying there were jobs waiting for them if they wished when the time came after all there weren't many muggles who could claim to have known a witch since they were five years old. That Christmas seemed so long ago now.

"Thinking of happier time's sweetheart?" Marcus asked the woman tucked into his side as they walked along the footpath.

"Yes, love. I'll never forget when we learned that our Lils was a witch of all things." Kari replied in a whisper. It was hard to believe she and James was gone. Kari would do anything to keep baby Harry safe.

Happier times indeed. Marcus thought. Many things had happened in the years since that fateful Christmas. The two friends were now in a long term romantic relationship. They were also experienced MI5 agents which is what saw them out on this cold November morning. Hours ago they had a report from Arabella Figg which had sent chills down the two agents' spines. They'd hoped she'd been wrong but as they stopped outside number four Privet Drive the truth of the message was clearly in front of them.

Marcus cursed under his breath "I see it but I don't want to believe it. Lily and James would be turning in their graves if they knew. What's the old bastard thinking?" he asked in disbelief.

"I don't know love." Kari replied she as walked up to the baby that had been left on the doorstep like a bottle of milk scooping him up. "Hello little man remember me?" she whispered to the child in her arms.

Harry James Potter opened bright green eyes and peered up at the woman who held him. He tried to smile but didn't quite mange it but he knew he was safe in this woman's arms. She seemed familiar somehow.

Marcus smiled as Kari walked back to him with baby Harry secure in her arms. She's going to be a fantastic mum, let's hope I can do as well being a dad. He thought as he pulled his mobile phone from his coat and sent off two quick text messages before returning the device to his pocket.

"Let's get out of here sweetheart and get home it's bloody freezing." Marcus said as he bent down "Hey there prongslet." He whispered before kissing the sleeping child on the forehead.

As the two agents walked away from number four Privet Drive Marcus looked at baby Harry then back at number four before his eyes found those of the woman at his side. "The goblins are going to be pissed when we see them tomorrow."

Kari let out a soft snort as they walked back the way they had come. "They're warrior-bankers what do you expect?" she asked slightly amused.

Marcus chuckled "True. They're not going to be happy with a certain Chief Warlock when they're informed just how badly he's disregarded the wills of Lord and Lady Potter." The anger was clear in his voice.

Kari just nodded as she didn't want to ruin the pleasant feeling she had while holding baby Harry.

Harry James Potter would as far as wizarding Britain was concerned vanish from the face of the earth for the next ten years. Even Albus Dumbledore wouldn't even be able to find the boy much to the old man's contention. Little did he know then but his plans to control and manipulate the boy were in tatters and a very different Harry Potter would enter Hogwarts ten years later alongside his best friend and girlfriend Hermione Granger.

A/N: Well here's my first attempt at a Harry Potter fic after reading way too much. Not sure if I'll continue this or not as my Star Wars story The Time Displaced Sith takes precedence but I had this rattling around in my head. Timeline has been moved forward and we see Harry being raised by people who love him, in this case our two MI5 agents. Harry also meets the Grangers and Hermione much sooner which should prove amusing when Marcus, Kari and Harry figure out Hermione is a witch! If I do continue this the next chapter will be dealing with the goblins of Gringotts!