Five year old Harry Potter wasn't like other five year olds. He didn't have a loving mommy and daddy. They were dead. He didn't have a happy home. Instead he lived with his Aunt Petunia, Uncle Vernon and cousin Dudley, who was a little older than himself. He wasn't treated like a member of the family. He had always been treated with a mild neglect, not enough to harm him, but enough to make him know he wasn't wanted. That had all changed on his birthday, last week. Uncle Vernon had sat him down and told him that five years old was old enough to start doing chores, to help pay for the home they provided him. He was to start learning how to cook, clean, weed, and once he was a bit bigger, mow and paint. Today he was to be taught cooking by Aunt Petunia.
He walked into the kitchen excitedly, looking forward to doing something that might make Aunt Petunia like him more. She imperiously pointed at a step stool in front of the hob. He stepped up onto it and looked at his aunt expectantly, who shoved a large skillet into his arms without a word. He wrestled it onto the burner and waited to be told what to do. She leaned over him and turned on the hob, since he couldn't reach the knobs, and then slapped four rashers of bacon into the pan. "Make sure they don't burn." Was all she said. He picked up the spatula sitting next to the hob and lightly poked at the bacon, like he had seen her do before. The bacon started to sizzle, then to pop. Suddenly, Harry got a strange feeling in the back of his head, making his hair stand on end. A barely audible whisper reached his ears, "Duck!" Without a thought, he ducked just as a rasher popped an unusually large bubble of grease, and the splatter coated the forearm of Aunt Petunia, who had been hovering over him. She screamed in pain and Vernon came storming into the kitchen. "What did you do, Freak? Get to your room, NOW!"
Harry retreated to the boot cupboard under the main stairs that had been his room as long as he could remember. He could hear the commotion in the kitchen, but couldn't make out what was going on. Just lots of yelling and crying. After a few minutes, his aunt and uncle ran past the cupboard and right out the front door without stopping. The sound of the car starting and squealing tires as it sped away was the last thing Harry heard for a long time. Several hours later, it seemed, the car doors slammed and the front door opened. Harry heard murmuring and then Uncle Vernon's heavy footsteps approached his cupboard door. Harry stood up expectantly, waiting for the door to open. After a few moments it did.
"What happened?" Vernon spat with barely suppressed anger. Again, the tingling started in the back of Harry's head and the tiny voice said, "Lie." Harry didn't understand why but the voice had saved him once, so he decided to heed the warning. "I'm so sorry, Uncle Vernon, the stool was slippery and I fell." Vernon looked at him for a moment. "Well, it's obvious you are too clumsy to be allowed to cook, so you will be doing other chores instead." Vernon shoved a very small wrapped burger at him. "Here is you meal for the day, I will show you your chores tomorrow. Now go into the parlor and apologize to your aunt." Harry hastily shoved the parcel into his pocket and followed the large man into the parlor, where Petunia was laying on the lounger, one arm over her eyes, and the other wrapped in white cloth. "Aunt Petunia? I am sorry I fell in the kitchen, and that you got hurt." At his words her eyes snapped open and her head whipped around to pierce him with a dagger stare. "Well, I shouldn't be surprised, it is not like you do anything else right. You couldn't even have the decency to die with your parents!" Petunia spat, hatefully. Without a word, Vernon shoved Harry back out of the room and Harry knew he was to go back to his cupboard for the night, which he did./
Harry sat on his small cot, and absently fished his tiny burger out and ate it. He had always hoped that he would one day earn the affections of his family, but those hopes were now dashed to pieces. Petunia's hateful comment had proven to him that there was no love for him in her heart.
Over the next few weeks, Vernon showed Harry how to do his chores, and gave him a schedule to keep, so that he wouldn't have to keep track of him. Every time Vernon started to get angry, Harry would get that tingling in his head and that tiny whisper would give him one or two work directions that would result in Vernon becoming distracted or lessening his anger. It also warned him of other dangers, like a venomous spider in the garden one day when he was six. Over the next year, as he started school, the voice would give him hints on how to avoid notice, and even helped with his homework, one or two whispered words at a time.
Just after the start of year two for Harry, his class was taken on a field trip to Buckingham Palace. His teacher told the class that there would be other schools present, so best behavior was expected. Some parents would be present as chaperons. Classes of all grades would be present, as it was an open house day for the palace. Classes of different ages were grouped together, although it seemed to be first come, first served. Harry's class was matched up with a year six class from London, which was interesting to Harry, as he had not had much exposure to older kids. There was one girl whose hair was a light bubblegum pink, who looked to be about 10, and she was hanging on the hands of two adults who must have been her parents. Harry, content to stay in the back of the group, wasn't noticed by anyone much. They followed the tour guide and made sounds of interest and awe where appropriate, with the teachers and parents correcting behaviours as needed. After a while, the two classes were ushered into a large conference room where a luncheon was arranged on long tables. Harry's teacher lined them up along one wall and started calling roll. When Harry's name was called, the heads of the pink haired girl and her parents snapped around and zeroed on him with startling quickness.
Andromeda Tonks drew herself up to her impressive height of 5' 9" and strode elegantly toward Harry. He thought she looked like a storybook queen. She knelt in front of Harry and silently looked him up and down, taking in every detail, from his ragged hand-me-down clothes, to his lightning bold shaped scar, to the blazing emerald eyes that stared back at her. "You are Harry Potter, then?" she asked in an aristocratic tone. He silently nodded his head. She stood back up and strode toward Harry's teacher, who had been watching the scene with idle curiosity. She also beckoned to one of the palace pages standing watch in the room. As he approached, she calmly stated, "Young man, I have need of a member of the constabulary, and perhaps a palace guard, a crime has been committed." The page nodded and scurried out of the room. She then turned to Harry's teacher. "You are the teacher of this class?" The teacher nodded in confusion and replied, "Yes I am. Who are you and what do you mean about a crime?" Andromeda smiled and reassured the teacher, "There has been no wrong done on your part." At this point Andromeda's voice dropped to a whisper, so that none of the children could hear her. "I am Harry Potter's legal guardian, and have been searching for him since he was kidnapped at 18 months old. His parent's will stated that he was to come to my care in the event his godfather could not raise him in their absence. I am his godfather's cousin. His godfather was, sadly, falsely imprisoned shortly after Harry's disappearance. I have been unable to obtain his release. However, as I am Harry's legal guardian, I must know about his current living arrangements. I don't expect you to believe me without proof, so I sent my husband to collect our solicitor. They should be here any moment."
At that moment, a stately gentleman followed by the page, a palace guard, and a uniformed bobby walked into the room. The page led his group and Andromeda and the teacher to a side room for privacy. Before any explanations could begin, the door opened again to admit Ted Tonks and a portly man in a puce colored seersucker suit. Once everyone was seated, the stately gentleman spoke first. "Greetings, ladies and gentlemen, I am Sir Paul Greening, Her Majesty's Master of Household. Please explain the comment my page relayed to me concerning a crime." At this point, Andromeda stood up. "Sir, the crime was not commited upon palace grounds, and I apologize if I gave that impression. My name is Andromeda Tonks, this is my husband Theodore, and our solicitor, Donovan Thomson. One of the students in," she paused, and looked at the teacher questioningly. "Miss Dover," the teacher supplied. Andromeda continued. "One of the students in Miss Dover's class, Harry Potter, is my legal ward, and I have been searching for him since he was kidnapped at 18 months old. I called Mr. Thomson here so he could provide the legal proof of my claim. I was about to ask Miss Dover what she knew about Harry's living situation when you arrived." With that statement, the solicitor opened an ancient looking carpet bag and extracted a sheaf of papers, including a rolled parchment, sealed with wax, and passed them to Sir Greening. He and the constable spent several minutes examining the documents, and then he returned his attention to Andromeda. "What proof have you that this is your ward? Harry Potter is not exactly an unusual name." Andromeda smiled and slid a photo across the table. "Three things, first he is nearly a carbon copy of his father, second he has his mother's emerald eyes, and third, he has a lightening bolt shaped scar on his forehead, obtained when his parents were killed." Sir Greening then turned to Miss Dover. "What can you tell me of his home life, madam?"
Miss Dover sat for a moment, collecting her thoughts. "He lives with his Aunt and Uncle, Vernon and Petunia Dursley, a rather unpleasant couple to be honest. They have a son, Dudley, who was in my class last year. He is a boorish, uncouth overweight bully who barely makes a passing grade, and is spoiled rotten by his parents. Always with the best clothes, and the best supplies. Harry, on the other hand, is always in ratty hand-me downs or clothes from the bargain bin at Woolworth's, and gets his supplies from what the school keeps on hand for poor families. He is quiet, keeps to himself, and doesn't upset anyone, except his cousin. His schoolwork is excellent, but it is obvious he is working below his potential so he won't get better marks than Dudley. They live in Surrey, Little Whinging, I believe. I don't know anything about the legality of their claim as his guardians, that would have been handled by the school office."
During Miss Dover's speech, Sir Greening had been taking a closer look at the paperwork that had been handed to him. He broke the seal on the parchment roll and opened it, noting that it was the Last Will and Testament for James and Lily Potter. He read it through. He then read it again. Just to be certain, he read it a third time. Once the import of the documents contents became clear, he paled. He stood quickly, startling everyone in the room. He strode to the door and opened it. "Miss Dover, if you would please send young Mr Potter in, and then I think you should get back to your class to continue the tour. I will personally make sure that Mr. Potter is kept safe and gets to where he belongs." The teacher paled slightly, but nodded and left the room. After a moment, Harry hesitantly poked his head into the room. "Mr. Potter, please come in and have a seat. Everyone, I must beg your forbearance and patience and ask you to abide a moment as I consult with someone on this matter. I beg, please avail yourself of the refreshments available and ask the page for anything you may need, but please do not leave this room until I return." Without another word, he fled the room.
Harry looked around at the people present, a bobby, a palace page, a palace guard, a man in an ugly dark pink suit, and the parents of the pink-haired girl from the year ten class. He zeroed in on the mother, since she seemed to have started these events. She looked strict, but kind. Harry felt the tingling again, and the voice bade him, 'Ask her.' With some reluctance, he turned to face her fully, and asked hesitantly, "Excuse me, ma'am, but what am I doing here?" She smiled down at him, a smile that reached deep into her eyes, and held a hint of laughter. This was a woman to trust. She spoke softly, but without condescension. "Harry, my name is Andromeda Tonks. Your parents, James and Lily Potter, were very good friends of mine, and your father was best friends with my cousin, Sirius Black. When your parents died, you were to live with Sirius, as he is your sworn Godfather, but he was falsely imprisoned. The next option for your guardian was myself, but you disappeared shortly after your parent's death, and I have been searching for you ever since. Once I saw you, it was like looking at your father, but with your mother's eyes. I am overjoyed to have found you, and I am not letting you out of my sight until we find out what happened to you, and make sure you can come home with me, where you belong." She turned to her husband. "This is my husband Theodore, although he prefers to be called Ted. There are other things that you need to know, but this is neither the time, nor the place." Harry looked just as confused as before, but there was no time for questions, as at that moment the door opened again.
Sir Greening strode in and spoke in a slightly shaking voice. "Constable, you may return to your duties, the palace will be handling this matter from now on, thank you." The bobby nodded his head, shook hands with the Master of the Household and left. Sir Greening beckoned to someone in the hall, and the pink-haired girl walked in a went to stand by her father. "Mr Thomson, can you swear before the Queen Herself on the veracity of this document," he asked, holding up the Potter Will. "I can and will swear it before Queen and Country, I witnessed the writing and sealing of that will myself upon the birth of young Mr. Potter here," the solicitor replied, gesturing at Harry. At that, Sir Greening stood to his full height, and stated in a strong, clear voice, "As the Master of Household for Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth, I declare this matter covered by the state secrets act, and protected by the Royal Wizard and enforced by the British Ministry of Magic." There was a tone, much like a bell, and a snap. He turned to the Tonks family. "What do you know of Mr. Potter's lineage?" Ted answered, "He is the last Potter, heir to the line of Gryffindor, and heir apparent to the Ancient and Most noble house of Potter. Upon his 11supth/sup birthday, as he is the sole remaining member of the family, he will become Lord Potter, Duke of Monmouth. As I understand, the Duchy is extinct in your world, but the title still stands in ours. The Potter line has been totally magical since the Duchy was declared extinct in the 1600's. Harry is probably the first of his line to be raised in your world in four hundred years." Understanding seemed to light Ted's eyes as he said the last. Before he could voice his thoughts, a knock came at the door, and a page stepped in and handed Sir Greening a note. He read it and nodded, turning back to the group. "The Queen will see us now."
The Dursley's were a perfectly normal family, thank you very much. It was understandable that they were a bit surprised when there was a knock at the door shortly after Vernon got home from work and Dudley got home from school. The freak wasn't home yet, but he was on a field trip today, so they didn't really care, not that they ever really cared. Vernon opened the door, and there stood a man dressed in Royal Livery. "Mr and Mrs Vernon Dursley," he boomed imperiously, "You and your household are requested and instructed to attend this immediate invitation to Buckingham Palace on Royal Matters by decree of Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the Second. Please make ready and be prepared to leave forthwith. You will be transported to and from the Palace by Royal Coach." With that he turned and gestured to a stately limousine parked out side with the Royal Emblems flying on each corner. Petunia looked over Vernon's shoulder and could see several of the neighbors looking out their doors. This was sure to elevate their status in the neighborhood for sure. She reached in and grabbed hold of Dudley, who had come downstairs to investigate the disturbance, and dragged both male Dursleys out of the house and hustled them into the rear of the limo without even bothering to shut the front door. The attendant shut the door for her, and then climbed back into the limo, which pulled away with every eye on Privet Drive following them closely. Upon arrival at the Palace, some time later, the Dursley family was led into a small waiting room and bid to abide a while until all was in readiness.