The blues before and after, the blues before and after loving you! Okay, I'll stop singing now. It's time to put on my Potions cd and write some more of this story! Are you ready for some more hardcore orphan action? (Um…that sounded a bit…hmm…) On with the story!

NOTE: It may have confused some of you last chapter but yes, indeed, I do have a reason for why Harry has his scar. I wouldn't just give him a scar and then never explain it—though it takes a bit before you learn why. So hold onto your hats!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

Warnings: Some swearing. And Harry being the cutest little orphan in the world…(You know you thought Daniel Radcliffe was absolutely adorable in the first movie…)

Fool

Part the Second

Harry woke up feeling a small wriggly wonderful feeling in his stomach. There are few such occasions that cause this and one of them happens to be birthdays. Harry never understood why he loved his birthday so much, but it was always a great day to him.

He sprang up in bed, sitting there, grinning at his room.

"Thirteen today." Harry said importantly. It's not every day that you turned thirteen years old. Of course there was no reply. He had been planning for his birthday for a week now.

A few days ago, when he was at the market, he had bought himself a present. The Dursleys didn't give him any pocket money and they would have been able to tell if spent even a penny more than he was supposed to, but Harry found coins sometimes—under furniture, in the grass, while doing laundry. And each one he carefully saved, even though they were never really big coins.

Then, once a year, he would buy himself a present. He bought himself a chocolate bar this year. He had smuggled it into the house and into the basement where he immediately went about wrapping it. Presents had to be wrapped, it was a rule.

So he found some bits of parchment and glued them together around the present. Now it was wrapped and he could pretend he had no idea what was inside. He didn't have to worry about other presents—he never got any.

Then, he had only a scrap of parchment left and very carefully, with an ink quill that Dudley had thrown out and the tiniest bit of ink—he had to add water to it—let in an ink pot, he labeled the present very carefully. Presents also had labels. And on the label he wrote:

To Harry, from his mum and dad

He felt sure that if his parents were still alive, they would give him a present and so on his birthday, he always labeled his present that he got himself as being from his mom and dad. Harry stepped back from the present, which he laid on his pillow—he wouldn't have to worry about the Dursleys seeing either because they never bothered going down there—and surveyed his handiwork.

"Presents should have bows too." Harry said out loud. But he couldn't think of where he would find a bow so he just left it as it was.

At night, there was no light in the basement except for a candle that the Dursleys allowed him to have. But only one candle. Apparently he was enough of a burden to the budget already. Last night, Harry took his candle as always but didn't burn it. He had sat up in the dark until he finally fell asleep.

Last night, the Dursleys have a delicious pie for dessert and amazingly, Dudley had let a piece survive. Harry had taken the last piece and hidden it in his room. It was all going to come together that night.

All day he endured Dudley's taunts and Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon's constant yelling with a small smile on his face. Nothing could get him down on his birthday, the best day of his year. Every time someone said it was July, his whole face lit up and he thought about the one day when something good happened to him.

Help those who help themselves…

At night, when he finally, finally got downstairs and lit his nightly candle, it was time for his birthday celebration. He gathered up all his soldiers and had them set up, just because it made him feel like there was someone else celebrating with them. If he closed his eyes, he could just imagine a room full of people, aunts and uncles (but nice ones), cousins, and so on. And then, on either side of him, would be his parents.

His mother would put her hand on his shoulder and smile at him, encouraging him to open his present up.

"Wait until you see what you got this year." Harry said, speaking for someone else. And then he eagerly tore the wrapping paper off. A candy bar. His face lit up happily. "Thank you." Because he knew it was polite to say thank you.

Then he pulled out the piece of pie and even though he couldn't possible put the second candle in it, he put it in a candlestick holder next to it and lit it. The flame flickered back and forth and he closed his eyes once more, conjuring up the image of all the people around him.

This time his father leaned in and said…

"Make a wish, Harry." Harry smiled and thought hard on what his wish would be, even though it almost never came true.

I wish that someone will come and take me away.

He opened his eyes and blew out the candle enthusiastically. Just as he was about to enjoy the piece of pie and his present, something thumped loudly overhead and the candle he had just blown out fell to the floor.

Harry looked around, feeling jolted.

What was that noise?

Once more, a great thump was heard, but he realized that it was not just one thump but several, right next to each other. Knocking, yes, that's what it was like, like really loud knocking.

Someone opened the door, he almost thought he could hear the front door creak, and then there was yelling. Harry couldn't figure out what was going on. More yelling and he almost thought he heard a really deep voice reply, but he couldn't really be sure.

Carefully, he made his way up the steps, as quietly as he could, because the Dursleys rather firmly believed that once he went down for bed, he shouldn't be wandering the house.

When he got to the trap door, he pushed it open slowly and climbed out, leaving it a little open in case he needed to run back down into the basement. He could hear the voices more clearly now. Aunt Petunia's shrieking, Uncle Vernon's insistent yelling, and a deep voice arguing with them.

Harry crept along to where the kitchen door was a little open and peered out into the foyer. His mouth dropped open at the fantastic sight he saw.

Standing in the doorway was a simply enormous man. He towered over Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. He was wearing a giant coat and it was hard to see his face with his long, bushy, wild dark hair and his equally wild beard.

"…He will absolutely not be going anywhere!" Petunia shook her finger at the man, but next to him, it looked tiny and Harry decided the huge man would probably not be deterred by it.

"We forbid you to go anywhere near the boy or this house." Vernon's face was going red from yelling. Harry swiveled a bit to see that, as he suspected, Dudley was sitting at the top of the stairs, spying on the whole thing. But what was going on? Who was this man?

"I'd like ter see yeh stop me." The huge man folded his arms and Harry secretly agreed with him. "Dumbledore told me ter find 'im and take 'im with me. Now where is he?"

"I'll call the Guard, you just see if I don't!" Vernon Dursley threatened him.

"I'm only gonna ask one more time, where is Harry Potter?" The huge man boomed and Petunia tried to hide behind Vernon. Harry was stunned. Why was he looking for him of all people?

"I-I'm right here." Harry had mustered up his courage and decided to come out of the kitchen. The Dursleys looked absolutely livid that he had come out at all but the huge man strode past them and knelt down to look at him.

"Bit small." The man said, not really in a disappointed voice, but in a not approving way. He shot a glare to the Dursleys. "You been feeding 'im?"

"I'm alright." Harry wanted some answers. "But who are you?"

"I'm Hagrid." The huge man stuck out his hand towards him and Harry shook it, even though his own hand was ridiculously small in comparison. "I work fer Albus Dumbledore."

"Who?" Harry gave him a faintly puzzled look. He hadn't he foggiest.

"Albus Dumbledore." Hagrid repeated slowly, as though Harry just didn't hear him the first time. "You know, it was all in that letter yer parents left with you…"

"What letter?" Harry looked over at his aunt and uncle. "They left a letter?"

"We burned that letter!" Aunt Petunia shrieked from behind Uncle Vernon. "We got rid of it! We don't need any of…of…that in our house."

"You didn't tell 'im what was in that letter!" Hagrid roared and Harry found himself instinctively taking a step back from him. "What were you thinkin'? 'E's supposed to start school!"

"School?" Harry looked around. "What the heck is going on?"

"You're forbidden to tell him anything!" Vernon shook his finger and Harry thought of how small and insignificant it looked next to this giant man.

"And yer gonna stop me?" Hagrid loomed over Uncle Vernon and the man could only go purple with rage. Then he turned towards Harry. "Harry, yer a wizard."

"A…a what?" Harry had heard of people who could use magic, he had vaguely heard of wizards, but everyone knew that was illegal and he couldn't possibly be…

"Yer a wizard." Hagrid reiterated. "So were yer parents."

"My parents could use magic?" Harry had never imagined that for them in all his daydreams about them. But then, somehow, it fit in. Something just clicked in his head that made him know that this stranger wasn't lying to them. He turned towards the Dursleys in confusion. "And you…knew?"

"Of course we knew!" Petunia threw her hands in the air as she shrieked. "My sister actually came to us asking for help! As if we were going to help them! She never did think of anyone but herself! And that awful man she ended up marrying, him and her both just left you on our doorstep one day and then got killed!"

"They were killed? But you said it was an accident…" Harry knew he was babbling a little but this was a lot to take in at once. Everything that he thought he knew was wrong and there was a whole lot more than that that he didn't even suspect.

"Harry." Hagrid called attention to himself once more. "Harry…didn't expect…knew we might have some trouble but I didn't think…" Then he gathered himself up. "Your parents worked fer Albus Dumbledore as well…they were good people. You were a year old when they were killed. But they were careful; they protected you and sent you to live here." Hagrid made a face to show what he thought of the place. "They said that when you turned thirteen it would be time for you to come to learn magic."

"Learn magic? Me?" Harry wondered wildly if somehow his birthday wish had come true. That he was really going to leave. "But isn't that illegal?"

"It's hard ter explain." Hagrid put a huge hand on his shoulder. "The people who rule the country, they get rid of anyone who can do magic, except themselves. Kill 'em off. So we try to find 'em before they do and take 'em to a safe place, where Albus Dumbledore is, so they can learn magic themselves."

"I'm…going to leave?" Harry said it out loud, it was such an incredible notion that he was having a hard time drinking in much else. He knew he should be a little more concerned with the whole illegal thing and whether or not there really was a safe place to learn magic but at the same time…

I'm going to leave the Dursleys.

I'm going somewhere…somewhere where I actually belong.

To think that there would be no more ringing bells waking him up, no more Dudley pushing him around, no more getting yelled at by Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon. He beamed up at Hagrid, who even though it was hard to see his face, it was clear he was smiling a little back.

"You aren't going anywhere!" Vernon broke into the mood. "You're staying here! You'll stay here and learn to be normal and be grateful for it!"

"You should probably go and start packing yer things." Hagrid prompted him and Harry turned, running into the kitchen and flinging open the trap door. He grabbed a small sack and began shoving the tiny amount of clothes he had. He wasn't really sure what else to take, so he took his tin soldiers and then, without even hesitating, the birthday present.

Even though I've gotten the best present in the world this year…

I'm leaving the Dursleys!

There was a lot of arguing going on the whole time and when Harry ran back up the steps and into the kitchen, it was clear it wasn't resolving itself. He stepped back out with his sack.

"I'm ready." He announced. Hagrid looked at his sack for a moment and Harry could tell he wasn't pleased with how little the boy obviously had.

"I thought I told you that you weren't going!" Vernon yelled at him. "You go back down there this instant, boy!"

"Don't get in my way, Dursley." Hagrid warned the man and pulled out a small pink umbrella. It looked a little ridiculous but Harry had the strangest feeling that it was somehow important. "I'm taking the boy with me."

"Oh, no you aren't!" Vernon grabbed Harry's arm and Harry suddenly had a sinking feeling. The Dursleys wouldn't let him go, he would have to stay here forever. This feeling only lasted a moment though. Hagrid's massive hand reached over and grabbed Vernon Dursley by his shirt, lifting him well off the ground. He let go of Harry in his attempt to get away from the huge man.

"You won't touch the kid again!" Hagrid roared and then turned towards Harry, quite calmly. "Go on out to the carriage, I'll take care of this."

He took one last look at the Dursleys and knew that he never wanted to see any of them again. He didn't even bother saying good bye to them, just went out the doors with Petunia shrieking behind him. He could hear some more yelling as he approached a carriage that was waiting outside for him.

Harry threw open the door and was a little surprised to see that somebody else was already sitting in there. A boy about his own age with an identical expression of surprise was looking back at him.

"Oh!" The boy exclaimed. "You must be who we stopped for. My name's Ron Weasley, what's yours?" He had such an open, friendly expression that Harry couldn't help but smile back at him as he crawled into the carriage.

"I'm Harry Potter." Harry told him. And then, Ron Weasley stuck his hand out towards him and Harry gratefully shook his hand.

Everything's going to change…

Everything's going to be great.

To Be Continued