Hey there readers, here it is, Chapter 2! Sorry it has taken so long; I have been busy working on other fics. You'd think I would learn not to start a new fic while working on an old one, but sometimes the idea won't leave me alone until I start writing it Anyway hope the second chapter was worth the wait. Enjoy!

Warning: There is mentions of past abuse in this chapter, nothing explicit at all but just wanted to give people a heads up.

Chapter 2

Harry had made a successful escape from Privet Drive. He had pulled his invisibility cloak over himself as he'd crossed the Dursleys yard, knowing that Order members were supposed to be watching the house, but thankfully no one seemed to notice him leaving. He turned onto Magnolia Crescent, quickening his step, eager to be far away from Privet drive before anyone realised that he was missing. He had no destination in mind, aside from getting to London, probably Diagon Alley, though it would be difficult getting into the Alley without someone spotting him and reporting to Dumbledore. His body ached all over, there was a sharp pain in his left side and Harry grew concerned that one or two of his ribs might be broken.

Oh well, he thought with a weary sigh, there's nothing to be done about it now. He didn't even want to risk summoning the Knight bus, knew if he did it would only make it easier for the Order to track him. He had to do this the muggle way. As he walked quickly but quietly through suburban Surry he thought more about his predicament. Mainly, how on earth he was going to be able to find Rabastan and Rodolphus. He knew they would be holed up somewhere with Voldemort, Harry let out a deep sigh at the thought. Not only finding his soul mates but actually being with them was beginning to seem impossible. Honestly, even if by some miracle he managed to find the older wizards, what are the chances they would even want him, if he even lived long enough to find out what they wanted that is, Voldemort would probably kill him on sight. It frightened him a little how much the idea of dying didn't actually frighten him. It would nearly be a relief after everything he had suffered.

He wished Sirius was still alive, to have someone, anyone to talk to about this. He knew that Sirius would have been on his side, would have wanted him to be happy. Harry couldn't help a small sob escaping, he clamped a hand over his mouth, trying to hold himself back but it was next to impossible. With Sirius gone he was on his own again, as much as he had ever been. Sure, he had his friends, but they firmly sided with Dumbledore on everything he wanted. It was only Luna and Neville that really stood up for him, but there really wasn't much they could do.

He decided to head to the train station, it was the quickest and easiest way to get to London. It was nearing one in the morning though and trains were few and far between. He sat on one of the benches on the station platform, clutching his bag to his chest, his invisibility cloak still wrapped around him, shielding him from view. Not that there was anyone around to see him. Though Harry wore a long sleeve shirt and pants, both 3 sizes too big for his petite frame, the night was thankfully warm, being the middle of summer, so at least he didn't have to worry about freezing on top of everything else. He sat and waited, letting his mind drift to what he was going to do.

Getting onto Diagon Alley was the first hurdle, but he thought it would be doable if he kept the invisibility cloak around himself. It would be better to do it at night when there wasn't as many people around. Once on Diagon Alley the first stop would be Gringotts to sort out his money. He needed to know how much he had and withdraw enough to last him a while, he had no idea what the future held and wanted to be prepared and he knew he wouldn't last long if he ran out of money.

Harry stood as he heard the train approaching, boarding as the train doors opened. He looked around and noticed a few people, but thankfully they were all asleep or reading books and magazines. So, he took a seat near a window and closed his eyes, letting the gentle swaying of the train lull him into a restless sleep.

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He woke up to the sound of voices and looked around to see that they had arrived at Kings Cross Station and the few people in his carriage were making their way off the train. Harry stood, checking that he was still completely covered and made his way off the train as well. Being here reminded him of Hogwarts and how in a few short weeks he was expected to be back on the Hogwarts Express heading back to school for his sixth year. Truthfully though he wasn't sure he wanted to go back to Hogwarts. Year after year there was never ending drama and cruelty, usually resulting in Harry being ostracized by nearly the entire student body or getting seriously hurt, sometimes both! He just didn't think he could do it all again. No matter how things played out with Rabastan and Rodolphus he thought that his Hogwarts days were behind him.

Harry made his way out of the station, surprised at how many people were around at 2:00 in the morning. He tried to stifle a yawn as he made his way to Diagon Alley, the nap earlier on the train doing nothing to ease his weariness. Thankfully Diagon Alley wasn't a far walk from Kings Cross Station and Harry found himself standing outside the Leaky Cauldron in no time at all. He stood for a minute, contemplating what he had to do, before cautiously stepping through the door. Harry's eyes swept the room, taking in the few people sitting around drinking. Tom wasn't behind the bar at the moment though, a short man with sandy coloured hair stood surveying the room. Happy crept through the pub, dodging a woman as she staggered her way back to the bar for another drink. He made his way to the brick wall and tapped it in the right sequence so that the wall opened up. He fervently hoped this wouldn't count as doing magic and alert anyone to his location.

As he walked into the Alley he looked around, taking in how different everything appeared at night. The street was near empty which made getting around a lot easier. Harry slowly made his way towards Gringotts. Now that he was here, he found himself both relieved and anxious. Relieved that he had been able to get away from the Dursleys and make it here to begin with, but anxious as to what the future would hold. He sat in a dark corner between the side of the stairs leading up to Gringotts and the wall. He stifled a cry as he sore back made contact with the hard marble. He turned slightly so his head and shoulder were against the wall and his back wasn't, curling into a tight ball and trying to get some sleep.

HPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHPHP

Harry slept restlessly, for obvious reasons. He felt a little more rested than he had though, so at least that was something. The sun was barely rising as he stood in his dark corner and waited for Gringotts to open. There were more people about and Harry was beginning to feel nervous. As the doors opened Harry waited a moment to allow the people milling about the entry to walk in first, before making his wait up the marble stairs and walking inside. Gringotts looked the same as it had every other time Harry had been here. He hovered at the back of the room until he saw a teller become available and made his way over. It wasn't until he was in front of the teller that he pulled the invisibility cloak away from his face a little, so the goblin could see him. The goblin merely raised an eyebrow at the small teen in front of him, waiting for him to speak.

"Excuse me sir, I know this is a little unusual, but could I please speak to you in private for a minute" Harry asked, trying his best to be respectful and polite.

The goblin merely nodded, climbing down from his chair and indicating that Harry should follow him. Harry quickly slipped the cloak back over his face and followed the goblin to a back room.

"My name is, Gornuck, how may I help you, young sir?" the goblin asked, staring at Harry as he pulled his cloak completely off.

"I wish to withdraw money from my vaults, but I actually don't have my key, is there another way that I could get the money?"

"Where is your key?"

"I'm actually not sure, I was never given it but whoever takes me to buy by school things at the start of the year always has it with them, so I'm guessing Dumbledore."

The goblin frowned at that but pulled out a sheet of paper and placed it on the table between them before producing a sharp dagger.

"Cut your finger with that dagger and let the blood fall onto the paper, it requires 3 drops before the cut will heal itself" Gornuck directed.

Harry did as he was told, slicing a small nick in the top of his finger and letting the blood drip onto the paper. Just as Gornuck had said, the cut healed itself after a few seconds. The blood soaked into the paper and words began to appear.

Harry James Potter

Mother: Lily Evans nee Potter (deceased)

Father: James Potter (deceased)

Godfather: Sirius Black (deceased)

Godmother: Alice Longbottom

Heir: Potter (through father) and Black (through Godfather)

Soulmates: Rabastan Lestrange and Rodolphus Lestrange

Harry nodded as he read the paper.

"Very well Mr Potter, will you also be claiming your lordships now that you are 16? It will give you access to all of the Potter and Black vaults."

"Yes please… wait there is more than one vault each?"

Gornuck grinned sharply. "Oh yes, many more" he said, before making his way out of the room. He returned shortly carrying two small boxes. He opened them to find two rings both gold, though one bore a red stone and the other a black stone. Harry slipped them both on and felt his whole-body tingle as the magic took effect.

"These rings will grant you access to any Potter or Black vaults whenever you come to Gringotts, they also hold some protective charms to help protect you from poisonings and the like." Gornuck explained, seeming amused at the idea of Harry being poisoned.

The goblin also produced a small pouch, about the size of Harry's hand. "This is a money pouch, linked to one of your vaults, it is only able to be opened by you and will automatically refill when he gets low. If you lose it, you will need to come back to get another. Now that you are of age, your Lordship rings will grant you access to your accounts. Your old key will no longer be able to be used."

Harry nodded in understanding, taking the pouch and feeling the weight of gold within.

"This is really helpful thank you. But should I be concerned about spending all my money? I mean I'm just worried about running out with such easy access to it."

"You need not concern yourself" Gornuck murmured, "with claiming both your Lordships you are now one of the wealthiest people in Britain. While I do not know your spending habits it is unlikely that you would be able to spend what's in your accounts in 3 lifetimes."

Harry's eyes popped open in surprise at that but could think of nothing to say to such a statement.

"If you like I can arrange for monthly statements to be owled to you regarding your vaults?" Gornuck asked.

"Yes please, that would be great. I… ah… would also appreciate it if you told no one that I was here" Harry said, looking a little uncomfortable.

"Do not worry young sir, all transactions at Gringotts are completely private. Though, if I may offer a piece of advice, if you are wanting to escape someone's notice I would suggest visiting The Mad Minotaur in Knockturn Alley."

"Thank you, I will" Harry said, filing the information away for later as he stood up to leave. Harry swung his cloak back around himself and followed Gornuck back out into the main lobby before hurrying out the main doors into the sunshine beyond.

He was immensely pleased with how the visit to Gringotts had gone and decided that he would visit The Mad Minotaur straight away. Once he sorted out how to stop himself from being found by Dumbledore and his cronies he would be able to concentrate on how to find Rodolphus and Rabastan.

Diagon Alley was much busier now than it had been when he had entered the bank, it was still quite early, but Harry knew the Alley was full of Hogwarts students doing their back to school shopping. Harry didn't dare take off his invisibility cloak in case he ran into anybody he knew. He made his way down Diagon Alley until he came to Knockturn Alley. Harry had only been here once before, when he had floo'd to the wrong fireplace before second year. He had thought it had been a seedy place then, but that's exactly what he needed now. Thankfully Knockturn Alley was a lot quieter than Diagon and Harry made his way down it with no problems. He wandered until he came to a shop with a rusted old sign hanging from the front 'The Mad Minotaur.' The place looked as old and shabby as everything else on Knockturn Alley, but Harry had learnt long ago not to judge a book by its cover. So, he steeled his courage and took a deep breath, he checked no one was around before pulling off his invisibility cloak, stuffing it in his bag and making his way into the shop. Harry noticed a man browsing the aisles and kept his face turned away as he made his way to the front, where he found an old man with a short scraggly beard and narrowed brown eyes.

"What can I do for you?" the stranger asked gruffly.

Harry quickly looked around to make sure that no one was nearby before looking up. If the man recognised him, he gave no reaction, for which Harry was grateful.

"I've heard you are the person to speak to if I wish to stay off someone's radar." Harry said quietly.

The man gave him an appraising look before nodding slowly.

"Aye, that's right."

"I… I need to stay hidden" Harry continued quietly, thinking despondently of just how many people he was trying to hide from.

"First things first, you will be needing a new wand, have you got money for it?"

Harry just nodded as the man continued to talk.

"OK good, just down the street is a shop called Clarise's see her and she will be able to fix you up with a wand that won't be able to be traced. If you stay in wizarding areas or a wizard's home the ministry won't be able to pick up that you are underage either. It will be able to detect magic but won't be able to tell who's casting it."

"That's very good to know, thank you."

"Second thing I can do for ya, is this here necklace." The mad said as he pulled out a thick silver chain with a large green stone in it. "Put it on and it will change your appearance, this one is a twenty-year-old male with auburn hair and blue eyes. The only thing it can't cover up is soul marks, so I suggest you make sure you keep your wrist covered if you bare one" he finished casting a glance at Harry's wrists and the names just peeking out from beneath his shirt.

Harry quickly put his hands behind his back, hoping that the man hadn't been able to make out the words.

"Great, I will take it please" Harry said pulling out his money pouch. "How much is it?"

"27 galleons" the man grunted. "Be careful though, if the necklace comes off or is pulled off the magic will collapse, and your true appearance will come back."

It wasn't perfect but it was the best Harry had so he paid the 27 galleons. Harry fixed the clasp of the necklace around his neck and felt a shiver run through his body as his new appearance took hold.

The old man didn't comment but held up a mirror for Harry's inspection. Harry looked into the small mirror and was amazed at the changes he saw. He looked nothing like Harry Potter. His hair was now a dark auburn colour that hung straight to his shoulders, his eyes were no longer green but a soft pale blue. His skin tone was a little darker and gosh he was tall, he had to be at least a head taller than he had been previously. Harry smiled slightly, enjoying being tall for once after a lifetime of being short. His clothes had even changed to fit his new stature. His moved around and felt the pain shoot through his back, so his injuries were still there, it had been too much to hope that they would be gone as well.

"This is amazing" Harry said, seriously impressed. "Thank you very much."

The man nodded, "you're welcome. Now off with you to get that new wand of yours, if you really want to stay hidden."

Harry thanked the man again as he made his way out of the store, he bumped into a man as he exited the shop, apologising as he walked away.

He walked slowly down the street, trying not to seem in a rush so as not to draw attention to himself. He looked in shop windows as he passed noting book shops and an animal menagerie before he came to a peeling gold sign stating 'Clarise's.'

He feigned confidence he didn't feel as he pushed opened the door and made his way inside. A very old woman stood at the counter and Harry realised that she was probably related to the man at The Mad Minotaur. They looked very similar. He smiled slightly at the idea of these siblings helping people to hide. Sure, it was probably usually criminals and the such but still, he felt lucky that there were people who did such things.

The woman watched him carefully as he made his way inside and walked up to the counter.

"I'm in need of a new wand please."

The woman rolled her eyes so hard Harry was surprised she didn't hurt herself. "Obviously."

She waved her wand and Harry tensed as he felt the magic swirling around him. A parchment and quill appeared and began jotting down notes in front of the woman, who Harry assumed must be Clarise.

Clarise hummed as she read the parchment.

"Your new wand will be ready tomorrow, come back then."

Harry stood confused for a moment at the blunt dismissal before inclining his head slightly and leaving.

He didn't know what to do with himself now. He decided lunch was the next logical step as his stomach grumbled loudly. He didn't want to go back to Diagon Alley, so he just kept walking until he found a small restaurant, it looked old and dinghy on the outside but when Harry walked inside, he was assaulted with the most amazing smell. His mouth practically watering as he breathed in deeply. Harry saw that the restaurant was immaculately clean, and a middle-aged woman stood behind the register with a warm smile on her face.

"Welcome, welcome" she said with a bright smile. "What can I get you?"

Harry took a moment to look at the menu before deciding on a roast beef and gravy roll and a bottle of water.

Harry took a seat at one of the small tables as the woman made up his order and brought it over.

Harry took a large bite and nearly groaned at how delicious it tasted, he chewed slowly savouring the taste. He knew from experience that he shouldn't eat too much or too fast after the near starvation that he suffered at The Dursleys, not if he wanted to keep his food down anyway. As he ate, he watched all the different people coming in and out of the restaurant. It was obviously very popular, and Harry could understand why.

He was amazed at the variety of people, and perhaps a little chagrined to realise that most everyone just seemed like regular people. Not the dark, dangerous people Harry had imagined inhabited Knockturn Alley. Sure, some of the people did look dark and dangerous but they were all exceedingly polite, maybe they knew if they started trouble, they wouldn't get any of this amazing food, Harry thought with a chuckle.

He was only halfway through his roll, but he could already feel his stomach protesting the amount of food he had eaten. Reluctantly he wrapped up the rest of his roll and put it in his backpack hoping that the gravy wouldn't make it too soggy to eat later.

He thanked the hostess before walking back out onto the street.

Now that the most pressing issues had been dealt with Harry wasn't sure what to do. He knew he needed some kind of plan before trying to find his soulmates. If he just ran in headfirst it would likely end up with him dead, before he had the chance to talk to Rodolphus or Rabastan. Also, the fact that he was done with Hogwarts, reached his limit with manipulative headmasters and friends that did nothing while he went back to an abusive home every summer, even though he had tried to tell them what was going on, didn't necessarily mean that he suddenly wanted to align with the dark. With Voldemort. Honestly, he would prefer to stay out of the whole thing, prophecy be damned. He thought prophecies were self-fulfilling and had no intention letting it rule his life. How crazy was it that the wizarding world, who loved him one minute then vilified him the next, expected a 16 year old to take on Voldemort.

He decided that what he needed was information. Information on Voldemort. Information on his soul mates. He decided that Knockturn Alley was as good a place as any and better than most to try to gather said information.

So, if he was going to be staying for the indefinite future he needed somewhere to stay. Somewhere inconspicuous. But also, somewhere safe.

He came across a small motel and a group of apartments but after enquiring found that neither had any availabilities. It was later in the afternoon that he came across a pub, from the outside it looked as though there could be rooms to rent above it, like at the Leaky Cauldron, so Harry cautiously made his way inside. The pub as surprisingly busy considering it was well after lunch time but still a few hours before dinner. The pub, which was called The Leaky Pickle, was almost an exact replica of the Leaky Cauldron. It was set out the same with a bar and tables spread out around it, Harry spied the stairs that he hoped would lead up to accommodation. He ignored the looks he garnered as he made his way to the bar.

"Got any rooms to rent?" Harry asked, looking at the older man before him.

"Course" he said, "Just for the night then?"

"Ah, no" Harry started. "Could I book it for a week with the opportunity to extend it if necessary?"

"Sure, sure that's no problem." The man said as he reached behind the bar for a key. He pulled out a large metal key, rusted around the edges and handed it to Harry.

"Room number six is available, straight up the stairs, third door on the right. I'm Tim, just holler if you need anything."

Harry thanked the man, taking the key and headed for the stairs, again ignoring all the eyes that followed him. He knew people would be suspicious of strangers, if he hoped to learn anything, he was going to have to make some connections in the Alley.

The door creaked ominously as he pushed his way into number six. The room was clean and tidy, if a little bare. A large soft looking bed was in the centre, with a desk to one side and a large cupboard for his clothes beside that. Harry saw another door and assumed it led to a bathroom. All in all, it suited his needs perfectly.

Harry opened his bag and placed his few meagre belongings in the cupboard. He added shopping for some new clothes and personal items to his list of things to do tomorrow, aside from getting his new wand. He took off the necklace and felt himself relax as he was himself again.

He decided a shower was a good idea, he needed to wash his wounds to hopefully stop the spread of infection. He made a mental note to also see about some kind of healing potion while he was out tomorrow. As it stood, he had no choice but to gently pulled the shirt away from his back, wincing as it tugged in places where the fabric had stuck to open wounds. He finally got the shirt and the rest of his clothes off and stepped into the warm water, letting the soft spray rinse away some of the blood and pus that had accumulated on his back. It was painful but also kinda soothing in an odd way, a cleansing of sorts.

He wondered if his soul mates would be disgusted by all the scars that littered his body. He chewed his lip at the thought before reminding himself that Rodolphus and Rabastan had been to Azkaban and probably had a few scars of their own. Hopefully they wouldn't find Harry's too off putting. The very thought of his soul mates not wanting him made Harry feel physically ill, he tried to quickly push those thoughts away but much to his annoyance they seemed to linger.

He climbed out of the shower and dried himself off quickly, feeling utterly exhausted after the draining day and the very little sleep he had gotten the night before. It was only 4.30 in the afternoon, but Harry decided to get to bed and have a decent night sleep for once. Living in fear at the Dursleys didn't exactly encourage peaceful sleep. He pulled on his ratty old pyjamas and pulled the dark grey sheets up as he crawled into bed.

The bed was as comfortable as it had looked, and Harry relished in the feeling for a few minutes. Moving into a position that was easy on his back he closed his eyes, whispering "happy birthday' to himself before drifting off to sleep.