A/N: As part of her disdain, Petunia does not want Harry around more than required. She takes advantage of opportunities to get the boy out of her hair, always doing the bare minimum required to maintain a normal appearance.

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the recognizable characters from J. K. R.'s amazing mind. If you recognize it from the books or the movies, I am only playing in J. K. R.'s sandbox for my personal enjoyment. I share it on these forums without seeking financial gains. You can tell that I am not J. K. R. because I occasionally look at a real calendar.

Chapter 1: Pre-Hogwarts

Freak grew up living in the cupboard under the stairs at the home of his Aunt Petunia, her husband Vernon, and their son Dudley. The Dursley family had taken him in after his parents had died in a car crash but absolutely despised him. All he remembered from his life before the Dursleys was a green light and some terrible laughter that scared him when he dreamt of it.

By the time Freak was three, he was outside most of the day in the backyard pulling weeds, spraying chemicals, watering the various plants, and using a hand spade to till the soil for his aunt to plant her flowers. He knew the Dursleys showed their love to Dudley by calling him nicknames such as Diddydums, and Duddydunkins. He also knew that his nickname of "Boy" was not one of love but one of hatred barely masked by tolerance. "Boy" meant he was needed for some reason, some chore. When they called him by his name, he KNEW he was in trouble and that a beating was likely. "Freak" meant they made no effort to mask their hatred.

By age three, Freak knew that nothing he ever did would please his aunt and uncle. He had also learned that screaming, crying, begging, fighting back, or trying to run away would make a beating much worse. Freak learned to tolerate the pain and to mask his pain.

Shortly after his third birthday, Petunia had received a letter from the Whining Education District stating that both boys were eligible to start free preschool for two years. Two options existed for preschool. The most common was for a student to attend preschool for two, three, or five half-days per week. Less common was for a student to attend preschool for two, three, or five full-days per week.

Although Petunia tolerated the boy more than her husband did, she still wanted him out of her hair as much as possible. Since it would not cost anything except for some basic supplies, she enrolled Harry for five full-days each week. She intended to enroll Dudley for five half-days, but he threw a tantrum, so she only enrolled him for two half-days.

Both Dudley and Harry started on Thursday, 1 September 1983. That first day, a school nurse examined all the students.

The nurse sent home a letter with Freak that identified three issues that the family had to address right away. First, the boy did not respond to the name Harry, but only to Freak. Second, the contrast in the clothing the two boys wore raised much concern about his home-life. Finally, he needed to see an optometrist for a proper fitting because he had poor eyesight.

Harry dutifully gave the letter to his aunt when she picked him up. As she read the letter, she paled. Fortunately, the NHS would pay for the eye exam and the glasses. She also stopped at a thrift store and purchased three pair of jeans, a belt, and six shirts that fit the boy, and a nicer pair of shoes that actually fit him. While she resented having to spend the £ 32 on the boy, at least it would keep the school from looking too closely at them. However, it was the last item that really scared her, especially when the school had used the words abnormal to describe their family dynamic.

How had they managed to have the boy for nearly three years and not teach him his name? Actually, Petunia remembered calling him Harry that first morning and the boy had responded, asking for his mum. That meant he had unlearned his name.

She had to be sure, first, though. "What is your name?"

"I Freak. Yous call me that when I trouble. When I gooder, I is Boy. School says I hairy, though. Me's hair not that long."

Petunia sighed. That explained why he did not respond when the teachers called him Harry. He thought they were commenting on the length of his hair, of which she had often complained.

"Your mum and dad named you Harry. I do not usually call you that because it brings up painful memories. I will try to call you Harry more often. You need to respond to the name 'Harry Potter' when people call you then."

"I's Harry Potter? Not Freak Dursley?"

"That is correct."

"Oh."

For at least the twentieth time, the boy said, "Thank you for the clothes. I's be gooder. I's promise."

By the end of that school year, it was clear that Petunia had not thought of the impact the different schooling would have on the two boys. Harry spoke much more clearly now and could even read various books and count to 100. Dudley could not.

Petunia was torn between what to do about the education difference between the two boys. On one hand, she did not want the boy to be better than Dudley. On the other hand, if she did the same thing this year, maybe the boy would be able to skip a year and not be in Dudley's class.

Every year, Vernon's business contacts would give Dudley presents on Christmas and his birthday. Often these presents were books or workbooks. Since Dudley had zero interest in them, she gave them to Harry instead. "You will work on these when both Vernon and Dudley are out of the house."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia. Thank you."

When their report cards came, Harry got a beating for daring "use your freakishness to be better than Dudley."

He then told Dudley, "You don't want to be a Nancy boy like him anyway."

Vernon beat Harry bloody after each of his report cards came out and he did so much better than Dudley did. Foolish as he was, he gave the third quarter beating just before Harry started school for the day before locking him out of the house and telling him to going to school

The white t-shirt Harry was wearing had bloodstains everywhere by the time Harry got to school. He was immediately sent to see the nurse, who immediately called the police. Child Protective Services were called in and Harry was placed in protective custody.

The next morning, Harry was back at the Dursleys with a vague memory of twinkling eyes and a memory that the school had called the police the day before.

When he arrived at school that morning, one of the students in his class asked about the blood from the day before and the teacher commented, "Do not make a big deal out of a bloody nose. Harry gets them sometimes."

By lunch, it was clear to Harry that none of the adults remembered him being all bloody and bruised the day before.

Harry learned a painful lesson then: do not get your hopes up when adults say they will help you because they cannot be trusted. He knew the nurse, the police, and the government had all been involved and it was just swept under the rug and "forgotten," denied even.

By the end of Harry's second year of preschool, he was reading chapter books. He could also add and subtract two numbers from 0 to 1,000 and multiply (0-10) by 0, 1, 2, and 3.

His teachers recommended his skip the first year of primary school and Petunia had signed off on it.

Vernon went ballistic when he found out until Petunia told him it meant the boy would be gone from their house a year earlier and that Dudley would not have to worry about competing against Harry's freakishness. Vernon still managed to beat Harry bad enough that he was unable to leave his cupboard for nearly a week.

Now age 5, Harry could read a recipe and measure out the necessary ingredients. At his aunt's urging, he would stay at the school library reading books that interested him until 5:00 PM, when she would pick him up so he could make dinner.

At the end of Harry's second full year in Primary school, Sensei Chase visited Little Whinging Primary and spoke of the benefits of martial arts and meditation. When he spotted Harry Potter sitting in the class, he had called out to the boy as he was preparing to leave, "Mr. Potter, could I speak with you for a minute, please?"

The shocked boy turned towards the sensei and approached him carefully.

"I went to school with your mother and father at a private school in Scotland. The school divides students into four houses. Your parents were in Gryffindor and I was in Ravenclaw. Have you heard of it before?"

"No. My aunt and uncle said my parents were useless drunks who died in a car crash when I was one."

"Your mother and I studied together in three classes. She was my friend and she saved my life during one of our classes when something went terribly wrong. I did not know your father as well as I knew your mother, but I can tell you with absolute certainty that they were neither useless nor drunks. They absolutely DID NOT die in a car accident. They were murdered and protected you with their dying breaths until help could take you to safety."

Harry started to hyperventilate and panic. When his magic started flaring, Chase pulled out a stick and waved it saying some funny words. He then started explaining to Harry.

"It's okay. Take a deep breath, in through your nose. Hold it for a count of five. Now exhale through your mouth. Do it again. Again. Again. Once more."

After the fifth breath, Harry's magic calmed down.

"I'm sorry! I know I'm a freak! Please don't tell my aunt and uncle."

"Harry, look at me."

Harry stared into the older man's eyes and relived some of his freakish instances and his aunt and uncles response to them.

When he broke eye contact, Chase said, "You are not a freak. Your parents could do the same types of things you do. So can I. Thousands of people can do the same. What I can do is help you to control it."

Chase then pointed his wand at a piece of paper and said, "Show this to your teacher. She will think you stayed behind to talk to your gym teacher and will excuse you for being late. I will come by your home tonight at 7:30 to talk to your aunt. Warn her that Sensei Chase from the school would like to meet with her briefly and that it is nothing bad."

Harry nodded his head. To his surprise, his teacher took the blank piece of paper that he handed her and nodded saying, "Take your seat, Harry. Thanks for bringing a note."

That night, after dinner was finished and Harry had finished washing, drying, and putting away the dishes, he approached his aunt. "Aunt Petunia?" When she looked at him, he continued, "Sensei Chase from school would like to meet with you briefly. He says it is nothing bad and that he will stop by at 7:30 tonight to talk to you."

Petunia looked at his suspiciously. "You are sure it is nothing bad?"

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."

She sniffed and said, "Prepare a light tea-service then."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."

Precisely at 7:30, the doorbell rang. Sensei Chase was standing there in a gi with sneakers on.

When Petunia opened the door, he said, "Mrs. Dursley?"

"Yes?"

"I am Bryton Chase. I am a sensei at Three Forms Dojo a few blocks away. Today, I gave a presentation to Harry's class on the benefits of martial arts. May I speak to you for a few minutes?"

"Of course. Please, come in."

Petunia was nervous, but most definitely did not want to have a conversation about Harry standing where the neighbors might overhear.

Chase followed her into the lounge where Vernon and Dudley were already sitting. Harry came in a few minutes later carrying the tea tray.

Once everyone was served, Chase began. Realizing Harry was terrified out of his mind, he decided he would tell the family some half-truths to get what he wanted.

"My step-brother William was a wizard. He died in 1982. Before his death, we were very close to each other. I recognized Harry today from stories he had told me."

Vernon growled, "Dudley, go to your room. NOW!"

Dudley didn't even argue. He ran up the stairs as fast as his fat little legs could carry him.

"What is this nonsense?"

"Harry did nothing wrong. As I said, I recognized him. When I confronted him, he started to hyperventilate and I could feel waves of energy coming off him. I did not mean to scare him but obviously did."

"Boy! What did you do?"

"He did not do anything. I was able to calm him down. I am 'in the know' about magic. My stepfather was a wizard. I saw how he helped my brother with his accidental magic when he was scared and I would like to train Harry how to keep his magic under better control so that it does not burst forward as easily."

"Meditation. Mostly through karate. However, I will also teach him some visualization techniques to help him when he cannot use karate."

"Why should we pay for this?"

"I figure Harry is old enough now that he can start doing yard work and other chores for neighbors in exchange for cash. He can also help at the dojo. I would pay him for his time by reducing the cost of his lessons appropriately."

"Why would you want to do this?"

"My step-brother told me that he owed his life and the lives of the rest of my family to the sacrifice the Potters made to defeat the Dark Lord. In the magical world, that creates a life-debt owed to Harry. I loved my brother and am willing to do what I can to repay the debt. I got another year with my stepbrother and my mum and stepfather are still alive. This seems like a small thing to do in exchange for that extra time."

Vernon spoke, "I do not like this freakishness at all. It is unnatural. If you can help the boy control it, I am all for it. But, I will not pay for him to take lessons."

Petunia asked, "Did your brother know my sister?"

"Yes, he told me a couple of stories about the Potters. He was a couple of years older than both of them, but was in the same house."

On his seventh birthday, Harry started helping the neighbors with various chores on weekends. He used the money he earned to buy his own clothes and school supplies and to pay for the karate lessons. He found that the karate lessons reduced the number of times his freakishness got the best of him. After the first lesson, Sensei Chase explained to Harry that he was, like Chase himself, a wizard. However, he did not reveal that to his Aunt and Uncle as it was clear that they were uncomfortable with magic."

Sensei Chase had helped Harry to pick the languages to study in primary school and secondary school. He also gave Harry two books. Latin Primer for Spells and The Organized Mind. The first taught the basic structure of spells. The second taught Harry that others could read your mind if they had special skills. The book taught skills that would help Harry organize his mind to hide certain things, improve his memory, and detect when others were trying to read his mind. When Harry was eight, Chase gave him a book titled Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. For his ninth birthday, Chase gave him 1000 Magical Herbs and Fungi. For his tenth birthday, Chase gave him Potions Making for Children and Magical Theory for Beginners. With each of the six books, Chase had given Harry a never-ending, leather-bound journal engraved with his name and the general topic: Ancient Languages, Mental Arts, Magical Creatures, Herbology, Potions, and Magical Theory.

Chase had also hired Harry to help clean up the dojo several times per week in exchange for his own lessons and a small stipend. On Sunday afternoon, Chase would spend one to three hours with Harry going over the material from the books. Part of Harry's extracurricular studies was to find out information from non-magical sources and compare it to the magical references. Another part was to put what he was learning into practice.

Over the course of those years, Chase told Harry stories about both of his parents. He also explained that the European wizarding world was closed to people such as him who were called muggleborns or mudbloods. "Although my step-father was a wizard, my mother was not a witch and my biological father's status was unknown. Therefore, I am considered the lowest kind of wizard possible. After graduating from Hogwarts, I was unable to find employment in the wizarding world. My parents supported me until I was able to complete enough GCSEs to join the military. I spent four years in the service. It was there that I was first introduced to martial arts. My last two years were spent in Okinawa. When I finished my tour, I resigned from the military and stayed there to study for seven years. Finally, I studied in Japan for one year before moving here and starting my own dojo with two others.

By age 10, Harry was in his third year of secondary school. At the end of that year, Harry planned to take his GCSEs in English Language, English Literature, Mathematics, Physical Education, Latin, French, Business Studies, Biological Sciences, and Chemistry. He would take a few more he next year and then spread out his A-levels so he could go to the best possible schools. His uncle still considered him a Nancy-boy because he sought to defend the rights of everyone.

Two months before Harry's eleventh birthday, he earned his purple belt in karate. One month later, he earned a green belt in Aikido. Harry would have achieved the belts much sooner except that he had "convinced" Chase to teach him how to use Sai, boot daggers, a five-foot bo staff, and a bokken sword. In reality, Chase tricked Harry into desiring to know how to use those weapons so that he would be better prepared to defend himself against attacks in the magical world.

Although the martial arts and meditation had done wonders to ensure that Harry had fewer accidental magical outbursts, he still suffered many severe beatings throughout those four years. Several times, the police or Child Protective Services were called. Each time, everything was forgotten by the next day. Only Harry, Vernon, and Petunia remembered.

With Chase as a mentor, he understood that someone was taking the memories of the people involved and that meant a wizard or witch was interfering. Harry was not pleased with that idea.

Chase had encouraged Harry to downplay his abilities. Harry had. The Dursleys all though that after four years, Harry had only achieved a green belt in Karate and a yellow belt in Aikido. That is, he had to study for a full year to advance at all in either martial art, even though they overlapped substantially. This kind of demonstrated their stupidity considering that Harry took classes six days per week over the summer and sometimes took two classes per day. During the school year, Harry took six classes per week: one each on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, then two on Saturday. Knowing he was too young to lift weights, Harry also ran six days a week and played football for two hours on Sundays.

In June, Dudley celebrated his eleventh birthday. Unfortunately, Chase was out of town and Arabella Fig had been injured by one of her cats and was unable to watch Harry. With no other options, they took Harry along with Dudley and his best friend Piers to the zoo.

Harry slowly fell behind the group and apologized to all of the animals in their cages for Dudley yelling at them and knocking on their windows. He nearly fell over in surprise when a large boa constrictor told him, "Thank you, but I get that all of the time."

Unfortunately for Harry, Piers saw him talking to the snake and got Dudley and Vernon's attention. Piers knocked Harry down and Dudley kicked him. Before Harry could even begin his mental exercises to calm down, his magic flared. The flare knocked out all of the security cameras in the area, vanished the glass that Dudley was leaning on, and released the boa constrictor. When Harry looked back, Dudley was soaking wet from the water at the base on the display and Vernon was purple in rage.

The reptile keeper had been so desperate to avoid a lawsuit that he had given each of then lifetime passes to the zoo. On the trip back to the Dursley residence, Piers had sworn that the snake had massive fangs and tried to bite him. Without thinking, Harry responded, "No, you idiot. It most definitely did not. It was a boa constrictor. That means it squeezes its prey to death and then eats it whole. He was only four feet long which means you were not in any danger."

"Freak, shut the bloody-hell up."

"Yes, Uncle Vernon."

"Shit!" He thought, "I am in so much trouble when we get home."

The beating that Harry had received that night was the worst in a long time.

However, the next day, it was clear that Piers did not remember the incident with the boa constrictor. Neither did Dudley. However, Vernon, Petunia, and Harry clearly did.

"Boy! Did you do something to them?"

"No. Apparently when people like me have an accidental burst in a public area, specialized police come in and change memories so normal people do not remember seeing anything abnormal."

Needless to say, Chase had not been pleased when Harry had arrived for training that afternoon. He provided Harry with a few healing potions and pain relief potions that would help his internal injuries repair. He also set the broken bones and cast a few healing spells to address the bone structure damage.

The next few weeks passed rapidly.

Knowing that Harry's eleventh birthday was approaching, Chase warned him, "Wizards and witches will be coming for you. You need to pretend that you know nothing of the wizarding world when they introduce it to you. Take careful note of what they show you in London. Then I will take you and we will get you everything else you need."

Exactly one week before Harry turned eleven, a letter arrived for him in the mail. Chase had warned him not to try to hide it from the Dursleys, so Harry made sure his uncle saw it. The letter was addressed to him at "The Cupboard under the Stairs, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey."

That specific address terrified his aunt and uncle. Three hours later, Harry was moved into Dudley's second bedroom and Harry had moved all of Dudley's junk into the attic.

Over the next several days, many more letters came for Harry, each addressed to "The Smallest Bedroom, 4 Privet Drive, Little Whinging, Surrey." Petunia and Vernon continued to flip out.

After receiving mail on Sunday, Vernon Totally freaked. That night, the family piled into Vernon's car and drove to his parent's property. The land was rented out but the small home on the property was unoccupied. Monday morning, there were several hundred owls there with letters as well. After Vernon burned all of those letters, they piled in the car again and zig-zagged across the country before spending the night at a cheap motel. Tuesday morning, the motel manager found them and asked if there was a Mr. Harry Potter in the room as he had several hundred letters for him.

Once more Vernon flipped out. This time, he bought a gun, drove around madly all day, bought some cheap snack foods from a convenience store, and then rented a hut on a rock in a bay far from their home.

With little food, little light, and a storm brewing, the four turned in early.