Hola my readers! I'm getting really sad with the way reviews are going. If you are reading this fanfic, PLEASE REVIEW!

Since this is AU I'm not sure exactly where I want this story to go. Here are some suggestions.

Sirius escaped Azkaban and is living with Harry as Padfoot.

Harry knows he's an Animagus

Harry doesn't know

Despite Harry not being at Hogwarts, Voldemort has still risen again.

Death Eaters capture Harry and Voldemort is resurrected.

Any other suggestions?

I don't think this will have much romance, but review with any pairings you might have in mind.

Disclaimer: I own nothing… *sob!*

Without further ado, Chapter 3

After Harry woke everyone up, the older kids stayed awake. Ed, Mona and Kat went back to bed while Liza, Lena and Harry moved from the grungy floor to the threadbare couch. Harry was curled up in Liza's lap while Lena stroked his hair.

Minerva (Dolly) lay on the back of the couch and watched over the small group. Harry had given her a lot to think about. He had had a rough childhood that much was obvious — he was living on the streets. But it seemed as if he may have been abused. It also sounded as if he had seen his 'real' parents killed. Had the abuse come from adoptive parents? And maybe this boy really was Harry Potter.

He had the same unruly hair and bad eyes sight like James Potter, and his eyes were almost the same green as Lily's. She didn't know if Harry had the same lightning bolt scar as the little boy she had held Halloween night. He was magic. His parents had died. But she still wasn't sure.

Several hours passed and the girls dozed off. Harry silently moved off of Liza's lap and changed clothes in his cupboard. He slipped out of the door and headed towards Matt's store. He knew he was early, his shift didn't start till noon, but he couldn't stay still any longer.

He wandered along the edge of the river that circled the slums then walked over a dingy bridge. He began moving slowly to the store. In the end, his wandering paid off and he was right on time. The seven hours of brainless work helped him slowly send his living nightmares to the back of his subconscious.

At the end of his shift he slid off his apron and bought a large bag of chips for his family. Chips had always been a treat for the kids and girls. Harry never allowed himself to eat any. He ate only enough to have ample energy to work and 'take care' of outlying gangs that strayed too near his home. He made sure most of the food went to his charges. The lack of food always made him look younger than he was. Even though he was sixteen, his malnourished body represented a thirteen year old. He had a thin layer of muscle from beating up opposing gang members, but was little more than skin and bones.

It was this fact that put him at a great disadvantage when five shadows pulled him into a deserted alleyway close to home. The largest of the group promptly started kicking Harry in the ribs. After 11 kicks, Harry felt several of his ribs snap under the pressure. The noise rang through the alley and seemed to urge the other shadows to join in. After only God knew how long they stopped. Snickering and guffawing they weaved their way towards another pub, obviously already drunk.

Harry was nothing more than a bruised, bloody and broken pulp. He knew several of his ribs were broken and the bone of his left arm was poking through his skin. Large black spots dotted his vision and grew larger as Harry began to crawl home. He collapsed on the second step of the porch, all adrenaline gone. He passed out after seeing snowflakes beginning to fall lazily from the sky.

"Where's 'ry?" Kat asked for the umpteenth time that night. It was half past nine and there had still been no sign of their leader. The older girls were trying to hide the fact that they were anxious, but it didn't work very well.

"That does it. I'm gonna look for him." Lena said hoarsely as she stood up from the couch.

"Lena, don't! We have no idea where to start. For all we know he could be out partying with some coworkers!" Liza said, standing up too. "Besides, it's cold and snowing outside, you're bound to get sick!"

Lena just shook her head and opened the door. She screamed when she reached the second step. Th other kids and Minerva rushed over to her. The other three girls screamed and Ed yelled when they saw Harry lying lifelessly on the stairs. The snow around him was painted red and his lips were a dark contrasting blue from his translucent skin.

"Oh my God! Is he d-dead?" Mona whispered as she raised her hands to her mouth. Liza reached out a quivering hand and pressed it to his neck. For several seconds she felt nothing, then…a thready pulse that was barley there. Liza sighed in relief.

"Quick, we need to get him inside!" Liza and Ed took his feet, while Lena cradled his head and Mona supported his torso, Kat held open the door and Minerva stood in the living room waiting for them to come in. They placed Harry on the couch. "Kat, Ed, go upstairs. Mona, turn up the heat as high as it can go. Lena, help me get these clothes off him." Everyone rushed to obey. The two youngest knew they would only get in the way.

As the oldest girls worked on Harry, Minerva heard them talking quietly. "I think we might have to take him to the hospital, Lena. There's no way in heaven or hell that we'll be able to completely heal Harry. He's lost too much blood and he's hypothermic. One of his broken ribs might have punctured his lung, and then he'll surely die!"

Lena shook her head. "No. If we take him, they'll try to put him back in the orphanage, and we'll follow."

Minerva knew that if she didn't do something, Harry would die. It didn't matter if he was a Potter or not. He was an innocent boy that had seen too much pain in his life. She gave a loud meow that made the three girls look at her. Slowly, the body of a cat disappeared and was replaced by that of a woman. Minerva quickly shoved Lena and Liza out of the way and pulled out her wand.

"WH-what the hell are you?" Liza asked her eyes wide with fear.

"I am a witch, I'm going to heal Harry as best I can, and then I will explain more." Minerva said before turning to her patient. First she cast several warming charms around the boy that began bringing his temperature back up. "Episkey." She whispered, and the bone of his arm slowly retreated back into the skin. She did the same with his ribs and then conjured some white linen to make a sling for his arm and a wrap for his torso. She put her hand on his forehead and was relieved when she felt only a slight fever. She leant back and stood up to face the three girls in the room.

"Again…who the hell are you!"

mini kinda cliffhanger….sorry I took so long to write….heheh…*dodges several rotten foods*

You deserved that!

Shut up….sorry that was my muse, bloody annoying little pest!

I can heaaaaaaaar yooooooooou! PLEASE REVIEW! My Mouthpiece needs sustenance in the form of reviews!

I know my brain is screwed up, deal with it