Quirinus stumbled around the pond one summer, looking for something new to explore, or for a sign that his only friend was there. His only friend was a troll that had been abandoned at birth. Quirinus found him one day as he was playing in the woods, just four years prior. The big, helpless oaf struck a sensitive nerve in Quirinus, and so he took the baby in as his own. He brought him spare blankets, made him loincloths, picked fresh fruits from the forest trees, brought him water from the pond, and hunted wild animals for him. He wasn't very good at hunting - he was squeamish, and the blood made him vomit at first, but Birius (the name that he gave the troll) needed him. And he didn't have to sneak food out of his own home, where food was precious. Quirinus was more than happy to sacrifice his free time for the troll. This was his biggest secret that he had ever kept - if anyone found out, Birius would be killed. And Birius genuinely loved his "daddy"- a relationship that Quirinus couldn't afford to lose.

It wasn't that Quirinus didn't know other children - he just didn't get along with them. He was too quiet. But there was a boy and a girl, Severus Snape and Lily Evans, that used to play "house" with him when he was little. Lily was always the mother, Sev (who didn't like the game, and didn't seem to care for Quirinus - just Lily) was the father, and Quirinus was the baby - a role that he was never happy about. But Lily and Sev were much older than him, and grew out of playing games.

Trolls grow fast, so Birius was full-grown by the time he was two, and joined a neighboring tribe of trolls. Because Quirinus was the only living being that Birius had been exposed to, he had a hard time speaking the troll language. He now spent most of his time with the other trolls, learning from them, and made a few friends. But Quirinus was special to him. So Birius met Quirinus in a quiet part of the forest behind Quirinus's house everyday. Quirinus, like any good parental figure, wanted Birius to fit in with his own kind. So while he met Birius everyday he tried his best to learn the troll's language, and spoke to Birius only in that.

Quirinus shifted himself to make the tree branch that he was sitting on more comfortable. "You know what, Birius? You and I have a lot in common. I don't really fit in with the other people in my town. And my mum didn't abandon me, but she doesn't seem to like me much." Quirinus sat in silence, tossing around an apple that he had plucked from a tree. "Birius, I'm afraid that I've got some bad news."

Birius' eyes widened in fear. Quirinus never had anything but fun stories from the human world. Anything bad from him must be terrible.

"I start a new school in a few weeks, and won't be back until Christmas time. No, no, Birius, please don't cry! I'll always love you!"

Birius' lip did not stop quivering, and giant tears threatened to run down his cheeks.

"No no, Birius, please don't cry! I promise, I'll still see you! Just not as often. I'll come back for visits during Christmas break, and summer. But I need to do this! I'll be learning how to be a wizard!" Quirinus looked at the sun. "I'd be best off, Birius. Mother will be home soon, and she doesn't want me out here. Not with the war going on." Quirinus scrambled down the tree, and ran out of the forest, leaving Birius all by himself.

Quirinus got home just 10 minutes before his mother did. He was out of breath, but thankful that he got back in time. Once, he arrived after his mum did, and she figured out where he was. It resulted in a beating, and the bruising on his arm didn't go down for a few days. Mirana did not like leaving him home alone. But she needed as much money as she could get from her Honeyduke's job, and Mrs. Spink went back to work when her husband was injured. So Quirinus spent the morning at the Spinks, went home around lunchtime, and then Mirana returned for dinnertime. So Mirana let him have the house to himself, as long as he stayed in. "I don't want you accidentally running into You-Know-Who, or his Death Eaters," she told him. But Quirinus figured that Birius could easily fend off any Death Eaters. And what his mum didn't know, wouldn't kill her.

Quirinus watched as Mirana spooned a serving of peas onto his plate. "Mum, what's it like, Hogwarts?"

"Well, it's very big, beautiful, and old. And there are four houses- Slytherin, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, and Hufflepuff. You'll be sorted into one by the Sorting Hat."

"Which one were you in?"

"Slytherin."

"Did you like it there?"

Mirana paused. She had never told him about her last year at Hogwarts. "I-it was fun." Until she got pregnant. "I liked the classes. It's where I met Aunt Penny, and Aunt Millie." She stopped to take a bite of her food. "We need to go out tomorrow to shop for your school supplies."

Quirinus grimaced as he took the last bite of his food. He hated shopping. It was a girl's pastime. "Alright, mum. May I please be excused?"

Mirana let him go, and she watched him scurry off to his room. He was almost 12, and going off to Hogwarts. It seemed too soon for her. He was growing too fast. Mirana was worried for her son. Not just the Death Eaters, but that he might not want to come back home to her. She knew that she was not the mother that he deserved. She was working long hours at Honeyduke's, and then headed straight home to make dinner, and make sure that Quirinus was off to bed. All of her stress sometimes unloaded on him. But he was healthy (although a little underweight), and was very polite. "I obviously did something right," she thought to himself.

Quirinus followed his mother, weaving between people that were twice his size. They passed the Owl Emporium.

"Wow, the owls are gorgeous, mum! May I have one?"

"No, Quirinus. We don't have the money."

"But what if I need to write to you when I'm at school?"

"Then just use the school's owl, princess. Now, sit right on that bench by the Emporium. I need to run a special errand in the store next door. Do not move a muscle."

Quirinus plopped onto the bench, sulking as his mum walked off. He looked back up at the owls.

Romulus Quirrell was walking down Diagon Alley. His marriage had not been going well, and he escaped daily down to Diagon Alley for a walk. As he was approaching the Owl Emporium, his heart skipped a beat. There sat a boy who looked extraordinary like his Mirana. Romulus slowly approached him, and sat on the bench next to him. "Excuse me, what's your name, son?"

Quirinus, a shy boy, took his time to answer. "Q-Quirinus."

Romulus could barely contain his excitement. "Quirrell?"

Quirinus looked Romulus over. "Do I know you?"

"No, I'm sorry, Quirinus. You looked like you belonged to that family. Looking closer, Romulus could finally get a good look at Quirinus. He did look extraordinarily like Mirana, but had a few small details that could have only come from his unknown father. His eyebrows weren't arched, his ears were pressed back, and he had blond highlights in his dark brown hair, where Mirana had carmel. "Where's your mother?"

Quirinus looked over at the store next door. "I think that she's buying my birthday present."

"A birthday? How old will you be?"

"I'll be 12 on September 26th."

"Well well well, 12 is a big birthday. How would you like to own one of those owls that you keep glancing at?"

Quirinus's face lit up. "Are you sure?!"

"Son, I'm from a rich family. And a man only turns 12 once in his life." Romulus went into the Emporium, and came back out a minute later with a brown owl in a cage. Quirinus couldn't believe his luck, even as the stranger handed him his present. He knew not to take gifts from strangers, but this man seemed to know him, and his present was too good to pass up. "Thanks, mister! She's beautiful!"

"I'm glad that you think so, son. Now, will you be attending Hogwarts this year?"

Quirinus nodded, his eyes glued on his new pet.

"Quirinus Slatero Quirrell!" Mirana was running towards them, stuffing a small package into her pocket. "Where did you get that owl?"

Quirinus looked up at Romulus. "That man gave her to me."

Mirana looked over at him, having not noticed her father standing there. Her anger was quickly replaced by bafflement. "Well, that was nice off him, but you shouldn't be taking gifts from strangers."

"But mum, he knew what my last name was!"

Romulus piped up. "Forgive me, Ms. Quirrell, the boy told me that he had a birthday coming up."