Hello, this is the end of this story and sorry to those who thought it would be far longer spanning into Harry's schooling and life but this story is more of a look at the people on the street of Privet Drive and their view of Harry's life.
Originally I was going to have the trial and everything with the wizards pooping up but I haven't done that as the arrest got very long with me. But I'm satisfied with the end product.
Sadly wizards aren't in this nor are they mentioned much but I felt that would pull away too much from my original aims for this story.
Anyway here it is read and enjoy!
The day had finally dawned; it was July 31st Harry Potters Eighth birthday had arrived.
Little did he know, as he awoke and stretched in his cupboard under the stairs that served as his room that this birthday was one that he would always remember. He would not realise it for another eight years but this birthday would be the most important, influential and liberating of all. Of course at the time his young battered mind had not been able to comprehend the significance nor importance of it all for it had started out as any other day of the summer.
Except it wasn't just any other day it was, as the war veteran in Number Nine had dubbed it, it was Liberation Day.
As was normal for summer in Privet Drive the sun was shining brightly down on the houses.
At Number Four the normal morning routine was going down, with the little messy haired birthday-boy stretching to reach the stove to cook breakfast for his relatives before standing in the corner waiting for them to finish so he could wash their plates, before scurrying to do whatever chores were assigned to him.
Inside of Number Four everything went as cruelly and unfairly as usual whereas outside as quietly as could be managed a great deal of activity could be found going on. The atmosphere reeked of long overdo justice, vengeance and a hint of excitement and pleasure.
For outside all members of the street seemed to be slowly converging together to stand in a half circle around Number Four. Every one of them had on huge smiles on their faces that looked like they were all related to a Cheshire cat, their grins and smiles were that wide.
But that was not all for all throughout the street there was many cars parked that did not belong along with huge vans with satellite dishes on the top. The news reporters and TV personnel had arrived to get a live feed on the story that had taken the country by storm. In amongst the members of Privet Drive stood members of others nearby streets who had come to see the monsters they'd lived so near to and had shared a park with. Spread throughout them all were members of the press, of TV stations and at the front the anchor men and women with their cameramen were all ready for when the family would be brought out.
In front of all that was the yellow police tape for a crime scene and on the once immaculate lawn stood at least twenty uniformed stern-faced outraged policemen. But which truly put a spring in the step of many members of Privet Drive was that with the police were their canine partners! Oh yes they all thought this was definitely the best way to go.
The only hold up in the events was the wait for the ambulance to arrive with its police escort so as to get the little boy to a hospital to be thoroughly checked over. Also from what the two detectives who were in charge of the case could tell get the little boy put on a drip to feed badly needed nutrients into his body and see about strengthening his bones up.
After various members of Privet Drive had informed every newspaper in the country, the police department in Scotland's Yard had been told about it. The police Chief had called in his two best detectives and gave them the case file and all the evidence that the street had on the family, which was rather a lot.
After some more digging the two detectives had found that Vernon Dursley was embezzling money out of his company and that Petunia Dursley had no legal papers placing her as Harry's guardian after his parent's death. Meaning that it was very suspicious and odd but with that and all the proof the members of Privet Drive had gathered on the abuse it was more than enough to put both Vernon and Petunia behind bars for life. Plans were already in place for their son, Dudley, to go to an orphanage and receive counselling so that he could learn the error of his parents' beliefs and hopefully become a functional honest member of society.
As they stood amongst the officers waiting to go into the house and grab the two adults - with many hoping the man would resist arrest so they could be heavy-handed without jeopardising the case – the two detectives thought of the plans they had made for the little boy. Due to the oddities of the case when it came to the lack of legal papers, wills of his parents, and the teacher and old member of the street who went to Social Services about the boy but then disappeared coupled with the complete lack of records on the little boy at social services they had bumped the security and priority of the case.
They had a plan that only the two of them, their boss and the judge knew of. The four of them would not fail the little boy and had taken lengthy measures to see to it he will be happy in the near future.
However seeing the happy smiles or rather grins and smirks on the faces of the members of Privet Drive who had worked so hard to report this abuse and to save the boy they almost had second thoughts about their plan. But looking around again and they saw all the other members of the public who had come to watch along with the circus of cameras, photograph and greedy reporters out for a story they soon put away their guilt knowing full well it was the best for the boy.
There at last at the top of the street where the members of said houses usually watched for the boy to come running past on his way home from school the white and red of the ambulance could be seen with the blue and black of the motorcycle policemen and black and whit squad cars.
The noise suddenly seemed to intensify and a buzzing rippling sensation of excitement went through the crowd as the appearance of an ambulance could mean only one thing: it was time.
As suddenly as the noise had come it was gone.
It was replaced by a tense sort of silence as they all looked on as each uniformed officer there moved in a rehearsed and planned way to the point of entry in the house, which in included the large living room windows. Staying in the shadows to the edges of the entry points they waited for the signal to enter.
First though they needed confirmation on where the little boy was for he could not be harmed as this was carried out. There was no doubt in the minds of every officer and member of the street that given the chance Vernon would kill the boy before being arrested or use him as some sort of human shield.
A crackle of static on the radio, a hitching of the collective breaths of all those present, the eager gleam in the eyes of the news reporters and journalists, the raising of cameras as...
CRASH!!!
BOOM!!! BANG!!!
THUD!!!
The police were in. The rescue and arrest was underway.
The crowd watched on in fascinating silence as they heard the sounds of a struggle of wailing and screaming inside the house.
Droplets of sweat ran down the faces of those who lived on Privet Drive along with shivers of fear as they stood on waiting to see the little boy.
Then out came most of the police with a large round looking lard of a boy who was wailing loudly, followed by a stick-thin horse-faced woman who was sobbing hysterically muttering about how it was "all that worthless freaks fault". She was restrained by two officers and in handcuffs. Lastly came a large overly obese man whose face was purple as he yelled obscenities to the four officers restraining him.
They were all hustled into three separate cop cars which sped off immediately to their individual destinations. It had been decided that the Dursleys would not be allowed to see or be in contact with one another until the trial in less than two weeks.
Public outrage and all the work of Privet Drive's other residents meant the trial could be sped up and over with in less than a month as the evidence made it more than crystal clear.
As the cars disappeared round the corner the door of the house creaked open again and out came the two detectives one holding an assortment of odds ends which the crowd realised must be the boy's possessions. Half-hidden in the burly arms of the shorter detective was a small fragile black-haired boy and though terrified he appeared to be unharmed from the arrest. Striding quickly the detectives made it to the relative safety and shelter of the ambulance with the escort closing ranks as paramedics gave the boy a once-over to see if he had any major recent wounds or bone breaks.
The journalists and news reporters began to move in, flashing lights and whirring recorders, jumbled fast-spoken questions all blurring and buzzing in the little boys mind.
Only to be replaced roughly by the worried fear-lined faces of the neighbours with the old war veteran facing all the reporters waving his cane at any who came to near. The remaining police who entered the house came out to help keep the peace and to help the little boy have his privacy.
Number Three and Number Four were now anxiously asking the little boy if he was okay and that it was all over now, he was getting a new family and the Dursleys were going away for a long long time. The people from the top of the street were passing him chocolates and parcels containing clothes, toys and books purchased by everyone. Then Number Nine was giving him letters telling him their sorry for ignoring him all these years and that the letters will explain their reasons.
As sudden as they were there they were all backing away and the doors to the ambulance are closing but before they do a small timid voice whispered "Thank You". These two words broke the hearts of those who were closest to hear it as they could tell it was laced with sincerity and the green eyes sparkled with happiness.
The ambulance and police escort pulled away with flashing lights and sirens blaring.
Soon all the cars were gone and the members of the street were left standing, watching the dust settle. Several were still reeling from his words and others were still processing all that had happened and the fact that it had actually worked. For though through publicly announcing the abuse they were certain they would be able to get the desired results, many of them had still been doubtful that they would succeed.
Slowly they all broke up and headed back to their homes to go about their day as the barbecue celebration was not until the evening.
Half-limping stiffly to his house the war veteran stopped as he heard the screeching and yelling of old Mrs Figg of Magnolia Crescent, she was busy ranting at the people from the top of the street and the next door neighbours of Number Four. He paused in his walk to listen to what she had to say but he did not turn for he did not wish to speak to anyone.
"...No idea what you've done... ruined everything you have... Dumbledore won't be pleased... what am I to do now..."
On she went mostly though she was muttering loudly to herself as walked home. Everyone in the area generally thought her insane and could not fathom how she could afford to live in Magnolia Crescent.
Moving swifter now the war veteran entered his home frowning deeply over the name. 'Dumbledore... where had he heard that name before?' He headed down the hallway to his bedroom he stopped as if struck by lightning. "Regulus Black!" he exclaimed aloud, for he remembered where he had heard the name Dumbledore from, 'Regulus spoke of him and poorly too, hmm well it looks as if there may be more to Harry Potter than he once thought.' He sighed heavily as he moved forward once again but this time an aura of sadness gripped him as it always did when he thought of the haunted young man he had the privilege of meeting years ago. But now that meeting weighed heavier on his heart as he placed Harry Potter into the equation of what little he knew of the Wizarding World from Regulus.
Yes, the old war veteran, who many thought was slightly insane and paranoid knew of wizards, after all his own granddaughter was one of them.
As he chuckled over what he knew of magic and all its oddities he was packing his bags for it was time to leave Britiain. The onle reason he had stayed this long was because of the little boy, but now that he was safe and sound in police custody and the whole country knew of what he had endured at his relatives hands, it was time to leave and join his family in America. Within half an hour all of his possessions were packed and he was ready to leave the place he'd called home for ten years of his life, oddly enough he wasn't going to miss anything and felt no sadness at leaving, for all that had kept him here was the little boy.
Later on as he walked into Heathrow and up to the check-in desk he caught a glimpse of the news report and for the third time that day stopped dead at the womans' words.
"Tragically Harry Potter died shortly upon arrival to St Gabriel's Hospital from a punctured lung. It is reported that it is a miracle that he managed to live this long with the abuse, beatings, negligence of his family. The Trial of said relative has been moved up in response to the boys death and will be held in just three days time. The Minister and House of Lords is scheduled to hold a conference and review of Social Services as this should never have happened..."
Again the aura of sadness surrounded the war veteran as he trudged to the desk and got his plane ticket as he checked in his luggage barely hearing her sympathetic words to what had just been on the news.
Two years of his life wasted all the work for nothing as they were too late. He should have had them act sooner or gone with his first instincts and just kidnapped the boy as it's not like they would have reported him missing. Huh but he didn't and now the little boy was dead.
He trudged forward to Gate Seven and boarded the plane, heart pressing heavily in his chest.
Back in Privet Drive the barbecue was all set up and everyone was gathered but none were eating as most were weeping over what they had heard on the news. They were all grief-ridden. Too late! They'd left it too long they should have moved sooner, they shouldn't have spent so long gathering their evidence. The whole street was busy playing the blame game, whilst sometimes staring at Number Four with hatred and disgust in their faces.
In Scotland Yard little activity was going on as working hours were long since over. This did not matter to do certain detectives who were busy going over the Dursley case for the moved up trial. Whilst doing so they could hardly keep the feral grins off their faces, this trial was going to be a landslide victory and vicious. Now that the little boy was taken care of they could go full force into investigating the family and take them down fully. The only downfall that the shorter of the two found was that the country no longer had the death penalty.
Miles away in a hidden part of London men and women in robes gathered to talk of events in what they called 'the muggle news' and mourn the loss of Harry Potter, the-boy-who-lived and saviour of the Wizarding World. All over Britain owls flew carrying letters, sending news of what had befallen their hero in the years he'd spent in muggle world after saving them from Voldemort.
It appeared everyone in Britain felt deeply of the death of young Harry Potter except three people each in high security cells.
On the other side of the world in New York a plane set down and escorted by a pretty young stewardess a small boy with green eyes, messy black hair by the name of James Grey walked off of a plane from Britain.
Standing a little ways off he saw an old man whose eyes spoke of having faced wars as he stood heavily on his cane a feral grin on his face. This only grew in size when the little boy broke free of the stewardess' grasp yelling "Grampa" at the top of his lungs. The old man grinned widely as he grabbed the boy up and hugged him close mentally hoping nobody saw the wince the little boy gave at the unused contact.
Turning he walked towards at the exit where a dark haired woman stood with a violet eyed little girl who was bouncing on her toes in excitement at having a little brother.
Together the four of them walked towards a luggage filled blue sedan with a trailed full of furniture behind it as they got in to drive off to their new lives in San Francisco.
July 31st 1988 Harry Potter was set free by the members of Privet Drive, dying shortly after gaining said freedom and on the same day the Grey family was born.
Okay well that's it everybody and I am officially closing this story down as this story was a look at what it the people of Privet Drive noticed the abuse and since Harry is free of their now the story is done.
Now I'm not completely pleased with how this ended but I think it works and overall I'm satisfied with it.
I may in the future do a sequel as I'm sure you've already realised Harry isn't dead dead but in a sort of witness protection and has a new identity as I am equally certain that you have figured that the man he called grampa was the old war veteran of number six.
So anyway there may be a story length sequel which skip ahead a little under ten years or something and the end of the story leaves it open for me to do so but it is also in a way closed as Harry now has a new loving family and new life awaiting him in America away from it all.
As for the mentions of Regulus Black I really love him and wish in canon that he has more of an input and role and because I wanted the old war veteran to have a link to the wizards and magic to help and be closer to Harry and because I feel Harry going off to live with a magical family or family who know of magic is ideal.
If a sequel is done this will be elaborated on but for this story I hope it doesn't make no sense or serve no purpose at all.
I hope you all liked this and please read and review it but no flames if you can help it! Hate what I've done then kindly keep it to yourself. Like it but feel I my grammar is bad then by all means tell me.
Okay right good-bye and thanks for reading!!!