Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, and don't want to.

Chapter 3

Starting a New Life

Harry was very surprised that day.

When he woke from the four-poster bed, he instantly remembered where he was and what happened yesterday. Hungry and thirsty, he tried finding food in the fridge, but this Potter Manor was very different from his home.

It looked like it was abandoned for years. The place was neat and tidy, but there was no one living here. Harry had panicked immediately. Was his parents dead in this world? What about himself?

He quelled his fears, because there may be a chance that they were at Sirius's place, the headquarters of the order, and so no worries. He was looking forward to introducing himself to them and telling them everything.

By now he was desperate for food, and he didn't want to take the chance to go to the Leaky Cauldron, in case there were Unspeakables looking for him there. He had an idea.

"Wolfy!" The elf appeared in a pop, the expression on it's face showing complete disbelief. It squinted, and when he saw Harry's face, he threw himself down at his feet, and cried pitifully in a weak voice. "I knew Master Harry would come back, I knew he would!" Over and over. Harry's fear grew as the elf told him that they never had a master for a long time.

After Harry had calmed him down enough, the elf excitedly called up the other surviving elves. They were all happy to see Harry, and since he was of the Potter blood, they eagerly bound themselves to their new master. Harry knew that elves needed magic to thrive and become powerful, magic they got from the masters they served. These malnourished elves looked like they hadn't worked in decades! He let them cook breakfast and tidy up his house, while he checked the wards of the Manor.

They felt old, like decades old. Harry felt his worst fears being confirmed. No one had been here for a long time. The wards were very strong, recast over and over by the individual Heads of the Potter family. They were still there, just weak. Harry renewed the wards with a technique he learned from Bill Weasley, strengthening them and making Albus Dumbledore's presence not tolerated on the list of people the wards allowed to enter. He was sweaty and weak afterwards from the renewing.

Harry sent a few elves to collect old newspapers with the rest of his gold. He really needed to see what was happening.

In need of more money, Harry hiked up to Mom and Dad's rooms, highest in the Manor. He hated to steal, but it was necessary, and no one was using the money. The Manor's wooden stairs were so old that even with wards the stairs creaked and groaned with every step. Harry had reached the top of the stairs, and with a mighty push on the expensive wood doors, the doors to the Parent's bedroom opened, and admitted Harry inside. The warm colors of the room brought many memories to Harry's mind.

Mom had told him of a secret stash of keys, diaries and amulets under her bed, hidden in a secret compartment, and he also knew dad had an emergency trunk full of galleons in the closet.

Harry knelt down near mom's bed, and put his hands underneath the frame, fingers unlocking a small secret compartment, which dropped down into his hands. He set it aside on the bed.

Harry's fingers went down even further, brushing another, bigger compartment, and his hands unlocked the clasps holding that one. He dropped that one onto the bed. Now for dad's trunk!

He opened the closet and deactivated several traps; an irritating-limb spell, butt-biting hex and a reductor curse. He pried the trunk from the closet, and opened it.

He gasped as he saw the amount of gold in the trunk. The inside was enlarged, with huge piles of gold in there. He had never seen so much, even when mom or dad brought them to their trust vault. There were probably a million galleons in there! Also, there was a motorcycle, the twin of Sirius's bike, several broomsticks, and an extra wand, a magical belt and holster. Harry grinned at the wealth and got the holster and wand. He needed everything he could get, and dad made this probably just for if he was on the run.

Harry's mom left another holster and wand, a diary, and several interesting trinkets. Harry identified the five amulets that his mom left. The charmed necklace that detected poisons and potions in his drink, the shield bracelet that made an extremely strong magical shield on one hand, once exhausted rechargeable. A dark magic detector in the form of ring, a pocket mirror as a foe glass, and prototype magical pistol with a holster.

He put the necklace around his neck, the bracelet on his left hand, the ring on his middle finger on his right hand, and the pocket mirror in his pocket. The gun, two holster plus wands were put around the magic belt, which relieved the weight and expanded to fit them all. Harry grinned at his new toys.

Harry had already consumed his toast and tea when the elves he sent out to collect newspapers came back. He glanced down at the latest one and nearly spilled his tea.

The Daily Prophet

8-5-1994

By Jarvis Davison

The Triwizard Tournament Reinstated!

This year at England, the Ministry of Magic is happy to announce the reinstatement of the Triwizard Tournament, held at Hogwarts his year. Both Durmstrang and Beauxbatons will participate, sending their own students there to compete. The Tournament will consist of three tasks for the champions, with ministry-approved judges voting to determine the winner. The first Triwizard was held in 1294, but was discontinued after 1792 due to the death toll.

Ludo Bagman, Head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports, praised;

"The reinstating the Triwizard was a very good idea. We have made the tasks much safer for the champions, and we hope this will encourage more friendly school relations."

More details on the Triwizard Tournament, on page 6…

More details on Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, on page 11…

So he was right in his assumptions. In his world Ludo Bagman was arrested a long time ago. So, in he was in fourth year right now? He flipped to the middle, picking out a random newspaper.

The Daily Prophet

11-1-1981

By Mary Mellowcump

You-Know-Who is vanquished by 1 year old Harry Potter!

You-Know-Who has been finally defeated! But who took him down? Not Albus Dumbledore, not any aurors, not even a grown wizard! No, he was defeated by a 15 month old baby with the name of Harry Potter. How? One can only guess.

You-Know-Who came to the Potter's house that night with the intent of having revenge on the aurors that had thrice defied him. He had bypassed their Fidelius Charm, by learning the location from his faithful servant, Sirius Black.

You-Know-Who entered the house, and promptly took the lives of Lily and James Potter, a couple, before trying to finish up the job, using the killing curse on the baby Harry. Amazingly, in a case of extreme accidental magic, the killing curse was reflected and the Dark Lord fell to his own curse. The facts can be proven by the residue of the killing curse and a signature of accidental magic that aurors detected on the scene.

We will miss Lily and James Potter most dearly and never forget them.

However, a new, hopefully more peaceful era dawns upon us. All hail to the Boy-Who-Lived!

More details on the Fidelius Charm on page 5…

Lily and James Potter's life on page 12…

Harry just sat there, holding the newspaper in his hands. He briefly mourned the loss of his parents before something else more than shock set in. He realized that in this world, the people he thought he knew wouldn't be the same. Sirius Black proved that. He had no allies, no friends, and no parents. If the Unspeakables found him, they would interrogate all the information out of him.

What was he going to do? Thanks to his mom and aunt's nurturing, he was already strong and mature enough to get on as an adult in life. His magical skill and studies were already past school, and he had more than enough gold. But his appearance and height?

His face was easily changed with glamour, but his height wouldn't fit. A well. He could get to Hogwarts, and with dad's false identity, he could enroll, but did he want to? He wanted to go because of curiosity. He wanted to see what himself was like, and make new friends. Friends.

Harry realized that his old friends were probably lost forever. He could try to jump into the veil again, but he might not even get out this time. Who knows? They might accidentally kill him, thinking he was an imposter. Harry realized he probably never see his mother or aunt, or father again. There was no Aden Potter in this universe, so not his brother either.

But Harry would get pass, he told himself. He always did.

Aunt! Maybe Harry could get to Petunia! She would help, him, she always did. Strict and caring, Harry held hope for a second, before it was shot down instantly.

He heard her voice inside his head, precise, but holding so much meaning. He remembered what she said about her past.

"Before Lily came to fix me up, and teach me my overdue lesson, my life was horrible." Petunia recounted, her eyes faraway. "Before the news came of how she almost died, how close she came to death, I was evil. Full of spite, from what came from petty jealousy during teen years evolved to full blown hate. For no reason, other than she was unnatural, freakish. I was totally blinded in it, unable to see any good part of life. I never knew how Lily became so forgiving, but she was always calm when dealing with me. When Vernon approached me, I jumped on the chance to be better, equal to my sister. I hated life, and life hated me. For everything I thought went good went wrong, my baby turned to a bullying pig, husband to abusive criminal. When I received news of how my sister almost died, I felt almost disappointed, for a second, of how she didn't die. I hated her, for having a perfect life, I hated her." She gets a tissue from the table and dabbles her eyes, which were full of tears, then continuing on. "That was, until Vernon kicked me out. He was becoming an evil man, taking his pressure from his job on any outlet he could find, kids, furniture, even me, until he was fired, and he snapped. He chased me from my house, stealing my money, taking everything I had. I had only the clothes on my back. Being desperate, I had no hope. No friends, nobody knew the vile woman that I had became. Only Lily." She starts crying uncontrollably. Harry and his mom just sat by her, waiting. After a minute she starts talking again.

"She brought me in, and nursed me back to health, because I suffered bruises and broken bones from Vernon's beatings. After that, I looked at my sister, now a stranger, in a different light. It opened up my vision to the real world around me, and I saw a whole new universe than what I had previously seen. I understood, Harry. I was changed from that, turned to a wiser, better person. I hope that you'll never see that woman that I used to be, because at then, I was full of sin, full of pettiness, I had even hurt myself with it. For you see, my fear of unnaturalness extended so far, that it even suppressed my own talents." She said softly, and to Harry's amazement, she flicked her fingers, and magical sparks came out. Petunia was actually a witch.

So going to Petunia's was impossible, since she still hated wizards.

Harry shook his head and kept shuffling through the papers to look for news.

Sirius Black arrested? Impossible! The man was either drunk with grief at the time or imperiused! There was no way he could betray his dad! Peter only left his finger! Merlin! Nobody knew about their animagus forms! No trial either? Harry wanted to shriek in injustice.

Harry Potter sent to muggles? Dumbledore approves? Harry nodded grimly. He guessed this Headmaster was just as manipulative as the one in his universe. No wonder this world's Harry didn't know about his houses or call the house elves. Dumbledore wanted to keep him ignorant!

In Harry's second year, Chamber of Secrets opened? Harry grinned. Seemed like this Harry inherited parseltounge as well!

Third year, Black breaks out of Azakaban? Nicely done! Harry cheered. No doubt with his animagus form!

Great. Harry sighed. He really wanted to meet himself, as well as Luna and Neville, but stay away from Dumbledore. Nope. He remembered the Triwizard and sighed. If Dumbledore was manipulating himself, he would have to help stop him. This Harry was like his younger brother Aden this time, brave and foolish. He really didn't want himself to die, so he guessed he would have to interfere. It was a personal matter now.

"Great then! Off I go to Hogwarts then!"

Author's Notes: The review option isn't for flaming, it's for expressing ideas and advice. I would appreciate it if you help me point out mistakes or blips in the writing, because I don't have anyone beta'ing it.