AN: This was originally posted on ao3 as apart of week-of-whump's Whump Week 2023 challenge. Day Three Prompt: Nobody needs to know.
Harry was used to hiding what went on in his life. At this point it was basically second nature. Maybe that's why his first thought when looking at the back of his reddened hand was, "Nobody needs to know." Sure, this led to a Hermione-style lecture on the importance of seeking out a teacher or other authority figure as she soaked his hand in the dormitory later that night (he could never keep anything from her). But all Harry could think was, What's the point?
He'd learned early on that he couldn't count on adults to protect him. He grew up having his Aunt and Uncle brush off any injury he received, whether from his own clumsiness, their son that they couldn't be bothered to watch over, or maybe even their own hand. He was expected to pick himself up and take care of it on his own with minimal whining.
When he had first started going to school he thought surely, someone would notice. And a couple of teachers did, however when the concerns were brought up with his Aunt or Uncle, usually by phone as they couldn't be bothered to show up to any teacher meetings for Harry, all his "trouble-making tendencies" were laid out for his teachers in detail. Usually after that the teachers stopped looking for signs that something was going on at home. One phone call from his Aunt was all it took to convince them he was the one getting himself into trouble, he was the one that picked a fight. It was Harry's fault that he was the way he was, his Aunt and Uncle had to be rougher with discipline because of how wild he was. After a time, his teachers just knew what to expect when he was in their class and turned a blind eye.
It wasn't until Hogwarts that he had someone to confide in. When he met Ron on the train, they clicked instantly. A friendship solidified the moment he'd placed a trolley worth of sweets in Ron's lap for them to devour on their way to Hogwarts. Hermione came later, but the bond between them was just as strong. For the first time in eleven years, he was happy, he finally had friends to call his own.
When Ron and his brothers had come to rescue him the summer before second year he gained a pseudo family that had only a glimpse of what he had to return to every summer following. And sure the letters and extra food were nice, but none of them understood what it was like to live in that house. What it was like to go weeks without anything but a can of soup everyday to tide you over. The feeling of having to make yourself so small that you faded from existence.
And he didn't want them to.
Harry had a feeling this forced smallness at the Dursley's is what led him to being so loud and opinionated during his time at Hogwarts. It was like he was screaming, pleading, "Look at ME! I'm right here!" for the entire school to hear. It was part of why he wouldn't allow Malfoy or Snape to walk all over him. He lived through that enough of that at home afterall.
That's not to say it didn't get him into plenty of trouble along the way. Harry was finally fitting into the label the Dursleys had given him at the age of two- constantly in and out of detentions, scrubbing cauldrons, barely dodging assassination attempts, and dragging his friends along with him the entire way. He didn't mind being a troublemaker for once. Not if he kept Ron and Hermione by his side.
AN: Hope y'all enjoyed the drabble! See you next time!