This is a translation of one of my stories.
I've lost the motivation to finish it and I hope that going into it again from the beginning will kickstart my creativity.

English is not my native language and I hope I didn't make too many mistakes...

Name after adoption:
-Harry James Potter

Date of adoption:
- July 31, 1980

Adoptive Parents:
- James Charlus Potter (died October 31, 1981)
- Lily Potter, née Evans (died October 31, 1981)

Adoptive Siblings:
- Henry Fleamont Potter (died July 15, 1980)

Adoptive godparents:
- Sirius Orion Black (incapacitated)
- Alice Liliane Longbottom (disability)

Birth name :
- Mirus Cygnus Malfoy

Date of Birth :
- June 5, 1980

Birth parents:
- Lucius Abraxas Malfoy
- Narcissa Walburga Malfoy, née Black

Birth Siblings:
- Draco Lucius Malfoy (twin, older brother)

Birth godparents:
- Severus Tobias Snape
- Bellatrix Druella Lestrange, née Black

oOoOo

Harry gently put the parchment back on the desk in front of him. He closed his eyes, refocusing his thoughts.

For years, he had been told that the Dursleys were his only family. For years, he had endured the mockery of his aunt, the insults and blows of his uncle, the wickedness of his cousin. For years, he had learned to make himself invisible, to pretend he didn't exist. For years he had been considered a freak.

And now, in less than 24 hours, he learned that he was not a freak but a wizard and that in addition he had living family.

It remained to be seen why he had been adopted when he was not even two months old. Had his parents abandoned him or had something happened? And why did he have almost the same first name as the stillborn child of his adoptive parents just two weeks after his birth?

He wouldn't get any answer to that from the goblin standing in front of him who looked just as surprised as he did. But he needed some answers right now. He hadn't gotten rid of the big oaf that accompanied him to leave empty-handed. It had been quite difficult to convince him that he needed to be alone for the identity check requested by the goblin. Luckily he looked very emotional, a few puppy dog looks with eyes brimming with tears (yes, he pinched his leg on purpose) and voila.

- Mr. Gripsec, I don't understand. What exactly does this mean? Do I still have access to the account Hagrid gave you the key to?

- Well... I must confess that I am surprised, wizard. Lord Malfoy's second son has been pronounced dead for us three years after his disappearance as required by law. I am not aware of what happened, the life of wizards does not interest me. You were obviously adopted by James and Lily Potter a few days after Mirus Malfoy went missing and their biological son passed away. This is a legal adoption from our point of view so you are the heir to the title of Lord Potter and the associated property. Your account is therefore always open to you. Would you like the bank to contact Lord Malfoy? This is not mandatory, you are officially Harry Potter.

- No thanks. I'll see for myself later. Is there anything else I need to do to be able to withdraw money? Hagrid is waiting for me to go buy my things. Is it possible that all of this stays between us?

- I have no reason to meddle in the affairs of wizards. Here's your key, I'll take you to your vault.

After a hectic trip during which Harry mostly hoped that his enormous companion would manage to keep his breakfast, a purse full of coins found its way into his over-sized trousers.

Much to his delight, Harry was left alone outside the bank. It would seem that his escort had a weak stomach. If he considered the number of times he had seen his uncle disappear in a bar, he had several hours of peace ahead of him. He had too much to see and analyze to keep listening to the simple-minded man and his wails about parents he'd never known and his talk about the evilness of a man he'd never heard of before. What he understood above all was that he did not have enough information and that he was reserving his judgment until he had all the facts and especially opinions from both sides. A war is never the good guys against the bad guys.

He took advantage of his free time to buy the best trunk in his opinion: three classic compartments for his clothes and school things with, in addition, a password-protected compartment, undetectable to the naked eye. The trunk came with a lightening spell and a button to shrink it to the size of a matchbox and return it to its normal size without him having to do magic. It would come in very handy when he returned to the Dursleys. He also bought a satchel for the lessons, larger on the inside than on the outside and also equipped with a lightening spell.

He then stopped in a clothing store run by a certain Madame Malkin. There he met a boy his own age, pale with platinum blond hair and very haughty. He remained skeptical of this meeting. On the one hand, the boy might just be nervous, on the other, he might just be a pretentious little jerk. Harry tended to believe in the second option.
In addition to the robes and other accessories requested in the supply list, Harry bought himself a complete wardrobe, including pants, shirts, underwear and pyjamas. In short, he bought everything his "family" should have provided him. He stowed everything well hidden in his trunk. It was out of the question that Vernon would find them as he would sell them or destroy them, but it was also out of the question that he was going to his new school dressed in his whale-sized cousin's old clothes. He understood very well that he would have a reputation already made at Hogwarts and if there was one thing he had learned in his early years, it was that it was better to adapt to the image that others had of you rather than openly being yourself.

Wearing a mask wouldn't be new to him. Instead of the dumb, obedient little Harry he sported every day as soon as he came out of his closet, he would be the perfect Harry Potter, hero of wizarding world while remaining humble. Wizards wouldn't be any harder to fool than Muggles were.

The rest of his purchases went without surprise. He bought twice as many potion ingredients as planned so that he could practice if needed as well as way more scrolls and quills than recommended. Another hard-learned lesson: better to be prepared for anything than to be caught off guard. He bought the requested books on his list but also many others, mainly on the history of the British wizarding world, on wizarding etiquette and all those things that children living with in the wizarding world would already know at the start of the school year. He bought several books on runes, which he found fascinating as he leafed through them because the use of runes was not subjected to the same restrictions as wand magic for underage wizards.

The only positive point brought by his escort was the owl he offered him when he left Flourish and Blotts , the bookstore. He called her Edwige and promised himself to take care of her. He was a bit disappointed by the fact that she was extremely recognizable. He would have to call on another bird if he needed to send a letter discreetly. But the animal seemed intelligent if nothing else.

His last stop was the wand shop run by Mr. Ollivander. The man himself gave Harry chills with his piercing gaze that seemed to probe his soul.
He spent many minutes trying out wands, smashing and making things fly around the shop without its owner seeming to bother. When he finally felt a warmth in his body spreading from his hand to his toes, he knew he had found HIS wand. This turned out to be the brother of the wand of the man who had killed his adoptive parents. He didn't quite know what to do with this information… The main thing was that it worked well for him, after all.

Hagrid accompanied him back to the Dursleys by muggle transportation. Harry found it increasingly painful to witness his marvel at the inventions of those without magic. He found the train dirty and uncomfortable, especially when his neighbor took up almost half of his chair. He still managed to keep his face all innocent, but it was almost harder than facing his teachers in elementary school. He was beginning to feel tired after this day full of new informations.

Edwige seemed to understand perfectly when he opened the cage to let her out, asking her to stay around but not to come into the house. He put the cage in his trunk before shrinking it and putting it in his pocket. Vernon wouldn't hesitate to kill his owl if he saw her, Harry was sure of that.
Hagrid left him outside the door after giving him his train ticket.

The end of his vacation was divided between his chores, a few blows from his uncle (Dudley left him alone since the appearance of his pigtail, it was a win) and long nights reading his books. His trunk remained shrunken and hidden under the bed during the day, his family had been easily fooled when he told them the giant had taken his belongings which had been paid for by a scholarship from the school. This earned him teasing from his cousin (who tried to hide behind his mother afterwards) but he preferred to keep his wealth hidden. He had no doubt that his uncle would try to make him pay rent if he knew he had money.

More than ever, Harry longed to be able to take off his masks and get revenge on this family that had taught him nothing but survival while he watched his cousin and his friends learn to be children.