A/N: So this is my re-write (and re-edit as of 11/14/21) of Caring. There are some darker themes of abuse, as well as occasional swearing. If that isn't something you want to read, then have a cookie on your way out. Updates for this story might be sporadic, but I'll try my best to keep it going.

'thought'

"text"

Alright, now enjoy the first chapter of 'Caring'!

It was a hot, humid afternoon in Little Whinging, Surrey. A fourteen, almost year old fifteen Harry James Potter was outside pruning his Aunt Petunia's rose bushes. The sun hung heavy in the sky, and he was sweating mad, exhausted too.

His last year of Hogwarts was the most traumatic so far. The third task of the Tri-wizard Tournament was a disaster. Harry started having nightmares from his experience with the rebirth of Voldemort and Cedric's death. While he was working, he heard laughing in the distance. He looked back and saw a group of teenagers coming up the street. ' Oh bother,' Harry told himself.

He turned back around and began working on the rose bushes again. "Hey Potter!" said a booming male voice behind him. He ignored the call and continued. "Potter!" the voice insisted.

Harry huffed and turned to see his cousin and his gang of idiots. "What Dudley?" he said through clenched teeth.

"Get a load of this," Dudley stated to is band of baboons, " Pathetic Potter and his freakishness ruining my mother's perfect garden." Harry was furious. 'Who does he think he is?' Before Harry could spit out a retort, Dudley slammed him into the rose bush, crushing the red flowers. Then it got worse. "Cousin! How could you ruin mum's rosebush? Dad will be so mad. I think we'd better teach you a lesson for this. Let's get him boys".

That's when the hoard of teenagers started pummeling Harry. By the time they were finished, Harry was a bloody pulp. Dudley started laughing and his gang joined in. The laughing could still be heard from the next block over. Harry pulled himself up and went to the back of the house. He knew his uncle would be home from work soon, and when he would see the rosebush and hear his cousin's lies, he would be in deep trouble. The black haired boy reached for the hose attached to the house and turned it on. It wouldn't do for his aunt to screech at him for tracking dirt and blood inside. Harry winced when he peeled his shirt off. His skin was covered almost completely with bruises and coated with dried blood. "Fuck," he hissed at the sting of the water as he washed everything off. Though he knew by the end of day, this wouldn't be the worst of it. Not by a long shot.

Harry was only six years old when he experienced his first "lesson". He was just starting to cook breakfast for the Dursley's and was frying the bacon when he slipped and fell off the chair he had to stand on to reach the stove. Hot grease and bacon flew everywhere, including onto Harry. He wasn't prepared when his uncle grabbed him by his thin arm and dragged Harry into the living room. Then, his uncle took off his belt. Safe to say, it was not good. His small body was soon bloody and covered in welts. After that, Harry learned pretty quickly how to hide any and all injuries.

It continued for years. The green eyed boy was in his cupboard whenever he wasn't being beaten or being worked half to death. That night in the rickety shack on the sea, when he was eleven, he thought he had been saved. Hogwarts, although rough at times, had been Harry's safe haven for years. He was able to make friends, learn magic, and learn more about his past.

After he washed himself off, Harry went through the backdoor and came inside quietly. He did not want to hear his aunt at the moment. He needed to get into the right mindset for when Uncle Vernon came home. He creeped up the stairs, and when to his bedroom, which looked more like a prison cell, and shut the door.

When he got home at the beginning of the summer, Vernon put the bars back on the windows and added three more locks to the door. Harry went to the loose floorboard under his cot and pulled it open. It was where he kept his most prized belongings; his invisibility cloak, the photo album of his parents Hagrid gave him, and a few sweets from the wizarding world. He also kept a pack of cigarettes, a lighter, and a knife under the floorboard.

He went to pull out the lighter and the cigarettes. Harry took one from the box and held it in his mouth, then lit it. He went over to the floorboard and put the items back under it. When he took a drag from the cigarette, the smoke filled his lungs, instantly soothing his quaking nerves. Harry got up and lifted the window behind the bars a bit so the smoke would not fill the room. His habit started halfway through the tournament when he started to become stressed over the second task. Hedwig made an indignant noise. "I know you don't like it girl," he said softly, "but Vernon will be home any minute." When he looked over, he instantly began to worry again. Hedwig, Harry's beautiful snowy owl he was gifted by Hagrid for his eleventh birthday, was looking awfully thin. Because Harry wasn't fed much, neither was Hedwig, and he gave most of his food to her. He finished the rest of the cigarette just as Vernon pulled up the driveway. "Wish me luck" he muttered darkly to himself.

As he walked calmly to his bed, Harry heard a door slam and an angry exclamation from Vernon. "Harry Potter, get your ass down here immediately!"

Harry took a deep breath and stood up. He walked slowly to the door and opened it, becoming more and more anxious as he trekked down the stairs. 'Stay calm, don't panic. It won't be too bad. You'll be alright.' he told himself over and over. Any ounce of courage he had fell apart when Vernon grabbed him by the neck and pinned Harry to the wall in the hallway. "So you decided to ruin your aunt's garden did you?" His uncle growled at the teen.

"N-No Uncle," Harry started, but Vernon stopped him.

"Do not disrespect me boy. We give you the food you eat, the clothes off your back, and you repay us by ruining Petunia's priceless roses? Freak, you listen, and listen well, I will not have this kind of behavior in my home. You're gonna have to learn your lesson quickly, then fix the flowers, am I clear?" Vernon spat out.

Harry tried to choke out an answer, but his airway was blocked by the larger man's hand. Vernon threw him to the ground and kicked him in the chest. " Y-y-es Un-ncle" Harry sputtered.

Vernon took him by the arm and picked him up. "Go wait upstairs." Vernon said gruffly. Harry limped slowly up the stairs to his room.

When he got there, he went over to Hedwig and stroked her through the bars of her cage. "Make sure you don't look girl; I don't want you seeing me like this." Harry hurried over to his bed as he heard heavy footsteps up the stairs. In the doorway stood Vernon, holding a belt. Harry gulped, realizing how badly this was going to be.

A/N: That's where I'm going to leave it for now! I feel kind of bad about the cliffhanger, but I'll try not to have such a long gap in between chapters. Please leave a review if you have any comments, questions, or concerns.

Stay safe everyone. Thanks for reading!

~ Ravenclaw2104