The Dragon and the Wizard

Summary:

Harry Potter has lived most of his life in constant pain and fear, mistakenly believing that the Dursleys are his only family. When his Uncle Vernon is sent to NYC for business, he takes the whole family, and Harry discovers that he's not as alone as he first suspected.

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Chapter One

The Dursley family was one that most considered well-to-do; they kept both their house and yard immaculate and seemed to go out of their way to appear even more normal than the rest of their neighborhood. Vernon Dursley was the director of a firm called Grunnings, which made drills; he was a large, beefy man with hardly any chin, though he did have an enormous mustache, and his favorite past time was yelling at people, mostly those unfortunate to work under him.

Petunia Dursley was almost the complete antithesis of her husband; she was a tall woman with twice the amount of neck of her husband, which came in handy as her favorite hobby was spying on the neighbors in her never-ending quest for gossip.

Dudley Dursley was their only son, and in their eyes, there was no more remarkable child in all of the world; though if you were to ask the neighborhood children, they would quickly disabuse anyone who might share that opinion. To those who knew him, really knew him, Dudley Dursley was a bully and a brat; his favorite hobby was to pick on those weaker than him, and if he was ever caught in the act, he made sure that his friends would always back his side of the story that it was all his victim's fault.

To all the world, it seemed as though the Dursley were the perfect dull family, and it was a façade that they desperately tried to maintain, for, despite their desperation for normality, the Dursleys also had a secret that would ruin them if it ever got out; that secret just so happened to be a seven-year-old boy named Harry Potter.

Harry was the son of Petunia's sister and had been dropped on their doorstep six years prior when Harry's mother and father had died; with no other family to go to, Harry had unfortunately been left to the tender mercies of his Aunt and Uncle.

For the next six years, poor Harry's life was one of constant misery; he was forced to sleep in a cupboard under the stairs and perform every chore that popped into his Aunt and Uncle's mind.

When he wasn't being worked like a slave, Harry was forced to endure abuses at the hands of his cousin, Dudley, who seemed determined to make Harry's life as miserable as possible; at school, Harry had no friends because Dudley and his gang had made clear that Harry was to be avoided at all costs; anyone who ignored this unspoken rule suffered at the hands of Dudley and his gang.

Due to lies from his Aunt and Uncle about him, the teachers at Harry's school didn't treat Harry much better, viewing him as a delinquent who was unjustly dropped on his poor relative's doorstep after his drunk father crashed the car he was driving, thereby killing Harry's mother and father.

The fact that the Dursleys forced Harry to wear Dudley's old things didn't help Harry correct this incorrect assumption of him; rather, they made Harry seem even more pathetic, if that were possible, as Dudley was easily three times bigger than Harry, and so his cousin's clothes hung over his tiny frame.

For six long years, Harry had been without hope of ever being treated the way that he watched his Aunt and Uncle treat Dudley; all Harry wanted was to be loved, to have someone hold him the way that his Aunt Petunia fawned over Dudley, yet as the years passed, Harry began to understandably accept that his life would never be that way.

Unknown to all, fate was about to give Harry the thing he wanted most, and it would come in the most unexpected place of all: New York City.

XXXX

Vernon Dursley was delighted as he drove his company car home; the vice president had stopped by Vernon's office this morning and offered Vernon a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Vernon had been hand-picked to go to New York City to negotiate a deal for Grunnings that could prove very lucrative; the only drawback was that the trip would require Vernon to stay in New York for at least three months, perhaps even four.

Unwilling to let such an opportunity slip by, Vernon immediately accepted; seeing as it was summer, the vice president even granted Vernon's request to bring his family with him to New York. Vernon had nearly passed out from happiness when the vice president had told Vernon that he and his family would be staying in a very luxurious hotel while Vernon sealed the necessary deal, and now he was eagerly racing home to tell his wife and son the good news.

As he pulled into his driveway, Vernon's eye caught sight of his nephew pulling weeds; instantly, Vernon's good mood vanished as he stared at the emaciated boy.

Vernon only hoped that he or Petunia could find someone to look after that brat because he would not allow the little freak to ruin Vernon's golden opportunity for advancement and the rewards that would follow if he could successfully close this deal.

With a grunt of frustration, Vernon heaved his weight out of the car and began to quickly stride towards his front door,

"There had better not be a single weed out here when I come for my inspection, boy!" Vernon snarled at his nephew before opening the door and walking inside, not waiting for his nephew's reply.

"Pet!" Vernon called as he entered the house and began looking for his wife, "Petunia, dear? Where are you? I have great news!"

"I'm in the kitchen, Vernon!" Petunia called out, "I'm just making Dudley his afternoon meal!"

Quickly striding into the kitchen, Vernon smiled as wide as he could as he took in his family; his wife was currently stacking a veritable mountain of macaroni and cheese onto a place for his son, who was sitting at the table playing some sort of portable videogame with a bored look on his face.

"I have news, my love!" Vernon said happily as he slapped his hands together and rubbed them eagerly, "The vice president of Grunnings has hand-picked me to go to New York City to help close a deal that could very well make or break our future!"

"Vernon, that's wonderful!" Petunia said happily as she sat the plate of food in front of Dudley before walking over and giving Vernon a peck on the cheek. Dudley turned off his game, gave his parents an unimpressed look, and took his meal upstairs to his room.

"That's not all!" Vernon beamed, "Because it's summer, I got the VP's permission to take you all with me! We'll be staying at a very luxurious hotel until the deal is done, paid for by the company, of course."

For a moment, Petunia beamed, then a thought entered her head, and her smile turned into a very ugly scowl.

"Vernon, we can't," Petunia retorted, "We have no one to watch the freak, and we can't very well leave him here alone, can we?"

"We'll leave him with Mrs. Figg," Vernon said simply, unwilling to let the brat ruin his plans.

"She's gone for the summer," Petunia replied with a sneer,

"Gone?" Vernon asked angrily, "Gone where?"

"I've no idea," Petunia replied, "Just that she said she would be gone until summer ends. What about Marge?"

"She's still in France," Vernon grumbled, "There has to be someone that can look after him!"

XXXX

Two hours later, a distraught Vernon and Petunia Dursley were sitting at their dining room table; they had both called every number in their respective address books and unfortunately, no one was willing or available to watch a child for close to four months.

"I suppose that's it, then," Vernon spat, "We'll have to take the little freak with us to New York City."

"Oh, Vernon, we can't!" Petunia wailed, "The boy will ruin everything! What do we do if he does some of his…. Freakishness?"

"He won't." Vernon replied darkly, "Because I'll make sure that he knows what will happen if he does…."

XXXX

Luong Lao Shi sighed sadly as he sat down on a box; to most of the world at large, he was a simple store owner; only a few knew that he was also a dragon as well as the former Dragon in charge of protection of magical China when he had been a younger man. Luong Lao Shi was a diminutive Asian man with somewhat pointed ears and thinning white hair, thick eyebrows, a Fu Manchu mustache, and a soul patch beard; the strangest thing about him was his choice of dress as he was wearing a dark blue robe with yellow trimmings on the sleeves and hem. To everyone else, Luong was simply an eccentric old man, and it was a carefully guarded charade that Luong enjoyed playing.

He and his dog Fu had been cleaning the attic of his shop when he had discovered a long-forgotten box hidden in a seldom-visited part of the attic. Inside, Luong Lao Shi had found a picture that he had long thought lost, showing the child he had given up for adoption many years before. Twenty-seven years prior, Luong had been sent by the dragon council to England to help the English Dragon with a particular problem that he was unable to do alone.

While there, Luong Lao Shi met a beautiful woman; things had progressed far faster than either of them had intended, and a few months later, the woman had informed Luong Lao Shi that she was pregnant.

Luong had been a very different man back then, and unable to properly care for a child, he had agreed with the woman when she suggested that they put the baby up for adoption; the last time that Luong had seen his daughter was the day she had been born, the day this photo was taken; the day that he had given her the only thing he could, a name: Lily.

As Luong stared at the photo, he felt his heartstrings stir with long-forgotten pain; at the time, it had seemed like such a good idea to give the poor girl up for adoption, but now? Now he wished he had chosen differently. He had gotten married and raised a family of his own since he had given his first daughter up, and Luong was pleased with his family, yet he couldn't help but wonder what had become of his little Lily flower.

Luong couldn't tell what it was, but he felt that something was coming and that it would have dire ramifications for not only his family but also for the world; try as he might, Luong couldn't shake the feeling as he stared at the picture clutched in his hand.

"Hey, gramps!" A voice called from downstairs, "Where are you? We were supposed to start our training like thirty minutes ago!"

"We will start training when Grampa is ready!" Luong yelled back as he gently placed the photo into the box and rose to his feet, "You need more training in patience!"

"Aw, man!" The voice replied as Luong slowly made his way down the attic stairs.

XXXX

Harry smiled happily as the stewardess brought him his dinner, which consisted of chicken nuggets, corn, and mashed potatoes; he knew it might be the only time he would ever be allowed to eat like this, so he was happily eating as much as he could.

The Dursleys had told Harry a week ago that they would be dragging him with them to America but had almost immediately warned him about what would happen if he did anything freakish; even with the threat hanging over his head, Harry was happier than he had ever been, even as he sat in coach while his relatives enjoyed first class.

Harry had never been allowed to join the Dursleys when they went on holiday; he'd always been forced to stay with Vernon's sister, Marge, or else stay with Mrs. Figg and her nauseating army of cats.

This was why Harry was determined to be on his best behavior during his trip to America; if he showed that he was a good boy during his Uncle's trip, he might be treated better when they returned to England. Of course, it was a vain hope, but Harry held onto it with all the intensity that a seven-year-old boy could muster.

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Eight hours later, Harry and the Dursleys made their way out of the airport with their luggage; Dudley had needed three suitcases for everything he wanted to bring. Meanwhile, Harry had a single backpack slung across his shoulders as he didn't have enough to need anything else.

After a long drive from the airport to the hotel that Vernon's company had footed the bill for, Harry found himself staring open-mouthed at their room; Vernon's company had apparently spared no expense as they had reserved a two-story penthouse for the Dursley family.

Because there was more than enough room for both Dudley and everything he brought with him, Vernon had grudgingly agreed to let Harry have his own room for the duration of the trip, and Harry very nearly cried as he lay on his own bed for the first time.

As Harry enjoyed the fresh smell of his sheets, his Uncle suddenly opened the door and stepped inside, causing Harry to jump in surprise as Vernon glared down at him.

"We're going out," Vernon growled,

"We are?" Harry asked, then immediately regretted it as his Uncle smacked him across the back of the head for ignoring the 'no questions' rule; as Harry lay groaning on the floor, Vernon sneered at him.

"Not you, boy! Your Aunt, cousin, and I!" Vernon clarified, "You are to stay in this room until we return, is that clear? That means no ordering room service or watching television; you just stay put! If I come back here and find that you disobeyed me, I'll make you wish you had never been born!"

As Vernon slammed the door shut and stomped back to his waiting family, he missed the way Harry sniffled and muttered under his breath,

"I already do…."

XXXX

Several hours later, after a scrumptious dinner that left everyone satisfied, especially since the meal was on someone else's dime, the Dursleys clambered happily into a taxi; after a day of sightseeing and a delicious dinner, they were looking forward to enjoying a hot shower before bed, even if the freak was still there.

"Bloody good start, eh?" Vernon chuckled, "And we've got four more months here!"

"Too bad we have to share it with the boy," Petunia sniffed,

"Not to worry, Pet," Vernon said contemptuously, "If he puts a single toe out of line, I'll make him rue the day his parents popped him out into the world!"

So caught up in their own black thoughts and cruel laughter that they failed to see the truck that ran through the red light and collided with the side of their taxi, the cab flipped three times before coming to rest upside down.

By the time emergency services managed to arrive and transport the cab driver and his three customers to the hospital, it was too late.

XXXX

"Hey, Gramps! Can we take a break?" Jake Long asked his grandfather, who was serenely resting in a lawn chair in the shade, a glass of sweet tea sitting on the table next to him; for the past two hours, Jake had been forced to balance on his tail as he sat in a meditative pose, and needless to say, he was exhausted.

Ordinarily, Jake would be in his human form, and when so, he looked like a younger version of his grandfather; he was short for his age, with spiky black hair which had green highlights; his dress of choice was simple, with a white shirt under a red jacket and blue shorts.

His dragon form seemed to match his human one; when in dragon form, he was tall and muscular, with scaled red wings, green spikes that ran down his back, and a yellow underbelly; only his black and green hair remained the same, no matter what form he chose.

"Take a break?" Grandpa scoffed back, not even bothering to open his eyes, "It's only been two hours! When I was your age, I could go for days and not get tired!"

"Kids these days are too soft," Fu agreed from where he sat beside Grandpa, likewise serenely resting in the shade.

"Come on, gramps!" Jake complained, "What's balancing on my tail in the hot sun while you and Fu relax in the shad supposed to teach me how to be the next American Dragon?"

"Fool!" Grandpa yelled back, "To be the next American Dragon requires a sharp mind and a strong fist! If you cannot even sit still and contemplate, how will you do your job?"

"Aw man…" Jake sighed before trying to focus and meditate again.

XXXX

Harry bit his lip as he anxiously jumped from foot to foot, trying to decide what to do. It had been nearly two days since the Dursleys had left, and Harry hadn't seen them since; too afraid of what his Uncle would do to him if Harry disobeyed, the boy had stayed in his room the entire time.

Hunger and thirst were now making their presence known, and Harry faced an agonizing choice, leave the room and try and find some food, or stay in the room and die; each option carried the same amount of danger, for if Uncle Vernon found Harry out of his room, he might just as easily kill him as hunger would.

Finally, after an interminable amount of time, Harry reached out and slowly turned the doorknob, wincing as the door opened with a loud 'creak;' as silently as he could, Harry stepped out of his room and into the penthouse.

To Harry's surprise, the penthouse was as dark and silent as it had been since the Dursleys left two days prior; gathering his courage, Harry crept to the kitchen and opened the fridge for food and water.

As the fridge popped open, Harry jumped back in shock, for a giant bug had flown out of the fridge; as it shook the cold off of it, Harry felt his jaw drop in awe as his eyes beheld a light blue fairy, with the most beautiful pair of wings that Harry had ever seen.

"Oh, thank you, little one," the fairy said as it turned to face Harry, "I've been stuck in there since the last guests accidentally shut me in!"

"You're so pretty…." Harry breathed in awe, making the fairy giggle and turn pink,

"Aw, you're adorable, aren't you?" The fairy said, flashing a warm smile at Harry, "What are you doing here alone, sweetie?"

"My Aunt and Uncle went to dinner and told me to stay in my room until they got back," Harry mumbled softly, his voice turning toward pleading as he continued, "But that was two days ago, and I know I was supposed to stay in my room, but I'm so hungry, so please don't tell them, Ms. Fairy."

"Now, enough of that!" The fairy said soothingly as it flew closer to Harry, "There's no reason to cry, little one! I'm certainly not mad at you for going to look for food." The fairy crossed her arms, and an annoyed look came across her face as she continued talking, "If anything, I'm mad at your relatives for leaving you here! Who leaves a child alone for two days with no food?!"

Before anyone could say anything else, Harry's stomach gave a loud rumble, making the boy rub his belly sadly as the fairy giggled.

"I can find you some food if you promise to wait here," the fairy said with a smile that made Harry feel all warm inside.

"I can do that, Ms. Fairy," Harry said shyly, making the fairy giggle again before flying out of the window and out of sight.

XXXX

Jake was finally allowed to change back into his human form by his grandpa when a tiny blue fairy flew up to him, looking torn between worry and fury; instantly, Grandpa was standing next to Jake as the fairy began to speak.

"American Dragon, you must come quick!"

"What's up?" Jake asked, all his soreness melting away in an instant,

"There's a child all alone and hungry!" The fairy replied quickly, "They left him alone two days ago!"

"What kind of parent leaves a child alone for two days?" Jake asked angrily as he quickly transformed into his dragon form; Jake's grandpa did the same beside him, and Fu jumped onto Grandpa's back.

"Not everyone is worthy of having a child in their care, Jake," Grandpa said sadly before turning to the waiting fairy, "Take us to him!"

Nodding quickly, the fairy sped off back toward the hotel, Jake and Grandpa flying after her as quickly as they could; a few moments later, the fairy flew into the open window of a nearby hotel, which made Jake's eyes widen in surprise.

"Yo, with this kind of money, you would think they could afford to look after their kid!"

"Indeed," Grandpa grumbled as the two flew into the window after the fairy, where a scared-looking child awaited them.

"D-dragons!" Harry said, his voice torn between fear and awe, "Dragons are real?"

"Sure are, kid!" Fu said with a grin as he jumped off of Grandpa's back, making Harry's eyes go so wide that it looked as though they would pop out.

"A talking doggy?" Harry whispered in awe; Fu winked at Harry, causing the boy to giggle, even as his tiny hands worriedly wrung the front of his shirt.

"So, what's your name, little guy?" Fu asked,

"H-harry…" Harry mumbled softly, suddenly going shy and making the fairy squeal at how cute he had become.

"Well, Harry, what are you doing here all by yourself?" Jake asked as he shifted back into his human form, making the child's eyes widen, "Where are your parents?"

Looking down at the ground, Harry mumbled sadly,

"My mummy and daddy are dead…."

"I'm so sorry, kid," Fu replied sadly, "But who's been taking care of you, then?"

"My Aunt and Uncle," Harry replied, and no one missed the way he shook with fear as he mentioned them, "But they're not very fond of me…."

"How do you mean, sweetie?" The fairy replied, "They don't hurt you, do they?"

Biting his lip to keep himself from crying, Harry slowly nodded his head, making Grandpa and Fu growl angrily.

"Where are they, child?" Grandpa asked as he transformed into his human form, "What are their names?"

"I don't know where they are," Harry said softly, "They said that they were going to go to dinner, but that was two days ago, Mr. Dragon, sir. But their names are Petunia Dursley and Vernon Dursley. Oh! And there's my cousin, Dudley."

Jake frowned at the names; they seemed very familiar, yet he couldn't figure out why. On the other hand, Fu seemed to go pale at the mention of the Dursleys and quickly motioned for the other to follow him out of Harry's hearing range.

"What's up, Fu?" Jake asked in confusion,

"Those names, the Dursleys? I know where I've heard them from," Fu explained, glancing at Harry, who was being tickled by the fairy, "They died two days ago in a car accident. It was all over the news!"

"Oh yeah!" Jake said, snapping his fingers as the memory returned to him, "I thought I had heard the name before! I just couldn't figure out where!"

"Pity," Grandpa said gravely, "Judging by the boy's appearance, they had much to answer for."

Turning from the group, Grandpa studied Harry intently; the boy's green eyes had nearly taken Grandpa's breath away when he first saw them, for they reminded him so much of his long-lost daughter; even the shape of the eyes was the same, and Grandpa couldn't help but wonder at the boy's origins.

"So, what do we do?" Jake asked the room at large, "Do we call the cops? They'll know what to do with the kid, surely?"

"That might work if he was a regular kid," Fu replied, "Unfortunately, Harry here ain't a regular kid."

"What do you mean he's not a regular kid?" Jake asked in confusion, "He looks pretty regular to me."

"When I was looking at the kid, I noticed his scar," Fu explained, "That kid's famous in the Magical World!"

"He is?" Jake said in surprise, "Who is he?"

"Harry Potter," Fu said softly so that Harry wouldn't hear, "Only person to ever survive being touched by the killing curse. Son of Lily Evans and her husband, James."

Grandpa felt as though the wind as knocked out of him, and it took all his willpower not to crumple to his knees; after he had given his daughter up for adoption, he had changed his mind and went in search of her. It took him a few months, but he was finally able to track down his Lily flower; only to discover that she had already been adopted by a family named Evans. When he saw how happy his Lily flower was, Grandpa decided to leave her there and sadly returned home.

"Do you remember how she died?" Grandpa asked in a hollow voice that made the other turn to him with worry.

"Yeah," Fu said with a raised brow, "She and her husband were involved in a war about a decade ago against a Dark Wizard named Voldemort. For some reason, Voldemort wanted the Potters dead bad. Probably due to how many times they managed to escape him and his gang of idiots. Anyway, he finally managed to track them down to their house because one of their friends betrayed them and killed them both on Halloween six years ago now."

Grandpa felt a tear run down his old face at the thought that his daughter was dead, had been dead for nearly six years, and he hadn't even known; what was worse was that if Harry was indeed his grandson, then he had left the poor boy at the mercy of his relatives for six years to be beaten mercilessly.

"According to what I read," Fu continued, not having seen Grandpa's reaction, "James Potter died first trying to fight Voldemort and give his wife and son time to escape. But Lily ended up trapped in her son's nursery, and Voldemort killed her there. No one knows what happened next, only that when Voldemort tried to kill Harry, he couldn't, and it caused him to disappear somehow."

"Does it say what happened to Harry after that?" Grandpa asked in a weary voice,

"No," Fu replied, "Harry's magical guardian, Albus Dumbledore, took possession of him after that and wouldn't tell anyone where Harry was."

"Dumbledore…" Grandpa growled, his teeth elongating for a moment; Grandpa had crossed paths with Dumbledore many times in the past, and each time made, Grandpa despised the man all the more. Dumbledore was a devout follower of the greater good and was willing to do anything and sacrifice anyone to see that the greater good was served. If he was to blame for Harry's condition, Grandpa would happily tear the old bastard's beard out by the roots, and then he would get more inventive.

"So, is there like a magical police force we can call or…?" Jake said before Grandpa cut him off.

"No! He will come with us!"

"Huh?" Jake said in surprise, "But why, Gramps?"

"Because there is a chance that he is my grandson," Grandpa said solemnly, making everyone go silent with shock, including Harry, who had crept closer to see what was happening.

"Your kidding, right?" Jake said in shock, "How is that possible?"

"Before I met your grandmother, I was involved with another woman," Grandpa said with a small smile as old memories flared up, "It did not last, but it produced a child, a girl. We named her Lily before we put her up for adoption."

"Adoption?" Jake said softly, "Why?"

"Neither of us was ready for the responsibility of a child," Grandpa replied sadly, "We didn't want to but had little choice. So I made sure that Lily went to a good family, a family named Evans."

"Which was Lily Potter's maiden name," Fu said softly, "Which means if you're right…."

"Harry is my grandson," Grandpa said softly, "And your cousin, Jake."

"You're my grandpa?" Harry asked softly, hardly daring to believe it might be true, "Really?"

"Yes, Harry," Grandpa said warmly, "There is a chance that I might very well be your grandfather. And if so, you would be most welcome to stay with me if you wanted to."

Harry couldn't help but smile at the old man who could turn into a dragon, even as tears ran down the little boy's cheeks; he had found someone who wanted him, and no matter what he had to do in return, Harry would do it without question if it meant being taken away from the Dursleys.

"You promise?" Harry asked, his voice shaking and making everyone look at him with pity,

"I'll do more than that!" Grandpa smiled, "I'll give you a sacred dragon's promise!"

Instantly, Grandpa transformed into his dragon form and extended his pinky claw toward Harry, who stared at him in awe again; slowly, Harry extended his own pinky and wrapped it around the blue Dragon's claw.

"Now, hop on, little one!" Grandpa said happily, "Let's go home and introduce you to your new family!"

As carefully as he could, Harry climbed onto Grandpa's back as Fu did the same to a shocked Jake; once he was sure that Harry was secure, Grandpa jumped into the air and dove out of the window and into the sky as Harry squealed in delight.