20 June 1988

The Dursley family liked to think they were normal and upstanding members of society, a high class family with a posh house. However, they had someone else living in that same house-Harry Potter, the magical freak delivered to them. Albus Dumbledore, the Headmaster of Hogwarts, a man with extremely high power arrived that fateful day on 2 September 1981, ordering them to take care of him and warning them that he would be watching their actions. The Dursleys were rightfully frightened and intimidated as would any other wizard or muggle, and even Vernon Dursley's face went white. Only after they promised to take him in then did Albus Dumbledore left. During the next few years, the Dursleys thought long and hard on how to dispose of Harry Potter to no avail as Petunia frightfully listed the things the Magicals had to track them down, like the Trace Curse or spells to torture them, like the Cruciatus Curse. Resigned to their fate, the Dursleys treated Harry Potter horribly and took out all their frustration on him, even though it was not his fault that he needed to live with them. They viewed him as an unwelcome burden, destroying their perfect family and wasting their time and effort. Things like giving favorable treatment to Dudley by letting Dudley have things Harry Potter wanted slowly turned into making him do household chores to beating him whenever they were angry. Soon, Dudley learnt from his parents ways and encouraged his friends to also treat Harry Potter menacingly. Needless to say, Harry Potter had the worst childhood a child could possibly have.

Soon, it was Dudley's eight birthday and they were headed to the zoo at Charing Cross Road.

"Mummy, why is that freak going to go with us? Why can't we just leave him at home? "Dudley shrieked

"Sorry dear, Mrs Figg had injured herself and can't babysit him." Petunia Dursley comforted

"Why, he is always ruining my day!" Dudley screamed.

"Aunt Petunia, I can stay at home. I promise I won't cause any trouble." Harry whined.

"Petunia, why not invite some of your friends to babysit him. They can have a good time doing whatever they want to him. It's time when he finally see how minor his punishment is!." Vernon interrupted.

"However, most of my friends are at work today and the only one Majity is at the golf club." Petunia said, "Why don't you ask Marge to come?"

"Marge is out on holiday in Australia. She was the first person I thought of." Vernon gruntled and stared at Harry with dagger-like eyes, as if this was his own fault.

Harry shuddered as he thought of Aunt Marge. Even though they were not blood-related, he still had to call her Aunt. Oh, how he detested that woman. She was plump, strong and had an extremely dangerous dog. Additionally, every time she visited, she would always use her walking stick to beat him at least 100 times. He shivered as he thought of the extreme pain. Worse of all, she kept on insulting him and made him do extremely embarrassing things.

"Aunt Petunia, I can stay at home by myself. You all can go to the zoo with Dudley." Harry begged.

"No, it will never ever happen. The number 1 rule is that you cannot be ever left alone. If you were left at home, you would blow up the house!" Vernon Dursley gnarled.

"Sorry Dursley, the freak has to come along. We promise to give you an extra five presents, "Petunia begged.

"Fine, but the freak will not be coming into the zoo with me and Piers, "Dudley smirked.

"Boy. We will drive you there and you better wait outside the Zoo and don't cause any trouble. Or you will not like the consequences." Vernon proclaimed.

"Fine," Harry shrugged his head and walked towards the car.

It was just another boring day, Harry thought, at least he didn't need to clean the floors and get some fresh air. He desperately wished he had his parents around. Then, he would not need to put up with Dudley, his aunt and uncle. However, his Aunt claimed that they were drunk fools who died in a car crash. Maybe, Harry thought, they could be as bad as aunty and Uncle. Maybe, they would have the same character as they have the same blood? He did not know who would be worse.

Soon, they reached the zoo with the Dursleys hurrying into it and Vernon Dursley letting off a harsh warning about not getting into any trouble and seeing him on the bench at 8pm. He also left Harry 5 pounds to buy some food, sarcastically mentioning how he needed to eat less so that the Dursleys could get more money. Harry didn't understand what the fuss on him not doing any "freakish" things was about. He didn't understand why they thought he was always up to trouble. Sitting on a nearby bench, he wondered when he could finally get free of them.

Now, Harry was a very observant boy. He was able to spot the simplest of mistakes and even the slightest anomalies in what his Uncle deemed the "perfect world." There were many people hurrying into a nearby pub at Charing Cross Road. However, they were wearing extraordinarily weird clothes. He swore a man was wearing a dress robe and the others had extremely bizarre hairstyles and their "bags" were too small to even fit a purse. Who were these mysterious people? If it was one thing that always unsettled Harry, it was leaving a mystery unsolved. However, his uncle had warned him of not obeying his instructions and going around unnecessarily causing "trouble."

Harry could not help but shudder as he remembered the time where he found himself at the top of the school roof or when he froze his cousin in mid-air, breaking his bones. It resulted in Harry's worst punishment, 500 strokes of the cane and "detention" in his cupboard for 6 months. There was also the time where he turned his teacher into a frog and turned piers hair purple.

Just as Harry decided to stay on the bench, his legs stopped listening to him. It shook and his soul suddenly came to life. There was just a weird tingling feeling in his body that pulled him closer and closer towards the pup. His stomach churned and his heart felt as if it suddenly turned towards the inn. The space between his stomach and chest felt as if it was on fire. Slowly but surely, the feeling spreaded throughout his whole body. His mind seemed as if it was coming home. It was as if there was a bird chirping inside of him. Frightened out of his wits, Harry held onto the bench with all his might but eventually, it was futile. Soon, he found himself in front of the inn. A creepy old man with an atrocious wig walked over. He stared at Harry in the most peculiar and frightening way possible before leading him through the inn and the throngs of customers. Inwardly. Harry's heart nearly stopped but his soul convinced his mind to keep moving. What radiated from the customers was a light feeling yet so dark that Harry shivered. Suddenly, they stopped in front of a wall. Just then, Harry's mind flashed through towards the time where he was warned of kidnappers who take advantage of innocent young children. He also remembered the time his Uncle threatened to sell him off to that kind of man and fetch a heavy profit, enough so that the Dursleys could move to a mansion. In his mind, they were frightening, the worst sort of character a human can ever be. He tried to escape but his mind and soul no longer listened to his feelings.

Just then, the old man, seeing the utter fright in Harry's eyes, whispered" You are going there, aren't you. No need to be afraid, just three taps will do." Immediately after, the old man knocked the wall three times and a whole new world appeared

~OOOO~

This was unlike anything he had ever seen. His eyes sprang wide open as he marvelled at the view. It was a whole new street, yet less crowded than the ones in London. He briefly wondered where the place even came from. Yet, his curiosity piqued and he took a step forward, trying to understand what the place was and where it was.

"You can go now.''The old man said, before turning back and the wall shut back close.

Now, Harry was very afraid. He was left in a whole new place, one he was sure did not exist. Furthermore, he could not go back as the knocking three times method did not work. In despair, he tried to figure a way out. He knocked almost 1000 times, did some weird actions and even tried to pry open the door to no avail. He thought, i am done for. Looking at his watch, he realised it was 2pm. He had been stuck for nearly 2 hours! When can the wall open? Harry thought that he was in a nightmare, as it couldn't possibly be real, yet it was. Cursing his mind and soul, he slumped down and started crying. He wondered if this was the place kidnappers held children like him. He wondered if he would be able to get help and get back to the bench.

After 10 minutes of crying, he decided that there could be another exit and the wall did not open or respond as it was only for entering. Bravely, he took a step forward and finally tried to make sense of his new surroundings. As he walked along the alley, he saw shops selling all sorts of weird things. The same bizarre people were flying in mid-air, using the wood they were holding to make all sorts of things happen. As he walked further down the alley, he saw shops selling robes, shops selling telescopes and strange silver instruments he had never seen before. Is this real? He wondered. Despite not being able to get back, he felt quite joyful to be there. These were all the things he had ever dreamt of. It felt like he was in wonderland. Seven years of living with the Dursleys felt like hell. Inadvertently, it caused Harry to feel the simplest joy in everything. Getting away from them was always his number one priority. Yet, he didn't want to become homeless and have to live on the streets and beg for people's mercy. He had quite enough of depending on other people for help. At night, he had always dreamt of being independent, where he could stay alive on his own, yet deep down, he knew it would never ever happen. How can a penniless, skinny boy not be dependent on other people. Throughout his life, he realised how corrupt Britain was. It was always the rich and powerful who controlled things. The poor would be thus considered as slaves, needing to do what the powerful people wanted. It was the same as the Dursleys. Harry knew that his Uncle was the local manager at Grunnings, a famous car company. His uncle thus saw it fit to make Harry as a slave, like how he treated his workers? Harry never knew the true reason. He thought that it was the extra burden of taking care of him after his "drunk" parents died in that fateful car crash. Yet, it seemed his Aunt and Uncle hated him more for the "freakish things" would do and how he would contaminate "poor little" Dudley. They bit him up with a single excuse, trying to "help" him get rid of the "freakishness inside him." Knowing he was something the Dursley did not have was a wonderful thing, yet Harry was unsure if it could cause more harm than good in the long run. Yesterday, Dudley and his gang were playing the game "catch the freak." Harry's skill at dodging was not enough. It mainly stemmed from Dudley and his gang trying to attack him. Since that day, his dodging skills had improved by leaps and bounds. The boys caught him and the gang of six bit him up, spit on him and made him lick their toes. It was humiliating, yet Harry was in no position of power. How did he longed for a day when he would be more powerful than them? How did he longed for a day when he could make them his slaves?

Turning back his focus to the alley, he tried to give himself some cheer and momentum happiness. Soon, he felt hungry. Seeing an ice-cream parlour, he went over and tried to order an ice-cream. On the menu were the most delicious ice-cream he could ever think of. However, the pictures were moving and Harry felt sick. It was as if some witch curse had caused it to happen. Suddenly, he noticed that the pictures in the alley were also moving and the worst thing was-they were taking! Just then, the ice-cream store owner walked over and asked Harry what was wrong. Harry felt as if he was stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, he really wanted to know more about these bizarre people, yet on the other hand, he wasn't so sure that he could trust them. In the end, he decided that it was good to hear from one of the bizarre people. He prepared to dodge if anything were to happen to him.

"Mr, sorry, I was pulled into this alley and I don;t know how to go back." Harry stammered, reading himself for the blow.

"Boy, why are you so afraid of me? Listen, I will not harm you. I am Florean Fortescue, the owner of this ice-cream shop. This is Diagon Alley, only magical people can enter and see it." The ice-cream store owner explained.

"So…o I am magical. I can do magic?"Harry exclaimed in glee.

"Yes, only those of magical ancestry and blood can see it. After all, it is charmed. By the way, who are your parents?" Florean Fortescue asked.

"My Uncle and Aunt said they died in a car crash because they were drunk." Harry explained

"Sorry boy, I am extremely sad that your parents died. Do you know what their names were?"the Florean Fortescue asked.

Harry shook his head.

"Additionally, how many years old are you and what is your name?" Florean Fortescue questions.

"I am eight years old and my name is Harry." Harry replied.

"Ok Harry. As of now, I am free and can tell you more about the magical world. But won't your parents be worried that you are gone?" Florean Fortescue asked worriedly.

"No, I only need to return at 8pm." Harry said. He could not wait to hear all about the magical world and hearing how special he was. Oh, and he would be sure to learn some new spells so that hopefully, he could turn Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon into frogs and Dudley into a pig. Yes, that looked rather fitting. Afterall, they totally resemble each of their respective animals. Harry snickered silently. He could not wait to hear what the old man would say!

"Okay. Let me try to do a simple introduction. The magical world is a place where magicals, people who did magic live. In the magical world, there are about 4000 people now. There is the British Ministry of Magic, which supervises everything administrative and handles diplomatic relationships with other people. That, Florean Fortescue said as he pointed to a newspaper, is the Daily Prophet. It reports on everything happening in this world There are also others like Witch Weekly but the Daily Prophet is the main one. Children, from 11-17 go into a school called Hogwarts. Starting from their First year, all students at Hogwarts were required to take seven core subjects: Transfiguration, Charms, Potions, History of Magic, Defence Against the Dark Arts, Astronomy and Herbology. First-years at Hogwarts also had to take a class on flying on broomsticks. Flying class is compulsory for first-years, but optional for second-years and above.

"Wait, sorry sir, but how do we fly?" Harry asked.

"Oh, there is something called a broom. It allows you to sit on it and fly." The Florean Fortescue explained, chuckling himself. Oh, how he liked explaining to muggle-borns about the magical world? It was a satisfactory part of his lifestyle being an ice-cream store owner!

"Oh thank you sir, but how do we do magic?" Harry questioned, waiting for the answer. This was the thing he was most excited about!

"Well, people can purchase a wand, which will help them translate the magic in their core to the magic in their wand. When you say a spell, the effects will happen." Florean Fortescue explained as he showed Harry his wand. "I am not an expert in wand-making, but each wand contains several materials, such as wood, and a core. Mine is dragon-heartstring with olive wood."

Harry gazed excitedly at the wand. It was the most beautiful thing it had ever seen. It was about 12 inches long, with a "red colouring" at the top. When the old man waved it, sparks came out in shades of red. Soon, they joined and formed a dragon. This was something Harry had never expected to see. In non-magical Britain, they were super afraid of witches who could curse anyone to death. This resulted in several laws passed to track witches down and kill them on the spot. Privately, Harry thought that the idea of magic was far-fetched, but seeing it performed in front of him opened up new possibilities and wonder. His mind quickly thought of the things he could do with a wand- he could cure people, he could kill people with a single word, he could torture them to insanity! Oh, the possibilities are endless! The first one he would be sure to test on would be his disgusting aunt and Uncle. He would torture them slowly until he sent them to the incurable ward in the hospital. And, yes! He would ensure that Dudley took the blame and get sent to prison for life or executed! Then, he could inherit all the money and house. He could not wait to think how he could spend the money! If anything, he would only be considered doing a good deed for Britain by storing away these three unwanted "people." he snickered heartily under his breath. He afterall can't let people know what he was doing! And if he was ever caught, he could just use his wand to kill the police officers or put a curse under them to let him out!

"Aren't planning anything, are you?" Florean Fortescue asked, seeing the loom on Harry's face.

"Oh, no. Absolutely not," Harry said cheekily." Additionally, how do I get a wand?"

"You can only get a wand when you are 11 years old. You can buy it at Ollivanders," Florean Fortescue said.

Upon hearing that, Harry was extremely disappointed. But however, he knew that his plan would be immediately carried out once he was 11 years old. It would serve as a nice birthday present for him after 10 years of torture. How he wished he could just get rid of the Dursley' forever! Two extra years was extremely worse.

"Sir, is there any other way of performing magic?"Harry asked, putting on an innocent look.

"Oh, yes there is. However, it is super complicated. You can only do so wandless and wordless. For wandless, only 20% of the magical population got the hang of it. For wordless, only 10% of the magical population has that ability. Only 8% of people in the magical world have both abilities." Florean Fortescue explained.

"Sir, can you teach me?" Harry asked excitedly. Adrenaline rushed through his veins. So there were other ways of doing magic!

"I don't think I can. After all, I am not that good at casting. I also don't have the wordless or wandless ability. Yet, I can give you some books to read on spells and the history of the magical world." Florean Fortescue said, hoping that Harry would not be too disappointed.

"Oh, okay. Thank you sir!" Harry exclaimed.

Soon, they were on their way to a magical bookshop called "Flourish and Blotts." Although Harry tried to give Florean Fortescue 10 pounds to pay for the book, he rejected it, saying that it is a free gift to him. Additionally, Florean Fortescue reminded Harry not to tell his relatives due to something Florean Fortescue called the "Statue of secrecy." Harry promised not to tell his Uncle and Aunt and he was 100% sure that he would never do so. After asking Florean Fortescue the way out of Diagon Alley, Harry happily skipped out of it, promising to try and come back to Florean Fortescue's ice-cream shop as soon as he could.

After making his way out of Diagon Alley with a tearful wave, Harry found the bench where he was originally sitting back and started to read the books. The first one to read was "The history of the magical world, from 600BC to 1945BC by Lucifer Waterfall. The second book was "The Wizengamot, voting patterns and alliances from 1788BC to 1987BC" by Thorton Gramp. The last one was "Basic spells to learn before Hogwarts" by Horton Gamp. By that time, it was 7 o'clock and Harry went into one of the restaurants to eat before he awaited the Dursleys' arrival.

Before he knew it, the Dursleys' were back. Harry kept the magical books in the bag they gave him and boarded the car.

"Didn't cause any trouble, did you? If you did, I am going to put you out on the road to get money for us BOY!" his uncle smirked.

~OOOO~

When they reached home, Harry quickly went to his bed, inside the cupboard under the stairs. When his relatives went to sleep, as evident by their loud snoring noise, Harry opened the books to read. However, he was so tired that he quickly fell asleep. As he slept, nightmares cropped up. Nightmares of the magical world being unreal or him not even having magic quickly appeared. Each time, he would resolutely fight back and proclaim that he was magical and special, yet the jeers became louder. Harry briefly had doubts over whether the magical world was real too and the nightmares didn't help. He kept trying to recall where he was to try and convince himself that Diagon Alley was a real street hidden behind that pub but he suddenly forgot the way to exit. Desperately, he tried to remember but to no avail. Dreams of looking at the books he was given and finding out they were horror stories of his miserable childhood and future life emerged. Horror images of Florean Fortescue turning into a fifty foot giant, waiting to gobble him up emerged. He feared that Diagon Alley and Florean Fortescue did not even exist and it was just his mid playing tricks on himself, trying to drive himself to suicide, ending his horrendous life and handing his mind some peace. He shook in bed violently, trying to quash down fears of the world day being just a dream. His face was as white as a sheet and sweat was flowing down his face like a storm.

Suddenly, he was awakened by the ringing of his alarm clock. Afraid that magic was fake, he looked through his books. It turns out that they were actually facts about the magic world. Turning to the page describing Diagon Alley, which he himself was surprised existed, he found out that the muggle entryway was at the nearby pub at Charing Cross Road, the exact place he made his entrance into Diagon Alley! He heaved a huge sigh of relief. Maybe magic was indeed real! Beaming from ear to ear, Harry quickly went to make breakfast for the Dursleys.