The day was not going as Harry had expected it to. He reluctantly opened his front door and slowly walked inside. His heart pounded when he saw his parents waiting for him.

The look in his mum's eyes could burn a hole in his forehead. Harry gulped, knowing what was coming.

They already got the phone call… damn…

Harry sighed. He knew he messed up, but it wasn't his fault, at least not really.

Crossing his arms, he tried to return the same hard look his mum was giving him, but Lily huffed in annoyance. Her pale cheeks were flushed in anger, and Harry could see that she was trying to control her heavy breathing.

That was never a good thing.

His dad on the other hand was standing slightly behind Lily, a hand on her shoulder as if to calm her down. His face was passive. James always let Lily handle Harry when it came to punishment. James was always in the mindset of being the fun, joke filled, big brother sort toward Harry.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Lily walked closer to Harry, looking down at him. She was only slightly taller than him, but in her anger, she might as well have been a giant.

Rubbing his arm where bruises were forming under his shirt sleeve, Harry shrugged.

Lily glanced back at James. Harry watched them have a silent conversation, a heavy feeling falling into the pit of his stomach. Harry could see how upset his mum was, but she also looked sad. James's expression didn't change, but Harry could tell he was giving into whatever silent thing Lily was telling him.

"What's going on?" Harry finally asked, after their silent conversation seemed to go on forever.

Lily brushed a strand of red hair from her eyes, before squeezing them shut. Harry noticed her hands were slightly shaking.

"This can't keep happening, Harry," Lily answered. "We've talked about it, your father and I and I think it would be a good idea to…"

"To what?" Harry swallowed, backing away from them, his back pressing into the wall.

"The public school system isn't good for you, Harry." Lily opened her eyes. "You keep getting into trouble."

'But it isn't my fault!' Harry thought, wanting to scream it into her face, but he pursed his lips shut as tightly as possible. Dudley and his little gang of friends are always starting fights with me.

"I know, Harry," Lily said, seeming to read what was behind his troubled eyes. "We just think that school isn't right for you."

James remained silent, not meeting Harry's eyes.

"What does that mean?" Harry rubbed his toe over the carpet, looking down at his shoes.

"I've been looking into some private schools…" Lily trailed off when Harry looked up, his eyes wide. His heart started to pound and he felt like he would pass out.

"A-are you serious? Private school?"

How would that change anything? There would probably be kids there that would make his life hell, too.

"You've got to be kidding me." Harry frowned, trying to look as pathetic as he could. This always worked for him in the past, but it was clear that his parents were firm in their decision.

"It's final." Lily looked at James. Harry could tell she was trying to get him to back her up, but James just shrugged. Like father like son. Lily rolled her eyes and looked back at Harry.

"But why? I don't understand why you're doing this to me." Harry knew he was whining and now he wasn't even putting on an act. He felt like he was being betrayed.

"It was Dudley's fault I got into those fights!" he said. He felt like he was close to tears, but refused to let any fall. "You know he and his friends pick on me!"

Lily narrowed her eyes. Harry could tell she was upset that he had started to yell at them, but he couldn't help it. It wasn't fair that he was being punished for something his cousin and his friends always started.

"I'm not a troublemaker," Harry said in a lowered voice.

Walking over to Lily, James put a hand on her shoulder. He smiled ruefully, looking between her and Harry. "He's just a boy, Lils." This was not the kind of support Lily was looking for, even Harry knew that.

Lily spun on him, her eyes flashing. "A boy! Oh, I suppose you find this funny, James!"

'You did marry a big jokester, mum.' Harry couldn't help but smirk. He started to slowly back away from them, seeing that all her anger was now on his father. He got to the door and leaned against it, looking in the room, watching his parents.

"He just got into a little fight," James said. Harry rolled his eyes. It wasn't just a little fight. It was never just a little fight. James was slowly backing away from Lily, his hands in the air in surrender.

"A little fight!" Harry winced. His mother's voice was shrill. "He knocked a boy loopy, James, Loopy!"

'I did, but I didn't mean to…' Harry sighed.

"His parents had to fetch him from school and take him to the hospital."

Guilt ate at Harry. He hadn't meant to hurt anyone. Nobody ever expected him to stand up for himself and the one time he did…why did he have to be the one in trouble? Since when was self defence wrong?

"He was singing Mary Poppins!"

That part was funny…

"Mary Poppins, James!"

James laughed and Harry saw the instant regret in his eyes when his mum smacked him across the arm. It wasn't enough to be painful, but enough to let James know she was pissed. It was playful, despite her anger, and Harry for sure knew what real abuse was.

'Oh, so you can hit someone and I can't? That's really fair, mum.'

'Yeah, but you weren't playing around when you hit him,' Harry's inner voice said.

'I was trying to get them to stop hurting me…' A tear fell down his cheek. Harry rubbed it away.

"Mary Poppins is a good show, the kid has taste."

'Dang, dad, are you still on the 'boys will be boys' route?'

Lily sighed. "Honestly, James. Well, I'm not going to the parent teacher meeting. You are, since this is all fun and games for you." Lily glanced at the clock on the wall. "Meeting starts at 3."

Harry chucked, watching his father's face pale.

"That's in fifteen minutes!"

"Then hurry," Lily said, crossing her arms.

Once he was alone in his room, Harry started to pace back and forth, kicking anything that was in his way. He couldn't control his breathing, sighing every few seconds, until he felt so lightheaded that he had to sit down.

This was all his stupid cousin's fault. The Potters and Dursley's hardly ever interacted throughout Harry's sixteen years, but unfortunately, he and Dudley went to the same school, and for whatever reason, Harry became Dudley's number one target.

'At least I'm not going to that school anymore,' Harry thought. He had no idea where he would be going now. His mother promised it would be a dreadfully boring all boy's school. That wasn't much of a threat to Harry. He didn't mind changing schools, not really, but knew better than to let Lily know this.

'If mum thinks I want to go, she might change her mind. Now that I've thought about it rationally, this is the best news I've ever gotten!'

Harry hated his school and hated being a punching bag for Dudley and his bully friends. But most of all, he hated that he didn't have any friends.

'Pathetic… but true…'

Dudley and his goons saw to that.

"No more Duddykins, this is like Christmas!" Harry fell onto his back, looking up at his ceiling.

"But why is mum having such a fit when I was only defending myself?" He was so tired of doing nothing, so he tried to stand his ground for once in his life. It was only one punch and he hadn't expected much force to be behind it.

'Yet, he fell so easily…'

"Mary Poppins, indeed," Harry said, with a small chuckle. "How strange of a reaction." Harry shut his eyes. "I suppose it could have been worse."

He knew he was talking to himself, but it was a habit. One he couldn't break. If only he had someone to talk to other than himself.

Harry grinned, clenching his fists against his side. The bruises on his arms twinged, making him groan in pain. "I guess I finally showed them, though. I might be small for my age, but I can throw a punch…" Harry paused. "But I didn't know that until I did it."

After some silence, Harry heard a gentle tap at his door. "Harry, dear?"

He rolled over onto his stomach, determined to ignore her. 'Don't you, 'Harry, dear' me, mum.' He couldn't get over how upset he was at his parents for treating him like a criminal. They could get on his nerves sometimes. In his darkest moments, Harry wished they were gone, but then he'd feel a crushing guilt for thinking so. He supposed every teenager thought that about their parents every once in a while.

"Open up, please. I brought you some brochures," Lily spoke softly, tapping on the door again.

"What?" Harry slowly pulled himself up and walked toward the door. He opened it and saw his mum looking at him, her eyes full of love that was only reserved for Harry. 'Love, forgiveness, you'll always be my baby, we can get through anything together.' Those were the unspoken things Harry could see in her eyes.

'No matter what happens, she loves me…'

"For where?" Harry asked, his eyes widening when he saw the stack of papers in her hands. He could see pictures of buildings, smiling, happy boys in various settings, and titles of school names.

"Do you mean it, mum?"

Lily rolled her eyes, playfully swatting his head with one of the brochures. "I was a little harsh, I'm sorry. But I meant what I said. You will be transferring to a private school." She shoved the stack at Harry. "But you can pick the school."

Harry felt like a little kid again when his mum would take him to the toy store and let him pick out whatever he wanted. He beamed at his mum, before looking down at the brochures. His face fell. "Mum…these are out of the country." He looked at her, his heart constricting. "You're sending me away?"

He watched her look down at her shoes and knew she was avoiding looking into his eyes.

"I think it's for the best, Harry. You need a change of environment. Look at the schools, you'll like one, I'm sure."

Very troubled with the idea of being sent away, Harry stumbled away from his mum and sat down on his bed. "It wasn't my fault," Harry whispered after his mum had left his room.

Later that day, Harry sat at the kitchen table, barely even noticing the food Lily had set in front of him. He kept glancing at his mum, frowning before looking away. His mum looked troubled, but Harry could tell she was not going to be changing her mind about sending him out of the country.

"Have you picked one?" James asked, his voice cheerful and annoying. Harry glared at him. How could he not be aware of the tension in the room?

"Shut up," Harry told him, before crossing his arms.

"Watch your tone," James warned, raising an eyebrow.

"You're on her side!" Harry screamed. He pushed away from the table, glaring from his father to his mother. "I don't want to pick one!"

Despite wanting to go to a different school before, now Harry hated the idea. He was being punished because everyone thought he was a troubled teenager. Did they think he was dangerous or something?

"Harry," Lily tried to say calmly, "would you please..."

"Stop ruining my life," Harry cried. He regretted saying that right after when he saw Lily's face crumble. Harry sighed, hating the guilt growing in his stomach.

"S-sorry," Harry stuttered, still angry, but he knew he had to say it. Turning around, he ran out of the room. He stayed near the door, looking in. He hesitated, trying over and over again to try and walk back in and apologize properly, but he was just so frustrated.

"It's a mess," Lily sniffed. Harry hated that he made his mum cry.

"Nobody ever said this parenting thing was easy. Once he cools off and looks over the schools, I'm sure he will find one he likes. This is a good opportunity for him. That is what you said, Lily. Be firm."

'Maybe… maybe, dad, but I'm so…' Harry shook his head. 'Maybe one of the schools is good… but sending me away? It's…'

His mum smiled. "Right when I'm questioning my sanity for marrying you, you go and say something sweet."

That was one thing Harry liked about his parents. Nobody would ever be able to tell him that they didn't love each other.

"Scotland, honestly . . . Rome . . . Hell, what is she thinking, Greenland, where the heck is Greenland?" Harry was looking over the pamphlets, quite astonished that they were for so many different places.

'Boarding school . . .' he wondered how in the world they would afford this, not that he cared if she wasted her money.

"America, hm... Africa?" The teenager shook his head and continued reading. "Ireland, America again..." There were a lot of pamphlets for different schools in America.

'God, America is bloody gigantic.'

"Fine," Harry said to the empty room. "I'll pick a school, but how in the world am I supposed to choose? There's got to be about thirty schools here and they all have top programs and reputations, not that I care about reputations. Rubbish most like. I bet private schools are worse than public schools."

He laughed at the idea of his mum sending him somewhere more horrible than where he had been before. "She'll be surprised when I return home with my nose pierced, a tattoo on my forehead, and some bloke on my arm."

"Harry, what are you doing?"

He glanced up, seeing his mum tapping on his door, poking her head in his room. Harry felt better now that he had talked to himself, and gave her a small smile.

"I was debating getting a tattoo and finding a boyfriend at my new school." He laughed at the look on his mum's face. "Come in, mum."

Lily walked over to his bed and sat next to him. "You w-what?" She stuttered, her face turning pale. "Tattoo? You are not allowed a tattoo, is that understood!"

"What about a boyfriend?" Harry asked, pouting at her for not playing correctly.

"Oh, stop being so silly, Harry. Now did you see one you liked?" She asked.

"Yeah, this one, the boys seem better looking on the cover," Harry said.

"Harry, I said stop being silly."

Harry got a strange look on his face. "What if I wasn't being silly?" He asked, seriously. Would liking a boy be enough to make his mother hate him?

"You are your father's son. I'd still love you obviously, now which school, Harry."

"Thank God I am going to an all boys school, girls are no fun whatsoever," Harry groaned. "You do know it will be your fault if this school confuses my brain and some boy seduces me, right? It will also be your fault if I never get a girlfriend, you realize?" Harry asked though he was grinning now.

"Yes, Harry, I realize all of this. You're still going, now which one."

"Here," Harry said. "This one seems goodish..." He handed his mum a pamphlet for America, home of the free. "It even has an all men staff."

"Don't start on about the possibility of a forbidden teacher student romance, or I will throttle you," Lily said, slapping the pamphlet on top of Harry's head.

"Ah... you picked a good one. Your uncle Sirius has a vacation house near there. Forget I said that, and no you are not allowed to ask Sirius for the key. You're going to have a proper little gentleman for a roommate and you will be the best of friends."

Harry snorted. "Life isn't a fairy tale."