'July 20th, 1971

It's the day after going to Diagon Alley, and now I finally get to write the rest of the experience. I found out about so much of the wizarding world that it's crazy! It's strange to think that I belong in it too, because of how exotic everything felt like. They had different clothes, hairstyles, and even slang. I heard that they call non-magical people like mum and dad muggles. How interesting! They even have different types of money. They don't use pounds or francs, they use something else entirely. Gold! And other metals. They are shaped a bit thicker than normal coins. Turns out they're super expensive too. Galleons are like the biggest amount of money. Like how there are hundred-pound bills out there. They're made out of gold. The goblins explained at the bank to my parents what the exchange rate was from wizard money to pounds, and I couldn't quite grasp it. But my parents basically said that my wand was 175 pounds and I paid 7 galleons for it. So it was close to 25 pounds a galleon. And then there are the other coins which were sickles, which are silver and sort of the medium amount of money. And finally the bronze coin, which is called a knut. It's the smallest. Like a pence. I remember it had some weird numbers for how much of each coin was worth to the other coin and it was like 27 and 19 and whatever but basically, I remember that it's weird and wizard money is ridiculous.

Anyways, I think I like the wizarding world. But I am pretty certain that it isn't as cool as the regular person world. Oh, excuse me. The muggle world. After all, I am a witch.

I'm tired. I stayed up last night going over some of my books which were really cool! I like the charms one. I can do a lot of stuff if I'm good at charms, and it says I can make things float or disappear and I think that it is good to learn the basics of magic if I ever want to vanish a rabbit from a hat.

Tunie also stayed up late. We share a bedroom and after midnight (which is awesome that I managed to stay up that late! I've never done that before) I wanted to sleep because I'm tired and Tunie didn't want to. She kept her light on almost all night trying to read that stupid book she got. I could sleep with a pillow over my head to block out the light but she kept on randomly shouting words and waking me up. Things like, 'up!' and 'move!' and stupid stuff like that. Finally, I told her to shut up and go to bed and she told me that I could stuff it so I told her that I'd tell mum and dad that she was awake at 3 am reading a book and Tunie finally put it down and turned off the light.

She's upstairs now. Still reading that beginners book to magic and saying words and pointing a finger at a spoon. Randomly I'll hear her shouting and stuff but I've been ignoring it. I've been on the couch with my mum telling her about the charms and how they work. Mum is interested, and she's starting to get it now. She didn't before, I could tell that she didn't know how to react about it. But I think last night changed things and mum and dad have started to get excited now about magic. I'm really happy about that. I was worried that they would never understand me anymore.'

'July 29th, 1971

Tunie sent off a letter to Hogwarts. I didn't know until she told me. I am happy. I want my sister to be with me. She's the best sister I've ever had. But a part of me is sad because I wanted to do this on my own. But I also know I'll be so lonely when I am gone. It's a boarding school and my parents don't like it either. But I guess I can't just magically teleport myself there every morning.

Sev heard about Tunie going. She must've bragged or something because I didn't tell him. He confronted her at the swingset and told her that she can't go. She hasn't an ounce of magical blood worthy to go to Hogwarts. Tunie got so upset she ran home in tears.

I told Sev that was mean of him. I also told him that blood doesn't matter at all and if Tunie gets in then she gets in. No matter what her blood was.

He told me I was being stupid.

I told him he was stupid. But in a meaner way. I also called him a half-witted arse that didn't know how to talk to girls and that he had cooties.

I ran away to home and spent the day trying to help Tunie control her magic. It has been unsuccessful so far, but I know that Tunie could get into Hogwarts if she tried. I don't think I want to talk to Sev for now. He's been mean recently.'

'August 2nd, 1971

So Tunie got a letter back from the Hogwarts headmaster. It told her that she couldn't come because of various reasons. That there was no space. And that she wasn't magical and that they didn't want her to fall behind in her muggle studies. It was a load of hogwash and I told her so but Tunie didn't really listen. She just went upstairs and slammed a bunch of doors and I think she tossed the book for magic out the window or something. I haven't talked to Sev but I saw him for a little bit and he acted all smug. Guess he got the clue that he was right. I gave him the two-fingers. He didn't look too smug after that so I guess that solved that and I went back inside.

I went and helped my mum bake that cake that Tunie tried to make. It didn't burn but we figured out why it had. Turns out they misprinted the oven instructions and mum said it wasn't right to have it in for that long and at that amount of heat. So instead we made it and checked on it every so often until it came out perfectly. I hope this will cheer up Tunie.'

'August 2nd, 1971 (in the evening)

Tunie broke my sugar quills.

She ripped her card from the chocolate frog into bits. I hope the man in the picture wasn't hurt.

She even tried to get into my trunk but mum and dad were worried about me getting bullied because people might think I'm Scottish because of my red hair. They had a nice salesman give the trunk a lock on it that only I could open. They even made it so that it could shrink into the size of a matchbox if I tapped on it with my wand. Well, Tunie was so mad that she tried to get into it but I guess she wanted to ruin some of my other things that the trunk lock activated and it gave her blue spots all over her.

Serves her right for breaking my sugar quills.'

'August 19th, 1971

Tunie hasn't talked to me. Well, actually she has. She told me that I shouldn't touch her stuff (which I think was stupid because she tried to get into my trunk to get into MY stuff) and that she was mad that I baked her cake. Well jokes on her, mum and I found out that the cookbook is from America and they use some weird twisted up version of temperature and that is why it said we should bake it at 350 degrees. Tunie baked it in Celsius degrees. Dad did the math and it was supposed to be at 165 instead. When Tunie found out she got so mad that she told dad that she didn't have time to do math when she was cooking and binned the book.

I saved it.

Because I like books and it wasn't the book's fault for being American.

Tunie hasn't talked to me. I said that before but now she really won't. She had to sit down and talk with mum and dad in hopes that they can figure out why she was so mad but it turns out that it's just jealousy. Tunie is mad because I get to do magic. I guess Tunie doesn't have any and she really wanted to have it. Mum and dad said that Tunie would figure it out in the end, and when I'm gone she'll realize that she was being a bit of a dunderhead and apologize. I don't know if I want to wait that long for Tunie to make up her mind. I'm lonely now.

Speaking of which, Sev has been everywhere. He's tried to talk to me a few times but I don't want to talk to him still. If he hadn't said those words to Tunie then she wouldn't have been as mad. Then she'd still like me and we'd both be whispering to each other about how magic school would be so cool. And how I'll send her letters every day.

I miss Sev though. And I wish I could talk to him. I'm mad but I haven't forgiven him yet and I am lonely. Mum and dad are trying their best but I just want my best friends back.'

'August 31st, 1971

Tomorrow I go to Hogwarts.

Mum has been frantic all day. Cleaning and cooking my last supper at home. She makes an amazing brisket and homemade mashed potatoes. Dad came home early and gave me a big hug and told me he'd miss me. Tunie didn't really didn't do much today but she hasn't been super mean as she has been recently. So I think that's her way of saying that she will miss me.

I am Lily Evans, 11 years old, and ready to face my new adventure. I'm sorry for the short entry, Mr. Journal, but it's late and tomorrow I get to go ride a train to Hogwarts.

P.S. Also I found out that Hogwarts is in Scotland. I thought it was funny that dad thought that maybe I'd be bullied for having red hair and possibly being from Scotland. He thought it too until he said that maybe people might think I'm Irish. I wrinkled my nose at him and he laughed. He told me he loved me, and he hoped that I had a wonderful time learning about being a witch. I hugged him back and told him that he'd better have a great time being the dad of the best witch in Hogwarts.'

'September 2nd,1971

I got to Hogwarts yesterday! It was so eye-opening that I couldn't believe it. I didn't even have time to write about it! It was all so exhausting that as soon as I found my bed I just fell asleep, I didn't even have time to write my parents an owl. (That's what they call the post up here which I think is stupid. Just call it the post.) But I woke up this morning and sent them a letter saying everything that I am going to write down into you, Mr. Journal.

So after getting to the train station and walking through the pillar, I got on the train after saying goodbye to my parents. It was super busy, just like Diagon Alley, and there were kids everywhere. After getting on the train and it taking off, I found a compartment that was empty (there are a lot on this train) and I pulled out the charms book that I've been going over the last few weeks and after a while, there was a knock on the door. It was Sev. I hadn't talked to him since the last time he insulted Tunie and he came in an apologized.

He said he missed me and that he was really sorry. And you know what? I missed him too. Lots, actually. So I accepted his apology in the grounds that he'd never do it again and Sev agreed. And then we caught up finally. After the awkwardness left we were finally back to normal and we chatted about some of the new stuff that we had learned. I told him about some of the charms that I have read about and he pulled out his new book and told me about how so many different plants have different abilities and stuff. I thought it was so cool and we traded books and he looked over the charms while I checked out the plants. I didn't know that some of the plants that the wizardry world had different names that regular people use. Even I knew a few- like rosemary and garlic. Turns out that a lot of the plants just have different names and properties and stuff so most people don't know they are the same thing. This book was really cool to read.

After we chatted some more we put on our school robes and we arrived! The train ride was forever long! I never knew that it would be that long. I hadn't ever been in a car for that long. It was for seven whole hours! Crazy right?

Hogwarts wasn't visible from the train. But a big man told us to follow him and we got into some boats and Sev and I sat next to each other and a quiet boy with scars on his face sat on the other side. We were all amazed to see Hogwarts come into view. It was astonishingly beautiful. I think I fell in love. With a castle.

After we got out of the boats we through a side door and from there we were escorted into the castle by a woman whose name is Professor McGonagall. She told us to wait for a bit and Sev and I looked at the portraits they had on the walls. They were just like Tunie's card, they moved around and even waved at us a few times. And at one point a couple of ghosts, yes REAL GHOSTS, came floating over to say hello.

After waiting the Professor came back and she lead us together towards a great hall. It was huge! Tables, longer than tables ought to be, were lined up. They were spaced far apart, but they took up so much room. And each one had colors. These must have been the different houses that Sev told me about forever ago. He said he wanted to be in the green one or even the blue house.

Well, the next part of my night went from pretty amazing to a little weird. A hat, an old worn out hat, opened up a ripped seam (the kind that mum would go bonkers over) and it sang to us.

I did not expect it.

I don't think Sev did either as he jumped.

Anyways it basically told us about the houses and whatnot. Who cares. I didn't really. But I could tell that Sev liked it. I get that the houses were for like, a point system. But I don't think that they were that important.

So I got called up as one of the first. Evans starts with an 'E' after all. I went after a boy named something-something Black got up and apparently made some sort of weird statement by going into the red house. (It's the one with the lion.) Everybody didn't know how to react, but they clapped for him so I guess it was okay.

So I got up onto the stool and I did not expect the hat to speak to me. I thought it's weird magic had the song and randomly selecting houses for kids. Guess not, silly me. Turns out it read minds.

Because why the bloody hell not.

(Sorry Journal, but your my journal and I can write swears in you. Tough luck.)

Anyways it asked me if I wanted to go to Ravenclaw or Gryffindor. And it even said that I could go to Hufflepuff if I wanted because I was really loyal. It asked me a few questions and finally, it asked something to which I answered, "I'd shove a damn broom up its bloody arse if it asked me another question" and it yelled out Gryffindor.

Turns out I went into the red house too.

I didn't pay much attention to the other kids. Gryffindor got a few other kids, mostly the kind that roughhouse. I saw some poor fool with a haystack for hair chatting away loudly when there were other people to be sorted. Rude.

Then it was Sev's turn! It took a few minutes and it told him to go to Slytherin. The green house. They were the only ones who really clapped. I noticed that a lot of people didn't clap for him, which made me clap even harder. A few people on my table gave me odd looks but I ignored them.

The Headmaster said a few words which were mostly rubbish and the forest was 'forbidden' to go into. If they had a forest that nobody was supposed to be in, why would they not put in a fence or something? There had to be a magic wall or something to stop kids from getting killed by the 'dangerous animals' in there.

Wait, why are there dangerous animals in a forest nearby?

Well, I guess I'll find out later. The wizarding world is kind of dumb in a few aspects. Maybe I'll make a magic fence one day and get paid millions of pounds, er, galleons, to put it on the forest.

After dinner appeared, yes, it appeared out of nowhere! I ate lots of treacle tarts, they're my favourite. A nice older student took all of the newer ones up a few flights of changing staircases until we found a portrait of an old lady with pearls on. I heard them call her the 'Fat Lady' which is super rude. Anyways they told us the password (Lemonweed) and the portrait opened up and there was a hidden room!

And it as beautiful. And cozy too. Couches everywhere, a roaring fireplace, cushions on every surface. I thought it was pretty amazing for our common room. And then Professor McGonagall came in and told us she was in charge of Gryffindor and that she was glad that we came into her house.

After giving us the rules, which are sensible, I should think, she sent us off to our rooms where I fell asleep quickly.

And there! You're all caught up! I have to go now, magic to perform, cool things to learn and a best friend to catch up on all the gossip between our lives. I wonder where the green house lives? Perhaps there is another tower?'

'September 14th, 1971

It's almost been two weeks since school has started. Things have certainly changed, some for the good and others maybe not, but I think things are great so far. I like my classes, although I'm pants at transfiguration. I'm decent at charms, but we've only tried out one spell so far and we've mostly only talked about the technical stuff about charms. It's boring. Not quite the kind of class I thought it'd be but I hope it gets more interesting after we get through the beginner stuff. But potions on the other hand, now that is a favourite class. Professor Slughorn, who is also the teacher in charge of Slytherin, is the potions teacher and he's so fun to be around. I don't even have to use my wand to make potions! He taught us so much stuff, I honestly felt like it was cooking at the beginning. How to chop this how to cut that, it's different but it matters when making a potion. It's really important that you follow the directions, as some classmates of mine found out. The kid with the awful hair (he's been a right pain in the arse if you ask me. He's been bothering some of the Slytherins, along with that Black who everybody talks about. Apparently, families stay in certain houses, and Black commonly go to Slytherin. I don't really care about that though) managed to cut his leeks (which are called Allium Ampeloprasum) lengthwise and it blew up his cauldron. They should have been cut at an angle but he didn't listen to Slughorn.

On another note, that book of Sev's is amazing. I didn't know I'd find it so useful to know what properties that potion ingredients have, but it makes more sense to me. Like if you bake a cake there is the rising agent and the egg to bind them all together. Each ingredient has a purpose. And being able to look at some proper potion recipes, I can usually tell what the idea of the potion is. But Sev is much better at it than me. I think he has the book memorized now.

Some other good stuff about school so far is that I made friends! A nice girl who is also in Gryffindor whose name is Alice Prewett. And another girl who is in Ravenclaw, Pandora Fortescue. Alice is the sweetest girl I've ever met and Pandora is crazy smart. She's good at making her own spells up. I like them both a lot and I think they like me. It's good to have friends that aren't my moody older sister and a boy. Not that I don't like Sev, but sometimes he doesn't know girl stuff.

Anyways. Now onto the bad stuff. There is like a whole system with the houses that I can't seem to understand. Well, I guess I can but I am confused as to why teachers let it happen. So when we were sorted they said that the people with the most traits go to certain houses. Now that they are sorted they seem like they all act like just those few traits. Ravenclaws only read books and are at the top of the class. They don't like it when other people are better at them because only the 'Claws can be good at smart stuff. Hufflepuffs are loyal but to a fault. But they are the friendliest house out of the bunch so I can't find a lot of problems with them. But the worst is the rivalry against Slytherin and Gryffindor! It's insufferable. Lions don't like snakes because they're sneaky and the snakes hate the lions because they act like idiots. And they do! It's the worst because Sev is my best friend and everybody hates him on principle.

So yeah. Magic is fun. Society as a whole is the worst.

It's surprising to see how much a person can change in such little time. Harriet went from being meek and attentive to her relative's moods into being withdrawn and absentminded.

The Dursleys didn't really notice. Not one bit. Sure Petunia had a few times where she enjoyed slapping Harriet around when the girl didn't notice her snapping fingers. But other than that, the Dursleys didn't notice that Harriet kept to herself more often. No longer was Harriet jumping for Petunia's every wait and demand. No longer did she have the desire to make her Aunt and Uncle look at her with fondness, the kind of looks they gave Dudley. The thoughts that had once plagued Harriet, the kind that said that only if she was better then they would love her more, ceased.

It wasn't like that desire wasn't there anymore, no. Harriet had other things to think about.

Harriet was pulling herself into a new direction. Night after night, when she was certain that the Dursleys were in bed asleep, she'd click on her light and read her mother journal (not a diary). She didn't dare read it when they were awake. The chances of them discovering it was too great that Harriet put it down. She'd nap during the day when Aunt Petunia left her alone. Some days she'd get no sleep. Aunt Petunia wanted her to be outside in the hot weather weeding the garden. Harriet learned that she liked it when the sun was out, and when the rain wasn't coming down because she could hide in the rose bushes and sleep without Aunt Petunia noticing. Harriet couldn't nap easily when it was raining on her.

Some days were worse. Those were the days that Dudley would come after her. With his gang of minions, Harriet had to dodge and weave in order to get them off her trail. Some days she was successful, only coming home when she had no choice. (Uncle Vernon would yell at her being ungrateful and for not doing the chores. Aunt Petunia would loudly tell her that her mum should have aborted her and that she wasn't going to have any food for a week. And those were the good days.) And on other days, it was when Dudley and his team of brainless hench-people shared their two brain cells and something bright might have occurred. Those were the terrible days when they'd find her or corner her and then beat her to the ground. Harriet learned that she had to cover her face and head when they got her on the ground after suffering from another headache that seemed to churn her empty stomach.

Summer was closing to an end in Surrey. Although the days were long and hot, the school months were crawling closer. Believe it or not, Harriet looked forwards to school. Dudley and his group always bemoaned the endless days trapped in a classroom, but Harriet enjoyed the time away from number 4 Privet Drive. She got to go into a nice classroom where she didn't have to clean everything, got a meal every day for lunch, and didn't have to spend every waking moment being called a freak. Harriet figured that school was pretty much the closest thing that she could get to freedom while living with the Dursleys. Sometimes her teachers were nice, but she knew that the ones that got along with Aunt Petunia were the ones who didn't really like her. It had happened twice already, and those school years had been, while tolerable, awful in a sense. Better than being in her cupboard for ages though. There are a few times where Harriet was around when Uncle Vernon wasn't having a good day and Aunt Petunia had to call in for Harriet a few times. But on the bright side, Harriet knows that they can't keep her in her cupboard forever when school was in session, just a few weeks here or there.

And lately, the cupboard hasn't felt like a punishment anymore. Sometimes Harriet desperately wished that she could be in there instead of within Aunt Petunia's watchful sight. Harriet used to hate it sometimes, how the Dursley's could easily banish her back into her hole once she wasn't useful to them anymore. But now… Harriet liked the quiet. She liked the darkness and being able to read. She was able to pick it up faster now that she could read words better. The only noise that could be heard during the night was the sound of pages being turned.

Harriet read her mum's story. About how she enjoyed learning about magic at Hogwarts. How she made a friend named Alice, a kind girl who couldn't hurt a fly. About how Sev was still friendly, although some of the people in his house were dicks. About how she excelled in potions, but her transfiguration skills were dismal. She read about her mum's darkest secrets, her thoughts and feelings, her animosity against Black and another boy who she called a Half-Brained Twit. How they picked on Sev and the other boys from Slytherin. Her feelings on the fact that houses were apparently a huge deal, and how they outcasted others because they weren't in their houses. She read on, talking about her frustrations and happiness on a potion and delight with Sev with their success. They were potions partners. Harriet read until her mum came home from school, and how her sister was still bitter with her. Lily's frustration with her sister. Harriet read until she couldn't anymore, learning more and more about the wonderful magical school that awaited her at 11. Day after day, night after night, Harriet survived under her relatives care and learned about her mum during the darkest hours when she was awake.

Things softly began to change once again. As time continues on indiscriminately, the changes to Harriet came as a fleeting thought or a touch of wonder here or there. It was like a domino effect that never showed the picture as a whole, as the differences that were appearing were too small to notice. Not even Harriet could see what she was slowly becoming, as she stayed in her cupboard for the rest of the summer. As August stepped boldly forward into September when leaves were turning into different shades. October came smoothly, transitioning into the cooler months. Leaves began to fall when finally- the first large instance of Harriet's new self began to immerge.

It was a single thought. It felt like a sliver of light had touched Harriet's mind and vanished. And within that second, Harriet's point of view up and shifted two steps to the left. Of course, it could be also contributed to the fact that Harriet was lying on the cement of a sidewalk as Dudley and his gang of poorly disguised monsters stood over her.

'They don't have a single original insult out of all of them.' Harriet's enlightening thought appeared. Shifting her from the old Harriet into the new one.

It was true though. Every single one of the five seven-year-olds was just repeating the same word over and over again. Freak.

"-nothing, freak." Dudley was saying again. And Harriet shifted herself up off the ground, her emotions almost feeling numb by the absence of… what? She didn't know. But suddenly the looming presence of Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia's wrath was gone. Harriet… She suddenly didn't seem to care about it anymore. She didn't care at all.

Staring Dudley in the face, Harriet wondered what on earth could somebody see in him. The moment felt long as Dudley leaned in to push her into the ground. Harriet didn't have to stop him, the look on her face made him hesitate. And using a delightful arsenal from her mum's journal, Harriet retaliated.

"At least I'm not failing class, you half-witted piece of shit. Mummy and Daddy are paying your teachers off because you can't even read." Harriet steadily spoke in one breath. Then stepped forwards. "If you call me a freak or your buddies try and hurt me again, I'll show you exactly why your parents are so afraid of me."

"Mum and Dad aren't scared of you." Dudley jerked forwards to reply as if he was caught off guard.

"Your Dad puts a lock on his gun safe to keep people out, yeah?" Harriet said. "Well, they put a lock on my cupboard door to keep me inside."

Dudley swallowed. He and his cronies didn't look as confident as before. Figuring that Harriet said something rather logical, and they were seven. Most children are gullible to a degree, and Dudley even more so. And with one sharp movement towards Dudley, he and his small wannabe gang took to the streets.

Harriet stood by herself in the empty alley. Her injuries, although minor, throbbed with every pulse. The sun was at her back, and she stared at her shadow lengthened until it seemed huge. The first step of her change gave Harriet an idea. She could fight back. She didn't have to take whatever bullshite that her family gave to her. Steel crept up her back and it was at this moment that Harriet began to grow a spine.

Even when she gave in that night and walked home to Privet Drive, where Uncle Vernon was waiting for her, Harriet's first few steps into becoming her own person were tremendous. Beaten black and blue, to the point where Harriet knew that she wouldn't be able to go to school for a few weeks at least. Harriet bit her tongue and waited until she was thrown into her cupboard to really think.

It was in the dead of night when there came a small muffled thump from inside of the cupboard. And Harriet set aside her mother's journal for the night to peruse her mother's many books hidden in her trunk. And from there, she made a few discoveries that would forever change her life.

(Out of this day, 4,524 universes were created. Not too many in the grand scale of things, but enough that it was yet again a memorable day. They were mostly small differences that didn't make a single difference in Harriet's decision when it came to her family. Once again, small changes do not make the outcome any different, nor do they have much of an effect upon the world. But Harriet herself was the one who made the large changes this particular day. Upon threatening her cousin, while her emotions were high, Harriet could have had a chance of accidental magic. Scaring off her cousin and his friends, she would have come home to a murderous Uncle Vernon who didn't take prisoners that night.

1,891 universes ended that night with Harriet's death. Of course, in most of those, she went out swinging. Uncle Vernon was either scarred for life or harmed so badly that he had to quit Grunnings and live on disability funding from the government. Aunt Petunia, unable to survive with the sudden loss of income from both her husband and her niece (who had to stay alive for her payments each month), left in the middle of the night leaving Dudley and his father.

The two of them sold the house and lived elsewhere until Dudley was old enough to realize his father was a murderer and then reported him to the authorities. Dudley bounced around the system until he aged out, found a wonderfully nice woman to marry him, joined the army, and had a steady job until Petunia floated back into his life. Petunia, although abandoning her child early in his life, wanted his undivided attention and love. She would verbally (and sometimes physically) attack the woman who he married. After boundary stomping, being a general bitch, violating a restraining order that Dudley had placed on her, and trying to kidnap Dudley's two-month-old child, she ended up in the same place that Vernon did. Jail.

102 universes had Dudley changing his life around. After seeing what strange magical abilities his cousin had, Dudley had experienced what some might call a mid-life crisis at the age of seven. He was not the youngest person who had ever had a crisis like that, but he was definitely on the younger side of the scale. Dudley, upon seeing the vast difference between his parent's treatment of him and his cousin, found himself unable to stop seeing it. He hadn't been aware of all the abuse before, he was so used to it that he thought it was normal. But he watched on as his dad yelled and hit his cousin, about how his mum always made her make food but never gave anything for her to eat. He knew sometimes what it felt to be hungry but he couldn't imagine what it would feel like to starve.

Finally, one day Dudley did the unthinkable. He asked his teacher at school why his parents hit Harriet and why they didn't like her. It brought a landslide of accusations and Dudley and his cousin being taken away to different families. It wasn't until Dudley was at the court to testify that his mum saw him. Petunia and Vernon lost the case as Petunia did the unthinkable- she slapped her son and called him a freak.

Dudley was placed with a nice family and they treated him well. Although not as pampered as he was once used to. Harriet had been placed somewhere else as she had to stay in the hospital for a while due to malnutrition. The then nine-year-old Dudley, as this took place over several years due to court being held up, was happy. And he got to see his cousin every other weekend and they got along fairly well. Dudley lost weight, and he was able to get help where he needed it at school. Turns out dyslexia is a bitch when his mum denied anything was wrong with him.

Then one night he woke up needing a glass of water. That night, he met strangely clad men in dresses in his foster parent's kitchen. He hadn't even a chance to make a noise as they bespelled him and obliviated his memories.

The next day, Dudley woke up in his first bedroom with his mum giving him a plate full of bacon and eggs, saying that he looked too skinny. His father was downstairs reading the newspaper before work, and the freak was under the stairs.

Out of the 102 universes, only 1 Dudley remembered. Who really knows why. Perhaps he had a smidge of magic in his blood from his Aunt Lily that had protected him. He was as muggle as muggle could be. But that one Dudley was still just a child, and after having a mental break down when seeing his mum, spent the night in a psychiatric hospital. That same night, disappearing men and pointy sticks appeared once again to clear up a few loose ends.

Perhaps, if Dudley hadn't been so young, he could have perhaps coped with the sudden change and came up with a plan to remove himself and his shy cousin away from his abusive parents. He could have come up with plans to deter a rather famous and stubbornly impossible wizard that ruled over too many lives. If Dudley hadn't been nine, and perhaps a bit older, he could have saved his cousin from countless heartaches.

But alas, we will never find out. In any universe out there, with however many billions upon billions of them, Dudley had never been sorted into Slytherin. He was honestly more of a Hufflepuff than what people believed.)