Harry Potter 1. Prologue

[English is not my native language]

If you see any obvious misuse of the English language, please post it in a review so I can correct it and make the story more enjoyable for future readers.

**There are no absolutes.**

_Every experience is a paradox in that it means to be absolute and is yet relative; in that it somehow always goes beyond itself and never escapes itself. T. S. Elliot_

**October 31, 1981. Hogwarts Headmaster Office.**

Albus Dumbledore was weary. Tom Riddle, a boy with so much potential led astray and corrupted by his own power. Since he returned after his disappearance from England and resurfaced under the name of Lord Voldermort. A war had begun in the magical society of Great Britain. Young Riddle must have been making contacts for years before he left. The amount of political, financial and magical backing that the man had, could never have been gathered in the six month time period that he rose to the next Dark Lord. It has been eleven years since that day and they were losing the war step by step. When the Order of the Phoenix was founded in 1971 there were close to 95 members. Now, a decade later only 31 remained. The war between the 'dark' purebloods and creatures under Tom Riddle's command against the Ministry of Magic, the Order of the Phoenix and a number of other families was a battle of attrition. The rules that Tom Riddle followed, or better said lack of, was causing them to lose.

There was hope however. The prophecy that was made had proven that. The question however was, how much of society would still be standing until the chosen one was ready to face and kill Tom Riddle. Divination was an obscure branch of magic. It was untested, unstable and more than often self-fulfilling. Dumbledore stared at his pensive, he grabbed his wand and gave a small firm tap to the edge of the basin. The words that were presented to him in the Hog's Head, filled the room once more.

"_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month__dies.. and the Dark Lord__will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not... and either must__die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord__will be born as the seventh month__dies."_

Now, who was the person that the prophecy referred to? Three boys existed that fulfilled the requirements set by the prophecy. There was the child of frank and Alice Longbottom: Neville, who was born on 30th of July and there were the twins of James and Lilly Potter: Harry and Daniel, both born on 31st of July. Dumbledore rubbed his temple, unfortunately there's no way to find out beforehand. The line: "_and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal" _clearly states that the final decision rests with Tom Riddle. A better question would be, who was Tom going to choose?

Before Dumbledore could further ponder the questions on his mind…. a silver instrument in the shape of a pyramid, on a shelf in the corner of his office started to release smoke, accompanied by a hissing sound. He turned around and looked at one of the two silver pyramids. The instruments were designed and connected to the wards of two locations. The right one was keyed to a cottage in Godric's Hollow, where the Potter family was in hiding and the left instrument was keyed to Greenhill manor: the ancestral home of the Longbottoms. The pyramids were connected to a relatively unknown ward, that would detect specific spells that the warder would chose, in this case the list of spells were the ones that the Deatheaters and in particular Voldermort had a preference of using. Dumbledore had no time to think over his questions, nor had he the time to either use the floo or to get to a location from which he could apperate. There was only one way of travel possible.

"Fawkes" Dumbledore called out in his empty office. A burst of fire in the middle of the room announced the arrival of a rare magical creature – a phoenix. It was about the size of an eagle, had red feathers, a long dark red plumage and it trilled a song into the air that was capable of affecting the emotions of humans. It gazed upon the person it bonded with.

"Please take me to the Potter cottage in Godric's Hollow immediately" Fawkes trilled once more and flew towards Dumbledore - who grabbed a tail of its plumage before vanishing in a burst of flames.

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><p><strong>Levington Lane number 5 Godric's Hollow.<strong>

_**Five minutes earlier.**_

Halloween.. he thought with a sneer as he saw two children walk past him dressed as vampires. Worthless muggles and their useless traditions. He followed the street and was nearing in on his destination. Tonight he would achieve another milestone, the so called 'prophesized child' will die. He didn't hold absolute faith in Divination but he would be a fool to ignore this child, that could possible become a threat to his rule in the future. Better to end it right now he mused. Luckily the Potters were naïve, placing their absolute safety in the hands of a single person: Peter Pettigrew. Immediately his facial features formed to one in disgust. The little rat was a sorry excuse of a wizard; slow, magically underpowered and most of all weak willed. If the rat didn't have his uses as a spy in the order, he would have killed him long ago. The fact that the Potters managed to choose him as their secret keeper was for Lord Voldermort a sign that he was meant to rule and change both the Wizarding world and the muggle world.

He looked upon the house that was no longer hidden from him. Inside he saw a woman around the age of 50, walking through the living room. He did not recognize her, she was most likely related to the mudblood. as far as he could tell, there appeared to be no other people inside the house aside from the children. A shame, he thought. He would have liked to kill James and Lily Potter as well. He waved his wand and muttered:" _Auferte obiectum eo Magicas" _with a small shimmering in the air, the anti-portkey wards went up. It wouldn't do any good if the muggle managed to grab the children and portkey away. He walked forwards, a single silent _Reducto curse _took care of the door that was standing in his way, blasting it to pieces. He heard the footsteps of the woman going up the stairs and followed her towards his goal. He heard the woman mutter in panic in a room at the end of the hall. When he entered she was staring at him with fear in her eyes. He didn't even bother spending words on the woman. He raised his wand and a sickly green curse hit the woman in the chest, killing her before she even hit the ground.

Two small children awoke at the sight of a green flash in the room where they were sleeping. Voldermort looked at the both of them. One had black hair and green eyes, that resembled one of his favorite curses, the other had brown hair with a glow of red interwoven and brown eyes. The black haired child was looking at him with a face of curiosity, while the brown eyed child looked like he was about to cry. He didn't know which one was prophesized to kill him so he would need to kill both of them. He aimed his wand at the black haired child and spoke the incantation in his mind _Avada Kedavra_.

Dumbledore appeared in front of the Potter house in Godric's Hollow, wand drawn. He took a look at the front door and saw that it was destroyed. He hurried towards the front door but before he could make it hallway through the front garden, an explosion on the upper left side of the house stopped him right in his tracks. A huge piece of the wall was obliterated, cracks formed along the walls and a cloud of dust rose through the newly created hole. He hurried inside the house. When Dumbledore entered the room he saw Laurel Evans lying there with open eyes. There was no doubt that she was dead. The room was a mess. A large part of the wall was missing, most of the furniture was destroyed and he saw no sign of the children. Using his wand he lifted multiple pieces of debris in the room until he saw the two children, laying together underneath the remains of what appeared to be a closet. Both of them were hurt but their injuries seemed to be minor, made from the debris as a result from the magical backlash. The house was deserted besides himself and the two unconscious children. His biggest priority was getting the children to safety, after that he could go back and look for clues as of what transpired in the house. He called his companion once more and immediately transported himself towards the hospital wing in Hogwarts.

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><p><strong>Hogwarts hospital wing<strong>

Madam Pomfrey was enjoying a hut cup of tea in her office while filling out some paper work. She had discharged a 5th year from Ravenclaw two hours ago that had the brilliant idea to start a career in spell creation without knowing what it entailed and randomly started trying different Arthimacy formulas and wand movements, which resulted in nearly losing four fingers. Working as a healer in a boarding school, she had encountered the strangest things in her 15 years of service. That was however to be expected in a school with 500 students, who are capable of performing magic. She heard a strange sound in the hall and moments later she heard the phoenix of the headmaster sing a note.

"Albus what are you doing here" Pomfrey uttered. She glanced a look at the headmaster and saw two injured young children in both arms of the headmaster. Her healer instincts kicking in, she immediately commanded the headmaster to place both children on a single bed.

"Poppy these are the twins of James and Lily Potter there was a raid on their house tonight. I have urgent business to take care of right now, I'll send a message to Minerva who will show up with James and Lily soon" Dumbledore quickly explained.

"They were not present when the attack happened?" Pomfrey asked with shock written all over her face. "No I believe they were visiting at young Mr. Black's house. He and his fiancé had a child a couple of days ago" he explained.

With two movements from his wand a silver ethereal phoenix filled the room. Dumbledore relayed his message and told it to make its way to Minerva right away. He called for his companion once more and flashed back to Godric's Hollow.

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><p><strong>Levington Lane number 5 Godric's Hollow<strong>

Hundreds of thoughts crossed his mind while Albus Dumbledore walked into the Potters' house once more. The Fidelius charm had obviously failed, this could only have happened if Peter Pettigrew had given up the location. Whether this happened of his own free will or under torture, had yet to be determined. He knew that there was a spy in the order, this could be Peter as well. He entered the room and could still feel the lingering presence of dark magic. He levitated the body of Lily's mother into the hallway and conjured a white sheet to cover her body.

There were no other bodies present in this room. Tom must have come himself to deal with the threat to his power, he was to paranoid to let one of his followers carry out something as vital as this. He studied every part of the room and soon found the remains of a black robe on the floor. It had similar characteristics as the robes that Tom sometimes wore, when he was participating in raids. He grabbed the robes and heard something made out of wood clatter on the floor. The 13.1 inch yew wand with a phoenix feather core was lying on there. He took out his own wand and casted the _Priori Incantatem_ spell on the yew wand. The last spell that was casted by the wand was the _Avada Kedavra curse_. Feelings of both joy and worry filled his mind. The fact that the remains of his robes and his wand are present clearly means that something devastating had happened to him tonight. The fact that there was no body, most likely meant that he was not dead. The dark lord was vanquished but not killed tonight and the child of the prophecy had shown itself. It would only be a matter of time before lord Voldermort would return, he thought solemnly. But this gave the wizarding world time to heal and repair the damage, that happened in the past decade. The death eaters were nothing without their master, they will soon fall in disarray without the guidance and cruelty of their leader. He send a message to the minister of magic and the head of the auror department to meet him at Hogwarts in one hour.

* * *

><p><strong>Warrington street 45, Bentham.<strong>

"Aww she has your eyes Miranda" Lily Potter exclaimed with a smile on her face while rubbing her finger on the belly of the newborn Rosaline Black.

Miranda Black née Bewford was laying on her bed, surrounded by her husband and their best friends James and Lily Potter.

"Yes, our little miracle. I'm still exhausted though. I don't even want to think how you managed to push out two in the span of a couple minutes" she said with a shudder while keeping her eyes on her child.

"Ughh don't remind me, it was awful, it took nearly a week before James hand was back to normal".

Meanwhile James was conversing with Sirius about their Rosaline's future.

"I don't suppose I can send her to a monastery when she turns fourteen" Sirius asked his best friend.

"I'm afraid not Padfoot, unless you want Miranda to kill you. It's one of the unfortunate things you'll have to deal with when you have a daughter" James said while silently being happy that it was not something he would have to deal with.

They were interrupted by the sound of the house elf Mipsy entering the room.

"Misses and Mister Potter, madam McGonagall is calling with the floo, she says it is urgent" the house elf squeaked.

Both their faces morphed in a look of fear and quickly made their way downstairs accompanied by Sirius.

"James! Lily! There was an attack on your house less than 30 minutes ago.

"WHAT" Lily screamed with a look of terror on her face. "Are the boys alive, what about my mother?"

"The twins are alright, I don't know about your mother or what has happened. Albus send me a message that both boys are in the hospital wing at Hogwarts. I've opened the floo towards my office" she replied.

Both parents rushed towards the floo and made their way to Hogwarts, with Sirius going back to inform his wife before pursuing them both.

* * *

><p><strong>Hogwarts hospital wing.<strong>

Madam Pomfrey was examining both children, they were mostly alright. A couple of scrapes and bruises which she was already healing with a spell. There was a small visible scar above Daniels right eyebrow that pulsated with some sinister magic. Before she was capable of examining it further the doors flew open and a frantic James and Lily Potter walked inside.

"My babies, are they alright" she asked panicked. James was right behind her with a look of fear clearly visible on his face.

"They are fine, their injuries are pretty minor, just some scrapes and bruises" she said, trying to calm down the frantic mother.

The looks on their faces immediately turned to one of relief. Lily made her way over to the bed and hugged both children while placing a kiss on their foreheads. James ruffled their hair. Sirius meanwhile ran into the hospital wing with a smile as soon as he saw both of the boys.

"What happened tonight, how is it possible we were attacked?" James asked.

"I'm afraid that Peter has revealed the location of your home" Dumbledore spoke in a calm voice while entering the room. "If he did this on his own free will or under torture I do not know. My inclination goes to the first" he said.

"What happened Albus, are you saying that Peter betrayed us?" James asked with a look of horror on his face. Before the question could be answered Lily fired another one.

"What about my mother?" she asked fearing the worst.

"I'm sorry Lily. I'm afraid she was killed tonight" he said sadly. Lily started sobbing and James made his way towards her quickly and flung an arm around her shoulders while kissing the side of her head.

"As for what happened, it seems that the prophecy that I told you about was partially fulfilled tonight. Voldermort attacked your house alone in person" this statement was met with a look of shock on everyone's face.

"However something most unusual happened. He casted the killing curse towards either Harry or Daniel, which in turn seemed to rebound back towards him. This action destroyed Voldermort. When I arrived at the scene I found the nursery room half destroyed and there was a part of Voldemort's cloak on the floor accompanied by his wand.

"So he's gone?" Sirius said with a look of disbelief on his face.

"For the time being, yes. However, with the lack of a corpse and his extensive research into dark magic, I don't believe he's gone for good. I believe he has lost most if not all his power tonight and it will be quite a while before he would be capable of anything, let alone try and create another body" he stated with a serious expression.

"For all intents and purposes the war with Voldermort is over, without their leader we should expect to arrest a lot of death eaters in the near future. He said with a small smile.

Looks of relief spread across each face in the room. To finally hear, that a war that has been lasting for nearly a decade has finally come to an end was unexpected and soothing. Jame's face went from Albus towards his two sons.

"which one of them did it?" he asked with a quiet voice.

"I have yet to determine that. Poppy are there any noticeable marks on either of the boys?"

"Yes it seems Daniel has a scar above his right eyebrow that is tainted with sinister magic. I don't see any similar marks on Harry." Poppy explained.

"Does this mean that it was Daniel who did it?" Sirius asked.

"Possibly, the prophecy states that Voldermort will mark him as his equal. However, not all marks are physical. The fact that Daniel has a cursed scar could mean that he was the one targeted. There's also a small chance that Harry somehow shielded himself from the curse and the magical backlash caused Daniel to get hit with a concentrated amount of magic" Dumbledore explained.

"Has either of the boys had any bouts of accidental magic yet?" Dumbledore asked while turning to Lily and James.

"We've seen Daniel levitate some objects towards him a couple of times. I have never seen Harry use any magic yet" James explained. "Me neither" Lily added.

Dumbledore stared towards the windows for a couple of seconds seemingly lost in thought. "Have you had their magical cores checked in St. Mungos?" Dumbledore asked turning back to the people in the room.

"No. Like you know, it's usually done when they are one year old and since we were already in hiding then, we didn't have the opportunity" Lily explained.

"Yes, I thought as much. Poppy would you please?" He asked the mediwitch.

Poppy walked over and made multiple movements with her wand while quietly muttering _"Magica potential revalare"_ Daniel glowed a faint blue, for a couple of seconds.

"It seems that Daniel here has an above average core for someone of his age" Poppy explained. She walked towards Harry and repeated the wand movements and incantation. This time however there was no glow. Poppy looked sad for a moment before turning back towards the child's parents and the headmaster.

"I'm afraid that Harry has the same magical level associated with a squib" she said in a quiet voice. Both Lily and James looked horrified towards their youngest son.

"He's a squib?" James asked. While it didn't make his son any less worthy in his eyes. The fact that his youngest child was a squib was a bitter pill to swallow. It would mean that Harry would always be different and the magical community frowned upon squibs and were heavily discriminated against. Lily in the meantime got tears in her eyes and muttered something about "not being fair".

"That is very unfortunate news. This also points toward Daniel being the prophesized child. However I want to be certain. There's a chance, a small one at that" Dumbledore stated, by which he got the attention from everyone in the room. "A small chance that the curse seeped away his magic" he turned away from Harry towards James and Lily. "My current belief is that Daniel is one that vanquished Voldermort, but to remove any doubts I would like the both of you to come to Poppy with Harry, once a month for the next six months. We will analyze Harry's core at every visit. If blocking the spell caused him to nearly lose his magic, it will restore itself over time" he calmly explained.

"What do we tell the world in the meantime? People will start asking questions on what happened and how" Sirius said.

"I have a meeting with minister Bagnold and head auror Stevens in fifteen minutes. I will tell them that your child was the one that vanquished Voldermort but I will not name him. We will wait for six months until we have the final piece of evidence before we release a name to the public. I would like to ask you to stay out of the public eye until then" Dumbledore asked.

"We can do that" James answered while glancing over towards Lily who let herself fall on a bed, the events of tonight finally catching up to her.

"The both of you can stay here tonight in the guest quarters. Minerva could you please make sure that the rooms are prepared?"

"Of course Albus" she answered calmly.

"Then I wish all of you a good night, I'm leaving towards the gate to meet my next appointment" Albus said with a chuckle in his voice. The future appeared a lot brighter than it did when he woke up this morning.

* * *

><p>Over the course of the next few days celebrations were held in the entire wizarding community of Britain. The department of magical catastrophes or more specifically the obliviators squads were running around the entire country. Working nearly double the amount of hours that they usually work. Laurel Evans was buried seven days after the incident, which led to a complete falling out between Lily and Petunia who blamed Lily and the magical community for killing her mother. Articles in the Daily Prophet stated that the savior that ended the war, was the child of James and Lily Potter but the name of the child was not mentioned. Within four weeks 78 Death Eaters were captured. Most of them belonging to a splinter faction under the control of Antonin Dolohov, a former inner circle member. He attempted to take the mantle of the Dark Lord for himself, now that his master was gone. Without the fear and obedience that Voldermort dictated, the new Death Eaters were ineffective and disorganized. Some members went rogue and tried to do as much damage to muggle, muggleborn or blood traitor targets, before getting themselves either killed or captured. Among the captured Death Eaters was one Peter Pettigrew, who was almost killed when an auror squad confronted him. Sirius Black had to be restrained by his colleagues in order to prevent him killing in unarmed Pettigrew. The smartest and wealthiest Death Eaters like Lucius Malfoy, Robin Avery, Ceptis Nott and others used their connections and vaults to escape Azkaban, under the guise of 'working under the <em>Imperius curse'.<em>

During the next six months, order was finally restored. Damage that was done during the war was steadily being repaired and new laws were passed through the Wizengamot to prevent new wizards or witches to take up the title of 'Dark Lord'. Some of these changes included laws, that banned a large number of spells, that were now deemed dark in the eyes of the ministry. Young Harry was brought to madam Pomfrey every month with disappointing results for Lily and James. Their son showed no restoration to his magical core and after five months they had to accept that there youngest child was a squib. Dumbledore accepted the results and Daniel Potter was named the child of prophecy or the 'boy-who-lived' according to the Daily Prophet. James and Lily were uncomfortable under the new amount of adoration that their family got. With a little persuasion of Albus Dumbledore they gave an interview for the Daily Prophet, Albus claimed that it would be a good thing to do to lessen the pain of war and make the community value Daniel Potter as a savior. Harry Potter was not mentioned in the interview under the advice of Albus Dumbledore. He explained that it would attract unnecessary attention towards him and his family, because squibs were still heavily ostracized in the magical community.

Home life with the Potters was almost the same as usual. Although Daniel, due to his new status got more attention from everyone around him. James and Lily still tried to give Harry as much attention as possible. Little Daniel and Harry were both growing up quickly and were already capable of speaking small sentences to express their desires. While Daniel liked to spend his time running around the house playing with his friends and toys. Harry spend a lot of time looking at the picture books that his parents bought for him and only occasionally joining his twin. The effect of spending more time with the pictures that were often accompanied with words was that Harry was already slowly learning to read under the care of his mother. Both James and Lily were concerned however, one of their children was seen as a magical hero while his twin brother would never be capable of casting a spell. They tried to discuss and think about the possibilities of Harry's future, especially since based on his demeanor and learning ability, it was obvious that Harry was a gifted child. These talks only led to both of them getting depressed with the fact that Harry was a squib. Nearly 10 months after the fall of Lord Voldermort, Lily and James were called to Hogwarts to discuss the future of Daniel while Padfoot was babysitting with Miranda and little Rose.

* * *

><p><strong>24<strong>**th**** of August 1982 Hogwarts, headmasters office.**

"Good evening to the both of you" Dumbledore spoke with a nod towards the entering couple. He was sitting behind his mahogany desk with a stack of documents on top of it. A younger looking and smaller Fawkes was sitting on his perch, his burning day only recently passed.

"Good evening headmaster" James exclaimed with a smile on his face.

"ah, how many times do I have to tell the both of you, I'm no longer your headmaster, please just call me Albus or if you wish Dumbledore" Albus stated with his eyes flickering.

Both James and Lily chuckled. "You called us here tonight to talk about Daniel his future right?" Lily asked somewhat nervously.

"Yes, no matter how much I would like Daniel to have a regular childhood, I'm afraid that his title as the 'boy-who-lived' will not allow that. He will need training prior to his education here at Hogwarts" Dumbledore explained. Both Lily and James looked surprised. "He's barely two and a half years old, isn't it a little too soon for training" Lily stated with a disbelieving look.

"Oh, don't get me wrong. Daniel his training won't start until he has at least reached the age of seven. Training at this age will do more harm than good. But I think it's prudent to converse about it and see where both of us stand regarding this subject" Albus calmly explained. This statement got both pondering looks from the two parents.

"Well, of course the both of us agree that he will need additional training for what is to come. Why do you suggest the age of seven?" James asked.

"Until the age of seven, a child's core still fluctuates too much to attempt any consciously concentrated amount of magic. If Daniel has an appetite for it you could have him read about magic as soon as he can. I think the age of seven would be a perfect start to start learning about magic. We could have him use a special wand until he reaches the age of eleven" Dumbledore stated.

Both James and Lily nodded. "that seems fair would you have him start with the first year curriculum of Hogwarts then?" James asked.

"Not necessarily. He will, of course learn spells from the first year curriculum but these lessons will be more focused on getting in touch with his magical core. This will allow him to better interact with his magic and will make it easier for him to learn spells, as he grows older. Based upon his preferences and abilities, we could decide the kind of spells we will teach him. I will mostly allow the both of you to play the role as active teachers. I will jump in every now and then, based upon the amount of time that I have available at that moment" Albus explained with a chuckle. "I have unfortunately always a large amount of work to do with the many titles that I poses" Fawkes chose this moment to let out a small trill which filled the office.

"I have also called you here tonight to discuss something not so pleasant" Albus stated with a sad look on his face. While both James and Lily looked at him puzzled he continued. "The fate of young Harry. It is highly unfortunate that he possesses no magical power and that his life is going to be a stark contrast to that of his brother" both James and Lily got a pained look on their face at this statement.

"Do you not think it would be better to allow him to grow up somewhere else?" Albus asked carefully. James got a troubled look on his face but he thought deeply about the question. Lily jumped up immediately in defense.

"I'm not sending my child away Albus, the fact that he has no magical abilities does not mean I don't love him" she said with fury in her voice.

"Please Lily, I'm not questioning your love for Harry. But do you not think it will be better for Harry's interest. He will grow up in a magical family, he will come in contact with magic every single day, his brother is regarded as a magical hero. Every day he will be confronted with the fact the he will never be capable of performing magic. The magical community, how unfortunate it is, does not look kindly towards squibs. He will most likely grow jealous of Daniel and resent him. This could impact Daniels future studies as well. I don't like the idea of sending him to live somewhere else, but I do believe it will be a kinder fate for him then growing up in a magical household" Dumbledore explained carefully.

Lily stood up again and tried to give several retorts, but every time she opened her mouth she had nothing to say. Eventually tears sprung in her eyes and she walked out of the office leaving Dumbledore alone with James who was wearing a defeated look on his face. He was silent for several minutes before he opened his mouth. "I.. I believe you have a point" he said with a small voice. He looked towards the headmaster who was regarding him with a sad look. "I'll talk to her. Can we contact you when we have made out decision?" he asked Dumbledore.

"Of course take as long as you need. I'm sorry James I do not like the idea myself, but sometimes hard and difficult decisions have to be made" Albus said. James nodded and silently left the room.

It took a week of debating between James and Lily to finally reach their decision. Lily tried to come up with counter arguments the entire week but she simply could not deny the words that the headmaster spoke to them. So eventually after 8 days and a lot of crying on Lily's part and a depression on James's part they agreed to send Harry to live with her sister, her husband and her nephew. Petunia's relationship with Lily was abysmal after the funeral and they were on a strictly no talking basis. Both Petunia and Lily didn't even know where the other lived. When Lily asked what they would do if Petunia refused, Dumbledore explained that due to the fact that Harry was a squib, he was certain that Petunia would allow Harry to live with them.

The day that Harry was taken to the Dursleys by Dumbledore, was an emotional day for James, Lily and their friends. Harry didn't understand what was going on, the old man with the funny beard simply explained that they were going on a trip. After their arrival at number four Privet Drive, Dumbledore was confronted with the fact that he was wrong in his earlier statement. Petunia definitely didn't want Harry even when he explained that Harry had no magical capabilities. It took a powerful _Compulsion Charm _with the statement '_You will take Harry Potter in your house and allow him to live there'_ before they finally gave in. After the boy went inside, Dumbledore walked towards the driveway with a sad look on his face. He really had expected that the Dursley family would take him in without protest. He continued his walk towards an alleyway before apparating away. Never realizing the two critical mistakes he had made in the past 12 months. His first mistake was that it would take no more than six months before Harry's core would have showed signs of replenishing, while in reality it would take nearly 16 months before his core was restored. His second mistake was that the _Compulsion Charm _that he casted on both Petunia and Vernon Dursley had nothing about the way young Harry Potter was to be treated while staying with them.

With those two mistakes Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore started a chain of events that would ultimately lead to changes in both the magical and muggle world that were of an nearly incomprehensible size.

**AN: First of all I would like to thank you for reading the first chapter. I know that the twinfic is a ****cliché in ****fan fiction. It will however not be the main focus of this story and I tried to rationalize it as best as possible. I'm using the twin and "wrong-boy-who-lived" element as a tool to give Harry (who will be darker but not evil) more freedom. The story requires Harry to do a lot of travel and questionable things in the future and this would be harder with Dumbledore breathing down his neck. I also like James and Lily being alive. **

**The main plot of this story will not be revealed until the fourth year in Hogwarts. I contemplated about starting the story at the Triwizard cup but I like to write earlier chapters and establish certain characters and have them grow and develop, which would be a lot harder if I started the story in 4****th**** year. The main plot of this fan fiction is more unique. I've spend quite a bit of time reading Harry Potter fanfiction and I've only come across the idea two times and both of them were only slightly similar. As you can judge by the size of the first chapter this will be a rather long fic. Harry will be powerful and smart, but I will try to rationalize everything and he will not gain "power-ups" from one day to the next. I will try to progress things as natural as possible. This will also be neither a harem or a slash fanfiction. Harry will end up with a single person, this will either be Daphne Greengrass or an OC that I will create myself ( if you have a preference for either one let me know and might take it up in my final decision). The story is primarily AU with elements of canon woven in. After the end of 4****th****/5****th**** year it will become completely AU. Voldermort will play a role in this fiction but is not connected to the main plot and will be used as a side plot. English is not my first language so I will most likely make mistakes, primarily in syntax and grammar. I have no doubts that as the story progresses and I gain more experience with writing that it will improve. I will try and upload a chapter about every two weeks of similar sizes depending on how busy I am. **

**Please leave constructive feedback and follow/favorite.**

**Until next time.**


	2. Early life

[English is not my native language]

If you see any obvious misuse of the English language, please post it in a review so I can correct it and make the story more enjoyable for future readers.

**I do not own Harry Potter, al rights are reserved by J.K. Rowling.**

_Fear is the lengthened shadow of ignorance – Arnold Glasow._

**Number four Privet Drive, Little Whinging. 19****th**** of May 1983.**

The grass lawns of the inhabitants of Little Whinging were covered in morning dew, while the sun was slowly rising. It was another regular working day for one Vernon Dursley. The person in question was sitting at the table, waiting for his lovely wife to bring his breakfast. After that he would go to his well-paying and respectable work. Vernon Dursley was a person who took pride in being a normal citizen and had his entire life planned out years ago. He would finish his study at Smeltings privet school, obtain a degree in business and management, start working at a respectable company, marry a good house wife, go to church and have four children. Everything was going exactly like he planned, up until the 23th of June 1980. The day their son Dudley was born.

Complications during Dudley's birth made Petunia incapable of having children in the future. This was a heavy blow for them both, Petunia was devastated by the news and only her need to care for Dudley brought her out of a depression. Vernon was only fairing a small amount better, taking multiple weeks of sick-leave from his job. It took him a long time to accept that he would not have any more children in the future. Adoption was out of the question for both Petunia and himself. The only child that they wanted to raise, would be one of their own. Eventually they accepted their fate and made sure that their son would always have everything he would need. Life was slowly returning back to normal before the next bit of bad news came.

Petunia's mother got murdered protecting the children of Petunia's freak witch of a sister. Magic was in his eyes something unnatural and dangerous, that should have no place in the normal world. Petunia was beyond furious when she found out that her sister had asked her mother to babysit, while she knew that there was some madman out there that wanted to kill her children. At the funeral Petunia completely broke-off any contact that she had left with her sister. This was perfect in his eyes, he wanted nothing to do with them.

Multiple months later one of those freaks had the nerve to come to his house during the middle of a Sunday. The weirdo was dressed like some eccentric cartoon character and he was standing right in front of the door where every neighbor could see him. The weirdo told them that they needed to adopt the younger twin of Petunia her sister. Apparently he would not grow-up to be a freak like his parents and was normal. Both Petunia and himself wanted nothing to do with the child. The old weirdo insisted that they should take him in and even promised an monthly stipend to take care of the boy. While the money would be nice he was still hesitant, he didn't want to raise a child that wasn't his own. Eventually both Petunia and himself agreed and took the boy in. They took care of him but not at the cost of giving Dudley any less attention.

The child was awful for the first two weeks. Often asking where his parents and brother were, crying because he wanted to go back. It was annoying to say the least, eventually he had lost his temper with the boy. He had slapped him and yelled at the child that his parents didn't want him and that they would never come back for him. The outburst itself and the information he had given caused him to become silent and invisible. He did his own things when he didn't require care and never spoke when Petunia was taking care of him.

Things returned to normal for a couple of months before it went straight back to hell again. The old coot had lied to them when he said that the child wasn't a freak. Throwing things without his hands, vanishing and reappearing two feet away, growing his hair back after being given a haircut. The child was unnatural and they were no longer interested in taking care of him. They had taken him from the bedroom next to Dudley and forced him to live in the cupboard underneath the staircase. Unfortunately, Petunia didn't have any contact with her sister and they no longer knew where she lived. This made sending the freak back to his parents impossible. He couldn't explain it but every time the subject of leaving the child somewhere else came up, he would feel like something horrible was going to happen if they went through with it. So they kept the boy and hoped that someday the freaks would come back. Until they returned, every display of unnatural behavior by the boy would be punished severely.

To both Petunia and Vernon the boy was a constant reminder of the fact that they would never have any other children. Combining that with his magical abilities and the fact that Petunia blamed him for the death of her mother. Harry Potter was ignored, neglected and beaten for his own mistakes, Dudley's mistakes and simple random occurrences around him. They started of lightly, but as time went on Vernon Dursley's line on how far he could take it was fading rapidly.

**Number four Privet Drive, Little Whinging. 22****nd**** of November 1986.**

A six your old Harry Potter was slowly waking up after another night of restless sleep. The stairs above his bed were squeaking and straining under the pressure of his uncle coming down for breakfast, he didn't have to make breakfast this morning due to another outburst and beating given by his uncle last night. He would be spending the entire weekend locked in the cupboard again. Dudley spent the time after supper yesterday insulting Harry and riling him up. He was trying to keep himself calm but when Dudley started to insult him about his parents abandoning him and the fact that no one wanted him he lost control of his emotions for a short moment. This was more than enough for another burst of accidental magic that destroyed the cup of hot-chocolate that Dudley was holding in his hands. With Dudley screaming because of some cuts in his hand due to the shards of the cup and the remaining liquid spilled all over the carpet on the floor, Harry was dreading what was going to happen this time.

Within seconds his uncle had come in the room, Dudley immediately said that Harry had done it with his freakishness. He just remained quiet, he knew what was going to happen. No matter what he said or how he pleaded the results were always the same. His uncle screamed at him and reached for the display-cabinet, inside was a belt that Harry was intimately acquainted with. As Harry was thinking about the events that happened last night he felt his back aching again. The worst of the pain had dimmed overnight, as it usually did. He always healed much faster than any other children or adults around him. When the teacher in class told him that Malcolm would be gone for a few weeks because of a broken leg. Harry had questioned why it would take so long for him to return. The answer the teacher provided that it takes nearly 12 week for a broken leg to heal confused him immensely. On the spar amount of occasions when his uncle went overboard and one of his legs was broken, it healed back to normal within five days. Another act of his freakishness no doubt.

He grabbed the small mirror laying on of the boxes inside the cupboard and placed it in such a position that he could look at the mirror hanging on de the door of his cupboard to examine his back. It was riddled with scars, the strange power that caused him to heal never managed to take the scars away. The marks of the belt were red and the skin looked irritated. The marks of previous belt whippings were clearly visible. Above the belt marks were the scars that almost caused him to cry when he looked at them. In thick bold capital letters the word "freak" was carved into his skin and was easily readable. The letters covered his entire upper back from his left to his right shoulder. When he thought of the entire incident that led to those scars the lesson he learned that day came back to his mind 'never trust adults'. He was stupid to tell his teacher that his uncle caused the bruises on his arm. When the teacher informed his uncle and aunt about what he told, they had put up a mask of politeness. They told the teacher a good fabricated lie that he and Dudley got in a fight and were both punished for it. After the fabricated story was told, the teacher believed them and left them alone.

Harry was told by his uncle that if he would ever tell things about his home life to another adult again that he would kill him. The statements was followed by multiple punched and kicks from his uncle. When his aunt tried to hit him he lost control of his emotions again and as a result she was blasted back through the living room and collided against a bookcase in the corner of the room. This actions caused his uncle to completely lose control of his anger. Thankfully he had lost consciousness after about twenty minutes of pain. When he woke up the following morning he was covered in bruises and had that hideous word carved in his back as prove to the lesson he had learned 'never trust adults'.

He put the mirror away and looked underneath his bed for a book to read. The only form of fun he had when he was locked in the cupboard for a prolonged period of time. He managed to sneak the books out of the library and had found a place outside near an abandoned apartment on the way to school where he hid them. Every couple of days he would sneak one book inside the house under his shirt. Thankfully the Dursleys never bothered to look inside the cupboard. His favorite subjects to read about was history and languages. He managed to read books about multiple historical events like the fall of the Roman empire, the French revolution, Christopher Columbus and many more. He also went looking for books that could give him an explanation about the strange things he could do. The search left him disappointed, when he asked the librarian if there were any books about the powers he described, she had send him to the children fictional section of the library.

His reading and learning drive was to blame on his single desire to leave the Dursley household. He vowed that he would get out as soon as possible, but one day he would come back when he was no longer as helpless as he was now. When that time would come, he was going to show his uncle the true meaning of pain. During these lonely days spend in his cupboard he swore to himself that he would never be helpless and worthless again.

**Hogwarts, headmasters office. 29****nd**** of November 1986.**

Albus Dumbledore strode into his office. His thoughts were with the monthly faculty gathering, where they talked about the school, its students and other noteworthy subjects. His potion master was once again one of the subjects. Minerva and Fillius were not impressed by his teaching abilities, or more specifically the man's social skills with children. He had to agree, Severus would be much better suited for teaching apprentices who were already well versed in the subject of potions, instead of 11 year old children. But alas, if he were to fire Severus it would appear to the magical community that he relinquished his faith in the former death eater. This could lead to an investigation about his dealings with Lord Voldermort and unlike Lucius Malfoy, Severus didn't have thousands of galleons to keep him out of Azkaban. He would need Severus in the future when Tom Riddle would come back again.

He was delighted with the last couple of years, the magical community was slowly rebuilding and there was another baby boom following the end of the war. This meant a lot of new wizards and witches would walk these halls in about eight to ten years. He sat down in his chair and looked at the paperwork on his desk. A proposal from the board of governors to increase the admission fee for muggleborn students. He frowned at the paper, he understood the fact that muggleborn students paid more tuition then pureblooded students, but he was of the opinion that it was already at its limit. The school was dependent on a higher admission fee for them, Hogwarts required a good amount of money to run smoothly. The purebloods refused to pay an increase and pricing for regular muggle boarding schools was around the same price as the current fee for muggleborns. If the prices kept increasing it would defer muggleborn students to come to Hogwarts and they would go to smaller magical schools instead. He could already imagine the headache that he was going to get from the upcoming meeting with the board.

He looked up from the papers towards one of his most vital instruments on his desk. It appeared as a tree, its trunk and branches were made of complete silver. Instead of leaves there were small globes hanging from the branches in a multitude of colors. The globes represented the states of his coercions. A _Compulsion charm_ here, some loyalty potion there. Just small things he had to do to keep everything going as they were supposed to go. He didn't want to use methods like the _Imperious curse _or other similar spells or potions to completely take control of someone, in his eyes such things were immoral. However just a slight bit of magical coercion to regulate and control minor but potentially dangerous issues, was something he did every once in a while. He was looking at a set of globes that represented the _Compulsion charms_ casted on Lily Potter, James Potter, Remus Lupin, Sirius Black and Miranda Black. The charms was nearly one year old and required to be re-casted soon or else they would lose its power. The charm was harmless, just some incentive to keep everything stable in the Potter family. He anticipated that Lily or James would try to attempt some form of communication towards their youngest child after he was sent away to his aunt and uncle. It would be better to avoid such situations. He doubted young Harry would respond kindly if he learned about the reasons he was sent away. This reaction had the possibility of harming James and Lily, which could further disrupt the family and their attention towards Daniel. A small charm that convinced the Potter family and their friends that Harry was alright with the Dursleys and that it would be better for everyone if they did not contact him was enough.

Thinking about the child of prophecy he saw some potential. Daniel already displayed multiple causes of accidental magic and his core was measured to be above average. He only hoped that the child would be gifted in learning and controlling spells. The start of his training was only a couple of months away. The savior would need to be better than the other students when he entered Hogwarts. This would send a message to the magical community that a new and powerful magic user was in uprising, combined with his fame of vanquishing Voldermort and the personal support of Albus Dumbledore, he would have the next "Lord of the light" as some families called him. Daniel would eventually destroy Voldemort for the second and final time under his guidance. Afterwards he himself could finally retire and let Daniel to take over the reins.

**Number four Privet Drive, Little Whinging. 7****th**** of July 1987.**

A seven year old Harry Potter opened the front door to his least favorite place in the world. He had just spend the two hours after school in the library reading material a few years ahead of school. Today was another bad day. He got blamed for the actions and pranks of others again. Dudley liked to blame Harry for everything and his friends always backed him up. Within months the other kids had learned that they could get away with nearly anything and just blame him for it. His teachers didn't like him so he just kept as quiet as possible in class, trying to never attract any attention towards himself. They had another spelling test on school today and he purposefully filled in many wrong answers, it would do him no good to perform better than Dudley. The subject of the test was easy and according to the books he read in the library he was already years ahead of the rest of his class in this subject. Math was different though, he had some trouble with it and he couldn't ask his teachers for help. He walked into the living room where his uncle was watching the evening news.

"Boy we are having some very important company tomorrow evening. If you make any noise or god forbid do anything freaky, I will hurt you so bad that it will make those scars on your back feel like nothing" Vernon threatened with as much venom in his voice as possible.

Harry gulped "I'll be quiet I promise" He responded in a meek voice, unable to look his uncle in the eyes.

"Good! Now go help your aunt cook dinner" Vernon spat. Harry frowned, this meant that his aunt would tell him what they wanted and he would cook while only getting leftovers again.

_Just hold-on, in a couple of years I can go to college and I will never have to come back here _he kept telling himself in his mind.

**Number four Privet Drive, Little Whinging. 8****th**** of July 1987.**

Vernon Dursley was nervous, tonight he had the possibility of getting a promotion. Everything had to be perfect, nothing could go wrong. Petunia even cooked dinner tonight instead of the freak. He was slowly adjusting his tie again while looking at himself in the mirror. He was going to get this promotion tonight, no way that the buffoon Farrige would get it instead of him. He would impress his boss, show him what a lovely family he had and how much the company would benefit if the promotion went to him.

He walked downstairs and slammed his fist on the cupboard and uttered the words to the person inside "Not a sound" before walking into the living room.

_**90 minutes later**_

Dinner was perfect, just as expected. He could already smell his upcoming promotion. They were currently sitting on the couch in the living room talking about current world events and how it could affect Grunnings. They would soon broach the subject of the promotion, then he would finally make his case. Before that happened, his boss had to mention the little freak.

"Say Vernon I thought your nephew lived here as well" Steven Morrison asked while taking a sip from his wine.

"Ah yes, he does. Petunia's sister and husband are not exactly nice people. They didn't want the child and were going to send him to an orphanage. Both Petunia and I were appalled by the idea and offered to take him in instead.

"How awful, I couldn't imagine sending away your own child" Jennifer Morrison exclaimed.

"Indeed! So we took him in and treated him as one of our own. He's not exactly bright and gets into trouble sometimes but we do the best we can to make him feel loved and appreciated. He's currently having dinner at a friend's house. Petunia explained.

Meanwhile said nephew was listening in the cupboard barely containing his anger. _How dare they lie about me and themselves like that_ were the thoughts going around in his head_. _When he heard the comments about feeling loved and appreciated he snapped. His magic surged out and before he Harry could even understand what he did there were multiple screams coming from inside the living room.

After Petunia's last answer every glass in the room shattered, the pie that was sitting on the table exploded and coated the people and walls in the living room, multiple pieces of furniture started shaking and the temperature dropped a few degrees. Petunia and Jennifer were screaming and Steven was looking around with panic in his eyes, trying to find the source of whatever was happening. Just as quickly as it came, it was quiet again and the temperature went back to normal. Both Steven and Jennifer Morrison were covered in cake and wine.

Vernon was looking around not believing what just happened. The freak just had to ruin everything again. He looked at his boss, desperately trying to come up with an explanation for what happened.

"What just happened?" Steven nearly screamed.

"We.. we don't know" Petunia said hastily. "Maybe it was an earthquake" she added.

"An earthquake? In Surrey?" Steven said with a tone of indignation in his voice.

Vernon couldn't answer, he was absolutely speechless. He didn't see a single scenario in which he could save the current situation. Steven looked at his own clothes and then at his wife who was looking around the room with a look of fear on her face.

"Right, it seems this evening has come to an end. Come on Jennifer, I think it would be best if we left. We are both covered in pie and wine. His wife nodded and followed him towards the hallway. Both Vernon and Petunia were still frozen, trying to come up with something to salvage the situation. Before Steven and Jennifer could open the door Petunia quickly asked "perhaps we could finish our conversation tomorrow evening" with hope in her voice.

"No thank you, we're having dinner with the Farrige family tomorrow evening" he explained while opening the door for his wife. "Have a good evening" were the only words out of his mouth before they quickly walked towards their car. Muttering about something unnatural.

Vernon was staring at the open door still trying to comprehend the results of tonight fiasco. Mr. Morrison was going to have dinner with Farrige tomorrow if the man could put up a good speech he would lose the promotion that he was prowling on for months. All because of the freak. His anger boiled inside of him. He wiped his hand across his face trying to clean it from pieces of pie that were still clinging to it. He walked towards the cupboard and threw the door open where he saw the freak with a look of fear sitting on his bed.

"You stupid freak, do you realize what you have done" he nearly yelled. He grabbed the boy by his hair, ignoring the shriek of pain and threw him inside the living room. Your aunt and I are going to go upstairs and clean-up. When we come back you'll wish you were never born" he said in a low voice filled with malice.

Harry was lying on the floor frozen in fear. He had done it now, his uncle would kill him for sure. He didn't want the pain again he just wanted everything to be normal he just wanted his parents he thought while he started to sob. He had felt the strange energy inside his body again but it had already exploded out before he realized it.

He couldn't stay here anymore, not now. In a state of panic he looked around trying to come up with anything that could stop or lessen the pain to come. He saw his uncles wallet laying on a display-cabinet and came up with the only possibility. He took the wallet, grabbed all the money inside, hurried towards the cupboard and put on a sweater over his T-shirt. He looked around for any other things he would need and saw nothing of value. He sprinted towards the hallstand, grabbed his cloak, opened the front door and fled into the approaching shroud of the coming night.

**AN: Here's chapter two! Ending with a small cliff-hanger. In order for Harry to be more powerful and smarter than canon I had to get him out of the house while he was still young. You'll find out next chapter where he'll end up. Final pairing in the story will be with Daphne Greengrass, who technically is an OC, as she had no lines in the books whatsoever. I will base some of her personality on what I've read in other fanfictions, but she'll have her own backstory, opinions and desires which will grow and change over the course of the story. She and Harry will not hook-up at the beginning, it will take multiple years before that's going to happen and Harry might have some other relationships until the time comes.**

**The Dursleys will be punished one day. I've already created the perfect scenario in my head but it won't happen before the time is right. **

**I hope you enjoyed the chapter and any constructive feedback is always appreciated, until next time.**


	3. An opportunity arises

[English is not my native language]

If you see any obvious misuse of the English language, please post it in a review so I can correct it and make the story more enjoyable for future readers.

**I do not own Harry Potter, al rights are reserved by J.K. Rowling.**

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><p><em>Opportunity often comes in the form of misfortune, or temporary defeat – Napoleon Hill<em>

**Suburbs of Surrey. 8****th**** of July 1987.**

His legs were moving but he had no idea where he was going. The sun went down an hour ago and now he only had the light of the streetlamps to guide himself. The decision to run away seemed like the smart one at the time, he was not sure about that anymore. He needed a place to sleep first, a place where he wouldn't be disturbed. If an adult found him in the middle of the night alone they would send him back to his uncle and aunt. He sought refuge in an alleyway behind a shopping-mall. He saw a waste-container with multiple card boxes sticking out and grabbed a few to make somewhat of a shelter. The only positive thing about his current situation was that it was summer, at least it wasn't that cold in the night. He sat down with his back against the wall and tried to sleep, but the events of the night kept playing over and over in his head. _Why couldn't I just be normal, nothing would have happened if I wasn't different. _Eventually he fell asleep, unsure of what the next day would bring.

His sleep was plagued by a nightmare that he sometimes had when he was younger. He was in a crib with another baby with reddish hair. He had just seen a bright green flash and then heard the sound of a man walking into the room. His face was mostly covered by a dark hood, which was a part of his equally black robes. The only thing visible on his face was his mouth, which opened… "Hey kid! What are you doing out here?"

Harry slowly opened his eyes and panicked for a moment when noticed the unfamiliar surroundings. The events of last night returning to him, he turned to look at the man that was standing a couple of meters away. The man was standing next to a delivery-truck and appeared to be its driver, supplying the mall though a back alley.

"Uhmm nothing, I just fell asleep" He replied hastily. The man looked at him with a disbelieving expression.

"Why aren't you at home? Don't you have someone looking out for you?" he asked with a tint of concern in his voice.

"Of course I do" he replied with as much confidence as he could muster. The way the man was looking at him clearly showed that he didn't believe him.

"Come with me. We're going to find a phone booth and call the police, someone of your age shouldn't be out on the streets alone at night" he said while moving towards Harry.

_No! the police will send me back there. I'm not going back. _He panicked and looked for an exit so he could run away. Unfortunately, the only open exit was blocked off by the man standing in front of him.

"Now don't be scared, I'm not going to do anything. We're just going to make sure you won't have to sleep on streets again" he calmly explained.

_I need to get out of here, I need to get away. Anywhere but here. _He thought frantically.

The driver was slowly closing in, the expression on the child's face clearly was that of panic. He attempted to lay a hand on his shoulder to calm him down. As he was about to make contact the kid disappeared on the spot. He blinked multiple times, trying to comprehend what just happened right in front of him. He pinched himself to make sure he wasn't dreaming because he didn't have any other explanation for what happened. Here he was, making his usual delivery before seeing a young kid surrounded by card boxes sleeping in an alleyway. The kid was afraid and didn't want to go to the police and after that he just vanished on the spot. People don't just vanish.

A door opened on his left. "Hey David, are you going to open up the truck or what? We're waiting for you" he heard someone call. He looked at the store manager who was standing in the doorway before slowly nodding, still trying to figure out if what happened in front of him was real.

"Of course give me a minute. Would you mind calling a doctor as well? I don't think I'm feeling alright and it's probably not safe for me to drive back at the moment" he explained. Thinking about what he just assumed was an hallucination.

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><p><strong>Downtown Southampton. 9<strong>**th**** of July 1987.**

His last thoughts were that he needed to get away. He felt that unusual pull in his stomach again, before he noticed that he was losing nearly all his energy from whatever just happened. He landed in a heap, immediately trying to look around and gather his bearings. It looked like he was in a park, the only thing he saw around him were trees and bushes. There was a stone path about 15 meters away but he saw no other signs of buildings or people. _Oh, great I vanished again and now I've no idea where I am. Why am I so tired all of the sudden, I've done the vanishing trick multiple times and I was never this tired. At least I managed to get away from the man in the alley. _He had trouble moving his body, he felt completely exhausted, not even running from Dudley and his friends ever got him this tired.

He tried to get into a more comfortable position and crawl out of the bush he had fallen in, but he felt his eyes involuntary trying to close. He managed to crawl out of the bush and lean against the nearest tree before succumbing to exhaustion.

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><p><strong>The island of Montre de Mer, south-east of France. 9<strong>**th**** of July 1987.**

A flock of seagulls was flying over the beach in a lose 'V' formation, letting out cries as they made their way to the mainland of France. A man in what appeared to be his late thirties was slowly observing them, before turning his attention back towards the waves, that were crashing on the shore of his small island. The sea was something calming, he was pleased with the fact that even after 637 years of life. He could still get pleasure out of something mundane as watching the sea. He was contemplating the last five years of his life and he could not deny the small measure of irony. He and his wife had lived six times the average life-span of a wizard and now he was short on time.

It was a miscalculation on his part. But, it was going to happen sooner or later. Mistakes are inevitable when you're experimenting with items, materials and theories of your own. He had no more than four years left to live. His conscious was torn in two, a small part of him was sad that he would never be capable of finishing some of his projects, another part of him was relieved that his time on this earth was finally coming to an end. _'Of to the next adventure' _as he used to tell his apprentice.

He looked to his left, on a small wooden table was his greatest invention. Dubbed by others as the philosophers stone. The absolute pinnacle of both alchemy and healing magic, that was capable of producing the elixir of life and turning any base-metal into gold. The famous stone looked nothing like it did when it was created. It once had the deepest crimson color, now it was almost transparent and barely had a red glow. From studying the stone he found out that it could not be used for ever. No matter how powerful, the stone could not sustain itself indefinitely. Unfortunately, he had underestimated the amount of time it was going to take. He had anticipated that the stone could be used for another two decades at least. Sadly, the rate of deterioration was quickening, as it was nearing the end of its functionality.

The last batch of the elixir had lost most of its color. After some testing it became clear that the elixir had nearly lost all its power. He had tried making a new stone centuries ago but every attempt was met with failure. The creation of the original stone was a fluke, an experiment in new ways of alchemy. No matter how many times he attempted to recreate every condition like it was with the original, it didn't work. The amount of possibilities why he could not recreate it were staggering. It could be as simple as a single ingredient that was exposed to certain conditions before he had bought it from a merchant. There was simply no way to tell.

When Perenelle and himself had found out that the stone was incapable of producing anymore elixir, she offered the remaining of hers. With the extra elixir he could finish-up his magical affairs, govern the item distribution of his will and finish up some of his projects. He had buried her nearly two years ago, it was an awful experience to see her age rapidly in such a fashion. If the elixir was not consumed every month, the person would show signs of rapid physical aging, before succumbing to a natural death. In a single week he had seen his wife turn from a 35 year old woman to a 85 year old lady. She didn't take kindly to the small amusing comments he made to ease the tension, concerning her aging. Life without her was like he had lost a fundamental part of himself. After spending just a bit under six centuries with the same person, he suddenly was alone. He took comfort in the fact that he would soon be joining her again. He took a final look at the ocean before retreating back inside his castle, he had several countries to visit.

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><p><strong>Southampton General Hospital. 16<strong>**th**** of July 1987.**

Judy Faslon was walking through the white hallways of the hospital. Being an employee of child protection services was not an easy job to perform. She had seen some truly horrible things, yet she still felt humbled when she was in the presence of a child that she had to work with. No matter how horrible her job sometimes was, the children had it worse. She was sent to this hospital to assist the local doctors in figuring out who the young boy was, that was found in a park in Southampton a week ago. She stood in front of the office and knocked on the door.

"Good morning, my name is Judy Faslon. Are you doctor Wentworth?" she asked.

"Yes, I am. Good morning. Are you the person from child protection services?"

"Indeed I am. Can you tell me about the young boy, I didn't get any details other than that he was found in a park a week ago" she asked politely.

"Of course. Like you said, he was found in the park by a pair of joggers. According to their statements he was sitting unconscious against a tree. After he was brought here we concluded that he was showing signs of extreme fatigue. We were keeping him sedated until someone with your expertise could come. We think the boy is somewhere between the age of five and eight. The things that stood out the most were some of the scars on his arm and chest, after we noticed them we started to examine the rest of his body and found even worse evidence of physical abuse on his back. There were multiple marks on his back that indicated that the boy was lashed" the doctor frowned for a moment. "There was also the word 'freak' carved on his upper-back, most likely done by a knife" the doctor sighed.

Judy grimaced. lashings, stab and slash wounds were unfortunately not that uncommon in her job. However, the fact that such a word was carved into such a young child was awful. She couldn't imagine what kind of reasoning his caretakers had to do such a thing.

"The most unusual thing was that we were not able to get an identification on him. We asked the police if there were any missing children reports that fit the description of the child, this came back negative. We ran him through multiple databases and he doesn't appear in any of them. As far as our government knows the child does not exist' the doctor explained.

Judy was taken aback by that last piece of information. No records was something she had never encountered before, there was always at least a birth certificate. With no means of identification they were dependent on the information that the child would give when he wakes up. This was not desirable. Children with that many marks of abuse, usually did not trust authority figures or adults in general.

"In that case he needs to be placed into an orphanage or a foster family" she sighed and looked back at the doctor before continuing. "there's a lack of foster care in the region, which means the child will most likely end up in an orphanage" she explained with a sad smile.

The doctor sighed "I truly can't rationalize how people could hurt children in such a way" he said.

"I've been doing this work for nearly twelve years and I have the exact same thoughts multiple times a week. Could you wake him up, I would like to talk with him now' she asked.

"Of course, follow me" the doctor said. They left his office and walked into a relatively small room where a small, black haired child was calmly sleeping.

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><p><strong>Seamen's orphanage, 347 Hill lane Southampton. 25<strong>**th**** of July 1987.**

Harry Potter was staring out the window of his new home with a book about geography in his hands. Outside was a large grass field where a number of children were playing football. He arrived here three days ago and he didn't really like the place. At least it was better than his aunts and uncles home. The lady in the hospital turned out to be kind of nice, he was still suspicious of her though. The first day he had refused to answer any of her questions. He was afraid they would send him back. The lady had told him that they didn't knew who he was or where he came from. After a while he answered some of her questions, like his favorite color. but he refused to give out his last name or answer any questions about his home life. After three days it was impractical to have him remain in the hospital and Judy brought him to the local orphanage. She would be coming by two times a week to talk with him.

The caretaker of the orphanage reminded him vaguely of his aunt, without the slapping and name-calling. Both the lady from the hospital and the caretakers tried to get him to tell his last name. All of their hopes were met with disappointment. He knew that they could not send him back if they didn't know his last name. The best things about this place was the schooling that they had every day. He liked learning new things and they had a great amount of books. Most of the other children were alright. They didn't treat him badly like most of the children in his old school, in fact most of them just left him alone. When he had arrived the caretaker had explained that they were going on an yearly excursion next week, this time to London.

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><p><strong>Undisclosed location. 2<strong>**nd**** of August 1987.**

His fingers were rhythmically tapping the desk in front of him. He was looking at the door in his office, his next appointment would be here any minute now. He was somewhat nervous because of his next guest. He had met the man only once before, about ten years ago. A person of his stature in the magical community did not come for a simple chat concerning regular topics. Although nobody came to his office to discuss everyday things. He wondered.. was the man coming because he required information that his department might have? Or did he come to offer us something we could use? Either way, he was sure the upcoming conversation would be an interesting one. Before he could further think about his guest, he heard the knocking on the door.

"Come in" he spoke in a calm voice.

The door opened and a man that appeared in his late thirties walked in. His hair was short, dark brown and was sticking to the left side, his eyes were brown, his face was quite angular and he had an average posture.

"Mr. Flamel, it's an honor. It is good to see you again" he began.

"Greetings Head-Unspeakable Croaker, although it's seven years late, congratulations on your promotion. Nicholas Flamel chuckled.

"Ah yes, it has been seven years already. You still look as though you haven't past your forties" Crooker responded.

"At the moment yes. Although I fear that will soon change" Nicholas replied cryptically.

Croaker frowned. People like Flamel, Dumbledore, Marchbanks and some others were too damn cryptic most of the time. Always saying things that were mostly open to the interpretation of the receiver. A useful way of conversing, as it was much harder to be hold accountable for your words. You could always fall back to the claim that the other party interpreted the message wrong.

"I reckon that is the reason you have come here today" Crooker continued.

"Ah, as sharp as ever. But, looking at your job I assume it's a requirement. Yes, that is indeed the main reason for my visit today. However, before I will tell you more, I'll need a magical vow" Nicholas stated. "A vow that states that you will not disclose the next bit of information to anyone" he explained.

Croaker examined the oldest known living person in front of him carefully. It seems his initial observation was right, this was going to be interesting. He wandlesly summoned his wand from the corner of his desk and pointed it towards the ceiling. "I Antius Croacker, herby pledge upon my magic that I will not reveal the information given to me by Nicholas Flamel to any other sources, without his explicit permission. The tip of his wand illuminated a bright golden light. "So mote it be" he finished.

"Thank you Croaker. First of all, I will be dead four years from now. Nicholas responded bluntly.

Croaker was taken aback by this piece of information and the way it was bluntly said.

"Voluntarily or involuntarily?" Croaker asked with a raised eyebrow.

"A bit of both actually. But to answer your question directly, my most famous creation has finally reached the end of its capabilities. I have a limited amount of elixir which will keep me alive for another four years. I've come here today for two reasons; one of them is to offer your department some additional funding" He said.

Croaker perked up at this news. Extra funding was something hard to come by. The minister hardly involved himself in the affairs of the department. The department of mysteries was unique within the ministry. Unlike the other departments, there was only one person who knew everything that was going on inside, the Head-Unspeakable himself. The other regular unspeakables and team-leaders were bound by an magically advanced oath, that they had to take at the start of their career. This oath made it impossible for the unspeakable to give any information to outside sources. Unlike with a regular magical oath or unbreakable vow that could be broken at the cost of your magic and your life respectively. The oath made the unspeakables unable to disclose the information without the explicit magical-permission of the Head-Unspeakable. The magical nature of the oath locked the information away in the brains and no known magical measures could be used to unlock it.

Some of the department worked on numerous projects with different teams. A smaller size of the department worked outside of the ministry and investigated important leads or people. The ministry itself was a recruitment ground. Capable wizards and witches with unique talents were offered a place within the department. They would be tested on multiple levels and if the results were acceptable, they were offered a position. If the results were not acceptable every memory was erased and they would never remember being approached in the first place.

Ever since the war with the Dark Lord had ended the ministry hardly approached the Head-Unspeakable for new projects or information. This made it possible for the department to further its own research in a variety of subjects. Research however was not free and there were rumors that minister Abbott was going to cut down on their budget next year.

"Additional funding is always welcome. Might I know the reason for this generous offer?" Croaker asked.

Nicholas chuckled. "There are no strings attached to the donation, I am dying and have no use for money when I'm dead. I have also told you my opinion on this department before"

"Yes, I believed you called it 'one of the last places in Britain that still tried to create progress in magic'. Croaker stated with a smile.

"Indeed, it's a shame that such a majority of the wizards and witches in this world are content with the current advances in magic. Although, content should be used loosely, as most don't know any alternatives. The rising muggle population forces us more and more into hiding and severely decreases the options for advancement in our society" Flamel stated with a small frown. He had nothing personal against the muggles, but the fact remained that they were extremely dangerous. He dreaded the day that the statue of secrecy was going to break. The reactions from the muggle population was impossible to predict. In the best scenario a new golden age would start in with a combination of magical and non-magical beings. On the other hand it could also lead to the enslavement and genocide of all things magical.

"This also brings me to the second point of my visit here. I have a research project I want to share with your department. I've started this research almost 43 years ago and I'm far from completing it. Since I will be dead within four years, I would like your department to continue it" Flamel said.

Croaker raised his eyebrows. The man in front of him had researched dozens of subjects and theories. What was so important about this research, that he would hand it over to his department, for the sake that it would continue.

"I assume that the nature of this research is significantly important?" Croaker asked.

Nicholas smiled. "You would be correct" he stated.

He grabbed a couple of small books and maps with documents and placed it on croakers desk. He pointed his want towards the small objects and they immediately grew to their regular size. "This research is about the magic of the planet itself and the changes in last couple of hundred years" Flamel said seriously, while handing over the largest book to Croaker. He opened the book and quickly read the introductory and nature of the research. He couldn't help but gulp, this research was indeed important. If even a small part of what was written here was true it could have dire consequences.

"I see that you understand the serious nature of this research project" Flamel asked. Croaker just nodded.

"Then allow me to explain…."

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><p><strong>London, central district. 2<strong>**nd**** of August 1987**

Harry Potter was bored, he was walking with his fellow orphans in London. They had just visited a museum about the city of London and were now on their way towards a large indoor playground. The past week at the orphanage had been bearable. He still hadn't told his last name to anyone and he saw no reason to change that in the future, unless it was absolutely necessary.

They arrived at the entrance of the indoor playground and now they had to wait. He was at the back of the line with about forty children standing in front of him. He tried to observe what happened around him and started paying attention to the shops across the street. Nothing appeared out of the ordinary as he saw people shopping, going to work, having fun with friends and many more things. The only thing that seemed unusual was a building near the corner of the street. The style of the building was completely different than the other buildings. He couldn't read the sign that was hanging outside. Even stranger were the people that went in and out of the building every couple of minutes. Quite a bit of them were dressed in robes and other different pieces of clothing.

He was so focused on the building and the people around it that he didn't even notice that he was slowly making his way towards it. He had a hard time describing it, the building seemed somewhat familiar to the strange surge of energy he felt in his body sometimes. He was near the entrance and saw that the sign on the building said 'The Leaky Cauldron' _Weird name, he thought. _He was staring at the sign and didn't notice the door opening, something collided against him and he fell to the ground.

"I'm sorry child, I didn't see you at all" the man said with a smile on his face and offered his hand to help him get up.

"That's okay sir, I shouldn't be standing still in front of doors like that" he said with a small voice.

Nicholas Flamel observed the boy in front of him. The child was magically powerful, there was no denying that. His appearance and attitude however was not that of someone who was raised in the higher circles of British society. The child seemed somewhat familiar, it was possible that he had met some of his family a while ago. This piqued his interest in the child and he decided that he wanted some more information.

"Are you here to visit Diagon Alley with your family?" he asked in a nice voice.

Harry was suspicious of the man and a frown appeared on his face when the he mentioned his parents. On the other hand, he also wanted more information about the building and why he felt a pull towards it.

"What is Diagon Alley? And I don't have any family, I'm an orphan" He said with a quiet voice.

Flamel regarded his answer for a moment. An orphan of his age meant that his family was most likely killed in the war against Lord Voldermort. Being raised as an orphan would also explain why he doesn't know about Diagon Alley, or maybe even magic in general.

"Tell me child, what do you know about magic? Flamel asked.

Harry was taken aback by that question. _Why would he randomly just ask about magic? Wait… is that what I can do_. He thought about it before he almost snorted. _No, that's ridiculous. Magic doesn't exist._

"Magic is not real" he answered confidently.

Flamel looked at the child with a small smile. "Really, have you never done anything that you could not explain, especially when you were really happy or angry?" He asked with a knowing smile.

Harry's face was one of shock; _He's actually serious _"You mean, what I can do is magic?" he asked in a small voice.

"Yes that's correct. There is an entire magical society living in the world. The Leaky Cauldron", he gestured with his hand towards the building. "Is an entrance towards a magical shopping district called Diagon Alley. Only people who can perform magic can see the building" he explained.

Harry Potter was looking with wide eyes and a look of astonishment on his face at the person in front of him. He had always hoped that he could find out why he was different then his uncle and aunt, the fact that they referred to his parents as freaks made him think that they were different as well . A whole world with people who were just like him, was something that he didn't dare hope in his wildest dreams.

"Are there many people who can use magic?" he asked.

"There are about 80.000 people in Great-Britain that can perform magic" Nicholas said.

"How do I know you're telling the truth about all of this?" he asked. He wanted it to be real, but it almost seemed too good to be true.

"hmmm… I would show you some magic, but we are in the middle of the street. There are laws created by the ministry that makes it illegal to cast spells in front of non-magical humans" he said.

He started observing the child in front of him again. There was a huge group of children across the street, the boy was most likely here with them. An orphan from the war, yet when I mentioned his parents he seemed more angry then hurt. The child had black hair, appeared underfed, had emerald green eyes, high cheek bones and a sharp nose. He definitely seemed familiar and he has facial characteristics that are prominent in pureblood families in Britain.

"I have no further business to attend to today. If you would like to come inside the Leaky Cauldron, I could show you some spells to prove that magic is real" he explained.

Harry considered the offer. He looked back to the rest of the children from the orphanage. They were still waiting to get inside. Judging from the frantic arguing done by the caretaker to the cashier it could take some time. He still didn't trust the man, but this was _the_ opportunity to find out about magic. After today he would be stuck in in Southampton again with no means of coming back here. He knew where the rest of the children would be for the next couple of hours, so he could just go back to them when he was done.

"Okay, what is the Leaky Cauldron by the way?" He asked.

"It's a pub and like I said before, a gateway to magical-London. Come on let's go inside." Flamel said while opening the door.

The pub was fairly quiet. There were a couple of people in robes, sitting at the bar and he saw two families sitting at the tables inside. What drew the most of his attention were the paintings on the wall. Unlike regular paintings, the people, animals and objects were moving. Nicholas stopped and looked behind over his shoulder to see where the child was. He spotted him looking at a couple of paintings on the wall.

He laughed. "Magical paintings" he explained. "They are painted in paint that was prepared with magic and the painter itself adds a part of his own, or someone else's personality in the painting. This makes them appear alive.

"Wow" he breathed. He looked back at the Nicholas Flamel who was taking a seat at a table in the corner. He walked to the table and said: "You're not lying are you, this magic really exists" he exclaimed with wide eyes.

Nicholas smiled "Indeed it does" He took out his wand a levitated the candles on the table.

"Amazing" Harry exclaimed. I've levitated objects before when I was younger, but I could never control it. What is that you're using" he said while pointing at his wand.

"This is what we call a wand, it's made out of several magical an non-magical materials, that allows us to focus our magical energy"

"Can I get one as well?" he asked with a gleam in his eyes.

Nicholas chuckled "You're still young, children usually don't get their wands until they're eleven years old. There are exceptions of course" he explained.

Harry frowned, how do I enter the magical world? I'm stuck at the orphanage. How will I ever be capable of learning about magic?" he asked sadly.

"When you reach the age of eleven, you'll get an invitation to go to _Hogwarts school of Witchcraft and Wizardry_. It is the leading magical school in Britain. They will offer you a place for magical education. You can accept this or you can decline and go to the lesser known school across Great-Britain. If I'm not mistaken there are currently five magical schools on the isles" he explained.

"So I will get an invitation and I'll be able to study magic there?" he asked with a smile on his face.

"Yes, a magical education is required. There are laws that demands magical people to learn people how to control their magic. This can either be done in a boarding school like Hogwarts, a regular school like Glasgow Institute or through home-schooling.

Harry managed to release his breath that he was holding. When he was eleven he could go to a magical school, he could finally learn about the things he could do and how to control them.

"You know, we still haven't introduced ourselves" Nicholas stated. Harry got a bit nervous.

"My name is Nicholas Flamel, I was born in France but I spend a majority of my life living in Great-Britain" Flamel stated while offering his hand.

Harry took it "My name is Harry.." a part of him wanted to tell his name to the person in front of him, but he still decided against it.

"No last name?" Nicholas asked. He was wondering why the boy was so hesitant to tell about his family. He could use legilimency on the child, but some light casual probes made it clear that the boy had some minor natural defenses. This was uncommon but not unheard of. He didn't want to let the child know that he could enter his mind. Most of his beliefs about magic and its world were created by this conversation.

Before Harry could respond he heard the loud voices of two men coming from the back of the pub.

"Come one Moony, you just got a job. We have to celebrate" a loud voice exclaimed.

"You're just looking for an excuse to drink, what do you think Miranda will say when you come home before dinner completely drunk"

The two men Remus Lupin and Sirius Black entered the main room of the Leaky Cauldron. Sirius looking rather pensive about the last statement made by Lupin.

"You're right, just two shots then as a celebration" he said with a jovial voice.

"Tom, get me four shots quickly. Me and my furry little friend have something to celebrate"

Harry looked at the two loud people walking towards the bar. He was about to turn his attention back to Nicholas before he saw the face of Sirius Black and paled significantly. Although he did not have many memories of his life before the Dursleys he was confident that he would recognize his parents. While this man was not his father, he knew from the few memories that he had, that this man was close to his parents. He clenched his fist tightly.

Nicholas saw the facial expression on Harry change rapidly from neutral to fear and then anger. He shot a look towards the two people walking to the bar, he didn't recognize the first one but the second person was the current Lord Black. Nicholas frowned, how would Harry here know about someone like him. He knew Black was a loyal supporter of his former apprentice. He had met him once, together with James Potter and the Prewitt brothers when he visited his old apprentice. Suddenly Nicholas face paled for a second. Potter, that is who Harry looks like. If he got some glasses then he would like a younger version of Lord Potter.

But what was a Potter doing right here? Both his parents are still alive. His brother is regarded as the boy-who-lived. Why would Harry live in an orphanage. He got a dreadful feeling in his stomach, his former apprentice most likely had a hand in this.

"Is there a reason you won't tell me you're a Potter" Nicholas asked in a quiet voice. He saw Harry's attention snapping back to him with a look of fear on his face.

"How do you know?" he asked, looking down at the table.

"When I first saw you I thought that you looked familiar, I couldn't place you however. But judging by your reaction on Sirius Black, I remembered who it was that you look like; James Potter.

Harry thought hard for a moment, this man already knew who he was and had even met his father before.

"they didn't want me" he replied in a small voice while still looking at the table. Nicholas looked at the child with pity, being cast away from your own family was one of the worst punishments one could get in the wizarding world.

"They send me away when I was three years old. They made me live at my uncle and aunt" he frowned for a second, thinking about how he wanted to word his next sentence. "They didn't like me or that I could do magic. Whenever something happened that they didn't consider natural, there were… consequences" he said sadly.

"Then how did you end up in an orphanage" Nicholas asked surprised.

"I did some magic accidently and my uncle said that he would hurt me really badly. So, I ran away from there and ended up in an orphanage" he explained.

Nicholas was thinking about this most unusual meeting. Here he was having a meeting with the brother of the 'boy-who-lived', who was send away from his home to live with his non-magical relatives and said relatives abused him because he could do magic. The boy reminded him of himself when he was still a child. He knew the boy was powerful and special. Living several centuries has taught him many lessons, one of the most important ones was to always trust his instinct. He could help the child in front of him, until it was time for him to depart from this world.

"Harry Potter, how would you like to learn about magic from me, until you go to Hogwarts?" he asked with a smile on his face.

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><p><strong>AN: Here's chapter three. I considered creating a character that could act as a mentor for Harry but I found a character that fit that roll a lot better. Nicholas Flamel offered something that I could use to lightly touch the main-plot of this story. The department of mysteries will play a considerable roll in the future. The next two (maybe 3) chapters will be about his training and learning about the magical world. After that, it's off to Hogwarts. <strong>

**Any constructive criticism is always appreciated, follow and favorite! **

**Next chapter will be up before the end of the year. Happy holidays in advance!**


	4. Severing ties

[English is not my native language]

If you see any obvious misuse of the English language, please post it in a review so I can correct it and make the story more enjoyable for future readers.

**I do not own Harry Potter, al rights are reserved by J.K. Rowling.**

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><p>To himself everyone is immortal; he may know that he is going to die, but he can never know that he is dead. – Samuel Butler<p>

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><p><em><strong>Previously..<strong>_

"_**Harry Potter, how would you like to learn about magic from me until you go to Hogwarts?"**_

_**Now..**_

Harry could only stare with wide eyes at the person opposite of him. "Why would you offer me something like that?"

"You remind me of myself when I was around your age, I was an orphan and didn't have anyone in the world looking out for me. I was a thief, I stole from people in order to buy food for myself. I was however, unlike you, aware of magic and often used it so I wouldn't get caught in the process of stealing. One day however, unbeknownst to me, I attempted to pick the pockets of a local wizard en alchemist. When he caught me, I thought I was going to lose my hand, as this was a common punishment for stealing back in my youth. However, the strangest thing happened. The wizard asked me why I stole from others. When I told him that I needed to eat and had no one looking out for me, he asked me if I would like to learn about magic and alchemy. Like you, I was skeptical about the offer. When I asked why, he told me one thing '_the right opportunity at the right time, can change your destiny forever'_. I had nothing to lose, so I accepted his offer and became his apprentice. Without that encounter, my whole life would have been completely different" Nicholas explained.

"And now many years later, I find myself in a similar situation, but now I'm the master who encounters someone all alone with a lot of magical potential. Looking back, that offer was a turning point in my life and my greatest memories and accomplishments, would not have been possible without it" he said with a genuine smile on his face.

Harry looked at the person and contemplated about the story he was just told. Something was unusual about it…

"You said that cutting off your hand was common practice as punishment for stealing, but that kind of punishment has been outlawed in western countries for centuries" he said with a frown on his face.

Nicholas couldn't help but laugh. "You are an observant, very good. As to answer your question, you're correct. Even among wizards I'm somewhat different. Most wizards and witches have a lifespan ranging from 90 to 115 years. The more magical power one possesses, the longer they can live – theoretically speaking. I was born 637 years ago in a small town in France that no longer exists"

Harry looked at Nicholas in shock. "You're over 600 years old? How is that even possible?" he asked with a look of astonishment written on his face.

"As an alchemist I created a device that could prolong my life on this planet. That device is a stone, that is capable of making an elixir that keeps my body young" he explained simplistically.

"Wow, are there more stones like that and are there more people as old as you?" he asked with a sparkle in his eyes.

"No. The stone is unique, it's one of a kind. I'm afraid I can't answer your second question with certainty. Even though my name is well-known across the planet, only a handful of people know what I look like. That's why no one in the Leaky Cauldron is bothering us" he said while gesturing to the other patrons." I don't know of any people that are as old or even older than me, that however does not necessarily mean that they don't exist.

You can also make a distinction between being alive and being undead. It's possible that I am the oldest _living_ person on this planet, but I know for certain that there are a couple dozen of vampires that are older than me. Some of them being over 2000 years old "Nicholas explained calmly.

"Vampires are real?" Harry asked shocked.

"Indeed they are. Many myths and legends in the non-magical world are real, or at least for a part real in the magical world. Take for instance; werewolves, Pegasus, dragons, minotaurs, giants, trolls and many more" he explained and couldn't help but smile at the look on Harry's face.

"So you really want me to be your apprentice?" Harry asked.

"I do, until you leave for Hogwarts. I live on an island just of the coast of France. If you accept, you'll live there for the next four years while we are not traveling" he said calmly.

Harry was contemplating all the information, like Nicholas said this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. What did he had to lose? If he said yes, he could learn about magic years before he would go to Hogwarts and Nicholas was a wizard with centuries of experience.

"I would be honored to become your apprentice" Harry said with a genuine smile.

"Wonderful, do you want to go to the orphanage so I can legally adopt you?" Nicholas asked.

Harry frowned. "I don't think that's necessary. They don't exactly know who I am. When I was in the hospital they said that they had no records of me. According to the government I did not exist. I didn't give them my last name as well, because I was afraid that they would send me back to my relatives" harry explained.

Nicholas face turned into one of surprise. "No records at all? That's unusual, documents like birth certificates are registered with both the magical and non-magical government. Although, you were born within the final years of the war. The ministry was not running quite as efficient as it did before the war and if I remember correctly your family went into hiding quite soon after your birth.

"War? What war are you talking about? Harry asked with skeptical expression, as he had never heard of any war in Great-Britain in the last decades.

"In the early seventies, a dark lord rose in the magical community of Great-Britain. The man went by the name of Lord Voldermort. He advertised himself as a pureblooded lord that would cleanse the magical community of those he considered unworthy" Nicholas explained seriously.

"What exactly do you mean with 'unworthy' Harry asked with a frown.

There are several different categories of humans in this world. First there's what's known as a muggle. These are the people that poses no magical capabilities, they are also referred to as non-magicals in certain parts of the world. The second ones are muggleborns, like the name suggests these are wizards and witches that are born to muggle parents, if I remember correctly, your mother falls in this category. Then there's what's known as a pureblooded wizard or witch, they can trace their family line back several generations of magicals on both sides. Then we have what is known as a half-blood, one side of their family can be traced back through several generations of magicals while the other side consists of either a muggle or muggleborn. You fall in this category. The Potters are a very old family, they can trace their lineage back to around 800 A.D preceding the current ministry and wizarding parliament – the Wizengamot. Thus, they are one of the oldest wizarding families in Great-Britain. Lastly, we have what are known as squibs. These are the complete opposites of muggleborns. They are born from magical families, usually pureblooded with no magical capabilities" Nicholas explained.

"So, this Voldermort only wanted pureblooded wizards and witches then?" Harry asked.

"That's correct. In his eyes, anyone not from a pureblooded family had no place in our world. He also had plans to significantly decrease the non-magical population and enslave the rest. The magical world is quite frankly scared of the muggles, although there are few who would openly admit this. Up until the end of the 16th century, our magical capabilities gave us the upper-hand. The past few hundred years the muggle world has seen rapid and massive changes. Should the statue of secrecy fail now and a war between the two civilizations brake out, the magical world will lose – badly. We are both outnumbered and our magic can't protect us from all their advancements, especially in weaponry. This fear for the muggles and the possibility of having a high position in the "new world order" as Voldermort dubbed it, made quite a bit of pureblood families rally behind him. Other pureblooded families who were less excited about his ideals became his supporters out of fear. If you were a pureblood, but sided against him he had no quarrels with killing your entire family.

Harry frowned, he could somewhat understand the fear for the non-magical population. However, to also declare war on anyone not of a pureblood line seemed counter-intuitive. If the magical community was already that much smaller, it was idiotic to go after the non-purebloods as well and decrease the amount of witches and wizards.

"That is the general version, but I don't believe that completely" Nicholas stated.

Harry shaken from his thoughts, looked up surprised. "What do you mean?"

"Over my lifespan there have been several Dark Lords. If there's one trait that every single one of them shared, it was their insatiable lust for power. I believe that Voldermort used the blood superiority that many pure-blooded families followed as a way to recruit more people as his allies, for lack of a better word. Voldemort probably believed in blood superiority and was definitely afraid of the muggles and the danger that they poses to the magical community. But, I believe his main goal was gaining power, in his 'new world order' it would undoubtedly be him, who would be the leader. I believe his main motivation was acquiring more power while all other reasons were secondary" Nicholas explained.

"And what about my parents, where were they in this war?" he asked in a small voice while looking towards the bar where Sirius was laughing at the Barkeeper, before downing another drink.

"They worked against Voldermort. The Dark Lord was primarily opposed by the ministry of magic and a vigilante group – called the Order of the Phoenix, which was led by Albus Dumbledore. Albus was the only other person who I've ever taught in magic. Your father and mother are active followers of Albus and were part of the order during the war. The war finally ended in 1981 with Voldemort's death at the hands of your brother" Nicholas stated.

Harry who was thinking about his parents, immediately snapped his eyes back on Nicholas when he heard that final peace of information.

"My brother? But the both of us were just children! How did a child kill a Dark Lord while he was feared by almost everyone? Harry stated incredulously.

"That's the question, that as of yet has been unanswered. Nobody knows, according to the reports there were three people alive inside the room when it happened; Voldemort, your brother Daniel and you. Two children who can't accurately remember what happened and the other party is dead. As far as the wizarding community here in Britain knows, you are dead as well" Nicholas stated.

"Dead?" Harry asked with a small measure of anger.

"Yes, it was never specified but you succumbed to an illness according to the papers. Ever since the war has ended, you brother has been seen as a hero in the magical community of Great-Britain" Nicholas explained.

Harry could not help but clench his fists until his knuckles were pale white.

"So, my brother is regarded as a hero, while I was declared dead and sent away to my abusive relatives" He asked barely containing his anger.

"Yes, which is something I have trouble understanding. I didn't know your parents personally, but I never got the idea that they were ´bad´ people. The only flaw that I found when I met them, was that they had an unhealthy amount of faith in Albus. Which is unfortunately something a lot of people in this country have. Nicholas explained.

"We could go to Gringotts and look for more information if you'd like?" Nicholas asked.

"Gringotts? What is that and how can it provide more information?" Harry asked confused.

"Gringotts is the wizarding bank. It has segments in every magical community around the world. It's run by a race of warriors and bankers, called Goblins. The first location was opened here in England after the Wizengamot reached an understanding with the goblin race, after a failed rebellion by the goblins. The goblins are autonomous, they are not governed by the laws of the ministry and follow their own rules perfectly. The goblin race is one that values honor above everything else, they follow their own rules without exceptions. Gringotts deals with the financial wizarding world. There's an establishment not far from here" Nicholas explained calmly.

"Wow" was the only thing Harry could say while trying to absorb all the information. He had a million questions but they could wait until a later time.

"Yes. I would really like to go, how do we get there?"

"There's an entrance to Diagon Alley in this pub. The main establishment of Gringotts is located in the heart of Diagon Alley" Nicholas explained while trying to stop laughing at the enthusiasm that the boy in front of him was showing.

* * *

><p><strong>Potter estate<strong>

Daniel Potter was eating lunch when he heard the hooting from an owl in the distance. He looked out of the window and saw a grey barn owl approaching. It was carrying a small package and Daniel knew exactly what it was. When the owl landed in front of him, he quickly untied the package from the owl's leg and eagerly ripped the wrapping paper of his newest gift. As of today he would finally learn about magic. Mr. Dumbledore came by last week and took him and his parents to Diagon Alley to visit the wand shop. The man inside was kind of weird and creepy, but according to his parents he was the best when it came to wand-crafting. They said that because of his age he would need a different wand then normal people. Apparently the core in the normal wands that he sold were too powerful for someone of his age. This didn't make a lot of sense to him, everyone said that he was powerful and that he would do great magical things in the future.

His wand was going to be custom made. According to Mr. Dumbledore he needed permission from the ministry to get a wand, since he wasn't eleven years old yet. His status as the-boy-who-lived made getting that permission really easy, another perk of being famous.

When he was younger he didn't really understand why all these people were admiring him, until about a year ago when his parents finally explained what happened. He was powerful enough that he subconsciously defeated the greatest dark wizard in history. It was awesome that he was _that_ good and couldn't wait until he could go to Hogwarts. At first it made him somewhat uncomfortable that everyone was fawning over him, but as of lately he started to like the extra attention given to him. Everyone thought he was special, people were always nicer to him. He got a lot of presents on his birthday every year and a lot of letters from people, thanking him for what he had done. He liked the idea of being special, being different from everyone else. When he would go to Hogwarts, he would show everyone how amazing he was, how different he was and that he was the next great wizard in the world.

He opened the box and a saw a small auburn colored wand. He grabbed it carefully and looked at the oaken wand that possessed a hair from the main of a Kelpie as a core. He felt the warmness of the wand spreading through his hands, then his arm and eventually through his whole body. When the warmness slowly faded, a small fountain of golden sparks erupted from the tip of his wand. He couldn't help but be in awe at the feeling that his new wand gave him.

"It looks wonderful don't you think Daniel?" He heard from a female voice behind him. When he turned around he saw his parents walking towards him.

"It feels amazing" he exclaimed with enthusiasm. "It felt really warm when I grabbed it, is that normal?" he asked his parents.

"Yes, it's a good sign. It means that the wand has accepted you as his owner" his father explained with a proud smile on his face.

"Accepted me?" he held up his hand and looked at the auburn wand with a confused expression. "But It's a wand how can it accept me?" he asked confused. As far as he knew something that wasn't alive was not capable of accepting anything.

"That's difficult to explain, according to Mr. Olivander a wand is somewhat alive. Don't ask me for more details though, I don't really understand the specifics of it myself. There are not a lot of people that study wand lore and wand-crafting" Lily explained and James nodded at his wife's explanation.

"Really? Oh well, as long as I'll be capable of doing magic with it!" Daniel said with glee.

Lilly smiled at the enthusiasm that her son was showing. She could still remember the first time she held a wand and the amazing feeling that it gave.

"Alright then" James exclaimed. "As of today we'll start practicing magic".

* * *

><p><strong>Diagon Alley<strong>

Dozens of people were walking along the cobblestone road of Diagon Alley. Most of them were covered in robes, while some of them were dressed like muggles. There was a wide selection of shops on the main-road bursting with activity. Harry Potter was stretching his neck from looking left and right so many times. It was just so much to take in all at once. He saw all kinds of shops he would have never expected to be real. He saw people pulling out there wands and performing all kinds of magical charms like; levitation charms, shrinking charms, hair-grow charms and many, many more.

He was following Nicholas as they were slowly making their way towards Gringotts, giving Harry time to observe as much as possible.

"Nicholas what spell did you cast on me, before we walked in the alley?" Harry asked while looking at a shop that was displaying multiple elegant looking brooms. He doubted that they were used for cleaning and thought that there might be some truth to the whole 'witch flying on a broom thing'.

"That was the _**identitatem abscondita **_spell it's also commonly known as a glamour charm. With that spell you hide the real physical features of your target and weave a layer of magic displaying a 'false' identity" Nicholas explained.

Harry looked at him with surprise. So, I look different now then?" he asked while walking towards the nearest shopping window. When he looked at his reflection he noticed that his hair was now brown as opposed to black. His eye color was blue instead of green and his facial features were slightly different.

Nicholas appeared next to him and quietly spoke. "Yes, but it's just an illusion. You're eyes are still green and your hair still black. The charm is quite weak and has many counter-measures like spells, potions and wards. The spell is not extremely reliable, but it has its uses for a short period of time. There are also families that have the natural ability to distinguish this spell with just their eyesight.

"Why do you need me to look different? Harry asked confused.

"Given your age, most people won't give you a second glance. But, you really do look a lot like your father. I'd rather avoid unnecessary questions if I can help it" Nicholas explained.

Harry nodded. That made sense. "You also said something about natural abilities?" Harry asked.

"Indeed, there are several different kinds of magical abilities that run through families. Although, quite a lot have either completely died out in the last several centuries or they are only present in a very small amount of members from a certain family. I don't know if there's a family in Great-Britain that possess the particular gift of being capable of seeing through most illusions. There are however other abilities present in these lands. The Black family is known to produce methamorphi. These are people that can use magic to physically change their appearance. There were the Gaunts, that were well known for their ability to speak parceltongue, this means that they can talk to serpents." Nicholas explained, while they were making their way towards Gringotts.

"Do you poses such a natural ability Nicholas?" Harry asked, while in the meantime paying attention to a menagerie which strangely housed a lot of different kinds of owls.

"Sadly, no. My family never had such a mutation and neither did your family. There were a lot of studies done to find out about the origins of such abilities and the possibilities of making new ones. But nothing significant was ever found" Nicholas calmly explained while stopping in front of a building.

Harry looked at the huge white building, the material that comprised the building seemed to be marble. There were two pillars that one had to pass to enter the bank and both of them had multiple lines of text engraved into the marble.

"_Enter, stranger, but take heed  
>Of what awaits the sin of greed,<br>For those who take, but do not earn,  
>Must pay most dearly in their turn.<br>So if you seek beneath our floors  
>A treasure that was never yours,<br>Thief, you have been warned, beware  
>Of finding more than treasure there."<em>

What do they mean by that, what exactly is down there?" Harry asked while looking at Nicholas with confusion.

"The goblins and Gringotts follow their own set of laws, if you would attempt theft at the bank, then the goblins themselves have the authority to punish you. Which usually means either slave labor or death. To answer your second question, you will see soon enough" Nicholas said with a small smile.

"Slave labor? That's legal?" Harry asked horrified.

"The goblins are a race that values honor and power in either magical, political of financial form. Taking something that you hold no claim over, is in the eyes of the goblins one of the greatest sins. In 1208 the leader of the goblin race by the name of Dreadfang Gringotts was given sovereignty within the selected buildings and grounds that were held by the goblins. They got this position because of a truce between wizards and goblins after they were at war for nearly fourteen years, like I explained earlier " Nicholas said.

Harry could only nod while they were walked inside. The moment they walked through the doors Harry felt something warm brushing his entire skin.

"What you just felt was the cancelation of the _**identitatem abscondita **_spell. Gringotts is warded with dozens upon dozens of wards. They have the best identification wards in the country. A simple spell like the one I put over you, is instantly dispelled when you enter" Nicholas said with a smile.

They walked into a massive room which had a Victorian design with a polished black and white floor stones with multiple different designs. There were dozens of dark wooden counters. Harry couldn't help but be fascinated by the small creatures sitting at the desks and counters. He immediately believed what Nicholas said about them being a race of warriors and bankers. They looked vicious, but were dressed in well-made business suits. The exceptions were the guards in the corners, they were wearing heavy mail, helmets that hid away their faces and were armed with huge axes or maces. The bank itself was quite busy, there were easily over fifty wizards and witches inside. Harry was about to stand in-line behind a rather overweighed wizard, before he saw Nicholas walking straight pass the line towards one of the goblins.

When he arrived, Harry heard Nicholas talking in a language unlike any he had ever heard. The only language that he had ever heard that came close, was Arabic. He assumed that it was the native language of the goblins. When he looked and listened to the other customers, he noticed that none of them were using the same language. When he turned towards the goblin he noticed that it seemed to act with a sort of reverence towards Nicholas. When they were done talking, the goblin bowed before hurrying of.

When Nicholas looked at Harry he noticed the face that said _explain_. He couldn't help but smile at the inquisitive nature of his new apprentice.

"That was Gobbledegook, the native language of the goblins. It's a language few ever bother to learn. Let me give you your first lesson Harry, always treat the goblins with respect. The goblins can be powerful allies or your worst enemies, which depends on how you treat them. A lot of wizards look at them as something vile and repulsive. If you show the goblins that you respect their society, work and culture then they will treat you with respect as well. They can cause you a lot of trouble if you ridicule their race and society on a regular base. Hundreds upon hundreds of years many wizards and witches have learned this the hard way" Nicholas stated with a serious expression.

Harry both gulped and nodded. He could see the truth in those words. If the goblins were responsible for a huge percentage of the gold and financial transactions in the magical world, you would have to be foolish to not treat them with any form of respect.

"Why didn't we have to wait in-line like everyone else?" Harry asked.

"The goblins treat their customers based on their status within Gringotts. The more financial and political power one has, the more preference they get. One customer that holds 500.000 galleons is many times more important for the goblins than 10 customers that hold 10.000 each" Nicholas calmly explained.

Soon a different goblin came walking in and ushered them towards an private room. When they walked inside he saw a goblin sitting behind a dark mahogany desk, this goblin was way older than the ones in the main hall. He was almost completely bald with a few plucks of grey hair, his eyes were invisible due to the skin that was hanging from his forehead. Harry couldn't help but feel some small amount of fear. He looked at Nicholas and saw that the man smiled and walked towards the desk, so he decided to just observe and see what was going to happen.

"Greetings master Stonegrip, it has been quite some years" Nicholas exclaimed with the faintest of smiles.

The goblins in front of Nicholas only grunted, his head was turned towards Harry who was getting uncomfortable. He knew the goblin was looking at him, he didn't understand how exactly. The eyes of the goblin were not visible at all. Nonetheless he had the feeling he was being judged. He took a steady breath, calmed his nerves and changed his pose into a more confident one. The goblins kept his head turned at him for another five seconds before turning back to Nicholas.

"Indeed it has master Flamel, you have not visited me in nearly 25 years now. If I'm not mistaken, you do almost all of your business with us from our holding in Paris" The goblin spoke in a low tone.

"Indeed, I've spend the majority of this century in France instead of Great-Britain. Today however, I'm not here for myself but for my companion. I would like for him to do a inherency test, to determine his current status" Nicholas responded.

Master Stonegrip grunted again before hitting the bell that was on the far corner of his desk. Within five seconds a goblin walked inside the office. After some quick words in Gobbledegook the younger goblin left. After nearly ten minutes of awkward silence the same goblin came back. He was carrying what looked like some sort of ancient parchment. Master Stonegrip put the parchment on his desk before grabbing a silver lined dagger from one of his drawers.

"Put at least three drops of blood on the parchment, it will tell you everything you'll need to know" the goblin spoke.

Harry looked towards Nicholas who gave him a small nod. Harry anxiously grabbed the dagger and brought it towards the palm of his hand. He remembered what Nicholas said about the goblins being a warrior race and steeled his nerves, determined not to show any pain. With a small and quick slash, a couple of drops of blood fell on the parchment. He immediately felt the wound closing and saw in the corner of his eye that Nicholas had his wand pointed at his injured hand.

As soon as the drops of blood hit the parchment it started spinning before it changed into multiple words.

_**Full name**_

_Harry James - no name. Formerly known as Potter_

_**(former)kin**_

_Father: James Charlus Potter_

_Mother: Lillian Marie Potter nee Evans_

_Older twin brother: Daniel Alexander Potter_

_Aunt (maternal side) Petunia Iris Dursley nee Evans_

_Uncle (maternal side) Vernon Dursley_

_Nephew (maternal side) Dudley David Dursley_

_**Family disownment **_

_Disowned from the Potter family on the year 1982, 16__th__ of December by Lord James Charlus Potter_

_Custody given to one Vernon Dursley and Petunia Dursley nee Evans on the year 1982, 4__th__ of November_

_**Family claims**_

_Former member of the Potter family_

_Former second heir of the Potter family_

_Member of the Peverell family, if claimed_

Harry couldn't help but stare at the parchment, unable to look anywhere else. He knew his family probably didn't want him based on the fact that he was send to live somewhere else, but the fact that he was thrown out of the Potter family before he was even four years old stung deeply. He felt some moisture gathering in the corners of his eyes while he kept staring at the single word _disowned. _

"I see" Nicholas stated with no smile whatsoever and grabbing Harry shoulder gently. "I'm sorry Harry, it seems your parents indeed disowned you after you were send to live with your relatives" Nicholas said with a steady and calm voice. He saw that Harry's attention was still on the parchment.

"Harry" Nicholas spoke firmly. Harry shook his head and looked up towards his new master.

"It is important for you to realize that a family name means a lot in the magical community. To be disowned is one of the worst punishments outside of death or life imprisonment. It basically puts your near the bottom of society" Nicholas explained without any emotion. Harry looked at Nicholas, still trying to comprehend the current situation.

"Master Stonegrip, the parchment states that Harry can claim the last name of Peverell. I assume this is because the Potter line is the last one that carries the blood of the Peverell family?" Nicholas asked.

"You are correct on your first point and incorrect on your second. The boy here can claim Peverell as his last name, but there is still a member of another family that the Peverell family married into, the Gaunts. Morphin Gaunt is currently the last known Gaunt and descendant of the Peverell family as well, he currently resides in the prison of Azkaban.

Harry was trying to follow the conversation but he didn't understand anything about the current subject.

"Nicholas, how can I be a Peverell? I am.." he gulped "was.. a Potter, right?"

"You're correct. However, the Peverell were an very important family. They were even older then the Potters. Their family name died out because there were no more males to carry the Peverell name. There were however daughters from the Peverell family, that married into other families. One of those families was the Potters" Nicholas said.

Nicholas turned towards Master Stonegrip "Would it be possible for him to claim the lordship of the Peverell family once he is old enough?"

Stonegrip called for another goblin once more, who eventually returned with a set of documents. Stonegrip carefully studied the documents before returning his gaze towards Nicholas and Harry.

"If the boy accept the name of Peverell, he will become a member of its house. He will have limited access to the Peverell vault that resides within Gringotts" Stonegrip explained.

Nicholas raised his eyebrow "limited access?" he asked.

"Yes, the Peverell vault consists of two areas, the general area that is accessible to all its members and the area of the Lord Peverell. Only the ones who are recognized as the head of the Peverell family can access that part. Mr. Peverell currently does not meet the requirements to be capable of becoming Lord Peverell" Stonegrip sneered.

Nicholas who had spent centuries interacting with goblins immediately recognized the wording that Stonegrip was using.

"What would Mr. Peverell have to do, to meet the requirements to become the Lord of his house" Nicholas asked in a formal tone.

"Mr. Peverell currently does not poses enough of the Peverell blood to be recognized as its Lord. The Peverell were once a family that took heavy pride in their Pureblood status and were known to marry their own cousins. As such one of the Lords of the Peverell house made a requirement to take up the Lordship of his house. The individual had to poses a certain amount of Peverell blood. Over the centuries however, the Peverell blood became diluted and weaker" Stonegrip explained.

Nicholas was frowning at the goblin in front of him. The requirement was no doubt meant to last only for a certain amount of time. Due to the lack of any male heirs the requirement was never removed. However, Stonegrip wouldn't bother explaining all of this is if it didn't have a purpose.

"And what can we do to rectify this situation?" Nicholas asked calmly.

Stonegrip smiled and Harry could see what was left of his sharp teeth.

"The Peverell family was well-known for their practice of blood magic. The ministry banned the practice and use of blood magic in the year 1845, but there is still a room within the Peverell vault that contains multiple blood samples of some of the Peverell members" Stonegrip said.

"Blood-adoption" Nicholas muttered and Stonegrip showed his crooked smile once more.

"What?" Harry exclaimed. He was following the conversation with undivided attention, even though he didn't understand some of the things that were being spoken of. Bases on what he heard he could become Harry Peverell, because one of his ancestors carried the name. But, he was apparently not capable of becoming a Lord of his house whatever that meant. Unless he did the blood-adoption.

"Nicholas turned towards Harry. "A lord means you are the head of the house. This title comes with a lot of important things. For one you would be capable of claiming a seat at the wizarding parliament. As you've just heard, a part of the Peverell family vault is locked for anyone who's not the head of house. If you become Lord Peverell, you'll be capable of entering it. You will also be capable of dealing as the representative of the Peverell house in financial and political situations" Nicholas calmly explained.

"So, it would be really beneficial for me to become Lord Peverell when I'm old enough?" Harry asked.

"Yes it would be. There is also the fact that the Peverell family is one of the oldest families in Great-Britain, in the wizarding world this is very important. As the lord of such a house you will be respected among many circles in this society"

"Alright I understand that, but what does blood-adoption mean?"

"It means that the goblins can perform a magical ritual on you. They will use some of the blood of a Peverell family member inside the vault and fuse it with your own blood trough a ritual. This will basically reverse your current blood status. Right now you're primarily a Potter while holding some of the Peverell blood because of your ancestor. If you go through with the ritual, you'll become primarily a Peverell, with some of the Potter blood. You will be capable of becoming the lord of the house of Peverell" Nicholas explained with a serious edge in his voice.

Harry thought about his current situation. He was already thrown out of the Potter family and his parents obviously never desired him. He could use this ritual to distance himself even further from them. He didn't need his parents thus far and he would make something of himself without their help. He looked towards Nicholas.

"Do you think I should do it?" Harry asked.

"Yes, I think you should. I know you hold no love towards the Potters. You could use this ritual to sever almost all your ties with them. The ritual will have some physical effects on you, although they shouldn't be overwhelming" Nicholas stated.

"What kind of physical effects are we talking about?"

"Minor changes most likely. Your hair could change some shades of color, as could your eyes and possible some changes to your facial structure. It all depends on the person's blood that is chosen for the ritual" Nicholas turned towards master Stonegrip.

"Do you have any particular recommendation for which blood to use for the ritual" Nicholas asked.

Stonegrip once more went thought the heavy stack of documents on his desk.

"There are 27 different samples of Peverell blood currently in the vault. You have the option to use the blood of the main Peverell line that married into the Potters. Ignotus Peverell's granddaughter, Sophia Alicia Potter nee Peverell married to one Alexander Francis Potter. There is no blood of Sophia present, there is however the blood of Ignotus Peverell himself inside the vault" Master Stonegrip explained while going through the documents.

Nicholas couldn't help but be intrigued. Ignotus Peverell, one of the three Peverell brothers that were said to hold the deathly hallows. He knew that all three of the items existed, the Elder wand has been changing hands by bloody conflict for centuries and there were rumors among the relic searchers that the Potters held the cloak, although it was never confirmed. The hallows had always fascinated him, but he never spend time actually looking for them. He was more intrigued by the source of these objects, he wanted to know if they were powerful crafted items by the Peverells themselves, or if there was more to their creation. Death himself, like some of the rumors and stories suggested. Nicholas turned to Harr.

"It's your decision, do you want to do it?" Nicholas asked.

"Yes, I would like to do the ritual" Harry stated with confidence.

"Very well, before the ritual can start you'll need to claim your membership of the house Peverell" Stonegrip stated. He scribbled something on a piece of parchment and gave it to Harry.

"When you reach the Peverell vault, put your hands on the door and repeat the words on the parchment, it will allow you to open the vault and retrieve the blood of your ancestor. In the meantime I will have some goblins prepare the ritual chamber" Stonegrip stated with a cold voice.

"Thank you for your time and business Master Stonegrip" Nicholas said before turning his back towards the goblin and walking towards the door.

"Yes, thank you for your time" Harry stated in voice with gratitude, before following his master.

* * *

><p><strong>Hogwarts, headmasters office.<strong>

Albus Dumbledore was going through his daily load of paper work. As chief-warlock of the Wizengamot he was responsible for many matters within the politics of Great-Britain. His concentration was however not with his paper work but with Daniel Potter. The boy should be receiving his custom-made wand any day now. The boy was talented from what he had seen so far. He had doubts that the boy would ever reach his level, but he would definitely be an above average wizard. The true source of his power, that he is going to need to fulfill the prophecy was a different matter. He still didn't understand how Daniel was capable of reflecting the _Avada Kedavra curse. _ It was obvious the child possessed some kind of unknown power, that he used subconsciously when Tom attacked him. The question however was, what was needed for him to consciously draw upon this power?

It was possible that he could only access it in life or death situations. Given the boys sheltered life, he had not been in another situation that threatened it. Maybe he could pull some strings and look for possibilities when the boy came to Hogwarts. It shouldn't be that difficult to put the child in a controlled situation that would made him think that his life was in danger. He saw no other ways to further study the power that the Daniel used. He wouldn't dare to fire another _Avada Kedavra curse _at the boy and expect the same results, he could doom the entire wizarding world with that action, if it failed.

As he was pondering Daniels power his younger twin came to mind again. The boy should be pleasantly living with his muggle relatives, oblivious from the magical world. James, Lilly and himself had covered their tracks well. According to the wizarding world the boy had died because of an illness and James had officially disowned him from the Potter family. This would protect the boy and his relatives from any retribution acts from Tom's sympathizers. It would be better for the child if he would never know of the magical world. With that last thought he returned to the large pile of paperwork on his desk.

* * *

><p><strong>Gringotts <strong>

The duo was led towards the underground cart system of Gringotts, to make their way towards the Peverell vault. The ride itself was unique to say the least. Harry had never gone to an amusement park in his life, although he had heard stories about it from Dudley. The closest thing that came close to the ride in the depths of Gringotts, was a rollercoaster ride. He was scared out of his mind that they were going to fall of the rails, before Nicholas explained that magic was being used to keep the cart in place. After a ride of nearly twenty minutes he heard the sounds of roars in the distance, echoing through the cavern systems.

"What was that?" Harry asked while trying to hide his nerves.

"Remember that you asked me what was down here other than treasure before we entered Gringotts? Nicholas asked, while seeing Harry nod.

"You're about to find out" Nicholas said with a smile. He was curious of Harry's reaction to the mighty creatures.

When they turned another corner they entered a huge clearing. Harry saw multiple heavy steel doors in multiple designs and shapes. What that took most of his attention were the huge dragons that occupied the clearing. Their bodies were standing at 15 to 20 feet high with their heads even reaching higher. There were five of them and all of them looked different. He couldn't help but feel in awe at their presence.

"The oldest families have their vaults protected by dragons to increase the security. They are impressive and noble creatures and are far smarter than most wizards and witches give them credit for" explained the goblin that was guiding them.

Five minutes later Harry found himself standing in front of a massive steel door. There was symbol in the center of the door. It looked like some kind of bird that was resting on triangle, with a circle inside of it and a straight line going vertically from top to bottom inside the triangle. Underneath the symbol there were words carved in a language he did not recognize.

_**Et ipsa vita quam scrutatores quasi custodes conceptibus**_

"The creature you see pictured is known as a phoenix. It's one of the rarest magical creatures in existence. They live in remote locations that few humans ever come. Some phoenixes have bonded with certain wizards or witches throughout the ages. The reason they are both rare and revered is because as far as we know they are immortal" Nicholas explained.

"Immortal, really?" Harry asked in awe.

"As far as we know. Phoenixes are creatures that are not heavily researched, due to their rarity. There isn't one known record of a phoenix ever dying in a permanent fashion. Once the phoenix reaches the end of his 'life' so to speak, they burn themselves to ashes and are then reborn from the same ashes. The headmaster of Hogwarts and my former apprentice is the only known person in Great-Britain to have a phoenix as a bonded companion. I've only met seven different phoenixes in my entire existence, most of them in remote locations in the world" Nicholas explained.

"Wow, I can't wait to go to Hogwarts and see the phoenix that is bonded with the headmaster" harry stated.

"Perhaps you won't have to wait that long, you'll be coming with me on some trips. There's a decent chance that you'll encounter one" Nicholas stated.

"What does the text mean underneath it and in what language is it written?" harry asked.

"It's Latin, you will be learning it extensively the coming years. It's the primary language used to cast spells. As for the text it says "_Searchers and keepers of concepts beyond life itself_" Nicholas explained while frowning, this was the first time he had read the coat of arms from the Peverell family.

The only thing he knew that could refer to that statement were the hallows themselves, the Peverells were the keepers of all the hallows at one point in history. If the rumors are to be believed those objects indeed transcended life itself, as they were made by death. Shaking his thoughts he returned his attention back to Harry.

"What does that mean?" he asked clearly confused with the content of the message.

"I'm not sure" Nicholas lied. "Perhaps the answers can be found in the vault, most likely the Lord's section" Nicholas explained.

Harry nodded. He removed the parchment from his pocket, walked towards the steel door and put his hand on the cold metal.

"I Harry James – No name, formerly known as Potter herby claim my membership of the house of Peverell" he stated with a calm voice.

He immediately felt a surge of magical going through his body and he heard a heavy click before the door in front of him opened slowly. He looked towards Nicholas to see what he should do next.

"You're the only one of us that is allowed inside. There are many different types of defensive magic active, to ensure no one outside of the Peverell family can enter" Nicholas said.

Nodding, Harry slowly made his way inside the vault. It was bigger than he expected from the outside. He had a feeling that magic was being used to increase the space. There were multiple rooms. One of the rooms he passed held an assortment of books and tomes neatly stacked by subject, there were also multiple pieces of furniture inside. Another room held and assortment of medieval weaponry and armor. He saw several types of swords, axes, maces and other types of weaponry he couldn't identify. He noticed that some of the weapon and armor had the same emblem engraved on it as the one on the door. After passing another room filled with gold, silver and other gems he noticed the door on the end of the hallway. He grabbed the door handle which was cold to the touch and it refused to budge, he assumed that this was the door that led to the area that only the lord could enter. He turned right and walked inside another room, inside he saw a shelf filled with red colored vials along with a variety of books. The temperature in the room was much lower here than in the rest of the vault. He scanned the vials and saw that they all had names on the labels. After two minutes of searching, he finally found the one that said 'Ignotus'. He grabbed the vial and made its way to the entrance of the vault.

"Have you concluded your business in the vault" the goblin escort asked him with a sneer.

"Yes, master goblin. I've no further business inside for the time being" he spoke with a polite tone. The goblin nodded and they made their way back to the surface. After another twenty minute ride the trio were on the surface once more. They saw a goblin waiting for them.

"Master Stonegrip has send me to collect you and escort you to the ritual chamber. Have you acquired the blood?" the goblin asked.

"Yes, I have. Please take us to the chamber" Harry responded.

While they were making their way towards the ritual chamber Harry was thinking. He was now officially Harry James Peverell. Still, the name didn't sound right. He didn't like the fact that he was named after his father that had no interest in raising him.

"Nicholas would it be possible for me to officially change my name?" Harry asked.

Nicholas lifted his eyes in surprise at the question. Then again, Harry did not hold the Potters in high regard.

"Yes, that would be possible. I assume that you want to change your middle name or do you want to change your first name as well?" Nicholas asked.

"Definitely my middle name, I like my first name. But I don't like the fact that my parents were the one to give that name to me" Harry responded with a sour look on his face.

"Well, you could slightly change your first name. What about Harold or Harrison?" Nicholas asked.

Harry raised his eyebrow. He like the idea of changing his first name in something that still resembled Harry, Harold however sounded absolutely ridiculous and Harrison wasn't cutting it either.

Nicholas, noting the expression on Harry's face when he mentioned the names chuckled.

"Just think about it, we can have your name changed after the ritual" He told him.

They entered through a heavy set of black doors. The room was quite small in comparison to the rest of the rooms in Gringotts. The walls were covered with multiple marks and texts. In the middle of the room was a stone platform that resembled something like a sacrificial altar. There were seven goblins present in the room, some of them were wearing unusual purple and black robes.

"Greetings Mr. Peverell I am senior ritualist Bloodhook. I will be performing the blood-adoption ritual today" the goblin explained in a low menacing tone.

"Greetings master Bloodhook" Harry responded politely and handed the vial of Ignotus blood to the goblin.

"Take of your shirt, shoes, socks and pants and lie down on the stone altar in the center of the room" Bloodhook ordered.

Harry hesitated, he didn't want anyone to see the scars that he had gathered in the years living with the Dursley. After a moment of thinking, he realized that there was no alternative and he did as he was told.

Nicholas couldn't help but grind his teeth when Harry took off his shirt and faced with his back towards him. He had guessed that based on Harry's demeanor, that he was physically abused when he was younger. However, he did not expect it was to this level.

"Master Bloodhook, would it be possible to remove Mr. Peverells scars after the procedure?" Nicholas asked with a serious tone.

Harry couldn't help but feel ashamed at the current situation. He noticed one of the goblins walking towards him and he felt one of the goblins fingers on his back.

"I'm afraid not Master Flamel. The wounds that caused the scars were crudely and inefficiently healed with magic. The scar tissue is fully imbedded with magic, our procedures will not take away these scars. Nicholas only nodded with a sad expression on his face.

Harry slowly lied down on the altar. He was about to ask the goblin how long the ritual was going to take before his whole vision went black and he knew no more.

* * *

><p><strong>Department of mysteries<strong>

"I've called you here today because most of you are senior researchers here at the department" Croaker explained while eyeing the seven people in front of him. Some of them were the top researchers in their field.

"The seven of you, as of today will have an additional research to perform. This research job will take away some time from your regular activities. It's also a long-term project that will last for at least ten years. The files in front of you have specified information that's different for all of you. You'll all work towards the research of the same subject, but you will go about it in different ways. Some of you will be traveling to key locations in the world, others will be tasked with creating specific instruments that should help us get additional data" Croaker explained.

He handed out the files to the unspeakables and requested them to read the introductory. As soon as most of them were finished reading they were given each other un-easy looks.

"Sir, this is… quite serious and could have lasting consequences. Are you sure that the data you've received is accurate. According to the reports it has research data from the last 50 years and even more impressive it has similar types of data that are least 200 years old" unspeakable Wilson stated.

The rest of the unspeakables couldn't help but nod at their colleagues statement.

"At the current time I will not disclose the source of this information. I want to try and collect as much data as possible to support what the files state to be absolutely sure. The collection of this data will be over the entire world. Almost all of you will make trips to certain locations and collect data, as soon as we have the required instruments" Croaker stated.

"You have all been given the information regarding this research and each of you has been given additional information regarding to your specialties. Read everything extensively and make sure that you completely understand it. A meeting will be planned within four days were we will make a plan and distribute information, resources and other vital matters. You're dismissed" Croaker stated with finality.

* * *

><p><strong>Gringotts<strong>

Harry's head was spinning. He felt absolutely miserable. Although, he noticed that the feeling was slowly going away. He tried to open his eyes but it took an unusual amount of effort. Multiple voices could be heard inside the room and Harry could hear Nicholas's voice asking questions to the goblins.

"How long is it going to take before he wakes up?" Nicholas asked one of the goblins.

"He should regain consciousness any minute now" the goblin in a purple robe calmly explained.

Harry groaned. He finally managed to open his eyes and he slowly managed to sit on the altar. Nicholas saw Harry slowly getting up.

"How do you feel?" Nicholas asked.

"At the moment, not so good. But it's getting better every second" Harry said with a small groan.

"The unpleasant feeling should be gone in about two minutes, the ritual was a success" Bloodhook stated.

"So, how do I look?" Harry asked curious about the changes.

"There are some noticeable changes" Nicholas stated while giving Harry a mirror to study himself.

Harry looked at the mirror and saw that he had indeed changed quite a bit. His cheekbones were higher and the general shape of his face was more angular. He also noticed that his eyes were still green, but the shade of green changed from light to dark green. The final and most noticeable difference was his hair, instead of the deep black color it now had a very dark brown color. His hair was still a bit wild, but nowhere near the wild look he had before the ritual. All in all, he was pleased with the results.

"So, I don't look like my father anymore?" he asked with a small measure of hope.

"Not at all, you've definitely lost the features that would identify you as a Potter" Nicholas explained.

Harry couldn't help but give a genuine smile at that statement. His parents did not raise him and played no role whatsoever in his life. As far as he was concerned he never had any parents. There was only one last thing to do before he was finally free from the Potters.

"Have you made a decision on your new name?" Nicholas asked seemingly reading Harry's mind.

"Yes…. Hadrian Ignotus Peverell" he stated with a cold and deadly tone.

_Taking a name that would be remembered in history for millennia to come._

**End chapter**

**The hallows will be an important part of this story. I disliked the lack of attention they got in canon. Daniel will be somewhat arrogant, but he won't be overly obnoxious like he's portrayed in many other twinfics. There will be some bashing from time to time, but it will be within reason – not simply bashing for bashings sake. As an apology for the long update time I basically converted two chapters into one chapter. Until next time.**


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