text stringlengths 0 57.5k |
|---|
Lily, ever curious, tilts her head at this, |
"could it have been both of my boys? Twins do form close bonds, don’t they?" |
"Yes," says the elderly wizard carefully, |
"but never at such a young age. Such a thing is unheard of! Their magical cores are not yet quite developed enough for such a thing," both the Potters nod in understanding, believing every word that spills from Dumbledore’s mouth, |
"then which of our sons’ did it?" James inquires, addressing the elephant in the room. Dumbledore tilts his head slightly, carefully considering the options before him, |
"it could have been either my dear boy. We need to evaluate what we know Which of the boys do you feel would be most likely?" He asks the young parents. |
Lily and James both frown and then shake their heads, |
"we don’t know," Lily replies, |
"they both have similar injuries and the way V...Voldemort was lying it’s difficult to tell who he was closer to." The headmaster sighed, |
"let me see their injuries," he phrases it as an inquiry but it is more of a thinly veiled command. James and Lily step closer to the professor so he can see the boys better. The wizened wizard mutters and waves his wand over both boys, |
"curious, oh how strange!" He exclaims in seeming delight. James tilts his head, |
"what’s strange professor?" |
"Well my boy, there’s dark magic clinging to both boys, more so around Harry for some reason. However, Ethan’s wound appears to be much more severe," he gestures to the star shaped mark on Ethan’s forehead and the boy giggles, grabbing his fingers and putting them in his mouth. Dumbledore extracts them, hiding a grimace of distaste at the young child's actions, and wipes the saliva off on his robes, |
"it would seem that Ethan is the one that defeated Voldemort, if only for the more severe injury, besides, the older out of twins is often the more powerful due to the fact their core forms first and thus has more time to develop. As for the darkness surrounding Harry it is probably from the magical backlash that occurred when the dark lord was killed; it surrounds the house." He gestures vaguely at their surroundings to emphasise his point. |
Both James and Lily look at Ethan, their son and supposed vanquisher of a dark lord. Not just any dark lord however, one of the worst dark lords in history, |
"this is too much," Lily says with a trembling voice, sitting on the dust and grit covered couch and clutching Ethan closer to her chest. Ethan puts some of her deep red hair in his mouth and chews contentedly on the strands. Dumbledore smiles softly, |
"Ethan will be famous throughout the wizarding world, everyone will know his name, and so, you need to make a decision," he says sombrely, causing the stricken parents look at Dumbledore in curiosity, |
"you can either keep Harry and risk him becoming jealous of Ethan’s fame and resenting him. He could possibly fall to the dark if his jealousy consumes him. Or, you can send him to your sister, Petunia, Lily, where he can grow up away from Ethan’s fame entirely and still experience having a family and feeling their love, rather than sending him to an orphanage." A strange look crosses his face as he briefly thinks about another wizard who was in an orphanage due to his family sending his mother away. The wizard who's body now lies upstairs. A wizard who was once a quiet and morose child, much like Harry. But he shakes it off, this boy will never be like Tom Riddle, the Potters are a light family. Not like the Slytherins and Gaunts. Even if Harry did end up showing dark tendencies, the influence of simply having a family that is light should steer him away from the darker side of the wizarding world at the very least. |
Lily and James shake their heads’ vehemently, |
"no," says Lily strongly, |
"Harry is our son. Ethan may become famous but that doesn’t mean we will love Harry any less than Ethan," Dumbledore nods, seeming to understand their reasoning, |
After the defeat of the dark lord Voldemort the Potters moved back into James" childhood home, the ancestral halls of Potter manor. At first, Lily, who had grown up in a comfortable, if small, suburban house, was heavily overwhelmed and uncomfortable with the sheer size of the manor and the fact that they needed house elves to keep on top of the cleaning. |
Ethan and James took to the new living arrangements with ease. James due to the familiarity and Ethan due to his lack of care. As was usual for him, Hadrian was quite impassive. He did, however, enjoy looking up at the high ceilings and would spend hours staring at the moving portraits of his various ancestors. They, at least, gave him some semblance of attention, cooing over his bright green eyes that held just a touch too much awareness for a child of his age. His parents seemed to let Hadrian drift into the background though, their attention held by Ethan. |
He didn't really notice the change in his parents" attitude towards him at first. Why would he? He was a child after all. No, it was an extremely slow process and the twins had been only two when it had begun in earnest. It started with small things in the beginning; Ethan receiving better toys, being doted upon more. But that was fine. As the quieter of the two Harry was used to getting less attention, at least from his parents. Uncle Sirius and Uncle Remus always tried to treat him and his twin equally; even after that Halloween when Ethan became famous for what Hadrian did. Not that anyone knows, no one except Hadrian and Lord Voldemort himself. |
After Ethan always getting better toys it extended to Harry being left to try and feed himself whilst Lily and James fussed over Ethan and the mess he was making. The majority of the time Harry had assistance from various house elves but sometimes they were simply too busy to do so. As a result, Hadrian was able to use a knife and fork semi-competently by the time he was two and a half. |
Sirius and Remus visited them often, showering both Harry and Ethan with gifts; Remus" being more educational. After they had left, his parents took all the fun toys and gave them to Ethan to keep and Hadrian was left with the educational ones. They consisted of books that read to you, puzzles that helped develop hand-eye coordination, etc. Ethan got stuffed animals that moved around and roared. Not that Harry really minded. Maybe if he was clever his parents would pay attention to and love him more. He learned to write, albeit quite messily, by the age of four. |
When he tried showing his parents his writing he was hit for the first time. James yelled at him for trying to show up Ethan. Told him he was ungrateful, though what for Harry wasn't entirely sure. He tore up the parchment that he'd written on and took any writing equipment out of his room. Lily looked on with a little crease in her eyebrows but a blank look in her eyes. Hadrian learned to hide his treasured things or he would lose them. |
The week after this incident Ethan started lessons so he could learn to read and write. James told Harry that he had to remain in his room during Ethan's lessons. He also told him that they'd be too hard for him to understand because Ethan was the saviour of the wizarding world so he was obviously better. Hadrian sneaked out of his room at one point to look at the books that Ethan had to read; they were incredibly easy but his brother could barely stutter his way through a single sentence. All Ethan wanted to do was play, not learn. Hadrian couldn't read very complicated books yet but he's absolutely positive that he's above the level he should be reading at. Maybe if he tries even harder his parents will love him more? |
"Uncle Sirius?" He asks carefully at age five, |
"Why do mum and dad love me less than Ethan?" Sirius pauses in confusion at the question, he voices his confusion to Harry, |
"What do you mean, cub?" |
"Well," Harry starts, |
"Ethan has lots of lessons and I don't. I learned everything that I know all by myself. Ethan doesn't even like his lessons, he just throws tantrums and he just wants to play all the time!" The young boy pauses, gathering his thoughts, |
"Ethan always gets the bestest and most expensive things. Any clothes I get have been Ethan's first. Only Ethan can eat any sweets, I get shouted at if I ask for any. Also, I never get to go on holiday. They go and they get the house elves to look after me," he looks up at Sirius, tears in his eyes, |
"Am I bad Uncle Sirius? Is that why they don't love me?" Sirius pulls Hadrian into a hug, |
"I'm sure they love you cub," he says, though from all that Harry has told him he's not entirely sure of that fact anymore. |
"Tell you what. I'll talk to them and find out, okay?" Harry sniffles and nods into Sirius" shoulder. He burrows closer and clings to his godfather, relishing the first hug he's had since the man had last visited. |
That night Harry is beaten until he bleeds for the first time. He learns not to tell anyone about what happens within the manor, not even his uncles. He also learns to hide the bruises on his arms. |
At age six Hadrian stops getting presents. He thought, at least, that Remus and Sirius loved him, but as he watches Ethan tear eagerly through wrapping paper he knows that this must be false. He sits, bright green eyes glistening with unshed tears, as he comes to the realisation that he is not loved. After all, if they loved him at all they'd treat him like they treat Ethan, right? He learns that love is a lie, or at least temporary. He can't believe that anyone loves him if he wants to survive. |
But still, Hadrian holds out the barest hint of hope that he'll get presents at Yule. He even asks James if he received any. All Harry gets is a painful beating and told that he shouldn't be so selfish. That he should be grateful that Ethan defeated You-Know-Who. All Hadrian feels is pain and something that when he gets older he'll come to describe as hatred. |
His magic flares in defiance and several candles go out. Luckily this goes unnoticed by James. Ethan hadn't displayed much in the way of accidental magic yet and, no doubt, James would use this as a reason to hurt Harry more. He resolves to gain better control, if only to avoid future conflict. |
Little does Harry know that half of the presents from Sirius and Remus were meant to be his but James had changed all the labels. He also doesn't know that Sirius had confronted James after all the boy had told him and James had banned him and Remus from the manor. He also told Sirius that no one would believe him if he went to authorities because the Potter's are a perfect light family and he, a Black, is as dark as they come. Sirius was disgusted, but resolved to send gifts anyway and hope for letters. No letters ever came. |
Hadrian woke upon his seventh Birthday with a feeling of dread nestled within his heart. He's unsure as to why. This day is just like any other really. James had already thoroughly reinforced the fact that Harry was to stay as far out of the way as possible at Ethan's party later. Yes, Ethan's. If Harry could get away with it he wouldn't attend the party at all. However, those few people that are aware of his existence could question where he is. The boy snorts to himself quietly, he knows it's highly unlikely, but James can't risk their reputation. We all know how important that is. |
He carefully heaves himself up out of his lumpy bed, hissing painfully through his teeth as the weeks old scabs littering his back pull tight. There aren't many but it's enough to make his underfed, 7 year old body, struggle. James doesn't actually like to get his hands dirty often, which is why his wounds are sparse. However, Hadrian knows that if James were to truly lose control when "punishing" him it would be much worse. He shakes his head, best not to think about it too much. Steeling himself, Harry quickly gets dressed and then prepares to face the day. |
Screaming children sprint manically around the grounds of Potter manor, hyper off far too much sugar, and thoroughly enjoying the party. Harry doesn't join them. He's somewhat more fragile than the other children due to his punishments of no dinner more often than not. He'd rather not risk adding to his injuries. |
Outside of James punishing him for whatever reason he, luckily, mostly ignores him. Taking full advantage of this fact, at the present moment he's sat at the edge of the party, reading "A Brief History of the Wizarding World." |
Now, for all that Hadrian is highly intelligent for his age, he doesn't fully understand the book. That isn't to say he doesn't understand it at all however, he understands just enough to know what it's about, and the main facts that are presented within. The more obscure topics however, such as the author pondering philosophically over why a certain event occurred, we're incomprehensible to the small boy. Perhaps in a year or so he may understand it better. |
He frowns at a particular word, not knowing its meaning, reads around it to try and figure out it's context, then just resolves to look up the meaning later on. A throat clears in front of him, pulling him from his thoughts, and, most importantly, his book. A couple is standing there, |
"You must be a friend of Ethan Potter's," the woman assumes in a haughty voice. Hadrian barely holds back a grimace, a friend, yes of course. |
"Do you happen to know where he is?" Harry sighs and closes his book, |
"He's over there," he says, gesturing with a slender hand to the hoard of children running around with his brother at its head. |
"And I'm actually his twin." He misses the look of shock upon the couple's face as he walks away to a quieter part of the gardens where he can read in peace, but still quietly observe the party. |
Harry sits and quietly reads for a while before he hears a voice, |
Filthy hatchlings, disturbing my nest |
," he looks around curiously, searching for the source of the voice, |
Ought to bite them I should, teach them pain for stepping on my tail |
," Harry frowns, unsure where the voice is coming from, and a tail? That's odd; could this person turn into an animal like James and Uncle Sirius? |
As a last resort he glances downwards and the young boy's eyes widen in shock. On the ground in front of him is a snake, an adder, if he's guessing correctly from the vivid red eyes and the patterns on it's back. He's also pretty sure that adders are venomous, though not highly, even so, he'll need to be wary, |
Are you alright?" |
He asks, not realising that to anyone nearby he'd just sound as if he's hissing at a snake, rather than speaking English like he assumes. |
The snake looks at Hadrian in surprise, |
!" it exclaims, moving over to him quickly and climbing up his leg to sit on his knee, |
One of your kind hasn't been on these grounds in a very long time speaker |
," it says, seeming to peer up at Harry in awe, red eyes glistening with something Harry can't describe, |
If the tales are true, the last was here two of your human centuries ago |
A small frown mars Harry's forehead. Speaker. Another new word for today, |
but what is a speaker?" |
the snake lets out a hissing laugh, |
why you are a speaker of course hatchling, I..." |
The snake is cut off before it can finish its sentence as it's hit with a curse. Blood spatters across the grass, staining it crimson, and Harry chokes back a sob as the snake writhes in pain before dying, red eyes glassy and lifeless. It's body's been cut nearly clean in two. |
James grasps harry tightly by the arm and drags him to the house. He throws the small boy through his bedroom door forcefully, causing him to fly into the wall and cry out in pain. |
"You freak," the man spits with venom, undoing his belt in preparation to use it as a whip, to cause as much damage as possible, |
"I knew there was something wrong with you, you don't act like a normal child." The removal of the belt is what makes Hadrian realise that he's messed up, badly. James must be severely angry if he's using a physical item to hurt him instead of his wand. Nonetheless, he rolls over onto his stomach silently, without protest or hesitation, and lifts the back of his shirt. He knows that his punishment will be far worse if he's seen as resisting it even a little. |
What follows after that is extremely hazy in Harry's memory, all he knows is that at one point he's sure that he's going to die l, the pain is so intense. The feeling is almost as if a white hot poker has been pressed to his back. Actually, he wouldn't put it past James, the cruel man that he is, to actually do that to him. Then, the sounds of the belt whistling through the air and meeting his flesh stop. James pants behind him, revealing the amount of effort he'd put into hurting his youngest son. The last thing Harry hears before he passes out is the scraping of a key in a lock. That night his dreams are filled with snakes and especially the pain that comes from talking to them. |
When Harry finally wakes from his fitful slumber, pain is all he knows. It's a part of hi. The pain permeates the boy's whole being and feels as though it's dug in it's claws and will never leave. Carefully, he pushes himself upright, whimpering as the barely formed scabs on his back pull tight. He pushes himself gingerly to his feet, hissing in pain from bruised muscles and lascerated skin pulling uncomfortably tight with every movement. |
"Dippy," he calls weakly, and a wizened old house elf appears in front of him. When she sees the severity of Harry's wounds she frowns in concern, |
"Master Harry shouldn't rile Master James up so," she scolds, but it's said softly, without any real heat to the words. Hadrian grimaces, |
"I don't mean to" the boy protests in a quiet voice, |
"but he finds an excuse to hurt me no matter what," his voice breaks a little here and Dippy lays a gentle, comforting hand on his shoulder. She tuts at his wounds then goes about tending to what she can. |
Harry's back and sides are criss-crossed with dark bruises and partially scabbed over wounds. Some of these are still sluggishly oozing blood. Needless to say, it's far from a pretty sight, the crimson against his pale skin making it look even more horrific. What is far worse, however, is the word carved jaggedly into the flesh above his hip. A single, solitary word that causes the small boy to flinch against his will. That word, the word that holds such power over this intelligent seven year old, is "freak." He didn't feel James carve into him, which unnerves him more. It must have been when he was half passed out from the pain he was being put through. |
This word, "freak," is bandied about quite a lot by his so called "family." He's too quiet, too bookish, not athletic enough, and nothing like Ethan, and so, because of all the factors, he's a freak in their eyes. He's learned not to let them know how deeply that word cuts into him. How it carves much deeper than any knife ever could. He knows that they would pounce on that weakness like ravenous wolves. Now he's branded with that awful word, and it will forever show his shame. |
Hadrian knows that he will always have scars. Dippy is reasonably good at healing but she's certainly not an expert, far from it. He accepts their silvery, sometimes pink, presence on his skin but is aware of the fact that they shouldn't be there. |
His parents don't love him, he knows that as well. If they ever did love him it was a long time ago. Ever since Ethan, his twin, the one he should be closest to, was hailed as the one who vanquished the Dark Lord, Ethan's been treated like a God. Harry's fingers gently trace the scar that adorns his forehead, his very first. This one is shaped like the rune "sol," one that he'd read about in some very basic ancient runes books, though some may say that it's a lightning bolt. He knows how he got it, he has an almost perfect memory, and, whilst he can't remember everything in his life up til now, he can recall that night easily. |
He remembers the flash of green that was directed at him, and not Ethan. He remembers his brother's terrified screams. He also remembers Voldemort's scream, terrible and anguished as he died in front of them. He remembers the feeling of his own warm blood slowly dripping down his face. Then, his parents deciding to keep him, saying that he's their son and would never abandon him. Then, going against what they said, slowly abandoning him emotionally and somewhat physically in their own home. Treating him like a burden, and beating him for perceived wrongs. |
He clenches his small fists tightly, knuckles turning white from the strain. He hates them. No, hate isn't a strong enough word, not for this. he loathes them with every inch of his being. |
In that moment Hadrian decides that he'll never be like them. No, he'll be better, more powerful than they could ever dream of becoming. He'll show them exactly how much better he is than they are, and he'll do it without drawing a single drop of their blood. He's better than James Potter and he doesn;t need to make people he deems lesser than himself bleed to make himself feel powerful. He'll make them pay. |
Harry is stuck all alone in his cupboard-like bedroom for a week. He can't even open his window to get fresh air; not even a little. He is well and truly trapped, a prisoner within the Potter manor, a place that is meant to be his own home. During this time he is fed precious little food, if anything at all. What little he does receive looks like scraps of what is left after the others have completed their meals. His stomach snarls at him piteously almost constantly. He does, however, get enough water to sate his thirst; James doesn't want him to die of dehydration it seems. Also, luckily for Harry, all the rooms in the house have en-suite bathrooms, even his meagre one, so at least he doesn't need to do anything disgusting, like relieve himself into a bucket. |
His wounds ache constantly, reminding the little boy of why he's imprisoned so cruelly in this tiny bedroom. There's small patches of blood staining his sheets from where his scabs have reopened but the sheets haven't been changed. The house elves must have been forbidden from interacting with him. He can't even call for Dippy any more. It only makes his isolation from the rest of the household that much more profound. It’s scary how easily they can isolate him. |
With each hour that he's trapped in his room Hadrian finds his resolve to completely ruin his supposed family weakening. He desperately tries to cling tight to his rage but he can't. The boy finds himself quietly craving at least some attention, even if the attention he receives is negative at the very least it would be something. Humans aren’t meant to be alone for too long. The loneliness can drive them mad. Harry is only seven but he knows that it's wrong for them to punish someone merely for being different. |
He's being rejected by those who are meant to be his family and who are meant to love him unconditionally. Is that not what family means? They were distant with him after the Dark Lord incident then they gradually grew colder, piling all their attention upon Ethan. Surely after this debacle they'll hate him. Tears prickle at the corners of his vivid green eyes as he curls up on his mattress more tightly. He just wants to be loved by his family the way that Ethan is. Is that too much for him to ask? |
At the end of the long week, when he hears the quiet scratch of a key in the lock on his bedroom door Harry rushes to his feet. He's sobbing loudly and he's begging for forgiveness, |
"I won't do it again, I promise," is gasped out between roughly heaving breaths. James just looks at the boy crying at his feet. Stares long and hard at his skinny form, before turning away from the small child. He leaves the door wide open and walks away down the opulently decorated corridor without saying a word. |
This simple act hits Harry like a full force punch to his narrow chest. Instead of being thrown out of the manor like he feared would happen it appears that they, or at least James, are going to simply pretend that he isn't there instead. Hadrian shudders, this outcome is somehow much worse than the many he had imagined during his confinement. He runs a hand through his raven locks before hesitantly stepping into the hallway for the first time in a week. He takes several steadying breaths, his tears finally drying out. Harry feels quite uncomfortable being somewhere so open after being enclosed in his room for so long. He'll get through this, he has to. He can't risk showing any weakness to James and Ethan, they’ll exploit it to make him even more miserable than he is already. |
Harry slowly wanders down the halls of his home; no, not his home any more, he just stays here with nowhere else to go. He wanders through the halls of the manor, making his way cautiously towards the dining room. They may want to completely deny his existence but he'll still be able to eat, right? |
His heart aches painfully. He may hate them, or rather, despise them utterly, but to have them deny his existence completely? It's monstrous. Something a sadist would come up with, and that is exactly what James Potter is. A sadist. The man takes immense pleasure in seeing Harry in pain and being the one to cause it. He may have once been a doting father, but fame has changed the once kind James Potter for the worst and his eldest son is following the example that his father has set. So, though the man is ignoring Harry for now it won't last very long. Lily doesn't seem to care, though she hardly acknowledged his presence anyway so there won't be any particular difference in behaviour from that front. |
Ethan, however, takes a great pleasure in making his younger twin's life hell, much like his father. The main difference between James and Ethan is that Ethan is spoilt; severely so. He's very used to getting whatever he wants as and when he demands it, no matter what the item in question is. If there’s any inkling of him not being able to have it the tantrums are legendary. Items thrown and destroyed, punches flailed about. He’s even harmed James a few times and Harry knows that if it were him that did that James would’ve beaten him within an inch of his life. As it is, he laughs and calls Ethan his "little fighter.’ It doesn’t make part of Harry ache with longing, no, not at all. |
In comparison, James Potter was an only child. Despite this fact he wasn't spoilt and his parents truly did their best to mould him into a perfect young gentleman. Sadly, Harry's grandparents failed at this task. James is vicious; when he finds something he wants he takes it brutally through manipulation and sometimes pure foul play. From what little information Harry has heard about the house he's surprised that James isn't a slytherin. |
James has managed to convince a large number of people that Hadrian is jealous of his brother's fame and this affects the young boy significantly. Harry doesn't have any friends because the parents of all the other children are thoroughly convinced that he's a jealous little demon. These parents are actually right, at least to an extent. Hadrian is jealous of his brother, but not of his fame, no, he'd never want that much attention thrust upon him wherever he went. What little Harry is jealous of is that Ethan has the unconditional support of their parents when, no matter what he does, Harry is cast aside like a broken toy. It hurts the young boy, it truly does, but he makes sure that they can't see that. If they saw how much what they did hurt him it would only provide more cannon fodder for them to hurt him further and more easily. |
Through his silent and morose inner musings Harry has arrived at the dining hall. Ethan, James, and Lily are sitting at the long carved oak table and Harry makes sure that he sits as far from them as he possibly can without leaving the room altogether. Lily doesn't acknowledge his presence; she doesn't even look up from her plate, just continues eating mechanically, slightly glazed green eyes staring blankly. James and Ethan, however, send him twin looks of venomous hatred, which is ironic considering their stance on snakes and similar creatures. He does his absolute best to ignore them; instead he gathers some bland foods onto his plate. He knows that he definitely can't eat a lot without making himself sick. Not after surviving off scraps and water for the whole week. |
What follows is one of the most awkward meals Hadrian has ever had. Eating his meal quickly, he finishes it as fast as he can without making himself sick. After he has finished he slips away to the library, surrounding himself with the comforting smell of old parchment. He's ready to lose himself amongst these pages for several hours. The library is the only place in the manor he feels safe to let his guard down and relax as it's one of the only places where James and Ethan never go and almost vehemently refuse to cross the threshold of. No, they'd much rather play quidditch than sit still and read "boring" books. He snorts derisively under his breath. |
Subsets and Splits
No community queries yet
The top public SQL queries from the community will appear here once available.