𝙷𝚊𝚛𝚛𝚢 𝙿𝚘𝚝𝚝𝚎𝚛 𝚡 𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛 (𝔹𝕠𝕠𝕜 1)

𝓝𝓾𝓶𝓫𝓮𝓻 4 𝓟𝓻𝓲𝓿𝓮𝓽 𝓭𝓻𝓲𝓿𝓮

Two pairs of blinking eyes jerk into the light.

"Up! Now!" Says Petunia.

THUMP! THUMP! THUMP!

"I said now!"

Footsteps recede and Harry Potter, now ten years old, swings his skinny legs to the floor.

"Y/n, wake up."

"Mm. Five more minutes Harry."

"No. Come on, get up."

"Fine..."

They're small, which is lucky since their room isn't really a room at all, but merely a cupboard under the stairs.

Abruptly, the cupboard begins to shake, dust spilling from the joists above their heads and Dudley shouts, "WAKE UP! WE'RE GOING TO THE ZOO!"

"You belong in a zoo." Y/n with her eyes still closed.

Calmly, Harry takes a pair of eyeglasses—taped at the bridge with cellotape—from a nail, and Y/n ties her hair up.

They come blinking out the cupboard door and watch Harry's enormous cousin, Dudley, thunder down the last step. Just then, Harry's Aunt Petunia appears in the kitchen ahead.

"There's the birthday boy! Don't you look smart for your trip to the zoo?" She says scowling at Harry and Y/n.

"You mind the bacon. And don't dare let it burn. And you scramble the eggs. I want everything perfect on my Duddy's special day."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."-Harry

"Yes, Gordon Ramsey."-Y/n whispers.

They enter the kitchen and find Harry's uncle Vernon reading the Daily Mail behind a monstrous pile of presents.

"Bring my coffee, boy."

"Yes, Uncle Vernon."

Dudley enters and stares at the presents.

"How many are there?"

"Thirty-six. Counted them myself."

"Thirty-six? But last year, last year I had thirty-seven!"

'We just want one.' -Y/n and Harry. (𝗔𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗼𝗿'𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗲 : 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴𝗹𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗼𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘁'𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲'𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁𝘀.)

"Well now, son, some of these are quite a bit bigger than last year--"

"I DON'T CARE HOW BIG THEY ARE!"

"Now, now, here's what we'll do. Today, when we're out, we'll buy you two more presents. How's that, popkin?"

"So then I'll have...I'll have..."

"Thirty-eight." Harry and Y/n say in unison.

Aunt Petunia cuffs them on the head on her way to the ringing telephone.

"You just mind the food!"

"Yes, Aunt Petunia."

"Yes, Petunia."

As Dudley tears open a box of lead soldiers,Uncle Vernon ruffles his hair.

"Want your money's worth, don't you, tiger. Well, look there. Aunt Marge's sent you the Fourth Battalion?"

Dudley twists the head off one.

"This one's lost its head."

"Well now, son. Remember, we talked about this. They're not meant to move..."

As Dudley tosses the damaged soldier aside, Harry and Y/n study it closely, then...Aunt Petunia hangs up the phone and turns.

"Bad news. Mrs. Figgs' broken her leg. She can't take them."

"We could phone Yvonne."

"Don't be silly. She hates the boy."

"You could just leave us here." says Harry, Y/n nods in agreement.

"And come back to find the house in ruins?"

"I...don't...want...them...to...come! They... always... spoil... everything!"

"Now, precious, don't cry. They won't spoil anything. What if Mummy buys you three more presents."

"Three?"

"As many as you want, sweetums."

As Aunt Petunia cuddles him, Dudley shoots Harry and Y/n a nasty grin through the gap in his mother's arms.

_____________________

As Harry and Y/n get in the car, Uncle Vernon leans close.

"I'm warning you now boy, and you, girl. Any funny business, any at all, and you'll have no meals for a week..."

_____________________