Harry groaned softly as he finally opened his eyes… It took a moment for his eyes to adjust. It was still bright outside… He was tired after exploring the manor, and he was also missing his mom, so he decided to take a small nap on the couch, which turned out to be a good idea as his mom wanted to talk with him.
"Norton" Harry called out as soon as he remembered what his mom wanted him to do.
The said creature arrived in front of the couch with a soft pop. "What can Norton be doing for Master Hadrian?" Norton asked in an excited tone.
The name still felt somewhat weird to him, but he was never going to complain as it was the name his mom preferred. From his mother, he was able to learn quite a few things about house elves. First of all, they do not need to eat to survive, they simply need to be bound to a source of Magic for their continued existence. Norton was apparently bound to the Potter manor.
Secondly, house elves love to work… The more work they have, the happier they are. Thirdly, they don't mind wearing new clothes, but you can't give them clothes as it will break their bond… Apparently, it was a cruel thing to do. The last time his mom saw Norton before she lost her body, he used to dress in a nice uniform with the Potter Family emblem embroidered into it, but for whatever reason, Norton was dressed in a pillowcase now.
Fourthly, house elves are extremely loyal creatures, but if you abuse them, then they might find a way to get back at you… Their Magic is also very different from a human's Magic, so there is no way to know what they might do to get back at you…
"Norton, do we have some money in the manor? I mean to buy food and other necessary supplies?" Harry asked and Norton immediately started to nod his head.
"Yes! Yes! We do! You be having more gold in your vaults, but there is enough gold in the manor to buy food and supplies for years!" Norton exclaimed excitedly.
'Well… That takes care of the first issue… I no longer need to worry about running out of food or something else' Harry mused internally.
"Norton, there is something else I need your help with" Harry said looking a bit nervous. This was the first time he was ordering someone, and he didn't like it one bit… After spending years at Dursleys, he knew how it felt being ordered around.
'House elves are not like us… You can't compare our morals with theirs. They are not like humans, they love working, so don't feel bad ordering them around. Giving them something to do will only make them happier' Harry remembered his mother's words and decided to go along with it. The way Norton was looking at him was enough proof to Harry that his mom was right.
"I need you to find some information for me. I need you to find everything you can about Alice Longbottom and Sirius Black" Harry said and Norton nodded his head in understanding.
"Norton remembers Mistress Longbottom and Master Padfoot, Norton will find everything he can find about them!!" Norton gushed out in a gleeful tone before he disappeared with a soft pop.
'That takes care of the second issue…' Harry mused as he got up from the couch. He stretched lazily as he started to make his way toward the library… Everything was still feeling so surreal. Usually, he would be at school right now, dreading over the fact that school will be over soon and he would need to return to his relative's house.
'Knowledge is power, my son… You need to know everything there is to know about the Magical World, I don't want anyone to take advantage of you' He remembered what his mom said as he entered the library. Harry was already planning to learn everything he could learn about the Magical World even before his mom asked him to. After all, Harry was also excited about the Magical World and like any other child of his age, he was completely amazed by Magic.
He was completely gobsmacked when he saw how huge the library was… This library was way bigger than their school library. Harry tried… He really tried, but he couldn't stop an excited squeal from escaping his lips. Blushing slightly, Harry started to walk around the library, trying to find the books his mom told him to read before anything else.
'The Origin of Us (Volume- I)' Harry read the title inside his mind as he pulled out the book from the shelves. This was one of the books his mom asked him to read and like a good boy, he will listen to his mom. After all, he would rather die than disappoint her.
'The Elements of Magic' Harry found another book his mom told him about. 'If I knew about this book when I entered the Magical World, then Magic could have been so much easier for me' those were his mother's exact words. 'Intent is the Answer' Harry found the third book on the list, but he decided to keep looking so that he could find all the books on the list.
'Magic through History' Harry found the fourth book and released a tired sigh… The library was so huge that it was extremely hard to find books, but he did find four of the books from the list and he only needed one more. After looking for nearly ten minutes, Harry finally found the last book. 'Mysteries of Mind' Harry read the title inside his mind with a hint of desperation and urgency in his mind.
'Occlumency is an advanced form of Magic, which helps you to organize your mind and it also helps you defend against mental intrusions. It will also help you against all forms of Mind Manipulation Magicks, but that will only happen when you become proficient enough…' Harry remembered his mom's words as he pulled out the book from the shelf.
'Occlumency is going to be extremely hard, but learning Occlumency might help you stay in contact with me even when you are awake' That was enough for Harry and he was already vying to learn Occlumency. He wanted to be in presence of his mom all the time… Someone might call him a mama's boy, but did he care? No!
With all five books in his hands, Harry made his way toward the table at the corner. Harry placed the books on the table and decided to start with 'The Elements of Magic'. After noticing how eager her son was to learn Occlumency, Lily warned him to start with 'The Elements of Magic'. Apparently, there were some things he needed to know before he could stay working on his Occlumency…
~~Privet Drive, Little Whinging~~
Albus Dumbledore appeared inside one of the darker allies in Little Whinging, Surrey, with a loud pop, dressed in his extravagant purple robes… Before walking out of the alley, he pulled out his Wand and cast a Notice-Me-Not Charm at himself… While he didn't mind people staring at him, right now, he wanted to avoid all the attention he could. Right now, he was on a mission… A very important mission, which could possibly change the fate of Magical World.
Albus walked out of the alley when he was finally done and without wasting any more time, he started to make his way toward Number 4. The sky was getting dark, children were playing all the streets with their parents watching over them and couldn't help but smile at the sight… Albus finally arrived at Number 4 and the smile disappeared from his face. He blamed himself for how Harry's life turned out to be, but it was necessary…
It was useless to think all of that right now… He raised his hand and knocked on the door. He heard some footsteps from the inside, coming towards the door, so he dropped the Notice-Me-Not Charm. It was Petunia who opened the door… "He…" Petunia was about to greet Albus, but her eyes grew wide in surprise and fear as she recognized him.
"You!!" Petunia screamed while pointing her finger at Albus, but he wasn't in the mood. He needed answers…
"Where is he?" Albus asked calmly, looking completely unbothered by the fact that the woman was glaring daggers at him. Albus pushed forward, completely disregarding Petunia, who had to take a step back in fear. Petunia might be trying to show a strong front, but she was extremely nervous and afraid on the inside.
"Petunia, I won't ask again. Where. Is. He?" Albus slowly asked in an indifferent tone. Petunia flinched at his tone and her gaze nervously trailed toward the cupboard.
Albus already knew that Harry wasn't going to have a happy childhood… That is the reason why he placed him here, so he wasn't surprised to see that the Durselys made the boy live in the cupboard. Albus waved his hand to open the door and found the cupboard empty, but his suspicion was right… Harry was living in the cupboard. Albus turned back toward Petunia who was completely pale right now.
"You leave me no choice, Petunia" Albus said in a disappointed tone, but before Petunia could react, she found his Wand pointed in her direction. "Legilimens" Albus decided to take the information right out of Petunia's mind… He could have done it without his Wand, but using his Wand would simply make the process much faster.
Albus rummaged through her mind and couldn't help but grimace… Harry was being treated way worse than he was expecting. It was bad… Very bad. He wouldn't be surprised if Harry would want nothing to do with the Muggles. Vernon went too far during his last punishment, and he made a note in his mind that he needed to deal with the Dursleys, but before that, he needed to find Harry as soon as possible…