Chapter Text
The Dursleys were known as a normal family, with a normal life. There was nothing remarkable about them. They lived in their home on Private Drive in relative silence, until that fateful Halloween, where Harriet Briar Potter was deposited at their doorstep.
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She had been watching the house for the better part of the day. The man of the house had returned from work a few hours ago. She was not impressed by any of those living within the house. The man had rudely tried to shoo her away multiple times with his feet and by throwing rocks her way. He walked with all the pride and none of the finesse of the worst of the purebloods. The woman was either gushing over her fat baby or watching the neighbors through the open blinds. The baby seemed to enjoy screeching at the top of his lungs every few minutes which hurt her sensitive cat ears.
Long after the house had fallen asleep, Minerva had begun to wonder if Albus had sent her on another wild snitch chase, when she heard that tell-tell pop.
As she turned, she saw Albus appear in the middle of the street, where he began to siphon away the light from the street lamps. Finally, he turns to address her with a simple “Professor McGonagall”.
Honestly, that man, she thought. With a sigh, she shifted from a cat into her human self.
“Albus, I’m not too sure about this plan of yours. I’ve been watching the house all day. These are the worst type of Muggles! This is no place for the Savior of the Wizarding World!” she informed him.
“At last, Minerva, this might be the best place to raise the girl.” he replied while looking at his pocket watch “In fact, this might be the safest place to raise her at all.”
“You don’t think that Death Eaters will attack her?” Minerva replied with audible fright.
“They attacked the Longbottoms this very night. I don’t think that one can be too cautious.”
The sound of an obnoxious motorcycle could be heard throughout the neighborhood. The motorcycle slowly lowered itself from the sky.
“Hagrid??” Minerva questioned, “You sent him to fetch Harriet?”
Sometimes Minerva wondered how wise Albus truly was. Hagrid was an alright fellow, but he had the grace of a stampeding herd of hippogriffs.
Albus ignored Minerva’s exclamation, “I trust everything went smoothly?”
“Yessir and Sirius, that nice fellow, lended me his old bike. What a beauty.” Hagrid eagerly reported. “She slept the whole flight, not one pipe out of her.”
Dumbledore reached for the sleeping babe and put her in a conjured basket. He slipped a note in the basket and walked up to the doorstep of the cookie-cutter little house of Number Four Privet Drive.
“Good luck, Harri Potter”, Dumbledore said as he gently placed the basket on the front porch.
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The doorbell had to be broken. Why else would the blasted thing keep echoing in her home? None of the neighbors would dare wake her sleeping babe, they all knew how hard it was to get the toddler to sleep. It had to be broken, there was no logical explanation for the annoyance.
Petunia grabbed her shawl and wrapped it around her frame. She knew her husband wouldn’t wake to investigate the strange phenomenon, he slept through all of Dudley’s cries, and there was no way a doorbell could wake him.
She opened the door and found a baby, with a nasty scar on her forehead, and a note. The doorbell immediately stopped once she picked up the basket and carried it inside. Petunia had found little Harriet, she knew it was her blasted sister's fault for getting blown up. She knew that this child was now her responsibility. Petunia already had Dudley to raise, now she had another baby to care for?
As Petunia held the baby in her arms, she looked down at the child and saw the future. Yes, she would raise this baby, and this girl would complete her perfect family. Plus, Mrs. Perkins down the street wouldn’t have the cutest girl on the block. Petunia Dursley would have the most precious baby girl to show off to the neighborhood. Harri would become the most perfect girl in the neighborhood.
