Exceptionally Ordinary

Chapter 1

The normally joyful Lovegood family was unusually glum, especially considering where they were. The day after the wizarding holiday of All Hallows Eve should have been exciting on its own, but something was causing the occupants of the Leaky Cauldron to be even more jubilant. Surprisingly, the cause for their joy was the same cause for the Lovegood family's despair. The general populace of wizards were so excited that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was gone that they forgot who sacrificed themselves to attain that victory.

Pandora Lovegood sat next to her husband near the back of the crowd and stared into the fire next to her. Xenophilius cradled their child, letting Pandora have a moment of peace. After all, it wasn't every day that one's closest friend was murdered.

Pandora had been a socially awkward girl at Hogwarts and Lilly Evans, now Potter, had been the only one nice to her. They had soon bonded over their fascination with runes and spell crafting. Pandora had never been let into Lily's tightly knit group of Gryffindor friends, but they still remained close, even after graduating. Pandora had looked forward to their future families getting along. She had dreamed of couples dates, wedding dates, and even play dates between their future children. Pandora knew she was a dreamer, but was still dismayed when her dreams shattered in the face of the Wizarding War. Like the brave Gryffindors they were, Lily and James had joined the Order of the Phoenix with fervor. It seemed that Pandora's aspirations would never be, until Lily's son had been born. But even then, the Potters were on the run and Pandora had never even met young Harry.

Quietly letting her tears fall, Pandora gazed into the fire and let regret for what could have been fill her. Xenophilius watched his love's grief, feeling helpless all the while. They had gone into Gringotts when they hadn't been notified of a will reading for the Potters. Pandora had been outraged when the goblins had told her that the wills had been sealed. They wouldn't even tell her where Harry was staying. Pandora and her family had retreated to The Leaky Cauldron, uncertain of what else they could do.

After staring off into space for several more minutes, Pandora finally turned to Xenophilius and muttered,

"Well, Xeno, I suppose we had better get Luna home." Xenophilius smiled sadly at his wife and said,

"Of course, my Panda." Pandora couldn't help the small grin that escaped at Xeno's use of her pet name.

With Luna now in hand, Pandora and her husband left the bustling Leaky Cauldron. Instead of flooing back to their house, they took the London exit. Pandora insisted on using Muggle diapers ("I feel like if I don't do it myself, then I'm not doing it right") so they had to pick up some more. This decision turned out to not be the best one as, in typical Lovegood fashion, the family stuck out quite a bit.

Pandora wore a royal purple robe because she believed that color conveyed grief best as it is believed that as a spirit leaves their body, their aura is purple. Xenophilius, wore a bright blue colored robe in an attempt to convey his sadness, but it came off more vibrant than he had originally thought. The small family stood out like a sore thumb amongst the blacks and greys of London. Normally the Lovegoods would not have cared less about the stares, but something was different this time.

Across the street, a heavily breathing obese man was staring them down. His red face and beady eyes gave him the look of some sort of mad man. Pandora normally wouldn't have cared about the nasty stare, but then the whale of a man came blundering toward them. The Lovegoods couldn't fathom what the tubby man could possibly want from them. He stomped right in front of the couple and shoved a small bundle to Xenophilius. He didn't say anything else, but Pandora swore she could hear him grumble something like,

" …be with his own kind."

Before anyone could say anything, the fat man turned around and walked away. Recovering first, Pandora began to peer into the bundle. She was so shocked all she could think to say as she saw a sleeping baby in the bundle was,

"But we already have one."

-EOEOEOEO-

Earlier that Morning

Some people hate routine. Some hate the monotony of sameness, the unoriginality, or fitting the mold. The Dursleys were not these people. They loved the mold, they encouraged their son to think inside the box, and they were the definition of normal. All occupants of Number 4 Privet Drive followed a strict routine. Even Dudley cried on cue every morning.

When someone disturbed that routine, heaven help them. As a matter of fact, Vernon Dursley had yelled at the milkman until he cried just last week. So it was to the detriment of everyone that the Dursley house routine was disturbed by an unwelcome bundle on their door step.

In a matter of minutes, Vernon had yelled to his wife, taken the thing inside, read the letter, and had grown irate enough to push his blood pressure through the roof.

"How dare they do this to us?! I thought your freakish sister and their kind would never be involved in our normal lives?!" Petunia Dursley was unsure what to say in response. She would never say she was sad to hear of the death of her sister, but it was a hard pill to swallow.

"Vernon, dear, why can't we just keep the boy? He doesn't even have to be around our Dinky Duddydums! We can keep him in the cupboard. No one has to kno-"

"But I will know! That stupid brat will always be… abnormal!" Vernon spat the last part out like he would a piece of grizzle from his meat. Petunia sighed helplessly. Once Vernon set his mind on something, it was hard to change it. They debated for a while if the neighbors had seen the freak, if they should take it to an orphanage, or call the police.

"No, none of those will work. They could find us and force us to raise the darn thing!" Vernon thought for a moment more until one could almost see a lightbulb pop over Vernon's straw yellow hair.

"He should be with his own kind!" Petunia looked at him with confusion until Vernon continued.

"When I go into London for business, I see these sorts of freaks all the time! All I have to do is drop him off with the first ones I spot and we are right as rain!" Vernon exclaimed all this a little too cheerily, and Petunia couldn't help wondering if Vernon was alright in the head. After all, he would send back his meat at restaurants if it was even a little too salty. But Petunia wouldn't dare have his crazy turned on her, so she wished him well as he left for London. She couldn't help hoping he would return and everything would go back to the way it normally was.

After struggling to find somewhere to put his car, Vernon walked the streets of London already in a foul mood. He searched for far longer than he had expected to. Never had he been so disappointed to see so many normal people. It was only after marching up a steeper street that he spotted them. They were perfect. The couple was so abnormal that it almost hurt for Vernon to look at them. They both had white blond hair and were dressed in what looked like brightly colored bath robes to his eyes. One even had a necklace made out of what looked like bottle caps. The two were even carrying a child. In Vernon's mind this made them at least responsible freaks. With angry fervor, Vernon marched up to the two and gave the baby to the abnormal man. Vernon realized he hadn't thought through what he would say to the freaks when he found them. Hoping that the letter enclosed was enough, Vernon muttered,

"You lot take him. He should be with his own kind."

He then turned quickly away, anxious to be done with all that abnormality. He then went home, watched some tellie, and completely forgot about the strange boy with the lightning bolt scar. Little did he know that this small action had a ripple-effect and the wizarding world to never be the same.

-EOEOEOEO-

The Lovegood house in Ottery St Catchpole had increasingly become more vibrant since the addition of little Harry. It had only been a little over two weeks since the fat man had thrust him into their lives, but to the Lovegoods, it seemed like he had always been there. The enclosed letter that had come with little Harry had been all too vague for the Lovegoods' liking. Fortunately, they knew enough about the Potter's predicament to put two and two together.

Not so fortunately, with this understanding came the knowledge that their new member to the family could be taken away at any moment. Pandora had cried in outrage at such an idea. No one would dare take her newest child from her! Knowing his wife, Xenophilius was not as surprised at her reaction as one should have been. His wife had such a nurturing spirit that Xeno couldn't bring himself to separate the Potter baby from her.

The Lovegood couple had lost a good amount of sleep wondering how they could keep their little Harry with them. After Pandora had wasted her teatime worrying away about what to do, she suddenly had an idea.

"Xeno, my dear! Where are you?" Xenophilius had been holding Harry and showing him around the grounds of the house when Pandora found him. She wandered outside with enough time to hear him whispering to Harry,

"-and there are the Dirigible plums! They help one better accept things of the extraordinary nature. They are easily squished, so never play with them. Perhaps I should put up a sign…" Pandora couldn't help giggle at her husband's antics. He may be a strange one, but she loved him for it.

"Xeno, there you are!" She exclaimed as if she hadn't been watching them for a few moments. Xenophilius looked up in surprise. He couldn't bring himself to be embarrassed at having been caught talking to a baby.

"Panda, darling! Aren't you supposed to be having teatime? You know without giving yourself a proper break, Wrackspurts can become more troublesome!" Pandora couldn't help but smile at her husband's way of showing he cared.

"I was just having teatime when I wandered upon a lovely thought!" Xenophilius' eyebrows rose in excitement at that. He loved lovely thoughts. They were just so… lovely!

"Pray tell what have you wandered upon?"

"Well, remember when I started inventing spells and I had to get a permit to create spells from the Ministry and Gringotts? Well, when I was filling out the paper work, I found a guardianship permit among the permits at Gringotts!"

"What in the name of crumple horned snorkacks is a guardianship permit?" Xenophilius had been nodding along with Pandora's idea until that last part. He had never imagined that such a permit existed.

"Well, dear, I didn't really ask about it as I had then noticed a pamphlet for glasses that help one see disillusioned people." Xenophilius nodded in understanding at being distracted by such a fascinating idea. Perhaps it could be used for people to be able to see the influence of Wrackspurts… Realizing his thoughts were wandering away from the point, Xenophilius shook his head to get focused.

"Why my dearest Panda, you may have wandered upon a solution to our problem!" he exclaimed with enthusiasm. It was with this same enthusiasm that the Lovegoods jumped back inside their house, packed up Luna and Harry, and used the floo network to get to Gringotts bank as quickly as possible.

-EOEOEOEO-

After making a small scene in the Gringotts bank atrium, one of the goblin tellers had ushered the Lovegood family into a private room. The Lovegood couple seemed obliviously unaware to how their vibrant robes, crying children, and excited requests to speak to someone had caused a ruckus in the usually quiet bank. While they waited for one of the goblins to see them, Xenophilius absently bounced little Luna on his knee. Her big blue eyes were wide in wonder at the new scenery and it was only Xenophilius' ministrations that kept her from trying to touch everything in sight. Though considerably bigger than Luna, Harry still managed to look small curled up in Pandora's arms. His previous crying had exhausted his little body so he had promptly fallen asleep. While the babies were otherwise entertained, the Lovegood couple had decided to start discussing the idea of inventing glasses that could help people see and avoid Wrackspurts. Their discussion had gotten quite animated, so it was a strange sight that greeted the goblin Nagnok.

The goblin took his elevated seat behind his desk and patiently waited for the family to notice his presence. It seemed that the pair were in their own little world, so Nagnok had to resort to clearing his throat loudly to get their attention.

"Mr. and Mrs. Lovegood, how may I help you?" Pandora's usually unfocused eyes burned with a resolute intensity as she declared,

"We would like to request a guardianship permit for our young charge here." Nagnok's usually stoic face betrayed his disbelief with his raised eyebrow in response to her statement. Guardianship permits were very rare as it required many unique circumstances coming together for it to be needed. After a long pause, Nagnok said,

"I see. Now, Mrs. Lovegood, are you aware of the conditions that need to be met to even qualify for such a permit?" Pandora's previous enthusiasm withered slightly as she blinked at the goblin.

"…not particularly… no." Nagnok sighed in response and removed his glasses. He believed the eccentric couple was wasting his time, but he might as well explain everything to them.

"A guardianship permit is only granted when a magical orphan does not have any family to care for it, the child's parents had no acceptable will to put guardians in place, or the child is rejected by previous unfit guardians. This practice was put in place to help orphans of war, but many magical families put emergency wills in place because of this past war that only recently ended. So you see, it would be almost impossible for your 'charge', as you put it, to meet these qualifications." Nagnok finished his explanation expecting to see disappointment. He was not expecting Mrs. Lovegood's smile to get even wider than thought possible.

"Let me explain Mr…" the goblin impatiently gestured to the plaque on his desk. At least Pandora had the decency to look bashful as she continued,

"Nagnok. Our charge is the last surviving member of the Potter family." At this she turned the sleeping Harry to face Nagnok. The goblin couldn't help the gasp that escaped him at seeing the infamous lightning bolt scar. Pandora then went on to explain how they had been wandering Muggle London when an obese muggle man had thrust Harry upon them. They then passed over the letter that had accompanied Harry from none other than Albus Dumbledore. After reading the letter, Nagnok gathered as much composure as he could muster and said,

"Mr. and Mrs. Lovegood, we at Gringotts Wizarding Bank thank you for bringing this to our attention. However, this matter should be dealt with by a goblin of higher caliber than myself. If you will wait here for a moment more, I will look further into this situation and bring it before my superiors."

Nagnok then rose from his desk and departed without another word. He had been working hard to contain his anger, so leaving had been the best option.

As he moved into the Gringotts archive room, Nagnok went over all that had been said. With even more consideration of the situation, he grew even more infuriated. The Ancient and Noble House of Potter was one of their most important clients. Nagnok discovered through the archives that Harry Potter had been left to Vernon Dursley and Petunia Dursley née Evans. The fact that the heir to this prestigious House had been left to magic hating muggles was insulting to the goblin nation. The Potter Scion should have been placed with whoever had been appointed to be his guardian in the Potter's will. However, to Nagnok's shock, the Potter will had been sealed from being viewed or read. Upon further inquiry into the archives, it was discovered that Albus Dumbledore himself had sealed the will. With this information in hand, he decided to pass on the matter to Gringotts Bank Director Ragnock. Nagnok was content to leave the wand-bearer's meddlesome ways to some other goblin.

Director Ragnock had been shocked after finishing reading Nagnok's report. With haste, he made his way back to Nagnok's office to talk to the Lovegoods. All business, Ragnock entered the office, not expecting a paper airplane to hit him right on his nose. Xenophilius looked sheepishly over at the goblin as Luna giggled away on her father's lap. Ragnock sighed, realizing this was going to be a long meeting.

-EOEOEOEO-

"So you're saying that the Albus Dumbledore purposefully put Harry with a muggle family? But why?" Pandora asked. Ragnock pinched his nose in impatience. The Lovegoods were a kind family, but their absentmindedness rubbed business-minded Ragnock the wrong way. They had been asking questions about every word he had said. An intended short meeting had turned into a very long one with the Lovegoods there.

"Indeed, Mrs. Lovegood. We are unsure why Dumbledore would do such a thing, but it is certainly unlawful and we would normally be powerless to do anything." Xenophilius opened his mouth to ask another question, but Ragnock held up a clawed hand so he could continue.

"However, seeing as you two approached us, there might be more we can do. Since the Potter will is sealed and his previous guardians rejected him, it should be possible for you two to file for a guardianship permit." The Lovegood couple both started excitedly talking to each other, talking to Ragnock, and asking more blasted questions. Ragnock interrupted them and continued,

"We at Gringotts will need proof that Harry's previous guardians at least verbally consented to giving him to you- "

"Mr. Director Ragnock, sir! Will a memory be sufficient?" Pandora blurted.

"Indeed, it should be. Will you allow me to view it?" After viewing Pandora's memory of the event in a pensieve, Ragnock could conclude that Vernon's words, "You lot take him. He should be with his own kind," should be enough verbal consent for the guardianship permit.

Normally, the Goblin Nation refused to get involved in 'wand-bearer' business. However, Albus Dumbledore had almost jeopardized the wellbeing of the Potter House heir, had sealed a will entrusted to Gringotts, and had generally screwed with the banks' business too much to be tolerated. It was with relish that Director Ragnock decided to passively screw with Albus Dumbledore right back. With a devilish smirk, Ragnock said,

"Mr. and Mrs. Lovegood, it is very important to us at Gringotts Bank that the Heads of House of each Ancient and Noble family have knowledge of their responsibilities as Head, especially with their finances. Normally, each Pureblood household would tutor their heirs in the ways of finance. If you are granted guardianship, your family would be unaware of the inner workings of Potter finances. If I may, the bank would be able to make an arrangement where one of our representatives could instruct young Mister Potter. We wouldn't have to speak of his lineage, just of business related matters. Would this be acceptable to you?" Even though his proposition was phrased innocently enough, Director Ragnock could not pass up on a chance to influence the now called boy-who-lived and Heir to the House of Potter. Oblivious of the goblin's manipulations, the Lovegood pair could see nothing wrong with this and gave their consent to this. Ragnock's face broke into a devilish grin and signed a few papers.

"Xenophilius and Pandora Lovegood, it is with great pleasure that I grant you two guardianship permits over one Harry James Potter. We have contacts in the Ministry of Magic that should help the permit go through on their end as well. By the end of the week, Harry Potter shall be under your care until he reaches his coming of age at seventeen years old. Congratulations."

The excited exclamations from the Lovegood couple had woken the Potter boy from his slumber. The Potter Scion opened his bleary emerald green eyes and focused on Director Ragnock. The goblin director was surprised when the toddler's face split into a wide smile. It was almost as if the child knew that this very goblin had saved him from a horrible childhood and a harsh fate. Ragnock shook his head in disbelief at the child's knowing look. Pandora lovingly embraced Harry in joy and the moment was over. As Ragnock looked at the little family, he knew that he had made the correct choice. The last of the Ancient and Noble House of Potter finally had a family that would love him as much as he deserved.

Shaking himself from such sentimental thoughts, Ragnock tried to get the Lovegood family's attention.

"Well, we know that a certain Headmaster will be displeased with this turn of events. However, with this permit, there will be little he can do about it. I would not be surprised if he will try to use his influence to get Harry back to his horrible relatives. He will try to argue that Harry won't be safe with your family." The Lovegoods began to argue about this, Pandora being most vocal that if anyone wanted to hurt her baby they would have to go through her. Ragnock talked over their raised voices and said,

"We at Gringotts want this to happen as much as you do. So may I suggest a solution." Now that got their attention.

"You both probably aware of the Fidelius Charm." At their blank faces, Ragnock continued,

"It is a spell that is cast by a powerful wizard that can render information, a person, and even a location secret, invisible, or unknowable. There is a little known variation for this charm that would be useful in this case. It is called the Differius Charm. It works similar to the Fidelius Charm and the Confundus Charm combined. When used on a person, it helps protect their identity while the person can still interact with others. For instance, if a person with the Differius Charm cast on them were to go to a party, they could introduce themselves as whatever they please and the people that person interacts with would later have their thoughts confused about the person. All the witness would remember is a fuzzy impression of the person but not question the reason for this or anything else about the person's identity. Also, similar to the Fidelius Charm, any who try to write down the person's name, take a picture of the person, or try to locate the person will suddenly find themselves too confused to do so. The only flaws with this charm is that it eventually wears out and cannot stand up under a large number of people scrutinizing the Charm all at once." As a spell inventor, Pandora was immediately intrigued. She made a mental note to look into such charms that could almost be used as wards.

"If used on Harry, it would probably be in place long enough for him to be unfindable and unknowable until he goes to Hogwarts."

Xenophilius looked over at his wife and they silently communicated for a moment. Finally, Pandora's grip on Harry tightened slightly and Xenophilius said,

"Do it."

With their consent, Director Ragnock's grin grew even wider. With his sharp teeth, it looked more like a menacing grimace. With the Potter heir away from the meddlesome Headmaster's influence, the Goblin Nation had gained a foothold over the boy-who-lived.

Everyone in the office had something on their minds as the joyful celebration continued. Xenophilius was ecstatic that his wife was happy and that they would be able to keep little Harry, who he had grown rather fond over. Pandora was gleefully looking into Harry's eyes, seeing her friend's emerald eyes looking back at her. Luna was giggling at all the loud noises she didn't understand. Harry was vaguely wondering why this kind lady was looking at him so strangely. Ragnock was lost in his own plotting thoughts.

However, no one felt the approving hum of magic that radiated throughout the room. If any of them had noticed, they would have thought that magic herself had been humming in approval to the unexpected turn of events.

AN: Hello! I hope you all are enjoying the story so far! In case you were wondering, I created the Differius spell from the Latin word Differo which means to distract or confuse. I added the –ius part at the end to make it look like the Fidelius charm. If you liked it, Review or PM me!

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or anything associated with it. I would be honored to meet JK let alone be her.