Okay, this idea popped into my head while I was working on my other story, The Second Try. I just started typing and this is what happened.

Chapter 1

Inheritance

Ten year old Harry Potter flinched as the belt smashed into him again and again. He cried out as his uncle grabbed him by the throat and threw him into the cupboard under the stairs. His back slammed into the rear wall of the tiny room. He covered his back with his tiny blanket, trying to shield the wounds.

He's going to kill me. If this keeps up, I won't live to leave this house. Harry thought angrily. What the hell did I do wrong? So Dudley gets presents for his birthdays, I get beatings?

As the blanket brushed against the bloody gashes in his back, he winced. Goddamn it. He thought. What the hell am I doing here? Who put me here? Why? I don't want to be here. I don't want to die in this hellhole. I want to get out of here.

As Harry Potter thought the words, a flash of sparkling light appeared. It crackled like lightning as it formed into a circle. A circle of silver and gold fire hovered in the air in front of Harry. It glowed brighter than the sun for an instant, then cooled. He saw an extremely intricate golden ring hovering in the air. It was mounted with a seven faceted silvery gemstone. He reached out for it.

As his fingers brushed against the cool metal, it vanished. He saw the glowing band reform around his right index finger. A sigil glowed on the face of the ring before it faded. Then, he heard a voice and saw a flash of light. The voice was old, but filled with warmth and power.

"Harry James Potter. On this day, your need has been judged. You cannot be mistreated in such a fashion. This suffering cannot be permitted any longer. Your inheritance has been granted, as has your true destiny."

As the voice talked, Harry saw a signet ring appear. Instantly, he knew that the sign on it was the crest of the Potters. The ring fell into his palm, then glowed and vanished. He saw the crest appear on the silver stone in his ring, just like the first symbol, then fade.

"You are the King of the magical world. The ring you wear is the Throne Ring, the source of great power. You will face great adversity. This Ring will aid you. It is proof of your right to rule. It cannot be taken or removed. Unfortunately, as your magic is not sufficiently developed, the Ring will not be visible to others for two years. Good luck. All hail King Harry."

The voice faded. Harry was confused. He was a King? Of a magical world? Was he dreaming? It was at that moment that the largest facet glowed with a white light. Knowledge flooded his mind. He instantly knew about the magical realm.

Harry didn't really understand what it meant to be King. However, he did understand that, since he had claimed his inheritance, he was no longer beholden to anyone. He had no need for guardians. He didn't need the Dursleys.

With that thought in mind, Harry pressed his palm to the locked door. It exploded outward, spikes of wood burying themselves into the walls. The Dursleys ran out from the kitchen, Dudley's face still stuffed with food.

"What the hell happened here, boy?!" Vernon snarled.

"I am leaving." Harry said calmly. "Don't try to stop me."

"Like hell you are." Vernon spat, balling his hands into fists. "You're going to pull out every one of those splinters and fix the walls." He raised his fist. "After you wake up, that is." He threw a punch at Harry's face.

Harry saw the fist flying at him. A yellow rune glowed on one of the larger facets, not that the Dursleys could see it. Harry met Vernon's fist with his own. Harry's fist blazed blue as they collided. Vernon's arm disintegrated up to the shoulder. He clutched his arm, screaming. Harry turned and walked out the door, leaving the Dursleys for good.

I want to go to Diagon Alley. Harry thought. Before he could formulate a plan on how to get there, he vanished in a flash of ruby light, as one of the facets glowed with a red rune.

Harry opened his eyes to find himself inside a pub called the Leaky Cauldron. The bartender walked up to him.

"My name is Tom. What's yours?" He asked calmly. "When did you get here?"

"My name's Harry. Harry Potter."

Tom leaned back, eyes wide. "You're the Harry Potter? The Boy-Who-Lived?"

Harry was confused. "What do you mean, Boy-Who-Lived?"

Tom stared at him in wonder. "You don't know? You? Of all people... Where the hell have you been the past nine years?"

"With my aunt and uncle. They're non-magical. They hate anything to do with magic. I was left with them when my parents died in a car crash. At least, that's what they told me."

Tom was furious. "Harry, your parents didn't die in a car crash. They were murdered by the most evil wizard who has ever lived. You are famous because he failed to kill you too. Somehow, you destroyed him instead." He pointed at Harry's scar. "You got that when you did it."

"What was his name?" Harry asked.

"He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named? We do not speak it."

"Come on. Being afraid to say a name? Really? There's no reason for you to be scared of the name. Being scared of the name will just make you more afraid of the man himself." Had anyone with magical senses been watching the conversation, they would have seen the aura around the boy. His words were infused with the confidence of absolute authority.

"You're right." Tom said, affected by the Aura of Majesty. "His name was Voldemort." He shivered as he said it.

"Thank you." Harry said.

"You shouldn't have had to ask those questions, Harry. If you ever find out who put you with that family of magic hating muggles…" He trailed off. "Enough about that. I assume you came here because you wanted to go to Diagon Alley?" Seeing Harry's nod, he continued. "I'll let you through the gate, since I'm sure that you don't have a wand. I presume that you're heading to Gringotts first?"

Harry nodded. Tom led him to the brick wall. Before he could open the gateway, it opened by itself to admit the young man. "That was strange…" He turned back to Harry. " Come by later. If you don't have a place to stay, I've got rooms."

Harry smiled. "Thank you, Tom." As Harry walked out of his sight, he placed a glamour on his face to hide his scar. He didn't want to have to deal with the attention that being a celebrity would cause.

As Harry entered Gringotts, he was amazed by the grandeur of the place. As he walked up to a goblin at a desk, another walked up to Harry.

"Please, sir. Come with me." He said. "I am Ragnos, the manager of Gringotts. We have things to discuss."

Harry was confused, but nodded and followed Ragnos into an office. "What do we have to discuss?" Harry asked.

"Your Majesty, as King, you have the right to rule not only the wizards and witches, but all magical beings. There are those that would fight your rule, but the goblins are not among them. There are vaults deep within the bank that only the King can access. Please, come with me. We will take a private shaft."

"Wait a second. How did you know I was King? I was told that no one would know until two years had passed."

"As manager, I know exactly which vaults belong to anyone I see. You have access to the Royal vaults, so that is when I knew. Worry not, your majesty, I cannot and would not reveal your secret." With that, he led Harry to a different door. It slid open, revealing a mineshaft. He and Harry got into a small cart and took off.

They didn't stop until they reached the bottom levels of Gringotts. There was a magnificent golden dragon guarding the lowest vault. The dragon bowed its head to Harry and allowed him to access the vault.

"Place your hand on the vault door, sire." Ragnos said.

When Harry did so, the vault door blazed with a crest that Harry recognized. It was the first sigil that had appeared on the ring. The Royal Crest. The door vanished, revealing the contents. Harry was stunned.

Harry saw a mountain of gold, jewels, and treasure. There must have been several trillion Galleons within the chamber in gold alone. He looked at Ragnos. "Exactly how much gold is in here?"

"The total contents of this vault amounts to about 26,800,000,000 Galleons. However, there are two other Royal vaults, which brings your total to about 150 trillion Galleons. You also have access to the Potter family vaults, your personal trust vault. There is about 100 million within the Potter vaults. Your trust vault was to be kept with 100,000 galleons, replenished each year."

Harry froze. He couldn't believe that he actually had that much money. He quickly calculated the sum in non-magical money and froze. It was at that moment when the fact finally hit him. He was a King.

"You also have properties totaling in excess of 250 trillion. Remember, Your Majesty, you are King of the entire magical world, not just Britain. It's not exactly conventional for you to carry around a bag of gold, so I will give you a wallet that connects directly to your vaults. You simply have to reach into it and pull out the desired amount of coins. Is that acceptable?"

Harry nodded, still dumbstruck.

"Good. Come with me, milord, and we will return to my office."

After they had returned to the office, Harry had been given a moleskin wallet. No one else could remove anything from it, and it was connected to his vaults. He could take out as many Galleons as he wanted. Then, Ragnos showed him to a small safe. After opening half a dozen locks, then running his finger along the center of the door in a strange motion, he opened it. He pulled out a small key. He held it out to Harry.

"This key will allow you to access a room containing files on all of your holdings. It also has a detailed list of the contents of the Royal vaults." He gestured at Harry's hand. "Simply insert the key into the air and turn it, like you would to a normal lock."

As Harry did, he felt a surge of energy rush into the key from along his arm. Suddenly, he was in a different room. It was perfectly kept, with a massive number of file cabinets holding all of his documents. There was a large desk in the center of the room.

Ragnos shook his head as he followed Harry back out the door. "Unfortunately, you are not permitted actual control of your holdings until you are of age, regardless of the fact that you have already claimed your inheritance. I am sorry, Your Majesty." He held out his hand. Harry returned the key. After Ragnos sealed the key again, he apologized again.

Harry shook his head. "No, it's all right. Since no one else knows that I am the King, it shouldn't be a problem if I just get a room at the Cauldron. Thank you for your help." Harry handed Ragnos ten galleons, then bid the goblin farewell in the traditional goblin manner. He had no idea where he'd learned to do that, or why he'd done it.

Harry walked through Diagon Alley. He knew that he needed a wand, if only for show. The Ring enabled him to do magic. He found Ollivander's. He'd been told that it was one of the best wand shops in the entire world. Harry wasn't sure, but he decided to pay the man a visit.

As he walked into the shop, he felt the magical power within. He felt each individual wand, felt the surge of powerful wind that flew through the shop, a tribute of each wand acknowledging him. He knew which was his, however. One wand in particular had called out to him.

He saw an old man coming out. The man saw him and nodded. "Hello, Mr. Potter. I wasn't expecting you for another year. Dumbledore said-"

"We can keep my identity private, can't we?" Harry asked. His request was as good as an order.

"Of course. Which hand is your wand hand?"

Harry held out his right arm for the measuring devices. When they were done, Ollivander began to rummage around the shelves, looking for an appropriate wand. Harry immediately sent a compulsion to Ollivander, forcing him to select the wand that had called out to Harry. The wandmaker pulled it out.

"Holly and Phoenix feather. Eleven inches. Nice and supple." Ollivander said as he handed Harry the wand. As Harry wrapped his fingers around it, he felt a warmth, radiating from it. Red sparks flew out of the end.

"Curious." The old man muttered.

"What's curious?" Harry asked.

Ollivander explained about the shared cores between his wand and Voldemort's. After the man had finished his explanation, Harry paid him for the wand and walked out, pocketing it as he did. He was happy to leave the dusty shop and to return to the open air of the Alley.

Harry returned to the Leaky Cauldron, where he got a room. Tom had agreed to give it to him for as long as he needed it. Harry got up to the room and sank into the pleasant oblivion of sleep.

The next morning, Harry decided to check out the rest of the Alley. He knew that he needed a place to keep his things. He found a store and purchased a trunk with five locks, each granting access to a different compartment. He tapped it with his wand, activating the inbuilt shrinking spell, and pocketed it.

Harry knew that he'd have a lot of time. He had learned that he would receive a Hogwarts letter when he turned eleven, so he would have a lot of time to himself. He walked into Flourish and Blotts. He had always liked books. They had been pretty much the only good thing to do, since Dudley had scared off anyone who might have befriended him.

Harry ended up buying about a dozen books, as well as the books that would be used for the all seven years at Hogwarts. He figured that it would be a good idea to understand exactly what he would be learning for the rest of his foreseeable future.

Still not sure exactly what is going to happen. This chapter is a bit longer than I usually make. It also has a lot of information and only the basic beginnings of a plot. It's a prologue.

If anyone cares about which house they're in (Gryffindor or Ravenclaw), let me know.

If I get at least five reviews asking about the abilities of the Runes (the seven facets of the Ring), I will post them.

I do listen to suggestions.

If I get a bunch of negative reviews, I'll remove the story. If not, I will continue to write both of my stories.

If people do like the idea, let me know.