A/N: I've started making a new story, but not to worry I'll still post the sequel to In Harry we Trust. I wanted to get some feedback on this story as well as to ask my reviewers what house they think Harry should end up in. Since this story starts off from the very beginning, I want to hear people's opinions on what house Harry should end up in if he was never raised by the Dursleys or experienced any of the hardships that he did before arriving at Hogwarts. Just leave a review with your selection and your reasoning for it; it doesn't even have to be one of the original four if you don't think he belongs there.

"Speak" – Normal speech

Speak – Internal thoughts

/: Speak :/ - Magical languages translated

The Dursley family of number four Privet Drive always considered them to be perfectly normal; thank you very much; and they wanted to keep it that way. They, along with everyone else, had their own secrets that they didn't want anyone else to know about. One of their secrets was very vast and would probably shake the world to its core. Most people would normally believe this about this own secrets; however the Dursleys' really could change the world with their largest secret of all.

The powers of the universe, ironically, wanted the Dursleys to keep their secrets so on the night of November first 1981 when three people arrived on the street of Privet drive, the universe set into motion events that would change not only the Dursleys, but those of the rest of the world as well. These three people were not native, if anyone took a look at them.

The first was an older gentleman wearing an odd looking purple robe and a long white beard flowing down to his black buckle boots. He wore half-moon spectacles on his crooked nose that sparkled as he looked around the darkened street. The second person was an older woman possibly in her early fifties with lightly graying hair pulled back into a fierce bun on the top of her head. She wore a pointed hat on her head and rounded spectacles pushed low on her nose. She wore a long black cloak that kept out the cold as she sat on the low wall facing outwards towards the street and away from the house.

She looked up and stood as she greeted the strange man that approached her. They conversed in low tones for a moment before they were interrupted by the roaring of a motorbike. The large bike seemed to drop out of the sky and skirt up towards the curb of the house. This was the third person to arrive on the street.

The man that sat astride the motorbike was a large hulk of a man with a bushy black beard and hair that came down so that it was hard to see where one ended and the other began. As he pushed up the goggles around his forehead he hefted a small bundle of blankets form his lap and handed it down to the strange man. The man spoke briefly to those around him before moving towards the porch of number four.

The man laid the bundle of blankets down on the porch and then leaned down to kiss the forehead of the small baby that resided therein. He seemed to be speaking to the woman behind him for a moment and then placed an envelope on the top of the baby. As he turned to leave the large man was sobbing slightly and blubbering about leaving the baby behind.

None of them seemed to notice a fourth man watching their proceedings from the shadows down at the other end of the street. As he watched he waited for the man to disappear around the corner with a soft pop; he didn't even blink when the woman seemed to melt down into the form of a tabby cat, and the large giant shuffled off on the large motorbike the way that he had come happy to know that he had done his job.

As darkness once again fell across the houses of Privet Drive the man came out of the shadows and made his way across the perfectly manicured lawn of number four. He was wearing a long brown ankle-length coat with sandy hair, and a brown suit under the trench coat. The trainers made no noise in the soft grass of the lawn as he approached the porch. Slowly he bent down, plucking the note off the top of the baby and tossing it away. Another identical note appeared in his hand from the inner folds of his jacket and he laid it out on the bare porch next to the small bundle.

He cooed gently to the baby within before scooping it up being careful not to wake the baby. The baby turned over staring up at him with bright green eyes before turning over and going back to sleep as if to say that he trusted this man and knew that no harm was to come to him from the strange man. The man looked up and down the street before disappearing back into the darkness. The Dursley's secret was contained for now and upon discovery of the strange note the next morning, Petunia Dursley took the time to read it thoroughly before throwing it away.

To Mr. and Mrs. Dursley,

I regret to inform you, however as of October 31st 1981, your sister Lily Rose Evans-Potter, has been killed by a maniac known as Lord Voldemort.

Her son, Harry James Potter, is well taken care of at this moment. Should you wish to contact your nephew, please address an envelope to him and he will receive them. He has been taken to a secure location and as such you were not to be disturbed or entangled with him.

Simply know that he is taken care of and know that we offer our sorrow and support to your family in this time of crisis.

Sincerely yours',

A Friend

It can't be said that the Dursleys were heartless people, however Petunia had not spoken to her sister in years and was therefore not all that interested that her nephew might have come to her. She glossed over the fact that her sister was dead, shedding a handful of tears before turning back into the house and starting on her family's breakfast, already hearing her toddler screaming in his crib to be let out.

XoXoXo

The large circular room heaved and shuddered suddenly as if struck by a large object. In the center of the room was a circular console that was topped by a large three fingered column of light that slowly moved up and down. A groaning/wheezing sound could be heard deep under the grated floor, but didn't seem to make any difference to those that were in the room.

Two figures rushed around the large central console flipping switches and pulling knobs. The first was an older looking man sometime in his early thirties with sandy brown hair and wearing a long brown coat with a brown suit on underneath. As he moved quickly out of the way a young boy came around the corner of the console carrying a bundle of wires; he looked to be close to eleven in age with long jet black hair that fell over his eyes slightly and was slicked back as well as striking green eyes.

The boy was dressed in a similar trench coat with a white shirt and brown slacks on underneath, his scraggly black hair long enough to cover the distinctive scar on the top of his forehead. Dropping expertly down a hole in the grate floor the boy carried the wires with him and started to reattach them seemingly at random, but knowing what he was doing.

"How many times do I have to tell you, do not flirt with the native girls?" The man called down through the grate as he hopped over it to hit a few more switches.

"I was not flirting, and you know that. I just asked what was for dinner." The boy's head popped up for a moment before disappearing back down into it. A green light could be seen and a soft whistling before his voice came back out. "Try it now, should be repaired."

"I told you before not to ask a cannibal what's for dinner, especially one with three sets of teeth." The man pulled a long cord that appeared to have once been attached to the back of a talking doll, letting it roll back into the console. "There, that should do it." The room shuddered slightly so he hit the console with a rubber mallet and the room seemed to settle down.

Harry Potter, small nearly eleven year old boy, popped up from the grate and looked around the still stabilizing room, but it didn't seem to rock back and forth anymore and for that he was thankful. Wiping the sweat off his forehead with the back of the sleeve on the trench coat he pulled himself out of the hole and sat on the edge of it. Panting slightly he looked up at the controls that glowed around the top of the circular console before him.

"Where exactly are we?" He said as he wiped more sweat from his forehead and slid off the brown trench coat around his shoulders. One his right ring finger was a small gold band that encircled his finger.

"London, Earth, The Solar System. We're back in the 20th century because you, young man, have to go to school." The man leaned on the railing around the main circular piece of the room and looked down at Harry on the floor.

"School? I thought we took care of that?"

"Oh, come on, it'll be fun."

"Need I remind you what happened the last time you said that."

"Oi, that wasn't my fault, and you know it." He smiled and muttered. "Cheeky little bugger."

"Hey, you raised me." Harry pulled himself out of the hole completely and moved towards the large wooden doors that stood at the end of a walkway. Pushing them open made a large shaft of sunlight appear through the open doors.

Stepping out into the morning sunlight Harry could tell that they had landed in a slightly seedier part of London somewhere downtown that he wasn't really sure where. Taking in his surroundings as the man came out of the doors and locked them tight with a strange looking key. Patting the wooden doors almost lovingly the man looked around and then scanned the sky before pointing upwards. Harry followed his hand and saw a brown speck that was growing larger by the second.

"Right on time, I thought we might have missed it completely." The man smiled as the dot got larger and showed to be a large brown owl carrying what appeared to be a package between its talons. The owl dropped the package in the outstretched hand of Harry as it landed on the man's shoulder to nip a little at his ear.

Harry starred at the heavy parchment package that was in his hands weighing it and looking at it from all angles. Written in green ink in flowing hands was simply his name "Harry Potter" with nothing else written below it. Slowly he slid his hand along the large red seal of a badger, snake, lion, and raven surrounding a large letter H and broke the wax, sliding out the three sheets of parchment underneath. Glancing through the initial letter of his acceptance to the prestigious school of Magic as well as the list of supplies he smiled a little and handed it to the man that was preening the beautiful bird on his shoulder.

"Ah, see, they never miss a beat, do they? I suppose it's off to gather your supplies, don't want you to be under supplied on your first day back, do you?"

"Aww, do I really have to go back there? I mean…" Harry was cut off as a few robed figures appeared in an alleyway nearby and disappeared into a nearby pub.

"Yes, you do, now come on and let's get your things." The man took a piece of parchment from his coat already signed and sealed and handed it to the bird. After whispering something to the bird which made it seem to cackle, the bird was off flying low over the buildings.

"You know, that's mean of you to do that every time." The man shrugged and led Harry towards the seedy looking pub that the other two men had disappeared through moments before.

The pub was lightly crowded with a few inhabitants in shadowy corners and people pulling long on a few pipes along the walls. The bartender barely looked up as the two entered the darkened pub paying them little to no attention at all. At one table sat a large man with black bushy hair and beady black eyes that poked out from within the mass of hair, he appeared to be talking with a much smaller man with flaming red hair. They both appeared to be enjoying a good drink as there were several empty bottles around them.

As the strange pair passed the two men Harry could hear his name being mentioned. Remembering what he had learned, and thanking anyone listening that he was so far unrecognized, he slowed his pace a little and kept his face impassive as he listened to the large man. "'Arry might not get 'is letter yahno. Dumbledore send me personally to collect him, just like when 'e was a baby." The large man seemed to tear up and cry a little at that.

Harry hurried to catch up to his older companion as they ducked out the back of the pub and into a small courtyard. There didn't seem to be anything there, but a few bins and a solid stone wall just in front of them. Looking around as if he knew he would be watched the man raised his bare hand and Harry could hear a soft rushing in his mind, barely on the edge of his conscious mind much as a soft wind blowing, as the brick was depressed in the correct order as the bricks shifted to push away from each other into a large stone archway.

The alley that opened up before them was filling slowly with customers as the day was just beginning in the magical world. Some shops were just finishing opening their doors as the customers pushed inside so as to get their shopping done as soon as possible. Few people didn't seem to notice the two newcomers as they walked calmly down the center of the alley towards the white marble building off in the distance. A few of the purebloods stared incredulously at the pair of muggle dressed men as they passed, but thought it was beneath them to really say anything to the pair.

Finally stepping up to the large white marble building that proclaimed it a bank, the oddly dressed pair was met by the end of a spear point. A short goblin stood on either side of a gilded golden door, each were menacing in their own right carrying a large spear and chain mail armor that seemed to be crafted directly onto their skin. One of the guards now had his spear pointed directly at the taller of the two staring them down.

"He is a wizard." The goblin drawled in a low menacing voice indicating Harry. "But you may not enter. You are neither muggle nor wizard and therefore unknown to the goblin nation."

"Come on, a little unknown is good for you. This makes sure that you don't really know everything, do you Hackblade?" The goblin stood back slightly at the mention of his name, no human has ever addressed a goblin by his name before, but kept the spear leveled at the man. "Just so we're clear, name's Smith, John Smith."

Mr. Smith, as he was known in many circles, stared down the small creature standing in front of him. The goblin leveled the spear point just under the man's chin, but he didn't seem to really care as he merely stared down the diminutive creature. For his part Harry seemed to step back slightly to allow the two people to stare each other it not for the intervention of an older goblin coming out of the building behind them, the staring contest might have gone on for much longer.

/:Hackblade, you will lower your spear point immediately.:/ The goblin muttered away in their native language. Both Smith and Harry could tell what he was saying through the translations in their heads and the slight tingling that said it wasn't normal English.

/: This one is not a wizard. :/ The smaller goblin, Hackblade, pointed to Mr. Smith as he grunted along with the other goblin. The elder goblin took one look at the taller man and then his eyes widened. The elder goblin clapped the younger behind the head with his bare claws.

"I do apologize, sir, please, come inside where we can straighten this out." The elder goblin started to shuffle back towards the front of the bank muttering to himself in his native language /: Stupid younglings, don't listen to history. :/

The interior of the bank opened up before the strange pair of men filled with marble and seemingly carved directly out of an older cavern. The rock walls were polish smooth as were the floors on which several long raised desks were sectioned off by large glass partitions. There were several doors leading off the main room into different hallways.

The elder goblin led the two men past all of this and towards the end of the room and one large section of wall that was covered by a large golden coin. The coin was approximately six feet in diameter and covered by a large letter G with two swords crossed behind it and a large pile of coins even further behind it all. It was the official seal of Gringotts wizarding bank and showed the power of the goblins over the financial matters of the magical population.

The goblin led them past the last of the teller stations where a large man was furiously shaking a cane at a goblin. The goblin teller didn't seem all that offended by the blonde man waving his cane about. The man's son, an almost duplicate of him, was standing behind him with a soft sneer on his face, but not saying anything as they passed. The door that the goblin led the group into was a large stone hallway that sloped downward slightly with several doors leading off of it and a large golden door at the end of the hallway.

As the assembled group passed into a large ornate office the furniture seemed to resize itself to fit those of the occupants. The two men slowly sank into the chairs and faced the elder goblin across the desk from them. The large goblin slowly took the folder from the side of his desk and slid it over towards him, opening it slowly.

"It is rather fortunate that you are here, Mr. Potter as we have much to discuss." The old goblin slid a folder across the desk towards the two men and Harry picked it up to skim over the contents as the goblin continued. "My name is SlimRock and I have been the account manager for the Potter family for a number of decades until your late parents were killed and I was replaced by someone much younger. When the late Lord and Lady Potter were tragically killed, their wills were activated."

"Lord and Lady Potter?" Harry asked hesitantly looking between the older man next to him and the goblin. "My mom and dad were royalty?"

The goblin seemed to smile slightly and shook his head. "No, of course not, Mr. Potter. There has not been a magical royal family in some millennia. Lord and Lady were their titles as befitting their status in our society, or should I say your society." The goblin skimmed over a document sitting in front of him before speaking again. "When your parents died, their will was activated, but because the suitable guardians were otherwise incapacitated, it was taken to Mr. Smith here to take you in and adopt you officially."

Mr. Smith was not at all surprised by these events; however he did smile to Harry as he looked at him with admiration. "Technically speaking, you are Harry Smith; however you are more than welcome to be Harry Potter again." He said smiling to the young man.

"Because of the adoption the wills take effect of your coming of age at eleven and as per your parents requests, you are to be given the complete holdings of your family at this time." The goblin slid across a large black ledger towards Mr. Smith and allowed him to pick it up before speaking again. "You are still underage in the wizarding world, young Mr. Smith, therefore your guardian will be your regent until you come of age."

The older Smith gave off a soft whistle as he flipped through the various pages of the ledger and then looked up to the goblin once more. "The Potter's owned all of this?" At a nod from the goblin he had to whistle again. "Well, Harry when you become of age, or as I see fit, you're going to be one wealthy young man." He had to smile at the gob smacked expression on the young man next to him.

"There is also the statement of accounts that you yourself set up, Mr. Smith. I believe that it states that upon your arrival here in the bank there would be a complete record and transaction audit of all the Potter monies and investments from the time of your last visit." SlimRock was reaching for another folder that had just materialized on his desk.

"I did? Well, that was certainly thoughtful of me, and I wonder why I did that?" He scratched at his bald chin as the man next to him gave him a gentle nudge in the ribs indicating that he had already done it so it must have happened for a reason.

"Yes, you did, sir. The audit was just recently completed." The goblin skimmed through the folder and then both men could hear a grunting that quickly translated in their heads. /: Never checked on the accounts before, stupid humans. :/ "I must apologize Mr. Potter; it would appear that there have been some irregularities in your accounts."

"Seems to be the day for interesting happenings, would you care to elaborate, Mr. SlimRock?" The elder Mr. Smith looked at the goblin waiting patiently for him to explain what was going on.

"When your parents passed away your accounts were to be handled by your guardians. At the time only three names were listed, a Sirius Black, Alice Longbottom, and a Remus Lupin. All three were considered by the court ineligible to take up your guardianship so by default your guardianship was to be contested in the courts. This was before your adoption and before your placement with your muggle relatives by Head Mugwump Albus Dumbledore." The goblin slid a copy of the official will across the desk and into Harry's waiting hands, but while he was reading it, the goblin continued. "Because Mister Smith here adopted you just after your placement with the Dursleys could be finalized they never knew nor controlled any part of your estate."

"Seems to me like you got yourself a mess of legal problems already. Should be rather interesting to see what happens next, eh, young Harry?" Mr. Smith smiled to the boy whom stuck his tongue out at the older man as he read over the will.

"Mister SlimRock, since the adoption was completed on the 23rd of November, then I became emancipated?"

"Ah, the twenty-third of November, only if I had waited two more years to the twentieth anniversary, that would have been nice." Mr. Smith muttered to himself as he stared off at the stone walls for a moment. "Sorry, seem to have zoned out a little there. What does this mean for young Harry here?"

"All of this simply means that control of the Potter vaults will be handed over to you until he comes of age at sixteen, at which time he can take full control." The goblin reached under the desk and retrieved a bag and set it before him. "This is a charmed bag so that you need not go down into your vault whenever you need money, simply speak the amount and it will appear. Only you two are keyed in for the moment for security reasons." As the odd pair was rising from their seats to be excused, the goblin spoke once more. "I will be in contact with the pair of you if we are to find out how your accounts were so mismanaged."

The odd pair stood up to leave and as they were going, Mister Smith paused at the door and stared back at the goblin. For a moment the two simply stared at each other before Mister Smith turned to leave. As he was he could hear faintly the grunts and guttural sounds that immediately sent a tingling in his head that showed he was being spoken to.

/: Take good care of him, Sir. :/