He could claim to hardly believe the child's words, but it was all too easy to tell he was being truthful. Michael had woken up with troubled thoughts and decided to postpone any merge paperwork to instead look into the Dursley family, with a special focus on their nephew. A stop by Grunnings with the excuse of double-checking the written reports - which he did end up doing if only not to waste time in another visit later - told him Vernon Dursley sometimes complained about his good-for-nothing nephew to employees, often using the child as a comparison if any delivered subpar work.
He could hardly look into their school, which Mr Dursley bragged about his son's outstanding grades for an eight-year-old, given it was not in session at the time, but talking to their neighbours was also an option, which is what eventually brought him to the Dursley's garden once he caught sight of their nephew working on it, no gloves on sight. He was still not sure of the boy's age, but one of the employees had implied he was the same age as the Dursley's son, which in itself was worrying given the child's size. He was just about to ask on the topic of meals when the sound of a door opening had him looking up.
"Boy, are you don- Oh, Mr Wright" Mrs Dursley's shrill tone softened somewhat at the sight of him, and keeping his disgust from showing in his face was probably the hardest feat he'd ever accomplished "What brings you back so soon? I hope my nephew wasn't disturbing you"
"Not at all, I was just in the neighbourhood and saw these beautiful roses. I was asking him how they stay so healthy" He lied with ease, though he had been in the neighbourhood.
"Oh, he wouldn't know about that" she waved a hand dismissively "I only have him weed the garden, hard work is good for building character"
"You're right, of course" he nodded in agreement, figuring she'd never done a hard day's work in her life then, to develop such a character, "Harry said as much, but unfortunately I must leave. I only stopped by at Eliza's for an early lunch"
He had not, but he did learn that Elizabeth, one of their neighbours, hated Petunia and would sooner spit on her than hold a dialogue, so it was as good an excuse as any. Besides, it was worth it to see the woman's smile grow colder, probably wondering if his association with her next-door neighbour would influence his opinion of them. As if it could get any lower.
"Of course, It was a pleasure to see you again" She offered.
"Likewise" he returned politely "Do tell Vernon to expect a call by Friday, at the latest" he added before leaving without a second look towards the child. He doubted a goodbye would help the boy's standing with his aunt.
He entered his car and let out a long sigh, closing his eyes for a moment as his head rested back on the car seat. He had enough information to bring to the Social Services Department, but something told him he would need more assurance than a simple investigation. He couldn't possibly be the only one to notice something was wrong. In fact, Elizabeth had mentioned the authorities visiting the house before, once after her own call, but nothing had come of it. No, whatever in him that seemed to push him towards the boy was telling him to act with a better, surer plan of action.
With that in mind, he started the car towards the closest library.
~
July 24th, 1988
Harry woke up to the knocking of wood on wood at the door of his cupboard, and Aunt Petunia yelling at him to get up already and help with breakfast. He didn't change out of his pyjamas before following the order, hurrying to the kitchen. Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had been in a really good mood since the day before when Uncle Vernon got an important phone call - which he knows because he accidentally made some noise while taking the folded laundry upstairs - but that could change any time, so he made sure to go fetch the eggs when his aunt told him to and got up on the stool to watch the bacon while she woke Dudley up. He wouldn't complain, just the smell was great and he was sure he'd get at least some of it if nothing happened to make them mad again.
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Destinies Collide
FanfictionMichael Wright believed himself to be a good person. He paid his taxes, was polite to his neighbors, friendly at the workplace, and made regular donations to charities he became involved within his line of work. He believed himself reasonably aware...
