The Marauders' Legacy

Pre-Hogwarts: Chapter 1

The Marauders' Legacy

Characters of Interest: Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Blaise Zabini, Susan Bones, Sirius Black, Remus Lupin, James Potter, Joseph Potter (OC), Cedric Diggory, Daphne Greengrass, Mandy Brocklehurst, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Neville Longbottom, Fred and George Weasley

A/N: I've gotten many reviews criticizing how unrealistic it is for four-year-olds to be so mature/independent/intelligent, and so on. Alright, I get it - unfortunately, I don't really have a way of fixing it for the time being. Just note that yes, I do understand that the age issue is the main problem with this fic. If you wish, just imagine they were several years older instead. Otherwise, I'm just writing this to let any readers (you) know that there is no longer any real need in mentioning this said problem in any reviews. Thanks!

Three Years and Eleven Months Old

Harry Potter didn't feel neglected. He didn't really resent the fact that his elder twin brother stole his parents, and had all the friends and all the presents. He didn't dislike his brother, with his arrogance, his lightning-bolt scar, or his popularity.

Harry Potter was a pragmatic person, and he knew: that was just how the world was. There was no point in being angry or sad about it. At his young age, the thought of hatred had never occurred to him.

As usual, he walked slowly into the dining room for lunch, seeing his mother Lily feed his brother from an ornate plate. The food that the house elves had prepared were set up on a buffet table, and as usual Harry walked in, grabbed as much food as he felt like eating, and left to eat by himself in the library.

Harry had never been given a broom, so he had never played Quidditch. He had never had the chance to enjoy it. He didn't have any friends either, so he didn't have anyone to play with, or talk to during his free time. That's why Harry made his friends in his books.

Harry wouldn't have called himself a genius. He was far too modest for that, even though he was very intelligent for his age. He read too much to not have had more knowledge in his three, almost four-year-old head, than others of his age. Harry really liked reading Muggle books about science. He knew, of course, that science didn't really apply to the magical world, but he enjoyed reading about it anyway. Electronics, particularly, excited him.

After he ate, Harry poked his head into the backyard, where Joseph was playing with his parents and some of his friends. He saw Lily come out with a box of chocolate frogs, laughing as she shared it with his brother and his friends. James was standing at the side, a smile on his face as he watched his eldest son.

Harry came up to within five meters of the man. "Dad? James?" he called.

"Hmm?" his dad replied, not taking his eyes off the boy.

"I'm going to take a walk to the Muggle library, okay?"

"Hmm?" James answered again. Harry didn't think he had even heard the question. "Sure, whatever you want."

It wasn't that his parents mistreated him. They didn't even ignore him. It was just that they had never gone out of their way to help Harry – it was as if he was just someone living in their house and eating their food, nothing more. Not a true part of their family.

Harry let himself out of the Manor, locking the door behind him with the key he had stolen from his father. The boy was a good thief, an excellent pickpocket. Of course, he wouldn't use it for anything illegal. He had just stolen the Manor key half a year ago just to see if James would notice, but the man had just thought he had dropped it somewhere, and made a new copy. So, Harry was left with a key of his own, and he wasn't too sad about that.