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Harry was annoyed. He forgot how cramped and dark the cupboard was. He forgot how demanding the Dursleys were. He was literally dragged out of the dark small room under the stairs to make food for them.
Harry winced at the loud yelling of Vernon telling him to hurry up and that their ‘Dudders’ would be late for school. Petunia smacked Harry’s head with a pan, twice. Dudley tripped while Harry placed the food into plates. So Vernon yelled at Harry for dropping food, grabbed Harry’s arm harshly, and threw him back into the cupboard. Harry swore he thought he might have broken his spine by the force of Vernon's throw, but thankfully it didn’t.
Merlin, Harry sometimes wondered how the fucking heck did he even survive until Hogwarts, and then the treatment each summer when starting Hogwarts.
Harry knew about two hours later, Petunia yanked Harry out of the cupboard to do chores with her careful watch to not infect anything with his ‘freakishness’. The chores included cleaning ‘his accident’ that he did during breakfast, cleaning the dishes just used in boiling hot water, cleaning the bathroom, planting seeds in a garden, and watering the plants in the garden.
Harry did them, barely without snapping. He kept reminding himself that this was his own choice to come back to this hell hole. Most of the time it worked, although it was dangerously close to not.
Harry also hated that the Dursleys kept calling him either by ‘freak’ or ‘boy’. “Boy” reminded him of Albus fucking Dumbledore, that manipulative old coot. ‘Freak’ just was a shitty term to say magicals. Harry had to physically restrain himself from calling Petunia, Tuney, to piss the woman off.
“This was fine,” Harry muttered to himself repeatedly throughout the day. It wasn’t, but lying to himself somewhat worked.
Until Dudley and his crew started to kick and punch him like a ragdoll with Vernon technically cheering them on and Petunia just standing there all because Harry got blamed for breaking the vase that Dudley broke accidentally…or was it on purpose? Harry never knew, not that he wanted to.
It just turned into one simple fact. The Dursleys hated him for having magic because Dumbledore told them that if they left him in an orphanage, they would die from Voldemort. Muggles being muggles don’t know that Voldemort was temporarily out of commission. Dumbledore being Dumbledore didn’t know that blood wards don’t protect anyone or anything when there wasn’t love supplying the ward.
Harry dryly laughed at the situation in the darkness of his cupboard. When Harry let his magic flow that night in the cupboard, it spilled out to his hands. The magic turned into a small dancing flame. That sparked an idea, a fantastic idea.
An idea that Death would enviably get mad at Harry for, but it was too much of an idea to pass by, just as a thought.
Harry watched the controlled flames in a memorized manner. He watched it until dawn. He waited and waited until he started to hear heavy footsteps on the stairs above. The heavy footsteps usually were to wake Harry up, but Harry was already awake, fully awake.
Harry hid his smile as he was yanked out of the cupboard to cook the Dursleys' last breakfast, or rather meal.
It was the usual bacon and eggs. The meal started off fine. So normal without yelling? Harry raised a brow at the weirdness. Did they feel Harry's flames indirectly? Was it really ok to go through with the plan if they were to not even be assholes?
Harry paused for a few seconds. And that was what started the yelling.
"Hurry up, freak!" yelled Vernon.
Dudley nodded in agreement with his father. "Yeah, hurry up."
Petunia…didn't say anything. Well, until Harry served her plate, which was the first one.
"Freak, why is this burnt?" she asked.
Harry blinked. It was one of the best bacon and eggs he could ever create. What the fuck did she mean it was burnt? The egg was perfectly burnt with that little crisp. The bacon wasn't even burnt as it was still chewy and juicy.
"Redo my plate," growled the woman muggle, as she grabbed the pan, and dumped all the food in the trash. He could have fucking ate that, bitch.
Harry tilted his head, somewhat childishly, as he did it. He wondered was it the weekends or something? Probably since if it weren't Vernon would be complaining about Dudley being late.
Harry growled as he served another, the first was still Petunia. Petunia then dumped the plate over Harry. Harry blinked at the grease dropping down his face, likely also burning him.
Vernon scowled, before walking over and smacking him. "Little freak, wasting my money."
Harry froze. He tried to calm the magic that was quickly trying to burst through his veins. A thin magic tension appeared. As Harry thought about it more, more magic swirled around him.
"Stop that freak!" yelled Vernon.
Harry narrowed his eyes, and let his magic free. This was definitely not his original plan, but it included many of the same. He ignited the pan first, just as in his original plan. Although he was going to only send a spark, instead of this wave of magic.
The flames spread, with Petunia and Vernon twitching their nose at the smoke from the fire. Harry was standing directly a few inches next to the pan, meaning he was staring at Petunia and Vernon and were both looking at him. Dudley's expression was the only one with shock.
That caused Petunia and Vernon to turn. "FIRE!" yelled the large man, as Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley all shifted backwards.
Without any of the Dursleys staring at him, Harry stared into the fire. The fire spread towards, not the window, but towards the three shitty muggles. Harry shifted the flames to create fists of flames through their chests.
Screaming. They screamed. But Harry casted a special spell that made them scream silently. Harry wanted to hear them, but the neighbors shouldn’t hear them.
Harry laughed. It was delicious for his sanity, or was it rather his insanity?
Harry controlled the fire to burn the inside first, avoiding windows. No need for the neighbors to get suspicious and call the firefighters now. They are, but after Harry burned everything to ashes.
In which he did. Harry destroys everything they own in this pathetic house.
But of course, he needed to take a bath because who the fuck wants bacon, bacon grease, and eggs on themselves. Not Harry. So he controlled the flames to avoid the bathroom he was using, for now.
After that quick sprinkle, Harry’s hair dried quite quickly as he was surrounded by flames everywhere else.
Harry then ran out of the house and allowed the flames to engulf the whole house. He casted an invisibility and muting charm on himself, and watched the flames dance wildly. When someone called for someone, it had already been an hour after the death of the Dursleys.
He smiled, until a glob of darkness appeared. “Not even three days in. Really?” The entity’s voice had hints of disappointment, but Harry knew he wasn’t disappointed per say.
“You expected me to stay there for three days?” Harry enforced an offended tone.
The entity giggled. It would be strange with the giggle in such a low tone by Death, but Harry heard it way too much to be even slightly afraid. “No, I expected you to snap on the first.”
Harry’s smile widened. Death was somewhat a parent, friend, and mentor to Harry. “Well, I thought maybe they would change.”
“They are like this in almost every universe, dear. Don’t get your hopes high, as most Harrys that are in that universe usually just want to stay with them.”
Harry sucked out his tongue before shaking his head. “Dumbledore and Snape both had to do with Petunia’s disgust with magicals.”
“As well as the marriage that she attended. Your father is still quite a bully, don’t you know?”
Harry hummed, as the flames rose higher. “Well, technically you’re my father.”
The entity stared at Harry for quite a long time, not responding. “Well then. I suppose I did adopt you in your original universe.”
“No, more like force the goblins there to give you guardianship over me because I smiled at you, instead of being scared.” Harry leaned his head on the shoulder.
“OH shush. You know that the goblins love me.”
“Sure sure, God of Chaos and Death, what’s not to love?” stated Harry sarcastically.
Death giggled. “I know right. I’m perfect…” Death turned to the flames. “...and so are you.”
Harry nodded in agreement. “Of course, we are the perfect duo.”
“Indeed.” Death made a hum noise. “What gave you the idea of burning this place?”
Harry licked his dry lips from the flames. “Somebody once said to set your heart ablaze before their sad death. But I believe a neglected fire is one you should fear the most is more accurate.”
The entity huffed. “Really a reference to something that wasn't made until the twentieth century?”
Harry winked. “A donut would be nice right now, actually.”
The entity giggled. “I told you you would like them.”
Harry chuckled. “Well, the best donuts are gorey, sadly there was nothing but ashes for the muggles.”
Death sighed. “Of course that’s how you killed them.”