The Untouchable

C1: Prologue - The Disappearing Act

When Harry was six years old (and a half), he discovered something fascinating. If he wished Very Hard, sometimes so hard he thought he would pass out, he could make Strange Things happen.

Sometimes these Strange Things were very simple. Uncle Vernon wanted the remote for the telly and insisted Harry had hidden the remote. Harry wished Very Hard that Uncle Vernon could find the remote and, as Uncle Vernon approached Harry, the remote was crushed under the large man's foot. Now, Harry knew that Dudley had hidden the remote. And Harry knew for certain that the telly remote was not on the floor a few moments ago. Uncle Vernon seemed to know this too, or perhaps a version of this, and he was very upset.

Uncle Vernon refused to touch the remote and went out quickly to buy a new one.

Sometimes these Strange Things were awfully complicated. Dudley liked to chase Harry around, which wouldn't normally be a problem as Harry was very fast. But Dudley had many friends and sometimes these friends were faster than Harry. If Harry wished Very Hard (so hard that his face would turn red and his cheeks would heat up), he could escape Cousin Dudley and his gang of friends. Sometimes Harry would end up on the roof. Sometimes Harry would be in a tree. It did not work all of the time (which was partially why it was in the awfully complicated category), but it worked often enough to upset Dudley and complain to Aunt Petunia.

Aunt Petunia did not like Strange Things.

Harry was sentenced to stay in his cupboard under the stairs for disappearing into a tree. When Uncle Vernon came home, he was very upset too. Uncle Vernon very much did not like Strange Things. Harry did not like to say the word often, as it was a word Dudley said a lot and made everyone upset, but it was true to say that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia hated Strange Things.

As he sat in the cupboard under the stairs, Harry realised that Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon must hate him, too. Because Harry, himself, was a Strange Thing.

Now, Harry knew that Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia did not need to keep him in the house. He had heard many times from Uncle Vernon that the man was 'this close' to placing him in an orphanage. Aunt Petunia would then talk loudly (in front of his cupboard) about 'how awful and cruel' orphanages were and perhaps they would give Harry another chance.

Harry would listen to Aunt Petunia whine and Uncle Vernon grumble and he would tremble, hiding amongst the spiders in the cupboard under the stairs. Orphanages sounded very evil to Harry. Aunt Petunia almost seemed pleased about the idea sometimes, which frightened Harry greatly. Aunt Petunia was very rarely pleased about anything other than the mean things the neighbours said about one another.

This time, Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon had a roaring fight. Uncle Vernon said that disappearing into a tree was 'the last straw'. Aunt Petunia whispered quietly, scared, about a 'letter' and was very upset that they could not do more. Harry did not know what that meant, but he did know that Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon were going to send him away. Harry did not know if that meant to an Orphanage, but the thought frightened him so deeply that he wished Very Hard that Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon would forget that Harry existed.

It did not seem to work, which did not surprise Harry as most Strange Things only came true in a physical sort of way. If Harry wished he could disappear, this oft meant he would zip up into a high space away from his pursuers instead of truly disappearing. If Harry wished Aunt Petunia had never cut his hair, his hair would grow back instead of going back in time. Harry had experimented with many Strange Things and often the easiest answer would come true, even if Harry did not know what the easiest answer was at the time.

Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon did not forget that Harry existed, for they continued arguing late into the night about whether to send him away or not. Little Harry continued wishing Very Hard and he fell asleep on his cot in the cupboard under the stairs, where he dreamt of becoming invisible.