Sending Barry to Hogwarts was a good decision after all. Her boy quickly settled in and made friends there. And a nice bonus was that he became friends with Harry Potter. Burrow was really happy to hear this...
She found out that the boy had been living with his uncle and aunt, who, as it turned out, did not like him very much. And that's putting it mildly: the child lived in a closet, wore clothes that were several sizes too big for him, and didn't even have his own medical records! Burrow, as a mother, was appalled by such treatment of a child.
The idea to give Harry to the Dursleys belonged to Dumbledore. Of course, they were his only relatives, which was better than an orphanage, but still, the conditions he lived in... It was a nightmare! And why didn't Albus Dumbledore foresee this? Could he really have allowed the Boy Who Lived to live in such squalor?
After she found out that the Dursleys had rejected him, Burrow was immediately eager to take in James and Lily's child. Henry, as it turned out, was not opposed. He generally supported his wife's attitude towards the whole situation. Henry also couldn't understand how anyone could treat a child, an orphan, like that.
***
"In any case, Harry Potter needs someone to look after him," said the woman.
She had come to Hogwarts herself to talk to Dumbledore about it.
"While he's at Hogwarts," said the headmaster, "he's under supervision. We have enough people who can handle the task.
"What about holidays? Summer, winter? Or are you saying he'll be here all year round?
"Of course not, Mrs Allen, he won't be here all year.
"Then why won't you agree? Are you afraid something might happen to Harry while he's away from the school?
"It's not quite that," the old man adjusted his glasses on the bridge of his nose and exhaled. "Believe me, I am just as concerned for the boy as you are. And I am also concerned for you. I don't want him to cause you any trouble, and I can assure you that he will.
"I'm ready for anything, Professor.
Dumbledore looked at her appraisingly. Burrow was stubborn in her decisions, he had known that since she was young.
"All right, but there will be one condition," Albus nodded. "You will tell me about everything that happens to Harry. And don't you dare hide even the smallest incident, because I will find out anyway."
"I agree," smiled Mrs Allen.
The matter was settled, and now Burrow would never let anything bad happen to Harry.
***
Barry sat in shock. No, his doppelganger's words made sense, and sooner or later the Allens would have taken Harry under their wing anyway. But part of him still couldn't come to terms with this decision. In general, there were only advantages. But for some reason, the young man couldn't shake the strange feeling that something serious was about to happen...
"We're going to Starling City!" Barry shouted happily as he ran into the Gryffindor common room.
"Really?" smiled "Harry." Well, it looked like he would have to cross some names off his list soon.
"Yeah! My father is friends with Robert Quinn, and he invited us to a Christmas party. Can you imagine, I'll get to see Oliver!
"Who?
"Robert has an older son, Oliver. I know him well. He's in his fifth year at Ilvermorny. God, I haven't seen him in ages... You have to meet him, Harry!
Yes, we must, thought Barry. We absolutely must.
***
The holidays had begun, and many students had gone home. None of Harry's friends would be staying, so no one would be around to find out about the Philosopher's Stone. But he should have, because he had heard the news that Gringotts had been attacked, and although the goblins claimed that nothing had been stolen, Barry began to understand what was going on and that his "childhood" would soon be over and he would have to get down to business. But that was after the holidays.
On their way to Starling City, the Allens stopped in Central City to visit Sophia Randall, Burrow's youngest sister. About three years ago, she married Oscar Randall, a Muggle-born wizard who was known among non-magical people as a music teacher. Barry was slightly confused by the very existence of this Sophie. Because he had no other relatives in his homeland (otherwise one of them would have adopted him instead of Joe), and here everything was completely different.
The Randalls took it in stride that Harry was also a member of the Allen family (although Barry had always been one, but at the moment things were not so simple), and did not treat him like a pariah. In America, Harry Potter wasn't that popular, and some people didn't see the point in praising the Boy Who Lived so much. Of course, it wasn't every day that babies survived Avada Kedavra, and that case was truly a miracle, but there were far more important things to pay attention to in this world.
***
The American magical community was very different from the British one, as Harry realised from the moment he arrived in Central City. The United States had always been known for its more liberal attitudes and more effective democracy. Even the local wizards were no exception. Magic, of course, was not widespread among the Muggle community, but the local wizards did not particularly hide themselves, unlike the British and the rest of Europe in general. In America, a balance had been found that both sides maintained perfectly.
Although until 1965, things were much worse than in Great Britain, where at least marriage to a Muggle, although frowned upon, was not prohibited.
Barry was glad to have the opportunity to learn about the world of magic outside the United Kingdom, because, as far as he knew, very little time was devoted to it in books and films.
A striking example of the American magical balance was the Quinn family. The head of the family, Robert, was known in the non-magical world as an entrepreneur, and his company manufactured weapons that the American government was happy to use. Among magicians, he was known for developing several combat spells that were also used by the magical government.
Barry Allen of this Earth had been friends with Oliver Queen since early childhood. Their fathers were good partners and close friends, even though their activities differed. "Harry" understood that this Earth would be completely different, but he couldn't even imagine how much... For as far as he could remember, his first meeting with Oliver on his Earth had been completely different.
***
"Harry Potter?" Standing in front of Barry was a fifteen-year-old boy dressed in a modest business suit. Oliver held out his hand to introduce himself. "It's an honour to meet you."
"Likewise," he shook his hand in response. Just by his appearance, Oliver showed how different he was from his doppelganger from Earth-1.
Another Barry stood nearby, watching them with interest. He was curious to see how his two friends would react to each other.
"I hear you're a pretty good Quidditch player?
Here, Barry also decided not to stray from the canon when he realised that he needed to save the day with Neville and his reminder ball. He was immediately assigned to the Gryffindor team as a Seeker.
"Want to compete?" Harry shrugged. After all, the spirit of competition remained the spirit of competition.
Then the boys ran to the closed field where Oliver was practising the magical sport. And Barry Allen was their referee. Potter soundly defeated Quinn, which surprised him greatly, because it turned out that he had only started playing Quidditch two years ago, and he was beaten by an eleven-year-old kid.
***
"Harry, wake up! Hurry!" he heard Barry's voice.
The boy got out of bed and stretched lazily. Then he went down to the living room, where his doppelganger was standing next to the Christmas tree. He was holding a huge box tied with a festive ribbon.
"You got a present too," the boy nodded towards the Christmas tree, where a small bag lay.
"Harry" ran closer and took his. Opening it, he saw a cloak and then a letter attached to it.
"Your father used to wear this," Potter read aloud. "Use it wisely."
"Go on, put it on," Barry said, squinting.
He put on the cloak and then simply disappeared.
"An invisibility cloak," the boy said admiringly.
Barry lowered the hood, so that only his head was visible. From the side, it looked as if his head was floating in the air.
The invisibility cloak. One of the Deathly Hallows, Barry suddenly remembered. Two more to go.
***
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