The quiet hum of the glowing windows faded as Harry drifted into an uneasy sleep in the cupboard, but the sense of clarity, that strange, calm detachment from his deepest fears, remained. It was like a soft, constant barrier wrapping around his thoughts. When the harsh bang of the cupboard door being pulled open startled him awake the next morning, the familiar lurch of panic was absent, or at least muted.
"Up! Now!" snapped Aunt Petunia's voice, sharp as broken glass. "Get the breakfast ready. Don't burn anything, or you'll regret it!"
Harry scrambled out, his small body stiff and aching from the cold floor and the previous day's bumps. The stat window was gone now, as were the quest and skill notifications, but the soft blue outline of the System felt like a watermark in the corner of his vision. It didn't obscure anything, but a subtle shift of his focus felt like it could bring the menus back. He decided not to try just yet; Aunt Petunia was scary enough without her seeing him staring at empty air.
He hurried towards the kitchen, his small bare feet padding softly on the worn linoleum. Dudley was already there, somehow already stuffing a biscuit into his mouth, perched at the table like a great, pink frog. Uncle Vernon was unfolding his newspaper, his walrus moustache bristling. The air felt thick with the usual tension – everyone ignoring him, ready to snap.
He moved towards the counter to get out the frying pan, his mind strangely quiet. Instead of anticipating Dudley's inevitable trip or Aunt Petunia's watchful glare, he found himself… noticing things. The exact shade of Vernon's puce face this morning. The way Petunia's lips were pressed into a thin, tight line. Dudley's strangely green tie.
As he reached for the pan, a new thought sparked. What if I could see more? Like that System… could I see things about them?
He focused intently on the frying pan, remembering how the text had appeared on the screen in the cupboard. He didn't wish or use a word, he just... focused his complete attention, feeling that subtle mental click from the night before.
A small, semi-transparent blue box popped up near the frying pan.
📦 [ITEM: Worn Frying Pan]
A standard kitchen frying pan. Used for cooking. Well-worn. Requires cleaning.
Harry blinked. It was true! He could do it! He quickly shifted his focus, turning it on the plate in front of Dudley.
📦 [ITEM: Dudley Dursley's Plate]
Current Contents: Biscuit crumbs, slobber. Capacity: Sufficient for large amounts of food.
He fought a giggle, which the Gamer's Mind instantly quelled. The world felt... labeled now. Everything around him, potentially. But what about people? That felt much more dangerous. Still, the urge was irresistible.
He took a deep breath, holding it, and focused all his concentration on the back of Dudley's head.
🧠 [Using Observe Lv. 1...]
Almost instantly, a larger, more detailed box appeared.
🧍 [PERSON: Dudley Dursley]
Level: 3
Current Mood: Complacent, Eager (for food)
Conditions: [Bloated I], [Spoiled II]
Notes: Harry Potter's cousin. Possesses above-average STR for his age, negligible INT, and high CHA (Parental Figures). Current Objective: Eat food, Annoy Harry.
Harry stared. Dudley had a level? He was Level 3? What did that mean? [Bloated I]? [Spoiled II]? It sounded awful, but perfectly described Dudley. Negligible INT felt about right too. And [Gamer's Mind] kept his surprise and outrage locked down, allowing him to just absorb the information.
He risked a quick, surreptitious glance at Uncle Vernon, sitting behind his paper, radiating annoyance.
🧠 [Using Observe Lv. 1...]
🧍 [PERSON: Vernon Dursley]
Level: 8
Current Mood: Irritated, Focused (on paper)
Conditions: [High Blood Pressure I], [Volume Control Issues II]
Notes: Harry Potter's Uncle. Possesses high STR and LUK (Career), very low WIS and CHA. Current Objective: Read newspaper, Ignore freaks, Consume Breakfast. Warning: Approaching proximity may result in verbal or physical assault (Threat Level: Moderate).
Harry recoiled internally, not physically. The calmness of Gamer's Mind prevented the usual fear from seizing him, but the information itself was chilling. Threat Level: Moderate. It made sense, put a name on the constant, low-level danger. High STR he already knew; Uncle Vernon could pick him up easily. Low WIS and CHA... maybe that was why no one outside the family seemed to like him much.
This ability... [Observe]... it was powerful. It let him see things clearly, put labels on dangers, on the strangeness around him. He didn't know how he'd unlocked it, maybe just by wishing for understanding while in Gamer's Mind?
"Potter! Did you hear me? The bacon! Don't stand there gawking!" Aunt Petunia shrieked from the door.
He flinched back into the present, turning quickly to the fridge. Okay, bacon. Eggs. Toast. Cook quickly, cook correctly. This was part of the quest, wasn't it? Minimizing interactions meant getting the job done fast and quietly.
He set about frying the bacon, moving carefully. His earlier aches still registered in his body (HP still 50/50), but felt distant. The hunger gnawed (Quest goal: minimum one meal/day, Progress: 0/7), but the urge to snatch a piece of bacon wasn't as overwhelming as it normally would be. He was Level 1, Stats low, Quest: Survive. Eating someone else's food was not part of survival in this house.
He slid the cooked bacon and eggs onto the Dursleys' plates, resisting the urge to Observe Aunt Petunia. Maybe that was a bridge too far right now. As he finished, meticulously scraping grease into the bin as he'd been taught, a tiny chime sounded in his internal awareness, not loud enough for anyone else to hear.
[Task Completed: Prepare Dursley Breakfast]
[Minor Goal related to Quest "Survive the Week" Objective "Minimize interactions with Petunia"]
[+5 EXP]
Five Experience Points. A notification in his mind. Doing the chore, the horrible chore, had earned him points. Points towards... something. Towards levelling up? The stats window said he needed 100 EXP to reach Level 2. Five wasn't much, but it was a start. He looked at the greasy frying pan that still needed washing. Another task. More EXP?
The faint smile from the night before returned, a fragile thing. His life was still terrible. He was still trapped with awful people. But now, maybe, just maybe, he had a secret way to fight back. To get stronger. To survive, not just minute by minute, but purposefully. The 'Gamer System' felt less like a dream and more like a promise.
He washed the pan, already planning how to observe Dudley's routes and Uncle Vernon's moods throughout the day. His quest had just begun, and he had his first tiny footholds.