It wasn't until November, about four months after he had moved to Forks, that he saw a werewolf; not in his werewolf form but in his human form. He and Esme were taking C.J. shopping, for he had, once more, grown out of his clothes. "If he keeps this up he'll be taller than me in a year or so," Harry joked to Esme as they entered the shop.
Harry wasn't the tallest person around. In fact, even though he was sixteen years old, he looked like he was only fourteen, since he was about five foot seven inches tall and rather thin. Esme had suspected that he had not been properly nourished for some time, but he'd never confided in her so she could only guess.
As she was about to reply a strange scent caught her attention. Trying to distinguish where it was coming from, she scanned her surroundings. Her eyes locked on a couple that were smiling at each other. A growl erupted from her throat, making Harry turn to her in bewilderment.
"What's wrong?" he asked concerned, placing a hand on her shoulder, hoping it would calm her down.
"Dogs," she growled once more, ever since the incident with one of them and her son, she wasn't fond of them, she may even go as far as to say she hated them. It was as if the couple heard them for they turned around and locked eyes with Esme.
"I take it you do not mean those fluffy little puppy dogs?" Harry asked again before following her stare. He saw a normal looking couple trying to help one of their friends pick up some clothing for a child. Yet there was something off, somehow the way the man was holding himself bugged him. The thought of his old Defence against the Dark Arts professor suddenly came to mind. "Werewolves?" he wondered, aloud.
The only answer he got was a growl from the vampire beside him, whose eyes were still locked on the pair.
"I take it you don't like werewolves?"
"No, especially not after…" Esme began but cut herself off.
"After what?" Harry inquired, curiously.
"It is not my story to tell. Let's just say that we don't like one another." She looked over at the woman with them and Harry followed her gaze. "That's Bella Swan, she's the only human, besides you, that knows about us."
"I thought humans weren't supposed to know about vampires?" At Hogwarts Harry had been studying vampires. One of the things mentioned was that it was against vampire law to allow muggles the knowledge of their existence.
"Yes," she only replied before selecting another outfit and showing it to Harry. "What about this one?"
"You do know that you are spoiling him, don't you?" Harry didn't mind the subtle subject change. "I don't want to buy a whole lot of clothes, though. He will grow out of them within a second."
"That's what children do. They grow up." Esme selected another outfit and some toys before they walked to the counter to pay for their items. "Besides, I love spoiling him."
"Can't he just stay a baby forever?" Harry pouted as he looked from his son to the vampire. "I don't ever want him to grow up…" He ruffled the child's hair, who smiled up at him.
"Unfortunately, that is something you can't control." Esme smiled down at the pair and paid for the items.
Harry sighed as he followed the vampire out of the shop. "I guess I'm just worrying about his magic," he confided in her. "The only reason I'm trying to graduate from Magic School a year earlier is so that I can do magic around him and be able to teach him how to control it."
"What happens when you don't graduate?" Esme inquired, curiously.
Harry shook his head. "If I don't graduate and I use my magic, they could take him away from me…"
"Why? I mean, you said that you were raised by, what did you call them? Muggles?" Esme was shocked. How could they even consider taking away a child from his parents?
"This is only if I don't graduate and use my magic. It's illegal to use magic when you are not authorized to do so; like an under aged wizard or witch, or when you haven't graduated from a magic school." They had arrived at a small restaurant and sat down at one of the tables. "Which is one of the reasons I moved to America," Harry stopped a moment to give his order and was slightly amused when Esme ordered the same thing, as if to blend in better. "In Britain all under aged wizards and witches are closely watched by the ministry. If you are underage and you use your magic, they can expel you and break your wand, ensuring you'll never be able to use your magic again." Harry stopped a moment as his memories brought him back to the first time he met Hagrid, the Hogwarts gamekeeper turned professor, who had embedded the pieces of his wand into an umbrella.
"In America they have different rules. You are allowed to use magic in your own home, as long as there are no muggles around. When you have graduated, and it doesn't matter what age you are, you are allowed to use magic outside of your home, for example in the wizarding community. It is still advised not to use magic in front of a muggle but sometimes you have no other choice and depending on the situation the muggle's memories will be erased or he'll need to take an oath never to tell anyone what he has seen.'
"Most schools in America are also willing to give you a second chance. It doesn't matter whether you've been expelled from your old school or not." Harry had been lucky enough to have been told about that law in America, if he hadn't he never would have been able to practice his magic again and that was a sacrifice he wasn't willing to make.
"That sounds reasonable. Why were you expelled from your old school?" Harrison had told her that he was expelled from his old school before but never told her why.
"I did what was expected of me and was tossed out as soon as the problem was over," Harry replied, vaguely and took a bite of his sandwich. He shot one look at the vampire and knew he should elaborate.
"A wizard tried to kill me for about 14 years of my life. In my fifth year he lured me somewhere and we ended up duelling; it resulted in his death, with me killing him." Harry looked up into Esme's sweet eyes, trying to reassure himself that she wouldn't turn away from him now that he had admitted he was a murderer. "They expelled me because I used magic outside of school and was underage. Also because they feared I would become the next dark lord. All I did was rid the world of someone they trained me to kill and when I finished the job, they kicked me out."
"I don't understand," Esme interrupted him. "This man was trying to kill you and you got expelled for trying to stay alive?"
"Yes," Harry admitted. "All they saw was the next Dark Lord and they wanted to prevent me from becoming one. They expelled me and were about to break my wand but I got away and fled." Harry sighed as the events of that day took over. "All I ever tried to be was what they wanted me to be. The Boy-Who-Lived, the hero of the wizarding world, the one who'd defeat Voldemort, and when I did they cast me out."
"How dare they?" Esme was angry.
"That was my life at Hogwarts," Harry gave Esme a small smile. He had long ago learned not to trust anyone. "One moment I'm their hero and the next I'm the bad guy. You could say I've gotten quite used to it by now. It's one of the reason's they don't know I have a son…" he hadn't wanted to say that last bit. Not yet wanting her to know everything about him. "But you know, it's not like I'm going back there. The moment I set foot in Britain I could get sent to Azkaban." At Esme's blank look he clarified. "Prison."
"What about friends?" Esme asked. "Did you have friends at this Hogwarts?"
"I did," Harry replied, not wanting to elaborate and Esme dropped the subject. "We should get back, C.J.'s rather tired." They paid the bill, packed their stuff and left for Harry's house. "I'll see you on Monday, then?" After Esme's curt nod she left the small family alone.
~*~*~*~*~
Monday came sooner than Harry would have liked. He was still rather tired from his shopping trip with Esme and had wanted to stay in bed longer. Unfortunately, Forks was but a small town and didn't have a bus that would take him to school, and since he didn't own a car, or a bike for that matter, he had to wake up earlier than most so he could walk to school.
He walked over to C.J.'s room to check on him. "Hello, little man. Already awake?" he asked him when he saw the grey eyes looking up at him.
C.J. smiled happily when he heard his daddy's voice.
"Shall we get some breakfast?" A happy sound was heard from the child as Harry went to pick him up. "Okay, let's put you here." He sat C.J. down in one of the baby chairs. "So, what do you want for breakfast? Pizza? Ice cream? Milk?" He got out a bottle of milk and walked over to his son.
A dizzy spell took over him and the last thing he remembered was falling down.
Esme Cullen walked into Harrison's house using the spare key the wizard had given her. "Harrison?" she called out. She heard C.J.'s cries and rushed into the kitchen. She saw the child in his chair and quickly picked him up trying to calm him down. "Where's your fath…?" she wasn't able to finish her question when she saw Harrison lying unconscious on the floor.
"Harrison?" she kneeled down and listened for a pulse when she heard one she reached for the phone; ready to call 911 or her husband, she hadn't decided yet when Harrison stirred and moaned.
"Harrison, are you okay?" She asked concerned as she helped him sit up.
Harry nodded. "C.J.?" He remembered he'd been with his son and could still hear his cries. He was a little disoriented and hadn't noticed his son was right in front of him with Esme.
"He's fine, just a little upset. Do you remember what happened?" she asked concerned and helped him stand up. For a moment he swayed on his feet but quickly found his balance when the vampire steadied him.
"I was getting C.J. some milk…I suddenly felt dizzy. I must have tripped or something," the wizard replied. He reached out to check on his son, hearing the baby's cries. "I'm fine, little man," he was amazed when his son stopped crying and look at him, cocking his head from left to right as if considering his words or as if he was searching for something.
When he apparently found what he was looking for he made a happy sound and reached out for his father and smiled. His daddy was fine.
Harry smiled at his son. Sometimes the little one reacted to his emotions; as if he was an empath but he knew that C.J. was too young…wasn't he? He shook his head and checked the time. "I have to go," he said. Now that he knew his son was fine, it was time to leave.
"I'll look after him." Esme's concerned eyes fell on the wizard. "Are you sure you are all right?"
"Yeah, I'm fine," Harry left after given his son a kiss on his forehead.
Luckily for him the day passed by rather quickly and before he knew it, it was lunchtime. He was about to enter the cafeteria when Bella Swan, the girl he and Esme had seen when they went shopping, cornered him. "You're Harrison, right?" she asked and he nodded. "You should stay away from the Cullens."
"Is that a threat?" he asked, getting defensive. Esme had told him that she knew about them. If that was true then she shouldn't warn him about them. Not to mention he didn't like it when people threatened his friends, as few as there were. He may not have met all the Cullens yet but those he met had been very kind, and he wasn't sure where he would have been without that kindness.
"More like a friendly warning," she replied, flicking her hair out of her face.
"And why should I stay away from them?"
"They can be dangerous. Trust me, I speak from experience."
Harry looked at Bella. Her eyes were defensive, her stance arrogant and everything about her told him she was a woman scorned. "Well, I'll thank you for your warning but I can take care of myself," he said and walked off. What a town. It's not the vampires or the werewolves you should fear but the Queen Bitch, Miss Bella Swan, he thought.
When Harry was finally able to enter the cafeteria he noticed that every table was already filled. He had to share a table then. It wasn't as if he minded sharing a table with the other students; it was just that he didn't want to socialize with them, or more that he didn't know how to socialize with them.
People would walk naturally up to him at Hogwarts; here he had to walk up to people. If he could choose between facing Voldemort or these teenagers he'd definitely pick Voldemort. He was suddenly reminded of his fourth year; where he had to ask a girl out to be his date to the Yule Ball. Yes, he would definitely pick Voldemort.
He glanced around and noted that there were still several places empty. One was with that gossip queen, or Sophia as most of them knew her. He really didn't want to risk her touching him again, so sitting with her was out of the question. His gaze landed on the Cullens table. There were only three people at that table so they still had some spots open; most people feared to share a table with them. His gaze went through the cafeteria. Another spot was free at the table where Bella Swan was sitting down at; was he really going to consider sitting with her?
After considering his options of sitting at any one of the tables he walked over to one.
"Hey, mind if I join you?" He asked looked at the girl. "Unfortunately most of the seats are taken and I'd either have to share with someone I don't like or sit outside and if you guys don't mind I'd rather share than eat my lunch in this pouring rain."
When none of the three answered him he continued. "I won't even disturb you. I'll just sit at the end and read my book. You won't even know I'm here." He had brought one of his magic books with him, hoping to study a little between classes. When he still didn't get any response he continued. "But if you rather I'd leave…"
"No, it's okay you can sit down," the girl told him but not before scowling at her two brothers. "And you don't even have to read your book."
Harry smiled gratefully. "Thanks, I was afraid I had to sit with the gossip queen again." He got out his lunch, which Esme had prepared from him. A small smile played on his lips when he noticed it was his favourite, again.
The bronze haired boy next to Harry came to the same conclusion as his siblings. Most humans smelled like food or even an appetiser, yet this human smiled like the earth. They didn't understand it. A smile started tugging at his mouth when he heard the wizard's thoughts. "He's got a soft spot for Esme," he told his siblings. Too fast and too quiet for the human to hear.
"You do realise that sitting with us will result to gossip again?" the girl asked him trying to start up a conversation.
"If it isn't this, it'll be something else," Harry replied and took a bite from his sandwich and bit back a moan of delight. Esme really knew how to make these types of sandwiches. "Besides, I'm used to the gossip."
"That is true enough; people have been talking about you since you've arrived. I'm Alice, by the way, and these are my brothers Jasper and Edward." She indicated to the person as she said his name. "You must be Harrison."
Harry looked a little bewildered and then it dawned on him. "Esme." The smile on Alice's face told him everything he needed to know. "Does she talk about me often?" He never really liked it when people talked about him. It made him uncomfortable, especially when people knew things about him while he knew absolutely nothing about them…
"Just that she babysits your son while you are at school," Alice told him when her brother told her not to say too much. He had read the wizard's thoughts and had quickly told his brother and sister what he was thinking without the wizard hearing him.
Esme had told them a little more about him. Like the fact that he was a wizard and his son was one as well, that he'd had a rough time and was trying to start a new life here. A little bit like Edward…
"Yeah, she's been a great help." Harry became suddenly aware of the eyes staring at him from his right. He turned and stared into Edward's eyes. He swallowed, his throat suddenly dry as he noticed the unblinking eyes bearing into his own. He could feel his magic rising and tried to calm down. He could feel the warmth spreading in his cheeks and quickly looked down at his lunch.
"We heard your conversation with Bella Swan." Harry's head shot up and looked over at the three vampires.
"I get the feeling she doesn't like you much," Harry observed.
"No, she doesn't," Alice replied but didn't elaborate.
"You know, I don't even know her and I can tell she's a bitch," a chuckle was heard from the girl. "Esme tells me she's the only one, besides myself that is, who knows about you and your family." The three vampires went stiff and silent. "I wonder why she would warn me if she knows you. It's easy to see that you don't want to hurt anyone." Harry stopped himself from continuing. "I'm sorry; it's none of my business to know."
"It's all right," Alice began. Harry could see the looks her two brothers shot her. "We just have a past."
"Don't we all," Harry replied, sadly. He had a past as well, a past that always seemed to bite him in the arse. Though he hoped he'd fled far enough to hinder that. He really didn't want his past to come back up again but in the back of his mind he knew he couldn't escape it.
Edward had read the thoughts in Harrison's mind and had warned his siblings. The thoughts were getting a bit morbid and it was best to leave it alone. His brother also confirmed that his feelings were sad. It was best to let the past rest, for now at least.
Harry noticed the three vampires weren't going to comment, so he spent the rest of the lunch break in silence. He ate his lunch quickly and left as soon as the bell rang, which indicated that it was time for the next class.
TBC
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