AUTHOR'S NOTES: I should have read over chapter one more closely. There were several typos that several of you caught which have now been fixed.

Glad to see people enjoying the rewrite. There are several things that will be the same as the original but there will be some key differences as well.

And any Dumbledore fans should note that he won't be very well liked in this story.

Oh! And I'm taking votes for Harry's girlfriend in this story. Ginny? Hermione? Someone new? Let me know, please!

Remember to read, review, and show your love!

Chapter 2

Despite the best efforts of the Weasleys, Hermione, and the Thortons, two weeks after the car accident, Harry found himself face to face with Albus Dumbledore. Harry glared at the headmaster as he walked into Harry's room and sat next to the bed. "How are you, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, his voice kind and filled with concern.

"What do you think?" Harry snapped. Looking away, he said, "How did you find out?"

"Your neighbor, Beatrice Figg," Dumbledore replied. "She contacted me a few days ago and filled me in on your situation." Leaning forward, Dumbledore said, "Harry, I am deeply sorry that I never looked closely enough at—"

"Apology not accepted," Harry snapped, angrily, as he looked at the headmaster. "You knew my aunt hated magic. You knew what might happen." Looking at the brace and the casts, Harry said, "My arm and leg were broken… They put a tube in my side to re-inflate my lung. There's a real good chance I'll never be able to walk again." Seeing the pained look on Dumbledore's face, Harry felt vindicated. "Tell me you knew I was abused. Tell me this is your fault. Tell me why you wouldn't let Sirius take me. But do not sit there and tell me that you're sorry."

"Beatrice has a daughter, Arabella," Dumbledore said, his blue eyes taking in Harry's physical state. "She's an accomplished healer. I've sent for her so you can get out of here sooner."

"And go where?" said Kate Thorton as she entered the room and closed the door. Crossing her arms, she waited until Dumbledore stood and faced her. "Do wizards have a foster care system? Or are you going to send Harry right back to his aunt?" Stepping forward, she said, "The Dursleys aren't even Harry's legal guardians. And since my husband and I are, we'll be the ones who decide what happens to Harry."

"Harry is not your responsibility," Dumbledore said, gently. "He is mine."

"Harry became our responsibility when his uncle did a hit and run on him," Kate replied, not backing down.

Harry was amazed that Kate Thorton wasn't afraid of Dumbledore. But dealing with Child Services, she probably faced off with intimidating parents often.

"If you can fix Harry up, great," Kate said, finally. "But as soon as he can leave, he's coming home with me and Blake. End of discussion."

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"He actually tried to apologize to Harry?" Blake said, astonished. Getting home from the hospital, Kate had filled her husband in on Dumbledore's visit while she made dinner.

"And he didn't exactly say it," Kate added. "But I think he wanted to send Harry right back to his aunt."

"Can he do that?" Blake asked, quickly, as he sat down at the kitchen table. "I mean… what does the magical world do in these kinds of cases?"

"Rae! Dinner!" Kate called upstairs before pulling a bottle of wine out of the cooler and pouring glasses for herself and Blake. "Well, according to Hermione Granger unless someone makes a formal request of adoption, there's a hearing to determine what would be in the best interest of the child in question."

Rae, who had been listening on the stairs, said, "Why don't you guys just adopt Harry?" Sitting at the table she said, "There are several good reasons. A—You guys are already down as Harry's legal guardians. B—Harry would be safe here. And we do have that first floor bedroom. C—I'm going to Hogwarts so Harry wouldn't have to avoid talking about the magic stuff. D… I've always wanted a big brother."

Blake rested his chin on his palm as he looked at his daughter. "That's very good reasoning."

"So you'll do it?" Rae asked, cheerfully.

"I'll talk to Wesley Pryce in the morning," Kate promised. "If they can put a rush on the paperwork..."

Blake straightened up and said, "Rae, you know how bad Harry was hurt. He still can't move his legs… And in all likelihood, Harry will be in a wheelchair indefinitely."

"I know that," Rae replied. "Harry will need help dealing with everything and if he's with someone in the magical world it might be harder to be in the nonmagical world."

"You are… an absolute wonder, Raine Thorton," Kate said, giving her daughter a smile.

"I get it from you, Mom."

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"Kathryn, have you ever taken care of a disabled child?" Wesley asked when Kate told him of her desire to adopt Harry Potter.

"Well, no, but—Mr. Pryce…" Kate said, calmly. "Blake and I have seen kids in terrible situations before. And even though we try to help as much as we can, sometimes that's not enough. We can give Harry a loving, stable home and we're ready and willing to help him deal with his disability."

"And you say that according to the hospital," Wesley went on. "You and your husband are Harry's legal guardians?"

"The Dursleys never bothered with the paperwork when they took Harry in," Kate confirmed.

Wesley studied the forms and the reports, finally looking up at his newest social worker. "Your record in the states in impeccable. You had glowing recommendations from your superiors and your co-workers and the families you worked with." Smiling, he started filling out the adoption papers. "Good luck, Kathryn."

"Thank you so much!" Kate said, happily.

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Harry stirred when someone touched his shoulder and even without his glasses, he could see that it was morning. There was faint sun coming through the slat blinds of the windows and looking at who had awoken him, Harry saw the blurry face of Arabella Figg.

"Good morning, Harry," Arabella said, brightly as she handed Harry his glasses and helped him sit up. Harry's leg, arm, and spine had healed well and after a month of intense physical therapy, Arabella had decided that Harry could go home and do the rest of his therapy as an outpatient.

Harry threw back the blankets of the hospital bed and with some help from Arabella he moved his legs so they dangled over the edge of the bed. After a shower and change of clothes, Harry saw the wheelchair Arabella had brought in. "So…" He said, as Arabella helped him move from the bed to the wheelchair. "This is it, then?"

"Harry," Arabella said, gently as she stepped behind Harry and pushed him out of the room and down the hall. "This isn't the end of the world."

"Sure feels like it to me," Harry muttered.

"Kate's picking you up out front. She already picked up all your things from the Dursleys." When Harry didn't reply, Arabella went on. "You'll be coming here every other day, starting next Monday, for your therapy sessions."

"What about when school starts again?" Harry asked, glumly.

"Dumbledore's working on it," Arabella replied as she went through the main doors of the hospital and to where a light blue van was parked.

The driver's door opened and Kate hopped out. "Blake picked it up a few days ago," she said, brightly. Opening the side door she extended the ramp and once Harry was in and secure, Kate got behind the wheel and waved good-bye to Arabella before closing the doors and driving away, down the road towards home.

As the van rolled along the road, Harry poked his left leg hard with his index finger. After Arabella had healed the bones and stabilized the nerves of his spine, Harry still only had partial sensation below the waist. When one of the nurses had poked his foot with a needle, it just felt like a gentle poke with a blunt tool. Even with time and the physical therapy, none of the doctors seemed confident the paralysis would go away. Looking out the window, he whispered, "It's not fair…"

"What's not fair, Harry?" Kate asked, gently. She knew that it was often hard to get abused kids to open up so when she heard Harry, she figured it was the perfect prompt.

"My life," Harry snapped. "No one ever cared about me except for the fact that I'm The Boy Who Lived. So what? Now I can't walk… I can't play Quidditch… It's not fair…"

"Harry, you know better than anyone how unfair life can be," Kate replied. "Yes, what's happened to you is terrible. But there are good things… you have friends… Molly Weasley thinks of you as another son."

"Then why didn't she want me to come live with her?" Harry grumbled.

"Because I made my boss put a rush on the adoption papers," Kate said with a smirk. "Since Blake and I were already down as your legal guardians we figured this was a logical move."

"But you barely know me," Harry said, quietly. "And… Well…"

"We don't care about your disability, Harry," Kate assured him. "All we need to know is that you needed help."

Harry gave a tiny smile and after a moment, the smile grew. "Thanks. For everything."

"It's nothing, Harry," Kate replied. "We're happy to do it."

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When Harry saw Rae Thorton for the first time, the first thing that he noticed was her eyes. One eye was as blue as Dumbledore's and the other was nut brown.

"It's called heterochromia," Rae said with a smile when she noticed Harry's look. "My Grandma had the same thing. A lot of people think it's weird."

"I think it's cool," Harry said, honestly as he wheeled himself into the house. He was starting to get used to moving around, but getting in and out of the wheelchair was the hard part.

"This is your room," Kate said, leading Harry to what had been the guest room. "Molly Weasley redid the bathroom so you can get around better. And I did some shopping—clothes and such. They're already in the dresser." Pointing to the desk, she said, "Blake built a special birdhouse for your owl. That's set up just outside your window." Moving out of the room, she went on. "Living room is to your right, kitchen is to your left. Upstairs is Rae's room and the master bedroom."

Harry looked around, noting the large stone fireplace and the dark brown leather sofa. "It's much nicer than #4."

"Well, our old house in New York was an 1800's style farm house build around 1976," Kate explained. "So we bought our furniture to match."

"It's lovely," Harry said, nodding.

"Thank you," Kate replied. "So… ready for some lunch?"

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