A/N: Hello guys! Hope you enjoy the second chapter. R & R =)

"…Happy Birthday to you…"

"…Happy Birthday dear CHARLUS…-"

"-and Harry!"

"Happy Birthday to YOU!"

Harry Potter was alone. Normally that wouldn't be something to worry about. He liked to learn by himself in the safety of his room, where a dozen books waited for him. But today was his birthday and Harry knew that it wouldn't take too long until someone noticed his absence. He might have slipped under the radar of most people, but his mother and uncle Remus seemed to own a supernatural Harry-sense that allowed them to track him down wherever he went. It was quite annoying in his opinion. He really needed to find a way to become invisible when he started school.

But not in the way he was invisible to most people outside of his family. No, his mother and uncle were not going to mistake his name for Larry or Garry. They actually knew his name and they also knew that he didn't have hazel eyes like his brother. No, he certainly got lucky on that front. He really liked the green eyes that he shared with his mother. They were a lot more expressive than dad's eyes that tended to look dull from time to time if they weren't alight with mischief.

"Hiding away from everyone, Harry?"

The calm voice of his uncle Remus brought his musings to an abrupt end. The adult was smiling at him tiredly and Harry recalled that full moon was only two days ago. Usually Remus would have been resting now but he forwent the luxury in favor of his 'honorary' nephews' birthday party.

Due to this Harry felt a little guilty for ditching the celebrations so early but he didn't have any friends. The children down there came only for Charlus and wanted to spend their time with his brother and not Harry.

He was unwanted.

Okay, maybe that was a little exaggerated.

But Harry certainly felt out of place.

"So, now that Ron finished as well, why don't we go outside and play a round Quidditch? We're fourteen if I counted correctly. That's ideal to form two teams. I'm captain and…Ernie is the captain of the opposition. Let's go!"

"Yeah!"

"Great idea!"

"I want to be on your team Charlie!"

It took only a few seconds and Harry Potter stood alone in a deserted dining room.

They had been fifteen.

But he didn't count, obviously.

His own brother had left him out.

Fully intended, too, for he knew that Charlus could indeed count beyond thousand and higher.

Their mother made sure of that.

"I'm not hiding," replied Harry after a while. He didn't want Remus to know that he well, wasn't able to connect with the children his age. It was somewhat embarrassing.

Unfortunately for him, though, Remus wasn't someone easily fooled.

"Are you sure? Everyone is playing outside and you're sitting in your room, all alone. Merlin, you didn't even excuse yourself. No one could tell where you went, Harry," said Remus quizzically. His amber eyes were piercing Harry, searching for any sign of outward discomfort and the youngest Potter tried his best to appear unruffled. However, it didn't work out for him.

Slightly irritated Harry decided to just spill the beans. He had a lot of things on his mind and if he was honest, the incident earlier wasn't that surprising for him. He became used to such moments after all. No, it was the increasing number of those happenings that unsettled him.

Would they stop at Hogwarts?

Or would they continue?

He didn't want to attend a boarding school where the children ignored him.

At home he had his parents and uncles that would pay attention to him. Yes, his father and uncle Sirius might prefer Charlus to him, but that was only the case because the three connected over Quidditch. Harry liked Quidditch too, but he wasn't obsessed like them. He preferred reading and learning about magic and other things. Acquiring knowledge stilled his inner curiosity, which never seemed to end.

He knew it could become dangerous.

"Curiosity killed the cat", said his father once.

His mother's response would always stick with him, though.

"But satisfaction brought it back."

"Harry?"

Remus' voice once again snapped him out of his thoughts. I need to get a grip on myself now, thought Harry frustrated. He didn't fancy ending up as a great loon like Professor Dumbledore, who gave Charlus and him their Hogwarts letters personally as a birthday present. It certainly made Charlus' day.

Harry couldn't say the same, though. It only made his stomach turn.

"I'm fine," answered Harry finally.

It was Harry's standard response. He couldn't remember when and where he obtained it but it was turning into a bad habit and Remus apparently thought so too.

"Don't give me that nonsense. I can see that you're troubled. Spill it out!"

Harry remained silent for a moment. He should have known that Remus wouldn't swallow it. But it didn't matter. He wanted to tell the truth anyway.

"I don't want to go to Hogwarts."

His uncle was speechless and Harry couldn't blame him. It must have come as a nasty shock. Harry Potter the boy who adored learning didn't want to attend Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, one of the finest magical schools in the world.

Merlin, Harry would have been shocked too, if he didn't know the reasons for it.

"You don't want to…," repeated Remus hoarsely. However, he didn't manage to finish the sentence.

Probably thinks that uttering it is blasphemy, thought Harry drily. He knew that his uncle loved Hogwarts. That he would give anything in order to relive his old school days.

"Hmm, when was the best time of my life? Good question, Harry. I think that would have been at Hogwarts; surrounded by my friends and still mostly untouched by war."

It was a nasty shock indeed.

His uncle spluttered a little more until he finally managed to formulate one comprehensible word.

"Why?"

It was only word, but it carried enough importance to convey the weight of all the questions that went through his uncle's head.

Only one word, but it asked for the hardest explanation Harry ever had to give.

It took a few moments, but then he finally voiced what went through his head for the better part of the day.

"I won't feel at home."

That was all he could answer at first.

For Remus it didn't explain very much.

But in Harry's eyes it explained all.

A/N: That was my second chapter. Hope you guys liked it. The next one will probably take some time now. I'm a little low on motivation.

However, I'd like to thank those that reviewed my first chapter!

Thanks to geetac / ALPHAQ69 and 917brat !

But a special applause goes to geetac for leaving the first one ^^