Disclaimer: I do not own nor claim any rights to the characters, concepts or other content of the amazing works by J.K. Rowling or Akira Amano. I merely put into words ideas I had if those two shared a universe.
Chapter 3 – [title at the end of the chapter]
Boys' consciousness returned slowly. He felt weird. Something was different. Very different.
He wasn't in pain. Huh… peculiar. He didn't recall a time when he had not been hurt in some way. Even the constant low thrum of discomfort of untreated injuries that had healed wrong was missing. It was disconcerting, foreign but… he didn't dislike it. In fact, the more he revelled in it the more he liked it. Not being in pain was… nice.
But… something was wrong. He went over what happened earlier? Yesterday? He didn't know how long he was out. The fact he could still remember was a good sign. The position he slept in meant he should have felt some discomfort from sleeping against the hard stone, while sitting even. That there was none worried him. He frowned as he turned his senses outward and blinked his eyes open.
He stared at the grey concrete ceiling above him. He was lying on something soft. As soft as he imagined tis relatives' beds to be, not that he had ever been able to lie on th-… Oh no… He could see. There was near absolute darkness in the room he had hidden in. He had been found! But… by whom? He was sure he wasn't back with his relatives or he'd have woken up curled up on his cot. Which meant it wasn't the Others who found him. Then who had? And what did they want with him?
Instead of panicking, as would be expected of him in an unknown situation, he felt oddly calm. His mind seemed clear though. No use dwelling on it, he needed to know where he was. He took a deep breath to calm his racing thoughts and sat up. Still no pain.
He was on a queen size bed inside a typical bedroom. To his left there was a wardrobe and some lockers made of dark wood and a white door. It stood slightly open and he could see a tiled floor and the edge of a sink. A bathroom then. Just ahead was a dresser with a wide landscape picture hanging above it showing some farmland and a town in the distance.
As he turned his head to his right he froze.
There in a chair right next to the bed was a toddler staring back at him. He had spikey olive-green hair and clear dark eyes framed by round black glasses that looked at him in… worry? A green pacifier was hanging on a cord from his neck. He wasn't quite sure what it was made of, some type of glass or crystal maybe. It was certainly not toddler friendly though.
The strangest thing about him were his clothes however, he was wearing a light green button up shirt, black tie and a lab coat. Totally not anything one would dress a toddler in… but they looked natural on this one.
Boy blinked and tilted his head, not knowing how to react.
The toddler smiled wryly at his obvious scrutiny and confusion before opening his mouth to speak.
"So, you woke up. How do you feel? Any pain or discomfort? The doctors assured me you had recovered nicely and only needed another day or so of rest. That was yesterday."
He didn't sound like a toddler. Even his voice was way too deep. His speech was too clear and his vocabulary too good. Not that he himself hadn't done weirder things than talk deeply.
"I-…", he rasped, his voice cracked, and he had to cough.
"Ah yes… here." He was handed a glass of water.
With a thankful nod he slowly gulped it down. He licked his lips and handed the glass back.
"Thank you. I feel great actually." He hesitated on how to continue. He wasn't sure what to tell this toddler.
"They gave you some mild calming medication as well. It shouldn't affect your judgement, so we gave you some to make introductions easier. I apologize if it offends you."
That explained his lack of panic, at least. Usually he would have been way more suspicious, his flight instincts kicking in for self-preservation. His 'family' had made it quite clear he was not to interact with strangers, less he corrupt them somehow. Thinking as far… he found he didn't really mind the meds, his head had never felt this clear before and he enjoyed having a conversation with someone for once, not being talked at, but talked TO.
"Uhm… what's going to happen now?", he finally asked. He had never been allowed to ask questions before, so he wasn't sure if he would get an answer this time. He didn't know about his situation. If it turned out to be worse than what it had been like before, he'd have to escape. And that required a plan. And plans required information. Which meant he had to ascertain if he'd get answers or be more… sneaky to get that information.
"That depends on what you want to do.", the toddler simply stated. "I will tell you about your situation and then give you a few choices. You can, of course, choose none of them and tell me an alternative instead. If it's feasible, I will help you achieve that. Sound good?"
Surprised he would get a say in the matter, Boy nodded and fixed his full attention on the toddler. Even if he was being lied to about having a choice, he would still glean some information. He didn't know a whole lot about body language, but he could usually tell when people were lying. It wasn't reliable, but it was better than nothing.
The toddler seemed to sense his scepticism and closed his eyes for a moment. He gathered his thoughts, took a deep breath and, decision made, opened his mouth to start.
"First of all, before I start explaining I want your word you will let me finish before you do anything. Please don't interrupt me, I'll probably explain much of what you want to know anyways. Is that alright?"
Boy stared at him for a moment, before nodding in acknowledgement.
"Thank you. I promise I will only tell you the truth as I know it. Some of this I can't prove to you, but I will show you proof for what I can."
The boy relaxed slightly. Proof could be falsified, he knew, but that took effort he wasn't sure lying to a kid like him was worth expending.
"Let me introduce myself first. I currently go by the name Verde. My birth name, however, is Derwen Evans."
Boy tensed up. He recognised that name. His aunts' maiden name had been Evans. Was this person a relative then? But he was always told there were no more relatives, which was why his 'family' was forced to take care of him. So… where did this new relation pop out from? His eyes narrowed in suspicion and distrust, his body tensing as he prepared to bolt if he needed to.
Verde sighed. It was no wonder the boy distrusted him, with what his nieces' family did to him. He disliked talking, but he knew he had to be upfront and through, or the boy in front of him wouldn't give him a chance before shutting him out. He had been informed of the extend of abuse this child had gone through and was under no illusion that his words would simply be accepted. Which was why he had brought along proof and vowed to be completely honest with what he said.
"Don't worry", he continued, "you don't have to go back. In fact, I made sure of it. Here."
The toddler picked up a file from the nightstand beside him and took out a few pages of papers.
"You can read, right?"
"Yes", Boy nodded and carefully took the papers. He had been forced to learn reading quickly some time ago, after all he couldn't afford to botch up the instructions in the cooking books he had to use to provide food for his relatives.
He was reluctant to trust the other's words, but he had already assured the other he would let him finish explaining. Plus, if Derwen? Verde? He had said he currently used Verde, so that's the name he would refer to him by, and whoever else lived here wanted to harm him, they could have done so while he was asleep. Unless he was sure their intentions were malicious, he would hear them out at least.
On top of the papers he had in hand was a police report. It detailed the arrest of the Dursley family, including Vernon's sister and son, as a result of an investigation into child abuse and murder of their charge Harry Potter. It detailed the findings inside the house, interviews with 'concerned neighbours and teachers' – he scoffed in disbelief at this part – and the initial report by a bartender, who had overheard Vernon brag of how he 'finally got rid of the little freak' when he was drunk.
"Harry Potter…", he tested the name on his tongue. "So that's my name..."
He had barely whispered to himself, but Verde had still heard him. The toddler stilled and forced himself to stay calm. To not even be told his own name… It shouldn't surprise him with how inhumanly the Dursleys had treated the child, but somehow, he had still not expected this.
Not noticing the others' turmoil, the boy continued reading. The next pages were a court order for all four of them set to the beginning of next month. After that was only newspaper article detailing much the same and calling for witnesses to step forward.
"Murder?", he finally asked.
Verde had composed himself and nodded. "Yes. We had anticipated you would not want to return. Any lesser charge would not have stuck. They could have gotten out of it if the right people pulled some strings for them. So, we faked your death. This way you can get a fresh start and the ones who wish you harm will believe you out of the way. I hope you don't hold this against me. We would have asked before taking action if you had been awake, this had to be arranged quickly for it to be believable and for them not to go into hiding."
Harrys' feeling on the matter were mixed. On the one hand he was thankful that they got punished and no one would know to look for him now, on the other hand… would the Others believe it? He didn't know. He understood the need for swiftness in this case and really didn't mind their actions, even though it made him uncomfortable that they hadn't talked to him first. It had also convinced him that they wanted to help him… for now.
"I see", he finally said, "It's true I would have been happier if you had asked first, but in this case, I don't mind. Just… don't decide for me from now on, please?"
His voice got quieter and more unsure at the end. He didn't want to step over a line and make his situation worse, but Verde had said he would get a choice. If he hadn't lied, then his words should have been fine. This was his way of testing that promise.
"Of course. We couldn't risk waking you up and disturbing the healing process, otherwise we would have consulted you first.", Verde smiled reassuringly. "As a result, however, you will need a new identity. We will get into that later. You need to know a few more things."
Relieved he hadn't misjudged the other, Harry nodded. "Okay."
Verde took back the papers and placed them back into the file as he continued. "Let's start with your health. The doctors have, over the past few days, fixed all the wrongly healed injuries you had. They also corrected the medical consequences malpositioning and overexertion had on your back and joints and the damage to your eyes due to prolonged exposure to chemical gasses. The scarring you had has been treated to not hinder movement and, if you give your permission, can be completely removed once you are fully grown, meaning there is no rush to decide. Usually all these treatments would have called for therapy and bedrest to stabilise, but your body has sped up the process quite a bid. You will still have to go through an exercise regimen, however."
Harry smiled in thanks as he was handed his medical file. Of course, he didn't understand all the words, but he could confirm Verde wasn't lying when he said he would have to exercise and that treatment was complete otherwise.
"There is one issue, however", Verde admitted with a sigh, "And before I can address this I'll have to talk about your power."
Harry tensed, the smile dropping from his face. He knew. Verde knew he was a freak. Was he one too? Was he with the Others after all? He knew he was hyperventilating, and he didn't care. He needed to- "Calm down, Harry, please. Your power is not a bad thing, it's something our family has had for generations, you don't have to fear it. It'll be all right. Breathe with me, alright. In and out. Just like that."
Verde was concerned. To react this badly, even under calming medication… He had quickly moved to Harry's side as he curled up in a panic and reassuringly rubbed circles over his back. Miraculously, his voice and touch did calm Harry down. He had never been comfortable being touched before, seeing as he had not had any positive touch as far as he could remember… Verdes' hand seemed to radiate warmth though. It felt nice, reassuring… right.
Warily Harry peaked back at the toddler. He looked worried. Worried about him. He swallowed. Had he finally found someone who cared about him? Just after nearly dying… and resolving himself that he didn't need anyone? No, he wouldn't make the same mistake twice. He had always hoped that maybe his relatives would like him a little if he was good and did what they wanted, but it had never happened. Humans were cruel. If Verde was being nice, that meant he probably wanted something from him. Until he knew what that was he couldn't let down his guard.
"Steady now. Do you want me to continue? Or shall we take a break and eat?"
"I…", Harry hesitated, he wanted to know what was wrong. But the mention of food had seemingly awakened his stomach, which gurgled loudly, making him blush in embarrassment and avert his gaze. He quickly looked back, not daring to let Verde out of sight for long. He could see his eyes gleam in amusement, but thankfully he wasn't laughed at.
"I am quite hungry", he admitted. "But I would like to know what's wrong before I eat…" He was going to worry about it all throughout the meal now…
"That's understandable. I will have something brought here for us. I will explain as we wait." Verde took out a plastic cased device and started typing on it. "Oh this? This is called a mobile phone. One of my colleagues invented it a few years ago and I improved it. It's like a regular telephone than can also send messages. It has batteries powering it, so you do not need a plug. If you're interested I can teach you about them sometime."
Verde smiled as he showed him the device and the message he just sent, seemingly being happy with Harrys' curiosity. It was the first time his curiosity hadn't been squashed. He couldn't hide his smile and thanked Verde quietly.
Before Verde could take up the explanation on his power, Harry decided to ask something he found even more pressing. "You said it's a family trait. So... you have it too? How are we related? Why didn't my r-… THEY have it?" He didn't want to call them his relatives anymore. They treated him badly and looked and acted nothing like him. He was certain they didn't have powers like him either. Or they wouldn't have called him a freak for having them. Verde seemed to understand though, seeing as he answered right away.
"Yes, I have it as well, so did your mother for that matter. It's commonly called magic." Harry drew in a sharp breath at that. Magic didn't exist! Or did it? He had always been told it was only a legend… then again, this wouldn't have been the first time he was lied to. He forced himself not to interrupt as Verde continued, his mouth twitching knowingly. "Many of our more distant relatives have it as well, it's genetic. But like any inheritable trait sometimes the gene that gives you access to magic will skip generations before re-emerging. This is what happened to that branch of the family."
Verde took a moment to look as Harry, to ascertain whether he understood.
"Like how cats have different coloured fur from their parents sometimes?", Harry verified, recalling the litter one of the less terrible neighbours had showed him once.
"Exactly like that." Seeing him nod again, Verde finally took a deep breath and answered Harrys second question.
"As for how we are related… It's quite a long story. Harry, I'm your grandfather."
"I… I have a grandpa?"
[Chapter 3 – I have a grandpa!?] Author's Note:
In addition I have to annouce that my proof-reader is also very busy with university currently and cannot take out enough time to truly go over my work anymore. So that means I'm only going over it myself right now.
This means I am currently searching for a proofreader! If anyone who likes my story would please volunteer as tribute I'd be very thankful.
So long! Liola out.