I want to apologise again and again for not updating sooner. I really have no excuse. I'm going to try to get out the next chapter as soon as I can. In fact, I'm starting to write it now. xxx


It was only Harry's second day at school, but it felt like he had been in Forks for an age. So much had happened. He didn't even fully understand half of it. Most of it was so unreal. Vampires? And how come they all seemed so interested in Harry? Did he have some sort of neon sign following him around? 'Yummy Vampire Treat!'?

As soon as he had got back home, Harry had gone straight to the shower. The way Tom and his vampires looked at him – like he was a piece of meat – had made his skin crawl. Well, he supposed, to them he was just a piece of meat. Harry scrubbed at his skin until it was red raw, but it only went halfway to making him feel better. He stayed in his room, passing on dinner when Sirius came up to ask.

He hadn't had breakfast either, and by fourth period, he was really regretting it. Which was why, when the bell rang for lunch, Harry grabbed his bag and zoomed out of the door as fast as his legs could carry him.

This turned out to have been pointless, however. When he got to the cafeteria, he had to wait in the queue. He was stood behind the insipid gossipy girls. They were truly the bane of his existence. Every school had them. They were the girls who weren't exactly the most popular, but liked to think they were... or could be, some day. There was a new girl with them. Well, Harry assumed she was a new girl. He was really no judge. But the way they kept asking her about herself made him think that she can't have been here very long.

"So, Bella, what have you got after lunch?" one of the girls asked.

"Physics." The new girl wrinkled her nose. "There weren't really any spaces, but they had to do something. I much prefer Biology, but the teacher refused. Apparently three new students in one week is too much for him to cope with. And apparently that blond kid requested Biology before I did."

The girls moved on and Harry seized the opportunity to grab food as fast as he could.

"Jeez." He looked up to find that all the girls were staring at him. "Calm down. There's not, like, a world shortage of pudding!" one of the girls sneered. The rest of them laughed as if this was the funniest thing they had heard in ages. Well, around here, it probably was.

"I'm hungry," Harry said, simply. "Now are you going to get out of my way quickly so that I can finish? Or am I going to have to resort to cannibalism?" They scattered, just like Harry knew they would.

Harry took his tray and sat next to Edward, digging into his food. He glanced up into five amused expressions. "Wha'?" he mumbled around his mouthful.

"Contemplating cannibalism on your second day, Harry?" Edward grinned. "Must be bad. Are we all in danger?" Edward wasn't going to question Harry's sudden change of heart in associating with them. The drive home before Edward had caught up with the teenager seemed to have been enough to think about it. He didn't want Harry to change his mind again.

Harry pretended to think about it for a moment. "No," he sighed. "I think you five are safe, at least." All five Cullen's laughed and Harry took another bite from his slice of pizza. His eyes travelled across the room. He paused, and then backtracked. Someone was looking at him. He could feel the gaze penetrating him.

Harry froze. He had found the person who hadn't taken their eyes off of him.

He looked into the familiar red eyed gaze of Draco Malfoy.