Here we are. Hope you guys like this chapter. Took me long enough to get it done. I tried to make it a little more light-hearted than the others. Tried.
I'm finally speeding things up. The next chapter will cover some things this one sort of skipped over. If you have any questions feel free to ask them, I do answer a lot of reviewers. Any suggestions for where the story should go are welcome.
Disclaimer- No. NO. FOR THE LAST TIME NO!
Chapter 7- Fire in the Moonlight
Draco glared as menacingly as he could. Hoping to set his opponent on fire with just his gaze. It was mocking him, he knew it was.
His enemy was an evil little device that he swore was invented by the Dark Lord himself. An annoying machine that had it out for him.
It had such a good disguise though. It was small. Very small. Sleek, black and simple. A glossy screen that lit up teasingly at him and tiny little knob-like marks with lettering on them that Harry called buttons.
Hermione called it a mobile phone.
Draco called it an embodiment of evil.
For the life of him he just couldn't get the thrice damned thing to work.
Draco growled. He fucking hated muggle technology. Why couldn't things be more simple?
Suddenly the hated little thing lit up and vibrated; a loud bell like sound repeating out of it. Draco jumped up from the table, his chair falling and skidding backwards. He landed on his feet a couple meters away from the damned thing and pointed his wand at it, a reducto curse on the tip of his tongue.
He heard sniggering. He turned towards the kitchen doorway, making sure to keep that… thing… in his field of vision. Harry was standing there, one hand over his mouth, the other wrapped around his stomach. He was trying so hard not to laugh.
Draco's eyes narrowed at him. "It's not fucking funny."
The battle was lost, Harry bending over with the force of his giggles, holding onto the doorway for support.
"Shove off!"
He made an effort to still his laughter and wandered into the kitchen towards the tiny machine of doom. Draco tense, ready to attack the mechanical creature. But Harry fearlessly picked it up, pushed one of those buttons, and put it up to his ear.
"Hello?" He wasn't laughing anymore but there was a wide grin stretching his face. He waited; Draco could hear a muffled sound.
"Ah. Yes I suppose. We can help you look after school." More muffled noises.
"Oh? You already found a place? Uh huh. Ok. Yes of course you can buy it Neville, I don't care. Great. We can help you work on it after school today. Ok." He laughed at something that was said. "See you later then. Love you too Nev."
He pulled it away and pushed another button, giggling again when he saw that Draco still had his wand pointed at the demonic muggle device. He handed it towards him; Draco reluctantly grabbing it between two fingers.
"Come on Dray, we have school." With that he walked from the kitchen, still giggling. Draco glared at the mobile a few more moments.
"I hate you." He told it. He would swear that the light that shined across it was almost gleeful.
Fucking death machine.
~HPT~
Jasper smiled when Harry walked into the classroom the next day, he could feel the cheerfulness coming off the boy in waves.
"You're in a good mood." He told him when the boy sat down...
His smile grew wider, a hint of amusement in his voice. "I had a good morning."
"Do you have any more of those blood-pops?"
He had barely finished asking when there were three of them being held in front of his face. He smiled gratefully and accepted them.
Class started after that. It was a study day so Jasper began tutoring Harry on American History, beginning with the revolution. It was slow going and he had to explain a few things to the teen but he was a good student. Jasper smiled warmly at his almost child-like curiosity. He constantly asked questions and listened intently when Jasper spoke. He seemed very interested in the tactics and weaponry and Jasper was more than happy to share his knowledge.
Jasper enjoyed speaking with Harry. He felt a connection to the other. As though Harry could understand him. Even Alice sometimes had trouble understanding him. He couldn't help but to be a little excited too about making his first human? friend. All those years with the bouncy and overly excitable Alice finally rubbing off on him a bit.
It was nice to have a friend.
~HPT~
The school day progressed Just as it had the day before. He shared classes with the Cullens and spoke a lot to them. He and his siblings at with Alice and Jasper at lunch; Emmett coming over to join them today. The school day came and went without incident. When they got out, Jacob was there, bouncing on the balls of his feet by Edward's Volvo like a happy child.
The only difference was three faint pink lines across his left bicep. Harry was sure those hadn't been there yesterday. He shrugged it off though. Jacob wasn't a vampire but Harry's magic recognized him as being not human. He wasn't completely sure what the big Native American was, though his magical signature was similar to a werewolf; a distinct part of it practically screaming WOLF. Maybe a shape shifter of some kind?
He wasn't sure, but he was certain the teen would tell them eventually. Harry wasn't going to ask though.
It wasn't his place to pry after all.
"Hey!" Jacob waved at them. Harry smiled when he saw Hermione beam. He was happy for her. He knew she would take things slow though.
"Hi Jake." She walked up to him. "How are you today?"
"Good. Um…" He shifted around.
"Something the matter?" Harry asked, glancing at Alice when she giggled. She was attached to his arm again; a knowing glint in her eyes.
"Huh? Oh. No. I just…" He cleared his throat. "I uh… I was wondering if you guys wanted to come out to the beach this weekend? I've got some friends that want to meet you guys. It's supposed to be a little warmer." He grinned. "Plus we can teach you guys the wonders of cliff diving." He winked at them.
Luna stepped forward. "It sounds fun. The Wrackspurts will be about and I'd love to try and catch one. They're attracted to salt water you know." Jacob looked at her incredulously. She turned to Harry. "Can we Wrath?"
"Wrath?" Edward was looking at them, seeming confused. She smiled genially at him. "It's a little nickname is all. We all have one." Her eyes lowered, grin seeming just a bit feral. "Harry has a temper you see." She turned back to him, hope in her eyes.
He looked at her a moment, then towards Hermione and Draco. Hermione was looking from him to Jacob, and while Draco seemed indifferent, Harry noted a light of interest in his gray eyes. He sighed, and then turned to Jacob.
"Can the rest of our family attend as well?" He nodded. "Alright then. We'd be happy to."
Jacob grinned widely. "Awesome!"
Jasper stepped forward a bit. "Luna?"
"Hmm?"
"What's a Wrackspurt?"
She just laughed.
~HPT~
The rest of the week was much the same. The spent time with the Cullens during school and chatted with them and Jacob afterwards in the parking lot.
Thankfully Sirius didn't freak again.
It was Saturday today, and Harry was looking forward to going to La Push. He hadn't learned how to swim until Second year and had developed a love for it since then; occasionally invading the Giant Squid's domain. Though he never went into the deeper waters until the tournament in Forth year.
"I realize I never really thanked you properly for tipping me off about those dragons."
"Forget about it. I'm sure you would've done the same for me."
"Exactly. You know the Prefects' bathroom on the fifth floor? It's not a bad place for a bathe. Just take your egg and… Mull things over in the hot water."
Harry looked up at Cedric confusedly.
"Maybe I could even join you."
"Wrath." He turned around; looking away from the snacks he had been making for them to take.
"Yes Lust?"
"What are you going to do about the scars? Won't they ask questions?"
"Ah. No. Draco bought me a wetsuit. It covers everything. He and Luna will both be wearing them as well."
He nodded. "Alright then. I was wondering what you were going to do. I had thought maybe you might wear a glamour."
"No. Certain charms might work on vampires, but a glamour isn't one of them. Their eyes can see right through them so it would be pointless. It would just raise even more questions because then they would want to know how they could see them when the others can't"
"Hmm… You said he mentioned cliff diving?"
"Yea. You ever done it?"
"Sort of."
He was sitting on the edge of the cliff, looking out at the ocean. It was foggy today, making the manor look like a haunted mansion. Not that he would have minded if it was haunted. At least then he would have the ghosts to talk to.
"Hey there." He turned his head, not bothering to get up. It was his mother's new husband. A big Irishman with a mustache. He was handsome, but not overly so.
His mother didn't marry men for their looks.
He didn't respond to the man, turning his head back to the ocean instead. Only to yelp as the man grabbed the back of his shirt and force him up.
"Hey!"
The man sneered at him, his face contorting into an ugly expression. "You're mother is always so worried about you. I don't see why she bothers. Such a disrespectful child. Maybe without you around your mom will focus on me more."
He walked closer towards the cliffs edge, small rocks breaking free from the grass' roots and tumbling into the dark water below. He held Blaise's small body over the edge, his feet dangling above salty air.
"Hey! What are you-!"
"So long brat."
He let go.
Blaise smirked. "There gonna be any girls there?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. Jake said his friends would be there but he didn't say anything else about them. It might mostly be guys."
"Well that's fine with me. I'm not picky."
Harry rolled his eyes. "I know."
He leered. "Aw, you know you'll always be my number one, Hare-bear."
Harry snorted, cheeks turning pink. "Oh shut up."
Blaise laughed as he left the kitchen and Harry shook his head as he watched him go. He turned back to the food and sighed.
"Dobby?"
There was a loud pop before the little creature appeared, wearing several layers of socks on both his feet and his floppy ears. He looked up at Harry with big eyes and an almost nervous smile.
"Yes Master Harry Potter Sir? What can Dobby do for yous Sir?"
Harry smiled fondly down at the little creature. "I need some help on making the snacks if you don't mind."
"Of Course Sir!"
~HPT~
Harry hummed to himself, watching the trees go by as they drove. The forest here was beautiful and seemed to go on for miles. It reminded him a little of the Forbidden Forest.
Without all the dangerous creatures of course.
He heard someone sigh and turned to look at the seat next to him. Ron was smiling, his head back, and breathing in deep.
Harry smiled warmly. They would be there soon. He could smell the ocean from here.
"God I love the ocean." He heard Ron mumble; talking to himself. He turned back to the window. He could see a small break up in the trees ahead and smiled.
They were here.
~HPT~
Paul scowled at Sam, trying very hard not to growl. He wanted to hurt him. Or maybe Jacob. Or anything really.
He felt like breaking something.
The only thing keeping him calm was Leah's hand on his arm. They had only gotten closer over the week. They went on patrols together and shared their problems. He joined her in rants against Sam and jokes over how stupid the rest of the pack was.
She was spiteful and sarcastic. It used to annoy him but now it just made him laugh. They had a common enemy, and she was the only one he had trusted enough to share the knowledge of his imprint with. And he was the only one she trusted enough to tell about hers. Or course, if someone had told him a couple weeks ago that he would befriend Leah of all people he would have been torn between laughing in their face and punching them.
The rest of the pack had finally noticed how close they had suddenly gotten. They seemed to think that he and Leah were dating; no one knowing either of them had imprinted despite their strange reactions after seeing the Black family.
Sam kept looking at them disapprovingly. Like he wanted to scold them like they were children.
Sam and Jacob had fought, Jake eventually backing down. Paul was sure that was only because Jared had joined in.
Like always.
It pissed him off. When someone challenged the Alpha he was supposed to face the threat on his own. He was supposed to earn his place as Alpha and the respect of the pack by handling any challenges himself and reaffirming his position.
After Sam had won, he had made a compromise. He wouldn't jump the gun when it came to these newcomers.
But he wanted to meet them face to face.
So Jacob had invited them to the beach. He said that Harry mentioned the whole family coming.
So here they were, waiting for them.
And Paul was stuck between wanting to howl in joy over the chance to see his imprint (who he was still hoping to keep as only a friend), and wanting to kill Sam.
He perked up when he heard the cars.
~HPT~
Jasper smiled. He could hear the cars coming up the road, and Harry's scent was faintly in the air. Jacob had invited them to come to the beach as well; the old treaty null and void these days.
He, Alice, and Edward were the only ones to come.
Rose and Emmett needed to hunt.
Carlisle had his work, and Esme rarely went anywhere without him.
Still, despite that, and the hideous smell of the shifters, he was excited. He had gotten to know Harry a little better with their talks, and while there was still a lot he had no clue about, he was content with the knowledge he did have.
He had told Carlisle about them, of course. So had Edward. His surrogate father had told them to give them a chance. That with the strangeness of them they might not be human.
And if they themselves weren't human, then the vampire family didn't have to fear exposure.
The two cars pulled up and parked, and before her knew it the Black family was gathering near them, a couple carrying bags and a cooler. A few of them had surf boards. Harry spotted him and jogged over, smiling.
He was wearing a wetsuit. It was mostly black, with green on the shoulders and sides. He was smiling, and looking out at the ocean with shining eyes. Jasper could feel the joy radiating from him and his family. They seemed to really love the ocean. "Hello there." He said, smiling at them.
"Hey Harry!" He looked away; it was Jacob who had called. He waved the Black family over and the vampires (plus Bella) wandered after them. Jake stood up from the log he's been sitting at. He grinned widely at Hermione before turning to the other shifters.
"This is Sam, and Jared. The idiots-" "Hey!" "are Quill and Embry. The grumpy one there-" A growl. "is Paul. The kid is Seth, and the girl is his sister Leah."
Jasper watched as he turned to look at the Blacks he didn't know yet. "I'm Jacob."
Jasper stepped forward and their eyes turned to him. "I'm Jasper and this is Alice, my brother Edward, and Bella."
Harry grinned at him before turning to the shifters. "I'm Harry; these are my brothers Ron, Draco, Neville, and Blaise. My sisters Luna and Hermione. And our father Sirius."
The man named Sirius stepped up to them. He had a wide grin and there was playfulness in his eyes that reminded Jasper of a child. His emotions were mostly light-hearted. But there was something darker underneath it all, much like the Black children, as well as a deep protectiveness of his family.
Jasper smiled politely at him. This was a good man. One who would willingly die for his family. He saw Edward shudder out of the corner of his eye and felt a deep wariness and slight fear coming from him. He looked at him questioningly but Edward was staring at Sirius.
~HPT~
Edward was curious about the rest of the family, wondering if their minds were protected as well. He knew he probably shouldn't, but he decided to check. If only to see how they protected their minds.
Ron's mind was simple enough. Or at least the protection was. When he tried to enter his mind he felt like he was in a maze, every turn leading him into darker, more convoluted spaces. Constant dead ends and too many options. It was confusing.
Blaise's mind was like water. It felt like a lake, but when he traveled too deep he would find himself coming up instead of going down. Like it was a sphere of water rather than just a body of it.
Neville's mind was accessible enough. Much like Harry's. But when he got in he was bombarded by a constant stream of thoughts about plants. An endless cataloguing of them going over each species and their details individually. It made his head spin and he pulled out thinking that maybe the young man's head wasn't as accessible as he first thought.
But it was the mind of Harry's father that got to him. Just like with Harry or Neville it didn't feel like there were any barriers around his mind. But just like with them, it was a different story once he was inside.
His mind was filled with dark grey hallways with many doors. On each door's window were bars. It was the kind of place that made chills go down your spine.
Then he saw them.
Floating through the hallways of the man's mind were dark, floating figures. They were covered in tattered grey cloaks with the hoods up. But he could see long skeletal hands. They brought with them a coldness. A bone-deep coldness and a dark sense of dread.
They terrified him.
He retreated from Sirius' mind and shuddered.
Had the man dreamed those monsters up? They looked too detailed for that.
He looked up into the man's dark grey eyes that were staring him down. He was surprised to see the man was not looking at him with anger for trespassing his mind, but concern. He must have noticed his confusion because he smiled gently.
"Harry told us about your gift. He said you would probably use it on us all at least once. I understand. You use it to protect your family." His face grew stern. "But you need to be careful just whose mind you enter, and how long you stay there."
He nodded. "What were those things?"
The man's face softened once more, and he suddenly looked much older; wearier. "Dementors."
"Nasty things they are." Ron shuddered. "Even worse than spiders."
Draco snorted. "Honestly Gluttony, still afraid of arachnids?"
"You would be too if one almost ate you!"
Sirius blinked at them. "Do you mean Hargid's spiders?"He grinned. "Me and the marauders caught a few of those once. The smaller ones. Set them loose in the castle we did."
"When they were smaller? You must be older than I thought, Dad." He sniggered.
"Oi! I am not!"
Draco smirked. "Positively ancient."
Harry laughed. "Hey, Dads' not old."
Sirius smirked triumphantly. "See?"
"He's far too childish for that."
"Hey!"
Edward smiled, watching the family banter. They really weren't so bad. Even f he only understood about half of what was said.
He would still be watching them though.
~HPT~
The day progressed nicely enough. They joked around on the beach, laughing at each other and getting to know one another. Everyone had their turn in the ocean.
Then they went up to the cliffs.
Harry watched with wide eyes as the first of the shifters jumped off. Jared, he thought was his name. Then Ron. Then Luna and that boy Seth who had been staring at her all day. She seemed quite happy about that though.
"You afraid to dive?"
He turned to the person next to him. And looked up. And up.
His name was Paul right?
"Not at all. I think it'll be smashing actually." He sniggered when the tall young man looked at him funny. "Fun." He clarified. Paul nodded. "Do you lot go cliff diving often?"
"Yea. Whenever we get a chance."
"Paul! Come on man!" Harry looked over to see Jacob waving at him to come and jump.
He swore he heard Paul growl before saying. "Well I guess it's my turn now."
As he ran past, his shoulder brushed Harry's.
Harry gasped as he felt his magic rear up beneath his skin and hum in joy.
He stared after the tall shifter with wide eyes as he jumped over the cliffs end.
Fuck.
~HPT~
In the end they went back to the beach. It was dark now and they all sat around a big bonfire, either on huge logs or in the sand.
Luna smiled around at her family.
Sirius was talking animatedly with Embry and Quill, sharing prank stories from his days as a marauder. He was laughing like a little kid and seemed so carefree. The native boys were listening intently, seemingly fascinated.
Ron was talking with Jasper about different battle strategies. Alice occasionally putting in her two cents.
Neville was listening quietly to Edward telling him about his music, commenting every now and then.
Draco was more or less sitting by himself. He was trying to do his I'm-more-superior-than-you-routine, but she could see the calm joy coming from him. He was content for once.
Hermione was listening to Jacob prattle on about cars and constantly asking questions. He seemed both surprised and joyful at her interest.
Blaise was smoothly flirting away with Leah. But she noticed his compliments seemed more genuine than usual.
And of course Harry. He sat close to Paul. They seemed to be playing twenty questions and Harry looked happy. Usually he was always on his guard, body tense like a coiled spring. But right now he looked so relaxed it reminded her of what he was like before the war started up.
What he was like before Sin.
She smiled contently and leaned against Seth, who sat next to her. She was happy.
Things were finally looking up for them.
~HPT~
Question for you lovelies. Someone suggested a possible Charlie (Bella's dad)/ Sirius pairing. I was wondering what you lot thought of that. It might happen. It might not. If it did it wouldn't really be focused on, just mentioned mostly in passing. But Sirius needs somebody. And while I have opted for Snape to be alive, there is no way in hell I'm paring them together.
I'll take suggestions for Ron or Neville as well, but I might just keep them single so no promises on that front.
Snape will probably show up somewhere in the next couple of chapters.
Love you all because you're awesome!
Review please!
