Harry slipped out of Delia's bed early the next morning, careful not to wake the sleeping blonde. This had always been his favorite way to see Delia, sleeping and peaceful. If Harry believed in any sort of religion, he'd say she looked like an angel. Truthfully, he knew that part of his attraction to Delia could be accredited to the fact that she and Bea could've been twins. It was sick and wrong, yes, but true. It was part of the reason he couldn't say no to Tess when she asked to take Delia and Daisy in. Luckily, it wasn't a choice he'd come to regret. And while his attraction to Delia was partly because of Bea, there was another part of their relationship just because of Delia herself. Just because she was stubborn and beautiful and always matching him step by step. Delia could keep up, and that was something Harry could appreciate.

Creeping slowly out of the room, he looked around to make sure no one was there. Delia and he weren't exactly secret, but it wasn't something he wanted to broadcast. Once he was sure the coast was clear, Harry silently made his way back into his own room and started to get ready for the upcoming day. Since the term was due to start in only two weeks, Dumbledore had arranged for he and Tess to be escorted to Diagon Alley with the Weasleys. Though Harry had initially wanted to fight the old man on this, Tess had convinced him not to. He was slowly learning he had to pick his battles around Hogwarts. Delia was staying at the castle to complete her own placement tests, and Professor McGonagall had offered to watch Daisy.

Harry pulled on a clean t-shirt, a Pink Floyd one to be exact, and a semi-clean pair of jeans. They were a bit scuffed up but not bad. Throwing on his leather jacket, the only thing left of Phin he had kept, Harry grabbed his knapsack and started rummaging through it, looking for a book to pass the time with. The one he pulled out, however, was one he hadn't looked at in years.

*flashback*

"Harry!" a five-year old Bea shouted, running down the hill that led to the tree they liked to meet at. It was peaceful, probably the quietest place in Privet Drive, and only a few minutes from both their houses. Bea's parents didn't care when she got home, but she knew Harry would be punished by his uncle if he was even a second late.

Harry didn't seem to hear her. He was leaning back against the tree trunk, his eyes glued to the sky. Bea loved Harry's eyes. They were bright green, like emeralds, and no one else she had ever met had eyes like his. Then again, no one else she knew was like Harry.

Bea sat down beside her friend, pulling the ridiculous ribbon her mom had insisted matched her dress out of her hair. To her surprise, Harry greeted her. "Hey Bea," he said in his typical low voice. Harry never talked loud. It always meant bad things back at his house. "How was the party?"

Bea made a face. "Horrible," she answered. "It was all about Emily." This statement was said with no malice or jealously, just plain fact. Harry and Bea were similar in the sense that neither of their families cared about them much. Though Harry definitely suffered physical abuse Bea didn't even want to imagine, both children were emotionally neglected. Bea was the mistake child and Harry the orphan.

"Sorry," Harry whispered, his eyes glued to the clouds.

Bea shrugged sadly. "It's okay," she replied. "Now I get to be here." This won a rare smile out of her best friend. A Harry smile, she had discovered, was a revelation, which her teacher had said meant discovery.

The two friends just sat together, admiring the sky. Every few minutes Bea would say what she saw in the clouds. Harry would just nod, his eyes closed. Finally, Bea pulled a slim paperback book out of her purse. "I have something for you," she stated softly.

"Hmm?" Harry asked, opening his eyes. Bea handed him the book.

"Peter Pan," she said cheerfully. "I finished it yesterday. Thought you might like it."

Harry grinned. "Thanks," he replied flipping the cover page open. Bea simply shrugged and rested her head against his shoulder. The two children loved to read, particularly fairytales. Though she had to sneak them to Harry, who would get in trouble for bringing them into the house, he still knew every word of each story. Magic was their escape, the only explanation for the weird things they could do. One day, Bea knew, they would escape for real, run away and find a place they belonged to. It was only a matter of time...

Harry fingered the book's cover gently. It was in pretty good shape for the number of times he had read it. Fairytales had been his escape once, the thing he loved the most. Now, however, he had a hard time believing in them. Harry knew that princes didn't always slay the dragon, the villains sometimes won, and the prince didn't always get the princess.

"Harry!" Tess's voice called from outside the door. "We're leaving!" He put the book down and left the room. He was done believing in fairytales.

Harry and Tess walked through Diagon Alley with the Weasleys. Though he would've rather gone by himself, Harry had to admit that the Weasleys were alright. Mrs. Weasley reminded him remarkably of Fiona, and Mr. Weasley was amusing to say the least. He had already explained rubber ducks, remote controls, and erasers to the man so far. "Fascinating!" Mr. Weasley kept remarking. "How genius!" Harry and Tess would just look at each other and grin.

The kids weren't bad either. Ron Weasley was alright, if a bit bigoted, and Ginny Weasley was charming but smart, a lethal combination that immediately earned her Harry's respect and Tess's friendship. The two girls were giggling like they had been friends for years. Then again, Tess always seemed to have that affect on people. The group was also accompanied by Kingsley and Tonks for "protection", which Harry really knew meant babysitting. Dumbledore was keeping an eye on him, and he thought it to be extremely annoying. Harry did know it could be worse though. The old coot could've sent Mad-Eye with them.

Harry and Ron were just getting into a heated Quidditch argument in front of The Leaky Caldron when the black-haired teen spotted a familiar face: Lestrange. He immediately tensed, which Tess noticed right away. She too saw him. Soon there were at least ten Death Eaters surrounding them. Harry figured Voldemort had sent them just to spook some of Tom's customers, a smokescreen to cover up bigger plans. The Aurors and the elder Weasleys began shouting hexes, but they were surprised when Harry and Tess began doing the same thing. Ron and Ginny watched with amazement as Harry and Tess took down four of the ten Death Eaters.

Admist all the fighting, Harry smelt gunpowder, a scent he had always attributed to one single person. "Markus," he shouted. "Take that ridiculous mask off." One of the Death Eaters froze. The adults had managed to stun four Death Eaters themselves, but Lestrange and his brother had gotten away.

The mask came off, and Harry was greeted by a familiar face. "Hey Harry," Markus greeted. "Long time, no see."

"You could say that," Harry agreed.

"I heard you went AWOL," Markus replied.

Harry shrugged. "I've been here and there."

Markus smirked. "And everywhere?"

"Witty," Harry remarked.

"I thought so," Markus said. He saw the two Aurors standing next to Tess and narrowed his eyes. "Interesting company you're keeping these days, Potter."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "I could say the same thing for you, Elbony. Please tell me you don't have one of those awful things on your arm."

Mark shook his head. "Nah, I didn't feel like my sister's ghost haunting me for the rest of my life."

Harry nodded. That did sound like something Grace would've done. "No one's seen you in a while."

Markus looked down at his feet. "I'm not welcome there," he stated.

Harry gave him a hard look. " Bullshit."

"It was my fault," Markus stated. "The attack was my fault."

Everyone looked confused, Tess included, but Harry's eyes showed understanding. "No, it wasn't," he insisted. "You weren't the traitor."

Markus shrugged. "Doesn't matter. I couldn't save them." That statement was something Harry could understand. It was survivor's guilt, something he had known for six years. It stung and hurt no matter what you told yourself. "I'm only with the Death Munchers so I can get that douchebag," the blonde-haired tan boy explained. "After that I'm done."

"That simple, huh?" Harry asked sarcastically.

Markus ignored him. "Maybe I'll get lucky, and he'll be a top Auror. Then they'll give me the Kiss."

Tonks and Kingsley looked horrified. This kid could only be about sixteen, and he was dreaming of getting the Kiss! Harry frowned. "Grace would kill you for saying that and for doing what you're doing."

"And what am I doing, Harry?" Markus shouted. "Getting revenge? That's the same thing you're doing, isn't it?" Harry's jaw tightened. "The only difference between us that I'll probably get life in Azakban and you'll be a hero."

Harry was quiet because he knew what his old friend was saying was true. Both were soling existing on one emotion: hate. Without the hate, they'd be empty shells, no emotion left. "Fair enough," he agreed. "Just be careful. I'd hate to have to break you out of there."

Markus grinned. "No problem," he said, turning to leave. "Oh, and Scamp? I thought you might want this." He pulled a picture out of his mini knapsack and handed it to Harry. "I found it in my sister's stuff."

Harry studied it carefully before putting it in his pocket. "Thanks," he muttered. Markus nodded and started to walk away. "Boom!" Harry shouted. Markus turned around. "I'm not sure where Christmas will be this year, but there'll be a spot at the table for you. There always is." Markus nodded in appreciation and walked away.

There was silence as the Weasleys, Harry, and Tess made their way back to the Portkey destination. "Harry," Tess finally said. "Who was that?"

"An old friend," Harry answered vaguely.

"You're friends with a Death Eater?" Ron asked, disbelief written all over his face. Clearly, he didn't that that was acceptable Harry Potter behavior.

Harry gave him a dirty look. "Markus isn't a Death Eater. He's just a guy out for revenge."

"Revenge?" Tess questioned.

Harry sighed. "During a raid, an Auror trainee beat his older sister to death when she tried to protect their little sister. The little sister managed to get away, but then someone raped her several times and beat her to a pulp. Markus blames the Auror for both crimes."

Mrs. and Mrs. Weasley both stayed silent, suddenly a lot more aware of the horrors the green-eyed young man had seen in his life. Dumbledore would definitely hear about this.

"What's with the nicknames?" Ginny asked curiously.

Harry shrugged. "The people we lived with at the time gave us nicknames based on skills. I was a really good thief. Markus liked to experiment with explosvies." He didn't add that Fred and George had gotten help on their fireworks from Markus.

"What was the picture he gave you?" Tess asked softly. Harry said nothing, choosing instead to grab onto the Portkey. They were transported back to Hogwarts, where Tess hoped her friend would give her more answers. It was one of the downfalls of being Harry's friend that she never seemed to truly know him. No one ever did. Except for Bea. Tess, however, still had hope. Hope that things would get better, that old wounds would heal. Of course, she had no clue what kind of school year they were in for.