"Ah, Nancy. How can I help you?"

Nancy Vicklind took a seat in front of the principal's desk, crossed one knee over the other and folder her hands in her lap.

"Mr. Gordon," she told the man of nearly half her age. "I have two students sitting just outside your door, awaiting punishment for blatantly breaking the school's code of conduct, With Forks High having a relatively small populations, I am sure you will agree that unconcealed and deliberate public displays of affection will not be tolerated in our school's hallways."

Mr. Gordon pinched the bridge of his nose. "PDA, Nancy? You don't think it's a bit extreme to reprimand hormonal teenagers for PDA in highschool?"

"No, I do not!" The woman defended strongly.

"Call me old-fashioned, Benjamin, but I do believe that such actions should be reserved for private locations."

The principal rested his elbows on his desk and pressed the tips of his fingers together. "You cannot keep all the couples in this school from kissing one another, Nancy. There are far too many-

"Kissing!" the flustered teacher interrupted. "If that's what you can call it! With scarcely a hair's breadth between the two. Benjamin Gordon, if my son were placing himself in such suggestive circumstances, I would want to know. These students are upperclassmen, setting a horrendous example for our younger pupils."

"Mrs. Vicklind, do not lecture me. Please remember that I am the principal here," the man warned. Nancy smoothed her skirt. "Of course, I can only remember you as a little boy, Benny," she began.

"Yes yes, so what do you want from me in this situation?"

"I want for you to bring their parents here, to ensure that they know what their children are getting up to while away from home. Dr. Cullen can be reached at the hospital. He always makes time for his youngest boy. And as far as Harry Potter is concerned, just this morning he gave me the name of a responsible adult with whom he is currently residing."

The principal snorted very unprofessionally. "The two you brought here are Edward Cullen and Harry Potter?"

Mrs. Vicklind nodded once, and Mr. Gordon let out a burst of laughter in a puff of air through his nose. "Well done, Edward." he muttered.

He looked up at the overbearing woman. "Very well, Nancy. I will have it taken care of. Why don't you get some lunch at the Teacher's Cafeteria? You have twenty minutes before the period ends."

He rolled out the keyboard under his desk and began typing, calling up the contact cards for the couple waiting outside his office. Nancy rose from her seat and left the room, closing the door behind her. To her surprise, the hard plastic seats in the main office we unoccupied.

"Rita," she called to the secretary. "Where are the two boys I left here?"

Rita looked up from her computer screen. "That new security guard, Bill, took 'em into the hall a few minutes ago. He said he wanted to speak with them privately, and would have them back soon."

The teacher thanked her and left the office. Just outside the door, Edward and Harry were standing against the wall, speaking quietly to the redheaded security guard. Their conversation stopped abruptly as she emerged though, so she merely nodded politely at them and made her way to the lunchroom.

Harry had been watching Edward's relaxed face for about five minutes when the office door opened, disrupting the stillness of the room. He leaned around a wall to see who it was, and his eyes widened at the sight of Bill Weasely. He blushed, only just realizing that at least one member of his guard had to have witnessed his display with Edward, and by now nearly all of them had probably heard of it. Bill approached them, his dragon-hide boots slapping menacingly against the tile floor. "I need to talk to you both. Now." He looked over at the secretary. "I'll have them back after a chat." She smiled at him and allowed them to leave.

Once outside the office, Bill threw up several seeking spells to see if anyone was within listening distance. Harry was mortified to see recognize only Viktor, but also the two elite aurors that he did not know briefly appear in the hall before disappearing again. They were monitoring the school, keeping an eye out for threats and ready to provide a warning should anyone approach. When the short flash of men had evaporated, Edward was shocked to have seen them. Harry held his hand.

"Did I mention that there's a team of guards watching me everywhere I go?"

"No," Edward whispered.

"Oh," Harry said. "Edward?"

"Hm?"

"There's a secret team of guards, watching me everywhere I go."

The vampire snorted and squeezed his hand gently. "Thanks," he chuckled.

"Enough," Bill cut in. "Do you have an explanation for what you have gotten yourself into, Harry?"

"This was all my idea, Mr. Weasley." Edward told him. "I told Harry that I would make our relationship public, and I have done so. He didn't know how I was going to accomplish the task."

Bill listened to the vampire, only interrupting to request that he Call him Bill, for Merlin's sake, and sighed when he finished.

"Fine then. But why are they making you wait in this office?"

"Edward was figuring that out when you brought us here," Harry said.

Bill watched as the bronze haired teen bent his head and whispered something into Harry's ear. The wizard's pleasured shiver at his boyfriend's lips on his ear gave him the look of one doused in ice water. Edward apologized aloud. At that moment, the office door opened and Mrs. Vicklind stepped into the hall. She acknowledged the three pairs of eyes that stared at her silently before shuffling away.

When her shoes could no longer be heard against the tile floor, Harry spoke again. "They will probably set up a parent meeting. Do me a favor and contact Dedalus. Tell him that the school might ask him to come- I gave that woman his muggle line this morning."

"Sure," Bill agreed. "I'll go there now." He waved a hand toward the office. "You two should go back in."

As the couple turned, Harry caught Bill's arm. "Oh, and make sure his is dressed appropriately," he stressed.

"Sure thing. But you," he addressed Edward. "No more of this in public. Harry's my little brother, got it? And he's got plenty more older than you back home." Edward nodded seriously, but Harry had to fight back a grin. None of the Weasley brothers were older, or stronger than Edward.

Harry and Edward entered the office and closed the door behind them. A soft 'crack' sounded from the hall. It could have been taken for a dropped notebook, but The Boy Who Lived knew better.

The secretary looked up at the sound. "You two go right in," she said sweetly, and then returned to her typing. Edward opened the thick door, swung it wide and held it there with one arm for Harry to go through first. The wizard ducked under the arm and Edward followed just a half step behind.

Benjamin Gordon folded his arms low on his chest and observed the couple in front of him. They sat carefully in the two seats and the shorter of the two glanced around awkwardly. Edward was visibly more relaxed, having befriended the principal two years previously. Mr. Gordon took a breath, and then began his "discipline speech."

"Boys, know first that I am not here to judge you, nor are you in any serious trouble. It is only my job to make you aware of the circumstances that brought you here. We follow a strict code of conduct here at Forks high, and I must admit that I am surprised to hear of you, Mr. Cullen, breaking it."

"I'm sorry, Sir." The vampire responded respectfully. "It was not my intention to do any harm, or to set a negative example for my younger classmates." Mr. Gordon raised an eyebrow at the apology. "From what I heard, you certainly weren't harming anyone, Edward." he winked quickly at his prized student and Harry blushed deeply. The principal gave a short laugh and then spoke again. "I do not know you very well, Harry Potter, but Edward, since I first had you in my office two years ago I knew you were a special student. I have feared though, that you might spend too much time on your studies and not enough on being a teenager. I thought you might grow out of it, but you haven't changed a bit."

Harry smirked.

"I am happy to see that you have found what you need. However, I must, according to policy, notify the parents of those involved in a violation of these rules. Esme was not in town, I heard, so Dr. Cullen has been paged. Your father will be here momentarily, Edward. As for Harry, I was given a contact number for Mr. Diggle?"

Harry nodded.

"Yes well, I called him not a second before you walked in. There must have been a bad connection. I think he might not have heard me clearly, because he nearly shouted my ear off, but he did say something like 'being here before I could say hippogriff.' " Benjamin chuckled. "Phone companies are getting lazy."

Harry grunted an agreement.

The principal watched the students. Neither of them looked back at him.

"Well then," he said. "Make yourselves comfortable while we wait. I have some work to do. Please stay here while I go run off some copies."

"Sure," Edward and Harry said in unison. He smiled at them, stood from his desk and left the office with a thick folder under his arm. As soon as he was gone, Edward spoke.

"Dedalus can't use a telephone, can he?" he guessed, and Harry broke into laughter. "Not at all." The wizard's stomach gurgled audibly, voicing his hunger.

"You should eat," Edward told him. Harry reached into his book bag and pulled out his bagged lunch. Looking into his boyfriend's eyes he responded, "You should too," but Edward waved him off. "I'll go hunting on the weekend up in the north woods with Jasper." Harry bit into his sandwich. It was steaming gently, as though the bread had just been toasted seconds before.

"Are you sure?" he asked. Harry gestured to his own eyes. "You're getting pretty dark. Will you hold out until Saturday?"

"I want to stay with you." the vampire insisted. "I can wait."

Harry huffed and continued to eat. He watched interestedly as Edward searched through the contents of his lunch. "Could you eat food, if you wanted to?" he asked the vampire. Edward grinned crookedly at him "Could you eat dirt, if you wanted to?" He popped something into his mouth, chewed it mechanically and awkwardly swallowed it down. "It tastes like mud," he said.

Putting aside an apple, Harry took the box from him. "These are called Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. Regardless of what you taste, it is quite possible that it was mud flavor. Draco loves them."

Edward eyed the box incredulously. "Why?"

Harry shrugged. "Dunno. Maybe he likes to guess what each is before eating them."

"Is all Wizarding candy this odd?"

"Not all of it. But you should be careful. My friends were responsible for making sweets called Fainting Fancies and Canary Creams. They are interesting, to say the least. There's also…" he trailed off, thinking. "There may even be something for you. One day I might show you."

Edward smiled. "Thanks."

They spent a while, eating and chatting. A door opening and the cry of a small child suddenly interrupted them. Immediately Harry was on his feet and out of the principal's office. Edward stood and followed at a more sedate pace. Harry was holding Teddy against his hip, allowing his knuckle to be drawn into his godson's mouth without complaint. The man that Edward recognized as Dedalus was wearing a pair of dark jeans and a sunshine yellow button down shirt. He and Harry were talking quietly, and Dedalus seemed delighted to be there. After a moment the elder wizard sat, fiddled with his collar and pulled at his cuffs uncomfortably. Harry, talking nonsensically to Teddy, walked back to Edward's side. Edward looked at the child, who grinned back at him. When Teddy's hair shifted from brown to bronze, Harry gasped.
"Diggle!" he admonished. He turned his back on the secretary, who hadn't looked up from her desk, and shielded Teddy from view. He then reached into his bag and pulled out a cap that Edward was sure hadn't been there the whole time.

"Sorry, Harry. We ran out of that formula last week. You'll have to get more somehow. We can discuss it later." The wizard nodded. He smoothed the snug cap on his godson's head and kissed him gently. At that time, two sets of footsteps entered the office.

"Thank you for coming here on your lunch break, Carlisle."

"It's no problem, Ben. I don't usually eat much at this time anyway. I'm always available for my children. Now, what has Edward done?"

The door closed behind the men, and the secretary looked up. She seemed suddenly flustered and patted her hair as she stood.

"Hello, Dr. Cullen! It's good to see you again."

The doctor was a tall man with soft blond hair that rivaled Draco's in paleness. He had a roman nose, a flawless complexion, and gorgeous honey-golden eyes. Despite his 'adoption,' Edward did resemble his father in small ways. You could recognize them if you looked, which was what Harry did. When Carlisle nodded and smiled politely toward her, the secretary made to sit down again. She fumbled foolishly as she felt behind her for the chair that had rolled back several feet. Her eyes locked desperately on the elder vampire's, she located the seat and planted herself in it blushing furiously. To save his secretary any further embarrassment, Principal Gordon ushered his two students and their guardians into his office. Teddy squeaked happily as Harry swung him gently over his shoulder, and Edward tweaked his nose. The boys reclaimed their seats inside the office, and Harry transferred his godson to his lap, where the boy happily chewed the knuckled in his mouth. Dedalus, watching the doctor, took up stance behind Harry and placed his hands on his savior's shoulders as Carlisle did the same to Edward.

Mr. Gordon sat with a sigh and then spoke. "So, which of you would like to explain why your guardians were called here?"
The two looked at each other, but Harry only raised an eyebrow and became suddenly fascinated with the snaps of Teddy's outfit. Edward took this as an invitation to speak.

"Carlisle, according to the school's code of conduct, Harry and I were engaged in inappropriate activity within the view of our peers. You were called here to ensure that you know of the relationship between Harry and myself."

Carlisle frowned at the term 'inappropriate activity' and when his son was finished, only replied, "I see."

He then made eye contact with the forever-teen, which he did not break for a few moments, and then shifted his attention to the black haired wizard, who was attempting to remain invisible behind the small child on his lap.

"Hello, you must be Harry." The doctor offered his hand to him. "I have been hearing of you from my wife, and Alice, and Edward, of course." Harry blushed. He shook Carlisle's with the hand that wasn't occupying Teddy's sore gums. "Yes, Sir. It's a pleasure to meet you. This is Dedalus Diggle, the guardian staying in my home, and this is Teddy Lupin, my godson." With introductions made, Carlisle began a conversation.

"Mr. Gordon, thank you for notifying me of my son's actions. I can assure you that I will be speaking to him. However, I believe that such a conversation should be private, do you agree?"

"Of course, Dr. Cullen."

Then the principal looked over to Dedalus, who was eying the fax machine in the far corner of the room. As he watched, the thing beeped, flashed a green light, and made a buzzing sound.

"Mr. Diggle, are you with us? Is there something wrong with my fax?"

"Ah, No, sir." Harry interrupted. "It's just, our machine broke recently, and I think Dedalus is just curious about the brand name on this one. Is it of good quality?" he swiftly lied.

"It is a Canon, Mr. Diggle. It is quite reliable, and not overpriced. I would recommend it, but please tell me if you understand the situation here?"

Dedalus turned a slightly disapproving gaze on Harry.
"Yes, I understand. I admit I was not aware that Harry's relationship was becoming quite so serious. He is usually a rather private person. I will be talking to him personally at home as well. Will the boys be punished for their actions? You know Albus always said that love-"
Harry suddenly was overcome by a coughing fit, and he passed Teddy to Edward when Dedalus thwacked him solidly on the back. Eyes watering, Harry cleared his throat and thanked Dedalus through clenched teeth. "No problem at all, boy." the elder said.

Carlisle was watching in fascination as Harry's godson, the werewolf's boy, sat on his son's knees and happily played with his cold fingers. The child, with his nose wrinkled seemingly in curiosity, examined the large hands that held him tenderly.

"Well," Harry said. "I guess it's been decided that we will be talking privately. May we return to our classes?"

Dedalus scooped up Remus' son from Edward's lap and held him on his hip.

"I suppose so," Mr. Gordon told him. "Let's just try to keep the PDA to a minimum, please.

"Of course," Edward assured him. "I see now that it was an inappropriate course of action for making a statement."

The principal laughed.
"Thank you. You are dismissed." The couple and their families emerged from the office and had made it into the hallway when the bell rang for the next block of classes. Before he could leave, Harry caught Carlisle by his crisp white shirtsleeve. "Dr. Cullen. I think we should have a talk soon."

The vampire's eyes darted almost imperceptibly to his son, who nodded with a short jerk of his head.
"Of course. Edward will come for you at 5 tonight. I will be home at six, and we can all chat then." He checked his watch. "It was nice meeting you," he told Harry and Dedalus. "If only it had been under better circumstances." He turned to Edward. "Think, Edward. Behave," he said in a tone that didn't seem to fit his calm demeanor. He extended his hand to Dedalus. "Until next time."

And then he was off down the hall, weaving between a few students who were running late to class.

"Oh," Dedalus commented. "I have never understood this thing with healers and cold hands!"

Edward smirked, and Harry kissed his godson goodbye.
"By the way, Diggle. You suck at blending in."
The excitable man snorted and with that farewell he took a different path toward the exit of the building.

Harry sighed heavily and leaned into Edward's side. The vampire brushed his fingers through his hair and caressed the side of his face. "So, something less blatant from now on?" he asked, and Harry smiled. Edward dropped his hand and linked it comfortably with Harry's. The wizard adjusted the bag on his shoulder and the two set off to biology together.

Harry didn't talk to anyone that day until he and Draco walked into the boy's locker room, where, to their surprise, the young men in their class were changing their clothes at their lockers, as they had before Harry's orientation was made known.

"Does this make sense to you?" Harry asked the Slytherin. Draco shrugged, and the two picked their way through the mass of half clothed students, who paid them no mind. There was no note posted on Harry's bland metal locker. He could not understand this change in his classmate's behavior. Finally, Mike Newton approached the wizards as they were opening their combination locks.

"We figured we don't have to avoid you now that you're with Cullen," he explained as he tied the drawstring on his blue shorts. "I know you're not looking for a glimpse at me, so I'm not gunna change in those stalls anymore. They smell like sweat and shit. It's disgusting."

Harry pulled his shirt over his head. "So you endured sweat and shit for over a month instead of changing near me," he sneered.

Mike drummed his fingers on the locker. "Now that makes me sound like a jerk."

"You are a jerk," Harry informed him. "If you were anything more, you would have known that I was never looking for a glimpse of you."

"As if he has anything to offer," Draco drawled. "Get lost, Newton. You've made a fool of yourself, and there's no going back."

Mike looked shocked, as though he actually expected Harry to be okay with this situation. Then, he looked angry.

"Whatever, Man. Enjoy your Cullen, he's a freak. Just don't go feeling each other up in public."

"Don't worry," a calm voice spoke. Edward stepped up behind Harry and wrapped his arms around the wizard's waist. Harry rested his hands atop Edward's. "I'll make sure you won't have to witness too much."

Harry smirked at the look on Mike's face.

"See you in gym," was the only thing he said. Then Harry, Draco, and Edward left the locker room.

That day, gym became a little easier to endure. With the exception of Mike, the boys in the class were including Harry on their teams, and none had anything negative to say to him. The Gryffindor didn't care if they felt threatened by Edward, of if they had finally realized that mike was wrong. He was satisfied just to get through a game of volleyball without being called Faggot.
Draco, interestingly, was really coming into his element in muggle sports. Though their first attempt at soccer had been disastrous, ("Why the hell would you kick it? Why don't you throw it?") he had become an adequate defender in the game and could now play an impressive center in basketball.

Draco jogged ahead to their bikes as the wizards walked to the parking lot. Harry trailed further behind, walking beside Edward.

"Rosalie is not happy with me," the vampire confided as they spotted his siblings across the lot.

"No," Harry disagreed. "She's not happy with me."

Edward wouldn't lie to him. "Yes," he nodded hesitantly. "But I am hopeful that she will come around."

"What makes you think so?" Harry asked as he pulled on his gloves.

"She thinks of you as a threat to us, but at the same time, she is afraid for you. Rosalie wouldn't want you to become like us." Harry disregarded the second part of that explanation.
"She thinks I'm dangerous? Do they-
"They don't know of your talents. Well, Alice does. She thinks it's fascinating. Apparently you will be over tonight though. You should probably explain it all then."

"Sure," Harry agreed.

"I've got to go," Edward mumbled. "I will pick you up at five." The vampire kissed his forehead and pulled the helmet over Harry's raven hair. When Harry flipped down the visor, Edward was already on the opposite end of the pavement, standing next to Rosalie's car as though in conversation with the driver.

Harry approached his motorcycle, acknowledging Draco beside him, who was already astride his own bike, engine rumbling deeply. "I'm going ahead," he called loudly to be heard. "I will be meeting Jacob in an hour."

The Gryffindor nodded and watched as his blond friend sped off.

What happened next occurred so suddenly that Harry would only recall flashes of the incident in time to come. He secured his pack, straddled his seat, and kicked the bike to life. He flexed his fingers lightly and spun out of his parking space. He could hear the roar of his bike heavy in his ears, only muffled in a deep way by the cover of his helmet. His view flickered between the road and his hands, monitoring his surroundings and the control on his vehicle as he always did while driving. He was about two miles from the school when it happened.
The shriek of rubber on pavement assaulted his ears from the lane on his right as he crossed through an intersection. On instinct, he turned to the sound and watched a large van swerve dangerously, it's tires locked firmly to avoid the flash of red that cut it off. Said blur of red careened past the van. Harry's vision flashed the image of his hands clenching desperately at the grips. He pulled sharply to his left and felt the ground disappear from beneath him as the red vehicle impacted the front of this bike solidly from the side. When it jerked violently, Harry felt his arm snap cleanly, and he abandoned his firm grip. The wizard thought fleetingly of the wand attached to his arm as the sound of crunching metal and horrified shouts filled the air. He felt weightless then, and, with the rushing picture of blurred cars and quickly approaching pavement, he shut his eyes and the world erupted in a burst of raw pain.

"What, Rosalie?" Edward sighed when he reached her car.

"I can't believe you invited him over. You are so irresponsible, Edward!"

Edward leaned forward and braced his hands on the roof of her car. At that angle he could see each of his siblings piled into the red convertible, and he growled angrily at her.

"Do not treat me like a child. And I didn't even invite him. Carlisle did."

Rosalie hissed, her eyes flashing angrily.
"Am I the only sane one in this thing you call a family?"
Emmett grabbed her hand where it clutched the dashboard and he tried to calm her down. The blond ignored him.

"You can run home, Edward. I don't want to deal with you right now."

"Whatever." Edward jumped back as the car sped out from his grasp. He winced when he saw her jump in front of the line of cars and zip off down the street. He hoped Emmett would calm his obnoxious wife down before she did something reckless. The vampire tucked his frozen hands deep into his pockets and set off at a casual pace, not ready to sprint until he was safe under the cover of the woods. He felt Alice brush his mind. He tried to ignore her. He didn't want to listen to useless apologies unless they came from Rosalie herself. Then, Alice's presence exploded desperately in his mind.

"Edward! Run! To the main intersection just past the village- get there now!"

He quickened his pace, just beyond the rate of a human jog. He cursed the line of cars that belonged to his teachers and peers, which made it impossible for him to sprint. He felt Alice's stab of panic followed immediately by overwhelming dread and urgency.

"Edward!" he heard her calling in his head.
"It's going to be Harry!"

Edward's muscles seized in fear at the tone of her 'voice', and he refused to listen to any more. He approached the place where the woods met the side of the road and ducked swiftly into the thick brush. Mere steps inward, when he could no longer see the sidewalk, he set off at a dead sprint, parallel to the road in the direction of the intersection Alice told him. When the trees began to thin ahead of him, Edward's ears recognized that traffic was stopped on the street. He did not allow himself to touch the mind of his siblings, or the drivers on the road. His own thoughts flipped rapidly between whatever possible scenarios could have occurred. Then, as swiftly as though he had been hunting, he dodged to the right, reached out with his left hand, and grabbed a fierce hold on what he caught. He skidded to a stop and stood face to face with Emmett. Next to his bear-like brother was Jasper, who was twitching frantically. A short step back in the direction they had come from, then back into place. It was then that Edward noticed how dark their eyes were.

"Edward," Emmett began in a very uncharacteristically serious tone. "I am so sorry. Keep going, ahead through there," he pointed to the edge of the woods. "The girls are still there, but I've got to get Jasper home." He patted Edward's shoulder, and Edward dashed the last distance to the road. When he stepped out onto the cracked sidewalk, he noted the clouds had thickened and it began to drizzle. He walked, forcing himself to remain calm, and made his way to the front of the cluster of unmoving cars. It was unnaturally quiet. He spotted the red of Rosalie's car up ahead. It stood out against the surrounding bland colored vehicles. Rosalie and Alice stood incredibly close to one another at the rear of their car. Alice was on her phone. They appeared to be avoiding the sight of the front of the convertible. Edward's glimpse at his watch told him it had been less than four minutes since Alice's frantic call for him.

But where was Harry?

Edward picked up the sound of sirens approaching from across town and quickened his step. He rounded the hood of a large blue can and recognized Tyler Crowley at the wheel, staring blankly through his windshield in frozen shock. In seconds, Edward's senses were assaulted by the brutal scent of fresh blood- and a lot of it. He could hear it being pumped frantically from a desperate source, but could smell it puddling sickeningly at a place where it became contaminated. The falling rain was diluting its sweet scent rapidly. Instantly, the vampire knew it was Harry's blood. The forbidden scent that taunted him, now being spilt generously against the street. Edward swallowed hard, disgusted by the rush of venom against his throat, and, opening his coal black eyes, he identified Harry's motorbike lying bent at it's middle. The front tire was securely pinned beneath the hood of Rosalie's damaged car. Edward approached the scene in a daze. About six feet from the crushed bike, a smear of blood decorated the street. It ran in rivulets through the cracks in the pavement, thinned from the rainwater. Small pebbles and fragments of pavement were dyed red as the sweet substance coated them. Amidst the pooled red liquid, bits of matter and a scrap of cloth scraped against a scattered length of another four feet before finally reaching the place where Harry's still body lay.

Edward swallowed hard again.

"Harrison."