"Oh, Harry! I see you, cousin!"
Harry stiffened even as his aunt and uncle turned to glare at him, Vernon's eyes flashing with anger. The cafe they were at was expensive, pretty lights strung up all around the outdoor dining area. The men in suits that Vernon had come to talk to nodded to Harry's uncle and aunt and then walked away, smiling their shark grins.
Harry hadn't paid much attention to what had gone on, only knowing that Vernon was about to get a demotion or maybe it was a transfer. Something that had involved all of them coming into the city during the day to visit one of the bigger firms in the area. They had gotten a tour of one in the last few hours and then… the firm had taken them out for dinner.
Vernon and Petunia had reluctantly taken Harry along with them, making him sit in the corner, across from Dudley. That hadn't stopped Dudley from pinching him under the table, from leering at him whenever Vernon wasn't looking. And now… everything that had gone wrong… Harry squirmed around and slid off the chair, grabbed his pack, and took off at a run, his eyes frantically searching for an out, a hiding place as Dudley ran.
At least Dudley didn't have his friends with him to corner him, to lure him into an alleyway. Harry flinched and kept running even as the moon shone down on him, lighting up the side street they were on. He turned left at the next intersection and kept running, hearing Dudley yelling for him, could still faintly hear Vernon and Petunia yelling at each other.
He ran down another side street, hearing the sounds of cars and other pedestrians nearby but not wanting to go on the main streets of the big city. The adults back in Surrey never helped him so why would these people, the people in the suits back at the diner and the people just passing by now. He shivered slightly and kept running, no longer hearing Dudley's huffing and puffing and grinning.
He did however hear Vernon's yelling growing louder and he shuddered at the sound of it.
Maybe Dudley should have been chased by the kids in the neighborhood instead. Harry took a final breath and would have kept running only to knock into someone. He fell backward, his legs shaky from running, only for the guy to quickly reach out with a hand, curling around his shoulder gently. Harry sucked in a sharp breath and peered up at the guy he had run into, looked up and up, seeing big arms and legs and a bald head.
"You alright, kid?"
The low, rough voice startled him and his eyes widened as he took in the sight of the man and the other guy next to him. Both men were in loose clothes, the bigger of the two wearing a white tank top, revealing lots of muscles, and pants and the other wearing jeans and a t-shirt. They both peered down at him with worry in their eyes, brown eyes and blue eyes looking down at him.
Harry shuddered again as he heard Dudley grow closer, hearing Vernon yell for him, calling him freak again and saw his aunt and uncle finally appear at the north corner of the sidewalk opposite him. Dudley stalked towards him, sneering, his eyes flashing, and Harry's heart beat faster before he quickly swerved around the two men and hid behind the bigger one.
"I think that's a no, Dom," the blue eyed guy spoke, weariness in his voice. "Kid, what's your name? I don't think it's freak, is it?"
Harry shook his head as the blue eyed guy poked his head around… Dom and looked down at him. He swallowed on a dry throat and stuck close to Dom even as Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia closed the distance between them, stopping several feet away from the two men.
"It's Harry."
"I'm Brian and the man you're hiding behind is Dom. It's nice to meet you," Brian remarked quietly, something in his voice that made Harry's heart slow down its' gallop.
"He's big," Harry whispered, meeting Brian's bright blue eyes.
Brian laughed and nodded. "That he is. Keeps me out of trouble."
"Someone's gotta keep you out of trouble, O'Conner," Dom offered, brushing an arm against Brian's side. "Who would these people be then?"
"My aunt and uncle," Harry said, flinching as Petunia and Vernon glared at him, as Dudley smiled all innocent like. "They… I didn't do anything!"
"Oh, you didn't?" Vernon retorted, almost shaking in anger. "You good for nothing boy! We should have never taken you in!"
Harry reached out and curled his fingers into Dom's pants, startling as Dom reached down and curled his own fingers into his hand. Harry looked up into Dom's brown eyes, saw him nod in reassurance and entwined his fingers with Dom's. Dom's hand dwarfed his but Harry was entirely not scared. Not when Dom looked at him like that.
"You call him freak," Brian remarked, stepping closer to Dom and shielding Harry from view. Harry peered between the two men, keeping himself behind them. Brian's voice dropped a notch in volume and Harry could easily hear the steel in that voice. "Why?"
"It isn't enough that his parents were killed in a car crash! They just had to give him to us! With his freakishness, he'll put me out of a job! Just like his parents too!"
Harry stiffened and flinched even as Brian took a step towards his aunt and uncle. He shook and reached out for Brian, wanting to stop him from going closer towards Vernon and Petunia. "Don't."
"Your parents are dead?" Dom questioned quietly, peering down at him again, his brown eyes soft. Though Harry could see a hint of anger in him but it wasn't… It wasn't directed at him. Dom's other hand flexed and curled into a fist before relaxing consciously.
Harry nodded. "They died when I was one. I'm 8 now. Aunt Petunia always says I should be grateful that they took me in."
"You should be, Potter," Petunia said, frowning. "My sister was the treasured one in the family, the one that my parents doted on."
"If it wasn't for us, the little bastard would be out on the curb," Vernon added primly. "He just cost me a good-"
The thump echoed throughout the nearly deserted street and Harry's eyes widened as he looked up at Brian. Vernon rocked backwards from the punch, his skin flaring red with a bruise and his nose starting to bleed. Petunia began to shriek, fussing over Uncle Vernon, and Brian was now Harry's new favorite person.
"Brian…" Dom trailed off, fondness underlining his worry as he reached out and yanked Brian back, curling his fingers into the man's shirt. "Take Harry for a moment, will you?"
"Yeah, Dom. Don't do anything stupid," Brian muttered, stepping back and kneeling in front of Harry, meeting his eyes, before stretching out his arms invitingly. Harry grinned, seeing something significant pass between Dom and Brian, and then stepped right in, letting Brian pick him up. Brian readily took Harry's pack from him and slipped it over one of his own shoulders.
"Don't do anything stupid, he says, right after punching someone," Dom scoffed, rolling his eyes fondly and taking a step forward, crossing his arms. "Right. You two have anything to say about us taking Harry with us, if he's willing?"
"You can have him," Uncle Vernon muttered, his voice slurring from pain, half glaring at Harry and half staring at Dom, uncertainty flickering in his eyes. Harry burrowed further into Brian's arms, feeling the man start to stroke his back. "We'll even send you his baby blanket and letter that he was left with. You have an address?"
Dom took another step towards Uncle Vernon and Harry watched as Vernon's face went white. Fear etched itself over Vernon's face, his mouth shutting closed abruptly, his eyes widening. "You saying that's all he has?"
"We're not going to spend money on the freak," Vernon argued, gesturing to Harry.
"Dudley deserves all the presents he gets," Petunia added, scowling.
Harry flinched and felt Brian's arms tighten around him but not too much. Just enough that Harry felt protected. "He hasn't received anything from you two? You're supposed to be his aunt and uncle."
"They should have thought of that when they dropped him off with us," Vernon said. "We don't want him now and didn't want him then."
A ripple echoed over Dom's shoulders and Harry could see his jaw tighten. He sucked in a breath at the admittance from his aunt, tears pooling in his eyes at the casual words. The way that Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon said that they didn't want him… He let out a strangled cry and Brian murmured something to Dom before taking a step back.
"It's alright, kiddo," Brian whispered, stroking his back easily, his warm hand soft against his shirt. "Do you want to come with us?"
Harry pulled back a little, tilting his head in confusion. "I get to choose?"
Brian nodded, warmth in his eyes, as he looked him over. "Yes. Yes, you do. Though I wouldn't stay with those people anymore than I had to."
"I want to come with you," Harry replied, quicker than Brian expected him to answer, judging by the surprise in his eyes. But something… pricked at the edge of his awareness, that strange… energy that he had felt the moment that he had ended up on the roof of the school last year. The energy that swirled around him the instant before Dudley's hair had turned bright pink two years ago. These two men… felt safe to him, safer than Vernon or Petunia. "If you… If I can."
"He'll get a family with us then," Dom remarked, turning to look at Harry and Brian. "An Agent Hobbs will be in contact with you about his papers. I would suggest no funny business between now and then."
"You can have him! Here's my card. That's all you're getting from me right now!" Vernon exclaimed, handing over his business card. Dom took it easily, glancing at it for a second or two before nodding.
Harry sucked in a sharp breath before yawning, hiding his head against Brian's shoulder. He heard his aunt and uncle and Dudley walk off or stomp off in Vernon's case, muttering something about nephews and their freakishness costing him a promotion. He shuddered and then pulled back, looking at Brian curiously, turning around in the man's arms and looking at Dom. His eyes caught on the bandage on Dom's shoulder and wondered what it was covering.
"Well…" Brian trailed off, his voice amused. "Harry, are you sure you want to stay with us?"
Harry tilted his head and reached out to poke Dom's uninjured shoulder. "Are you sure you want me?"
Dom's lips twitched in bemusement as he closed the distance between them, to press a warm palm against Harry's back and curl his other around Brian's shoulder. "We wanted a kid."
"Looks like we found one," Brian murmured, meeting Harry's eyes.
"We should get back to the others," Dom said, his voice low, rough with emotion. "Harry, we don't live in London. We're here for business. Stick close to us, alright?"
Harry nodded, yawning again and wiping his eyes. "Don't gotta run from Dudley anymore, do I?"
"Your cousin likes chasing you, huh?" Brian asked, his shoulders tightening.
"He calls it Harry Hunting."
There was silence for a moment before a sound left Dom's throat but there was nothing but gentleness coming from either man.
"You don't have any belongings with your aunt and uncle?" Brian finally asked, his voice low and soft.
"No, it's all in my pack there," Harry muttered, pointing to his pack that Brian still had. "And I don't have any problems. And I'm not scared of spiders or snakes or… anything that Dudley's scared of. I'm not a freak."
"You're not," Dom murmured. "We know you're not. Come on. Let's go talk to Hobbs."
"Who's that?"
"He's bigger than Dom," Brian offered sagely and Harry laughed before yawning again.
"What's that do?" Roman questioned, pointing down at something on the table, some piece of hardware that Tej was working on. Tej rolled his eyes and slapped Roman's hand away, hearing the lift door open at the opposite end of the floor.
"That tracks your ass all over the world," Tej answered, looking at the computer screen to check on his progress.
"Hell no, it doesn't," Roman retorted, turning to look over at the elevator as Brian walked out, followed by Dom and… "Is that a kid?"
Brian snorted and gave Roman a pointed look. "Nah. It's a car, bro."
There was a kid fast asleep in Dom's left arm, cradled, his head on Dom's shoulder. Knowing what he knew about Dom, the guy was very much able to hold the boy in just one arm, letting Dom elbow Brian with his right arm. Quiet little noises left the kid's throat as he slept, noises that sounded… content. Kid had a head of messy looking black hair and ragged looking jeans and a shirt. Thin and rough looking, with shoes that looked a few sizes too big for him.
"Bro, why you gotta do me like that?" Roman asked, glaring at Brian.
"Congrats, it's a boy?" Tej offered, pointing between Dom and Brian teasingly.
Brian snorted and Dom grinned faintly.
"We need to talk to Hobbs," Dom remarked, still holding onto the kid carefully, like he was already attached. "There's a complication."
"Yeah," Roman said, staring at the kid and then shrugging. "Only you, O'Conner. You didn't kidnap him, right? Cause I gotta tell you man, I'm not in this for the kidnapping."
"We didn't kidnap him," Brian replied, holding a pack in his hands that he hadn't had before. "I'll explain later, alright? He's staying with us though."
"Staying staying?" Roman asked, looking between the two of them.
"Yeah." Dom turned to look at Brian, who smiled, his blue eyes fixed on Harry and Dom both.
"Get a room you two," Roman muttered, shaking his head in exasperation. "I thought you were done with the honeymoon phase a couple months ago."
"Hobbs and his agent should be back soon," Gisele finally said, dipping her head in a nod to the boy.
"That is a big truck," Harry whispered, his eyes widening as he woke up.
"It's a big dick extension of a car, that's what it is," Brian muttered before his eyes widened, glancing down at Harry where the boy was sitting. They had bought Harry another coat on the way back to their temporary base and the kid was leaning against it, all tucked up in it. Brian met the boy's eyes and smiled faintly.
"Ooh, Brian said a bad word," Roman teased.
"You're all bad influences," Dom retorted, glaring at Roman as he crossed his arms.
"Hey, Brian was halfway feral when I met him in juvie," Roman said, smirking at Brian when he flipped him off. "Still gotta be some hint of that Brian here."
"Hey!" Brian exclaimed.
Harry giggled as he watched the men and one woman, his eyes flicking between the cars in the base and the various bits of technology. His pack was right next to him, full of everything that he had brought with him on this trip.
"What the fuck is a kid doing here?" Hobbs questioned as he stepped out of the truck. His eyes narrowed in thought and he exchanged glances with Riley, who shrugged.
"That's the complication that I texted you about," Brian remarked. "We need something else in addition to the full pardons."
Hobbs took one look at him and then looked at Dom, who pointedly looked down at the kid and then back to him, and sighed. "I left you guys alone for an hour and you come back with a kid."
"We need you to help expedite our taking custody of him," Dom said, shrugging. "Surely a DSS agent can help with that."
Hobbs swore and rubbed his temple.
"Has he eaten dinner?" Gisele asked, tilting her head a little bit as she looked to Han. The couple shared a look before glancing back to the kid.
"I ate dinner with my aunt and uncle," Harry offered, his eyes going wide. "I don't… want to be any trouble."
"You're not," Brian said, meeting Harry's eyes. "You never will be, you got that?"
Harry nodded faintly, like he didn't believe it. His eyes were narrowed, a little too suspicious for a seven year old kid as he looked out at the assembled group of people.
"Harry, you chose us," Dom remarked, uncrossing his arms and walking over to crouch in front of him.
"You will never be any burden," Brian repeated, reaching out and ruffling the boy's hair. Harry grinned a little as he looked up at Dom and Brian. "We're not your aunt and uncle."
"Then why is that lady thinking…" Harry trailed off, tilting his head a little bit in confusion, his nose scrunched up, as he pointed at Agent Hicks. It made the scar on his forehead wrinkle and both Dom and Brian had wondered where he had gotten that but hadn't yet gotten around to asking. "Who's Shaw and what's a nightshade device?"
Brian blinked. "Harry?"
"She's thinking about a man," Harry whispered, his voice gone quiet, rough before his nose wrinkled and he shook his head, as if trying to clear a thought. "Eww."
Dom froze and then stood up.
Hobbs stiffened and turned to look at Riley, who peered at her boss wearily.
"Sorry! Sorry! I won't do it again!" Harry exclaimed, shuffling back to the wall behind him, his skin going pale. "I'm not gonna…"
"Harry, take it easy, kiddo," Brian murmured, his back gone stiff even as his voice fell another notch in volume. "What do you mean by those words?"
"It just happens! I think I made Dudley's hair turn pink last year," Harry admitted wearily, peering up at Brian. "And then I ended up on the roof of the school too. It just happens! I don't mean to!"
"Ahhh, fuck," Hobbs hissed and drew his gun, aimed it right at Riley. "Agent, give me your gun."
"What do you mean Harry's a wizard?" Brian asked, watching as police officers came to escort Agent Riley Hicks away. Dom was holding Harry in his arms, all tucked up in his jacket still, shaking. The man's brown eyes were hard but everyone could see that he was holding on to the kid very carefully.
"Jesse had a way with computers and tech," Dom trailed off, eying Hobbs with suspicion. "A way that was…"
"There's… a secret society, culture, of wizards and witches," Hobbs remarked quietly. "Harry must be one of them. And it definitely was not me who told you about this. We need to go get Shaw and his gang."
Brian swore but nodded. "You'll still get us those pardons and help with Harry?"
"Yes, I promised, O'Conner. I don't go back on my promises," Hobbs answered. "And I'll explain about your boy further. If you two are gonna be raising the kid, you'll need all the help you can get."
Brian lifted an eyebrow. "Mia's going to love him."
Dom smiled and reached over to pull Brian in for a short kiss, leaving Harry in the middle of them.
"Eww," Harry muttered, hiding his face in Brian's chest, as he cautiously slipped into Brian's arms from Dom's. "It's a grownup thing, isn't it?"
Dom grinned and nodded. "It is."
"Welcome to LA," Brian offered, walking up the driveway to 1327 Echo Park. Harry's hand was in his, tiny but trusting, his smile tentative. Those green eyes took in everything from the garage in the back to the rough quality of the house. Dom was on Harry's other side and Mia was right behind them, smiling widely. "This is our home."
"You're damn right it is," Dom said, peering down at their kid. It hadn't taken very long for Hobbs to fulfill his part of the bargain, getting them full pardons and easing the way for them to take Harry home with them. "Come on, guys."
Han, Gisele, Tej, Roman, and Letty all followed, eagerly bringing barbecue supplies in with them. Though Letty slower than the others, her memories still not making an appearance.
"LA's loud," Harry muttered, peering up at the house.
"That it is, kid," Roman offered, snorting at Brian's rude gesture. "I can't believe you call this home."
"Oh, I'm gonna kick your ass," Brian retorted, sticking his tongue out at Roman.
"What, are we twelve?" Mia asked, looking between the two men.
Dom huffed out an amused breath and tugged Brian back, curling his hand around Brian's neck. Harry grinned up at the two of them and then raced off, into the yard, yelling excitedly, something about learning age appropriate magic at a magical kindergarten class. Hobbs had said something about how magical education in the US was different than in England. Also muttering something about how snobby and arrogant British wizards were, leaving them to wonder how Hobbs knew of the magical world in the first place. He knew the guy had avoided filling in anyone in Harry's world of his change in address or family for some reason too.
Mia ran off after him, catching him after a while and lifting him up in the air, making him squeal with laughter.
"Harry, be careful!" Dom yelled, meeting those green eyes and smiling. "Mia can be dangerous, you know."
Mia glared at him and Harry laughed loudly.
"Besides… we all know where home really is for me," Brian whispered, leaning into Dom.
Dom grinned and tugged him in even closer, closing his eyes as the sounds of LA, of home came back to them. The sun shone over their found family and they were home.