Notes: I had some questions about last chapter! Harry does not look different or anything, the "who are you" is just a result of their paranoia after the war. The existence of transfiguration, metamorphmaguses and Polyjuice does not lend itself to trusting the sudden appearance of someone who's supposed to be halfway across the world in hidden by the Ministry's backing.
Oh and this past summer in the story was the summer between book one and two, which is why Tyler Crowley was trying to pick her up for prom in one of the earlier chapters: this was a canon event from the end of the first book. A few people asked so I thought I'd clear it up!
…
Harry wasn't in a hurry in the morning, but the end of summer seemed to have come as an abrupt surprise for his cousin. She scurried around the house; picking up books, her phone, her pens. The one thing she wasn't looking for was her keys. Apparently, Harry would be catching a ride with her and her beau today. Joy.
A car beeped outside, making Bella panic even further. "Harry! Tell him I'll be right there," she called, already running up the stairs.
He stuffed the last bite of his sandwich into his mouth and picked up his bag. Waving Fawkes goodbye, he exited the house. The vampire was sat stiffly behind the wheel, no doubt as comfortable as Harry over the current driving arrangements.
Pulling the jacket hood up and ducking his head from the rain, he hopped down the stairs, running toward down the driveway to slide into the car. Cullen didn't greet him more than with a long-suffering sigh.
"She'll be right down," he dutifully echoed. Completely unnecessary of course, as the vampire's ears should've allowed him to hear her on his own. A nod was the only response.
Sitting quietly in the backseat, he counted the rainwater droplets trickling down the window. The tapping of the sky falling down on the metal roof being the only sound.
"You went to a boarding school before?" Cullen asked suddenly. Harry turned his head to the front, the vampire peering at him in the rear-view mirror. He raised a brow at the random question. "I picked it up from Charlie," the other boy explained vaguely. Picked it up? From where, his uncle's mind?
"I did," Harry answered simply, turning back to his raindrop counting.
"What did you do there," the vampire insisted. Oh the usual; slayed a basilisk, a couple teachers, saved a fugitive who happened to be his godfather, died. All the typical hallmarks of a good seven year run at Hogwarts.
"A lot of work," Harry decided on.
Bella rushed out the door then, scurrying through the rain to hop into the car. "Sorry!" she exclaimed, breathless. Harry was more than grateful her presence kept the vampire from questioning him further.
They took off down the street.
Harry knew they were driving fast for a muggle vehicle. Both judging by how Bella was clutching her backpack to her chest like an emergency airbag and by how much he was enjoying it. If there was something the vampire and he could agree on it seemed to be speed. They pulled up to the confusing mix of connected buildings he'd taken his placement test in, a square sign proudly proclaiming it to be Forks High School.
Compared to a centuries old castle with a beautifully scenic lake and self-pulling boats, moon high above casting a soft glow over it all, this was perhaps a little subpar. But Harry wasn't there to judge. It was, in all likelihood, perfectly average by muggle standards.
"You gotta go through the front office first," Bella said, tone apologetic as they stopped by the first building. "I can come with you if you want." Due to his late admittance he'd not received his class schedule in the mail.
"We've got class," Cullen murmured, clearly not at ease with the idea.
"He might need help finding the classroom," she countered easily, glancing at the vampire in warning. "Let's go in together, Harry."
He peeked out the windscreen. Each building was clearly stamped with their corresponding numbers. "Don't worry about it, Bells. I think I'll be just fine." Just the lack of moving stairs would be an advantage. A guide would likely prove redundant.
Hopping out of the stopped car to avoid any protestations, he escaped from the rain, setting foot for the door under the little sign claiming itself as the front office. The lady behind the counter looked up in surprise as he entered, blinking up at him owlishly. "Hello," she greeted after a second. "Can I help you with anything? Did you not receive your schedule in the mail?"
He stepped up to the tall wooden desk, leaning over. "I'm Harry. Evans," he said after a beat, the surname unfamiliar to his general introduction.
"Oh, of course, the new student." She fumbled around, pulling out drawers and lifting notepads and folders. There was a huge mess of start of the year paperwork and other unhelpful messes, so finding the correct papers took a while. "There we go, sorry, dear. It's been a little hectic here. Oh and, congratulations on your test result. We were able to put you in the electives you picked after all as some sent in late changes. Are you looking forward to your senior year?" she clucked away.
"Very much," he smiled, accepting the schedule and map. "And that's perfect, thank you."
"It's no trouble," she smiled, eyes wrinkling at the corners. She checked her watch. "The principal must've finished the announcements already. The classes will be starting soon so you run along, dear."
Obligingly, Harry trailed out of the building. The rain had picked up even further and a stream of students rushed past him, eager to get inside. Consulting his schedule, it seemed they were headed the same way. He followed quickly.
Finding the right room was, unsurprisingly, quite easy. The door was still open, the teacher not yet arrived as students stood around each other's desks, chattering away. Harry slowly hung up his jacket, uncertain if the desks were marked yet or if he'd just pick one.
A boy almost barrelled into him as he rounded the corner. "Oh, sorry, man. Wasn't paying attention." He looked about ready to walk off again, but took a second to study Harry further, confused frown on his face. "I haven't seen you before I think. Mike," he said, holding out his hand.
Harry shook it with a smile. "Harry, and you wouldn't have. I'm new."
The boy hung his jacket up next to Harry's, eyes widening. Transfers to this tiny town was likely quite uncommon, international transfers even more so. "That explains it," he nodded. "Let's have a seat," he proffered, pointing to a desk at the back. Harry followed him to it. "How long you been here?"
"Since the start of summer. Only just enrolled a couple weeks back."
"You're from England, right?" he asked eagerly. A few students looked over, faces curious. Harry nodded, setting his bag down next to the desk. "Wow, that's far. Everything must be so different."
"Well, rain's rain I suppose, but I'll admit there's a bit more of it here."
More people seemed to be picking up on the fact that they had a new classmate. The loud conversations falling to hushed murmurs, eyes gliding to him.
"Why did your family make the move?" Mike asked, not unfriendly but puzzled. There wasn't exactly much for anyone to get up to in the tiny town.
Harry shook his head, chuckling. "I made the move, my family already lived here. I'm Bella Swan's cousin."
Now the murmurs really picked up, Mike's mouth falling open slightly. "Oh! I didn't know she had a cousin," he admitted. Noticing the staring students, he scratched the back of his head sheepishly. Leaning in, he whispered, "Sorry, it's pretty exciting for us. New student and all."
"All good," Harry assured in a low voice.
The teacher entered then, allowing his new curious classmates to focus on something else as Mr Varner called everyone to attention. Quickly finding their seats, the classroom fell to a hush, the teacher pulling out a list for roll call. He reached Harry's name quicker than he was used to, the letter E being far further up in the alphabet than P. "Harry Evans," Mr Varner called hesitantly, the name obviously unfamiliar.
Harry raised his hand, "Present."
"You're the new student," he hummed, seemingly to himself. Harry nodded anyway. "Why don't you introduce yourself." He gestured beside him.
Harry got up slowly, feeling the eyes burning into him. Two dozen muggles' curiosity wasn't comparable to a whole magic school's animosity, but the attention was uncomfortable nevertheless. His introduction was short and straightforward but the teacher seemed happy enough as he sent him back to his seat, finally starting the class to go through the syllabus.
Harry was relieved to realize he was already familiar with most of the subjects covered in the review. Mike seemed a little less comforted, sliding further down on the desk with each new word. When the bell rang to signify the end of class, he was slumped over, groaning in what Harry could only describe as pain. "Not your favourite class, I take it?" he asked, picking his bag up from the floor.
The blonde boy looked up, redding a bit at the ears. Straightening quickly, he got up to from his chair before answering, "Wouldn't mind skipping through just this one," he grumbled, walking to the front. They picked their jackets off the wall. "What's your next class?"
Harry checked his note, "English."
"That's with Mr Berty, watch out for him," Mike sighed. "He's pretty strict. I gotta head out to building three, but I'll probably see you at lunch."
"Thanks, later."
A small search later and he'd found the new room, the teacher already present when he arrived. Bella and her boyfriend were nestled at the desk placed in the far corner in the back, heads together as they talked. Spotting her cousin, Bella waved, a smile on her face. She gestured silently at the desk next to theirs. The familiar face was a relief as he sat down, though the vampire's presence he could've done without.
Mr Berty was still sorting out some stuff at the front, the clock still allowing them a couple minutes of chattering. Bella leaned over from her chair. "How was your first class?" she whispered.
"It was fine, we didn't start with much yet, just went through this semester's schedule. Mr Varner seemed alright."
Bella grimaced at the name. "Did he make you introduce yourself?"
Harry grinned. "It wasn't so bad."
She shook her head, but the teacher started speaking before she could say anything more. After English, they shared another class, walking together and conversing between, the vampire following stiffly behind.
At the end of third period, it seemed his casual interaction with Bella had encouraged more students to talk to him. When they separated for different classes, he was quickly accosted by a group of half a dozen strangers, eager to know his relationship with Bella Swan and the Cullen boy.
"We're cousins," he repeated simply, walking ahead to the next room his schedule guided him. The simple announcement was quickly followed with another round of twenty questions. Thankfully, he only shared fourth period with two of the five students, breaking the circle they'd tied him in.
The girl who'd managed to talk the loudest was quick to guide him towards an empty desk. Before she could sit him down a slight girl popped up, blocking their path. Harry almost stepped on her.
"You must be Harry," she smiled, opal eyes wide on her pale face, his magic sneering at the dark creature. Another Cullen then. "I'm Alice." The vampire didn't hold out her hand, keeping them both behind her back. Alice, Harry pondered, the name was familiar, Bella must've mentioned it at some point. Her eyes still warily fixed on Harry, she spoke to the girl next to him, "Sorry Lauren, I promised Bella I'd watch out for her cousin. So we'll be sitting together." Her melodious tone did not lend itself to the regret, however she did not seem to particularly care that she'd botched the other girl's attempt at hijacking Harry.
Harry would say he was grateful, but now he had to sit next to a vampire. Hermione would probably be displeased at his bias but honestly their skin was so cold his arm might lose circulation from being in her prolonged vicinity. Also, they were usually pretty stuffy anyways.
Guiding him to a desk, the tiny girl's eyes didn't leave him once. She peered at him curiously from her seat. "Edward doesn't like you very much," the vampire stated plainly, the unexpected declaration making him pause slightly. What a conversation starter.
He sat down. "Very tragic," Harry assured her, not inviting for further dialogue.
"You confuse him a lot," she continued regardless.
Harry didn't answer, looking to the front of the class instead.
She didn't take the hint. "In fact, you confuse most of us."
He sighed. "Us being?"
She smiled, ignoring his query. "It's quite strange. Bella never mentioned you," she said instead.
"There wouldn't have been much to say."
"I'm sure that's not true."
"It must be nice being so assured of your opinions."
"I usually am. I'm usually right. But I'll admit, I— well, I didn't foresee another student coming here… so soon after Bella," she remarked, emphasizing the words like it was an inside joke and tacking on the last bit like an afterthought.
"My apologies for not considering how much my unexpected arrival would rattle your senses," he commented sarcastically.
She answered the snarky comment with a curious candour. "It did. I'm rarely caught off guard."
He leaned over the desk, resting his head on his hand as he stared resolutely ahead. "I'm sure you'll live," he echoed.
Giggling, she answered, "I wouldn't bet on it. But I suppose a surprise now and then keeps things interesting."
Amused despite himself, Harry covered his growing smile with his hand. Nevertheless, he was grateful to discontinue the odd conversation as Mr Berty saw fit to start preaching. The lesson wasn't too bad itself, a little too much droning and quoting. But the most annoying part was the vampire staring him down like he was a puzzle missing half the pieces.
The bell rang to signify the beginning of lunch and the new excitable Cullen didn't waste a moment. "You know where the cafeteria is?"
"No, but I suppose I'll find out."
She grinned, leading the way.
It wasn't anything like the Great Hall. It was bright with artificial light and huge windows on the walls, with smaller tables spread throughout. Students were chattering loudly, generating a buzz of undistinguished voices. Harry spotted Bella about halfway through the room, sitting with her beau, isolated despite being surrounded by classmates. He recognized both the girl that had accosted him the previous period and Mike.
He plopped into the sit next to his cousin, the Cullen girl settling in beside her somewhat-brother. Mike threw a smile over to him, too engaged in a conversation with another boy to greet him further, the wizard smiled back.
"Hey Harry," Bella greeted before frowning at the empty space in front of him. "Aren't you hungry?"
He shrugged, answering, "Not really, I'll eat when I'm home." He leaned back in his seat uncomfortably. Their table was in the middle of the big hall, leaving a plethora of constantly moving, passing, and approaching students behind him. His neck prickled as his magic instinctively examined each harmless muggle just making their way past, his fingers twitching at the tension.
His gaze caught on Cullen. The other boy was staring at him surreptitiously from the corner of his eyes, looking away quickly when Harry noticed. He stilled, breathing carefully to calm himself. It was just a bunch of muggles, he had no reason to be agitated.
A blonde girl freed herself from the one Alice had called Lauren, leaning forward on the table. "So you're cousins? How come you never told me you had a cousin our age, Bella?" she asked, smiling demurely.
Bella hesitated, unsure how to explain the seven-year absence. Harry broke in instead, "Probably because I'm not. I'm a year younger," he said, diverting the attention away from her.
The blonde's eyes widened. "But you're in our grade?"
Bella recovered, answering quickly for him, "He was moved up a year."
"Oh wow, you must be really smart."
Honestly, it was a little embarrassing how much his summer addiction to the Wit-Sharpening potions had improved his grasp on the muggle school subjects. "Bella tutored me all summer," he lied easily.
Now the attention was on his cousin again, the mention of tutoring turning hopeful eyes on her. She scowled half-heartedly at him. Harry smiled back. "He was fine on his own, Jessica, I just went over some subjects with him before his placement," she insisted loudly before anyone could see fit to ask her for help.
Lunch continued, Bella convincing him to have an apple before the bell rang them back to class. He shared the last two periods with both Cullens and his cousin, so he was left sitting next to the pixie chatterbox for the second half of his day. He'd rarely met someone so apt at talking about everything whilst at the same time nothing at all. Her match could perhaps only be found in Luna, he pondered, who no one could claim to be of equal skill.
The resemblance of his friend turned the vampire's presence more bearable. Besides, at least her skills were sufficient for wasting time as the school day soon finished.
"There's Jasper," the girl chirped cheerily, loping across to the other side of the park lot towards a shiny car sat waiting. "See you tomorrow, Harry!" she called back.
Harry walked resolutely ahead, Bella snickering at his harrowed expression. He grimaced at her as they got into the car. "Finally she has someone else to harass," she grinned, though clearly affectionate of the other girl.
"I noticed."
Edward glanced at him from the front seat as he looked back to reverse the car. "She's not one to back down from a challenge," he warned quietly, his expression stony.
Rolling his eyes, Harry leaned back with a sigh. The snooping was getting annoying.
…
For Harry, going to Forks High School was an interesting affair. He didn't particularly mind it, although the differences between his previous schooling and this one were quite dramatic, not counting the obvious glaring disparity that was magic. He also highly doubted most muggle high schools accommodated vampires. But then again, he'd heard some students refer to this as Hell, so maybe they felt a sense of belonging amongst the dead.
The following schooldays flew by, Harry resigning himself to the tenacious presence of Alice Cullen. Unlike her brother who now actively avoided him like the plague, only taking the time out of his day to deal Harry some suspicious glares, Alice's curiosity seemed to get the better of her. Harry could tell his presence disturbed both vampires, but she followed him doggedly. That they shared half of all his classes did not improve upon the situation. It was exhausting. However, her bubbly attitude was far more tolerable compared to the other Cullen, and Harry could definitely appreciate the wide berth a lot of the muggles gave them. Being a new student in such a small town was a recipe for unwanted attention, so their instinctual fear for the creature was quite useful for his peace of mind. And his peace, just in general.
That wasn't to say he didn't enjoy any of the muggles' company. Though they also kept some distance due to his association with the vampire, Mike had been nice enough and his friends didn't seem too bad. The periods he didn't share classes with either Bella or Alice, at least he could count on a free seat next to one of them.
Friday therefore arrived rather quickly.
He was stuck in the library with the pixie vampire, their shared free period after lunch spent attempting to lounge in the uncomfortable wooden chairs. The thin seat cushioning did not help any on the situation. The conversation was mostly carried by Alice. Harry felt relatively at ease, lazily tagging down some notes for his English paper as he listened to her rambling.
"…So of course Edward said something stupid and it left Rose fuming. Next time he left the house, she smashed his whole classical CD collection. He was glued to the piano playing nocturnes the rest of the week," Alice snickered, finishing her mocking relay of one particular feud between the serial-brooder and his other adopted sister. She'd made a habit out of describing some of her brother's more embarrassing moments. Besides that, Harry was starting to realize this coven was a lot bigger than he had originally guessed, although he still didn't have an exact number.
"Sounds very dramatic," he agreed absentmindedly, turning another page on the book as he looked for the right chapter.
She snorted, leaning over the table with her head in her hands. "Actually, I was pretty relieved when she got rid of them. Mozart and Bach are fine and all but they get a bit stale after a while. What do you listen to anyway?"
He shrugged, focus on a rather interesting passage. "I don't know much mug—" he stiffened, "err, music," he finished lamely, cursing his almost-slip.
She threw him a weird look but didn't question the miswording. "Well what type do you like?"
Harry frowned in thought. Music genres were not his area of expertise. "Honestly, I don't listen to much. Never did," he answered truthfully. There hadn't been much to tune into from his cupboard, and any other music he was familiar with was mostly from the Wizarding World.
"How," she demanded. "Edward told me you went to a boarding school, you must've had so much time doing nothing."
"I was usually kept busy. Besides, we didn't have phones or many radios." Or electricity as a whole. "Limited electricity. All that," he said instead. Considering the artificially lit high school, torches and candlelight didn't seem like common muggle solutions to lighting.
"Sounds very strict. And archaic," Alice decided, shaking her head in pity as she stared ahead, attempting to envision it. "I can't imagine exi—" she caught herself, "living without."
It wasn't something Harry had ever had to give up in the same way other muggle-raised wizards had. Growing up with nothing in the first place, he had just been happy to find a real home. He shrugged, focusing back again on his paper.
They sat comfortably in silence, pencils scraping across notebooks and flipping pages the only sounds in the otherwise quiet library. There were a couple other students in the room, but they stayed huddled away by their own little tables.
"How did you ever keep in contact with your family?" she prodded, eyes once again fixated on him.
Harry glanced up from his notes. "Most would write letters home," he explained shortly.
She leaned forward. "And you?" she prompted further, catching his dissociating tone.
Harry had never had anyone home to write to. The Dursleys were out of the question, and sending an owl to Charlie and Bella would undoubtably have left questions the Dursleys would not be wont to answer. "You're as nosy as your brother," he said instead.
The vampire leaned back into her chair again, wrinkling her nose, displeased at the comparison. "Just curious," she defended.
"Very," Harry agreed, not referring to her inquisitive nature. She stuck out her tongue at him.
"Does it bother you?" Alice asked after a silence. "That he's snooping," she clarified at his questioning look.
"It's more rude than anything," the wizard shrugged. "Don't see how I'm any of his business."
"Well, that's the thing. He's not used to being kept in the dark about much," that statement appeared to count for her as well. "And, he doesn't know you, so he's worried, I think. He has this theory that all kinds of danger seem to draw in around Bella, and I guess he thinks you might be one. She's a bit of a trouble magnet, you see," she rambled, sincerity written in her features. Taking a second to think through her words, she bit her lip, looking conflicted. Harry wondered if she'd said too much.
Harry wasn't much surprised at his cousin's ostensibly misfortunate nature. She was related to him after all. "So he's acting as her protector, how charming." And ironic; the wolf guarding the sheep now?
The vampire grimaced. "You make it sound bad."
"Well, she's survived seventeen years before meeting him, as well as several summers with me. If it's only within his acquaintance she's become a damsel in distress, I struggle connecting that with my presence."
She took a moment to think after which she sheepishly murmured, "He really does mean well, we all see her as family."
Harry could appreciate someone who took care of his family, whether they were nosy and annoying or not. He let it go. "Suppose it's a good thing she has a sister, I'm not great with dresses," he said offhandedly after a beat.
The vampire beamed happily at the appellation. "Neither is she, but I'll fix that some day," she promised dangerously. He almost felt bad for his cousin, aware of her aversion to fashion. "Her birthday is coming up, so I'll finally have another excuse to dress her up," the vampire squealed.
Harry really did pity Bella this time.
…
Notes: Double digit chapters now! Wow! Struggled a lot writing this chapter but I hope it turned out alright. Tried not to be too specific to avoid confusion both as a writer and reader. Thank you so much to fireflii for helping me understand the American school system a bit more (and ton more aid on different subjects)!
Otherwise, Alice and Harry are just friends, no weird stuff. She's happy with Jasper! I thought it was cute, she's so fascinated with Harry and it just develops into like a weird little friendship. (Considering how fascinated Edward was with his inability to read Bella's mind, just imagine that for Alice who could at least still see Bella with her gift. So this is a first for her, that she can't see someone. And it also didn't come as a negative shock now – compared to Jacob blocking her vision of Bella surviving the jump – and therefore is more of a positively fun strange thing instead of a "You blocked my vision, mutt, now my brother might die.") And Harry is sorta thinking of her as a tamer Luna, so he's happy to be around someone who reminds him of his friend.
Also she cannot see Harry's future for the same reason she can't see the wolves' future. According to Smeyer; she can see the subjective futures of species she's been (human and vampire). She's never been a wizard, so can't see any of them :p Edward and Jasper's abilities would work but they don't cause of occlumency (no mental/emotional power would work on someone who's learned that)