Summary: the run from the wizarding world, Remus and Harry end up in Forks, Washington. Just what happens when the meet the mysterious Cullen family?

Pairings: Edward/Harry, side Severus/Remus, mentions of Carlisle/Esme, Rosalie/Emmett, Jasper/Alice

Disclaimer: The Twilight series is not mine. Any lyrics/quotes are not mine. And Harry Potter is not mine.

Warnings: There is SLASH and HET in this story. There will be violence, swearing, pretty detailed mentions of child abuse, and mature content (because vampires have wandering hands). Twilight will probably be mangled to an extreme degree because it isn't my key series, and I don't know it as well as Harry Potter. There will be no Isabella Swann in this story (probably). She never moved to Forks. If anything of the above irks/disgusts you, then you're free to leave.

Author's Note: I'm sure the lot of you Twilight geeks (if you ever see this) will hate me dreadfully by the end of this. Oh well. I should warn you guys that I've only read the first book of Twilight so far, and I don't plan on reading any more. I don't really like the story – I just like the characters.

Aseptic Vitality
Prologue: Not Okay

I have always thought the actions of men the best interpreters of their thoughts. (John Locke)

Remember, people will judge you by your actions, not your intentions. You may have a heart of gold - but so does a hard-boiled egg. (Anon)

I ask not for a lighter burden, but for broader shoulders. (Jewish Proverb)

A peacefulness follows any decision, even the wrong one. (Rita Mae Brown)

It's not hard to make decisions when you know what your values are. (Roy Disney)

Some persons are very decisive when it comes to avoiding decisions. (Brendan Francis)

The hardest thing to learn in life is which bridge to cross and which to burn. (David Russell)

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry
July 10th, 1996

Albus Dumbledore frowned as he watched his old student and ex-teacher pace in front of him looking equal parts enraged and frustrated.

"Harry is fine, Remus, I assure you," he told the werewolf, for the fourth time in the last hour. "We spoke to the Dursley's at the end of his fifth year – they aren't troubling him."

"Albus, they are hurting him!" Remus cried, whirling around to face the aged Headmaster. He'd told the man this before, but Albus never listened to anyone once he thought he was right. 'Well he's not, for once!' Remus thought spitefully. "I could smell the blood on him when he stayed at Grimmauld last summer! How else would he have been wounded, if his family wasn't hurting him?!"

"I'm sure you were mistaken, Remus," Albus soothed the enraged werewolf. "I have not seen any sign of child abuse in Harry's behavior. He is a normal, happy, teenaged boy."

Remus barked a bitter laugh. "How can you not see it, Albus?! He flinches from people when he thinks no ones looking, and he never talks about his home life! Ronald Weasley told me that those people had bars on his window in second year!" With every remembered incident, Remus' inner werewolf was getting angrier and angrier.

"We warned them, Remus," Albus said, not so patient anymore. "They are terrified of wizarding people – they will not harm Harry. He needs to stay the rest of the summer, and nothing you say will change my mind on the subject."

Remus growled. "I'm going to see him." It wasn't a request.

Albus looked into the fierce golden eyes and decided that letting Remus see Harry was well would be the best way to stop the protests. He inclined his head. "Very well. Tomorrow you may go and see him. I will send him a letter."

Remus nodded, even though inwardly he had no intention of going to see Harry tomorrow. If the Dursleys were hurting Harry, they would stop as soon as they realized that a wizard would be visiting their home. He would go tonight, so he could get a true view on things. If everything was fine without Dumbledore warning them ahead of time, then Remus would allow Harry to stay with his relatives. Otherwise . . . Moony growled in the back of Remus' head. If those people had hurt his cub, even Merlin wouldn't be able to save them.

Privet Drive, Surrey
July 11th, 1997: 1:35 AM

Remus had never had to use as much of his Marauder skills as he did the night he went to save Harry. This, of course, was due to the Order member currently guarding Harry's house: Severus Snape. Severus, of course, hated the job, but he had little else to do since Voldemort had not called on him for some time.

Remus had the superior edge in the fact that he could sense and smell Severus yards before he saw him, but that didn't mean he shouldn't be cautious. He'd learned the hard way that Severus Snape was never to be underestimated – that man always had something up his sleeve.

Thankfully, he managed to make it up to the door without rousing the other man's suspicions, and hurriedly swept inside. Apparently, the Dursley's were secure enough not to lock their door – stupidity at it's greatest, in Remus' opinion. No matter where you were, you were never safe enough to leave your door open to anyone. He crept inside, hurrying up the stairs to the room Harry had been staying at last time he'd come to get him in fifth year. He frowned when he realized that the locks that had been on the door had been removed. Carefully, he opened the door and his frown deepened when he realized that Harry wasn't in the room – and neither were any of things. Only Hedwig remained there, silent and staring in her cage. Remus turned away and took in a deep breath, letting all of the smells in the house wash over him.

He could scent the two adult Dursley's in their bed – the man reeking of violence and anger and fear, while the woman smelled of jealousy, and neatness, and also, although the scent was nearly non-existent, of Lily. The boy-child in the next room had the scent about him that Remus had always found on the rich; a smell that said his entire life had been sheltered and he was pampered to the extreme. And finally, there was Harry's scent. It was thinner, which meant that he was downstairs somewhere, but Remus was alarmed to find his cub smelt of blood and pain and hunger. Growling lowly in his throat, he hurried downstairs, following the scent until he reached a small cupboard.

Moony was raging inside, and Remus' eyes had turned shades lighter to golden. The door to the cupboard was locked, so Remus shakily performed Alohomora. The door swung open silently to reveal his precious cub, and Remus felt like vomiting.

Harry was nearly naked – only the barest strips of cloth held together around his waist, protecting his dignity. This allowed Remus to clearly see carved in FREAK that decorated Harry's torso, as well as the strips of flesh that had been nearly swiped away by a knife. Harry's legs were covered in welts, and Remus could see a clearly broken leg bone in his left one. Quite a few of his ribs were visibly broken, standing out along his emancipated torso, and he had two dark black eyes. Dozens of bruises covered his shoulders and arms, his pinkie was broken, and there was a vicious handprint outlined in purple on his right cheek. Remus felt tears build up in the back of his throat as he tried to carefully move Harry around so he could see his back. Harry whimpered, but he was already in a deep, healing sleep and did not wake. His back was decorated with even more welts – most of them deeper than the ones on his legs and torso, and the small of his back had a gigantic mass of bruises that ranged from yellow to purple. The back of his legs had been swiped with a knife, probably making it intensely difficult for Harry to stand.

Remus got to his feet shakily, feel more anger and hatred towards muggles than he ever had in his entire life. He needed to get Harry out of here, Headmaster be damned. Albus had been the one to put his precious cub in this house, the one who refused to take him out of it. Remus lifted his wand and performed Molicorpus on Harry's limp frame, carefully easing him out of the cupboard and laying him on the stiff couch in the living room. He then rushed upstairs to set Hedwig free.

"We'll be going to –" Remus stopped and frantically groped for a place in his mind. "Egypt," he said, finally. Bill was in Egypt – he'd house them for a while. "Find Bill Weasley's place in a week, and we'll be there," he told her firmly. He knew from experience that Hedwig was a sharp owl. She hooted at him and turned to leave through the window. Remus was gone before she disappeared from sight.

He lifted Harry into the air magically again, but stopped before they reached the door. Severus was still out there. He didn't know if the man would stop him or not, but this was the only way out of the house, and he needed to get Harry out of here. Remus' face tightened. He'd have to hope that either Severus didn't see them (unlikely) or that Remus could convince him to let them go (even more unlikely).

He carefully made his way outside and managed exactly two yards before he heard Severus' hissed, "Lupin!"

He half-turned to see Severus staring at his cub with narrowed black eyes. "Yes, Severus?" he asked calmly, as if he was not smuggling out Harry Potter in the dead of night.

"What in Merlin's name are you doing, you moon-struck buffoon," Severus hissed to him. "Why are you taking Potter away?"

Lupin's eyes glowed golden for a second as he remembered his anger, but he shoved it aside. He needed to save Harry first. "He requires medical attention," Lupin said calmly. "And I do not trust the Dursley's to tell the Headmaster the truth when he comes to visit tomorrow. So I'm taking him away now."

Severus frowned and his dark eyes moved to the body in front of Remus. Only years of knowing the other man let Remus see the slight surprise in Severus' face.

" . . . That's Potter?" he asked lowly, and his eyes slowly swiveled back to the house behind Remus. The werewolf smiled tightly to himself – at least someone wasn't as blind as Dumbledore.

"Yes," he said. "It's been going on for a while." Severus' eyes returned to the boy's prone body. "I tried to tell the Headmaster, but he just waved off my complaints. He was going to come tomorrow, but he was going to send a letter, so I came tonight so I could get the true scope of things." Remus was babbling now, but a part of him was afraid that Severus might snarl and take out his wand and ruin his plans. If the ex-spy did that, then Harry was damned.

But Severus didn't, for whatever reason. Instead he inclined his head and said, "Madame Pomphrey is much more secretive then you would expect from a Hogwarts nurse," before turning around to leave.

Remus gaped at his back for a moment before Severus' statement hit him and he grinned. Well! It looked like Severus wasn't as uncaring about Harry as he may seem. But, remembering the painfully thin, sharp boy Severus had been, Remus thought there might be more to it than Severus' heart going soft.

He turned and walked to the street, past the anti-Disapparation wards posted around the Dursley home. Then he careful drifted Harry into his arms and disappeared with a crack off the street.

In the dark was not a fun place to be.

Wherever he was, Harry couldn't see. He couldn't feel either, or move. There were just waves of blackness surrounding him, cloaking him so tightly he felt like he was suffocating.

Then, suddenly, a pinpoint of light shone in the distance. The light grew bigger and bigger until it was it formed the outline of a person – a male person, from what Harry could see. He couldn't make out its features, only the outline of its body. The light-person came closer until he and Harry were standing face to face. Harry noted absently that the light-person was taller than him by at least six inches.

"Hello," the person said, and its voice was shadow and light, beauty and darkness, hatred and love, and Harry felt cowed to be in its presence. "Do not fear, little one," the being said gently. "I will not harm you. I am here to help you make your way back."

Harry wondered what the being meant by "back". Where was he? What did he need to go back to? Memories of an older fat man flashed in his mind and he suddenly desperately wished to stay where he was, in the never-ending, suffocating blackness. The being sensed his thoughts, and Harry had the strangest feeling that it was giving him a gentle smile, though he could not see its face.

"You must go back," it said. "It is not your time to die. You have great purpose in this world, like a true arcàngelo."

Before Harry could ask what exactly the last word meant, the being looked up suddenly, and its light darkened. "I must go. But remember me, little one. I will be in your dreams."

Then, it disappeared suddenly, like a star dying without warning. And, as Harry started to drift away from the thick sea of darkness, he heard a high, piercing chuckle that sent shivers up his arms. The last thing before he left the word of night was a pair of brilliant golden eyes, staring at him from the shadows.

Remus' Home, Scotland
July 11th, 1996

"Is he alright?" Remus asked worriedly from his place on the wall. Madame Poppy Pomphrey just gave him an irritated look and went back to examining her patient.

He'd fire-called her as soon as he entered the small one-room cabin that had served as his home for the last decade or so. She'd come with little questions once he'd told her it was about Harry. He was nervous about having someone so close to Dumbledore in on their secret, but he trusted Severus, to a certain extent. And when he'd seen Poppy's eyes harden when she took in Harry's battered form, he felt that he'd made the right choice. He doubted even Voldemort would be able to pull any information from her.

Finally, Poppy turned to face him with a grave look on her face. "His left leg, pinkie, and seven ribs are broken. He has bruises everywhere, but most will heal within a week except for the ones on the small of his back. The welts, I can heal tonight, but the knife wounds have become infected. He has some internal bleeding, but he got off lucky in that department – there's not nearly as much as there should be. The . . . " Poppy's eyes moved to the large, bold letters imprinted on Harry's chest, "scars I can heal, but only within the next three days. Otherwise, they will set too deeply to remove them. All in all, he's out of the danger zone, and he should recover within a month – I'd say, with potions to aid him, it will take him about two weeks, and that's mostly from the infection."

Remus relaxed. "Thank Merlin," he breathed. He'd been afraid that the wounds were more serious than that; that Harry would never recover. Remus suppressed a shudder – Harry was alive, he would be well again! That was all that mattered.

"He should be awake in the morning," Poppy added, watching Remus' relieved face shrewdly. "Now, Mr. Lupin, would you like explain why Mr. Potter happens to be here in this condition?"

Remus shifted nervously on his feet. 'How is it one look from this woman can turn me back into a sheepish schoolboy?' he wondered. "Harry's guardians are not as generous to him as some people would assume," he murmured at last, wishing that he didn't have to reveal Harry's secrets.

Poppy's eyes narrowed. "Does the Headmaster know of this?" She raised an eyebrow at Remus' stiff look. "Perhaps you do not want him to know of it?" she asked perceptively. Remus nodded at once.

"He placed Harry in that house," Remus explained, feeling his eyes narrow with anger. "I don't trust him with my cub's safety."

Poppy nodded in understanding. "Very well. I will not tell the Headmaster that Mr. Potter is in this condition, or where he has disappeared to." She gave Remus a speculative look. "If I were you, Mr. Lupin, I would leave as soon as possible."

Remus smiled – if it could be called that. It was more an animalistic baring of teeth. "I plan on doing exactly that, Poppy. Rest assured – you won't be seeing Harry or me for a long while."

Poppy gave him a long look for a minute before nodding. "I wish you and Mr. Potter luck, Mr. Lupin. Please look after him." She spared the figure on the bed an exasperatedly fond look and Remus suddenly realized that if the patient had not been Harry, Poppy would not have kept such information to herself. However, Poppy was someone who'd dealt with Harry numerous times over his school years and she harbored towards him the same affection she'd had for James Potter, Severus Snape, and even himself. He smiled and gave a nod of acceptance.

"I'll look after him," he promised, looking over at the bed himself. The only thing that could be seen of Harry was his thick, messy hair poking out from underneath a worn blanket. 'He needs someone to look after him,' Remus thought with some sadness. 'But I hope our travelling with strengthen him. If not for me, then for him.' Remus' eyes hardened. 'He needs this. We both do. And no meddling old man will stop us!'

Author's Note: -cringes- Please don't hit me! I know I shouldn't be starting a new story with so many others barely even started but . . . the plot bunnies won't leave me alone! They jumped me in the alley and took my wallet and held it hostage until I wrote this! T.T My library card and meager amount of cash was in that wallet . . . How was I supposed to refuse? But on a more serious note – I'll update this whenever I can, along with the rest of my stories. Please leave a review!