Hey guy's so . . . it's been like six months since I last updates. Sorry. This one was particularly hard to write because I didn't know what the hell to put in it. Also, I wanted to get a jump in on some of the other pairings that I've been kind of ignoring. And the way this story is going so far . . . well . . . I don't think Harry will be caving anytime soon. Well . . . maybe a little bit. Don't be mad! But at least Draco isn't so hardheaded.
Next chapter might - might - be up within the next two months. I'm working on it and it should feature the talent show . . . maybe. Idk. I haven't really started the outline yet.
On another note, I did NaNoWriMo and I failed. Only 18,497 words. Oh well. There's always next year. But that also means I'm a good way into an original story. If I decide I like it enough I'll post it on FictionPress. I'll let you guys know if I do and maybe you could check it out. :D
Pairings:
Harry/Edward (duh!), Alice/Jasper, Esme/Carlisle, Rosalie/Emmett, Draco/Jacob, Luna/?, Bella/Blaise, Neville/? (I'm allowed to keep some pairing secret)
Disclaimer:
This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling and Stephenie Meyer, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, MT Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, Little, Brown and Company, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Chapter 11
Harry awoke to a crying baby, loud yells, and the strong smell of smoke filling his nose. He shot up quickly, a little disoriented to find himself in the sitting room and not his bed. Stumbling forward, Harry scooped up Teddy who was wailing loudly from his playpen and then opened the door leading out into the hallway.
The smoke was even worse here, curling almost sentient-like around the ceiling. Further down the hallway Harry could make out the flickering shadows of flames.
Panic and fear speared through Harry's body and he immediately shook of the last remnants of sleep. It was almost funny how easily it was for him to slip into battle mode, with his wand drawn and Teddy tucked expertly against his shoulder.
The fire came from the front of the house and it had already eaten the front door away. Harry felt a sense of sadness sweep over him as he watched the familiar umbrella stand melt away in the heat.
"Finally," a voice huffed next to his ear and Harry turned his head to catch the irritated silver eyes of his roommate. "Where the bloody hell have you been Potter? This fire has been going on for about five minutes."
Malfoy looked ruffled and there was a smudge of soot on his face. It was only the panic in Malfoy's eyes, however, that kept Harry from commented on the blonde's appearance.
"Where's Luna," Harry asked as he casted an Agumenta at the fire. His eyes narrowed when the water simply evaporated mid air. Well that wasn't good, but this didn't look like Fiendfire.
"She disappeared upstairs raving on about something or another," Malfoy said with a snort, while he subtly guided Harry back down the hallway and away from the fire. "So what's the plan, Leader?"
"The plan," Harry said with a roll of his eyes, "Is to get everything you can and Apparate out. I'm bringing the wards down; they're kind of pointless at this point."
"Alright, but where are we Apparating to," Malfoy demanded with his own eye roll. Harry sighed.
"The park down the street," he said shortly. "Actually I want you to go now; I'll get your things." And then he shoved Teddy into Malfoy's arms. Malfoy's mouth opened up and Harry could see the argument about to start. So he cut Malfoy his sternest look and the blonde clamed up. In the next moment he was going with the familiar crack of Apparation.
Harry's entire body sagged with relief now that Teddy was safely out of harm's way. Shaking his head, Harry eyes narrowed a little as he took in the flames inching their way down the hallway. Using his Seeker skills and years of running from Dudley, Harry darted across the hallway and up the stairs just in time for them to erupt into flames also.
"I suppose we won't we getting out that way," a calm voice said with a small sigh. Harry turned to see Luna standing at the top of the staircase. She was swaying a bit as she peered at him. "Are we Apparating out," she asked curiously.
"That's the plan," Harry told her. "We just have to collect our—"
"Already done," Luna sang, patting her pocket. Harry blinked before a smile broke across his face.
"Brilliant," he told her and Luna smiled back in pleasure. "So we're going to the park down the street. Malfoy's already there with Teddy."
"Yes sir," Luna said seriously. She then pulled out her wand, which she had been using as a hair ornament, and disappeared with a loud crack. Harry was quick to follow her.
"That was fast. Did you get all my stuff," Malfoy asked, rushing toward them as soon as they had appeared in the park. It was just coming on dawn so they were safe from Muggle eyes, something Harry hadn't considered until just them.
"Luna said she got everything," Harry said, looking at Malfoy with bemusement when he shoved a sniffling Teddy into Harry's arms.
"Are you sure you got everything," Malfoy demanded, whirling on Luna. "My mother's portrait, the box under my desk –"
"Do stop fretting," Luna said in a vague tone. "I got everything." Malfoy huffed but decided to let the matter die for them moment. As a unit the three turned to watch the once magnificent House of Black go up in flames.
"I still don't know what the bloody hell happened," Malfoy said after a long moment of silence. "Did that senile house elf leave the stove on?"
"This was no accident," Harry told the aristocrat, his eyes narrowing at the thought. He could remember the hate filled words that someone had thrown at him just the other day. 'Down with Bloody Potter,' some had yelled over the din in the Leaky Cauldron. Harry had never figured out who it was, but it was no coincidence that his home burned a couple of days after the sentiment had been uttered.
"I was afraid you would say that," Malfoy muttered lowly with a little sigh. "So I suppose we'll have to take up residence with my mother until we find new accommodations."
"Oo," Luna sighed dreamily. "I've always wanted to more of Malfoy Manor besides the dungeon."
Both Malfoy and Harry flinched at the girl's blunt words. Harry really didn't want to go to Malfoy Manor, but they really had nowhere else to live.
"Alright Malfoy," Harry said, turning to him and placing his hand on his bony shoulder. "Lead the way." And the trio disappeared again with a loud crack.
"Tell me again why I have to come with you and not someone else," Blaise demanded as he calmly picked his way through the forest. Luna hummed and twirled a few feet in front of him, somehow making it pass the poking branches and fallen logs easily.
"We were lucky enough that the shape shifters didn't notice that Neville was a vampire last time, but we can't take that chance again. James and Dragon are composing. That leaves you."
Blaise had to admit, her argument was sound, although really, Luna was powerful and creative enough to protect herself.
"Alright," Blaise said, letting that argument drop for now. "But why are we going back to La Push?"
"To give the shifters these," Luna told him and she twirled to his side and waved a couple of tickets in his face.
Blaise reached out automatically to grab at the waving hand, his hand coming to curl around Luna's thin wrist and he stared at the tickets she had been practically shoving into his face.
"Luna," Blaise began in a patient tone although he couldn't help rolling his eyes. "You only have three tickets here. Last I checked there were at least eight shifters."
Blaise thought he had made a very good point and was therefore surprised when Luna rolled her eyes at him in return.
"I know that, Blaze," Luna said in an uncharacteristically normal voice, although the name she came up for Blaise was a little more toward her loopy side. "Contrary to popular belief I do have a brain and therefore I know how to count."
Okay, so maybe he had forgotten for a moment that Luna had been sorted into the house for brains – it was easy mistake after listening to half the nonsense that came out of her mouth. But that still didn't explain why she only had three tickets when she clearly needed more.
"I believe I will only need three for today," Luna told him after an unnervingly long stretch of silence.
Ah! There was the Loony Lovegood they all knew and loved.
Deciding to drop the matter for now, Blaise allowed Luna to go back to her twirling as the duo continued their mostly silent trek through the forest toward La Push. After a while Blaise started to wonder why they hadn't taken Luna's car, but then realized this was Luna so she probably had some wacked out idea that they'd have a better chance of running into some odd creature if they walked.
Blaise wondered not for the first time how he had ended up in this weird group with this strange girl. Sure, Draco was tolerable when he wasn't acting like a drama queen and whining about some injustice done to him. And Potter was damned powerful so it wasn't that much of a hassle to be one of his followers. But Luna Lovegood . . . ?
Then again, it could be reasoned that his relationship with Neville was odd.
Really though, old House rivalries aside, Neville was probably the coolest person Blaise had ever met. And if anyone ever caught wind of that thought Blaise would cheerfully roast them to death and danced around the fire while laughing hysterically.
But, really, Neville was cool . . . once he grew into his confidence. Actually, although no one really knew, Blaise and Neville had struck up and tentative kind of friendship in sixth year that kind of managed to survive the death of Dumbledore and the Carrows takeover of Hogwarts and only grew stronger after the war. It was astonishingly easy to like the former Gryffindor. He was just so . . . calm and wise, when people took the time to actually talk to him. And all the clumsy bad stuff that happened to him had only proved to make him have a kind of ironic humor.
Blaise was sure that if he had grown up like Neville had he would have been just the slightest bit jaded – or rather in a different way than he was now.
The sound of snarls and growls and snapping jaws drew Blaise's attention and he felt himself shifting before he had even consciously thought about it.
Darting forward, Blaise immediately spotted the source of the sound, two abnormally large wolves fighting in the middle of a clearing. Blaise assumed the wolves were shape-shifters because there was Seth Clearwater, shouting at them to stop and calm down.
Shaking his head at the childishness of it all, Blaise ran into the fray, startling the small grey wolf. Blaise used the shock to knock the larger wolf down and he snapped threateningly at the male's throat.
In the next moment the two were shifting back, revealing a very naked Leah and Paul. Leah darted immediately for the trees, her face a bright red. Paul only shrugged sheepishly into his pants, trying not to notice the way Luna had been casually staring at his naked form.
"What are you guys doing here," he asked with a scowl, folding his muscular arms over his bare chest and trying to look menacing.
"We came to give you invites," Luna sang, twirling around the large male's form. She even trailed her fingers lightly over his bicep, which was about the highest part of him she could reach. Paul's entire body shook and Blaise thought he was going to shift again, but he seemed to control himself.
"Invites," Seth echoed, confusion clear on his face.
"Lovegood, Potter, and Malfoy are in some kind of band and they're doing a performance at the school," Blaise elaborated when it looked like Luna wouldn't. She was now winding her way in between Leah and Paul's body in a figure eight.
"You're injured," Luna suddenly trilled, cutting off whatever Leah had been about to ask. They all turned to look at the small girl who was poking at Paul's elbow. The hulking shape-shifter winced and pulled away and it was then that Blaise noticed that his arm was twisted weirdly and bleeding.
"It's nothing. It'll heal in a little bit," Paul was saying, cradling his arm to his chest. Luna frowned up at him.
"I can guess as much," she said sounding shockingly superior. "However, it still needs to be set properly." She then snapped her fingers impatiently at him until he relented his arm.
Blaise winced at the sound of bones rubbing against each other when Luna re-broke Paul's healing bones and set them properly. Paul just let out aloud hiss as the only sign of pain. Luna then tore off a good chunk of her skirt and created a makeshift sling, sliding Paul's arm carefully into it.
"Are you okay," Seth asked nervously, fluttering around the pair with a concerned expression. Paul waved him off with his good hand.
"I'll be fine. You know that," he told the younger boy with a scowl.
"Yes, you will be now," Luna agreed, her voice picking up its dreamy quality once more. "Although I'm highly fascinated at your healing rate. I wonder why that is? Is it something with the chromosomes, or maybe in the biological make up? I suppose some animals can heal quickly, is that incorporated into your being . . . ?"
Luna trailed off into a mass of medical mumbo-jumbo that Blaise couldn't make heads-nor-tails off, and looking around at the others they didn't have a clue either.
"So . . . about this band," Seth said as a way of changing the subject.
"Right," Blaise said, jumping on the thought. He moved over to the distracted Luna and snagged the tickets from where they were sticking out of her sleeve.
"Here you guys go. It's on Saturday and the winners are probably going to be playing at the Cullen's party so you might as well come to that to."
"I don't think we're invited to the Cullen's," Leah sneered and rolled her eyes at him as if her were some kind of child.
"Whatever," Blaise said, not the least bit affected. "I'm just extending the invite. Come if you want."
With that said, he turned around and began walking away. Luna could follow him if she wanted, he wasn't her nanny.
Neville frowned thoughtfully, his eyes trained intensely on the cup of blood sitting tantalizingly in front of him. Jasper had a hand on his arm, but it wasn't restraining at all, just resting there as a reminder. This trust in him was what had Neville sitting stock still, but his eyes wouldn't move away from that bloody cup. Pun intended.
He was at the Cullen's house, learning about control from Jasper. Carlisle had thought it was a good idea seeing as Jasper was the only one who knew how to deal with newborns, although Neville was a slightly different kind of newborn seeing as he had magic.
"It's all about blocking," Jasper said softly, his voice nice and calming. "You know how everything seems to have increase; you have to focus on the part of your mind that thinks about blood and just . . . block it out. It's kind of like thinking about your favorite food but telling yourself that you don't need it."
"I can do that," Neville murmured, his brows furrowed in concentration.
It was kind of hard to do what Jasper was saying, however, because his mind could think about everything all at once now. And the smell of Bella was all over the house – Neville wouldn't be surprised if he started licking the floors trying to get a taste.
And that cup of blood was just sitting right there. All he had to do was reach out a grab it . . .
"Concentrate Neville," Jasper commanded, no doubt feeling Neville's blood lust rise.
Neville felt his face trying to flush, but since he was no longer living it didn't. It was weird. His mind wanted to do so many things that his body had given up.
"Try replacing the blood with thoughts of a hobby. You like plants right? Try thinking about that," Jasper suggested.
Neville nodded and a small smile found its way onto his lips. He envisioned the cup as a pot of waving Snargaluff. He wondered if Harry had any in his family's greenhouse.
"Very good Neville," Jasper said suddenly, breaking through Neville's thoughts about the plants that could be at Harry's manor. "I think we're done for the day."
Neville nodded, lifted his wand, and vanished the cup before he could give into temptation and drain it. He'd only been a vampire for a week and Jasper swore his control was really good for a newborn, but he still felt on edge. He figured it was a small miracle that Harry, Malfoy, Blaise, and Luna were all magical and therefore didn't smell all that much like Muggles did.
"Thanks for this Jasper," Neville whispered softly to the blonde vampire and he received a crooked smile. Neville just stared at it for a moment. It still surprised him a little whenever he saw Jasper show happiness. When he took in all those scars and given Jasper's past, well . . . he mostly came off a scary. But now Neville knew better. Jasper was really just a very nice person.
He was a bit like Harry actually. They were the same kind of war-worn hero with an insane amount of calm serenity about them. Although being an Empath requires Jasper to have a tight control on his emotions.
"So what do you think about," Neville asked curiously when the silence stretched too long for him. "Or do you just block it out?"
Jasper gave him an amused look and for a moment Neville thought he wasn't going to answer. "I like the world's history, so I think about that."
Neville's brows furrowed at that. He didn't think history was all that interesting, Binns' class had sufficiently steered him away from it. But if he thought about it history could be kind of interesting, like reading a good book.
"Okay," Neville said after a while. "What kind of history?"
"Mostly wars," Jasper admitted a bit sheepishly. "You'd think after living through one I would hate it but how a country reacts during a war . . . well it's always kind of interested me. I think it's mostly the resilience of the country."
"I suppose," Neville said slowly, his mind turning toward the Wizarding War and Hogwarts under siege. Trying to look at it from an outsider's perspective, it really was kind of amazing how they had defeated Voldemort. "Yeah, I can see what you mean. The second war was pretty amazing if you think about it – especially the Battle of Hogwarts."
"The Battle of what," Jasper asked, confusion clear in his voice. Neville jolted a little and turned to look at Jasper with wide eyes. He was panicking a little bit now, wondering if he had let something slip that Harry didn't want known. It wouldn't be the first time he accidently gave away secrets.
"Don't worry about it," Neville told Jasper hastily, jumping to his feet. "Anyways, I should probably go. I left Teddy with Blaise."
Jasper stared blankly after the blonde as he disappeared out the door.
Harry sighed a little in boredom, looking blankly out the window near him as the sound of scribbling pencils filled the air. Finals had arrived and although Harry had been a little nervous at first, after all his Muggle education wasn't all that, it turned out it had been for naught. It was a half a day and he only had three classes, Trigonometry, Music, and Latin – which really it could only count as two classes seeing as Ms. Abel didn't believe music required testing.
Harry sighed again and his thoughts drifted, away from the classroom where everyone else was still working hard on their test – which Harry had finished in record breaking time. He could see Draco in his peripheral, fingers flying away on his cell phone. Harry had been surprised at first when Draco had requested one, and then even more surprised when Draco had demanded that Harry teach him how to use it. But nothing was more shocking the watching the pureblood text like no tomorrow, and he had been doing it for days. Harry really wanted to know who the ex-Slytherin was texting, but he didn't ask because he knew the Malfoy would snap at him.
Snorting internally, Harry allowed his thoughts to drift away from Draco and his mystery friend. Then landed now on his adorable godson and he wondered how the baby was dealing with being shuffled off onto Blaise and Neville.
It wasn't like Harry wanted to give responsibility to someone else; it was just that he wasn't really supposed to have Teddy in school with him. And the charms he had cast on the school's staff could only hold so long.
It was a little hard though. Teddy was all that Harry had left of both the Black family and the Marauders. And he was still so young; Harry just wanted to be there for every little milestone in his life. Was that too much to ask?
But it wasn't right to cart the boy around with him everywhere. Babies did not belong in school. And really, Harry should get over it because he wasn't Teddy's mother and acting like one was a little embarrassing – as Draco liked to point out.
God, Draco! The blonde had been so insufferable when he had first come to Harry. Harry had to admit that if Luna hadn't been there, he probably would have shut the door in Draco's face as soon as he saw him.
The ringing of the bell sounded loudly through the house and Harry looked away from the stove, where he had been scrambling some eggs for dinner.
"Are you expecting someone," Harry asked curiously, looking over his shoulder at Luna, who was reading the Quibbler. Harry was suddenly struck with a sense of déjà vu, because Luna looked exactly like she had when Harry had first met her on the Hogwarts Express in fifth year – right down to her wand tucked behind her ear and her dangling radish earrings.
"No," she hummed, tilted her head to the side and squinting at someone in the magazine. Harry sighed a little and scrapped the eggs onto a plate. The ringing was getting impatient now, coming out in short burst that suggested the person was pressing it over and over again.
"I'm coming. I'm coming," Harry grumbled as he stalked toward the front door. He pulled out his wand and waved it vaguely at Mrs. Black's portrait before tugging open the heavy door.
And there stood Malfoy, looking sullen and glaring at Harry with hard silver eyes. Without conscious thought Harry started to close the door again, but a pale arm stopped him. Harry looked down to see Luna standing beside him and he gave the girl an irritated look.
"What do you want Malfoy," Harry demanded, crossing his arms over his chest as he turned to look at Malfoy again.
"Are you wearing an apron," Malfoy blurted out, amusement crossing his pointy face. Harry gave him a bland looked and waited patiently. Malfoy sighed after a moment. "Look, I'm not completely sure what's going on," and he sounded so disgruntled to be saying those words, "but something told me to come here. So here I am."
"You're the third," Luna said with a wizened nod, much to the two wizards' confusion. Harry looked questioningly at her but she simply smiled and hummed. Harry growled lowly under his breath and then stood to the side.
"Won't you come in," he asked in a tone that clearly said 'Go away.' Malfoy lifted one brow smoothly before grinning at them in a show of gleaming white teeth.
"Don't mind if I do," he said almost cheerfully and then he pushed his way in, making sure to bump against Harry as he did so. Harry glared angrily at his back.
"There better be a very good explanation for this," Harry muttered lowly to Luna, watching Malfoy as he looked around the hallways with mild interest.
"Oh, it is,' Luna said in a voice coated with amusement. She then skipped forward and tugged Malfoy into the nearest drawing room. It was the same room Harry had pulled her into when she had showed up on his doorstep two weeks before.
Malfoy was sitting tensely on a winged back chair when Harry finally joined them. His hands were clenched into fist on his lap and Harry could practically see his hand twitching for his wand.
"Alright Luna, explain," Harry said, walking over and dropping onto the couch beside the girl. Luna titled her head to the side a little bit before holding her hand out toward Malfoy. The aristocrat stared at it with disgust.
"Hand please," Luna told him when he continued to stare at her small hand like it was going to bite him. "Left one." Malfoy jolted a little at this request and his fists tightened until it looked like his knuckles were trying to break free of the skin.
"Why," he hissed with venom and he was glaring daggers dipped in poison at Luna.
"I need to see your wrist," Luna told him in a soothing voice. Malfoy blinked before slowly extending his arm. Luna grabbed a hold and flipped his arms over. Just at the cuff of his sleeve, Harry could make out the graying ink of the Dark Mark. But that wasn't want made him jolt forward in his seat.
No, what did was the tattooed rune that was inked in silver into Malfoy's skin on the inside of his wrist.
"Wind," Harry muttered and Malfoy stared down at his wrist with clear surprise.
"Where the bloody hell did that come from," he asked, staring at his wrist as if it were someone else's.
"It's probably been there for some time," Luna told him, letting his arm go and sitting back.
"Alright," the Slytherin drawled slowly looked between the two of them. "And what's it got to do with anything?"
"We have something similar," Harry told him reluctantly. Internally he was groaned because he just knew that this stupid thing was now forcing him into Malfoy's company. Could he never get a break?
"We're three fourth of the Wolfe clan," Luna said serenely, twisting her blonde hair around her finger. Malfoy's mouth dropped open with a pop and Harry looked at him with confusion.
"We are not," he said with a sort of reverence. "Great Salazar's polka dotted pants!"
"What's the Wolfe clan," Harry asked, which earned him a familiar Malfoy glare.
"Don't you know anything," Malfoy sneered but he did not explain. Instead he turned his attention back to Luna and asked, "So who's the lead?"
"That would be James," Luna told him vaguely, nodding her head at Harry who was glaring at Malfoy. Malfoy's eyes flicker to Harry and he let out a low groan.
"Great. Just bloody great."
And then Draco had moved in with them, although he had claimed it was only because he thought it was degrading to still be living with his mother at his age. Harry had let him but the weeks that followed had been awkward and strained. Harry supposed the fire had been a bit of a saving grace – well except for the part where the last thing that connected him to Sirius burned to the ground.
The sound of the bell jolted Harry from his thoughts and he scrambled to exit the room with the rest of the students. Draco immediately disappeared off to his next class without so much as a 'see ya' to Harry. Harry stared at the blonde's back before shaking his head and turning to head to the music room.
"Harry?"
An electric shock sprinted down Harry's spine at the voice and he struggled to keep his face neutral as he turned to face Edward. The vampire was walking up to him in all his gorgeous glory and was it so wrong if Harry drooled a little bit?
Shaking his head to get rid of the naughty little imagines creeping across his eyes; Harry pasted on a polite smile and titled his head questioningly.
"Do you mind if we talk for a moment," Edward asked with a small frown. Harry blinked, his smile disappeared as he thought about what kind of things Edward would want to talk to him about. None of them really appealed to him at the moment, to be honest.
"Do we have to do this now," Harry asked with a small hint of panic. He looked around cautiously but they were being mostly ignored as everyone made a mad dash for their next class. Harry supposed it was only finals anxiety that kept people from looking at him curiously, like they had been doing since he had arrived in April.
"It won't take long," Edward insisted.
"We'll talk after school," Harry told him with a tight smile and then turned to leave. Edward wasn't too keen on letting him go though. The vampire grabbed a hold of Harry's arms and pulled him back before pushing his up against the wall.
Harry's body automatically arched upward into Edward's, but then his mind caught up with him and he started sliding away from the older teen. Edward rolled his eyes in exasperation before lifting his arms and settling them on either side of Harry, effectively caging him in.
"Are we really going to do this here of all places," Harry demanded with a hiss when he realized that escape wasn't really an option. Edward smiled down at him for a moment before chuckling and shaking his head.
"I'm not trying to do anything Harry," he practically purred. At least it sounded that way to Harry, and his mind fogged up for a moment. "I just want to talk to you. You're being unnecessarily stubborn."
"I'm not," Harry snapped irritably before he it occurred to him that maybe he was being a little bit stubborn. Sighing, Harry leaned back against the wall and stared determinedly at Edward's jaw – because really, if he stared into Edward's eyes he was likely to do something that would have the whole school buzzing for days.
"Alright, I'm listening."
"Thank you," Edward said softly. Harry's eyes flickered upward to his for a second before dropping back to Edward's jaw. The vampire smiled a little before leaning back to give Harry more space.
"So whats this thing you want to talk to me about," Harry asked when Edward just stood there for a moment just staring at him. Edward blinked before turning his head away and Harry imagined that he was blushing. It was adorable.
"I was actually wondering," Edward started haltingly, and he lifted his hand to run his fingers through his hair. Harry's eyes followed the movement and he wished it was his fingers running through Edward's hair.
"Will you go out with me?"
Harry blinked in confusion at Edward's blurted question. It took a moment to register in his head and for a moment he simply gapped at the vampire. Edward was giving him a nervous smile and he looked so hopeful.
"What do you mean go out," Harry asked numbly, still trying to restart his brain.
"Well, on a date," Edward told him slowly, his eyes practically glowing with that hope now that Harry didn't immediately turn him down. "You said you don't really know me so I thought a date would be appropriate."
"I . . ." Harry frowned a little in thought, his mind churning slowly now. It wasn't a bad idea when he thought about it. And he'd never really been on a date before . . . okay there was that thing with Cho Chang, but he liked to not think about that really.
"Okay," Harry finally said with a small smile.
"Really," Edward breathed and was it wrong for Harry to think that he looked like a kid in a candy store? Harry nodded and Edward beamed brightly. "Alright. Tomorrow."
"Sure. I'll meet you at your house," Harry agreed with a smile tugging at his lips.
"No this has to be a proper date. And since I asked you, you have to let me pick you up at your house." Harry was outright smiling now, but this time it was because of humor.
"That's kind of a tall order and a little bit impossible," Harry told Edward, that amusement slipping into his voice. "You're likely to get lost for days."
"What are you talking about?"
"I have wards up around my property, Edward," Harry said slowly and tried not to notice the shiver that went through him when he said the vampire's name. "They keep out everyone but those who live there."
"Oh," Edward said blankly and he looked a little disappointed.
"How about you pick me up at the property line," Harry suggested, but only because he kind of owed Edward some leeway.
Right, keep lying to yourself Potter.
"Okay. Tomorrow at eight," Edward said and Harry was pretty sure the sun was cringing away from the brilliance of Edward's smile. Shaking his head to clear the daze, Harry turned and walked away. And if he had a little bounce in his step, it was only because he loved music.
Draco drove his car toward La Push with a recklessness that would have scared Harry, but to him it was exhilarating. Sometimes he wondered if he had a thing for speed, but he never really put too much thought into it.
There was music blasting from the radio, not anything Draco was familiar with but the beat was nice and pulsing. He was grinning a little too brightly as he navigated the winding roads of the Indian Reservation. And then he pulled to a tire-squealing stop in Jacob's driveway.
Jacob was standing in the doorway by the time Draco had exited his beautiful car. Draco lifted his hand in a wave as he approached slowly. The grin that stretched his lips shrunk a little when he caught sight of Jacob's face however.
Jacob looked very much like an Inferi. His face was drawn and there were huge bags under his eyes. Even his smile seemed a little too . . . wrong.
"Hey Draco," Jacob called cheerfully, but his voice dragged slowly.
"You look like hell," Draco observed with a frown. Jacob shrugged and shuffled out of the way so that Draco could entire the small house.
"I'm just tired." Draco eyed him, taking in his shaggy hair and bedraggled appearance. Jacob yawned widely and his shoulders sagged a little, but he still managed to ask, "What do you wanna do?"
"I'm fine here," Draco told him, and he guided Jacob over to the couch when it looked like he might kill over. "You look like you could use a kip anyways."
"Sure, sure," Jacob said dismissively and he collapsed onto the couch, leaving only that tiny space for Draco. Draco snuggled down into it anyways and turned to watch as Jacob flicked on that little Muggle device that showed pictures or whatever.
"You haven't been sleeping much, have you," Draco said in a scolding tone.
"Not really," Jacob admitted with a sheepish smile and then he let out another one of his face splitting yawn.
"Why not?"
"Well Sam's being a little stupid," the shape-shifted muttered, making a face at the words. "He doesn't trust the bloodsuckers. I've been running double shifted for two weeks and nobody's touched me yet, but he still doesn't buy it." Jacob snorted at the end and rolled his eyes.
"That's not a good quality in a leader," Draco said dryly, although he might be slightly biased seeing as Harry was a pretty one of a kind leader. "But you can stop worrying so much. Harry has probably put up a multitude of wards around Swan's house and that was probably before he knew Swan was in danger."
"Wards," Jacob asked curiously, tilting his head down a little bit.
"Yeah," Draco said with a nod. "Think of it like a huge shield. Anything unknown vampire that comes within a two mile radius of Swan's house will trigger a silent alarm and Harry will know about it."
"Huh. That sounded cool." Draco shrugged and settled down more comfortably in the chair. The little picture box was playing some weird animation with a talking sponge. Draco's nose wrinkled at the nonsense Muggles could come up with.
"So, any special plans next week," Jacob asked after a moment of silence. "You're graduating, right? How's that feel?"
"It's nothing specially," Draco said with a roll of his eyes. "Technically I've already graduated, but Harry wanted us to do this Muggle school business."
"What," Jacob said with an incrudious look. "You've already finished school only to come here and . . . do more school?" Draco frowned thoughtfully.
"When you put it that way it sounds absolutely horrid." Jacob snorted. "Speaking of school, however, there's something I want to give you." Jacob sat forward now, his face alight with excitement and curiosity. Draco thought he looked suitably like a puppy.
"What is it," Jacob asked. Draco smiled bemusedly at his excitement before pulling out a single ticket. It was wrinkled a little from where it had been jammed into his pocket. "What is this," Jacob asked again looking at the ticket with confusion. "Fork High Talent Competition?"
"Yes," Draco was with a sigh of faked suffering. "Harry had me in some band and we're supposed to be playing."
"You're in a band," Jacob asked in shock, his eyes moving up to Draco's face. The blonde was blushing a little now although he hoped Jacob wouldn't notice. "That's so cool. So you guys are performing? And you want me to come?"
Draco nodded dumbly, his mind trying to process Jacob's words. Was the shape-shifter actually happy that he was in a band? Well that was certainly new for him.
"Of course I'll come," Jacob said genially. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."
An unknown feeling swept through Draco then, leaving his body buzzing pleasantly and his eyes softening uncharacteristically. It took him a moment to place a name of the emotion sweeping through him, and when he did he wondered what the bloody hell was wrong with Harry. If this was what being with one's destined felt like, Draco couldn't understand why Harry was constantly trying to avoid Cullen.
"Come on," Jacob suddenly said, jumping up in a move that startled Draco. The blonde blinked before allowing the shape shifter to pull him to his feet. Even then Jacob didn't let go of his hand and he pulled the aristocrat from the small house.
"Where are you dragging me off to," Draco demanded after a moment of being pulled through the La Push woods at a rapid pace.
"I promised to bring you to Emily's the next time you came around, remember?" Draco vaguely recalled a text about that. "And the pack want to officially meet you or whatever."
"What's that supposed to mean," Draco mumbled as Jacob slowed to a casual walk. "I've already been introduced to them." Jacob looked suddenly sheepish and he rubbed at the back of his head.
"Well not really," he said lowly. "Our pack's bigger now than ever before and we've been trying to keep it from the Cullens so not everyone was at the bonfire." Draco arched a brow at that but said nothing on the matter.
The two had broken through the trees now and came up in front of a small wooden house, about the same size as the Black household. Draco was starting to think all the homes in La Push were built this small. But the size of the house was about as far as the resemblance went. This house looked more cared for than Jacob's and Draco could tell that a woman lived here – or at least someone who liked to garden. The only window at the front of the house had a flowerbox that was filled with orange and yellow marigolds. They waved cheerfully at Draco as if beckoning him closer.
Draco followed Jacob up the one step and through the door, looking around curiously. Just inside the doorway, however, he just barely managed to keep from plowing right into Jacob when the younger teen suddenly jerked to a stop. The blonde peered curiously at the shocked horror plastered on Jacob's russet face before following the teen's gaze to the kitchen area.
It took him only a second to really register what he was seeing and he almost burst into laughter. Jacob's entire body jerked suddenly and the Quileute lifted his hand and slapped it over his eyes. He then pivoted around to make a quick escape but instead ran right into the corner of the way that separated the kitchen from the living room.
Draco honestly thought the entire house shook at the force of the collision and he watched with clear amusement as the two in the kitchen sprang apart as if suddenly realizing that they were there.
Jacob was cursing lowly under his breath and banging his head repeatedly against the wall. Seth blushed furiously and started patting himself down and rearranging his clothes so that he didn't look so ruffled. Paul simply shrugged and leaned back against the cabinet, not looking the least bit concerned that he had just been caught snogging the bloody hell out of Seth.
"What the fuck," Jacob suddenly shouted and he whirled around to fact the two members of his pack. His own face was still flushed with embarrassment at having caught the two in the act. "When the hell did this happen?"
"I . . . we . . . it was . . . I," Seth stammered, his gaze planted firmly on his feet as he shifted uncomfortably.
"We're imprints," Paul grumbled with a wide grin.
Jacob blinked, staring in between the two and not knowing what to say.
Okay . . . so I purposely mislead you about the whole Harry/Edward front. Had you worried for a second there, didn't I? Anyways, next chapter should show Harry's date and the competition and maybe graduation. Idk. But be prepared. The newborn battle is coming soon and then we can move past it. I'm sure you're all excited for that.
Reviews remind me to write. Hint, hint. Nudge, nudge.