A/N: This chapter is based off the first part of chapter 2: Learning, from the original version of this story. I've decided to split the chapter into two because the flow of my writing has very much changed and I didn't want this chapter to end up feeling bogged down.
A/N 2: I've changed Harrison's name to Hayden and Daisy's name to Marigold, since I felt the more middle English and traditional names suited the characters and tone of the story. Sorry if the change was a little jarring
Chapter 6: Taking ResponsibilityBetween November to January, Haydon saw the writing on the wall. Petunia stopped taking Marigold outside of the house for any reason, the daily baths became once a week, nappy changing and feeding become a thrice a day event, and there was no playtime interaction between Marigold and her parents.
Vernon took to taking Dudley out for Saturday 'father and son' days so that he had an excuse to be out of the house and away from the daughter he refused to call his own. Petunia took back up her social engagements that had her attending the houses of various up and coming women in the neighbourhood – events that silently discouraged the bringing of an infant.
Most nights, Vernon and Petunia would get into a hissing argument with each other, trying to decide what to do about Marigold. They hadn't been happy to take Haydon into their home, but to keep two freaks under their roof? It was only the blood connection and the opinion of the neighbours stopping them from outright dropping Marigold off at an orphanage, with Haydon at her side they could help it.
Harry watched, waited and planned.
Finally, at the start of February – eight months after Marigold was born and three months since Marigold had displayed signs of magic – the Dursleys came to a decision.
Haydon had taken to spending an hour after school at the library, trying to earn just a little more money, so he didn't make it home until 4:15. Normally, he'd drop his ratty school bag in the cupboard and go straight to the fridge where his chore list would have been posted so he knew what he needed to prioritise around dinner (what he was to make for dinner was also on the list, and different meals took him different amounts of times to prep and make).
On entering the kitchen, he was stopped short by Petunia who was stood in the middle of the room with her arms crossed – she'd been waiting for him.
"Take all your things, put them in the nursery and then wait for me." Petunia ordered sharply before striding out of the room, not waiting around to see if Haydon would dare and ask any questions.
Silently, Haydon disappeared into his cupboard and started emptying the staircase into his mother's bag. He only took half the food and water he stored encase this change wasn't permanent or he got locked in the cupboard as punishment for one reason or another. Vernon had gotten very unpredictable and he couldn't afford to be reckless with his decisions.
Before leaving his cupboard, Haydon made sure to pick up his school bag. It had his homework – which he would complete twice, once to the standard expected of him and once to his own expectations – as well as the books that he'd taken out of the library before coming home. As he wasn't in the same class as Dudley, the Dursleys didn't care about what was in his bag, so he was able to bring books home without fear of them being destroyed as long as he kept them hidden in his room.
Placing his bags in the empty corner of the room, Haydon went over to the crip where Marigold was sleeping peacefully with a tight grip on the wolf plushie.
Likely having heard him go up the stairs, as he'd made no attempt to hide his steps, Petunia entered the nursery less then a minute later with a frown on her face. Haydon placed his back to the crib and silently watched his aunt pace before the door.
"It's all your fault," Petunia stopped briefly in her pacing to glare venomously at Hayden before she started pacing once more and ranting.
"Marigold was supposed to be my perfect baby girl just like Dudley – she was going to make my family complete and everything I ever wanted. But you! You just had to go and ruin everything, just like your freak of a mother!" Petunia slashed her hand violently through the air.
"I knew; I knew when I took you in that you were going to be just as abnormal, just as freaky as she was. I knew it could be dangerous! It was because of your freak mother that my parents were killed! But we never imagined… never thought…" Petunia paused, struggling to get the words out passed her anger and grief. "We never thought that being around such a bizarre and abnormal creature such as you would affect my precious little girl and take her from me. It's your fault that she's… that she's a freak."
Petunia stopped, drawing herself up taught with a glare on her face and resolution in her posture. "Now, she's your responsibility."
"What?"
Hayden had known that the Dursleys had been planning something as they distanced themselves from Marigold, and his instincts had been flaring for months now, but he didn't think for a single moment that they were just going to give Marigold to him. She was their daughter, their blood and flesh! No matter how twisted their thoughts were about Hayden and his mother and their magic, he had never thought they'd be able to severe their connection to Marigold. They'd loved her; for months they had loved and cared for her before they learnt about her magic.
"You will completely responsible for all her needs: changing, feeding, bathing, speech, toilet training… everything. I will not lift a finger to help her anymore, nor will my husband or son. We will not expose ourselves to your freakishness anymore then we already have been!" Petunia sneered in disgust as she verbally distanced herself from her daughter. No longer was she using 'my daughter', 'my baby' or some variation of 'Marigold', instead it was all 'she' and 'her'.
"Vernon and I will not be responsible for paying for anything either of you need! You are enough of a burden as it is without taking money from our pockets and Duddikins future."
Hayden frowned at this blow. The Dursleys weren't fond of spending money on him, which was why everything he owned, from his clothes to his school bag and books were hand-me-downs from Dudley. The food he was 'allowed' to eat was left over scraps from the Dursley's dining table, and Marigold couldn't eat those scraps because she was too young…
His library 'job' allowed him to earn £1.50 for every hour that he worked, but he was only able to work for three of his lunch times and four of his break times (a lunch being an hour and a break being fifteen minutes), on top of the hour he worked after school four afternoons a week and the five hours he worked on Saturday. That was £19.50 each week for 42 weeks of the year (since he was planning on working more hours over the holidays, like he'd managed to do during the October and Christmas half-terms).
He would dip into the money that his mother and father had left with him if he needed to, but the Dursleys didn't know about that money and baby food and dippers were expensive. Once Marigold was older, he might be able to stretch £20 a week to cover Marigold's expenses, but not until she was at least two and that sixteen long months away.
"If you expect me to pay for Mari's expenses, then you need to let met work for two hours after school each day and for six hours on a Saturday." Hayden noticed that his use of Marigold's nickname caused Petunia's eyes to tighten in anger and pain.
Hayden frowned thoughtfully as he thought over the longest that he thought he could be away from Marigold without there being major problems. He was going to have to get her into a nursery or toddler group as soon as possible so she wasn't left along for up to eight hours on a weekday.
If he kept the same break and lunch times, adding the extra hour on after school plus the extra day, and another hour on his Saturdays then he could earn £25.50 a week which would be easier for him to work with – especially since he hadn't actually spent any of the money that he'd earned since he'd started working at the library and so could use his own savings before he touched what his parents had given him.
"I will also need you to sign paperwork getting Mari into a toddler group or nursery, which will get her out of the house for several hours." Hayden requested before Petunia could say anything about his extra hours out of the house and not doing chores.
Petunia gave him a dark look of loathing and absolute hatred.
"And why would I do that?" she hissed.
"Because the neighbours will get suspicious if they can hear Mari crying at all hours, knowing that you are home and not doing anything about it." Hayden knew well that the Dursleys were very socially ware.
Petunia's lips thinned and her eyes narrowed at him before she nodded. "You will not work Sundays; your chores will be completed on time and to the standards that I expect. I will not allow sloppiness! I will sign her up for as many hours at a nursery as I can, but you will have to drop her off and pick her up."
Without waiting for Hayden to say or think of anything else, she turned and marched out of the room – slamming the door behind her.
The sound startled Marigold awake with a fierce and loud scream that swiftly developed into a cry.
Supressing his own emotions for the minute, Hayden turned and picked Marigold up with a soft smile.
"Hay, what's all that noise for, huh?" Hayden asked softly as he held Marigold close in his arms.
The first times he'd picked her up, it had startled Marigold into silence because she knew that his arms were not the ones that normally picked her up. But that had been back when the Dursleys first started ignoring her and she's grown familiar with his arms and scent.
Making sure that he was supporting Marigold's head and neck with his hand and that her body weight was supported through his arms and chest – holding her close to his body so that his body was offering support as well as his arms which were thin and small making him endlessly worried about dropping her. With smooth movement so as to not jar his precious cargo, Hayden started walking back and forward across the open space of the nursery.
The first time he'd done this, picked her up to comfort her, he'd been absolutely terrified of accidently hurting or dropping her, but it had gotten easier in the last few months even if he was paranoid about something going wrong because he wasn't careful enough. If he was not going to be Marigolds full time career, he was going to have to get over any of the fear, hesitance or anxiety he might till have around her and he was going to have to get over it fast.
After a minute of walking around, it became clear that Marigold had wound herself up to be calmed for easily so he started singing softly.
Heart beats fast
Colours and promises
How to be brace?
How can I love when I'm afraid to fall?
But watching you stand alone
All of my doubt suddenly goes away, somehow…
Hayden knew that no matter what, there wasn't going to be enough hours in the day for him to look after Marigold, complete the excessive number of chores that was expected of him each day, plus the washing and care of Marigolds clothes which she went through quicker than even Dudley and still work the hours he needed to so as to be able to afford Marigold's care.
One step closer
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more
Then off course, if Petunia did keep to her word and get Marigold into a toddler group or nursery, there was going to be the logistics of getting her there and picking her up. It's probably that he'll end up being late to school each day because he knew that Petunia wasn't going to pay to get Marigold into the early morning/breakfast club. Hopefully, Petunia will be able to get Marigold a full day at the toddler/nursery group, otherwise he would have to also leave school early to pick her up. As it is, it's likely he'll have to pick her up and then go to the library for his two hours of work before returning home.
Time stands still
Beauty in all she is
I will be brave
I will not let anything take away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath
Every hour has come to this
One step closer
There was also going to be another problem – Vernon. The obese man had been getting more and more violent in the last months as he argued with his wife about what to do with Marigold. Hayden knew, now that the decision had been made to wipe their hands of their daughter, he was going to start taking punishments for Marigold's crying and for the times when Hayden would be forced to use the laundry room or something in the kitchen for her. He would take those punishments too, because Marigold was an innocent baby and someone he was determined to protect now that she was his.
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more
Vernon would also have more reason to punish him then he ever had before because there was no way that Hayden was going to be able to complete his chore list, and definitely not to Petunia's exacting standers.
And all along I believe I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more
One step closer
One step closer
Hayden knew from reading his parent's diaries that raising a child isn't going to be easy. He was going to have to help teach her how to speak, something he didn't do regularly and was going to have to change when he was with her. He was also going to have to teach her how to go to the potty. Hopefully, being at a nursery would give her socialising skills and also help with her speech.
I have died everyday waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid I have loved you
For a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand more
He was also going to have to teach her how to control her magic once she was old enough to understand. He would follow his father's warnings and not teach her Occlumency until she was nine, but he could teach her meditation from as young as three and control from the age of five. Until then though, he was going to have to take the punishments that would inevitably come from her emotional based use of magic because he refused to allow her to grow up with the supressed emotions that he existed with.
And all along I believe I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me
I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand mores.
Hayden finished the third repetition in relief as Marigold's heavy eyes finished closing as she slipped back into sleep. She'd stopped crying during his second repetition of the song but had stubbornly remained awake into his third song since she missed interacting with people.
As he laid her back into her crib, Hayden hoped that she was sleep for a little while longer as he had a lot that he needed to get done before Vernon got home.
New Count: 2677
Old Count: 1115
A/N: This word count is based on the part of chapter four that I've used instead of the entirety of chapter four. Didn't make any sense to use the word count for the whole chapter when I've not actually used the whole chapter.
A/N: The song included in this chapter is 'A Thousand Years' by Christina Peri. I'd thought about swopping it out for a lullaby, but I couldn't find a good source for a lullaby in its entirety that fitted the same meaning that I'd been going for.