Disclaimer: You know the drill i own none of it... Just the plot and the Johnston's and the lady in the chapter before this one...

The Beginning of Normalcy

Chapter 4

Starting a New Life

Harry ended up in a nicely furnished room. The pieces of furniture didn't match exactly, but they went well together and gave the room a homey feel. The walls were a normal off white with several portraits and pictures hanging on them.

Harry was actually able to make somewhat of a smooth landing. He didn't land on his butt and he didn't land on anything, but he almost stumbled into the couch with shock at his good landing. Three people had been sitting on the couch talking when he arrived, but when they noticed his presence they stood up.

"Hello. You must be Ryan Hansen. I am Mark Johnston and this is my wife Sarah and our daughter, Charlotte." Said a man of medium height and build with dark eyes and dark slightly graying hair stepping forward and holding out his hand for Harry to shake. Harry took it and glanced at the rooms other occupants. The lady Mark had introduced as his wife, Sarah, had light brown hair and green eyes and was slightly shorter than her husband. Charlotte was a little bit on the short side for a fifth year, but was pretty enough with her mom's light brown hair and her dad's dark brown eyes. Harry recognized her from Hogwart's and nervously reached up to flatten his hair. Harry remembered with his hand halfway to his head that he didn't have to hide his scar anymore and raked his fingers through his hair instead.

"You must be ready to put your trunk and cage down and settle in. Sarah will show you to your room and Charlotte might give you a tour after dinner if you want. I'll help you with your trunk. Oh and you can call us Mark and Sarah, none of that Mr. Johnston stuff or you'll make me feel old." Said Mark coming over to help Harry with his trunk. Sarah smiled gently at him and lead the way out of the living room up the stairs, down a hall and into a room.

"Sorry, this room is one of our guest rooms, so it probably isn't decorated to your liking. Just tell me what you want and I can get it for you." Said Sarah with another small smile as she opened the door. Harry stepped in and looked around. The room was twice as big as his room at Privet Drive. The bed sheets and hangings were a deep blue while the walls were a light sky blue with white trim. The desk, chair, bed, and wardrobe were all made of a dark wood. On either side of the bed were large windows that had an excellent view of the back yard. Out the window Harry could see Quidditch hoops at the opposite end of the yard.

"Is this a wizarding community? Or do the muggles just think you lot a tad strange?" asked Harry grinning a bit as he said the last part.

"Yes, this is a wizarding community. There are no towns for at least two hundred kilometers, so we are able to fly as high as we want." Said Charlotte poking her head into the room. "What a gorgeous falcon!" she said spying the bird in the cage for the first time. Charlotte squeezed by her mom to get a closer look at the bird. "What's it's name?" At this she stopped her chatter and looked at Harry expectantly. Harry seemed to freeze. He hadn't even given one thought to the bird's name.

"She was your parent's bird, wasn't she?" said Charlotte. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to."

"That's okay." Said Harry pausing to think before continuing. "Her name is Rose."

"What a pretty name!"

"Come on, Charlotte. Let's leave Ryan to get settled." Said Sarah coming up behind Charlotte and putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Okay. See you later, Ryan." Said Charlotte waving and walking out of the room followed by her mom.

"Let us know if you need anything. Dinner will be ready in about 45 minutes. Charlotte will show you where the kitchen is." Said Mark before walking out the door.

Harrys nodded and turned back to his now normal sized trunk. He sighed. That was a close one. Fortunately, Charlotte had taken his hesitation to be because the bird was his parent's. Harry wondered how many more close calls he'd have before this was all over. He sighed again as he started putting his things in the wardrobe. He'd have to leave some of his stuff in his trunk like the Marauder's map and his invisibility cloak, but most of the rest could come out. His birthday gifts would also have to stay in his trunk, especially since Ginny was Charlotte's friend and could stop over any day. As Harry was putting up the last few articles of clothing, he suddenly remembered that the Marauder's Map showed who a person really was and it would be able to show someone who got a hold of it that Ryan was really Harry. I'll check it out the next time I go to Hogwart's, thought Harry stroking Rose absentmindedly.

"Ryan, dinner is ready. Mum sent me up to show you where the kitchen is." Said Charlotte from the door. Harry nodded and got off his bed. "Let's go then and I can show you where some things are on the way there."

The walk to the kitchen wasn't long, but Charlotte kept up a steady stream of chatter that only called for the occasional nod or shrug from Harry. Harry was grateful that Charlotte seemed to be the talkative type of person who didn't ask many questions.

When they finally reached the kitchen, Charlotte stopped chattering and sat down in a seat. Harry took the only available seat across from Charlotte. On the table were steaming plates of ham, broccoli, potatoes, and Yorkshire pudding. (It's not actually pudding just bread.) There was also two small dishes. One looked to be filled with gravy and the other with white sauce.

"Would you like some broccoli, Ryan?" asked Sarah holding out a bowl of broccoli.

"Yes, please." Said Harry taking the bowl from her and putting three pieces on his plate along with a slice of ham, some of the white sauce and a piece of Yorkshire pudding.

"So, Ryan, when do your private lessons start?" asked Mark about halfway through the meal.

"Tomorrow. Am I leaving by portkey or floo?" said Harry taking another bite of ham.

"Floo. It's easier than portkey." Said Mark. "Do you know what you'll be learning tomorrow?"

"No, I don't." said Harry.

"Dad, can I get a new broom?" asked Charlotte suddenly. Sarah and Mark exchanged a glance.

"We'll see. Why do you want one anyways, honey?" said Sarah.

"I want to try out for the team this year. I think there's beater openings, a seeker opening and maybe a chaser." Said Charlotte. "I'd really like to be a chaser, but if not a chaser than maybe seeker. Do you play , Ryan?"

"Of course! I normally play seeker when my friends and I played, but I've tried chaser before."

"Really? How did that go?"

"Well, let's just say I'm a better seeker than chaser." Said Harry smiling wryly. Harry hated lying like this, but he knew he had to. He had never tried to play chaser before, but this was a good way to tell them that he was a seeker, not a chaser or beater.

"Maybe tomorrow after you get back we can play a game."

"We only have two people. It'd be a tad bit impossible." Said Harry. Harry had an idea of what Charlotte was going to say to this but he didn't expect part of what she said.

"Oh well, some of my friends would be more than happy to play and Ginny is coming over tomorrow. I'm sure Fred and George would love to play beater for us. I'm sure Ron and Hermione would play too. Ginny says that they're going out now." At this Harry cut her off.

"Really? Harry's two best friends going out?" he said in mock disbelief.

"Yes, Ginny said that the three of them had been waiting for Harry to come over for like the last month of summer, but he never came. Then the next day they found out he was dead. Their parents didn't tell them though, Dumbledore gave them a letter. Ginny wouldn't tell me what was it said though." Charlotte trailed off looking thoughtful. About ten seconds later, she shook her head and continued. "Somehow, they got together while grieving Harry. I don't exactly know how, but they did. Hermione also never plays but Ginny says that Ron has been teaching her and she's actually a pretty good chaser."

"Wow." Said Harry putting down his fork and knife. He could get used to eating as much as he wanted. At the Dursley's, he had never gotten to eat like this. This was partly why he was so small for his age.

"Well, I think it's time for you two to get to bed." Said Mark.

"Yes, especially you, Ryan. Dumbledore warned us that you'd need your sleep and would probably come back exhausted." Said Sarah. Harry nodded and Charlotte groaned, but the two got up from the table and started towards the door.

"One thing before you two go. You can't tell anyone that Ryan is having special training. If anyone asks you are to tell them that the teachers need to make sure that he is up to the sixth year level." Said Mark. Again Harry nodded.

"Charlotte? You can't even tell Ginny." Said Sarah.

"Why not?" groaned Charlotte. "She's my best friend!"

"Because it's a secret." Said Mark a bit sternly.

"Fine, but she'll probably find out." Said Charlotte heading out of the room. Harry followed her lead and went to his room. He was a bit nervous about his training especially since Sarah had said that he'd come back exhausted. He was also nervous about playing Quidditch with Ron, Hermione, Fred and George. They knew his flying style and his broom. There was no way to change his flying style and he wouldn't be able to get a new broom anytime soon. I'll just have to not do any Wronski Feints or anything like that and hope for the best, thought Harry as he got ready for bed.Though it wouldn't be too bad after they killed me if they found out.

Harry got into to bed and fell asleep almost immediately.

school's started so i can't update as often... maybe once every other week or so

anyways thanks to all my reviewers i'll try to fix those mistakes soon... This has to be the worst written fic i've written...