A Fork in the Road

Disclaimer: I own neither Twilight nor Harry Potter. All recognisable characters, content or locations belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Summary: After the war, Harry travels to America in search of a fresh start. What he gets is a coven of vampires, a growing pack of shape-shifting locals and a muggle who's self-preservation is as questionable as his own. AU.

Rating: M for language, mild adult themes and violence.

Author: tlyxor1.

Chapter One:

Forks High School had nothing on Hogwarts, though he'd not expected it to. The students were probably just as nosy though, but he didn't really like to think about that. Gossip made him think of Lavender Brown, her beauty now tarnished by the ravages of Fenrir Greyback and her enthusiasm tempered by the horrors they'd all seen. Then again, there were a lot of things he didn't like to think about.

With a sigh, he straightened up from his place against his SUV, ruffled his hair and made his way into his English building. After Hogwarts, it had been far too easy to navigate this place and so he made it to his first period class without difficulty. He hung his windbreaker alongside all of the other students, handed over the slip his teacher needed to sign and once it was returned, he settled himself in an available seat without ado. His new peers - innocent, untarnished by the horrors of war and likely to stay that way - eyed him curiously, girls enchanted, boys envious, but regardless far more attention than Harry preferred.

It was inevitable though. Even with a childhood of relatives that battered at his self-esteem, Harry couldn't deny it. He'd been blessed with the best of both his parents and admiration - or whatever it was - had been expected. Perhaps arrogant of him to believe, but the truth regardless.

"So my name's Jane." He glanced at the girl: tall and willowy, with dark tresses and a tan complexion. A rarity in Forks, though it fit her. "Welcome to Forks. What's your name?"

"Haden," he answered. his Welsh name came easily to him, preferred over his magical 'Hadrian'. "Haden Potter."

"Not from around here, I see," she commented, "Britain somewhere? Those accents all sound the same to me."

"Wales," he confirmed. "Have you lived here for your whole life?"

"Pretty much," she replied, "It's all I remember anyway. My family actually lived in Boston until I was four. I plan to move back after graduation. There's a place for me at MIT - I just know it."

"Good luck to you then," he replied, "Big cities are a huge adjustment from small towns."

"Speaking from personal experience?"

"Wouldn't talk about something I don't know. As it is, I moved to London from a village called Little Whinging. The tube was a bugger to work out."

Before the conversation could continue further, the teacher called the class to order. She spent ten minutes welcoming everyone back for the school year and explaining the syllabus and such things. By the time she was done, Harry had lost interest, content to stare blankly at the whiteboard while the minutes passed. He'd kept up with his non-magical education during summer holidays alongside Hermione, but he'd not realised just how boring sitting in a class talking about books would be. Hopefully, Chemistry would at least let him blow things up. Then again, perhaps that wasn't the best idea. It would no doubt trigger some awful memories that were better off just being forgotten alongside the rest of them.

"So what's your favourite subject?" Jane queried, once the class was over and they were heading towards their next one. Evidently, they shared all of the same ones.

"I'd like to be a doctor," Harry answered, "So the Sciences, I suppose."

"A doctor? So you're smart, then?"

"Do I look stupid?" He queried, not really offended. She laughed when she caught sight of his smile but shook her head, no.

"You just don't seem interested in school," she explained. "Didn't think you'd want to be in school for another eight years or so."

"I'd like to heal people. Make their lives better." He'd been inspired by Madam Pomfrey, who'd worked tirelessly to pull him back together after every one of his adventures, accidents and quidditch injuries. Also, if he could mend and save lives, than maybe he wouldn't be so haunted by the past he was trying to leave behind.

"That's admirable," she smiled, "I'd like to be a technical analyst."

"Sounds nerdy," he answered. In response, she shoved him gently. He laughed and afterwards, he was surprised how easily the laugh had come to him.

They reached their Maths class and so the morning continued. By Lunch time, he'd grown rather fond of Jane and in return, the brunette had insisted Harry join her in the cafeteria, with her friends there. He'd been itching for a cigarette, but regardless, he acquiesced and followed her to the lunch room. It was already full with gathering students, but Harry was more curious about the institutional feel in the place. It was much like the rest of the school in that sense, but it was nothing like he was used to from Hogwarts.

"So what was your old school like?" Jane queried, tray in hand. Harry followed her lead.

"It was a boarding school," he answered. "It's called Heartwood, located in a restored castle in the Scottish highlands. Pretty exclusive, though I'd been slated to attend since I was a baby."

"Did you like it?"

Harry shrugged, his memories of good times tarnished by those of their malignant counterparts. "I loved and hated it."

"I guess that's school," Jane acknowledged. She guided him towards a table at which a strange variety of teenagers had already gathered. "I can't wait to leave here, though I think I'll miss the familiarity of mandatory schooling. So Haden, these are my friends: Anna, Charlotte, Christopher and Joey. Everyone, this is Haden."

"No wonder why you ditched us for him in class today," Joey commented, "Boy, you're cute. Chance you're gay?"

"Sorry," Harry answered, "Been there, tried that, established I like sex of the hetero persuasion."

"Don't mind Joey. He likes anything with a penis. Take a seat - we don't bite."

Anna, with her blonde hair and pale blue eyes made him picture Luna, with her magical creatures and unwavering faith. She was travelling Europe with Neville while they sought out curious plants or creatures. It was their own coping mechanism and Harry hoped they were well.

"Each to their own," Harry answered with a shrug. He deposited his tray on the table and settled in a chair beside Christopher, content to observe the group chatter on while he ate his way through the artificial crap that was called 'lunch'. It would probably be best if he prepared his own lunches from now on.

"Do you like Forks?" Charlotte queried. She was a girl with hair like fire and eyes like the sky, but she lacked the freckles of the Weasley clan and her cheeks were accented by two deep dimples.

"I can't complain," he answered truthfully, "Though I'm honestly astounded that I've found a place that rains more than it does at home."

"Where's home?" Christopher queried. He had dark hair and darker eyes, skin the colour of iced coffee. Harry could guess he was part Quileute - the nearest Indian reservation - but he could also be wrong. There was really no way of saying without having the bloke confirm it, after all.

"Let's just say Britain. There are a few places there I'd call home."

"What's Britain like?" Joey queried, "I've never been out of Washington."

"Depends where you are," Harry answered, "My old school was quiet and isolated, but with rolling hills and farmland, the landscape was sensational." The place I was born - a tiny village in Wales - is very cozy, where everyone knows everyone and their pet dogs. The place I grew up - a town called Little Whinging - was full of pretentious snobs whose only ambitions in life were to be better than all of the other middle-class pretentious snobs they called neighbours. London itself is crowded and smells, but it's also very multi-cultural and you can find something new every day. My best friend and I spent our summers exploring the city and they were some of the best times of my life."

"You seem so worldly, you know?" Joey commented, "I don't know what it is about you, but I feel like you've seen and experienced a lot."

"You've got good observational skills," Harry complimented, "You're right though. I've seen and done a lot. I've never been told I'm 'worldly' though. More 'cynical' and 'world weary', actually."

"Why's that?"

Harry smiled and ruffled his hair, unsure how to answer. "Because sometimes when you see too much, it's overwhelming. They said I needed to get away before I had a breakdown, so here I am."

"Is it working for you?" Jane queried.

"It is, actually. It's peaceful here."

"Dead boring, more like," Christopher answered, "I can't wait to leave."

"Do you know where you'll go?" Harry enquired. It was interesting to learn about the future dreams of his mundane peers, so very different to the pragmatism shown by their magical counterparts. But these students were still innocent, untainted by life and all of the ugliness it possessed.

"Wherever the wind takes me," he answered, "I'm planning on backpacking through Europe for a year."

"Europe is beautiful," Harry acknowledged. And indeed it was. He'd spent the last two summers travelling across the mainland and he'd been enchanted by all of the different cultures squeezed into one continent.

"Have you been?" Anna queried.

"I have," Harry confirmed, "But my stays are never long enough." He was distracted by movement at the cafeteria doors. Entering was a quintet of well-dressed strangers, ethereally beautiful and unnaturally pale. They walked with deadly grace and there was a stiffness to their subconscious movements, much unlike the ease of regular muggles. Something about them set the hairs on the back of his neck on end, had him reaching for his hidden wand and had him eyeing them from the corner of his eyes, even as they retrieved their lunches and settled in a table far from the rest of the students.

"That's the Cullens," Anna informed him, "They moved here about a year ago. Dr Cullen and his wife's adopted kids. The burly one is Emmett, he's dating Rosalie, the blonde chick. Rosalie's twin brother, Jasper - the blonde guy - is dating Alice, the girl with the black hair. The last one is Edward. They're kind of… aloof. Stick to themselves, mostly."

"Eh," he acknowledged, still wary. He was glad he'd picked a seat against the wall, still able to keep the Cullens in his periphery while he returned his attention to his current companions. "Not sure why you'd wear designer clothes in a logging town, but what the bloody fuck ever."

"You recognise designer clothes without seeing the labels?" Charlotte asked, bemused. "Haden Potter: metrosexual."

"Hardly," he answered sardonically, "My best friend, Hermione, is a fashion nut. You'd never know it by the way she went on at school, but bugger if I'd been astounded that first summer in London. And we were twelve."

"I'll have to meet her someday," Charlotte declared, nodding decisively, "She sounds like her and I would get along great."

Harry smiled and realised it was wrong to have compared the three girls to their physical counterparts: Luna, Ginny and Hermione. It was apparent that they were very, very different to his three favourite witches. "She could use some more girl friends. If she gets her way, she'll be visiting me for Christmas."

"Expect her on your doorstep on Christmas Eve," Jane quipped. She checked her watch and sighed. "Chemistry Haden. Are you ready to go? I have to stop by my locker."

"Sure," Harry agreed. he deposited he and Jane's trays in the rubbish, met the girl at the cafeteria doors and together, they slowly made her way to Jane's locker.

"You're friends are nice," Harry commented.

"They're pretty awesome," Jane agreed. She dialled in the combination for her locker, jammed the books she'd need that afternoon into her satchel and then clicked her locker shut. "I hope you don't mind Joey."

Harry laughed and shook his head. "As I said, I've tried out the gay thing. Not my preference, though I have to admire the people who are brave enough to be out of the closet about it. I don't think I could."

Jane shrugged, coming to a stop outside of their Chemistry classroom. "I guess you don't really know what kind of courage you have until you're faced with a situation where you can either rise, or fall."

Harry smiled and for a brief moment, Jane caught a flicker of something in his verdant gaze. "You are so very right, Jane."