Chapter 2

Harry invited Crona to lunch, asking the shy kid in hushed tones. Crona looked at him curiously, raising an eyebrow in confusion.

"Wha…What do you mean?" Crona asked. Crona's eyes scurried away form Harry's face.

"Well, I was wondering if you want to get some food together?" Harry said with a smile. "I mean you don't have to, but I'm new here and so I don't really know anyone…and well…" Harry babbled. However before Harry could embarrass himself any further Crona responded to Harry.

"Ummm, okay" the nervous kid said with a strange smile. It looked as though they were slightly in pain. Harry gave a wide grin back to Crona in excitement. It was nice to have a friend that he could actually talk to. Winston was fantastic company, but he couldn't talk. You couldn't hold a conversation with him. Death was also good company but he viewed Harry as his Master and so the relationship was a challenging one. It would be nice to have a friend that views him only as a new student. Even if that friend was rather strange. Harry found himself reminded of Luna and a pang pierced his chest. He shook it off and turned back to Crona.

"Great. Will you show me to the cafeteria then?" Harry smiled. Crona gave an awkward nod. Harry followed them, side by side as they walked down the corridors. Wilson remained at Harry's heels, snuffling at Harry's hand and letting out happy yips. As they reached the cafeteria Harry kept up a heathy chatter. They collected their trays, each selecting different foods. They sat down at a table, placing their trays down gently. Harry quickly ran to get some food for Winston, putting the bowl down in front of the dog and smiling as the dog wolfed the food down at a rapid rate. They only had several minutes of peace before they were interrupted by a large group of people.

"Hey" a boy almost shouted. Harry recognised him from his meeting with Death. He had white hair, red eyes and shark like teeth. He let his tray drop to the table with a crash, some of the food on his plate spilling onto the table. The girl that he had been with sat next to him. A boy that Harry had seen in his lessons sat down next to Harry himself, managing to avoid Winston's rapid eating. The boy had a shock of turquoise hair and an angry face. Next to the boy a nervous looking girl sat down nervously. She was plain looking, but also friendly. She gave a soft smile to both Crona and Harry. Harry smiled back before looking around the table at the rest of the members in question. He wanted to know who they were and what they were doing here.

"I'm Harry" he said by way of introduction. It was an invitation for the rest of the members of the group to introduce themselves. The dirty blonde haired girl flushed slightly, embraced at not having said a thing to the boy before her. She stuttered out an introduction.

"Maka Albarn" she said embarrassedly. "and this is Soul Eate." she said pointing to the white haired boy to her left.

"I'm BlackStar. But I'm sure you've already heard of me. I'm the biggest and the baddest of them all so you must have heard of me." Harry raised a brow. However before he could comment the blue haired boy was interrupted.

"I'm Tsubaki Nakatsukasa" the girl said. Her voice was soft and Harry found himself warming to her almost immediately. She seemed to be a loving, open person and Harry liked her.

"A pleasure to meet you all." Harry said with a smile. "So…you know Crona?" he asked. Make gave a nod and responded with a smile. From then on the meal seemed to go quite well. Harry seemed to get along well with all of the members of the table, although he found BlackStar difficult to cope with. The boy remained Harry of Draco Malfoy. He was loud and arrogant. However, overall the boy was inherently self doubting. All of his heir of superiority was really a cover up for his own insecurities. It seemed that BlackStar was the same as Draco Malfoy in that respect as well.

The group of students all made their way to their next lesson, a tentative friendship having been formed. The next lesson, however, was one that Harry could not participate in. Death had told him that he need not even turn up to the lesson. However, Harry had decided that he wanted to. He wanted to see how it was that the weapons and the meisters interacted with each other. He wanted to see if he could gain any insight as to how he should interact with Death.

Harry spent several minutes watching the pairs, and in one case, trio, interact with each other. All the relationships seemed unique to the individual. They all interacted in totally different ways. Soul and Maka seemed to argue a lot, however when it came to fighting their movements, they were perfect. They flowed as one being. Crona was also different. Crona seemed to change when they interacted with their weapon. The shy and awkward kid, changed. They became confident, strong and dangerous. It awed Harry to see such an alteration. Harry could do nothing but stare.

However Harry's attention was drawn away from the changed person and toward the trio as the ripple of a bullet filled the air. It hit the target, perfectly in the centre. Harry watched as the boy that Death had told him was his son, repeated the action, only to hit the target spot on again. The two identical guns were held perfectly by the young man, who twisted and spun around with grace and elegance. Each move seemed premeditated; planned to perfection.

As Harry's eyes flickered to the next pair of students training, a sudden pain rippled through him. An intense, heart clenching pain that filled his entire being. It was sadness. A sadness that he had never felt before. One so strong that it knocked the very breath out of his lungs. He clutched at his stomach, falling to the floor. His knees hit the floor painfully, but the physical pain was nothing compared to the mental torment that Harry was feeling. He curled into the foetal position as he gasped, attempting to bring air into his empty lungs.

The pain only grew as Harry attempted to pull the oxygen that he desperately needed, into his body. Tears were streaming down his face without his consent. He gasped like a fish, small sips of air, managing to quench some of the thirst in his lungs. Finally after several seconds, that felt more like a lifetime to Harry, he felt the glorious sensation of air rushing into his lungs. However they were soon emptied again as a scream ripped from Harry's throat. Harry squeezed his eyes shut, attempting to block out the pain that ripped through his body. The suffering of a thousand people seemed to be rushing through his body. Gasping in another breath, a scream was again torn from him.

Time seemed to loose any meaning as all Harry could focus on was not suffocating. Each breath that he took was swiftly followed by a pained moan, scream or sob. It was all Harry could do not to pass out. He therefore didn't notice Wilson's panicked barks and the worried voices that filled the room. However Harry did notice as a pair of arms pulled them to their chest. However he was able to do nothing other than let out another scream.

Spirt Albarn had been in a meeting with Lord Death. If it could be called a meeting, that is. It had started off as a discussion of Spirit's role in the academy and whether or not he should continue his teaching. It had then descended into Spirit's wails as he complained about how unfair his life was. Death had sat, listening to the DeathScythe, bored, disinterest clear on his face. Of course Spirit couldn't tell that. He only saw the smile that the mask portrayed to the world.

However Spirit had noticed when Death had suddenly tensed and the air had become thick with the stench of decay. The room had become frozen, Spirit able to see his breath, swirling in a fog of smoke above him. Lord Death gasped and in the silence the sound echoed through the Death Room, bouncing off the walls. Spirt couldn't move. His feet fell as though they were glued to the spot.

As soon as the change had come, it was gone again. The temperature became normal, the smell on the breeze only that of the sand that lined the ground. However Death's form was still tensed. He stood from his throne, his posture intense and business like. The red haired man's eyes hardened. Ready for a battle that he assumed was imminent. However Spirit was not expecting the words that came from Lord Death's mouth.

"Go to Sid's classroom." Death barked out, his tone leaving no room for argument. "Get the boy there. He'll be sitting at the side of the room, probably in pain" Spirit raised a brow at that. He was about to mutter out a question, to ask what the hell the man meant. However he couldn't even stutter out a single syllable. "Go NOW!" Lord Death shouted. "I don't have time for any of this shit!" With that Spirit ran from the room, fearful of the wrath that he had seen in Lord Death's eyes.

He skidded down the corridor, his feet stuttering, stumbling over one another as they ran faster than his mind could keep up with him. His breath came quickly as he pushed the door open violently. The scene that met him was not one that he had been expecting, however he didn't let his thoughts dwell on it. Instead he rushed for the boy on the floor. He gently but rapidly pulled the young man into his arms.

"Papa" Spirit faltered momentarily as he heard his daughter's voice call after him. "Papa what's going on?" she questioned. However Spirit didn't turn, didn't look to his daughter as he would have done not ten minutes ago. No, Lord Death needed him. He had been trusted with a great responsibility. Lord Death and the boy in his arms were more important than his daughter at this current moment. So Spirit did something that he never thought that he would do, he left. He left without a single word to his little girl. Instead he rushed from the room, making his way back to Lord Death.

As he re-entered the Death Room, Lord Death rushed to greet him. He pulled the boy from his arms and Spirt could only watch as Lord Death cradled the young man to his chest, whispering soothing words to him. Spirit stood awkwardly as Lord Death retreated to his throne, pulling the young man onto his lap as he sat.

"It's okay Harry. It's all okay." Death soothed gently, but the boy was unresponsive. He seemed to only be engulfed with pain. Whimpers and screams still filling the air. Spirit wasn't sure what could be done. He was therefore not expecting what happened next.

Death took an ungloved hand to his face and reached for the mask that covered his face. He pulled the white skull from his face. Spirit held back a gasp at a sight that no DeathScythe could claim to have ever seen. Spirit was, however, unable to see his Lord's face, but the same could not be said for the boy before him. Lord Death's hood was pulled so far forward that the shadow cast utterly obscured the skin beneath. Spirit could only watch as the human looking hands of Lord Death pulled the face of the boy toward his.

"Harry" he hissed out mournfully, pulling the young man closer. Spirit saw a flash of green in the wet eyes as they connected with those that were hidden under the hood.

"That's it Master, that's it. It's all going to be alright Master." Spirit choked the first time he heard the word, sure that he must be mistaken. However the second time a gasp issued from his lips. One that broke through the near silence of the room. It broke though Lord Death's whispered speech. His mask was back in an instant. Harry was placed on the chair and a hand was around Spirit's neck, faster than he could blink.

"Not a word" Lord Death growled out with anger, the threat clear in his voice. "Not a word about this to anyone" he growled out. "If I hear a whisper of anything, I will have your head." Death spat. Spirit's body trembled as he felt the power that radiated from Lord Death.

"Y-Y-Yes…" Spirit managed to stutter out. Death dropped him. Spirit fell to the floor, choking as he attempted to pull air back into his lungs.

"Go" Lord Death growled out. With that Spirit pushed himself up and stumbled from the room. He ran from down the corridor and out of the academy, only stopping as he returned to his home. He had never seen Lord Death act in such a way; never seen the man so defensive and so aggressive. It was terrifying. As he collapsed to his bed, he vowed never to anger Lord Death in such a way again. He also vowed to find out who the hell the kid was and why Lord Death had been calling him Master.

Harry was soon embraced in the soft arms of Death the mask removed yet again. Harry was soothed, a gentle hand running through his hair and gentle whispers in his ears. Death removed his cloak and Harry allowed himself to listen to the soft heartbeat of the being below him. Minutes passed and Harry raised his head to look the man in the face. The twinkling Gold eyes were filled with regret and sorrow. Harry raised a hand to the face, letting his fingers rub gently along the soft skin. He didn't know why but he just knew that the being before him needed reassurance. He needed comfort. Comfort that Harry could give.

"I'm so sorry Master, so sorry" he said, resting his head on Harry's. Their eyes even closer now. "So sorry" he whispered. Harry brought up the other hand, placing it on the other side of Death's face. Death was like a child needing comfort. Harry would give that where he could. He just had to help people when they were in need. Especially when that person was one that he was the Master of.

"What happened Death?" Harry questioned. His tone was gentle. He held no accusation and no hostility, only the desire for an explanation.

"Master…I…" Harry waited. The being needed to compose himself. His interruption at this point wouldn't help. He simply brought a hand to Death's head and let his fingers twist through his hair. Death took a breath. He was glad of the reassurance that Harry's hand provided.

"A friend died today Master." Harry's hand froze, before quickly resuming its moments again. "I had not seen him for many years, but his death was…unexpected." Death mumbled. Sorrow in his tone. "I slipped. I let my emotions control me just for a second." Death sighed. "I slipped Master and…well…you felt it too Master. You felt the sorrow for that moment. All the sorrow that everyone else felt for their loved one. You felt the pain of every death. Every grief stricken parent, child, friend. You felt all of them Master." Death said solemnly.

Harry decided that he didn't like the look in the being's face. His arms wrapped around the man's waist, pulling Death's head into his shoulder.

"It's okay. I'm okay" Harry soothed. "You have a right to grieve Death. You have a right to be sad. Everyone does." Death looked up at Harry wide eyed. He didn't know if he had ever been comforted, or ever had his feelings validated. He was Lord Death. People assumed that he was untouchable. That he didn't need anyone or anything. Death gave his Master a small smile. "Just warn me next time" Harry said with a giggle and lopsided grin.

"Thank you Master." Harry's grin widened. He was glad that Death was feeling better. He didn't know what had happened to the man in the past but he knew that as his Master it was his responsibility to make his future feel better.

"Now I really need to take a nap." Harry said, his eyes already flickering shut. Before Death knew it the young man was already asleep. His breathing soft, puffs of breath, gently caressing Death's skin. Death ran a hand through his hair.

Harry had not left Death's side in the past two days. He had skipped out on lessons and sat in on meetings, invisible of course, but he had not left him. As the morning of the third day loomed Death attempted to convince his young Master that he should go to lessons for the day. He wanted his Master to learn and to keep moving forward rather than worrying over him like a mother.

"Master…" he whined again.

"No Death, I want to be sure that…" he was cut off.

"Please Master. I'm fine. I promise" Death's eyes were wide and begging. Harry thought that in a situation such as this he may be glad for the mask. At least he would have avoided Death's puppy dog face. He seemed unable to resist it. "Don't you wish to see your friends Master? I'm sure Crona is wondering where you are." Death said with a small smile. Harry scowled. The man was most definitely manipulating him and they both knew it. Sadly it was working. Harry gave a nod.

"Fine. I'll go. Although I'll come to check on you after lunch" Death looked as though he was about to protest. Harry stopped him. "No, no arguments. I have a free period after lunch and i'll come and see you then." Harry said firmly.

"Yes Master" Death said, a roll of his eyes as he agreed with the young man before him. Although in all honesty he appreciated the caring nature of the raven haired man. Death knew it had been less than a month but he wasn't sure that he would be able to go back to life without his Master. With a smile, a wave and a muttered promise for a later meeting, Harry left for his first lesson of the day.