A/N: Hello guys! Thank you to everyone who reviewed, favorited and watched, it really means a lot to me. Leave a review with a question and I'll do my best to answer without giving anything away. I always respond to questions so don't be afraid to ask; you won't be wasting your time. So, with out further adieu, here's the next Chapter. Actually I lied.
Warnings: Mentions of child abuse and torture, Slash
Disclaimer: I don't own anything.
QueenLyssa: Wait and find out! I don't want to spoil anything, but given your review I think you'll be happy with what's coming.
xDarklightx: I answered you privately, but you made a valid point. So for anyone wondering, the reason Bella chooses the term Bella is actually my fault because I couldn't think of a better term at the time. Just think of her losing it loosely. She doesn't actually think of him as a brother yet, but she like me doesn't know a better word for it. Sorry if I confused some people. I actually went back a bit to fix some of that, because to be honest I totally agree with the fact that it would be uncharacteristic for Bella to warm up to someone so quickly.
Guest: Alright, I went back and fixed some of the stuff you mentioned because I felt that it was good advice. I'm sorry if I didn't do a satisfactory job of it, but hopefully the later chapters will be better. A lot of things in this story might seem fast paced and so I think it's great if you tell me so, so I can try and add more detail and everything. The reason Harry went a long with buying all of the Apple products I went back and explained, but basically it's because even if he's just acting like a normal teenager he thinks he should have the technology to at least play the part. I also went back and added a scene with Charlie, though I'm not too happy with it and will probably futz with it more later. I fixed the brother thing too. I do have trouble with dialogue because I am an awkward person and have like three friends, so I have trouble writing it. As soon as I am able to I plan to get a beta who might be able to help me with that. Oh, and Harry doesn't fight more because he's kind of used to be walked on by the people around him, and he's just tired from the war and even he thinks he might need a change of scenery. I went back to fix that too.
So, basically I suck at beginnings. Anyway, as you can see, if you give me suggestions and constructive criticism I will go back and edit things. Please, please tell me if there is something I messed up or if you think something should have happened differently or if I am moving too quickly.
EDIT:::Chapter 3 edited. Fixed the coding that showed up. Thanks for telling me.
Harry welcomed the silence that the car ride offered. He had already gathered that neither of his companions were talkative people, and he was happy with that.
However, it did leave a lot of time for observation, so after he grew tired of watching the endless green of trees flash by his window he turned his attention to the girl sitting next to him.
She was pretty in a plain sort of way. She had long, brunette hair and eyes of the same color. Her pale skin was nearly translucent, but was clear of any blemishes. Her lips were a soft, natural pink and Harry didn't think she was wearing makeup. It was a nice change from the muggle girl's he was used to back in Surrey, whose faces were so plastered with makeup that it was impossible to take them seriously.
He shook his head and turned his attention to the burly frame of his new official guardian. He could only see the back of the man's head, but he already knew that his hair was darker than Bella's and his skin was more tan. Though he couldn't see it, he knew a mustache rested on the man's upper lip. The hair was neatly trimmed and much more flattering than his uncle's had been, though his uncle's set a pretty low standard. The man had the same dark brown eyes as his daughter, though his shown with warmness, while his daughter's eyes were nearly unreadable.
So Hadrian, what do you want to be when you're older?" Charlie asked. Harry was caught off guard by the question that came out of seemingly nowhere, but he tried to think of an answer.
"I used to want to join the army, but now I rather like the idea of being a doctor." He said. It was true, though the army was his equivalent of an auror and a doctor was his equivalent of a healer. He and Ron had wanted to become aurora together when they were younger, but after the war neither of them wanted to fight anymore. He knew Ron was interested in professional Quidditch, but he wasn't sure if his friend was actually going to go for it. He shook his head and tried to focus on Charlie's response.
"Hm." Charlie hummed. Harry was glad that they seemed to be settling back into silence, though the awkwardness had reached an all time high.
"Harry settled back into his seat and turned his head to look out of the window once again. The view was still the same; a two lane road with green whirring by on either side. Occasionally another car would pass by, but they were far and few between. He let himself close his eyes for a moment in a prolonged blink before opening them again and finding that he truly, honestly did not want to be here.
When they arrived at the Swan's house, Bella got out of the car almost immediately, with Charlie following closely after. Harry pushed his door open and stepped out, immediately feeling the moisture in the air sticking against his skin. It was an uncomfortable feeling, and when he breathed the air felt almost heavy.
He gave a small half-smile to Charlie who had already taken the liberty of grabbing his bags for him, and closed the door with just enough force to make sure it closed. He took his backpack from Charlie, but when he moved to take the duffle bag the man assured him that it was okay. Harry nodded his head as he followed the man to the door.
The house itself was nice, much nicer than the ones on Privet Drive, though he knew some of the appeal he felt towards this house was because it was unique; there wasn't another house like it on the block.
He sighed as he made his way to the house, expertly dodging a patch of ice. He stepped inside with a bit of hesitance, though he found that the house was welcoming with its light blue walls and chestnut colored wood work. It had a homey feel to it that he never experienced anywhere but the Weasleys. He bit his lip as he made his way into the house, finding himself in the kitchen.
"I'll show you your room in a moment," Charlie said, setting Harry's bag on the table softly. Harry nodded, as he tried to look at the kitchen without looking away from the man who was speaking. The kitchen was the same color as the rest of the house, with a white tiled floor that had seen better days, and a few cramped pantries. It was lived in, he could tell. "But there are a few rules."
"Mm," Harry hummed showing that he was listening. He could tell that the older man was uncomfortable with this entire situation, though he doubted the man felt like anxiety was going to bubble up from his stomach and out his throat. The tightness in his chest was nearly unbearable, but he did his best to remain calm. He didn't need to make things even more uncomfortable.
"No drinking, drugs, or smoking...and be back by ten every night." Charlie said, eyeing the boy. Harry shuffled awkwardly as he could feel himself being scrutinized. He knew he looked like a trouble-maker, what with his shaggy hair and overall disheveled appearance, but he hoped the man would hold off on making assumptions.
"You don't have to worry about that." He murmured, shifting his backpack on his shoulder and shuffling his feet nervously. He saw the man give him a look and tried to give a reassuring smile in return, but that only seemed to make the older man more uncomfortable.
"Right, well, follow me." Charlie led the teenager into the living room and showed him where the bathroom was before leading the boy upstairs and towards a door at the end of the hallway.
"All right, Hadrian, this is your room." Charlie said, gesturing to what must have been the guest room. Harry stepped inside, nodding his head in thanks as he looked the room over. It was rather plain with a queen sized bed in one corner, adorned with dark blue comforters and grey sheets, and an oak desk in the other. The walls were an off-white and the furniture was a dark oak color, as was the door to the closet.
"Thank you." Hadrian said sincerely. He'd never had a room of his own before and while this would only be for a little while he was happy with it.
"It's no problem." Charlie said with a controlled smile on his face. "You go ahead and unpack. Bella is downstairs making lunch. Come down when you're done."
Harry nodded and set to work unpacking his stuff, though he was soon distracted when he got to the box he'd stuffed into his backpack moments before the flight. He had bought a new wand a few days before he was to depart; his holly wand had been destroyed in the war and it was unsalvageable. He was rather fond of his new wand as well, though Ollivander seemed to think this wand was 'curious' as well. He'd said he was shocked when the Blackthorn had bonded with the unicorn tail hair since the wood was considered extremely dark, while the unicorn was the purest of the possible cores. He supposed it was odd, but when was anything that happened to him normal?
He ran his hand along the wand one last time before lifting it and casting a few powerful Silencing Charms. He still had nightmares even though Voldemort was gone and while he was willing to divulge some information to his new guardian he wasn't about to let him know about the nightmares.
Once the charms were up, he set to work on unpacking his clothing and placing it into the closet. Despite popular belief he was a very neat person and made sure everything was in its place before he moved to the electronics.
He didn't bother setting any of them up, but he did plug them in where outlets were available and found spaces for them on his desk. Once he was sure he'd gotten all of the instruction booklets put somewhere he would remember, he turned to his back pack and pulled out his sketchbook, putting it on the bedside table and deciding that he would find a better home for it later.
Sketching was something he rarely indulged in when he was in school, but during the summer months when he had nothing to do but fulfill the Dursley's every whim, he would draw as a way to entertain himself.
Scrunching his nose, he cleared himself of his thoughts before leaving his room and hesitantly making his way downstairs to the kitchen.
Harry entered the kitchen to see Bella fretting over 'grilled cheese'. He wasn't exactly sure why American's called it that; there was no grill involved. He shook his head and stood awkwardly at the entrance of the kitchen until Charlie noticed and beckoned him over. "Take a seat."
"Thanks." Harry murmured, pulling out a chair and seating himself at the table.
"Bella, do you want to invite Jake over to meet Hadrian?"Charlie asked. Harry looked up, not quite sure he like the idea of that, but when he caught sight of Bella's red cheeks he understood what Charlie was trying to do. He watched Bella's eyes shift around for a moment before nodding her head and stepping out of the room.
Harry, without really thinking about it moved to the sandwiches and flipped them before they could be could see the cheese oozing out of them and flopped them onto the waiting plates.
"You cook?" Charlie asked gruffly, coming up to inspect the food. Harry felt his face what up at the realization of what he'd done; it was an almost automatic response. When the Dursley's cooked they would constantly leave and expect him to pick up where they'd left off.
"Sorry," Harry said, stepping away from the food.
"No need. You didn't do anything." Charlie murmured. He knew Hadrian must've come from a bad home given the suddenness with which the kid had been thrust on him, but he wasn't sure how bad the situation was. The man he'd talked to hadn't been very forthcoming with the details.
He saw the kid nod his head, but before the boy could say anything else Bella re-entered the room.
"Jake will be here in half an hour." Bella announced.
"Jake and his father are family friends." Charlie elaborated, seeing the slight change of expression on the emerald eyed boys face. The boy nodded, but refrained from saying anything else.
"I didn- I left the sandwiches." Bella groaned, rolling her eyes and clenching her jaw in frustration.
"Hadrian got to them in time." Charlie said, catching the slight tensing of the boy's shoulders.
"Oh," Bella said, looking around and realizing that the sandwiches were already placed on plates. She turned off the stove, and turned around with a sheepish look adorning her features. "Sorry," She said, looking at Hadrian, who only moved his shoulders in a way that could've been a shrug.
"Let's eat, then" Charlie said, breaking the silence and handing the kids a plate each. Bella immediately went over to the table, but Hadrian waited for a moment looking unsure. "Go ahead," He said, gesturing for the boy to sit down with his daughter. He grabbed his own sandwich and followed the boy over.
He tried to bring himself to start a conversation multiple times, but he found that it was more awkward than what it was worth. He would receive short answers, and Bella wasn't really helping either.
A short while later the door bell rang, and Bella almost jumped out of her seat in her haste to answer it. Harry thought only part of that was due to excitement to see whoever it was, and the other part was eagerness to get away from the horrible silence that had settled around their table.
He heard voices approaching and soon caught sight of a boy much taller than himself. The boy was very tan, with black hair and brown eyes. His hair was long and straight. He resembled the images of American Indians that Harry had seen on the western films that Dudley liked to watch.
"Um, this is Hadrian," Bella said, gesturing to him with a noncommittal hand gesture. He gave a half-smile to the boy who met his gaze with a snarl. Harry furrowed his brows slightly in confusion before deciding that maybe he was expecting him to say something.
"Hello," He said awkwardly. It paid off though, because the other boy immediately relaxed. Bella didn't seem to notice as she went on to introduce the boy as Jacob Black. Harry nodded his head, smiling politely, but wanting nothing more than to leave.
"I've had a long day," Harry said, drawing the attention of everybody. "I think I'm going to go to the room?"
"Yes, go ahead." Charlie said. Harry was both unnerved and glad to see that the man seemed to understand this was more of an escape tactic than honest exhaustion. He could feel the anxiety start to calm down as he made his way out of the room and back towards the room that had been given to him. He didn't bother changing out of his clothes as he flopped onto the bed and allowed his eyes to fall closed.
"What is he to you?" Jacob asked, after a few strained moments of silence. After the other boy had left he and Bella had moved to sit outside on the steps to avoid the watchful gaze of her father.
"I don't know," Bella responded, frustration evident in her eyes. "He's my dad's cousin's son, technically." She snorted.
"That close, huh?" Jacob teased. He saw a smile rise to Bella's face and felt a grin reach his own.
"He's from England. I never knew he existed until a few days ago." She explained. "He was having family issues or something."
"That seems to be a trend." Jacob said, though in a more somber tone. Bella had come to Forks because of family issues, and within two weeks another Swan relative had come for the same general reason.
"He's quiet, but he seems okay." Bella murmured. Jacob had to agree. When he'd first seen the boy an unfamiliar sent had been the most prominent thing in the room. He'd been nervous, but it wasn't until it was revealed that Hadrian was a foreigner that he calmed down. He was sure the reason the boy smelled different was because he wasn't from America.
Or that's what he told himself.
I know it's a shitty chapter. I wasn't feeling well, but I promised myself I would update. I'll probably update every Monday from now on, although I may update sooner depending on how motivated I am.
Also I'm sure my author's note at the beginning killed you. I just wanted to make sure everyone knew what was going on.
Review if you want to. I like input on what I could do to improve the chapters since I don't have a beta yet. And I really appreciate constructive criticism and advice on how I could fix things. I'm actually a pretty terrible writer sometimes so just tell me if I'm getting ahead of myself, if I spelled something wrong, if something didn't make sense, etc.
If any of you want to be my beta reader PM me and I'd be glad to talk to you about it.
-Kastor