Chapter 2 : A New Friend
Harry had sat in the alley for several hours before a young mother, out on a morning run, noticed him huddled up on the ground. She sat with him. Trying to get him to talk as the police came, but he wouldn't say a word. He peaked over his arms occasionally, and in those moments, she was just able to make out a livid bruise on the side of his face.
By the time the police arrived the woman was crying and Harry was peering at her curiously. The male officer took the woman off to the side to ask her a few questions while the woman squatted down next to Harry.
"Hello love. What's your name?" She kept her voice gentle and steady so as not to scare him further.
Harry wasn't sure if he should tell this woman anything, but Uncle Vernon had said that someone would come to get him. The other woman didn't seem to confident, but this woman was wearing a uniform and spoke like she knew what she was doing.
"Harry," he said it in a whisper that the officer could just make out.
"Harry?" She was thankful that he would speak to her. In some situations like these, it would take a long time to get the child to say a word. "Just Harry?"
"Harry Potter," this was said a little louder as Harry became more certain.
"Well, Harry Potter," the officer said, "how did you end up here, all by yourself?"
"Uncle Vernon told me to wait here. He said someone would come to get me." The officer gave a sad smile. Unfortunately, that was about what she was expecting.
"Well, I'm here to get you. So, why don't we go to the car and you can get all warmed up." She reached out her hand and after a second's hesitation Harry took and they walk to the car together. She sat Harry in the back of police car and radioed into the station to say they were on their way back. Harry looked out the window and gave a small wave to the young mother as she left. She seemed sad and Harry found it confusing, so he wasn't too upset to see him go.
The next few hours were a blur to Harry and people came and went and asked him questions that he didn't know the answers to. In the end, it was certain that Harry would not be going back to his families, not that they could find any record of them, or him for that matter. And he was put into another car with a man, Mr. Thomas, who said that she would be taking him to a brand-new home with lots of other children to play with.
Things finally came back into focus when the car pulled up to a large brick house with a tall fence and basketball hoop in the drive. It didn't seem like too bad a place, a woman was stepping out of the house and waving to them as the man helped him get out the car.
"How are you Harry? Did you have a nice drive?" The lady was smiling but Harry still wanted to hide. He had met so many new people just today, it was overwhelming. So, Harry just stayed silent and stared at his shoes, glancing up occasionally.
Mr. Thomas bent down to be eye level with the tyke, "Harry, this is Mrs. Hughes, you're going to be staying with from now on." Harry's eye grew and he started to stare up at the woman. "There are lots of other children here, I'm sure you'll be happy."
2 months later, on the last day of September, and Harry felt like he was back with Dursleys again. Strange stuff had happened since he had arrived, and they only happened when he was around.
Mrs. Hughes had given him a haircut when he first arrived. It was much too short and the scissors had been dull, making the whole thing look like it had been with hedge trimmers. Harry hated it. But not for long, by the next morning his hair had completely grown back.
That was when the whispers had started. Mrs. Hughes didn't say much but her gaze was sterner after that day. And the other children whisper whenever Harry got near but they had stopped talking to him directly.
These strange things kept happening. Harry would get pushed in the kitchen and all the glass would break. Mrs. Hughes would be scolding him and her hair would turn green. No one could prove any of this was Harry's doing, but deep down they all believed it was.
This is the reason why Harry ended up in the park on that fated day.
The day is warm but the air is chilled, just cold enough to require a sweater. When Harry gets to the park, which is just to right of the home but not in view because of a line of shrubs, there is a man there, already sitting on the swings. He is sitting in Harry's regular spot. Out of the four swings it was farthest from the slide. Not sure what to do, Harry stands there for a little while and just looks at the man wearing khakis and a denim jacket. The man stares back at Harry for a while and after giving the boy a small encouraging smile, Harry shuffles over and sits on the swing closest to the slide, farthest from the stranger.
"Not playing with your friends?" The man eventually says. Harry only responds by shaking his head no and beginning to swing back and forth. "I'm Ianto by the way. You don't have to tell me yours. In fact, you better not, since I'm a stranger."
"I'm Harry." For some reason, Harry feels confident and isn't scared of this stranger, Ianto, in the slightest.
"Defiant little man, aren't you?" Ianto smirks at Harry, who blushes but smiles. The two sat like that for a while until Harry herd Mrs. Hughes calling him and, with a wave, he ran back to the house.
End of Chapter 3