Special Thanks to:

ultima-owner

for reviewing not only this story, but My Little Girl too.

Harry sighed as his friends grumbled about not being able to follow him to the digital world. It was early morning, and he was trying to head back to hang out with the DigiDestined.

"I said I would tell you about them, you can't go with me!" Harry said, finally having enough. The who group of students looked up from their breakfast. "Don't you get it? This isn't about us! This isn't even about me! I'm just a tool to help the digital world! I help my partner digivolve! This isn't a fight against Voldemort. This isn't about wizardry! This is about kids trying to save the freaking worlds that surround us! For you to join me, it's suicide! I'm not letting regular people help me!"

"Regular? We're your best friends! We're worried about you!" Hermione screeched.

"Harry didn't mean that." DemiMeramon said softly. "What he means, is those without digimon partners shouldn't try to help. That it's too dangerous. Harry would never forgive himself if something happened to you. You've got to remember, he's never had friends until those many years ago, when he met the digidestined. Then after he left, he was so lonely. It was two years before he met you. He wants to have something that is his. That he can call his own. We're a family, Hermione. The whole of the digidestined depend on each other."

"It's not that I don't care about you." Harry whispered, playing with his food. "I've gone so many years without understanding what it meant to care, that it's hard for me to show the right way. You both had families that cared about you. That showered you in love. My family hated me. They still do. I'd give anything, anything, to spend just one day with my parents. To know that they did love me. That they care about me. The closest thing I have ever had to them, was Sora-chan, Mimi-nee-chan, and Joe-kun." Harry sighed, closing his eyes. "It was the first time I felt like I belonged. I had friends that liked me, that wouldn't give me up because Dudley told them to. In fact, because they were mostly older kids, they scared him when they met him!" Harry was grinning at the memory. "Mr. Ishida wouldn't let Uncle Vernon take me back to the hotel. It was great! Even if he can't cook."

"Harry, why wouldn't he let you go with your family?" Ron asked, confused. "I mean, yeah, they're right bastards. However, they are family." Harry fell silent for a few minutes.

"There's things that you can never understand about some families, Ron. Mine's just one of them." Harry left the shocked group of kids and made his way over to the professors. "May I head to my friend's place now?"

"Be back before curfew. About an hour. Tonight we are studying." Minerva said, smiling sadly. Harry turned to leave, but Severus's words stopped him.

"What did you mean by what you told Mr. Weasley?" Harry turned his head with a sad smile.

"Why don't you ask the headmaster why I ask every year to stay anywhere but the Dursleys. His answer will be, the blood wards protect him. That I'm safe from Voldemort and his followers. Ask him, since he won't answer me, who will protect me from my uncle?" And with that, Harry left. After making a quick stop at an electronic store, he was on his way.

"Harry, does this mean you're going to try and get away?" DemiMeramon asked.

"If the computer works, DemiMeramon, then I can come to Japan when ever I want to."

"But-"

"I'll be fine."

"That's a lie, Harry. I thought we didn't lie to each other? We're the partners of the Crest of Trust." Harry closed his eyes, pausing on the street as people walked pass.

"But eventually I will be fine, DemiMeramon. It may not be any time soon, but eventually, yeah." They reached the computer room. Only Izzy was there. "Hi Izzy."

"Harry, hi." Harry handed over the green computer box. "Right, I think I know what needs to be done. You need to feed it your magic, instead of electricity. Think you can do that?"

"I can try." Of course, Harry had to do this wandless. Otherwise, his magic would be traced and listed as using such infront of a muggle. It took many tries. By the time that he had to leave, he had just barely managed it. Izzy gave him an internet chip to place in it as well. The others exited the computer just in time to walk Harry back to his hotel. Harry complained the whole way to Kari and TK.

"They just worry for you, Harry." Kari finally said when Harry paused to breathe. "Just like we did when Vernon took you away." Harry closed his eyes.

"I know. That's the problem. I try to push everyone's buttons. I have to know how far I can push them. I have to know, no matter what, I can trust them." Harry lowered his eyes so he wouldn't be facing their worried stares. "I did it with you guys too. Just not as extreme. I know I can trust you. It's why my crest is trust. Its because I have the hardest time with it. When I do trust though, I trust completely. I can't trust another person because someone I care about trusts them. I have to know."

"You're rambling, Harry. We get it. We really do." TK said, wrapping an arm around Harry's shoulders as they stopped at a bench.

"I...I want to tell them, but I have to know they will keep my secrets and not tell anyone."

"Want to tell them what, Harry?" Kari asked softly.

"Kari-chan, Takeru-kun, I'm gay." Harry whispered, tears forming. "I thought that I was too young to start having these thoughts, but then I overheard Dean and Seamus talking about it. About girls. I realized that the thought of kissing a girl disgusts me, but a boy?"

"Harry, it's okay, being gay isn't a bad thing. It isn't your fault." Kari said, smiling. "You're you."

"And we're glad you are you." TK finished. Harry gave a blinding smile. "Woah! Warn someone before you go flashing those pearly whites! You'll blind them." Harry started to laugh, happy the mood was cheerful again. It took about another five minutes to reach the hotel. "Here, it's my number, and Matt's. We figured that you would need it just incase."

"Thank you, Takeru-kun. I'll get ahold of you if something comes up."

"I assure you, Mister Potter is safe here for the night." Severus's smooth voice echoed through their ears.

"That wasn't what I meant, sir, and you know it. I'm the Child of Hope, Kari the Child of Light. Harry's the Child of Trust. It's our job to stick together. To protect our own."

"Such a...Slytherin answer." Harry flinched.

"It's true. Though we do this to protect the worlds, we do it more for each other. If Takeru-kun hadn't kept up his hope, then we would have died years ago." Harry said softly, looking up at his teacher. "Sir, you don't understand. No one could understand. To be one of the chosen children...it's horrible. I'd give anything to be normal, but it won't happen. Not in our world, not in the muggle world, and definitely not the digital world.

"So tell me, when am I supposed to be me? When can I just be Harry?" TK and Kari flinched, moving to touch his shoulders. "Don't. Just don't." And he was running down the streets.

"You're lucky Harry knows these streets." TK said, glaring at the man before him. "You stupid idiot. He's told us about you. I don't know what your problem is with him, but you need to stop! He's not your godson. He's not even his parents' child. He knew nothing until he entered your world. You are being unfair to him, and he's had enough of that for ten lifetimes."

"TK, we should really go after him." Patamon said softly in worry. "You know how he gets. He's going to hurt himself if-"

"Patamon, shut up for a minute. We'll go after him in a few seconds. I want to finish with this guy."

"TK, there is a Black Spire!"

"We'll handle it in a minute. Now, I...what?!"

"About time, lets go!"

"You lied to me?"

"Well, I don't want Harry hurt!" The blond teen sighed as he and his partner left Kari standing with the Professor.

"What was that?"

"That would be TK worrying about a friend. He does it with me too. Harry and I...we are subjected to some dark secrets of the digital world. I wouldn't be surprised that he starts seeing the dark ocean soon." Kari looked at the man. "TK is right, you know. Harry's a good friend. He's caring and kind. Anyone that hates him is stupid. It's like hating what you love to do. You just can't. We were heartbroken when we all separated and stopped talking. He makes our team. You can't have a team without trust, sir." With that, Kari and Gatomon headed off to find Harry and TK.

It didn't take long. She found them at the nearest park. Harry was swaying back and forth on the swing, eyes trained to the ground. TK looked to be at a loss as to what to do. DemiMeramon and Patamon were on top of the swing set. Gatomon joined them as Kari sat on Harry's other side.

"I wish I knew why he hates me, Kari-chan, Takeru-kun. I just don't understand why he dislikes me so much. It hurts. I know why Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia hate me. They hate magic, thus me. They hated that the digimon cut their time here short, so they hate me. I know that Voldemort hates me because I survived his attack. Draco Malfoy hates me because I turned down his offer of friendship. But Professor Snape? I don't know. I really don't understand him."

"Maybe he doesn't hate you, and is pretending so that you are kept safe." TK offered. Harry shrugged.

"I don't know. I don't know I'm going to be in so much trouble once I get back. I just took off without saying where I was going."

"Harry, you're a kid. We all walk away from our parents or teachers at some point." Kari pointed out in a matter-of-fact sort of way. "Especially us Digidestined. We've saved the world, and most don't even realize it."

"I've saved the world thrice over. I wish I didn't. If I didn't, maybe I could be with my parents now."

"Don't say that."

"It's true, though. I rather be with my parents, then get hurt, or lose another friend or family member."

"Yes, but it's better to love and lose, than not at all." TK stood, pulling Harry with him. "Come on, we need to get you back. I want to talk to that Professor a bit more. What he did was horrible."

"Thanks, Takeru-kun, you don't know what that means to me."

"I have an idea."