Neighbors

"We have some new neighbors, Vernon."

"Mm?"

"Yes, they moved in last week. Lovely little family from the looks of it..."

Standing on his tip toes so he could place the large plate of food in front of his uncle, Harry kept his gaze down even though he was a little interested. He couldn't remember anyone ever moving to Privet Drive before, though the house across from them had been empty for awhile time, since old Mrs. Keller died about half a year ago. She use to baby sit him when the Dursley's didn't want him.

Mrs. Keller also babysat Holly too.

Shuffling over to get Dudley's plate as Aunt Petunia continued to gossip about the new neighbors, Harry held back a sigh. It was now close to the end of March, more then three months had passed since Holly had disappeared. No one cared. Except for maybe Dudley, and only because he lost someone to bully. Still, he got over it quickly when he realized he know got to bully Harry twice as much. No one else noticed through. Who was there to notice, anyway? The school? His relatives had simply taken 'them' out and placed him in new school. And Mrs. Keller had died before Holly went missing. And he wasn't allowed to tell anyone about her, either. The Dursley's forbade him to even say her name now. They wanted him to forget her.

"Oi, boy!"

Wincing, Harry set down Dudley's plate before he turned to his uncle. "Yes, sir?"

"I don't want you speaking to our new neighbors," growled Vernon as he pierced one of his sausages, shoving into his mouth like an animal. "Understand?" he went on, spewing specks of meat at him. "I don't want you spreading your freakishness around them, so don't you even go near them."

"Yes, Uncle Vernon," said Harry dutifully.

"Good. Now what were you saying, Petunia?" Vernon asked his wife.

"That they had two children, a boy and a girl," said Petunia. "I think the older one, the girl, is about Dudley's age..."

Scrapping what was left of the breakfast he mostly made - his aunt didn't trust him with the pancakes they had ever Saturday morning yet - onto a small plate, Harry didn't bother sitting before shoveling his food down, fearing that Dudley might steal it, or worse, shove it to the floor.

"Hurry up and wash the dishes," spat Petunia just as he took the last bit of his small meal. "I'm inviting our new neighbor over today, so I want this place clean! And when you're done, you can spend the rest of the day in the garden."

"Yes, Aunt Petunia," said Harry, holding back a sigh. That's where she always sent him there whenever she had company over. That or the cupboard, and he would take the garden over that any day.

A few hours later, after washing the dishes, sweeping, and tidying up the living room, Harry sat on the backyard steps where he had been forced to stay, his chin resting in his hands as he breathed out heavily, letting his breathe turn into a white cloud in the cold air. At least it wasn't snowing today, it hadn't since January, so he was just wearing one of Dudley's old sweaters and trousers, both of them swamping him. But still, he shivered a little as the wind went through him.

Grimacing when he realized his vision was a little blurry, Harry took off the pair of glasses that were perched on his nose and wiped the lens off with his sweater. His Christmas 'present' this year was a pair of glasses that his Aunt Petunia had picked from the donation bin at the church. They were a bit beaten up, and had weren't the right prescription for him, but he still could see better then he had before. He wondered briefly how Holly would think of him with glasses.

His vision blurry, Harry was unprepared as something crashed into the backyard.

Startled out of his thoughts, Harry hastily put his glass back on, blinking in surprise as he took the one that had suddenly entered the Dursley's garden. It was a young girl, his age most likely, with chocolate brown hair that was now badly tangled, with leaves stuck in it from falling into the bush that sat near the stone fence that surrounded the backyard. Besides leaves, she was also smeared in dirt, with small scratches on her face.

"He-Hello?" asked Harry hesitantly.

The girls large brown eyes were glancing around with fear, and they only got bigger when she noticed him. "Oh, I'm sorry, I just..." She glanced behind. "I was just -"

"Oi, where'd ya go, Nosey?" called out a familar voice, and the girl stiffened.

Finally understanding, Harry stood and took her by the arm, leading her forward and gesturing her towards the nearby shed, where all the gardening supplies were stored. "Hide behind there," he whispered as she gave him another wide-eyed look. "I'll won't tell them where you are, alright?"

Nodding rapidly, the girl sprinted towards the shed, hiding behind it moments before the fence's gate swung open, and Dudley came home, with another boy not far behind him, who looked a lot like a rat. Harry just stood there, resisting the urge to look towards the shed. He did notice that they both had dirt on their hands, and he could only guess what they were doing.

Dudley glanced around, frowning. "Where did she go?" he mumbled to the other boy, who shrugged.

"Is something wrong, Dudley?" asked Harry innocently. "Did you fall?"

"None of yer bee's wax," said Dudley with a glare before stomping towards the house. "Come on, Piers, lets go inside, my Mum will give us cookies and soda."

"Right," said Piers as he followed, both of them clearly not caring that they were tracking dirt inside, and that Harry would have to clean it up. "Who was that, Dudley?"

"Just my stupid cousin..."

The door slammed behind them, and Harry waited until he heard Dudley shout at his mother for food before he breathed a sigh of relief. He quickly snuck over to the shed, joining the girl that was sitting behind it, who didn't seem to relax until she recognized him. "He-He's gone then?"

"Yeah, he went inside." Harry glanced over the girl. "Are you alright?"

Sniffling, the girl nodded. "Uh huh... Thank you, for helping me."

Shrugging, Harry sat next to her and started picking some of the leaves out of her hair. "Its no biggie." His cousin was a bully, plain and simple, even at the age of five and a half. Not even Holly had really been able to stand up to him...

"Is he really your cousin?"

Blinking at the question, Harry nodded. "Yeah."

"You don't look anything alike," said the girl bluntly before blushing, pausing in her effort to pull a small twig out of her hair. "Sorry, that was probably an awful thing to say."

"That's alright," said Harry with a small smile. "I don't look anything like my uncle or aunt either."

"What about your parents?" the girl asked with a faint look of curiosity. "Do you look a lot like them? Are you just staying with your aunt and uncle for the weekend of something? My parents do that with me and my brother sometimes."

"No," answered Harry with a shake of his head. "My parents aren't around anymore. They died when I was real little, and my Aunt doesn't have any pictures of 'em." She said that she didn't want any pictures of her pathetic sister and her drunk husband hanging on her wall.

"I'm sorry," said the girl, looking sympathetically at him. "That's awful. Do... Do you miss them?"

"Kinda," said Harry slowly. "I mean, I don't really 'member them. I was just a baby when they died. They were in a car accident with me and my sister." He lifted up his bangs, showing off the lightning bolt scar that neither his aunt or uncle liked to look at. "That's how I got this, or least that's how my aunt say's I got it."

"Wow," whispered the girl. "That's way cooler then my scar!" She pulled up one of the legs of her trousers and pointed below her knee, where there was white scar shaped like a bursting star resting there, no bigger then her thumb. "I got this when I was hiking with my dad, I fell on this sharp rock. It really hurt, but after my dad pulled it out and poured some water on, it healed super fast, till only this was left."

"Wicked," said Harry with a grin. He wished his cuts and bruises healed that fast. "But your cuts aren't healing now," he said, pointing out her small scratches.

"Yeah," the girl sighed. "It hasn't happened again." She examined his scar again. "It is a strange scar though. Does your sister have a scar like that?"

In one moment, Harry's face and heart fell. "No... She... She didn't."

"What's wrong?" asked the girl, her head tilting to the side. "Did something... Oh! I'm so sorry," she apologized. "I didn't mean to... I'm sorry, I shouldn't have asked."

"Its alright," mumbled Harry.

"What was her name?"

"I'm not allowed to say. My relatives said so," Harry said before he could stop himself. He slapped his hands over his mouth. "I'm not suppose to say that! Please don't tell him I told you that."

"I-I won't," said the girl. "Promise. But... why can't you say your sisters name?"

Biting his lower lip, Harry quickly lied, "It just makes me really sad, is all." Tears started to burn his eyes at the thought of his sister.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to - Maybe I should go home -" said the girl as she stood.

"No! Its not your fault," said Harry as he grabbed her wrist, trying to stop the girl from leaving him. "Please, don't go. I..." The tears started to roll down his cheeks, and he quickly rubbed them and those unshed away with the sleeve of his sweater before she saw. "I don't want you to go. Please."

"... I guess that I could stay a little longer," the girl finally said, sitting back down on the ground. "But I have to go home soon, my mum will worry about me. She thinks I'm still at the play ground." It wasn't uncommon to let your children wander around in Privet Drive - it was a safe community that was gated in, letting no one that didn't live there in.

"Where do you live?" asked Harry. Now that he thought about it, he'd never seen this girl in the neighborhood. Maybe she was from the next block over?

"Just across the street," said the girl, pointing towards the road. "My family and I just moved in last week."

At that news, Harry paled. His aunt had warned him not to talk to the new neighbors, and unknowingly, he had already broken that rule. Did the girl think he was a freak, like his aunt and uncle said he was.

Not noticing the sudden lack of colour in his face, the girl went on. "Oh, I just realized, I never told you my name!" She held out her hand. "I'm Hermione, Hermione Granger. And you are..."

"Harry Potter," was the answer as Harry stared out the outstretched hand. "I'm sorry."

"For what?" asked Hermione as she lowered her hand.

"I'm not suppose to talk to you cause you'll think I'm freaky," mumbled Harry. "That's what my aunt and uncle say."

"Wha - You're not freaky!" squeaked Hermione, shaking her head so hard that a few more leaves fell out of her hair. "Your aunt and uncle are wrong! And its not right for them to call you such a mean name! My mommy would never call me that, not even my brother would call me that."

"Brother?"

"My little brother, Perry," said Hermione. "His real name's Peregrine, but we just call him Perry, cause my mom says it too big a name for such a little kid. He calls me names sometimes, but he never calls me freaky! You should tell someone -"

"No" Harry interrupted, shaking his head. "I mean, its alright. It doesn't hurt me anyway..." Not like the punches or kicks his uncle gave him when he was drunk, or the smacks that his aunt gave him when he didn't clean fast enough, or when Dudley shoved him into something. "Its fine, really."

"Well... Alright, if you're sure." Hermione glanced towards Number Four, Privet Drive. "So you live here with your relatives then, since you were little?" When he nodded, she flushed and looked towards her hands. "Is your cousin always so... mean?"

"Yeah. He's kinda spoiled, I guess," said Harry with a shrug. "But he's always been that way. Guess I'm just kinda use to it... So why was Dudley picking on you?"

"I was reading in the park, and he started throwing dirt balls at me," said Hermione with a sniffle, eyes watering up. "Said I should get my nose out of the book and stop being a bookworm." She suddenly gave a gasp. "Oh no! I left my book in the park!" Tears started rolling down her dirty cheeks. "My mum's gonna be so angry!"

Wincing at the idea of Hermione getting hurt by her mother, Harry said quickly, "We could go back and get it, if you want. I'll go with you, so Dudley doesn't try and hurt you again."

"Oh, would you?" said Hermione with wide eyes.

"Sure." Standing up, Harry held out a hand to help the girl up. He glanced inside the yard, looking for any sign of his cousin. When he was certain that the coast was clear, he quickly lead Hermione out of the backyard and back onto the street.

"It's really nice of you to help me," spoke Hermione as they walked down to the park. "Thank you so much."

"Its nothin'," mumbled Harry, a little embarrassed. Now that he thought about it, he'd never been around a girl his own age this much, minus Holly. He supposed he would have made friends in his new school, but Dudley scared away anyone that might be his friends. And he'd probably do the same to Hermione.

"Its not nothing!" said Hermione quickly. "You're probably the nicest boy I've ever met! All the kids at my old school didn't talk to me, Except to call me 'Beaver'." She glanced towards the sidewalk. "That's why I started reading, so I had an excuse to stay inside during recess. But then they picked on me for that too."

"What do you read?" asked Harry, curious.

"Oh, I like fairy tales," said Hermione, brightening up. "My dad got me a big book of them for my birthday. Though I don't understand why its always got to be a girl that has to be saved. There must be some boys need to be rescued too, right? What about you? Do you like to read?"

"Um... I can't read," admitted Harry. "At least not that good."

"Huh? But don't you go to the local school?" Hermione asked with astonishment.

Harry nodded. "Yeah, but I couldn't see real well before, 'cause I didn't have glasses." Plus, how could be practice when he wasn't allowed any books?

"Well, I could help you!" said Hermione. "I'm a really good reader! And you could come over to my house! My mum could make us cookies! When she's not busy, she makes great cookies!"

"I don't think I'm allowed to go over to anyone's house," Harry said sadly. "My aunt and uncle don't like me leaving home."

Frowning a little, Hermione said, "I'll come over, then, and bring cookies and books. We could read in the backyard, alright?"

"Maybe..." Even though he would really like that, Harry wasn't sure how his relatives would act if they learned he was spending time with a neighbor. Probably would mean a day or two in the cupboard, maybe even a week...

"Oh, there it is!" said Hermione happily as they reached the park. She raced forward, scooping up the book that was laying near the swings. She glanced over it, smiling. "It's alright, that's good. I was so worried." Suddenly, she turned towards him, wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a hug. "Thank you, Harry."

"It's alright," mumbled Harry, cheeks turning a dark red.

"Hermione, where are you? Its time to come home!"

Letting Harry go, Hermione glanced around. "Oh! That's my mum! And Perry!" she said, pointing towards the woman that was walking their way. Mrs. Granger had the same dark brown eyes as her daughter, but had dark blonde hair that was pulled into a loose ponytail instead of light brown. Holding one of her hands was a boy just a year or two younger then the two of them, with wild dark blond hair and the same eyes, which lit up when he spotted his big sister.

"Mioney!" Perry sad happily, pulling away from his mother and racing to Hermione, almost knocking her over as he tackle hugged her. "Missed you, Mioney!"

"Hi, Perry!" said Hermione, giving him a hug. "I missed you too!"

The large grin on Perry's face started to slip a little as he noticed Harry. "Who's that?" he asked.

"This is Harry, Perry. He's my new friend," said Hermione, not noticing the surprise on Harry's face. She had called him her friend. No one had ever done that before. It felt... well, it felt kinda nice.

"Say hello," went on Hermione.

"'ello," Perry muttered shyly, hiding behind his big sister.

"Hello, Perry," said Harry with a small smile. "Nice to meet you."

"Sorry, he's a bit shy around new people," explained Hermione.

"Hermione Jean Granger, what happened to you?" asked Mrs. Granger as she finally reached them. "You're a mess!"

"I fell," lied Hermione without pause. "Harry was just helping me get my book."

"Mm? Oh, you made a friend," said her mother with a smile. "How lovely! It's nice to meet you, young man. My name is Jean Granger, Hermione's mother."

"Hello, my name's Harry Potter, Mrs. Granger," said Harry politely.

"Please, just call me Jean, Harry," said the older woman with a smile. "Or Miss Jean, if you have too. Every time someone says that, I want to look around for my husbands mother. I'm still not use to the new last name, I guess," she chuckled. "Even after eight years."

"He lives across the street from us, Mum," said Hermione, tugging at her light coat. "With the Dursley's."

"Is that so?" said Jean, frowning slightly. "I just had tea with Petunia Dursley, she didn't mention you at all. How are you related to them?"

"I'm her nephew, Mrs. Granger," Harry answered.

"Jean," corrected the older woman automatically, though the frown faded a little. "Would you like to come over for dinner, Harry? I'd love for Hermione to have a friend over. If your aunt doesn't mind, of course."

Almost immediately, Harry's stomach twisted into knots. He didn't have to see into the future to know what his aunt would say. No. Then she would yell at him for talking to the Grangers, maybe even smack him a few times.

"I could ask her for you if you'd like," suggested Jean when he didn't answer her right away.

"That's alright, Miss Jean," said Harry hesitantly. "But I don't think I can right now. Maybe another time though..."

"If you're sure, Harry," said Jean with a warm smile. "Just know, you are more then welcome to come over anytime." She glanced down at her children. "Come on, Hermione, Perry. Time to go - Daddy will be home soon."

"Bye, Harry!" said Hermione happily. "See you later!"

"Bye..." Waving goodbye as he watched the Grangers walking away, Harry waited until they were out of sight before he dropped his hand and sighed. He really liked Hermione, and Miss Jean seemed like a really nice lady. But he already knew that he shouldn't - couldn't see them again. His aunt and uncle would be sure of that if nothing else.

Rubbing at his burning eyes, Harry started shuffling home, wondering if anyone had even noticed him missing. And as he walked alone down the sidewalk, snow that hadn't fallen since Christmas gently surrounded him, almost like a cold embrace.

"Hello, Harry!"

Looking up from his 'chore' of clearing the sidewalk of the snow that had fallen last night, Harry gave the approaching girl a smile even as he resisted the urge to look towards the house and made sure none of his relatives noticed this. They were all out at church, which they went to only because 'It was the proper thing to do', or at least that's what his Uncle Vernon said. "Hey, Hermione."

"Isn't the snow beautiful?" asked the bushy haired girl, twirling. She was wearing a long dark brown coat and gloves, that were a bright pink that matched her cheeks. "I love snow! Though I don't think it still suppose to snow in March. Daddy's gonna make a snowman with us after lunch," she announced. "He's getting some groceries. My mum said you could join us."

"Um... no, that's okay," said Harry hesitantly. He still have to finish the sidewalk, and then he had to start cleaning inside, since he never knew when the Dursley's were bringing someone over for lunch. "I've gotta finish up."

"Aw, come on, Harry," begged Hermione. "Please."

"Sorry..." said Harry, throwing aside another shovel full of snow.

Hermione pouted a little, but it disappeared almost immediately when a car pulled into the Granger's driveway. "Daddy!" she said with a squeal. "Daddy, come over here and meet Harry!"

"Ah, this is the Harry that both the ladies of my house are going on about," said Mr. Granger with a chuckle. Now Harry could see where Hermione gained her hair - his light brown hair was a curly mess, though it was clear he tried to tame it, and he also had bright blue eyes that neither of his children gained. "Nice to meet you, Harry. You can just call me Hugo."

"Nice to meet you, sir," said Harry politely.

"Its a bit cold to be outside," said Hugo, glancing toward the driveway and sidewalk Harry had cleaned up on his own. "Why don't you come over for some lunch and get a cup of hot chocolate to warm you up?"

"Err..." Harry glanced towards the house. "I should really get this done before my relatives get home."

"Well, when you're done, come on over," said Hugo with a gentle pat on his shoulder that Harry tried not to wince at, not making his request a command but at the same time not giving him much of a choice without being disrespectful. "We'd love to have you."

"Yes, sir," Harry finally said.

"Good, then we'll see you soon," said Hugo with a grin. "Come on, Hermione, lets go help your mother with lunch."

"Alright! See you soon, Harry," said Hermione cheerfully.

After waving goodbye, Harry got back to work. Unbeknown to him, Hugo Granger was watching him as he worked, a frown working onto his usually cheerful face. Still, he kept his tongue, waiting till he got home to talk about with his wife.

About fifteen minutes later, Harry finished shoveling. Setting aside the shovel and wiping off the snow that covered his front, he glanced around. Well, his relatives weren't back yet. Maybe he could sneak over to the Grangers for just a little while... and least long enough for them to be happy about it. With a sigh that caused a white cloud to float in front of his face, Harry slowly made his way across the street.

The door to the Granger home opened before he even reached the end of the pathway. "Harry, come on in," said Jean with a bright smile. "You're just in time, we're about to start lunch. I hope you like pizza, I like to make it homemade. Here, dear, let me take your coat and gloves. You should have been wearing a scarf, its so cold out there!"

Shedding his heavier clothing, Harry couldn't help but sniffle a little and hope Jean blamed it on the cold. It was so strange having someone faun over him, like his mother would have done if she was still alive. It actually made him a little sad.

"Harry!" Without any warning, Hermione came running at him and gave him a hug that almost tackled him to the ground and irritated a few of his newer wounds. "You came!"

"Try not to strangle him, dear," said Jean chidingly as Hermione released him with a pout. "Now come on you two, its time for lunch."

Lead into a small dining room, Harry was greeted by Hugo again while his son hid shyly behind him. "Glad you come make it, son. Please, sit down and enjoy my wife's homemade cooking. We only get it once a week as it is," he said with a teasing jab Jean's way while he started filling up glasses.

"Oh you shush or no extra slice for you," retorted Jean as she exited the kitchen, a plate in each hand. "Harry, do you prefer pepperoni or just cheese?"

"Uh... pepperoni?" answered Harry hesitantly. He'd never been given a choice before of what he wanted. He almost jumped when a large slice was placed in front of him, the smell making his stomach grumble.

"And here's some soda - hope you don't mind root beer," said Hugo as he set down a glass in front of him.

"Thank you," Harry said to both of them. He didn't start eating till everyone else had though, still not completely sure this was happening.

But the meal went well. The adults chatted with each other and the children, and managed to get Harry to speak up everyone once in awhile too. He was having such a good time, that Harry forgot that he still had to go back to the Dursleys before they came home.

"BOY, WHERE ARE YOU?!"

Paling at the familar voice, Harry jumped out of his seat and ran towards the front door before any of the Grangers could stop him, ignoring what was left of his hot chocolate and leaving his coat and gloves being. He stepped outside to see his uncle standing in his front yard, his red face like a beacon among all the snow. Once he spotted Harry though, his face turned purple before he marched across the street.

"I'm sorry, Uncle Vernon," Harry said as his uncle got closer and closer. "I was going to be back soon, I swear -" He couldn't help but flinch when his uncle wrapped a large and heavy hand around his skinny arm.

"Didn't I tell you not to talk with the neighbors!" Vernon hissed, his grip getting tighter with each word he spoke until Harry was whimpering in pain and trying not to cry like he wanted to. "You disobeyed me, you freak!"

"What is going on out here?" asked Hugo as he stepped outside with a deep frown on his face, Harry's coat and gloves in hand.

When he noticed the younger man's presence, Vernon let go of Harry's arm and stood tall, as if he just hadn't been trying to break his arm. "You must be Hugo Granger," he said with a fake grin. "Vernon Dursley, my wife told me about you and your lovely family. I'm sorry about my nephew for bothering you, he was told to leave you alone -"

"Harry was invited over," said Hugo tensely. "And he wasn't a bother at all. In fact, we would like for him to come over more often. If that's not a problem, of course."

"Ah, well, you see, my nephew has some... mental problems," stumbled out Vernon. "He's very disturbed, and I don't think its the best idea for him to be around your son and daughter -"

"Harry is in no way disturbed," said Hugo with a slight snap. "And if you continue to think he is, perhaps you should take him to see my father, he's a very well known child psychologist and I'm sure that he's be more then happy to evaluate him for free."

"Err... that won't be necessary," Vernon said hesitantly.

"Wonderful. Harry, thank you for coming, and we hope to see you soon," Hugo said with a smile that was a bit strained as he handed over the items in hand. "Have a good day, neighbor."

"Come on, boy," growled Vernon as Hugo went back into his house, still keeping an eye on them. "Get in the house, now."

Nodding and following his uncle back across the street, Harry gulped as he thought of what kind of punishment would be waiting for him once they were behind closed doors.