Hello and welcome back! Im sorry for taking such a long hiatus but life got a little crazy for a bit and this had to be put on hold. Now this chapter doesn't have the first task like I said it would that will be the next chapter. Ok rambling over lets get on with it.
This was the beginning to a big weekend for Harry. Today he had a date with Susan in Hogsmeade and admittedly he was looking forward to it. It felt strange going on a date with someone when you had a betrothed but it was no secret back home that he'd take multiple wives. The Prowlers were an important family in Avalon but their numbers had dwindled in the last few centuries. Had his father not been injured in the war he would've had multiple wives himself. Now it fell on Harry to raise the family's numbers and bring the Prowlers back to strength.
This weekend also held the first task of the tournament, he and the others had spent the week studying dragons. Surprisingly there was only one species of dragon in this world that he knew from Avalon. The Hebridean Black was extinct here but was thriving back in Avalon, only going by a different name, Black Titans. It wasn't a real concern in the long run, all dragons had pretty much the same strengths and weaknesses. He just hoped nobody got injured, dragons included.
He lay in bed for some time before deciding to get up. He was meeting Susan at ten and it was a little after nine now. He still had time to get ready but honestly he had no idea what to wear. Should he dress casually or go with something more formal? This was one aspect of dating that he hated. Back home it was an easy decision, he always dressed in his best clothes when he and Athena went out. He was the lord of house Prowler, and she was heiress of house Graymore. It was expected of them to look their best when out in public. Here however he was nobody. House Prowler was a forgotten house that wasn't even recognized by the government anymore.
His eyes drifted over to the stack of books Milly had brought it the night prior. The elf had done wonderfully finding books on immortality like he'd asked. They had cost him a bit of gold but it was nothing to him. The Prowler family vaults had remained open all these years, the goblins had served his family dutifully with smart investments with great returns. It was unusual for a family vault to remain open after the family disappeared but they happily made an exception for their lord family. He of course paid them handsomely for their hard work and devotion.
The books however could wait, he had a date today. The words still felt strange on his tongue but it was sure to get better over time.
After some digging through his clothes he finally decided on an outfit. A pair of muggle jeans and a white shirt with a black blazer over top. Hopefully going with something more neutral like this will help him match whatever Susan wears and help him not stick out as much. After going through his other morning rituals and one last look in the mirror he left his room to go find his date.
The halls of Hogwarts were surprisingly empty, with nearly all of the older students leaving for the village he figured the younger ones would be out and about. Only a few younger students roamed the halls, some with noses buried in a book and others chatting with their peers.
He spotted Susan standing by the main entrance as he descended down the stairs. She was nervously playing with her hair as she stood, occasionally looking around the hall and watching as students walked past her to leave for the village. Her face lit up when she finally saw him, all nervousness seemingly washed away at the sight of him. Harry wished he could say the same. Seeing the girl only made him even more nervous. Dragons he could handle, but girls? They were a whole different ball game.
As she ran over to him he noticed her clothes and breathed a heavy sigh of relief. Like him she went with a more casual/semi formal outfit, muggle jeans with a light blue turtleneck sweater. Ever the gentleman he waved his hand and summoned a bouquet of flowers and handed them to the girl.
Susan beamed at him as she took the flowers. "Oh thank you Harry, they're beautiful!" She held the flowers to her nose and inhaled the sweet scent. "I'm so excited for today, I could barely sleep last night." Her cheeks reddened and she buried her face in the flowers.
Harry chucked and offered her his arm. "Honestly I'm pretty excited about this as well. Tonks brought me to the village a few weeks ago but we didn't really do any exploring, we only got me fitted for new clothes and got something to eat. I can't remember the name of the pub though, it had a number in its name. The three something's I think." He didn't notice the scowl flash across Susan's face.
She tried not to let it bother her but hearing the name of her competition irked her. Not that it was much of a competition anymore, Harry was going on a date with her, HER. Not Tonks. The auror would have to find someone else because now she had Harry and she had no intentions of letting him go. She cleared her head of thoughts of the other girl and looked up at Harry. "Probably the Three Broomsticks. It's the pub that nearly everyone goes to on these trips. They have pretty good food but it's not Hogwarts food."
Harry nodded. "Yeah I think that was it. I thought it was pretty good myself." They stopped at the main doors and Susan showed Filtch her permission slip. They stepped outside to board the carriages and Harry couldn't help the smile on his face. He had heard that the carriages were pulled by magic, but in truth they were pulled by one of Harry's favorite creatures.
Slightly larger than your average horse thestrals were beautiful creatures. Their appearance made people weary of them but the leathery carnivorous horses were some of the lost loving and loyal animals you could find in the magical world. They looked like a leather wrapped skeleton with bat wings and if you knew nothing more of them then you could understand why people were so cautious. Even in Avalon they had a dark reputation but those who knew the truth and earned the trust of a herd had an ally for life.
Harry ran his hand down the side of one of the winged horses. The winged horse startled, not used to being interacted with and looked back to see who had touched it. "My lord! I'm sorry, we're not used to the students interacting with us." Harry chuckled and pet the creature. "No it's my fault. I should know more than anyone to not startle a horse. You have my apologies, I just got excited seeing your kind here I have a soft spot for your species." The passing students all gave him strange looks as to them he was just holding his hand in the air and stroking nothing while making horse like noises. Susan looked concerned for a second and decided to see what he was doing. "You alright Harry? You're acting a little crazy right now."
Harry looked at the girl and then back to the thestral. He looked confusingly at Susan and the rest of the students before he realized how this looked. "Oh shit, I completely forgot. The carriages are pulled by thestrals, you can only see them if you've witnessed death. That's why you all think they're just powered by magic, none of you can see them." The students all gave him looks of skepticism but quickly lost interest deciding that Hogsmeade was much more interesting.
Susan still looked unsure of his words so Harry took her hand in his and gently guided her hand onto the horse's body. A gasp escaped her lips as her hand impacted some kind of invisible force. Her mind was in a frenzy as she tried to make out the odd sensation of feeling something that was obviously there but being unable to see it with her eyes.
It felt like an old sofa, rough and leathery but it had a natural warmth to it. She could feel the invisible creature's heartbeat and hear its breath. It leaned into her touch and she began to rub and pet its side, or at least what she thought was its side. "What do they look like?" She turned her head to look at Harry. "Imagine a horse skeleton wrapped in leather and throw some giant bat wings on its back. Pitch black eyes and not a hair on its body. Many people find them frightening and it's easy to understand why but I think they're brilliant." He could help the smile on his face, he really loved these creatures.
He let her pet the creature for a few more seconds before they both climbed into the carriage. They sat in silence just enjoying the ride as they made their way towards the village.
When the carriage stopped Harry opened the door and stepped out, ever the gentleman he held his hand out and helped Susan out. Closing the door he made his way to the head and spoke to the thestral. "Thank you for the ride, it was most pleasant." He gave the winged horse a slight bow and it gave one in return. "The honor was mine, my lord. I never would have dreamed that I would be the one with the honor of bringing you here. We thestrals have been eager to meet you since we felt your return and standing in your presence I can feel the power you possess, I believe you will do great things for all creatures in your time here." Harry gave the horse a quick nod and turned back to Susan. The girl was giving him a puzzled look but didn't say anything as she took his arm and the two made their way into the village.
"So is there anything you want to do while we're here?" He broke the silence as they aimlessly walked, turning his head to look at her. "I do need to get some more quills and parchment and I also want to stop at Honeydukes to get more sweets for my stash. I figured once we did that we could get lunch and then do whatever." Harry nodded along as she spoke. The quills and parchment shop didn't exactly peak his interest but the sweets shop might be one he enjoyed. "Sounds like a plan to me."
They made their way past the various shops and finally found the one they were looking for. Harry elected to stand outside and wait while Susan was inside doing her shopping. He only stood a few minutes before she came back out of the shop with a bag of quills and parchment in hand. With a wave of his hand the bag was shrunk and pocketed. "Ok, now let's go to Honeydukes and buy some sweets." He chuckled as she grabbed his hand and pulled him towards the sweets shop.
Harry's senses were in overdrive at the smells and colors radiating from inside the shop as they entered. The swirls and flashes of color and the sweet smells of sugar and other confectionery goods was enough to overload his senses and rattle his brain. Never before had he seen such an array of candies and treats. Sure back home they had candies and other sweets but this one store alone could rival all the kingdoms in Avalon in terms of variety.
Susan looked at the young man as he appeared dazed in all the vast glory that Honeydukes held. She chucked to herself and gave him a light shake. "Come on, let's go see what we can find." He shook his head and looked at the girl with a wild grin before he grabbed her hand and pulled her deeper into the shop.
Susan's mind was still reeling from what she had just witnessed. For most people a trip to Honeydukes cost them two, maybe three galleons and that was enough to last multiple people a long time. But she had just witnessed Harry spend over three hundred galleons on candy. He had bought their entire stock of chocolate frogs with all flavors of filling, all of their peanut butter marshmallow clusters, nearly all of the strawberry sour bursts and so many others that honestly she wasn't sure how the store could have had anything left. When the clerk told him how much she nearly fell over but Harry just casually counted out the coins as if they were nothing and walked out with his prize. Surely he understood that three hundred galleons was almost the average yearly pay for most wizarding families? As rich as the Bones were, even her aunt would be hesitant to pay two hundred galleons for something that wasn't absolutely necessary. Yet here he was casually tossing chocolate strawberry bombs in his mouth like he hadn't just spent what would be life changing money for most people.
"You good Susan? You seem kinda out of it." She jumped slightly in shock. "Yeah I'm good, just kinda surprised you spent so much on candy." She chuckled nervously to herself. He nodded at her words as he caught another candy in his mouth. "Yeah I might have gotten a little carried away but whatever, it's only money." She could only shake her head at the young man, he was an odd one she'd admit but that only made him more endearing to her.
The two sat in a small corner booth in the Three Broomsticks aimlessly talking about whatever crossed their minds. Neither of them had begun to ask anything personal yet, just content to enjoy each other's company.
That changed when their meals arrived and silence fell over them. Harry eagerly dug into his food while Susan merely picked at hers. He paused when she finally worked up the courage to ask about whatever was bothering her. "Do you still think of the Potters as family, Harry?"
His fork hovered mid-air when the words left her mouth. Of all the things he expected her to ask this wasn't one of them. "That's…a complicated question." He set his fork down and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I still care for them but they're not actually family anymore. I barely have any Potter blood in me, if I have any at all."
Susan nearly choked on a small bite of her food. "Y-you mean you're not a Potter anymore?! We all thought Prowler was just your adopted name, you mean they actually blood adopted you?" Susan lowered her voice as her outburst drew the attention of some of the pub's other patrons. "Harry, this is serious. The Wizengamot would be well within their rights to charge your adoptive parents with line theft, a charge that carries the death penalty. Especially when it involves the heir of a most ancient and most noble house like the Potters." Most people would be concerned when they found out their parents could be put to death, but Harry didn't react at all.
"I don't think my parents have to worry about that, Susan." The confused look on the girl's face was funny, but now he was in a predicament. Should he tell her about his parents and where he's from, or should he come up with some half baked lie and hope it doesn't backfire.
After a few seconds of thinking he decided it was better to be honest than to have to explain later why he lied to her. "My parents won't have to worry about the Wizengamot because I'm not from here." She was about to speak but he cut her off. "I don't mean I'm not from Britain, hell I don't even mean I'm not from Europe." He stopped one last time thinking it over, screw it if he was in this for the long haul now might as well commit. "I'm not from this world, I grew up in Avalon. The Avalon."
She looked at him like he was crazy and it was completely understandable. Someone telling you they grew up in a mythical fantasy world wasn't something that was believable nor normal. He'd expected her to not believe him but when she started laughing he realized to her just how silly what he said actually sounded.
Susan wiped a tear from her cheek as she tried to control her laughter. "Oh Merlin, that's good!" She took a few deep breaths calming herself down. "That was a good one Harry. Not many can commit for as long as you did. I was actually starting to believe you for a second." She felt more laughter starting to build up in her chest but it died as Harry pulled out his wand.
"I, Harry Ignotus Prowler, do hereby swear on my life and my magic that everything I have said so far and everything I will say has been and will be nothing but the truth." A bright golden glow surrounded the boy and faded as he put away his wand. "I won't lie to you Susan. What I'm about to tell you will be hard to believe but it will be the truth." And so he told her his story. He told her about the night Voldemort attacked and him being transported to Avalon, he told her about about the Prowler family and his parents, he told her about his friends and the other families of Avalon and he told her about what happened that caused him to be pulled from his home and being unsure if he will even be able to go back.
Susan's mind was reeling, never in her wildest dreams would she ever have imagined that Harry had spent the majority of his life in a place that most of the world believed to be nothing but fairytale. But yet here was a boy that lived in that world and had taken an oath on his life and magic proving its existence. "It's just so hard to believe, even with the oath my mind just can't comprehend it all. I couldn't imagine going through something like this, and not knowing if you can go home only makes it worse for you."
Harry nodded his head. "It's been a struggle but I just want to go home. Don't get me wrong I've loved seeing everyone again and it's been wonderful seeing my sister and my friends from when I was Harry Potter but this isn't my life anymore. So many people have changed since I left that I might as well have not even known them."
It was strange how the world and people had changed and he was still getting used to it. Even though he was a baby at the time and probably doesn't even remember him it was strange that Draco hadn't even tried to talk to him. Harry figured that his aunt Narcissa and uncle Lucius would have at least tried to reach out to him through Draco, but so far he'd heard nothing from the Malfoys. Of course he was just as guilty, he'd not made any effort to reach out to them either. It's not like he didn't want to, he figured it would be easier to leave if he kept his past in the past. That is if he's able to leave once this is all over. Maybe he would reach out, if for nothing else than to see how his aunt and uncle in all but blood had been doing. But that was for another time.
They sat in silence together in deep thought. Susan's mind was still going over this revelation about Harry and Harry himself was in conflict over whether or not he should renew his connections from his past life. After all, if he ended up not being able to go home after this was all said and done some people might be upset he hadn't reached out sooner.
The silence lasted only a few moments before he heard Susan speak. His heart began to race as she asked about the one topic he'd purposely been avoiding. "Did you have any girlfriends back in Avalon, Harry?"
His heart raced as he considered his options. He could lie and say no but that would only end badly depending on how this all played out. The truth could end just as disastrous, how do you explain to someone on the first date that they may end up having to share with other women. Not to mention the complications of possibly not being able to come to Avalon with him. This is why he should've avoided relationships altogether. His situation was far too complicated.
"I… I have a betrothed." The tension in the air was palpable, Susan's mouth opened but Harry cut her off before she could speak. "Before you say anything let me explain." He sighed softly. "My mother and father are unable to have children, my father was hit by a curse in a war that took away his ability to father children. He was an only child as all of his siblings died young. Because of this house Prowler was on the verge of extinction before I was transported to Avalon. When I arrived they immediately took me in and treated me as their own, I was everything they'd prayed for. When they blood adopted me house Prowler suddenly had a future again and they worked quickly to ensure that future was secure. That same day I was unknowingly betrothed to the heiress of house Graymore. We only found out about the betrothal when I was thirteen and she was twelve but by then we were best friends and had begun to develop feelings for each other anyway so we were perfectly fine with the news. The only hitch-"
"What's her name?" Harry stopped as he was cut off. "What?" Susan looked him in the eyes. "If I have to share you with someone the least you can do is tell me her name." Harry looked at her like she had grown a second head, this was the last thing he'd expected her to say. "Oh uh, her name is Athena." He chuckled to himself. "You don't know how much I've stressed over how I was going to bring this up. On the bright side though, that makes this next part much easier."
"The only hitch to mine and Athena's betrothal is that any children born have to take the Graymore name. Athena's an only child and her mother died during childbirth so house Graymore is in the same boat as house Prowler. Normally the lord of the house would remarry but lord Graymore worshipped the ground his wife walked over and refused to find another wife as he felt it would be betraying the woman he loved." He paused to make sure Susan was still following along. "To remedy this it was decided that I'd have to marry multiple women. How many was up to me and my wives but no number was set." Susan nodded along as she listened.
"So basically if you're able to go back to Avalon you'll have to marry Athena and then at least one other woman." Harry nodded his head. "At the minimum. My father wants me to marry at least 5 but that's because he wants lots of grandkids, and because he wants the family to regain numbers. But yes you have the gist of it."
Susan madden her head and thought over what she just learned. "So what would happen if you couldn't go home? Would you rejoin the Potters or establish a Prowler family in Britain? And what about the whole multiple wives thing?"
"Well I'd definitely be re-establishing the Prowler family, I'd have a late start but I'd have to start making political connections and investing my money into businesses along with growing my own business. The Prowlers mainly make our money in potions and potion ingredients. As for the multiple wives thing, honestly I'm not sure. Right now I'm counting on being able to go home so I guess it's still a go." He shrugged his shoulders.
"What about me and anyone else if you decide to date another girl from here? Will we be able to go to Avalon with you or will all this be for nothing and you'll just be snapped back home with no way to contact us again?" The question was a heavy one but it was one they were both thinking of.
"I have about as good of an answer for that as I do about me even being able to go home. I just don't know. That's why I didn't want to have any relationships at all when I learned what was happening. No friends, no dating, nothing. The less I interacted with people the better. But all of you insisted on being around me so much that it couldn't be helped." His shoulders sagged and he placed head in his hands. "I just don't know what to do. This whole situation comes with so much uncertainty that I'm not sure if I should prepare for a life here or abandon everything with the intent on returning home and possibly never seeing anyone here again."
This was a rare moment for Harry. Few people had seen him in a moment of weakness such as this, they only knew the confident side of him that had a plan for everything and the power to see it fulfilled. This was a stark contrast to that boy. This Harry didn't know which path to take as both were clouded with mystery. Susan could sense this. Harry always held himself with confidence and certainty, even with mundane things he showed power and composure.
"We'll just have to figure it out when the time comes. If you get to go home then that's great, if I and anyone else get to go with you that's even better but if you end up stuck here it'll be hard I'm sure but you'll still be able to live a good life. Maybe you'll discover a way to move between worlds, you never know . Until then, just enjoy your time here until you know for sure." He picked his head out of his hands and looked at the girl. "Yeah you're right. By the way, it seems you're awful sure that you'll be one of my wives. Talking about going to Avalon with me and all that."
Susan blushed and looked down at the table. "I was just using myself as an example, besides you don't date someone unless you think you'll be with them long term." He had to give her that although it was a hard sell when you knew one of the possible outcomes to this situation was him going home and never seeing anyone here again.
The rest of their day flew by as they continued to talk and enjoy each other's company. When they made it back to the castle and parted ways they were in deep thought. Harry was thinking about his future and the possibilities it held. What is he gonna do if he can't go home? What will he do if he forms strong relationships here and is sent home with no way to contact this world? These questions were beyond the wisdom of a seventeen year old mind and only gave him a headache. It wasn't like him to be so uncertain, he was always sure of his plans and the future but this came with so much uncertainty that one could barely make a plan at all.
Susan was thinking along the same lines as Harry. What would happen when the tournament was over? Would he get sent home never to be seen again or would he stay here with her? There was also the matter of him possibly having multiple wives. It wasn't common in the wizarding world anymore but it still did happen, usually in extreme cases of spouses or heirs dying. She was fine with sharing him with other witches as long as he made time for everyone but the thought still kinda weirded her out.
She felt bad as part of her hoped he was stuck here forever. Sure they may not get married but surely they would still be friends. She knew it was selfish to think like that because he had a family that would miss him back home just as much as his family here would miss him. Hopefully things worked out in the best way possible for all parties but sadly that only happens in fairytales.
Ok thats that. Like I said im sorry for taking so long lofe just got hectic and this had to but on hold. Im now good to be back and ready to hopefully update every 2 weeks. Ive also already figured out my next fic and im SUPER excited about it! So watch out for the little teaser for "Champion of a forgotten god" I might try to throw in a little monthly update for it but I don't want it to take my focus away from this. Anyway thank you for your time reading this, please leave a review and I'll see you next time!