Chapter 2
Next day Harry’s alarm rang early in the morning. He set it earlier than he normally did because he wanted to enjoy the daybreak. He forgot his location though, so instead of the day’s first rays he was welcomed by silence and darkness of Forks. Somehow the atmosphere pleased him still, promising calm and peace, and he obliged. He stretched on the bed like a lazy cat, and got up to hurry downstairs.
His home stood lonely slightly aside from the road to the city and even further away than the Cullen residence. He walked onto the terrace and breathed in the scent of the forest, letting the atmosphere envelop him. He just stood there for at least a minute before dragging out the mate, savoring every precious moment of the day.
He felt energy coursing through his veins as he finished his light warm-up routine; his muscles slowly waking from sleep. The slight pull in his limbs he felt when he awoke was absent. His body was willing to move but he didn’t want to turn a warm-up into a series of more engaging exercises, so he went to the bathroom to arrange his hair and have a quick shower. Soon he found himself in the living room, wondering what else to do before school; he still had plenty of free time.
His gaze fell on the photo of him and his friends at the graduation party. It was Hermione who caught his eye. It was one of a few photos where she looked like a happy carefree child. Her smile radiated at the camera. Her demeanor was no wonder. They passed all exams and finished Hogwarts and their only peaceful year. No worries, no fear, and no hard feelings. It felt like a dream.
Her smiling face reminded him of the letter he had to write to the Ministry to inform them of his resignation. She had recently asked him not to delay the inevitable and inform them of his decision as fast as possible. She was right of course; the decision was made and there was no doubt about it. He was an exceptional Auror and now he had to continue being responsible by letting them know that they needed to find a replacement. Even though he didn’t want this job anymore, it was hard to say goodbye. There were so many memories connected to it. This career opened so many doors for him and united him with so many people that he was probably almost grateful for it as he was for Hogwarts. Grudgingly he sat down and collected himself; he knew exactly what to write. The idea formed in his head before he started. He wrote a two-page letter thanking them for the experience and bidding farewell. Soon the ready letter was laying in front of him prepared to be sent.
Here he encountered another problem. He had no bird to send it.
After Hedwig died, he didn’t have the heart to bring another pet into his life. It stung like betrayal, to welcome another animal he had to let Hedwig go, but he couldn’t. He couldn’t just brush off her death and pretend she wasn’t one of his childhood friends.
The loss of both Hedwig and Sirius hit him harder than anyone had anticipated. He lost so many people in this war but Hedwig and Sirius always seemed like a family of his own, a family he created. The Weasleys, who welcomed him, were a family too, but a family he found. They didn’t know his parents, nor did he talk to them about it. However, Sirius felt like the last piece of the family he was born into. The last link to his blood relatives, to his early childhood, to the time that was forcefully taken from him. He still had nightmares about Sirius’ dissolve into the veil. He cherished the small ball of hope he had of finding Sirius; it was the sole reason for his study of dark magic. No magic could bring Hedwig back though, it was an idea he had to get used to a few years ago. Maybe soon he will be ready to find another pet, for now though he left the house and headed to his motorbike.
He was planning to head to Tacoma after school. He won’t have time for anything else that day but the Ministry was already getting suspicious about his future career, so he should send the letter sooner rather than later. He never used so much of his vacation time before. He felt like the safety of the wizarding war was his responsibility so he was an active ministry worker and the youngest Head Auror ever. However, he received a lot of help. Hermione was filling gaps in his political education, which came in handy when he was using his seats in Wizengamot.
Wizarding politics was a mess and after the war all its departments were disoriented. Every important issue was settled in Wizengamot. Political power wasn’t distributed correctly among the departments. It was easy to change but hard to organize. As time passed, it was finally functioning well enough to let it recover further on its own.
With immense help from muggleborns they introduced more equality to magical Britain and even earned some perks to some magical creatures. Hermione’s movement to support elves gained a few more followers, it was still hard to direct any liberating movement in the ruins of the past. Wizards had other things to worry about so they shoved these worries to the side.
As Harry thought about it he remembered the vampires. They were more respected than the elves but still deep down wizards felt like they were inferior, secondary species. He would catch them staring at him sometimes and it unnerved him. ‘Could they know? Was he as obvious as they were under their disguises?’
Soon his anxiety about vampires was replaced with other worries though.
He had PE first, which felt great because he still craved movement. Considering that he was a wizard and a Master of Death he needed only two hours of sleep to feel good; the same couldn’t be said about food. He ate twice as much as he did before and it seemed that he didn’t need to. He didn’t gain any muscle from it, nor did he gain any fat. He was pretty tall and had a good physique even when he didn’t work on it, which was rare considering his job and luck at finding problems.
When he entered the gym, he was pleased to see that it was quite modern and most importantly large. This time they played Volleyball during the lesson and he turned out to be a good player, not stellar but a bit higher than mediocre anyway. It wasn’t half as fun as Quidditch but still very entertaining. However, his class was cut short when the ball he intended to pass to Mike fell right at the new girl who was sitting on the bench and reading the notes.
As the ball was falling he helplessly watched it flying right onto her injured arm in slow motion. He could have caught it, but he had to be careful with the display of his sharpened senses around the witnesses. Even the wizards wouldn’t approve of the newfound ability, as he gained it using some of the dark magic rituals. He couldn’t demonstrate his swiftness, neither well developed hearing or body functions. As the ball fell he felt his face cringe mirroring her expression. She hissed at the pain and he strode over the field to approach her.
“Are you okay? I am so sorry, I didn’t measure my force well. Can I guide you to the medic?” asked Harry, cursing himself for getting lost in the game.
“I’m fine, tha…” said the girl when she was cut by the teacher's dismissive voice.
“Yes, Mr. Potter. Guide Bella Swan to the school nurse please and make sure she is alright. Next time be more careful with the ball,” the coach dismissed him with the wave of her hand. She seemed as stern about safety as Professor Hooch, which somehow soothed Harry. He saw others turning to look at them as well. Mike looked like he was halfway to them but his way was cut short with the command of the coach to return to his initial position.
“Sure,” replied Harry, offering his hand to the girl and helping her to her feet. She looked so small and gentle he was surprised he didn’t end her with that ball.
As they walked out of the class she tugged him in the right direction. Her arm felt surprisingly strong, at least for someone so fragile and her grip was confident.
“You’re new, I’ll show you the direction,” explained the girl and without a glance back walked in front of him. “My name is Bella, by the way.”
“Pleasure to meet you, Harry Potter,” answered Harry. “I can’t believe I haven’t learned the way to the nurse here yet. In my previous school I was quite a frequent visitor.”
“So was I,” laughed Bella and Harry relaxed looking at her friendly smile. She seemed oblivious to his slip but why would she care. No one could suspect him of anything. “I think here I still hold the annual record of the traumas.”
“I can see that,” replied Harry, hinting at her arm and a leg.
Bella smiled again, but this time her smile looked slightly sadder. “Yes, it’s from the most recent accident.”
“Hope you’ll get better soon.” replied Harry. Somehow asking her about this accident felt wrong.
“Me too,” She turned back and hung her head a bit. “At least before the ball.”
“What ball?” asked Harry incredulously. He thought that in the muggle world the balls were rather outdated.
“The graduation party,” retorted Bella. “You know. With all the dresses and smart attires. I bet everyone will be dancing too.”
“Sounds fun. Your leg should better heal until then. I’m sure you’ll be a stellar dancer there.” Harry smiled and tried to lighten her mood searching to meet her gaze.
She was stubbornly looking at the floor. “No, I’m not a good dancer. I can be quite clumsy, so I just hope I won’t have any more traumas”
“I could teach you. I want to help you as an apology for my earlier performance,” Harry offered. “I had to attend a lot of balls before and other parties. I learnt some classical dances too and I’m sure I can help you a bit, if you let me.” He still remembered the long practices he endured in the Black Manor. His tutor made him sweat more than any Quidditch practice ever could. However, the result of his work was truly magnificent. Harry easily passed through every ball and political event where he gathered a long list of new acquaintances. He even started to avoid uncomfortable conversation by dragging the first person he sees to the dancing zone. Fortunately, nobody minded dancing with a celebrity.
Bella still looked somewhat unconvinced so he went on. “My first ball was such a failure though,” he noticed her subtle interest and smiled, “I was fourteen then and a terrible dancer,” Harry said, making the word “terrible” sound dramatic. He put a suitable expression on his face and continued, “The girl I liked was dancing with another. My best friend was in a foul mood and the second one was the complete opposite. She danced her time away with her beautiful partner and had a time of her life. So I felt as horrible as I danced. I couldn’t talk to anybody because everyone else seemed to have other things to do. The guests were either happy or irritated so I was isolated. The ones which were as bored and gloomy as me to share it, hated me and it was mutual.” Harry smirked, reminiscing on Malfoy, Blaise, and Pansy who seemed to share his sentiment on that ball.
“Seriously?” Bella shook him out of his thoughts. “You seem like the type to dance.”
“Well, the times are changing,” Harry replied mysteriously and watched Bella smirk at him. “I had to learn it to make my public evenings more bearable.”
They merrily chatted until they reached the nurse, who examined Bella’s hand and recommended her to rest. No real damage was done. They went to the resting zone with all the cushions and padded stools jumping from theme to theme while talking. Finally they set on the parties again and Harry mentioned that he learned to braid hair last year for his friends’ future daughter.
It was true he did it for Hermione. These were her final weeks of pregnancy and he still remembered how excited all of them were when they heard the news. Krum started crying soon followed by both Harry and Ron congratulating Hermione. Ron helped them to find a new house with more than enough space for all three of them. Harry was Krum’s assistant who was fussing over Hermione’ more than Harry imagined was possible. She deserved all of it, obviously. He meticulously watched the work of designers of their new home and started studying spells to take care of the baby. They hired expensive chefs because Hermione forbade any house elves from serving in her house. She had to do it because they didn’t take as much money as she wanted to give them. Finally, Krum decided that it would save the problems to just hire other wizards or magical creatures who weren’t so oppressed or would take the money Hermionee gives.
“Really?!” exclaimed Bella. “That’s so sweet that I’ll need proof!”
And she sat on the carpet at the padded stool. Harry chuckled and started to gently arrange her hair. He didn’t regret that he couldn’t do it the magical way. People enjoyed the process and he didn’t want to take that happiness from them. After all, he of all people had all the time in the world.
By the end of the process Bella was melted resting her head on his knees and her limp body against the padded stool. Her hairstyle looked decent and Harry admired his work as he lightly patted her braids along the lines.
She groaned when the bell rang. “I almost forgot we had lessons,” she frowned, but then yawned and her face relaxed again.
He walked her to the next class trying to cheer her up by telling her funny accidents which occurred with him during the official parties. He revealed no hints of abnormality of these balls: the magic, the rituals performed, the names, and the status.
He had just finished telling the last one when one of the vampires seemed to appear out of the thin air in front of them.
“Bella,” he called her name and she leaned to hug him. “Why don’t you introduce me to your new acquaintance?”
“Ah, sure,” she swiftly turned, with her lips curved into a light smile.
“Edward, this is my friend - Harry. Harry, this is my boyfriend” she said as they shook each other’s hands.
“Nice to meet you” said Harry and Edward at the same time and smirked.
Harry smiled. “I’ve already heard several rumors about you,” he said to Edward and they turned to the classroom.
“They are probably wrong,” replied the vampire and headed to the table.
In biology he was sitting right in front of Bella and Edward. Mike cheerfully filled the seat beside him.
“So, Harry, you met Bella?” he started seated half turned to the desk behind them.
“Obviously,” Bella answered instead.
“Cool. I was concerned when I saw you walking out of the gym. That shot was really strong,” Mike exclaimed. “How’s your hand by the way?”
“Fine”
Edward, who seemed completely uninterested in the discussion, passively stroking Bella’s braids, woke up from the contemplation. “What happened to your arm?” He asked, looking concerned and a bit amused, probably by the frequency of these accidents.
“It’s fine really. A ball fell on it on the PE. It didn't hurt and the nurse said it was alright.”
“Okay. And what happened to your hair?” Edward now asked with a little grin. “It suits you a lot.”
“Thanks, Harry is a real wizard,” Harry flinched, but Bella didn’t care to notice, “he did it himself after walking me to the hospital wing.”
“Well, it does look magical,” Mike chuckled. “Where did you learn to do it, dude?”
Harry smiled and gladly told them about his pregnant best friend and how everyone was doing something to her to hype her up. Krum left early on a parental leave to help Hermione with everything. She couldn’t bathe or tie shoelaces herself anymore. So he helped her to do all these things and sometimes was leaving to go home and bring her something she wanted to have in the hospital. They planned to make Ron her Godfather, because Harry already had one Godson.
Teddy was supposed to arrive at Forks on Friday using a portkey. He was seven years old now and was studying in the second grade of muggle school in London. This year he passed all examinations earlier. They wanted to celebrate his birthday next month together so he was coming to Forks earlier. He knew about Harry’s plan to bring back Sirius and he was probably as interested in it as Harry was. He thought of Harry as his father, because he was the one responsible for him. He probably wanted to see Sirius so much because he would count as a cool uncle like Ron was.
Ron would probably be loved by Hermione’s daughter as well. He didn’t have kids or family yet so he would be an adult covering the mischief and spoiling children of his friends. Sometimes Harry was jealous of it, being the “cool uncle” is always fun.
According to the official papers Teddy was Harry’s child. Andromeda did have muddle documents anyway, she was cautious about letting Harry be a parent, but in the end she agreed. So Harry adopted Teddy, who he kept his surname though. He would be able to change it as he grows up if he decides so.
Initially they wanted to move together but then Harry decided to go one month prior to prepare everything for Teddy.
“I also did it a few times for my son, but he normally prefers to wear his hair short,” said Harry, finishing the explanation.
It was true. He did it a few times for Teddy but he seemed to like to wear his hair loose.
The last sentence seemed to thunderstruck everyone. After a few minutes Edward seemed to unfreeze.
“I didn’t know you had a child,” he said, still calm but looking puzzled.
“I adopted my godson, his parents died early,” Harry explained quickly.
“Aren’t you too young to be a parent?” This time it was Mike who asked the question.
“Well, I probably am, but I feel prepared and I have everything he needs. I care about him a lot. At first he was living with his grandma, but recently we both decided that it would be better for him to live with me,” said Harry.
“But why? She is older,” asked Mike.
“Yes, but I lived in London and she prefers to live out of town. Teddy wanted to live in the center with me. Before this school I also traveled a lot and sometimes he went with me. So after a year or two it just became obvious that I could take care of him and that he liked living with me more. So we kept it this way.”
“Huh, what a life you live!” Mike nearly laughed. “You probably had more life experience than all my friends combined.”
“Probably”
The news spread like a fire. By the end of the day all school was talking about Harry, his talent to braid and his son.
‘Excellent’ thought the author of a new wave of school gossip. ‘All I needed is fame here’