Categories > Books > Harry Potter > The Company We Keep
DISCLAIMER: See the Prologue.
NOTE: Someone raised a good point in his (her?) review, about Harry flying overnight over the ocean without any food or sleep. My explanation is that Harry hung in there in his desperation to escape, although some people have been asking if it was because of his mutant powers.
Chapter 4: Meet the X-Men
Harry spent the next day or so recovering in the infirmary, just grateful that his hosts weren't the Madam Pomfrey-type; even then, they only wanted blood samples, tests, and to make sure he was in okay condition. Furthermore, when he somehow healed himself, his eyesight had also been fixed; even so, he still kept his glasses in case anything happened. All kinds of crazy thoughts keep running through his head, and he couldn't help but wonder about how his life would go from here...
His thoughts wandered back to the wizarding world. Even if he did manage to clear his name, would he really want to return? He was so sick and tired of being their whipping boy for whenever something went wrong. The society was hypocritical; he's supposed to be their hero, and yet when something goes wrong, he's the first person they blame. (Of course, his true friends were exempt from these feelings.)
Nah, Harry most likely wouldn't want to return. Prove he was innocent, yes, but definitely not live among them again. At least not at the rate things were currently going.
Professor Xavier (or "Professor X," as he was sometimes called), had promised Harry he would do everything and anything within his power to protect him. Alex had already used the Fidelius Charm and other things to help protect the knowledge of Harry's location.
However, that didn't stop one person from showing up which Harry really missed. Later the same day after Harry came out of his coma, Ororo walked in with a certain bird on her shoulder -
"Hedwig!"
The snowy owl jumped off the weather witch's shoulder and came over to Harry, hooting happily and nibbling his ear. "Your owl has been fine for the past month, Harry," Ororo explained with a smile. "According to Damian, she left your former school after she sensed your departure, flew all the way across the ocean, and has been here at the Institute. Alex was helping to take care of her when she wasn't out hunting for mice and other creatures to eat."
"I'll be sure to thank him," Harry said absentmindedly, stroking Hedwig's feathers.
"Anyway, you should be fine tomorrow," Ororo continued. "Scott has agreed to take you to the mall tomorrow so you can get new clothes and other things you need."
"Sorry, but who?"
"He's the one who saved you from that one monster with the optic lasers."
"Ah, OK. And who's the one with the metal claws?"
"That would be Logan. He's quite the aggressive one. But for all his short-tempered personality, he is very loyal."
"Hmm," Harry contemplated. "My godfather was like that, actually..."
There was a silent moment, before Hedwig hooted one last time and returned back to Ororo's shoulder. "Just rest well, Harry. You'll be out of here tomorrow."
The following afternoon, Harry finally checked out of the infirmary and was loaned some spare clothes which he could wear until he got his own. Harry was directed towards the garage, where Scott was waiting with his beautiful car.
The ride to the mall was only minutes long, and Harry and Scott made some small talk on the way.
Shopping wasn't exactly an exciting experience for Harry; Scott merely pointed out which stores were where and Harry then bought what he needed to. After he had brought what they needed, they returned back to an Institute full of students eager to meet and greet Harry.
Harry spent the rest of the afternoon before dinner putting his new things away along with his prized possessions. Hedwig was already there, nestled contently in her cage.
Harry's room was about the size of the dorm room he shared with Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus. He learned that some mutants shared rooms, while others had their own, depending on what their powers were and the potential accidents that could occur in their sleep.
In fact, Harry heard a strange rumor (or maybe it was a joke?) that Damian had his own room because of one occasion where he unwittingly transformed into a dragon one night and torched his bed while he was sleeping. This resulted in the fire alarms going off, and then the sprinklers, and everyone having to evacuate and go outside in the middle of the night in only their night clothes.
After the incident, they now had fireproof materials and charms for that kind of reason in place.
Smirking at the mental image, Harry finished freshening himself up to look as good as he could before his hosts.
Damian met up with Harry outside the dining room. "Ororo is just speaking to the others, and then you can come in." Seeing Harry's discomfort at being introduced like this, Damian reassured him, "Look, trust me, Harry, everything will be fine. We are a very tough breed. We've fought numerous foes who only wanted to cause chaos and evil. Trust me, you'll fit right in."
This was indeed some consolation to Harry. "Have you been part of some of these... /adventures/?"
"No, I'm sorry, I'm afraid I only joined them a year ago. I'm still not exactly well-trained enough to join the X-Men."
"The /who/?"
"That's what we call ourselves."
"Oh."
"Yeah, anyway, my powers somehow 'awakened' a year ago. The professor found me and offered me his hospitality, along with the promise of being able to learn how to control my powers."
"What about your family? I mean, I know this is a boarding school and everything."
Damian suddenly looked a little somber, but before he could respond, Ororo suddenly popped her head in. "Harry, Damian, everyone's ready and waiting. Come on in."
Damian tried to cheer Harry up by clapping a hand on his shoulder. A little thrown off at first by the gesture, Harry accepted it and walked in, willing himself to be able to handle all this.
Harry entered the room to see about a couple of dozen mutants - most of them teenagers, roughly the same age as him - seated around a big table. They were all looking at him, interested in meeting him.
"Everyone," Ororo announced, "This is Harry."
There were friendly greetings around him, and Harry gave a small smile and muttered "Hello."
Harry just sat down and ate; he didn't join any conversation unless he was asked about it. Even when he had been asked if he could show his abilities, he politely declined the invitation, saying that he didn't want to cause any accidents in case something went wrong.
He did, however, tell of his exploits, including his fights against Voldemort and his various minions. On the whole, the others looked impressed, saying they'd be eager to see how he could fight alongside him.
Harry, on the other hand, just kept thinking about his friends back at Hogwarts, wishing he was still with them.
However, that didn't mean Harry had nothing against these new people. They were, in some ways, in the same boat as he had been: They had been discriminated against by some against things they had absolutely no control over. After hearing about how their high school principal was so degrading towards them, Harry automatically disliked the guy.
After dinner (it was quite sumptuous), Harry asked Professor Xavier if he could contact Dumbledore or any of his friends, as long as certain measures were taken. As he had expected, the answer was no, due to concerns of both Voldemort and the Ministry, although Harry reasoned it was at least worth a try.
However, before Harry could abscond to the sanctuary of his new room, Dr. McCoy ("Beast") asked Harry, "Would it at least be alright if we could see the events which resulted in you coming here?"
There was an uncomfortable moment of silence all around him as Harry automatically looked to Professor Xavier for advice.
It's up to you, Harry/, he said telepathically. /If you do want them to let them know what happened, just think of what memories you'd like them to know, and I'll relay them and telepathically project them so we can see them.
Harry thought about this for a moment before conceding to it; after all, his hosts and new friends had a right to know what events brought him here.
Okay.
Starting from when he first saw Fudge, arresting Hagrid during the Chamber of Secrets crisis just so he could look good, Harry progressed from there, showing Fudge, then Umbridge (and eventually Percy), doing all their heinous, crooked and corrupt acts. Eventually, Harry drew out that day where Sirius died, ranging from Umbridge's gloating confession to Sirius being blasted back through that wretched arch and beyond the veil. To cap it all off, it included the memory of him fleeing from Hogwarts, and exhibiting the first of his unusual power, including the large jump, the burst of speed, and the minor telekinesis.
The others' expressions had ranged from shock, disgust, pity, hatred, and more shock. A moment later, they were all saying what they'd like to do to those corrupt politicians (which somewhat surprised Harry with how they were immediately outraged on his behalf).
"That Fudger guy is just like Principal Kelly!" Scott exclaimed with disgust, gaining instant agreement from everyone else in the room (minus the adults, who stayed silent and didn't voice their opinions).
"Who?"
"The principal in charge of Bayville High," Jean explained.
"An absolute bigot who has it in for mutants," Kitty added.
"Looks for any reason to get us expelled," Kurt growled.
"I wonder would happen if he found out if he was a mutant," Amara mused, "But we all know he isn't one; Professor Xavier told us so."
"Now, students," Xavier said, "I'm sure Mr. Kelly will come to his senses in due time..."
Not surprisingly, this was greeted with much skepticism.
Saying good night, Harry exited the room and went to his own.
After taking a shower, Harry flopped on his bed, strangely exhausted even though he had done nothing exhausting that day.
Harry's biggest concern at the moment was now being able to control his powers. What if he accidentally hurt or even killed someone? He didn't think he could live with any more of that on his conscience.
This thought led him back to thinking about his friends back home, who he couldn't stop worrying about. Were they alright, or did they get into any trouble over him? Gazing out into the cloudy night sky, Harry couldn't stop worrying about all this...
TBC...
A/N: Yes, I know, this is a transitional chapter. Sorry!
Regarding Principal Kelly: Don't worry; he'll get what's coming to him, especially after I have his reputation take a major nosedive not too far from now... (Wink wink!)
Next chapter Damian's story... -Quillain
EXTRA!
Just found another HP/X-Men crossover!
"Shattering Mirrors," by Hades' Phoenix
Also, if any X-Men fans here want to read good stuff, I'd recommend the myriad of fics by Rurouni Tyriel!
NOTE: Someone raised a good point in his (her?) review, about Harry flying overnight over the ocean without any food or sleep. My explanation is that Harry hung in there in his desperation to escape, although some people have been asking if it was because of his mutant powers.
Chapter 4: Meet the X-Men
Harry spent the next day or so recovering in the infirmary, just grateful that his hosts weren't the Madam Pomfrey-type; even then, they only wanted blood samples, tests, and to make sure he was in okay condition. Furthermore, when he somehow healed himself, his eyesight had also been fixed; even so, he still kept his glasses in case anything happened. All kinds of crazy thoughts keep running through his head, and he couldn't help but wonder about how his life would go from here...
His thoughts wandered back to the wizarding world. Even if he did manage to clear his name, would he really want to return? He was so sick and tired of being their whipping boy for whenever something went wrong. The society was hypocritical; he's supposed to be their hero, and yet when something goes wrong, he's the first person they blame. (Of course, his true friends were exempt from these feelings.)
Nah, Harry most likely wouldn't want to return. Prove he was innocent, yes, but definitely not live among them again. At least not at the rate things were currently going.
Professor Xavier (or "Professor X," as he was sometimes called), had promised Harry he would do everything and anything within his power to protect him. Alex had already used the Fidelius Charm and other things to help protect the knowledge of Harry's location.
However, that didn't stop one person from showing up which Harry really missed. Later the same day after Harry came out of his coma, Ororo walked in with a certain bird on her shoulder -
"Hedwig!"
The snowy owl jumped off the weather witch's shoulder and came over to Harry, hooting happily and nibbling his ear. "Your owl has been fine for the past month, Harry," Ororo explained with a smile. "According to Damian, she left your former school after she sensed your departure, flew all the way across the ocean, and has been here at the Institute. Alex was helping to take care of her when she wasn't out hunting for mice and other creatures to eat."
"I'll be sure to thank him," Harry said absentmindedly, stroking Hedwig's feathers.
"Anyway, you should be fine tomorrow," Ororo continued. "Scott has agreed to take you to the mall tomorrow so you can get new clothes and other things you need."
"Sorry, but who?"
"He's the one who saved you from that one monster with the optic lasers."
"Ah, OK. And who's the one with the metal claws?"
"That would be Logan. He's quite the aggressive one. But for all his short-tempered personality, he is very loyal."
"Hmm," Harry contemplated. "My godfather was like that, actually..."
There was a silent moment, before Hedwig hooted one last time and returned back to Ororo's shoulder. "Just rest well, Harry. You'll be out of here tomorrow."
The following afternoon, Harry finally checked out of the infirmary and was loaned some spare clothes which he could wear until he got his own. Harry was directed towards the garage, where Scott was waiting with his beautiful car.
The ride to the mall was only minutes long, and Harry and Scott made some small talk on the way.
Shopping wasn't exactly an exciting experience for Harry; Scott merely pointed out which stores were where and Harry then bought what he needed to. After he had brought what they needed, they returned back to an Institute full of students eager to meet and greet Harry.
Harry spent the rest of the afternoon before dinner putting his new things away along with his prized possessions. Hedwig was already there, nestled contently in her cage.
Harry's room was about the size of the dorm room he shared with Ron, Neville, Dean and Seamus. He learned that some mutants shared rooms, while others had their own, depending on what their powers were and the potential accidents that could occur in their sleep.
In fact, Harry heard a strange rumor (or maybe it was a joke?) that Damian had his own room because of one occasion where he unwittingly transformed into a dragon one night and torched his bed while he was sleeping. This resulted in the fire alarms going off, and then the sprinklers, and everyone having to evacuate and go outside in the middle of the night in only their night clothes.
After the incident, they now had fireproof materials and charms for that kind of reason in place.
Smirking at the mental image, Harry finished freshening himself up to look as good as he could before his hosts.
Damian met up with Harry outside the dining room. "Ororo is just speaking to the others, and then you can come in." Seeing Harry's discomfort at being introduced like this, Damian reassured him, "Look, trust me, Harry, everything will be fine. We are a very tough breed. We've fought numerous foes who only wanted to cause chaos and evil. Trust me, you'll fit right in."
This was indeed some consolation to Harry. "Have you been part of some of these... /adventures/?"
"No, I'm sorry, I'm afraid I only joined them a year ago. I'm still not exactly well-trained enough to join the X-Men."
"The /who/?"
"That's what we call ourselves."
"Oh."
"Yeah, anyway, my powers somehow 'awakened' a year ago. The professor found me and offered me his hospitality, along with the promise of being able to learn how to control my powers."
"What about your family? I mean, I know this is a boarding school and everything."
Damian suddenly looked a little somber, but before he could respond, Ororo suddenly popped her head in. "Harry, Damian, everyone's ready and waiting. Come on in."
Damian tried to cheer Harry up by clapping a hand on his shoulder. A little thrown off at first by the gesture, Harry accepted it and walked in, willing himself to be able to handle all this.
Harry entered the room to see about a couple of dozen mutants - most of them teenagers, roughly the same age as him - seated around a big table. They were all looking at him, interested in meeting him.
"Everyone," Ororo announced, "This is Harry."
There were friendly greetings around him, and Harry gave a small smile and muttered "Hello."
Harry just sat down and ate; he didn't join any conversation unless he was asked about it. Even when he had been asked if he could show his abilities, he politely declined the invitation, saying that he didn't want to cause any accidents in case something went wrong.
He did, however, tell of his exploits, including his fights against Voldemort and his various minions. On the whole, the others looked impressed, saying they'd be eager to see how he could fight alongside him.
Harry, on the other hand, just kept thinking about his friends back at Hogwarts, wishing he was still with them.
However, that didn't mean Harry had nothing against these new people. They were, in some ways, in the same boat as he had been: They had been discriminated against by some against things they had absolutely no control over. After hearing about how their high school principal was so degrading towards them, Harry automatically disliked the guy.
After dinner (it was quite sumptuous), Harry asked Professor Xavier if he could contact Dumbledore or any of his friends, as long as certain measures were taken. As he had expected, the answer was no, due to concerns of both Voldemort and the Ministry, although Harry reasoned it was at least worth a try.
However, before Harry could abscond to the sanctuary of his new room, Dr. McCoy ("Beast") asked Harry, "Would it at least be alright if we could see the events which resulted in you coming here?"
There was an uncomfortable moment of silence all around him as Harry automatically looked to Professor Xavier for advice.
It's up to you, Harry/, he said telepathically. /If you do want them to let them know what happened, just think of what memories you'd like them to know, and I'll relay them and telepathically project them so we can see them.
Harry thought about this for a moment before conceding to it; after all, his hosts and new friends had a right to know what events brought him here.
Okay.
Starting from when he first saw Fudge, arresting Hagrid during the Chamber of Secrets crisis just so he could look good, Harry progressed from there, showing Fudge, then Umbridge (and eventually Percy), doing all their heinous, crooked and corrupt acts. Eventually, Harry drew out that day where Sirius died, ranging from Umbridge's gloating confession to Sirius being blasted back through that wretched arch and beyond the veil. To cap it all off, it included the memory of him fleeing from Hogwarts, and exhibiting the first of his unusual power, including the large jump, the burst of speed, and the minor telekinesis.
The others' expressions had ranged from shock, disgust, pity, hatred, and more shock. A moment later, they were all saying what they'd like to do to those corrupt politicians (which somewhat surprised Harry with how they were immediately outraged on his behalf).
"That Fudger guy is just like Principal Kelly!" Scott exclaimed with disgust, gaining instant agreement from everyone else in the room (minus the adults, who stayed silent and didn't voice their opinions).
"Who?"
"The principal in charge of Bayville High," Jean explained.
"An absolute bigot who has it in for mutants," Kitty added.
"Looks for any reason to get us expelled," Kurt growled.
"I wonder would happen if he found out if he was a mutant," Amara mused, "But we all know he isn't one; Professor Xavier told us so."
"Now, students," Xavier said, "I'm sure Mr. Kelly will come to his senses in due time..."
Not surprisingly, this was greeted with much skepticism.
Saying good night, Harry exited the room and went to his own.
After taking a shower, Harry flopped on his bed, strangely exhausted even though he had done nothing exhausting that day.
Harry's biggest concern at the moment was now being able to control his powers. What if he accidentally hurt or even killed someone? He didn't think he could live with any more of that on his conscience.
This thought led him back to thinking about his friends back home, who he couldn't stop worrying about. Were they alright, or did they get into any trouble over him? Gazing out into the cloudy night sky, Harry couldn't stop worrying about all this...
TBC...
A/N: Yes, I know, this is a transitional chapter. Sorry!
Regarding Principal Kelly: Don't worry; he'll get what's coming to him, especially after I have his reputation take a major nosedive not too far from now... (Wink wink!)
Next chapter Damian's story... -Quillain
EXTRA!
Just found another HP/X-Men crossover!
"Shattering Mirrors," by Hades' Phoenix
Also, if any X-Men fans here want to read good stuff, I'd recommend the myriad of fics by Rurouni Tyriel!
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