So I had this written, but I didn't have a chance to type it up until now. So thank you all for your patience and your feedback. :)
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He knew that letting the lads live was a bad idea, although the full extent of how bad of an idea that was didn't reach him until the next morning. He heard the crowd before he saw them, smelt the smoke and gasoline before it was close enough to burn. Niall is still with him, conversing with him, and it worries him. Worries him that Niall could be in danger; that they both are in danger. His heart is racing, eyes widened. He runs up the stairs ignoring Niall's confused calls, pocketing the things of value. A picture of his family, his sister's locket, a drawing Emma had given him years ago. She had been a lovely artist, someone who could have made a career out of it had she had the chance.
Harry races back downstairs, the voices getting louder, smell getting closer. They had gotten close enough that even Niall could hear them now. His mind flashes back to the testing center, the smell of gasoline bringing him back to when he barely escaped burning to death causing him to growl. His heart racing so wildly causes his claws to extend, his sharper set of teeth to come out, his eyes to glow. It seems to frighten Niall, the way he could so drastically change. But his main focus isn't on Niall's fear of him, rather it's on the large- hysterical- crowd closing in on them and Niall's safety. He grabs Niall's wrist, careful not to puncture the delicate skin, pulling him through the first floor of the house and out of the backdoor. He can hear the blood pumping in his ears, whether it's Niall's or his own, he doesn't know. Fear courses through them, and he can smell the fear radiating off of Niall as well, can hear the way Niall's heart races in his chest. Niall's safety is his main concern, not Niall's fear of him.
They barely make it to the edge of the forest when a crash shatters the mostly calm air. He can see the crowd is throwing rocks and stones and bricks at his house, shattering the windows. Can see how they toss things around, piss on the place he called home, how they threw gasoline over everything. He can tell they're all mates with the two he let live last night, and he curses himself for doing so. Not much good has come from his mercy in the past, and this event just proved it. Before he even has the chance to try and stop them, a match is lit, torches thrown into his home, setting it aflame. His house lighting up in reds, oranges, yellows and blues, the crackle of the hungry flames filling the air along with joyous cheers.
Harry watches the place he had taken refuge in, his home, burn with sad eyes, his grip on Niall's wrist loosening. He thinks he can hear his heart break, shatter, watching his home quickly deteriorate. He can hear everything the crowd says, joyous comments and laughter and cheers. He spots the pair he let live, their faces filled with a smug satisfaction, muttering about how the beast is dead. How the freak will haunt no longer, how no one will have to fear the monster.
By the time the police and firefighters get there- almost 20 minutes later- his house is completely destroyed and the crowd has disappeared. They put out the rest of the flames, his home now a pile of blackened wood and ash, only half standing. The supports are there, and about half of the top of the house. It looks like someone sliced a chunk out of the top, the entire bottom house blackened and gone. He can see a where the top floor collapsed onto the first floor, and he sighs sadly. He honestly considered that his home, his very own place, and a place he was safe. And now that was gone.
He was all alone and vulnerable once again.
"Harry..." Niall says softly, trailing off. His voice is full of pity, causing Harry to flinch away from him. He absolutely hates, hates, pity. It makes him feel weak and useless, like he has so many other times in his life. He hates feeling like that even more than he hates the pity. It flashes him back to the lab, back to Emma and all the others that had to die because of a sick monster of a man. "I'm so sorry." He adds sympathetically, stepping towards Harry. He grabs Harry's hand, squeezing it as a way to comfort the distraught lad. Niall can't imagine losing his home like that, everything he had.
"You didn't do this." Harry says monotonously, furrowing his brows. He turns to the lad, eyes slightly widened. "Did you?" He asks, worried and slightly angry. He knows that from what he knows about Niall that he would never, but why else would he apologize? Niall's eyes widen in shock, dramatically shaking his head 'no'.
"Of course not! I would never." Niall insists. "Do you think I would?"
"No, but why else would you apologize?" Harry asks curiously. He tilts his head to the side cutely, momentarily forgetting the problem at hand.
"Because that's what you do, you give your condolences when someone has lost something or someone very important." Niall explains. "Because I'm sorry that you lost your home, I feel sad for your loss."
"You hardly know me." Harry points out, furrowing his brows. "Why would you feel sad for my loss?"
"Because you're not the monster you think you are, and no one deserves that." He retorts honestly, pointing back over to what's left of Harry's home. Harry's gaze softens, glancing at the pile of wood and ash, the beams precariously sticking out between the debris, still holding half of the top floor up.
"How can you be so sure?" Harry whispers.
"Because you saved me from that, and most would only save themselves." Niall says. "Because I could see the real you, you allowed me to see a bit of the real you. And I don't see a monster." Harry looks at him, giving him a small, wet smile.
"I look like one." Harry says, examining his free hand that still has the claws extended. He takes a deep breath, urging them to retract, and they do. He can feel his set of sharp teeth do the same, his eyes dimming into a normal color. Niall shakes his head.
"You only look like someone who's been through hell and back, a warrior with your scars on proud display." Niall says, softly. "We say not to judge a book by its cover, but we always end up judging it by its cover. We do the same with people, we treat them differently because of how they look or what they wear." Niall says softly. "But you, you don't look anything short of incredibly strong."
"You can't possibly mean that." Harry says, shaking his head, his vulnerability showing.
"Why can't I?" Niall challenges.
"Because I don't see that, and I know myself. How can you see something that isn't there?" Harry asks.
"Because you're only looking at the surface. You just have to dig down a little deeper. One day hopefully you'll share your story with me, but I know it must be an incredible one." He says firmly, smiling reassuringly at the lad he realizes is mostly a big, vulnerable, hurt teddy bear. "Where will you go now?" He asks quietly. Harry shrugs. It had taken him ages to find this place. It was perfect, far enough away from the town, but not overly isolated, next to a forest with lovely trees and wonderful sights. It was a bit of a wreck, falling apart, but he had kept it nice on the inside, managed it and taken pride in it. All that work was gone now, and it'll probably take even longer to find a new place.
"I'll find something." Harry whispers, shrugging. His eyes are a little damp, but he refuses to cry. He hasn't cried in years, and he will not do it again. It only made him weak in his eyes.
"You could come stay with me." Niall suggests, choosing not to comment on the slight quiver in Harry's voice. Harry's eyes snap to his, shock filling his features. He opens his mouth, closing it again only seconds later. He repeats that, at loss for words. He reckons he probably looks like a fish out of water.
"You would, you would do that for me?" Harry asks, shocked and in awe. No one had opened their home to him after what had happened, not when he was hurt and hungry, not when he was slowly dying because of weather and dehydration and starvation, not even when he begged. People had thought he was a freak, diseased, and had treated him as such. So this- Niall offering his home, was enough to make his knees buckle in shock. Niall steadies him, eyes shining with worry.
"Of course I would." He whispers, hands on Harry's waist to make sure he doesn't fall. "You can start fresh, new." Niall adds, trying to convince the lad. He doesn't want Harry to be alone and homeless, doesn't want him to try and find another place on his own. There's something that just pulls him to Harry, and he's sort of grown attached. He would lose innumerable amounts of sleep if Harry did, and it would feel like a huge loss, a mate that just disappeared.
"I don't think you quite know what you're offering." Harry whispers, but Niall smiles and nods.
"I'm well aware." Niall says firmly. "I think you deserve a home." Harry smiles shakily at the amount of sincerity in Niall's voice, by his actions and words and the meaning behind it all. He has someone that actually cares about him, and that in itself means the world to him. He's worried that he'll end up chasing the lad away with his personality or who- and what- he is. But right now, he's soaring, high off the happiness he's experiencing. He hasn't been this happy in ages, he's forgotten how amazing it feels.
"Thank you." He says, almost inaudibly, his eyes shining with happiness and gratefulness. "It means so much to me, you'll never know how much." Niall smiles softly, one that radiates comfort and caring and love. It makes Harry even happier.
"Consider it the start of something new." He muses, taking Harry's hand in his own. "A new shot at life, a chance to recreate yourself." Niall guides them towards his car, parked on the other side of the hill, out of view as not to seem suspicious. He's glad that he picked that habit up now.
"How would someone that looks like me just appear in this small town?" Harry asks quietly, voicing his fears. "How would I prevent getting taken away for experiments or execution because I'm a freak?"
"You're not a freak." Niall says firmly, giving him a scolding yet caring look. "We can create a new life for you. A new past, a new background, a new family, a new future. Without getting rid of those little things that make you, you. Because you're who you're meant to be, and you're amazing." Niall adds softly.
"Then who exactly do I get to be? Or more so, my relation to you or this town?" Harry asks, slightly nervous and excited at the prospect. They reach Niall's car, where Niall opens the door for Harry, jogging to the other side to start the car. He pulls away from the rubble, leaving it behind, for a fresh start for Harry.
"You can be a long lost cousin of a mate of mine, a transfer student, or an old mate from a vacation I took once?" Niall lists off, a small blush dusting his cheeks when he comes up with the next idea. "My boyfriend?"
Harry tenses slightly, thinking over all the options. He thinks that the last option is probably the most foolproof, but also the one that wouldn't raise any suspicion. It would be the safest option, and he does think Niall is beautiful. He doesn't think he would be acting much if he allows himself to let his feelings for the lad grow, but that scares him a bit more, because what if Niall won't feel the same? It doesn't matter though, he'll cross that bridge when he gets to it. "A boyfriend you met where?" Harry asks quietly, fiddling with his fingers. Niall makes him vulnerable and weak, but also stronger in a way.
Niall breathes a sigh of relief, glad Harry hadn't gone off on him or looked at him with disgust in his eyes. "I don't know. Online, maybe we could have vacationed at the same place once, maybe on a road trip I took a year ago. We could have been talking, trying the long distance thing. I might not have told anyone because I wasn't sure it would work out?" Niall suggests. "We can figure it all out though yeah?" He reassures.
"You'd really do all of this for me?" Harry asks fondly, looking at Niall with happy eyes. He hasn't had kindness directed toward him since he was 7, except for Emma. Harry thinks that Niall reminds him a lot of her, and it only makes him trust the lad a little more, make him care for the lad just a little more.
"Of course." Niall says, shooting him a smile. "That's what mates are for."
"We're mates?" Harry asks quietly, shocked.
"I mean, I see you as a mate. It might not be the same for you and that's completely understandable-" Niall rambles, but he's cut off by Harry's laughter.
"Thank you." He whispers sincerely. "Thank you."
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So it's been so bloody long and I'm so sorry.
I hope this update makes you guys smile!
What problems will they face with this new step in their journey?
What are more issues they need to resolve before this will be able to work?
What more do they need to talk about?
What about Niall's mates?
What will the little town think?
Will Harry be caught out?
Will Harry possibly get a normal life?
Will they fall for one another?
Dedication to a commenter with the best corny joke.
50 comments for an update?
Thank you all immensely for your amazing patience.
(This story is entered in the #Wattys2015! I'm incredibly exited.)
Lots of love,
Val xx