To Lovingly Hate You

The Offer of a Lifetime

Third Person

-Eight Months Later-

Top of his class, something Harry never thought he would be.

Throughout the past eight months, he worked harder than anyone else did in the Isle Reformation Project, as he came to class every day and gave it his all, completed all the homework he was assigned, aced every test, and on top of it all, got a night shift to help Harriet pay for their livings while he was learning and working towards a job in Auradon. It had taken some time, but with Eugene as his teacher and excellent supporter, he was able to stay motivated and focused. CJ began working towards a scholarship and picked up a job helping out at Curl Up and Dye as well, so the Hook family was keeping things afloat alright, but Harry knew it could be so much greater.

Harry was doing his usual swordsmanship training, marveling at how much better he had gotten with royal training to build off of both what his father taught him and what living on the Isle of the Lost. It refined everything about what he already did, and he got to learn so much hand-to-hand combat that he could take someone on equally as well with a weapon as he did without.

Not to mention, the classes were something he caught onto very quickly.

There were usual literature and writing, math, history, and sciences classes. The science classes were more for a basic understanding of physics more than anything, but the others were quite important, especially for Harry who was aiming to be able to go to Auradon Prep when he did go to Auradon, and he didn't want to be too behind. He knew it would be jarring, but he didn't want to feel like he was drowning educationally right off the bat, that did not something that sounded particularly fun.

But what he really enjoyed were the classes specifically aimed around what he would actually need when he was working in Auradon, those were the best. There was a logic course, a problem-solving course, a strategy course, and a kindness course, of course, just to teach common decency and patience to those who weren't naturally gifted in that department.

The specialty courses were amazing for Harry, he was asked to plan different escape routes in different scenarios with different obstacles, taught how to make lock picks and other useful tools out of what otherwise looked like common trash, taught how to handle difficult individuals both verbally and physically without injuring anyone, and so much more that Harry seemed to understand completely without even trying.

They engaged his brain unlike anything he'd ever done, it seemingly came naturally with his instinct. Finding something he just understood inherently was something very exciting to him, so of course, once he was used to the new schedule and such, he had such a positive outlook on going to class that getting a mere three hours of sleep between the courses and his night shift as a local bar was enough to keep him going throughout each day. It was easier to get up tired when he was happy to go to classes every day, besides, he was hoping he would make up for all his lost sleep in Auradon before he officially started his job... as he was nearly ready to do just that.

It was hand-to-hand combat training time, later in the afternoon, and as per usual whoever was partnered to train with Harry was nearly wide-eyed with fear the entire time. It was a combination of the fact that they all knew exactly who he was and what he was already capable of, and then the fact that he was getting better and better every day that made nearly no one willingly work with him. He took it as a compliment, he didn't want to lose his fear factor after all.

And sure enough, the guy he was paired with went flying into one of the mats with a shriek, making Harry smirk as he simply rolled his shoulder a bit and chuckled, he truly forgot his strength more often than not, but at least his aim is true... otherwise the people he threw wouldn't end up on the mats.