Destinies Collide

Lullaby

A/N: Everyone say thanks to Salazar for this chapter when you're done XD he's the MVP.

______________________________

November 28th, 1988

Harry doesn't mean to wake up late for school, but when it lets him eat a quick breakfast in the car without talking instead of quietly sitting at the table for twenty minutes, he's a little glad for it. He thinks Mr Wright might have realised how much he's staring – he tries not to, but it's so hard now that he knows – because he hasn't even looked at him once after their eyes met and Harry looked back down at his breakfast sandwich.

The reason he's staring is because he's trying to tell all the ways Merlin isn't Mr Wright. It's not hard to start the list – he doesn't smile as much, he knows stuff about potions, he doesn't hug him anymore – and it keeps growing with a lot of little things, and Harry's not sure if he's making some of them up because he wants there to be differences or if they're really there. Still, the list is in his head, telling him that Merlin isn't the same as Mr Wright, so if all these little things are different... what else might be?

He tries not to think about it in class but still gets distracted, and when he gets a question wrong it's not even on purpose this time. Hermione probably notices something's wrong because she asks him about it in whispers when they go to the library.

"It's nothing," he mumbles, hiding behind his book.

"Nothing wouldn't make you make that face," she insists with a frown, nudging his book back down to the table.

She's not wrong, but how is he supposed to explain this? Especially since Merlin wants it to be a secret. "'Mione... if I was someone else would we still be friends?"

"Uh?" Her frown goes away but she's looking confused instead, "I dunno, would they wanna be friends?"

"What?" He's the one frowning now, not sure what her question means.

"If you were someone else, that person would have to want to be friends too," Hermione explains, "Not just me. Trying to be friends on your own doesn't work," she adds in a lower voice, sounding like she's tried it before.

"Huh," he looks down at the book, feeling no better about his problem. What if Merlin doesn't want to be family like Mr Wright did? And what can he even do about it?

"What's that got to do with anything, though?" Hermione asks, but Harry just shrugs.

He manages to distract her with a question about their Latin schoolwork and they talk until the bell rings, telling them to go back to class.

Merlin picks him up this time, asking about his classes, but Harry doesn't talk much, mostly worrying in his head about what Hermione said. He nearly misses when Merlin mentions he'll be working that afternoon but nods in time for him not to notice his mind's somewhere else. They have a quiet lunch with Marie and Harry helps her bring the dishes to the sink and clear the table until he hears the door of the house close behind Merlin while he's leaving.

"I'm gonna study in the office," He tells Marie, who shoos him so she can wash the dishes on her own.

Harry hesitates in front of the office, but he knows he can go inside, Mr Wright said so. Merlin didn't say so, his mind reminds him, but he shakes his head and opens the door.

"Hello lytling," Mr Salazar greets him from his painting.

"What's that mean?" He asks as he walks closer, he's heard the founder call him that before.