I want to let everyone know that I have adopted this story from Agronda. It was originally called A World Away.

This first chapter is all her work, but everything after that is all my own personal ideas and work. She will have no further input in this story. I hope that I can continue the story to the same standard that the first chapter is at and that she will be happy with my work and the direction that I take the story in.

I am posting the first chapter, wrote by Agronda, but it could be a week or two before any more chapters make an appearance because I will be deciding what firm directions I want to take the story in. As soon as I have clear plans, I will write the next chapter and post it ASAP.

Thanks everyone,

Athaeth


Shit.

This was the only word going around and around in Harry's mind as he fell backwards through the misty veil. Everything was going slightly blurred around the edges as blood seeped out of the stab wound in his side. Another small cut above his eye oozed blood, where it rolled down his temple and dripped off the side of his face.

It had been five years since Harry had come back from the dead and had killed Voldemort in the final battle at Hogwarts. He had become an Auror and had steadily been moving up the ranks. For a few years everything was quiet, but about two years ago the Death Eaters had regrouped in France and were creating a 'rebellion'. They had been attacking various places in both France and Great Britain, but this was the first time they had attacked the Department of Mysteries since the time when Harry was still a student at Hogwarts. It had been brutal, leaving many dead and injured. Harry had been stabbed and stumbled into the veil due to blood loss.

The pain suddenly disappeared from Harry's body and his vision cleared. Harry looked down and saw that the wound had stopped bleeding. Glancing around at his surrounding, Harry groaned and cursed under his breath. He was once again in the train station and standing before Albus Dumbledore.

"Great." Harry glared at his old Headmaster. "I'm 22 years old and, once again, dead."

"Harry, my dear boy." Dumbledore gave Harry a bright smile. "You are a hero. You have once again sacrificed yourself to save others."

"I never wanted to be a hero!" Harry's annoyance at his old mentor was surfacing fast. "Ever since I discovered I was a wizard, I've done nothing but sacrifice for others. It's taken 11 years of my life and now I'm dead because of it!"

Dumbledore's smile slipped slightly, before coming back full force. "Well, you can't go back to life now. You have to move on. But….." Dumbledore's smile became blinding. "Because of self-sacrifice, you are being rewarded."

"Rewarded?" Harry actually dreaded to think what Dumbledore could mean by a reward.

"Yes. You will be given a second chance at life in a different place, of course. Although," Dumbledore looked down on Harry compassionately. "It will not be the same. The magic there is different. You will be the only human there capable of fully accessing the magic in nature."

"What are you talking about?" Harry snapped, not liking where this conversation was going.

"You will not need your wand." Dumbledore was calm and smiling at Harry in his annoying and patronising way, in Harry's opinion. "You will have what they class as 'psychic abilities' – although you will not be able to see the future."

"I don't want to go to some other world place and live my life over again. If I've died, I want to move onto the afterlife and be with my family!"

Dumbledore frowned slightly, the twinkle disappearing out of his eyes. "Harry – this is a reward. You have no choice in this."

"This just sucks!" Harry snarled.

"If it is any consolation, you will also be given the years back that you claim were stolen from you. And you will be allowed to keep your memories." Dumbledore's smile was once again back on full force. He expected Harry to be happy with the situation. Which, of course, was the wrong idea entirely.

"I don't want to go to some world as a child!" Harry shouted, stalking towards his old mentor. "That is just crap."

"I'm sorry." Dumbledore did look sad, but he was still resolved. "It is the way fate wants it to be. Your soul will always be a saviour. You were chosen by fate. You will go to another world as you are now, but younger." Moving faster than Harry ever thought possible, the old man grabbed hold of Harry's shoulders.

Everything went black, before colours began swirling together in his vision. The pain came back full force for Harry and he grasped his side as blood once again began seeping out. Forcing his vision to clear, Harry found he was in some kind of wooded area. Looking around, he saw a tarmac road about two metres to his left and stumbled towards it. Harry was barely able to make it to the edge of the road, before he collapsed and everything went dark. The last thing he saw before passing out was a car screeching to a stop and a woman's voice calling out in panic.


Harry woke up slowly, a constant beeping noise making a soothing background sound. Opening his eyes, Harry took in his surroundings carefully and in slight confusion. He was in what appeared to be a muggle hospital room. He had a drip attached to his arm, filled with a clear liquid and he was attached to a heart monitor, the source of the beeping sound. Noticing a mirror on the wall, Harry pulled off the heart monitor sticker things (he only vaguely remembered what they were for, but not what they were called) and dragged his IV with him. Stopping in front of the mirror, Harry almost cursed.

Dumbledore had been true to his world. Harry now looked about 11 years old, but it was hard to tell, because he looked different to the first time he was that age. He still had the same black hair and green eyes, but he no longer needed glasses and he wasn't as thin as his first time being a child. He was exactly like he was at 22, just made younger. Quickly searching his body, Harry found he had all the scars he had acquired over the years and he still had the tattoo on his right forearm that all of his friends had got whilst drunk on weekend whilst celebrating a major victory over the Death Eater rebellion.

Pulling off the heart monitor seemed to have some set some kind of alarm off in the hospital, because not moments later, a nurse ran into the room and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw he was ok. Smiling at him reassuring, the nurse came towards Harry. "You really should still be in bed dear." Harry took note of the American accent and didn't now what to make of it. "Now that you are awake, some people would like to see you. Is that ok?"

Harry slowly climbed back onto the bed and was silent as the nurse gently reattached the heart monitor. Harry knew there was no way that he could get out of speaking to child services. He had been found in the middle of nowhere, wearing robes and with stab wounds. They would want answers. Nodding to the nurse, Harry grimaced and thought about how much he really hated fate and the universe at that moment.

The nurse had left as Harry was deep in his thoughts and in her place were three people, two women and a man. The man must have been some kind of priest because he was wearing a white collar kind of thing. Harry only had vague memories from his time at the Dursleys in regards to religion. Wizards simply didn't believe in God.

The serious looking woman who was wearing a professional looking suit pulled out a folder and a pen and looked kindly towards Harry. "Well, I suppose we should start. I'm Valerie McClough. But you can call me Val." Harry realised that he must be somewhere in America, because of the accents.

He cleared his throat softly. "I'm Harry." He spoke softly and winced when the woman seemed to latch onto his British accent.

"Are you from England?" She seemed eager. Harry looked away from her and inspected the other two people who were sat quietly. The priest man was in his mid-thirties and had a kind face. He had caring and warm hazel coloured eyes and soft brown hair which flopped onto his face slightly. He was gently clasping the hand of the other woman, who Harry realised was his wife. He vaguely remembered that some groups of Christianity allowed their priests to get married and have families. The woman had golden coloured hair and was in her late twenties. Her sky blue eyes met Harry's and he saw sympathy in them.

"Hi Harry." Her voice was quiet and motherly. "I'm Sarah. My husband –David – and I found you next to the road. We brought you to the hospital. Do you remember how you got to the road? Or where you come from?" Harry looked away. He didn't want to lie to these nice people, but he couldn't tell them the truth either. He looked at the woman's hands and frowned when he saw a charm bracelet that was full of charms for protection mainly from demonic forces. In Harry's old world, there were stories of demons and angels and how wizards did battle with them. They still learnt about them in the Auror academy, but there had been no demon sightings since the 16th century.

Seeing where Harry's gaze was directed, the man – David – frowned thoughtfully. "Could you give us some time with him?" He asked the government woman. "He might open up to us." The woman hesitated for a moment, but silently left. "So," David turned towards Harry. "Were you in some kind of cult? It looked like you might have been, judging by the robes we found you in."

Harry quickly thought it through and decided this was the easiest way out. "Yes."

David nodded approving. "So, you have managed to escape from it then. And it must have been some struggle." He glanced at his wife and received a nod. "Do you know about demons and other supernatural beings?"

Harry's gaze snapped to the other man in surprise. So, he had been sent to a world where there was still the supernatural. He knew there was still magic around him, but it was easier to access. He thought about what Dumbledore had told him and realised that it was easier to use because there wasn't many witches and wizards accessing the natural magic of nature. He had no idea how it would affect his magic. He thought he should be as honest as he could with these people because they meant him no harm.

"Yes. I know about demons and the supernatural – a bit at least. Everyone does where I come from." Harry was telling half the truth – all the Aurors knew about demons and various supernatural creatures and beings.

"And where is it you come from? Why were you in a cult?"

Harry bit his lip anxiously. He couldn't just make up information and pretend. He wanted to be as honest as possible in his new life. "I can't really tell you." Harry saw Sarah frown and quickly continued before she could interrupt him. "I don't want to lie to you, but I'm not ready to tell you the truth. I will tell you why I was in a cult if you tell me how you know about the supernatural."

David sighed and looked at the floor, a frown marring his handsome face as he thought it through. When he looked up at Harry, his expression was resolute. "Deal."

Harry gave the man a small smile. Testing out his theory that he could easily tap into the magic around without his wand, Harry raised his hand and concentrated on a vase of flowers on the table at the end of his hospital bed. It rose steadily off the table and Harry was shocked it had taken so little effort. Glancing at the couple beside him, Harry could see how surprised they were. He gently let down the vase.

"I have psychic abilities – but I can't see the future. I don't really know the extent of my powers yet."

David quickly closed his mouth and cleared his throat, buying time as he tried to get over his amazement. "Erm…..we know about demons and the supernatural because I come from a family of Hunters, as does Sarah." Seeing that Harry was confused, he elaborated. "Hunters are people who track down supernatural beings that are harming people and get rid of them. I normally deal with anything demonic – I guess it goes with being a priest. My older brother is the one who does most of the Hunting in our family now. You understand?"

Harry nodded and smiled reassuringly when Sarah looked at him in worry. "I was wondering about you being a priest." Harry indicated the collar. "I didn't think you could get married."

David smiled. "There are some Christian groups that allow their priests to marry. However, as Roman Catholics, my wife and I would not be able to marry because I'm a priest. But we got married young and before I decided I wanted to become a priest. I got special dispensation from the Pope to become a priest, even though I was already married."

Harry nodded and absorbed the information. Frowning at his hands, Harry was seriously considering what he would do next. There was no way he could tell the child services woman about his abilities. He wasn't even sure why he told the priest and his wife. Maybe it was because he felt that they were good people and he knew that they already knew about the supernatural.

Harry looked up and saw that David and Sarah were whispering to each other. David said something, causing Sarah to beam at him and nod furiously. They both turned and saw Harry's intense emerald gaze watching them silently.

"Harry." Sarah was hesitant and held onto David's hand tightly. "David and I have a daughter who is four years old. I found out that I couldn't have more children after she was born."

"I'm sorry." Harry's voice was quiet, but confused. "I'm not sure why you are telling me this."

"Because," David leaned forward, an earnest expression on his face. "We were thinking that maybe you wanted to stay with us. At least for a while – you know, until something permanent is sorted out. We understand if you don't want to though." David added quickly.

Harry stared at the man before him in shock. The only people that had ever wanted him to be part of their family were the Weasleys, but they had known him for years. Now this couple wanted Harry to stay with them for a while, maybe permanently, and they didn't even know him really. They were doing it out of kindness and not out of obligation and fear as his Aunt and Uncle had done years ago. The more Harry thought about it, the more appealing the idea became. He wanted a family that would love him and care for him.

Smiling shyly at them, Harry said. "I would really like that."


"Harry!"

Harry took deep breaths as he fell to his knees and groaned. He concentrated on his mental barriers and tried to relax his tightly clenched muscled. He had been with David and his family for just over two months and was fitting in better than he could ever hope for. Harry was just beginning to understand how his magic had changed. He could move objects and alter them, but he could no longer transfigure random objects into something completely different. He was just finding out that he could hear the thoughts of those around him without even trying. He could hear them all the time.

It started off as whispers that he could barely hear, which got louder the more he tried to hear what they were saying. It soon became unbearable and confusing. It was like a million people trying to talk to him all at once. Harry had been so worried that he was going crazy, until Sarah and David assured him that it was part of his 'psychic' abilities. They had researched furiously to find ways to help him. Harry used all the occulmensy he knew to block out peoples' thoughts and to create shields around his mind. It had taken hard work and determination, but Harry was now able to block out most thoughts.

Harry took deep and steady breaths and looked up. Danielle, David and Sarah's daughter, was looking at him with wide eyes. He smiled and stood up on slightly shaky legs. Pulling the small girl into a hug, he ran a hand through her blonde curls. He was amazed by how accepting she had been. As soon as he was brought into the house by her parents, Danielle had ran up to him and looked at him with big blue eyes. She told him how he was now her big brother and that they were going to be the best of friends.

"I'm ok. The postman is just a bit annoyed this morning." Harry grabbed hold of the girl and threw her over his shoulders, causing her to giggle wildly.

"Danielle, why don't you go and help Daddy choose hymns for church tomorrow. I want to talk to Harry."

Harry looked around and saw Sarah standing in the doorway of the living room. He put down the little girl and shooed her away. Following Sarah, he sat down in the sofa she indicated and she sat down opposite him. Fidgeting nervously, Harry almost jumped in shock when Sarah gently placed her hand over his to still his nervous movement.

"Harry." Sarah's voice was quiet. "You've only been with us a short while. You know David has some friends that have been able to progress your case with child services fairly quickly and with the least amount of questioning. You need to start thinking about what you want to do."

Harry looked away, slightly hurt. "Well, I'm sure Val will be able to find a family who could take me. And I'll keep my abilities secret, of course."

"You…you want to leave?" Harry looked up sharply at the hurt he heard in Sarah's voice. "I thought you would want to stay with us. David and I love you and Danielle has already told us that she won't ever talk to us again if you don't stay as her older brother."

Harry felt a blinding smile cross his face. He couldn't help it. "You want me to stay? I thought you were trying to tell me you wanted me to leave."

Sarah stared at Harry for a moment before jumping forward and throwing her arms around him. Letting out a breathless laugh, Harry wrapped his arms tightly around the woman clinging onto him. Even though it had only been a few months, he really loved the family and wanted more than anything to be part of it.

"I'm glad you want to stay with us." David was stood in the doorway, watching them hug with a smile on his face. "Because I have some news for you. You know about the contacts I have – it comes with being from a big Hunting family. We have managed to push along the paperwork really fast. We signed the paperwork yesterday – you are officially our son now. If you want." David moved forward and held something out to Harry.

Pulling away from Sarah, Harry slowly stood up and gently took the offered object. It was a leather bracelet with charms hanging off it. Harry recognised the charms as those that Sarah had on her own bracelet. They warded against demonic and spirit possession. David took the bracelet out of Harry's hand and put it on his left wrist.

Pulling back his shirt sleeve, David showed Harry an identical bracelet on his own wrist. "It is a tradition in both our families that everyone gets a bracelet when they are old enough to learn about Hunting. You already know about the supernatural, so this is a welcome to the family present. My brother sent it when he found out that we wanted to adopt you. You'll get to meet him in a few weeks once he has finished the Hunting job he is on at the moment."

Harry felt tears well up in his eyes as he gently twisted the bracelet around, admiring the charms on it. Looking up, he stared David straight in the eye. "I want to become a Hunter. It is a family tradition right? So let me do it. I want to use my abilities for something."

David hesitated. "It is a family tradition for both mine and Sarah's family. But it is dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt – or worse."

Harry was still determined though. "But other Hunters don't have my abilities. I really want to do this."

Sarah and David looked at each other helplessly. Seeing that Harry was unshakeable on this matter, David slowly nodded.

Harry beamed and nearly skipped out of the room in his happiness, calling back. "Thanks Mum and Dad." He never saw the look of joy on the couple's faces as he called them by their parental titles.