Chapter 2 – Arrival

Thanks a lot to my beta-readers, Tori and Leona, for correcting my mistakes.

Disclaimer: All recognizable characters belong to J.K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.

I’m not a native speaker of English!

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Chapter 2 – Arrival

Harry and the others got off the plane at the Will Rogers World Airport. After their nine-hour flight from London to Chicago, going through customs, and catching another flight to Oklahoma, they were all tired and irritable.

"Black Hawk," Severus greeted the man who was waiting for them. He was a Native American around the age of forty, at least that's what Harry would have guessed. Black Hawk wasn't in traditional native clothing, but nevertheless there was no question of his heritage.

"Night Rain," Black Hawk hugged Severus tightly.

They seemed to be very good friends. After all, Severus wasn't a person who let others hug him, and he especially wouldn't look happy about it. And, Merlin, Severus had a Native American name! Harry was definitely in hell.

Black Hawk stepped back a little to get a better look at the rest of the small group. "You must be Draco, right?"

Draco fairly hid behind Severus. He had been nervous around men ever since they had escaped his father's dungeons. Black Hawk seemed to sense this and tried to keep his distance, but still offered Draco his hand in greeting. Very hesitantly, Draco accepted Black Hawk's hand.

When Black Hawk turned to Harry, Harry looked defiantly into his brown eyes. He wanted them to know from the beginning that he wasn't here of his own free will.

"So you are Harry, nice to meet you. Save your energy for fighting us until we get to camp. We have a long drive ahead of us, so we should get started." Black Hawk lead them to a dirty, red pickup truck with the words Awadvdi Tsvsa printed on its side. Whatever it meant Harry was sure he wouldn't like it.

"Couldn't behave yourself even for a few minutes, could you, Harry?" Severus asked him without his typical venom; the times when he spat angry insults at Harry were long gone. However, at the moment, Harry was longing for old times, so he wouldn't have to feel guilty about insulting Severus' friend with his behavior.

After Severus had thrown his luggage in the bed of the truck, he climbed into the passenger seat. That left only the back of the pickup for the two teenagers. Harry eyed the small rear-facing bench critically. It didn't look very comfortable, even if it did have seatbelts. "Fantastic! Our asses will be sore before we've even arrived at the damn camp," Harry mumbled sullenly to Draco.

"Try not to piss them off so soon, Harry. Who knows what crazy rituals they could do to you; just play the nice guy until we get out of here," Draco said while climbing onto the truck bed. After they had buckled up, Black Hawk lifted the tailgate and joined Severus in the cab.

"That's easy for you to say. You have been looking forward to going to this camp, right?"

Draco looked past Harry and into the distance. "Yes, maybe. Anything away from England is the right thing for me."

"I wish I could see it like that," Harry said thoughtfully. He didn't want to spoil this trip for Draco, but he hated the fact that the adults had once again decided what was best for him. He didn't need help, just his wand and the opportunity to kill those damn beasts in Azkaban. A life sentence wasn't enough punishment for what they had done.

By the time they reached the camp an hour later, Harry was really sore, which hadn't helped his mood. He had planned to behave and give these people a chance. If they were Severus' friends, they couldn't be all that bad. But now, after the uncomfortable truck ride, his good intentions had evaporated. Feeling depressed, all he wanted was a plane ticket back to London so he could tell Albus Dumbledore what he thought about his stupid plan.

Harry looked around. There was a medium sized farmhouse, two big stables, or whatever the big wooden buildings were, and paddocks. Other than that, it was just open land as far as he could see, just like the whole drive to the camp. Running away was not an option here.

A gentle but firm hand on his neck guided him in the direction of the house. Severus whispered in his ear as he steered him in the right direction. "I call these people my family, and I want you to behave. They haven't done anything wrong to you, so there is no need for you to hate them already. If you want to be angry at someone, then be angry at me or the Headmaster."

An old woman came over to them, and Severus let go of Harry's neck. "Severus, it's so good to see you again. It's been over a year since we last saw you."

"White Cloud." Severus hugged the weathered looking woman. She was sixty, if not older. It seemed that they were all American Natives. Maybe a family. Severus gently shoved the two boys in the direction of the old woman. "These are my boys."

My boys? A year ago, Harry would have been shocked by this statement. Now, it just caused him to feel less angry than he had felt after the long journey to the camp. Severus was the only person who looked at them without pity and who would let them decide whether or not they wanted to speak about something. Having Severus call them ‘his boys' gave Harry a warm feeling. It also meant that Draco and he had someone at their side who belonged to them. They weren't alone like they had been in the dungeons.

"Oh, I have been so curious to meet you two; Severus has told us so much about you." Her smile was intoxicating, and what was left of Harry's anger vanished completely. There was no pity in her eyes, just happiness. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to stay here. At least it was a break from all the pitying looks at home.

"I'm Draco," the blond-haired boy said and offered her his hand, ever the polite aristocrat. The Death Eaters hadn't beaten that out of him. With women, Draco was much more at ease, at least if they didn't avert their eyes at seeing his scars. And, to Harry's relief, this women didn't even seem to notice them.

"Nice to meet you, Draco," White Cloud said and shook his hand. "Severus was right, you are a very polite young man."

Harry stepped backwards. What would Severus have told her about him? That he was angry all the time and wanted to kill people? She wouldn't like that much. A hand on his back prevented him from backing away any further.

"You must be Harry," White Cloud said kindly. "I'm glad you decided to visit us."

Decided? He wanted to tell her that it was just the opposite, but her warm smile kept him from speaking his mind. It just would hurt her. Severus was right; they hadn't done anything wrong to him, so why should he hurt them?

When Harry didn't reply, White Cloud continued, "We know that it was a hard decision for you to leave England, but we hope you will like it here. Severus has always liked to spend some time here."

"I don't think I belong here," Harry finally said, averting his eyes. It was the truth, and Severus couldn't be angry with him for telling the truth. He hadn't hurt her feelings, had he?

"We will see, my boy," said an old man who came to stand next to White Cloud. Harry assumed it was her husband. "I'm Light Arrow, and over there is Red Horse and Rose." The old man pointed at a very big Native American in a dirty apron and a very beautiful young Native woman, both about Severus' age. "You must be hungry after the long journey. There is some stew ready inside."

"Where are the kids?" Severus asked while hugging the old man in greeting.

"They are with Crying Horse looking for firewood for the welcome feast tonight."

After Severus had shaken hands with Red Horse and had kissed Rose on her cheek, they all went inside to eat.

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