The Beginning of the Second Year
It wasn't the first time Number 6 Privet Drive had exploded into an argument during breakfast.
"You're an idiot, Percy," Harry said while glaring at his brother, holding a rather flashy green sweater in one hand with the letter H stitched onto the chest. One of the shoulders had been torn open, leaving the sleeve hanging on by a single thread.
Percy, who had been strangely calm while eating breakfast, looked up before putting on a face of extreme confusion.
"What are you talking about?" he asked while looking at the sweater and then back at Harry. "Why did you tear Mrs. Weasley's gift?" he asked.
Those words only made Harry even angrier.
"Don't play dumb. It was obviously you. You're the only one who touches my stuff without permission," Harry said.
Percy seemed annoyed as well. Normally Harry would have been right, and he certainly had damaged plenty of Harry's things before. But the fact that this time it wasn't his fault and Harry had come to scold him anyway seemed to irritate him even more.
Luckily, before the argument could escalate the way it normally did whenever these two got involved, a voice interrupted while timidly raising a hand nearby.
"Um... sorry. It was me," said a voice that was barely audible, maybe from embarrassment or maybe because of how angry both of them looked.
Percy and Harry, who had been moments away from starting a fight, instantly turned toward the voice, still frowning.
Standing there was a boy their age.
Or at least, he was supposed to be.
Because both of them had to lift their heads slightly just to meet his face, and he was at least a head taller than they were, maybe more.
He had a somewhat bulky build, with long bangs covering part of his face.
Normally someone his age with that height and physique should have looked pretty intimidating.
But he was slightly hunched over and his lips were trembling sadly, as if he were about to cry for being responsible for the fight between Harry and Percy.
"See, Harry? Tyson was the one who tore your sweater, not me. I deserve an apology now," Percy immediately said while giving his brother a smug look.
But Harry ignored him completely and let out a small annoyed sigh before looking toward the boy called Tyson.
"It's okay, Tyson. Don't worry about it. I'll ask Aunt Mor to fix it with magic," Harry said in a much softer tone than the one he had used with Percy.
Which immediately made Percy frown again and glance at Tyson for a moment before returning to his breakfast with a very sour expression.
"Yeah... sorry, Harry," Tyson said again quietly while touching his forehead for a moment, causing his bangs to shift slightly and reveal a large eye in the center.
Because yes.
Tyson wasn't human.
He was what most people would call a Cyclops.
And the reason he was now living with the Jackson Potter brothers was because of Sally.
Being the only mother among the entire Veil filled with knights, she had accepted without hesitation when asked to take care of Tyson.
And since Adrien and the others lived in the neighboring houses, it wasn't much trouble because they were always around if he needed anything.
So Sally wanted to help however she could, not caring that there was now one more young person living in her house.
Even if he was a Cyclops, to Sally he was simply another child who needed care.
"Whatever," Percy muttered with a small jealous tone in his voice before quickly finishing breakfast and heading toward the backyard while grabbing a wooden training sword leaning nearby, ready for his usual training routine.
"Hey, Percy. Remember we still have to clean out the garage as part of our punishment," Harry called after him as he headed out the back door.
"I know," Percy replied, and immediately his shoulders slumped as though he had just suffered a terrible injury, forcing him to lower the training sword. "Next time someone tries to send me on a deadly mission to another continent without my mother's permission, punch me if I agree to it," Percy said.
"Sure," Harry accepted easily.
"Ah... I'll help too," Tyson said while standing up from his chair.
Harry and Percy looked at him.
"Don't worry about it, Tyson. It's our punishment. Otherwise Mom won't let us go to Ron's house this weekend," Harry said with a smile.
"I like being with Harry and Percy," Tyson said again.
That made it impossible for either brother to refuse him.
So an hour later, the three boys could be seen inside the garage with the door open to let in fresh air while they moved boxes around and cleaned everything, watched by several neighbors passing by.
Some were old neighbors who remembered little Harry and Percy cleaning the plants in front of the house whenever they got punished and couldn't help smiling as they realized the boys had probably been punished again.
They even waved warmly as they passed.
Other neighbors were actually Pendragon knights assigned to protect them according to the arrangement they had with Sally.
Though over time they seemed to have become far more relaxed.
Now they mostly sat outside their houses and greeted them with casual waves.
"Why do I feel like they've gotten pretty lazy? You used to see them carrying rifles and everything," Percy said while glancing toward Luther, who was sitting outside drinking lemonade while enjoying the breeze, and Arthur, who emerged from his house dressed elegantly as if heading to a party. He waved to them before climbing into his sports car and driving away.
"Well, I think the reason is pretty obvious," Harry said.
But he never got the chance to finish.
A military vehicle suddenly stopped in front of their house.
Moments later, an elderly man stepped out.
Despite his age, he was so muscular his shirt looked like it was about to burst apart. He wore an amused expression and had a massive scar running from his neck all the way across part of his jaw and cheek.
"He's back," Percy muttered when he saw Mr. Vincent again.
Just like every day since Tyson had moved into their house.
Or rather, ever since Dred had been freed from his curse.
"Hehehe, how are you kids doing?" Vincent greeted as always, cheerful as he walked over to them.
"Hello, Grandpa Vincent," Percy and Harry said respectfully, while Vincent seemed happy every single time they called him by that nickname.
Then he walked over to Tyson and gave him a few pats on the shoulder.
"How are you doing, kid?" he asked.
"Uh... ah... I'm doing very well, sir," Tyson replied quickly, somewhat intimidated.
Even though Vincent was the one who had brought him from the United States to England, Tyson still seemed a little intimidated by Vincent's imposing presence.
And honestly, it wasn't hard to understand why.
Standing in front of him was a man who had fought a god.
Even if he had obviously received help from others.
"I already told you. You can call me Grandpa, just like the two boys do," Vincent said with a friendly smile.
"Uh... well..."
Tyson seemed hesitant.
But Percy and Harry knew perfectly well that once Vincent set his mind on something, it was very difficult to change it.
That was why they had eventually given up and started calling him Grandpa too.
"You know, you're supposed to be Poseidon's son. And if you call Mr. Vincent Grandpa... what kind of position do you think that would put him in?" Harry quietly asked Percy, sounding amused.
Percy, who had never really thought about it before, suddenly looked entertained by the idea as well.
"G... Grandpa Vincent," Tyson said at that exact moment.
Which seemed to make Vincent happy as he gave him a few more pats, pats that would probably have sent a normal child flying.
But Tyson didn't even seem to notice them.
"Are you sure you don't want to learn how to fight? I could train you. I won't be as good as Percy's teachers, but when it comes to brute strength, I can confidently say there's nobody better than me," Vincent said while openly admiring the young Cyclops' strength.
"Uh... no. I like making things. Sally is teaching me. It's really fun. And yesterday Mrs. Morgana let me help her in her forge," Tyson said with a huge happy smile.
That was also one of the reasons Vincent had asked Sally to take care of Tyson.
The young Cyclops genuinely seemed talented when it came to building things and fixing all kinds of objects with his hands.
And Sally, who at this moment was the only witch among the now four wizards working for the Order capable of creating magical objects that also functioned through the Mist.
As for the others, one was an idiot who only knew how to make potions. Very useful potions, admittedly, but still an idiot.
Another was an idiot who only knew how to fight.
And the last one who had joined recently was less of an idiot, but he still had to take a week off every month because of his illness.
And more specifically, there was one day every month when he needed to be watched carefully.
"I see," Vincent said calmly, not pushing the matter while giving him a fatherly look and another pat on the shoulder. "Then don't worry about it and learn whatever you want. Once your paperwork issues are sorted out, you'll be able to start attending school," Vincent said.
"Oh... right," Tyson replied.
Though he didn't seem very excited about that part.
Vincent noticed immediately and gave him a look.
But he didn't say much.
In fact, for some reason, he had a rather amused smile on his face.
Which, honestly, only gave Percy and Harry a bad feeling.
But Vincent changed the subject immediately.
"So, where is Sir Mordred?" he asked, using a respectful tone when saying his name.
Perhaps the only time he ever showed anyone respect.
"He's on the island," Percy replied.
"I see. Then, if you'll excuse me, I'll borrow your fireplace if you don't mind," Vincent said, giving them another friendly wave before breaking into a smile full of battle instinct and walking into the house with complete familiarity.
Something they were already used to at this point.
Ever since Hades altered Mordred's curse, the island that had once been sunk deep beneath the sea had risen back to the surface.
Fortunately, it was protected by a Mist barrier that prevented all of England from collectively losing its mind over the sudden appearance of a massive island.
And there was something else.
Mordred could now leave the island.
Though only temporarily.
According to him, his curse was now to protect every demigod who entered Avalon and eliminate the monsters around his territory, helping clean up part of Europe alongside Aunt Mor.
In exchange, he had gained the freedom to move around.
Just not too far.
Though this had left Harry somewhat confused.
Because Morgana had the same job.
Now Dred had it too.
And they still hadn't forgotten that enormous giant they had seen last year throwing hellhounds around, who might have been doing exactly the same thing.
The strange part was that more and more people seemed to be doing exactly that.
But figuring out what the gods were planning would probably only cost them sleep.
Because beings who lived forever thought very differently.
And, above all, on a much longer timescale than humans.
"So this is our life now, huh?" Percy said while continuing to move a box.
With his wizard brother and his Cyclops friend.
While their neighbors were knights from a secret order and their mother worked alongside them.
His aunt was a possibly immortal dark witch.
And his cousin was a legendary knight who owned a magical island they could reach through the fireplace.
Percy turned toward Harry.
"Don't you think our lives sound like some ridiculously crazy fairy tale?" he asked.
Harry gave him a look as if he were staring at an idiot.
Then went back to work.
But he couldn't stop a smile from appearing on his face.
Because if this was their life, it really wasn't that bad.
It was like having a huge and incredibly interesting family.
"Hurry up, Seaweed Brain. We have to finish before it gets late so we can go to Ron's house and then buy our school supplies in Diagon Alley. Hogwarts starts again soon," Harry added.
"I know, Pig Potter. And I'm not sure I'm that excited about going back to classes," Percy replied.
Even so, his hands started moving a little faster.
:::