Harry rolled over on the thin mat that served as their bed, to face his daughter, who had been playing with an old doll that he had brought in a 2nd hand store the year before.
�Oh Lizzy, we�ve been through this before. We can�t afford for you to go to Kindy with Alex, but you can go to school with him next year, ok?�
�But I want to go to Kindy, not school. Alex is in Kindy.�
Harry sat up and lent against the thin wall of the one room flat that served as home for himself and his 5 year old daughter. He reached over and pulled his daughter into his lap, holding her close to his chest.
�Honey, I would love for you to be able to go to Kindy with Alex this year but you know that you can�t, but Alex will be in Year 1 next year so you will be with him, Mrs K and I worked out a school that we could afford so that you and Alex can go to school together but you just have to wait until next year, alright? Can you do that for me?� Harry asked her.
�Alright Daddy, I�ll wait till next year, but Alex will be there, right?�
�Right,� She said repeating her Dad.
Harry held her for a while longer, taking comfort from her, till she started to struggle, so he let her slip out of his embrace back to her dolls.
He lay back down in the hope of getting an hour or so of sleep before he needs to go to work.
His life was slightly easier now. Mrs K had started taking Elisabeth on the weekends and on some weekdays. So that he could get some sleep and so she didn�t need to come to work with him every night.
He had never been happy knowing that his daughter was in the next room when some sick random was fucking him raw. He had been more then happy to allow Mrs K to take her at night and he would take her in the mornings.
Mrs K had done so much for him in the last few years; she had taken care of him with no thought of herself, using her spare time to help him when she could have been out spending time with her other friends, family or with Alex.
But she wouldn�t take no for an answer so he let her help when she wanted to but rarely ask her to do anything.
�Daddy,� Lizzy called again just as he was dozing off.
�Where�s Mummy?�
She had asked this before and each time he told her that he would tell her when she was older.
This time was no different.
�But that�s what you said last time.� She complained.
�I know but you�re not old enough yet. When I think you should know I�ll tell you, OK?�
�Ok.�
�Good Girl, but now Daddy needs some rest, ok?�
�Yes Daddy.�
Elisabeth crawled over to him and cuddled down next to him. He wrapped his arms around her and was asleep not long after.
Skipping some years � Elisabeth now 10
Harry knew that it was only a matter of time before Lizzy was sent a Hogwarts letter. Over the past few years her accidental magic had gotten worst and more noticeable.
He needed to tell her the truth about himself before that, but he couldn�t bare the thought of her rejecting him. Still no matter what, she deserved to know, he had hated Dumbledore for keeping things from him and he refused to make the same mistake.
He was standing across the road from Lizzy�s school, waiting for the bell to go and Lizzy and Alex to come out. He would walk Alex home then take the underground back to his and Lizzy�s flat and he would tell her the truth, everything.
He stood away from the other parents who were waiting for their children. He didn�t do this on purpose but the other adults tended to steer clear of him, with his ragged cloths and unwashed hair. He would sometimes have a shower at Mrs K�s house but he didn�t see the point he would just get dirty again when he got to work.
He also stood away because Lizzy when through stages where she was embarrassed by him, so they had agreed that if she didn�t want to be seen with him he would go to a park a few blocks down the street and he would wait there. He hoped that wasn�t one of those days, he didn�t think he would be able to talk to Lizzy if she was in one of those moods.
Luckily she wasn�t and the two 10 year olds ran over to meet him, being careful of the road as they crossed.
�Hi, how was your day?� Harry asked as he hugged his daughter.
�It was great, except Mr Chapman�s hair went green again and he blamed me, but I didn�t do anything.�
�Yeah, I did it this time� well I think I did I was wishing that his hair would turn green and it did.� Alex said, obviously felling very proud of himself.
�Did you tell him it was your fault?�
�I tried but he told me to be quiet.�
�Oh well, you only have a couple more months here then you can go to high school and you�ll never have to put up with him again.�
They started down the street towards Alex�s home. The two children chatted together happily, while Harry thought about what Alex had said.
Could it be possible that Alex had some magic in him? He hoped so. If Lizzy did go to Hogwarts and someone found out who her father was, she would need a friend she could trust to support her. He just hoped it didn�t come to that.
When Lizzy had started school, Harry had changed her last name, to his mother�s maiden name, Evans. He had made the decision when Mrs K had presented him with the enrolment forms for the school the children would be attending.
�Dad, were here,� Harry jumped at his daughter�s voice and looked around to find that they were indeed at Alex�s house.
They left Alex at his house after, refusing many invitations to stay for tea, but Harry had explained that he needed to talk to Lizzy and he wanted to do that alone at their flat.
CONTINUE TO PART 2