Chapter 2 – Growing Up
(6 Years Later)
"GET BACK HERE ZANE!" I heard a screech.
"NEVER!" I said in a panic.
I ran throughout the house trying to evade my mother's wrath. It was a one-story house so there isn't much hiding space. I tried the next best thing called the kitchen pantry, as it's the last place she will expect me. Maybe it wasn't a good idea to make my own eggs for breakfast. Who knew that my mother would eat it?
I accidentally ended up dumping a whole jar of salt into the eggs and was about to throw it out when my mother abruptly ate it. Frankly, this isn't even my fault, but it looks like my mother is mad for either wasting food, or pranking her. I don't even know how to explain that this was an accident without dying first, so running is my best option here.
*Panting*
Ok... So- maybe running wasn't my best option. I forgot that I'm still in a child's body and ran out of energy pretty fast. The great demon caught me and has forsaken me to my bedroom for the rest of the day.
Woe is me.
But seriously, after explaining it was a mistake, she understood I didn't do it on purpose, but I could have hurt myself so I was sent to my room to 'reflect' on my 'actions' today. It's not like I can explain 'actually I'm mentally nearly 30.' I don't even want to think of the ramifications of even trying to explain such a thing.
After 6 years of living in this new world, I think I have adapted pretty well. I still laugh at the most random things completely unintentionally, which has gotten me into trouble more than a few times. I don't know how to control my sense of humour but I'm fine with how it is, if something is funny to me I'm not going to change it.
6 years with my new parents could be understood as having gone through a lot of growing pains. Im too mature for my age which has caused quite a few conflicts. But ultimately we always reconcile, which has made me appreciate the smaller things a family does. Cooking each other breakfast, cleaning up the kitchen after someone else cooks, I could go on.
Though I have realized that I have kept quite a lot of my past life's habits, I rarely talk to anyone I don't know and even my parents only get a few lines of conversation out of me. It's not like I want to be distant but I can't find anything to talk about and just end up observing, waiting for them to talk, and then realizing it was my cue to talk a few minutes ago...
Anyways.
They both have decent jobs, though refuse to tell me what they are. It's always just 'we have enough to feed and clothe you, and frankly, that's enough for us.' I don't want to press further because I feel like they are purposely not telling me and, well I don't want to make things too awkward for them.
I've also been attending a normal school for the past two years now, however, due to the fact that I am, again, nearly mentally 30. I just go, zone out for the entire day, and ace every test they give me. It was due to this that I was almost put in an accelerated learning course, however, I really didn't want to do so as it would eat too much into my free time.
Now about my free time, ill be frank with you. There isn't much to do in 1987, the internet was just conceptualized like 3 years ago and won't be widely available for quite some time, which has led me into a crippling book addiction.
Every day after school I walk to the nearest library and ask the librarian if the books I've asked for have arrived yet, and every day she says soon. I am beginning to think that she hasn't ordered them but I'm sure my incessant asking for them will make her budge. I would have asked my parents to ask the librarian to request them for me but it causes too many issues like, can I really understand such big words, and so on.
Eventually, I have given up going to the library after realizing that they probably won't ever get the books I've asked for, and all of the books there are of low value to me, seems like the real valuable books I'll have to beg dad for.
While I'm on that line of thought, maybe ill sneak into my dad's study. He has never let me inside and has told me multiple times not to go in there. But that won't stop me! Ill wait till everyone is asleep before I execute my plan.
And before then I'll-
"Zane, honey, can you help me hang the clothes?" My mother said.
"Ok." Hanging the clothes is probably my least favourite chore to help with, I can't even reach the clothesline, how am I meant to hang them?
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A/N: Another chapter from yours truly.
I have a discord, maybe join that, or don't.
There was a lot of information in this chapter... because like 6 years passed. There was a lot to write about and I'm probably missing half of the context in my head. You might notice how the MC thinks by now and that he keeps to himself a lot. I didn't actually plan for this. Just as I was writing it out, it kinda happened but I realized it fits pretty well. Mentally old, keeping past life habits of only talking to people that understand humour, or forced to talk to out of circumstance.
Also, what the hell is an infant to do for 6 years that isn't just 'act like you were just born.' Right now Zane doesn't even know that he is in HP, nor has encountered anything magical to make him think so.