Disclaimer: I do not own anything Harry Potter, J. does. The first six chapter were written by Elle H. Michaelson. She has given me the story to take over. R&R
Prologue
Harry Potter was not a happy individual. He had been at the Dursley's for two weeks now, and nobody had owled him to ask if he was ok. Had anyone been there, they would have clearly seen the bruises and cuts covering the frail young body. It was now midnight, and Harry was busy trying to clean himself up a bit. He hissed a little as soap got into an open wound, but quickly dismissed the pain.
His aunt and cousin were in the room next to his, packing their things. Vernon had become particularly abusive over the last year. Seldom did a day go by that his wife did not acquire another bruise. She had met another man, Lucas, while shopping one afternoon. They had begun seeing each other frequently, and now Petunia was moving to be with him. Dudley had lost most of his weight in fat, and gained it in muscle. He was still a fairly short boy, but instead of looking like his father, he had the chiseled features of a young man.
When the two had finished packing, they hurried into Harry's room to say goodbye. They each gave Harry a hug, and promises to stay in touch were made. When Petunia spotted headlights flashing once, she gathered her things, and led Dudley down the stairs, "Harry, if you ever need anything," she whispered, "please, don't hesitate to ask."
"I won't. I'll owl you as soon as I get out of here." He whispered back. None of them wanted Vernon to wake up and notice the escape. Harry watched as his aunt and cousin turned and walked silently out of the house with their belongings. He then carefully made his way back up the stairs, where he shut himself into his bedroom.
'Some friends they are,' Harry thought to himself about Hermione and Ron, 'they don't even care enough to ask if I'm ok. I could probably die, and they wouldn't notice.' It was with this thought in his head that he flopped onto his bed and fell asleep.
The next morning, Harry was awoken to the sound of a very angry Vernon Dursley. "Petunia!" He shouted down the stairs.
Harry quickly pushed the bed in front of the door to block his uncle from being able to open the door. Grabbing his trunk in one hand, and Hedwig's cage in the other, he activated the portkey he'd shoved into his pocket. Within seconds, he opened his eyes and found himself at his destination: Severus' home.
"Sev?"
"Harry? What are you doing here? I thought you weren't going to be coming until the end of the week?"
"Petunia couldn't wait until the end of the week. She left last night, and I had to escape. I hope you don't mind..." Harry trailed off, looking at the floor.
"Of course I don't mind. But you know that you can't stay here."
"Sev, I'm not going back to that house. Not when everyone will be there. I don't want to deal with their pity right now."
"I know. I'm not going to send you to Grimmauld Place, don't worry. You can stay at the Leaky Cauldron. We can get you a disguise so no one will recognize you. I have a temporary charm that will disguise your identity from everyone except for the Gringotts Goblins. I will know it is you because I will see you put the charm on." He handed him a necklace with a snake pendant attached. As soon as the charm was placed around his neck, Harry's appearance shifted. It wasn't a dramatic change, but it was enough so that nobody would recognize him.
"Thanks Sev. I'll work on getting a new wardrobe tomorrow. What name should I use to get the room at the Leaky Cauldron? I can't use my own name."
"How about, Callan?"
"I like that. I better get going."
"Whoa, wait up a second there. Did that muggle harm you again?" Harry's silence said more to Severus than words could have, "Alright. Lift up your shirt."
Harry reluctantly did as he was asked, cautiously lifting the hem of his shirt over his head. His bruised ribs protested painfully at the movement, and he gasped as the sudden pain hit. "Severus, you don't have to do this."
"You know I do, brat." The older man says fondly, "If I don't take care of you, who will?"
Harry sighed softly as the bruise salve began to work into his skin, healing the wounded skin. "Thank you."
Severus hurriedly healed all the minor cuts along the boy's body before allowing him to put his shirt back on. "If you need anymore potions, you owl me, ok? I've already stocked up your supply of healing potions and dreamless sleep draughts, as well as some headache relievers and your vitamin potion. Other than that, you'll have to either brew it yourself, or owl me to get some sent to you. Do you need anything else?"
"Has he said anything about me?"
"Just the usual. I don't know why you won't just get over him. I don't like seeing you hurting like this."
"I know Sev, but he's different. One of these days, he's going to notice me. I know it. I just have to be ready when it happens."
"Whatever you say. Look, good luck. You'll need it if you're going to be hiding from Albus and Voldemort. And for the love of Merlin, be careful!"
"Careful Sev, someone might think you care!"
"Brat! Now get going, you'll want to get checked into the Leaky Cauldron before all the customers show up." Severus gave the boy a quick hug before pushing him gently towards the fireplace. Harry threw a handful of powder into the fireplace and called out his destination. When he finally stopped spinning, he was standing inside the Leaky Cauldron.
"Can I help you?" Tom the barkeeper asked him.
"Yeah, I need to get a room for the summer."
"Ok, what's your name?"
"Callan Black."
"Alright. You can have room 4. That'll be 2 galleons and 3 sickles per night."
"Sure thing. I need to do some shopping, so I'll go drop off my things and I'll go to Gringotts to get you your money."
"Sounds good. I'll talk to you later then, Callan."
Harry turned and made his way up the stairs, 'I guess the charm works. I'll need to keep it on today and tomorrow morning. But by tomorrow afternoon, I'll be a completely different person.' He thought to himself with a small smile. Tomorrow, everything would change.
Chapter 1
Narrator: Perhaps it would be best, if we backtracked a bit. Harry and Snape had grown closer over the years, as you have seen. Severus had become a father figure in Harry's life in the boy's 2nd year at Hogwarts. When everybody was accusing him of being Slytherin's heir, Severus had taken it upon himself to remind the young boy that someone did care. He'd given the boy many detentions that year so that they would have time to talk. Harry, he'd found, had a remarkable intuition regarding potions. When he was told to make a potion, he went based on smells, color, even texture in some cases. The only reason that the boy passed potions at all is because he would go in during their "detentions" and brew the day's potion then.
He became quite proficient at this, and was soon learning far more advanced potions then even the 7th years learned. Severus spent many hours talking with him, helping him with class work, and even playing chess with the child. Harry began to see Severus as a father figure, and their relationship grew from there. As he'd matured, the issues he discussed with Severus changed. They turned from talks about Hermione and Ron, and the Dursleys to the person he'd fancied since his fourth year. When Harry had finally realized that he was gay, it was Severus who helped him work through his feelings. He'd been afraid to go to his friends, and Severus understood.
Now then, now that you know about their history, perhaps you will understand their present relationship. As for Harry's new wardrobe choices…well, you'll have to see for your self…
Harry walks out into the streets of Diagon Alley fully expecting to be recognized. 'I guess this will be the true test of this charm's strength!' He is amazed however, to find that nobody is running up to him. What's more, they don't seem to care that he's there, 'I'm like a normal person again!' he thinks to himself, 'now I just have to go to Gringotts to get some money.'
He hesitantly makes his way to Gringotts. He remembers Severus telling him that the goblins would be able to recognize him, and is slightly worried about how they'll react.
"Hello Mr.…" The goblin trails off. He recognizes the charm for what it is, and decides to allow Harry to provide a name.
"Black. My name is Callan Black." Harry breathes a mental sigh of relief.
"Ah yes. Come with me. I assume you want to go to your vault?"
"Yes. I need to withdraw some money. I plan on going on a shopping spree this week, do I need to come back every time I run out of money?"
"Certainly not. We can get you set up with a refillable moneybag. No matter the price, the money will be transferred from your vault to the bag so that you always have enough."
"Can you do that for muggle money as well? I'm going to be shopping in the muggle world, and will need muggle money to spend."
"We can set you up with another bag, of course. We have two types. One is for muggle money; the other is for wizarding money. As long as you still have money in your vault, you will always have enough money for your purchases."
"That would be great. Can we get it set up now?"
"Of course. Step right this way," the goblin lead him to a small room off to the side, "Now then, Mr. Potter, you also have an inheritance for us to talk about."
"An inheritance?"
"Two actually. As you know, your godfather, Sirius Black, died. In his will, he left half of his money to you. The other half goes to one Remus Lupin. And, as you are now 16, you will gain access to the Potter family vaults. Yours was one left by your parents for you. But now that you are of age, you are the Lord Potter, and as such now control all of the money and estates of the Potter family. If you would like, we can write up a list of everything you've inherited, minus the money of course, so that you will know what estates you now own and where they are."
"Please do. When you've got that list ready, owl it to me so that I can go over it. If I need any help, I'll ask you."
"Ok sir. Now, here are two money bags," he places one red bag and one green bag on the table, "The red one is for wizarding money, and the green one will contain your muggle money. As I have said, as long as you still have money in the vault they are connected to, they will just refill as needed. Any questions?"
"Not right now. Who do I contact if I do come up with questions?"
"You may contact me if any questions arise. I am your financial advisor of sorts, and have been an advisor to the Potter family since I began this job. My name is Grombly."
"Ok, thanks. I guess I don't need to go to my vault after all."
"Which vault do you want to connect these to?"
"My personal vault, please. I don't want to go through the Potter fortune by spending it on junk. But I don't mind spending my own money on it."
"That's understandable." The goblin taps each bag twice and hands them to Harry. "There you go, sir. I will send that list to you as soon as I get it written up."
Harry turns and leaves the bank and heads straight for Knockturn Alley. There were certain things on his shopping list that wouldn't be in Diagon Alley, but he was fairly certain he could find them down there…or at least someone could tell him where to go. He heads down the alley, barely suppressing a shudder at the dark magic palpable in the air. Walking a bit further, he spots what appears to be a clothing store, and he walks into the shop. Once inside, he sees that it is a leather shop. Leather pants and vests fill the store.
"Can I help you with something, kid?"
"Yeah, I want to buy some clothes. Do you have dragon hide? Or do you only have plain leather?"
"We've got dragon skin clothing here. Do you just want some pants?" The owner seems to perk up when he sees that Harry wants to buy something.
"For now, yeah. " Harry notices the tattoo moving on the man's arm, "hey, where can I get a tattoo, do you know?"
"There's a shop, it's about four blocks down from here. They do wizarding tattoos as long as you're of age."
"Thanks." The two are quiet as Harry tries on different pairs of pants. The pants ranged everywhere from being skin tight, to being on the baggier side. But what he ended up choosing was a pair of snug-fitting black pants, with enough room in them that he could move around easily. He thanked the owner, Shawn, and placed an order for 6 more pairs of the same pants in green, blue, and one pair in silver.
His next stop is at the tattoo parlor he'd been told about. The first things he notices when he gets inside are the pictures on each of the walls. Each of the tattoo designs was moving freely around the walls. "Hey kid, go back to mommy and daddy, this shop's for adults only!" the owner, a large man, laughs.
"I'm not a kid, and if you don't want my money," he sneers, "I'll be happy to take it somewhere else." Harry turns to leave but is stopped by the gruff voice of the owner.
"Alright, what do you want?"
"The name's Callan, and I want a tattoo and two piercings."
"Alright, what design do you want your tattoo to be? I like to do those first, not that it really matters."
"I want a large, green and black snake with silver highlights running from my elbow to my chest. Can you do that?"
"Yeah, no problem. You are of age, right?"
"Yeah, I'm 16." The man nods at this, and picks up his wand. He motions for Harry to remove his shirt, calmly ignoring the scars covering the young man's body.
"Do you want me to get rid of some of those? It'll probably make the tattoo look nicer. I may not be able to get rid of them completely, but I can at least fade them down a bit."
"No, it's fine. I don't mind. The snake'll move around anyway, so it won't matter much."
"Alright." The man casts a complicated spell using his wand to outline what he wants tattooed. The process only takes a couple minutes, but the pain far surpasses what would be felt from a normal tattoo. But within a couple of seconds, the pain fades away completely. "Now, you said you wanted two piercings?"
"Yeah. I want my tongue pierced, and my ear pierced."
"Sure, no problem kid. Just pick out what you want to go in each of the holes."
"Well, I want this green barbell for my tongue, but I don't know what to get for my ear."
"Well, you almost look a bit like that boy-who-lived kid, so you could get a black lightning bolt. Kind of be his exact opposite, ya know?"
Harry laughs at that, "Believe me. I'm nothing like that Golden Boy."
"Exactly. I'll tell you what. You get the black lightning bolt piercing and I'll give it to you for free. Just let me get a picture of you so that I can show people the dark version of the boy-who-lived, ok?"
"Sure," Harry grins, "Why not."
The man sits down and quickly punches a hole in his ear, healing it before placing the earring into the hole. He then moves on to pierce the boy's tongue, slipping the green piece into the hole. "Ok, you're all set," the man pats Harry on the shoulder, "Now, smile pretty for the camera!"
Harry glares at the camera making the owner chuckle. "You really do look like his evil twin in that picture!"
'Great. I'm supposed to be trying to look different, not like my polar opposite! If people see me, and I really do look like me, it'll be in the paper tomorrow!' He pays the man and quickly walks out to Knockturn Alley.
Back in Diagon Alley, he breathes a mental sigh of relief when nobody seems to recognize him. 'I guess that guy was just losing it!' He walks into Flourish & Blotts to find a couple books before he heads back to the Leaky Cauldron. He makes his way to the defense section of the store, and casually looks through several of the books. One book jumps out at him: Defense: Modern Day Hexes and Spells. He flips through it, noting the style of the pages. Each page was of a different hex or curse. It describes what each curse does, as well as the best defense against them. He pulls out the book and carries it up to the counter to pay for it.
Walking out the door, he hears a familiar voice coming from upstairs. Intrigued, he carefully makes his way up to find out what is going on.
"But father—" The blonde insists.
"No. Draco you are a Malfoy and you will act as one. I will not have my son running around with other men, do you understand?"
Yes, sir." Draco mumbles.
"If I ever find out that this has happened again—well, let's just say it won't be pleasant for you."
Draco gulps at that and Harry makes his way back down the stairs. 'Draco's gay?' he thinks to himself, 'I wonder who else knows.' Harry gets a smirk on his face at this thought. He walks into the Leaky Cauldron with his odd grin adorning his face and quickly pays Tom for his room. He immediately makes his way up the stairs and walks into his rooms. There he collapses onto the bed and falls asleep for the night. 'One thing's for sure. This will most definitely be a very interesting summer.' This final thought passes through his head as he makes his way into sleep.
A/N: The author e\who wrote this chapter is brilliat and deserves praise for her awesome job. So PM her. :)
