.

.

They had no idea how it happened.

One minute Harry was there, and the next, he was gone.

Once Remus had calmed down Sirius from his panicked state, Severus had ordered them to search the Prince manor for the boy, but no trace of him was to be found. They'd told the house-elves to find him, but they replied that they couldn't.

Severus resolved to call the Aurors the next day, but there didn't appear to be a need for that, as Harry reappeared as suddenly as he'd disappeared, albeit clearly shaken up, and noticeably injured, with bruises all along his arms, and a few cuts on his face. They were light injuries, and would heal quickly, but the fact that their son had gotten injured at all, and stubbornly refused to tell them how, had them all on edge.

For the first three weeks after his return, Harry couldn't even fall asleep unless someone was there with him. To make things easier, Remus, Sirius, and Severus rotated sleeping with Harry every night, mindful of Moony. As far as Remus's wolf was concerned, his cub was hurt and needed him, but on the other paw, whoever hurt him could come back at any time if he was alive, so he had to kill him.

This was a sentiment shared by all of them, but that plan fell short when Harry finally started talking to them again, and revealed one very important detail.

"…He said the year was 1938…"

"'he'? Who's 'he', Prongslet?" asked Sirius.

None of them really understood the boy's answer, except Severus, and even then, it took him a minute to piece things together.

"Tom."

"Tom? Is he a friend of yours, cub?" asked Remus from his place beside a bookshelf (they were in the parlor).

Harry shook his head, and then paused for a moment.

"Not exactly…he was awful to be with, but Abraxas and Alphard, and even Cygnus all said that he cared about me, and didn't treat me nearly as bad as he treated everyone who'd tried to hurt me."

And then Harry looked to his dogfather, as if remembering something.

"Come to think of it…I'm sure Alphard was related to you, Padfoot. His surname was also Black."

And then, Severus realized that yes,

His pre-teen son- adopted, and only biological through a single drop of his blood- had indeed met the teenage dark lord. That he had only came back with mild injuries should have been seen as a blessing, but even so…

Sirius seemed surprised for a moment before asking, "and what did Alphard look like, Harry?"

"He had your eyes."

And that was enough for Sirius and Remus to both tense up slightly, though to their credit, they tried not to let Harry notice.

He did anyway, but had nothing to say on the matter.

And for the next week after that, everything was quiet and peaceful.

Er, relatively peaceful. Remus and Severus got along well enough, and Sirius had formed a tentative relationship with the potions master.

But of course, it just couldn't last.

A month after Harry's abrupt disappearance and return, something equally strange happened.

OoooOoooOoooO

The Prince manor was gloomy as it always was, but with Padfoot curled up by his side, that did nothing to stop Harry from enjoying the silence of the library.

Maybe Hermione's rubbing off on me…

A loud pop stole him from his thoughts, and Padfoot stirred slightly.

Harry got a look at what the disturbance was- the pop was too loud to be a house elf- and his flinch was instinctive.

Tom looks…absolutely livid!

Tom's complexion was perfect as ever, and one could really only see his anger if they were really looking for it. It was evident in the subtle clench of his jaw and the dark fire in his eyes.

The older male looked around the room, and Harry's instinct told him to run before Tom broke his legs.

After an agonizingly long moment, Tom's stormy eyes landed on him, and the emerald-eyed boy froze in place as the older student began marching towards him. Padfoot woke up and sniffed the intruder curiously.

"We're going home." Tom's voice was calm- deathly so- as from his wrist dangled an emerald on a silver chain.

Harry stood his ground.

"No, Tom. I already am home."

He gave him a bemused look.

"Don't be difficult now, darling. If you refuse to come back with me, I may have to take…drastic measures."

Harry almost, almost gave in, knowing that Tom would make good on his threat.

Padfoot growled.

Of all the times for his housemates to be out…

Tom stepped back only slightly.

"I'm already home, Tom. And I won't be leaving as easily as that," said Harry, injecting confidence into his voice even though inside he was shaking. He'd seen what happened when one tested Tom's patience. It never ended well for the victim of his wrath.

He subconsciously tightened his grip on Hogwarts: A History.

Tom's expression shifted to one of mock resignation.

He sighed.

"I didn't want to do this, dear, but…you've forced my hand."

He lunged forward, attempting to get the chain round Harry's neck, but the boy dodged to the side just in time, as Padfoot made to bite at Tom's arm. He missed and was sent back.

Harry jumped to his feet, almost tripping on a stack of books, and tried to get some distance between himself and Tom.

"A-" the stunner burst against his side, and he collapsed painfully onto his hip.

Tom went to put the necklace around his neck, only to feel the tip of a wand at the back of his neck as he bent down.

"Somnio."

Oh bloody-"

OoooOoooOoooO

"Finite Incantatem."

Harry stood up and stretched his stiff legs.

"Thanks, Padfoot."

The older man looked troubled.

"Harry, who is that man, and what in Merlin's name was he going on about?"

Harry hesitated before answering.

"Umm…can we wait for Lupin and Snape before I tell you? I don't want to have to repeat everything…"

Sirius sighed.

"Alright, pup. But when they get back, make sure you tell us everything."

"Yes, sir."