Meanwhile, after a quick stop in their quarters, Teddy had left with Harry to go into the forest to collect come dark creatures he would need for his Defense classes. So George was left to his own devices until lunch.
George took out Harry's Maurader's Map to keep an eye on the kids and decided that he would take a brief trip to Hogsmeade through the secret passage to Honeydukes' cellar.
He would quickly look at the map after he had exited each shop. He made sure he got the kids and Teddy some of their favorite candies before he made his way down the main road. After a quick stop in the bookstore and Zonko's George made his way into the Three Broomsticks and ordered himself a butterbeer and laid the map out in front of him. He smirked when he saw that Professors McGonagall and Dumbledore were both in a room that looked to be an extra class room but was really a potions lab for beginning first years, and by the looks of it, Dumbledore was the student in this case.
After chuckling to himself about the headmaster's lessons, he searched the map for his kids. He was happy to see that they were all, including Albus, sitting around a table in an unused Charms classroom, and presumably playing a muggle board game that he had given them. Albus rarely spent time with all of his family, spending most of his time in the potions lab or with his father.
However, George's smile quickly left him when he noticed the name slowly making its way towards the room the children were in. He picked up the map and began the run back to the school.
James laughed at Dom and Louis across the Scrabble board as they laid out a word Grandma Weasley would be appalled at. To his left Rose and Hugo sat with clear calm as they surveyed their letters, and to his right Fred and Roxanne were schooling their features. He smiled at his two younger siblings that made up his team and slung his arms around both of their shoulders.
"Rosie!" Hugo laughed, "You can't put that after Fred's and Hugo's 'peeping!"
"Shush Hugo," rose said and silently put the word 'tom'. Fred quickly fell into a fit of laughter, soon followed by everyone else.
When the laughter died down James was just about to put the letter tiles Lily had pointed out when he heard a set of footsteps stop outside the classroom door.
"Dad and Teddy are in the forest," James whispered to Fred who nodded, "And your dad?"
"Went into Hogsmeade," Fred whispered back, "It could be one of the other professors…" He trailed off and James shook his head.
"Most went to get last minute supplies," Dom added, "Only Dumbledore, Snape, and McGonagall are here until lunch."
"Well then," James said in a normal volume, "Shall we see who our visitor is?"
"No James," Albus whispered and grabbed his brother's arm, "I don't have a good feeling about this."
"It's probably nothing Al," James said with a grin, "We'll just wait then." James seemed to think for a minute and then whispered, "Take Lily and stand by Dom though, if something is wrong, he'll keep you safe." Albus nodded and quickly moved with his sister to stand with Dom and the others while Fred and James stood a few feet closer to the door, and they all held their breath as the door slowly swung open.
Albus let out a quiet whimper and Lily grabbed his arm and placed herself in front of her brother as Lucius Malfoy strode into the classroom. James glanced back at his brother and sister and glared at the blond man, who made a satisfied noise deep in his throat.
"What do you want?" James asked harshly as he slipped his wand into his hand, "Professor Dumbledore is in his office and Professor Snape is in his lab."
"Hmmm…" Malfoy muttered and then grinned maliciously, "I found what I was looking for, it seems."
"I don't think so," Fred said from beside James and the oldest Potter noticed that his best friend had also drawn his wand. James nodded briefly at his cousin but before they could do anything they were thrown backwards by the blond man who had thrown a banishing curse at them. James let out a scream as he slammed into the corner of a shelf and an item on it.
"James!"
James quickly got to his feet and froze when he saw his brother sobbing with Malfoy's wand pointed at his neck and his head was pulled back by a handful of his black hair.
"Hmmm…" Malfoy muttered again tracing Albus' jaw-line with his wand, "It seems I have won."
"Please," James begged and his family all stared at him in shock at his pleading tone, "Let him go. Please, I'll do anything."
"I don't know," Malfoy purred and yanked Albus' head back causing him to whimper, "It has been quite a few weeks since I used my pet."
"Anything," James whispered desperately, "Please."
"Anything hmmm…" Malfoy said quietly and James held his breath, "I'll have to think on it. Who knows, you might be just as good of a whore as this one," And Malfoy smirked at James.
"Leave my brothers alone, you bastard!" Lily screamed and Dom had to grab her to prevent her from advancing on the man.
"Lily, stop," Rose said, "Let James handle it."
"What do you say boy?" Malfoy sneered at James, "Is your brother worth it?"
"Let him go," James said firmly, "I'll go, just don't hurt them."
"Lucius," A voice drawled from the doorway, "I suggest you let young Mr. Evans go."
"Professor Snape!" Rose sighed and Malfoy spun around pulling Albus roughly with him.
"Lovely, the traitor," Malfoy sneered and looked down at Albus, "I think I should just kill all of you."
George had never cursed how large Hogwarts was more, other than during the Final Battle. As George sprinted past the Great Hall he passed a worried headmaster, who promptly began to follow him, inquiring as to what was wrong.
"Malfoy… the kids…" George panted as he hurled down the second floor corridor and saw Snape standing in front of the empty Charms classroom.
George quickly pushed past Severus and stalked straight towards the blond, "Get your hands off of my nephew." And George reeled back and punched Malfoy directly in the jaw.
James quickly grabbed Albus and pulled his brother into his arms and backed away from the blond. Albus clutched his brother's shirt and let out a small whimper.
When James looked back to his uncle, Dumbledore was standing over the blond man with his wand trained on the man, and Snape was healing his uncle's hand.
"I suggest you all go to your rooms," Dumbledore said to the kids, "Except for young James and Albus. Severus send a Patronus to Harry and Teddy. George would you go floo the Ministry?"
Albus tightened his hold on his brother as the rest of his family slowly walked by him. James leaned against the wall and carefully slid to the floor keeping a tight hold on his brother.
"It's okay Al," James whispered into his brother's hair to hide his tears, "I won't let him hurt you. He'll be going away."
James sniffed softly and Albus tried to bury himself further into his brother when they heard five sets of footsteps hurry towards them.
"James? Albus?" A low baritone voice said quietly, "Can you look at me? I have some potions for you, and your father is here."
James slowly looked up and his brown eyes met the deep black of the potions master's, "Is he gone, Professor?"
"The Ministry is taking him to Azkaban as we speak," Snape replied as he handed a Calming Draught to the boy and looked at his younger lab partner, "Albus, look at me," he sighed when he received no response, "Al?"
Albus slowly raised his head from where he had been trying to get away from everyone at the sound of Professor Snape's soft voice.
"I want my Dad," Albus muttered, still shaking in his brother's arms. "Where is he?"
"He is with the headmaster," Severus replied and handed him a Calming Draught, "Take this, then you can see him."
Albus took the potion and was marginally calmer, and he let go of his brother and asked the professor to take him to his father. Snape turned to the older boy who didn't move himself off the floor; rather he pulled his knees up and buried his face in them.
"I'll be back," Severus replied and led Albus out. James pulled his hair with one hand and clutched his stomach with the other.
When he had been and blasted back his stomach had slammed into one of the confiscated Zonko's products on the shelf and he had felt the cold material plunge into his abdomen. It wasn't bleeding badly; he knew he was more in shock than anything else.
"James," Severus said when he came back to the room and crouched in front of the boy, "Where does it hurt?"
"Are… are they all okay?" James asked unmoving and Severus pulled his hand away from the boy's stomach.
"Nobody else was hurt," He replied and examined the cut the boy had under his shirt, "That's an easy fix."
"Will I be able to play this afternoon?" James asked as the man healed his stomach quickly.
"Yes, however," The professor drawled, "I suggest you talk to your father."
"I…I will sir," James sighed and put his face back in his legs, "I just want to think."
"What happened before I came in?" Severus asked and lifted the boy's head up to look at him, "What did he say?"
"I begged," James said quietly, "I begged him not to hurt Al and he…he said…" James swallowed and buried his face in his legs again, "He said that I may be as good a…a… as good as Albus."
"Don't think about that James," Severus said softly and removed the blood from the boy's shirt, "That man is sick and vile."
"I told him I would go with him," James whispered into his knees, "Only if he didn't hurt my brother."
"He can't hurt you," Severus replied and sighed, "Do you want to talk to someone?"
"Fred," James whispered into his legs, "Just Fred." Severus nodded and stood up and laid a hand on the boy's head.
Harry paced the Headmaster's office, "How did he get through the wards without you noticing?" Harry spun around and glared at the headmaster, "You are supposed to know when they are breached!"
"Harry, he had a ward stone with him," George muttered, leaning against the wall by the door with his arms crossed. "They don't know the spells to disable it."
"Well it doesn't erase the fact that a week ago I told him the Dark Mark wards!" Harry yelled, "He could have hurt Albus again! The only reason he didn't was because Snape showed up!"
"We will ask Severus what happened when he returns," Dumbledore said and stood up, "At the moment however, your youngest son is waiting to talk to you, and I must go escort the minister out."
Harry glared at the headmaster and softened his gaze when Albus slowly made his way into the office. Harry moved to take his son into but Albus instinctively shrank back.
"Albus," Harry muttered, "What happened?"
"Is he gone?" Albus asked quietly and George nodded, still in the same position as when the headmaster had left.
"Can you tell us what happened?" George asked and Albus turned towards his uncle and looked down, "Come on Albus, I need to know who to be mad at."
Albus nodded and sighed and told his father and uncle what had happened in the unused Charms classroom. Harry noticed that he had paused a moment about three minutes in before he continued on about how James had begged for Malfoy not to hurt his younger brother.
"Professor Snape brought me here and went to see James," Albus ended in a whisper.
"Everyone was okay though," George sighed and sat down, "Shaken but fine."
Harry nodded and leaned against the headmaster's desk, "Why don't you take Al down to our rooms and get everyone ready for lunch and Quiddich while I wait for Severus to finish?"
"Sure thing!" George grinned and stood and motioned Albus out, "Try not to reenact your fifth year in here."
"I'll do my best," Harry snorted and Albus smiled when he remembered that story, which Uncle Ron had told them while his dad had sat in his chair, face red.
Harry stared around the room and grinned when his eyes landed on the Sword of Gryffindor and the Sorting Hat, "Bloody things."
"I quite agree," Severus said from the doorway, "It took that hat nearly ten minutes to sort me, he sneered at the hat.
"It wanted to put me in Slytherin," Harry muttered and then asked, "Where's James?"
"He wished to speak to his cousin," The potions master replied and Harry snorted.
"That narrows it down," Harry scoffed, "Probably Fred." Severus nodded and Dumbledore came in.
"Well my boys," Dumbledore said cheerfully, "One more down, eight more to go."
"Who do we have left?" Severus asked as Harry took a seat in front of the desk and leaned back.
"McNair, Rookhood, Yaxely," Harry listed while counting them off on his fingers, "Bellatrix, Rabastian, Rudolphus, Wormtail, and Dolohov. So basically the worst we can hope for."
"We'll have to catch them soon," Dumbledore stated obviously.
"I swear George has a whole list of things he wants to do to Rookhood," Harry sighed and ran a hand roughly through his hair. I need to go; George wanted to make a modification to my classroom."
"I'll join you," Severus added, "It's about time for lunch in any case and then we have to play that barbaric game."
"It is not barbaric Severus!" Dumbledore exclaimed, eyes twinkling, "I remember a certain young man who was quite an extraordinary beater."
Severus glared at the headmaster and then at the slightly younger man who was shaking with laughter. "Shut it."
