Elves' Child
by Teddylonglong

All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.

Completely AU, partly OOC.


The older elves told the group from Hogwarts that they had found information about Horcruxes and handed them a copy of the book, which they had discovered in the library. Harry did not fully understand the explanation; however, he noticed in surprise that his usually calm parents seemed to be very upset about something. To the adults, it was evident that it was not sufficient to know the meaning of the Horcruxes, but that they had to search for a way to get rid of them. The elves urgently conferred what to do, since Twinkle, Malcolm, Cicero and Misty were not free elves and had to return to Hogwarts, because they had only asked for one week at the Isle of Elves. Nina and Tony, however, were only twelve years old and only had to obey to Twinkle.

The three children begged the adults to allow them to remain on the island for another week, and knowing that they would be in good hands with Anastasia, the adults readily agreed. Harry was not sure if he really liked Anastasia, because she seemed to be watching him like a hawk. 'Probably because Misty told her about my problem with the grindylow pox,' Harry thought in annoyance. However, to his relief, the week passed uneventfully, and he managed to remain healthy until Misty and Twinkle arrived to take them back to Hogwarts. Unfortunately, they had not been able to find any more information about Horcruxes.

"We will continue the research," the elder elves promised, and Twinkle asked them to visit him at Hogwarts, so that he could introduce them to the headmaster in order to work together on the matter. With that, the small group returned to Hogwarts.

Back at Hogwarts, Harry could not wait for his friends to return to the castle. Fortunately, only five days of holidays were left, and since he had finished all of his summer assignments, he was allowed to help Severus in the potions lab as much as he wanted. It was on the last day of the holidays that he decided to ask his human guardian a question that had been bothering him ever since his visit to the Isle of Elves.

"Severus, does this Horcrux story have anything to do with me?" he asked hesitantly, while he carefully sliced half a dozen frog eggs.

"And why would that be?" Severus queried, quirking an eyebrow.

"I'm not sure, but whenever they speak about them, they give me pitying looks. I don't know," Harry replied unsurely.

"Harry, as you experienced during your last school year, you are connected to the Dark Lord through your scar. However, I'm afraid that is the only thing I can tell you, because the headmaster forbade me to speak about the matter with you," he said thoughtfully.

Seeing that Harry was not pleased with his reply at all, he put the potion that he was just brewing under a stasis charm and called Cicero. "The headmaster thinks that Harry is too young to know about the prophecy; however, I disagree," he told his house-elf.

Cicero bowed slightly into Severus' direction and turned to Harry to inform him about the prophecy, reciting the words, which Severus had told him many months ago.

"But why does it have to be me?" Harry asked, terrified.

"Because he already marked you," Severus said in a soft voice, gently pulling Harry's fringe up to look at the scar.

"That's true," Harry replied in shock. "But what am I supposed to do?"

Severus thoughtfully ran a hand through his hair. "I'm not sure," he admitted calmly; "however, I can imagine that you already took care of that when you helped to destroy his spirit during the last school year. The problem now is to find and take care of the Horcruxes, but I do not know if this necessarily involves you."

"Okay," Harry said barely audibly. "I hope it won't."

"We all hope so, Harry," Cicero agreed and gently patted Harry's shoulder.

Harry smiled in spite of the fact that he felt miserable at the information he had just heard. 'Cicero is the only of the elves, who can reach up to pat my shoulder. He's much taller than everyone else,' he thought in amusement.

"We must all keep our eyes open in case Mr. Malfoy manages to smuggle the diary into Hogwarts like Draco warned us," Severus said quietly. "Other than that, we can only hope that the elder elves find some information on how to get rid of them. Professor Dumbledore is researching the matter as well."

All of a sudden, they heard the fireplace in the living room flare. Cicero excused himself, and Severus and Harry stepped over into the living room after Severus cast a refreshing charm on the ingredients that were still lying around in the lab. To their surprise, it was Draco who stepped out of the fireplace.

"I'm sorry to intrude," Draco said, and Harry noticed that he seemed to be uncharacteristically pale. "The twins apparently told their father about my warning with the Horcruxes, and two weeks ago, the Ministry sent a large group from Law Enforcement and Aurors to Malfoy Manor. They searched the dungeons and took lots of things with them, and this morning they came back and arrested my father. I don't know if they took him to Azkaban or just to the Ministry. Mother is crying, but she doesn't talk to me." He took a sip from the offered tea and continued, "I don't care about my father. He deserves everything he'll get, but I'm worried about mother. Uncle Sev, can you go and speak with her, please? I'm sure she'll listen to you."

Severus let out a long sigh. "I shall go and speak with Narcissa," he said finally. "Draco, will you stay with Harry or come with me? Harry, do you want to come as well?"

Harry shook his head. He was still shocked about the earlier revelations. "No, I'm going to finish the potion," he replied quietly. Seeing Severus nod his agreement, he returned to the lab and busied himself brewing, trying to push all thoughts about the prophecy, Horcruxes and Mr. Malfoy away. Fortunately, he managed to concentrate enough to flawlessly finish the potion, and he had just cleaned up the lab, when Severus returned from the Malfoys.

"Will Draco be all right?" Harry asked in concern.

"He will be all right. As you probably know, he didn't overly like his father and he despised him for his support of the Dark Lord. Nevertheless, he is his father, and Draco is also worried about his mother, who is depressed about the whole matter, especially since Draco will be returning to Hogwarts tomorrow. Speaking about the beginning of the school year, do you want me to take you to King's Cross in the morning, or will you just pop there?"

Harry threw the professor an absentminded look. In fact, he hadn't been feeling overly well the whole day, and the shocking news he had received had caused his mouth to become sore again. "Do I have to take the Hogwarts Express? Or may I perhaps meet the others in Hogsmeade?"

Severus gave Harry a sharp look. "Are you feeling all right, Harry?" he asked in concern.

"Yes sir," Harry replied, before he hesitantly admitted, "My mouth is a bit sore though." 'At least Severus won't make a fuss about it,' he thought and asked, "Sir, may I brew the potion for the drops, which you made for me at the beginning of the holidays?"

Severus stepped over to one of the shelves and fetched a large phial. "Do you want it as a potion or as drops?" he queried, giving the boy an assessing look, before he placed his slender hand on Harry's forehead.

'Feels good,' Harry thought, unconsciously leaning into the touch. "I don't mind. Your potion is brilliant, but I loved the drops as well."

Severus placed the phial on the table. "Let me see. Open up please." He lit his wand and closely examined Harry's mouth. "It's not too bad yet, but in order to get it in grip before it spreads everywhere, I'd suggest the potion." He handed the boy a goblet full of the potion.

"That's much better, sir. Thank you," Harry said gratefully.

"If you don't feel well tomorrow, you can mix up with the other students at dinner," Severus said gently. "Now we're going to finish up here for today. I suggest that you join me in the living room and rest or spend the afternoon with your elf friends."

"They both have to work at this time," Harry replied softly. "I'll meet with them in the evening. Excuse me, sir... Um... Could we speak about the Horcruxes once more?"

Severus agreed, and the two wizards spent the rest of the afternoon talking about Horcruxes and about the upcoming school year. Finally, Severus glanced at his wrist watch. "It's already dinner time," he said. "I suggest that you join us for dinner in the Great Hall, if you feel well enough. You haven't met Professor Quirrell since his return to Hogwarts, have you?"

"No," Harry replied, feeling slightly anxious of meeting the professor, who had tried to kill him during the last school year, when he had been possessed by Voldemort's spirit. He slowly let his tongue wander over the still slightly sore spots in his mouth and unsurely looked at his guardian.

"Don't worry, Harry. Professor Quirrell has been at St. Mungo's for three months. He has been obliviated about everything involving the time while he was possessed by the Dark Lord and is said to be completely recovered," Severus explained gently. "You don't have to attend dinner though, if you don't feel well or prefer to meet him in class for the first time. We can have dinner here together, or you can return to the elves' quarters. It's up to you."

"Thank you," Harry replied gratefully. "No, I'll attend dinner in the Great Hall. I prefer being together with you when I meet him for the first time after all that happened."

Together, the two wizards walked to the Great Hall, and Harry quickly slipped into the offered seat between Minerva and Severus. Professor Quirrell was the last to arrive and took the remaining seat at the other side of the table. Harry sighed in relief upon noticing that his scar did not hurt anymore with the professor nearby. Still he held his breath, when the Headmaster introduced him to the Defence teacher, explaining that he was living at Hogwarts because Severus was his guardian.

'I must be friendly to him; he doesn't know me, and he doesn't remember anything,' Harry told himself, feeling grateful towards Professor Dumbledore, who apparently hadn't told anyone about his connection to the elves.

"Harry Potter?" the Defence teacher asked in surprise. "You must be very good in my class, Mr. Potter."

'He's not stuttering anymore,' Harry realised as he heard himself reply, "No sir, unfortunately not." As much as he had enjoyed his holidays at the Isle of Elves, he knew that he should have spent the time to practise wand magic, although Minerva and Severus had both reassured him that it had been good for him to have holidays for once.

HP

In the morning, Malcolm asked Harry to help him and Cicero with the preparations for the Gryffindor and Slytherin common rooms and dormitories, since several of the house-elves that were responsible for the Houses were sick. Harry happily agreed. He loved to help the elves, and he found it interesting to see his own house from both sides, that of the elves, who used to make everything as nice and perfect as possible for the students, and that of the students, who took everything for granted. After having lunch together with the elves, he popped himself into his own room in Severus' quarters. He found the professor hunched over the Slytherin time tables in his office.

"Hello Severus," he hesitantly greeted the man. "Is there anything I could do to help you?"

"Hello Harry. I wondered where you were. How are you?" Severus replied in concern, looking up from his work to give the boy a piercing look.

"The elves kept me busy arranging everything in Gryffindor and Slytherin. I'm fine, only a bit tired," Harry admitted in a soft voice.

"Well, if you're sure that you don't want to take a nap, you can help me with the time tables. I intend to place them into the respective rooms tonight instead of handing them over at breakfast tomorrow. What do you think, Harry?"

"I think that's a very good idea and makes breakfast on the first morning much less stressful," Harry said warmly and took a seat at the opposite side of the professor's desk to help with the time tables.

Severus handed the boy a small pile of parchments and instructed him what to do, before he placed a small bowl with drops in front of him. "The drops you wanted," he explained.

"Thank you so much," Harry said gratefully. 'Just what I needed,' he thought as he sucked on the soothing sweet in relief, unaware of the fact that his guardian was observing him in concern, as he popped a drop into his mouth right away.

When Harry handed Severus the completed time tables, he asked, "Do you want me to put them into the rooms right away, sir?"

Severus shot him a sharp glance, before he queried, "How long will it take you to distribute them?"

"Two minutes," Harry replied in surprise. "Why, sir?"

"Because I believe that you're in dire need of some rest," Severus replied sternly.

"It's not a big deal, sir," Harry replied and quickly popped away with the parchments, turning himself invisible as he went. He popped himself from one room into the next, magically placing the appropriate parchments on the respective night tables. Two minutes later he was back. "Everything is done, sir. When do we have to leave for Hogsmeade?"

"I'm not sure if I should take you with me," the professor said and pulled Harry with him through the connecting door to his quarters. He motioned for him to sit on the sofa and sat next to him. "I think it's better if you stayed here and got some rest."

Harry was just about to contradict, when all of a sudden, the fireplace flared. An instant later, the Headmaster stepped out of the fireplace.

"Hello Severus, hallo Harry," he said in a grave voice, and Harry noticed that his eyes were not twinkling as usual. "I did not expect to see you relaxing. Is everything all right?"

"Yes, of course. Harry helped me with my time tables and even distributed them in the rooms, so that we just sat down here to rest for a moment. Can we help you with something?"

The headmaster let out a long sigh, before he replied, "The elder elves have contacted me. They found a way to summon and destroy the Horcruxes. However, they need humans to help them destroy them, because they are human objects, and since it affords much magic, we decided to ask you and Minerva for help, maybe also Harry."

"Of course, Albus. That is no problem," Severus agreed quickly.

"In fact, I fear that there might be a problem, Severus," the Headmaster said thoughtfully. "I'm not sure if I'm right of course, but there is a slight possibility that Harry might be a Horcrux as well."

"Harry?" Severus breathed in shock.

Harry inwardly groaned. "What exactly does that mean, Headmaster?" he asked, horrified.

Dumbledore quickly explained about the Horcruxes and that he feared that one piece of Voldemort's soul could also be buried within Harry. "Harry, don't be afraid. The elves and we will act very carefully in order not to harm you."

"What exactly is your plan, Albus?" Severus asked sharply, causing the headmaster to slowly explain how they had agreed that he and one of the elder elves should carefully cast a spell at Harry's scar, while Minerva or Severus together with another elf had to cast a counter spell at the boy, so that only the dark part connected to his scar would be affected by the spell.

"What could be the consequences?" Severus queried.

"In the worst case, his heart or other parts of his body could become affected, which mean weakened, but he will survive. If we didn't cast these spells at him, before casting the general spell at all Horcruxes, he would die," the Headmaster replied gravely. "Can we cast the spell tonight?"

"Yes please; I'd love to get over with it right away, if possible before everyone comes back tonight," Harry said pleadingly.

"In that case, we will call your mother and make her check if she deems you well enough to have such a spell cast at you," Severus replied, raising an eyebrow. Seeing Harry nod, he called Misty.

The small elf quickly checked on Harry and let a small amount of healing magic flow into his body. "Master Severus, Harry will be fine. I'd appreciate if I was allowed to be with him when the spell is cast though."

"Of course, Misty," the headmaster agreed, gently. "We wanted to ask you to be present anyway. If Harry is ready, I suggest that we move into my office, where the elder elves are still waiting."

Twenty minutes later, Harry, Severus, Minerva, the headmaster, three elder elves and Harry's elf parents were assembled in the round office, and the elder elves explained in detail what each of them had to do. First of all, Dumbledore and one of the elder elves were going to cast the spell on Harry in combination with the counter spell that would be cast by Minerva and Malcolm.

"Harry, are you ready?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"Yes," Harry replied hesitantly and took the offered seat on the sofa, noticing in relief that Misty sat next to him, until the elder elves motioned for her to back up a little.

"Don't worry, little one, my healing magic works over quite a distance," Misty whispered to Harry, making him chuckle.

"Thank you, Mum. Thank you for being here with me," he whispered back gratefully. When the headmaster and the elder elf trained their wands at him, he heard Severus' voice penetrate his mind. 'Look at me, Harry. I'll be here with you the whole time.' Harry gratefully looked up, seeing that the Potions Master was standing at the opposite side of the room, just so that he could see him, when he looked straight ahead. "Now don't move," the Headmaster instructed him, and Harry concentrated on looking at his guardian, until all of a sudden, his scar erupted in pain and the world turned black.

tbc...

Thank you very much for your kind reviews for the previous chapter.