"Draco" Narcissa asked opening her son's door. The boy was lying on his bed sniffing, his face buried in his pillow. She sighed walking to the bed and taking a seat "My poor little Dragon" She stroked her son's soft blonde hair "You grew up with stories and your father's boasting of what a magnificent hero he was only to learn he isn't without flaw. He was scared my Dragon, terrified, and nothing is more dangerous then a scared hero" she gave an understanding smile "You try so hard to be just like him but the fact of the matter is you're not. You see yourself as small and weak, striving to be only what you're father wants you to be but always falling short. You don't see what I do. I see a kind, intelligent, sweet boy who could never hurt anyone. I see a compassionate leader and a snarky brat, undoubtedly from hanging out with Sev too much... Stop trying to be something your not. You're not your father Draco, you're better. Prove to the world that when the time comes you won't fold on your principles" her smile turned into a smirk"You may want to be like your father but the fact of the matter is it's your mother you take after"

Draco sniffed looking up "Trying to manipulate me during a moment of weakness?"

"Well I am a Slytherin" She chuckled "and it's not so much 'manipulating' as 'pointing out the obvious' but you are rather dense when it comes to that. That you get from your father"

"This pep talk isn't exactly making me feel any better"

"The truth isn't supposed to, it simply is. All you have to do is hear it's wisdom"

###

The wards of the school told the headmaster that Snape just returned and Albus asked the portraits for confirmation. Earlier that day when the Floo wards went off Albus assumed it was him as well. The passenger did use the correct password after all but now it seemed that it was young Mr. Malfoy, who was apparently trying to reconcile things with Harry. Dumbledore really needed to pay closer attention to the Floo. He just knew Snape was going to kill him for not telling him the boys accessed it.

Albus sighed staring at the sweet face of the sleeping boy in the hospital wing. He was wearing the hospital gown and his skin smelled of the foul ointment that covered his skin but it was needed to heal up the scars. They weren't magical scars so they were easy to get rid of. After Poppy coated his back and bum she sent the child's medical history to the Ministry and the Aurors were arresting the Dursleys as they speak. Since they were muggles abusing a wizarding child they would probably be kissed by a Dementor. That was a rather old law from back when muggle parents had a habit of murdering or enslaving their magical children. Dumbledore needed to find a home for Harry soon but he didn't know where to begin. He technically had all year to place Harry but not if he got custody of Dudley. Dudley would need a home immediately unless he let the boy stay at Hogwarts for the school year but he couldn't do that with a muggle child it be too dangerous. He'd have no way to defend himself against the creatures of the forest and be terrified of all the magical enchantments, not to mention he'd be viciously bullied for simply being a muggle... unless he stopped being a muggle child.

Albus blinked, there was the ritual. It was on old tradition of the house of Dumbledore to ask the gods to bless their children who were born squibs. The child could call on the power of magic through prayers. They were not actually wizards but they could channel magic. They were called clerics and it used to be a popular practice for Squibs to do this. Of course Gods were known to task their clerics with an occasional quest and it was a life of duty and serve to that god. It wasn't a popular lifestyle as the magic couldn't be used frivolously as most wizards do. No cleaning spells or color changing spells but he could channel magic into scrolls or runes with any spell written on then. The magic was fairly limited and all required a short prayer instead of an incantation. Ablus had a few books of prayers from his family library and the ritual that would allow the child to swear his allegiance to one of the billions of gods out there. Then the boy could go to some of the none spell casting classes like potions, Herbology, Runes, history well studying divine magic under Dumbledore. Yes that would be suitable but the children would still need a home. The question was where would they be safe? Should their safety outweigh their happiness. The children undoubtedly suffered a good deal under the Dursleys. They would need a well balanced home suited to their special needs for a full recovery... but where? The fact of the matter there was only one place Harry would truly be happy.

###

"Jake!"

Jake yelped quickly throwing the covers over himself to hide the cauldron as Vince jerked the privacy curtain open.

"Do you mind!" Jake yelled "That was closed for a reason!"

"Look you can have a good wank some other time" Vince rolled his eyes

"Wank?" Jake blinked not familiar with the British word

Vince rolled his eyes again "Masturbate" well Jake's face turned crimson Vince demanded "Come on! We got detention with Snape soon we got to get to his potions lab" and with that he left

Jake looked around outside his curtain to make sure no one was there before getting out of bed well hugging his cauldron tightly to his chest. His eyes darted around the room suspiciously. He didn't want anyone else to see it, especially not Teddy. With how much Teddy knew about Dragon he'd definitely try to get rid of his treasure. Jake stuffed his gold in his backpack and pulled it on before making his way into the common room. All the other Slytherins who were in the fight were already there waiting on him... well almost everyone.

"Where's Draco?" Jake asked Cloud

"He had some kind of family emergency" the older boy shrugged before the prefects began walking them out of the common room.

###

Snape sighed when he heard a knock on his door. He had considered giving a last minute reprieve from detention but decided that wouldn't be best for the children. They needed to get their punishment out of the way so they could enjoy their weekend.

At the moment his little Slytherins were a sea of unhappy faces as all children 14 and under gutted the grossest ingredients Snape had well his older students scrubbed crusty Cauldrons. All the poor Slytherins were feeling very sorry for themselves as they reflected on their wrong doings... well most.

Mister Long suddenly laughed "GROSS!" the other students gave him strange looks well he giggled a bit as he squeezed out the acid from a small green cube that looked much like gelatin. The acid was used as the beast's digestive juices so Mister Long had to handle the creature with Dragon Scale gauntlets... a tad morbid given the boy's heritage but he didn't seem to make the connection. No the troubling thing was he was LAUGHING at the disgusting green slime and the antics of the cube as he squeezed it. This cube was young. Its acid was not yet dangerous to humans, it ate mostly fruit and insects at this stage, in fact it was actually helpful in various potions such as a cure disease. Snape had had it for a few months now and so was it knew when it was time to have its acid collected. It kept trying to escape the boy and getting slime all over him in the process to which the boy was actually ENJOYING the experience.

"Mister Long!" Snape snapped "You're being punished!"

"Sorry sir" Jake snickered

"If you find that so amusing Mister Long then perhaps you should help out the older students"

"No sir I'm good" the boy insisted

"Go!"

"Ah man" the boy groaned putting the slimy ooze monster back into it's jar before sitting down with the older students as they scrubbed cauldrons.

Snape continued to watch him and although the boy didn't seem to he enjoying himself he wasn't exactly bothered by it either. Snape groaned wanting to kick himself. Of course these things wouldn't work as a deterrent, the young Draconic Sorcerer was the apprentice to a potions master. He probably did task like these daily from a young age as simple chores. It wasn't going to work as a punishment with that kind of mindset "Mister Long"

"I swear I'm not enjoying myself!" Jake yelped

"But neither are you bothered by it. Do something productive and read your Transfiguration book" Snape smirked as Jake groaned in misery. Judging by his lack of ability in that area Transfiguration most be his least favorite class "Clean yourself up and sit in the corner to read"

"Can't I at least read my potions book? Everyone else is doing potions stuff"

"None of them are enjoying this side of being a Potioneer. By your attitude I haven't the slightest doubt you will make a fine potions master some day" Snape praised letting the boy smile for a second before cutting him with "But if you don't apply yourself more in Transfiguration you're likely to get a Troll and that will not bode well for your backside" Jake groaned "Hop to it Mister Long. Read for an hour then I expect a foot long essay on the mechanical theory of Transfiguration"

"Aw man" Jake whined getting up

"Indeed"

###

"It's good to see you again Lao" Professor Bruttenholm smiled sipping his tea. He was a skinny, older man with puffy gray hair and a goatee "How long as it been? Ten? Twenty days?" he joked about the last time they'd been called together to solve a problem. The BPRD branch of the FBI did frequent work with the American Dragon.

Lao smiled back "I'm glad they sent you, Trevor. There is much Jake can learn from a mage of your skill" the old dragon lost his smile "I'm sorry he couldn't greet you as well but he's currently in detention"

Professor Bruttenholm chuckled "Think nothing of it. My boy is quite the rapscallion as well. I know people think he's grown but he hardly acts like it"

"How is your son?"

"He drinks and smokes far too much for my liking. He thinks just because he's an Arch devil he's invincible. Hellboy always has had a rather large opinion of himself... I seriously believe that the fact he ages slower stunts his mental development as well. He might resemble a human thirty year old but he still behaves like a teenager. Scans of his brain show it is still developing and in fact so is his body. It might have been helpful to know how long puberty was going to last when I adopted him, then I wouldn't have given him so much freedom and treated him like an adult before he was emotionally ready. It's hard to set things back now after that mistake. He's resentful of having a taste of adulthood only to be told he's not ready"

"You're doing a good job" Lao insisted "Most humans wouldn't have the patience to tend to the needs of a hell spawn. Devils require a good deal of care at this age but they are instinctively beings of order so they obey authority figures... at least those that prove themselves worthy of obedience"

"Unfortunately the Head of the BPRD has not. Hellboy doesn't respect him in the least and he's deliberately doing things I don't approve of because he knows he doesn't either. That and it appears his instinctual need to explore his environment has kicked in at this stage which is difficult for him to do given he's a seven foot tall red ape with horns. He wants to be outside more then anything but the Bureau wants too keep him locked up unless there is an emergency that requires his assistance. I tried explaining that goes against his natural instincts but they hardly listen. There are a few magical outpost in our city he could visit but... The muggles that oversee our Bureau don't want to risk it. In some ways it be easier if we just completely hide from them as Britain does but working with the muggle government has it's advantages but it makes it harder for the nonhumans"

"In theory but from what I've seen nonhumans have very few rights here. Goblins, one of the most dignified and politically powerful races on the planet, even get very little respect here"

"I am aware, I was born in this country you know" he sipped his tea "I was what they call 'Muggleborn', did I ever tell you that? My parents couldn't use magic and didn't even know it was real until my Hogwarts letter but they decided to send me to the academy at Salem instead. They read some books they got from Diagon Alley and did a large amount of research before deciding that was what was best for me. I fell in love with the country and decided to move there after I graduated. Got a job as a Paranormal consultant for muggles and the rest you know"

Lao chuckled "You were just a boy when I met you. Wided eyed and curious, feeling so grown up that you were speaking with the President on matters of magical defense"

"I was hardly the only one, Roosevelt was listening to any wizard who was willing to speak with him. He even offered mages good benefits and paychecks if they joined his magical Black Ops organization"

"I should probably speak to the children about that time period. Wizards were highly involved in World War Two and is largely responsible for the current relationship the Magical World has with the American mundane's government. Of course most of these children should know this as common knowledge but they know so little of the outside world"

"I don't know how any culture would ignore what the Nazis did especially the Wizards. They were far too large a threat after Grindlewald started handing over potions and magical artifacts to Hitler's army and the experiments they performed on not only wizards but other muggles... Hitler was proof of how dangerous muggles can be when exposed to magic"

"I remember" Lao sighed taking another sip of his tea. For hours the two reminisced about old times, grateful they could talk without the world crumbling around them.

###

"Albus!" Arthur Weasley grinned as the old headmaster stepped through the floo "Hopefully this is a social call"

"I'm afraid not my boy" the aging man looked so grave

Arthur sighed "What did they do now?" thinking the twins got themselves in trouble again. It really was far too nice of Albus never to have suspended the boys. They couldn't have gotten in half the amount of trouble they did at another school.

"What mischief the twins have gotten into as of late is unknown to me" the headmaster gave a slight smirk before it vanished "I have a rather large favor to ask of you and Molly"

"I'll go get her, please have a seat" Arthur left the room well Dumbledore sat down in a lumpy chair. A few moments later he came back with his wife.

"What do you need Albus?" The plumb woman asked taking a seat herself

"I need to know if you won't mind looking after Harry" Albus asked

"You mean for the summer?" Arthur smiled

"We would love to" Molly assured "If we start saving money now it shouldn't be a problem"

"That wasn't actually what I had in mind" Albus confessed "I was hoping for a more... permanent situation"

The Weasleys stared at him for a moment before Molly howlered "What did they do!?"

"Pumpkin" Arthur tried

"I tried to tell you Albus. I told you they had bars on the Windows and were starving the boy"

"They told me crime was up in the area so they put bars up to protect against a break in and that money was tight so they couldn't afford to feed the children their fill" Albus sighed "I actually gave them more money to help but you were right Molly I never should have trusted that woman. I assumed she would care for her sister's child the way she would have cared for her own but... Harry showed me scars on his back and implied the Dursleys gave them to him"

"They BEAT him!?" Molly raged

"The ministry has been informed but now Harry is without a home. I need someone to look after him. Someone I know I can trust"

Arthur put his hand on Molly and answered for them both "We'd love to take him in. It's an honor you would trust us with his care"

"I won't just be him... hopefully" Albus explained "Harry still needs to live with a biological relative in order for the Blood wards to protect him so if you agree to take Harry you must also take the Dursleys' son Dudley"

"Of course Albus" Molly agreed immediately "The boy will need a home to. Merlin knows what those people have been putting the poor boys through"

"The ministry might not give me custody of the muggle boy but it would be best to keep him and Harry together. I'll speak with both of them regularly about what the Dursleys put them through" It was customarily for abused children to frequently be counseled by their head of house but give the situation and the fact Dudley not have a head of house it be best if Dumbledore was responsible "I'll have the Goblin's transfer the money I was giving the Dursleys to you from now on as well as a little extra to help take care of the second child"

"That won't be necessary" Arthur assured

"You're already struggling as it is" Albus insisted "The money will help with bills and food, getting the house fixed up and maybe some new furniture and clothes and even the occasional treat for the children"

"You don't have to bribe us Ablus" Arthur insisted "We already said 'yes',"

"The money is not a bribe, it is an old man's way of feeling like I'm contributing to Harry's care" Ablus smiled

Arthur sighed "Alright Albus"

"Thank you Arthur , Molly"

"There is one thing you could help with" Arthur smiled "We need to add space for the other boys"

"Want me to set up the extension charms?" Albus smiled

"For little Ronnie's room" Arthur smiled back "I'm sure he and Harry would love to share a bunk but it's not really big enough for two children and possibly a third"

"I think I can help with that"

###

A/N:

I know a few people wanted to see Harry live with Lao but I just don't think it would make sense from Dumbledore's point of view. He just discovered Harry was being abused by people he trusted with the boy's care. He's not about to hand him over to a stranger, especially not one who's been so difficult in regards to his own grandson. Dumbledore does not know Lao. He does know that Harry loves the Weasleys and that they love him. A family Dumbledore has known for years all the way back to when Mr. & Mrs. Weasley were children going to his school and even knew THEIR parents as they went to Hogwarts. It might be a big family but that just means they have a lot of experience raising children and the money Albus will provide will make it easier on them, although they will still have to buy second hand stuff they will be able to provide for all the kids.

This does not mean Harry will not go to America. I have a plan to get him there that will stay true to the plot.