Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, nor am I making any profit from writing this. It's actually pulling me away from the non-fanfiction writing that I'm supposed to be doing, so take that for what it is.
Author's Note: So, it seems like it's been forever since I last updated. Unfortunately, at the same time I was assigned like 20 pages worth of research for my University assignments, I was hit with a massive case of the feared writer's block. I think I've pulled myself out of it, but since my semester is over in just 17 days, y'all might have to way like 20 days for an update. I'll do my best to get you fresh wordage, but I'm not going to make any promises.
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Oh yeah, before you read this chapter. I went back and re-tweaked chapters 22-24, so you might want to have a gander at them. Some changes have been made, and they're slight, but they've still been made.
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Chapter 25: Stubborn Recovery
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"Harry!" Hermione called as she walked out of her bedroom.
Harry grinned at her and held up a letter he'd received a few hours ago. "The Minister of Magic sent me a letter," he said, waiting for her to catch up before he continued speaking.
"I gathered as much," she said with a small, almost unsure smile. "What with the piece of parchment in your hand that still has down feathers on it and the official Ministry seal on it, and all," she said, plucking a short white feather off the letter. "What did the Minister have to tell you?" she asked.
"That his son's closest friend used to have a girlfriend from Ravenclaw, which I assume is the bookworm club of Hogwarts, based on what little he told me about it," Harry said with an easy grin, laughing quietly as she blushed brightly. "He informed me that they'd been dating for a few years, but then problems recently forced them apart."
Hermione stared at Harry, not saying anything for a moment.
"Imagine his surprise when he found out that the young Hermione Granger had not only disappeared entirely from her long-term boyfriend's life, but seemed to have switched teams entirely. In the war, at least," he said, looking over at her. He offered her the letter, but she shook her head slightly. "And apparently," Harry said, in a quieter voice. "Blaise Zabini has not been coping well with that news, and he's been acting increasingly out of character for himself."
"How so?" Hermione asked.
Harry shrugged. "I haven't met him, so I don't know. But Tom did tell me that the boy has been pushing his mother to request that he join Tom's army early," he said, shoving the letter into one of the back pocket of his jeans. "Which is apparently not a pleasant endeavor."
"No," Hermione said, with a fake shocked look on her face. "Really?" she asked, clearly patronizing him. "Who would ever have imagined that fighting, in a war, under the command of a Dark Lord, would not be a pleasant endeavor?" she asked.
Harry grinned at her. "I thought this was actually one of those more pleasant wars, one with candies and kittens and pillow fights and the like," he said. "You sort of implied earlier that you didn't want to be forced to switch sides."
"I believe I came out and said that," she said. "That's not the point."
"Then what is the point?" Harry asked.
Hermione said nothing for a long moment. "I don't know," she said, stopping in her spot and leaning against the wall. Her hands rested on her stomach.
"I thought you would have terminated the pregnancy as soon as you got the chance," he said quietly, reaching out and experimentally touching the young woman's stomach with the tips of his fingers. The child inside the womb kicked Harry's fingers, and he looked up at Hermione with a grin. "That's brilliant," he said.
Hermione smiled slightly and took hold of Harry's wrist, gently pulling it off of her stomach. "I hate that it's inside me and how it was put inside me," she said. "And I hate the fetus, I really do."
"But?" Harry asked quietly as they once again started to walk through the halls.
"Where are we going?" Hermione asked.
"It's a surprise," Harry said with a small smile. "What was the 'but' that you're trying to avoid?" he asked, looping Hermione's arm around his as they headed down a flight of stairs.
She looked up at him, clearly surprised.
Harry laughed, not even having to look at her to catch the look. "I'm practically living with the Dark Lord and I've still managed to keep some secrets from him. Don't act so surprised when I call you on changing the subject," he said. "What's the 'but'?" he asked.
"I keep thinking about what it might have been like to go through this with Blaise," she said quietly, looking back down at her extended stomach. "What it would have been like with him at my side, and all. We talked about it a few times, and he always said he wanted a little boy."
"If you got the chance to go back to Blaise, you could still get the chance, couldn't you?" he asked. "Or did the Weasley boy do something to mess with that?" he asked, making a vague motion at Hermione's stomach, blushing a bright red.
"No," she said, sounding shocked at the mere suggestion. "Ronald deliberately made sure that no permanent damage would be done. He insisted on making sure that it was possible for him to father more children with me. He wants to have a large family, like that which he grew up in," she said with a scowl.
Harry wasn't sure what to say that could comfort her, so he chose to remain silent.
"Blaise wouldn't take me back after what happened anyway," she said quietly. "Shit, I wouldn't take me back after what I've done to him."
"Technically, you haven't done anything," Harry said. "You're a victim in this."
"I appreciate your attempt at consolation, Harry," Hermione said. "But neither Blaise nor myself are going to look at it that way."
"What about a hypothetical situation, then?" Harry asked.
Hermione stopped mid-step and looked up at him. "What are you talking about?" she asked.
"I'm talking about a hypothetical situation. If, hypothetically, you had the chance to explain what happened and talk things over with Zabini, potentially rekindling whatever it is that you had with him, would you take it?" he asked.
"Of course I would, but that's not going to happen," she said. "So there is no reason for me to speculate about things that I cannot control."
Harry nodded slightly, though he couldn't hide his knowing smirk.
"You're hiding something from me," she accused mildly.
"I'm hiding a number of things from you, actually," Harry said. "But today, the Minister's son, Draco, had the afternoon free, and he was willing to drop by for lunch."
Hermione said nothing.
"You don't believe me?"
"Not even a little bit," she said.
Harry shrugged as he led Hermione into one of the sitting rooms. A young man looking remarkably like a younger version of Lucius Malfoy, though with notedly shorter hair, was sitting on the couch, looking around with veiled interest. "Enjoying the decorations, Malfoy?" he asked as he led Hermione into the room.
"It's nothing like I expected, that's for sure," he said, looking over at the two of them. His gaze hardened when he recognized Hermione, and he stood up. "For the record, I didn't want to come here," he said with a glare.
"Then why did you?" Hermione asked hesitantly.
Harry looked over at her and grinned. "Because when the Dark Lord's consort requests your assistance, it's incredibly difficult to turn that request down without irritating the Dark Lord, even indirectly," he said. "I'll have to send your father flowers or something for being so helpful," he muttered.
"My father is not the type to appreciate being sent flowers," the young man said with a smirk. "Chocolate, maybe, or some good liquor would be more appreciated," he suggested.
Harry grinned again. "I'll make a note of that," he said.
"Draco, I honestly had no idea what Harry was planning," Hermione said quietly. "I'll go."
"No," Harry said, gently pushing Hermione into the chair opposite the sofa. "You won't. I feel like fixing part of Dumbledore's problems, and since I'm not healthy or stupid enough to go confront the old man about anything yet, this is going to have to suffice."
Draco scowled. "And here I was, hoping to have some sort of worthwhile conversation instead of wasting my time," he said.
Harry smirked, taking a seat in the closest free chair. "Hermione was forced against her will to leave your friend, and she was raped by one of the Weasley boys," he said. "How's that for a worthwhile conversation starter?"
Hermione glared at him but didn't say anything. Instead, she crossed her arms over her chest and directed her glare toward the floor.
"It's interesting, I'll give you that," Draco said. "But I'm not going to be interested in this conversation just because you started out with a lie."
Harry shrugged. "I see no reason to waste my time or energy lying to you," he said. "Especially the first time we've met."
Hermione said nothing for a moment, glancing down at the ground. "Harry told me that Blaise changed, Draco," she said hesitantly. "How has he changed?"
"Why did you allow the Weasel to impregnate you?" he asked.
"I believe I just mentioned that Hermione was given no choice in the matter," Harry said irritably as he leaned back in his chair. "Try not to take any more cheap shots," he said.
Draco scowled slightly but nodded slightly.
Harry nodded. "Now, Hermione asked you a question. Be a gentleman about this, would you?" he asked.
After a brief hesitation, Draco swore quietly. "For the first three months after you and Blaise separated, he was on a suicide watch, and Pansy and I sometimes worry that he'll have a mental relapse, of sorts," he said. "He doesn't talk to anyone anymore, and he's been focusing on his studies, acting like that's going to stop people from worrying about him."
Hermione was silent, and neither Harry nor Draco said anything as she wiped a few stray tears from her eyes. She stayed silent for a long moment, trying to regain her composure. Finally, she spoke. "And what about Ariana?" she asked.
Draco's brow furrowed momentarily. "His mother is rightly concerned about her son, and she's planned out a number of increasingly creative ways to kill you for what you've done to him," he said, though his tone was noticeably gentler as Hermione started crying in earnest. He looked over at Harry, not saying anything.
Harry opened his mouth to ask if they wanted a moment alone when a telltale shimmer of scales against the far wall of the room caught his attention.
"Little boy, you and I need to have a conversation about your mate," Nagini hissed as she moved toward the three of them. "And do not try to waste my time by conversing longer with the new humans."
Harry looked back over at Draco, who were watching him rather calmly, and Hermione, who was once again struggling to regain her composure. "I'm going to leave you two to continue this conversation, since it's striking me as something of a private moment," he said with a grin. He stood up and shoved his hands in his pockets. "No drawing blood, no unwanted physical contact, and no being unnecessarily spiteful," he said. "I'll send someone in to make sure that neither of you are hurt in a few minutes."
"I'm not going to touch her," Draco said calmly as he crossed his arms over his chest defensively.
"Fantastic," Harry said with a light scowl before walking out of the room.
Nagini was waiting just outside the door, and she watched him for a moment.
"Are you worried about him?" Harry asked after a long minute. "Is something wrong?"
"I think he's worried about the ritual you're going to go through with him. He's spent the past two days staring at the fish-tank," Nagini said quietly. She moved quickly down the hall without needing to look back to know that Harry was following her.
"And how do you expect me to fix anything that's wrong with him? It's almost impossible for me to tell what's going on in his head unless he outright tells me," Harry hissed as he followed her through the halls.
Nagini let out an angry, frustrated hiss, but said nothing. Instead, she started moving more quickly toward the room that opened to the aquarium viewing room.
Harry scowled and followed her.
Tom was in the room, staring blankly at the murky tank in front of him.
"I'm not making any promises," Harry said, glancing down at Nagini. She nodded and moved back down the hallway. Before she got too far, though, he called her back. "Nagini," he said. "Would you or Aviva do me a favor and spy on the people in the main sitting room?" he asked.
She smirked, as much as a snake could, and nodded. "It will be our pleasure," she said.
"Tom?" Harry asked as he walked into the room and closed the door. "You've got the snakes worried about you."
"Nagini has been worried about me since she was a hatchling," Tom said, not looking over at Harry. "It hasn't been contagious before, and I do not want to deal with you playing the part of mother hen as well."
"I'm not that good at worrying," Harry said as he walked into the room. He glanced at the front of the aquarium, and upon seeing nothing watching him, he almost hesitantly reached out and took hold of Tom's hand.
The older man said nothing, merely pulling Harry a bit closer to him.
Harry smirked and quickly took a seat on the floor between Tom's legs. "I'm not going to worry about you," he said. "Because you're going to be king and make things easy for me."
Tom smirked down at Harry. "Am I?" he asked. "After all, you are the one on your knees in front of me," he said.
"Yes, but I can make things uncomfortable for you," he said with a smirk. "After all, I can bite."
Tom's eyes narrowed and he threaded his free hand through Harry's hair, pulling the younger man's head away from his crotch. "What else would motivate me into sharing my inner thoughts with you?" he asked.
Harry paused for a moment, thinking about it. Finally, he smirked. "How'd you like a blowjob?" he asked, watching the Dark Lord mischievously.
Tom smirked, tightening his hold on Harry's hair. "And all you want is for me to bare my soul for you in exchange?" he asked.
"Actually," Harry said. "I'd just like to know what has you so concerned about things that you're spending your time staring at your little fish tank. The rest of your soul you can keep to yourself." He laughed quietly. "For now, at least."
Tom smirked again and he loosened his hold on Harry's hair. "I'm closer to getting things done than I originally thought I was," he said. "The two biggest obstacles in my path, at the moment, are Dumbledore and the Longbottom boy. The simplest way I can think of to get rid of them is sending you back to the Burrow."
Harry frowned slightly. "You want to send me back there?" he asked hesitantly. "To kill Dumbledore and Longbottom?"
"I'd actually been tossing around the idea of going in your place," Tom said with a lazy smirk. "There are a number of potions that could give me the chance to adopt your appearance, even if only for a short time."
The younger man scowled and reached back to pull Tom's hand out of his hair. "I'm not letting you have any of my hair, or any of my other body parts that you might use for any variation of the Polyjuice Potion," Harry said quietly as he shifted forward a bit so his head rested on Tom's thigh.
"You're not really in any position to object to me plucking even one hair from your head at the moment, are you?" Tom asked, threading his hands back through Harry's hair.
Harry looked up at him and smiled lazily. "If you pull out so much as one piece of my hair, I will find myself leaning forward and taking a bite out of your crotch," he said. "Completely on accident, mind you," he said.
Tom frowned but said nothing for a moment. Finally, he pulled Harry up into his lap and kissed him almost gently.
A brief sudden movement from inside the aquarium caught both of their attention, and they both watched the tank for a long moment before a smirk came over Harry's face and he leaned down to kiss the man, hoping to take him by surprise while the Dark Lord was still watching the aquarium through narrowed eyes.
It didn't quite work, and he felt Tom smirking into the kiss. The older man made a move to deepen the kiss when someone clearing their throat from the doorway had them both looking in that direction. Harry brightened immediately and turned in Tom's lap to face the newcomer, doing his best to ignore the way the older man's arms tightened around his waist.
Tom scowled darkly as he recognized the man standing just inside the room. "I don't recall giving you permission to come into my Manor," he growled, not releasing Harry from his hold.
"Preemptive blood magic with the kid," he said. "Toby helped me make sure that I'd be able to find him no matter how many wards he was hidden under." At the continued glare from Tom, he did his best to hide a scowl and bowed deeply to the man. "I beseech your forgiveness, My Lord, for my unexpected and almost entirely unwarranted arrival in your Manor. I can assure you that it will never happen again," he said, remaining in his subservient position until Tom made a quiet scoffing noise.
"I'll allow you this one transgression, even if only because you're here to see the brat in my lap," Tom said.
Harry shot a grateful look to Tom, though he couldn't stop the grin from taking over his face. "Cain," he said, quickly pulling himself out of Tom's hold to walk over and hug his guardian. "How was your time with Irwin?" he asked as the older man hugged him tightly.
"It was as much fun as it usually is, in spite of the pervy little voyeur sent from the Dark Lord to spy on us," Cain said with a grin. Both he and Harry ignored the quiet growl coming from Tom. "Now, I was going to bring Irwin back to the shop, but when I got back to the courtyard, Pepper informed me that Toby destroyed Serpicos." He scowled. "She did offer to give me the one brick that remained of the shop, and she told me to come to you for the explanation," he said quietly.
"There was no other choice," Harry said. "The security of the shop was compromised beyond repair."
"How so?"
Tom leaned back in his chair, choosing instead to silently watch the interaction, hoping that he'd be given some answers that he wouldn't have to pull out of Harry sometime later - either through force or persuasion.
"Certain Aurors from the Ministry came by a little while after you left," Harry said. "And they ended up killing all the snakes except Aviva, and they tried to exorcise Tobias. Tom was kind enough to take the two of us in after he found out what happened," he said.
"I very much doubt kindness had too much to do with it," Cain said, glancing dispassionately over at Tom. "Given what I nearly walked in on, and all."
Harry smirked. "I was technically the one to initiate what you nearly walked in on," he said quietly, taking a step back from Cain and tugging hesitantly on his shirt. The slight motion did not escape Tom's notice, though he said nothing for a moment. "Why were you gone so long?" Harry asked.
"I didn't worry you, did I?"
"No more than usual, given that you and Irwin have been going at it longer than I've been around," Harry said with a shrug. "But you normally send word when you're going to be later than what you originally told me."
Cain smirked. "I had planned on it," he said. "But Irwin somehow managed to continue distracting me."
"Are you two getting married, then?"
"Don't go crazy on me, kid. Neither of us want to settle down, no matter how fond of each other we are," Cain said. He looked back over at Tom. "I did not entirely mean to interrupt whatever was going on between the two of you," he said.
Tom smirked. "Good. Then you can leave and we can get back to it," he said coolly, reaching forward and taking hold of Harry's wrist.
The younger man turned his wrist to intertwine their fingers. He looked over at Tom, who wasn't bothering to hide his leer at him. Harry grinned, but when he noticed the glare Cain was sending in his direction, he looked at the ground and did his best to hide the grin.
A moment of awkward silence passed, and in that short time, Tom's leer had been replaced with a cool, almost detached look in Cain's direction.
Cain hesitated a moment before offering a curt bow to the Dark Lord. "For the record, My Lord, I am entirely uncomfortable with what's going on in here," he said. "He's barely able to consent!"
"I'll be sure to make a note of that before he's back on his knees for me," Tom said coldly before motioning pointedly toward the door.
Cain scowled and swore quietly but left the room, shutting the door louder than necessary.
As soon as he was gone, Harry took the two steps to reclaim his spot between Tom's legs.
"On your knees, pet," Tom said almost gently. He threaded his fingers back through Harry's hair when he did as told, lightly massaging the boy's scalp.
"Now, where were we?" Harry asked, smirking cheekily up at the Dark Lord.
"You were setting about showing me just how much you adore me," he said, though a sudden, almost ominous movement on the other side of the glass of the fish tank caught his attention. He threaded a hand through Harry's hair and almost gently pulled the younger man to his feet.
Harry hesitated a moment, not sure why Tom had forced him to stop. He noticed the mermaid swimming back and forth in front of the glass, watching them with a sinister intelligence, and scowled. "I'll have you know that fish is creepy," he said. He looked back over at Tom, a mischievous smirk coming over his face. "Why don't I show my adoration for you in another room?" he asked. "Say, while you're on your throne?" he asked, though he tugged on the bottom hem of his shirt again.
"As tempting as that offer sounds," Tom said, arching an eyebrow suspiciously. "I'd rather you tell me how much pain you're in at the moment," he said.
The younger man hesitated a moment. "On a scale of one to ten?" he asked.
Tom shrugged. "If that suits you, I suppose it will work for now," he said. "Though if you lie to me, you will be in more pain than you are now."
"It's between a six and a seven at the moment," Harry admitted after a short hesitation.
Tom's eyes narrowed. "And what was your reason for keeping this information to yourself?" he asked.
Harry shrugged slightly, looking down at the ground and trying to hide the light blush on his face.
"Come with me," Tom said, gently wrapping an arm around Harry's waist.
"Where are we -"
"To my bedroom. I'll give you a few potions to numb the pain for a little while, and I'll change your bandages while you're vulnerable for me to take advantage of you," Tom said.
Harry looked up at him and grinned. "It's hardly taking advantage when the so called vulnerable one is entirely willing to join in on the fun," he said. "And I'd give you my word that I'll return the favor whenever you ask it of me, but you'd end up humiliating the shit out of me."
"What makes you think that?" Tom asked, though he was smirking.
"First of all, the look on your face is entirely untrustworthy," Harry said. "And you strike me as the type who would have me go down on you in the middle of a Death Eater meeting, or something."
Tom chuckled quietly but said nothing as he led Harry to his bedroom.
...
Once the younger man was situated relatively comfortably on Tom's bed and the older man had changed his bandages, a quiet comfort settled between them.
Harry opened his eyes and looked up at the Dark Lord when he felt the man lightly touch his back between his shoulder blades. He eyed the two vials in the man's hands almost warily.
"One is the numbing potion that I offered you, and the other is a dreamless sleep potion," Tom said by way of explanation. "I want no arguments with me on the sleeping potion," he added when he noticed a glimmer of protest light up in the boy's gaze.
"Fine," Harry said quietly, reaching for the vials. "But you have to stay with me until I fall asleep, otherwise I'll tell Nagini that you miss her constant presence at your side," he said with a smirk. "And then I'll tell Aviva that you told me you want to get to know her better."
Tom chuckled quietly but made himself comfortable on the bed next to Harry. Once the younger man had emptied both of the vials, he took them and set them on the nearby nightstand.
As soon as Harry saw that the older man's hands were free, he carefully maneuvered his way over to the middle of the bed so he could rest his head on the Dark Lord's shoulder.
"I never said that I was going to stay in the bed with you, pet," Tom said, though there was little threat behind his statement.
"I'm injured, and you've just drugged me with a sleeping potion," Harry said, his eyes already starting to drift closed. "If you really want me to be your consort, or whatever, you're going to have to let me have my way every once in a while," he said quietly.
Tom smirked but said nothing as the younger man quickly fell into a peaceful sleep.