000
Against My Nature
Newt/Harry, Timetravel Shenanigans, Canon Divergent
His plan was to avoid changing the timeline. He knew he wouldn't be able to resist if the opportunity presented itself. So he fled to Africa, where opportunity found him instead.
000
Chapter Twenty Five
The familiar sight of Newt's desk greeted him when he woke.
Harry blinked slowly, staring at the array of parchments they had spelled onto the underside of the desk, calenders, maps, reminders, to do lists; his body moulded into the familiar lumps and bumps of their mattress; worn cotton and linen on his skin, wearing one of Newt's old shirts, the one that Godric had ruined beyond the ability of a repairo that Harry had roughly stitched back together and claimed as a nightshirt; the familiar sound of creatures in the distance; and the smell, he closed his eyes and turned his face into the pillows, inhaling deeply as he burrowed into the nest of blankets and pillows.
He was home. It was just missing one thing.
Sighing deeply, he grimaced before mustering himself and crawling out of the bed.
He was still wearing the collar, bracelets, anklets, and belt. Annoying, but not unexpected. Either he would need to use the Elder Wand, or find out the password to unlock them – the matching set were heavily enchanted to be indestructible to prevent accidental magic outbursts from breaking them. The Chastity Belt though... he imagined a good old fashioned set of bolt-cutters could see him free of those. Or he could just do his Apparation party trick once he was out of the suitcase, it would make life a lot easier.
The door to the shed clattered open, and Harry paused as Newt stepped in, clearly trying to be as quiet as possible. He was dusty, his hair sticking up at odd angles, his body held in an awkward bend so as to minimise himself as if it could minimise the noise he made as well. The Gryffindor couldn't stop the smile that curled on the edges of his mouth even if he wanted to. Looking at Newt now, it struck him just how different the Hufflepuff was to everyone Harry had ever known, and yet how familiar he was all the same.
The mythozoologist turned once he had closed the door as softly as possible, and went very still the second he caught sight of Harry from under his fringe, eyes widening for all of a breath before he sprung forward. Harry laughed in delight, not quite managing to open his arms quickly enough before the Hufflepuff sweeping him up into a tight hug, practically sandwiching his arms to his chest. It was one of those hugs, where they just wrapped around each other as much as possible and rocked from side to side like fools, laughing helplessly in a tearful mixture of relief, happiness, and love.
Newt squeaked a little when Harry physically picked him up, and spun him around. Only to laugh once his feet were under him, and pepper the Gryffindor's face with kisses.
He cupped the former auror's face between his calloused hands, smiling gently, "Hey," he greeted softly.
Harry snorted, he gets kidnapped and the first thing his husband says as soon as he wakes up is 'hey'. "Get down here," the Gryffindor ordered mirthfully, reaching up to twine his hands into the Hufflepuff's hair and drag him down into a kiss that made his toes curl.
Any plans for reunion sex were ruined when Newt's hands trailed down to his waist, and then stuttered to a stop when they found the chastity belt.
"Uhm..." Newt broke the kiss, his gaze flickering down to it, and then back up to Harry's face with an expression of poorly concealed concern, and discomfort. "I – are you – he didn't – my scanning charms said you hadn't been – that he hadn't..." he trailed off, seemingly at a loss as to how to approach this particular conversation tactfully.
"Raped me?" Harry offered blandly, mouth quirked into a dry smirk as he raised an eyebrow.
Newt flustered a little, hands flinching away from the Gryffindor's waist, "Well, other things could have – I wouldn't want to make you uncomfortable – such things are – "
Harry dragged him into another kiss, twisting them in place until Newt's back was against his ladder out of the suitcase, practically pinning him in place as he climbed into his lap rutting against him aggressively even as he stuck his tongue as far down the Hufflepuff's throat as he could. After a few flustered squeaks, and a little flailing, Newt really got into it too, one hand knotted in Harry's hair while the other gripped a buttock guiding his movements, the faintest trace of nails on Harry's skin sliding down and just brushing under the belt – and flinching back.
He inhaled sharply, pulling his head away, "Harry I – "
"Nope," the Gryffindor refused, kissing him again, briefly, "No flinching," he ordered as he sat back, hands knotted in the fabric of Newt's shoulders. His expression gentled, "He didn't touch me Newt. He wanted to, but never got the chance. He got off more on using the cruciatus than anything he actually did to me. Didn't really give him a chance. I'm fine," he soothed kindly, reaching up and stroking one of Newt's cheeks.
The mythozoologist pressed his lips together anxiously, giving him a look remarkably reminiscent of a guilty puppy, "You – you sure you're alright?" he pleaded quietly.
"I'm sure, love. I promise," Harry told him gently.
Newt pressed his lips together, squinting at him in concern, before sighing and ducking his head down to bury his face in Harry's neck, tightening his grip on the Gryffindor into a proper hug. Harry chuckled softly, shifting into a more comfortable position on top of him, and snuggling in close. They stayed where they were for several minutes, seeing no need to move or do much of anything, just breathing one another in, eyes shut, listening to each other's heartbeats, feeling their warmth. It had only been a few days, but the frantic concern and fear had made it feel much longer.
Eventually, Harry pushed himself up, and Newt let his arms fall to the Gryffindor's waist as he peered curiously up at him.
"Come on, let's get these off. Did you manage to find my wand or kit before getting me out?" he asked as he pulled away completely. Newt flushed and shook his head.
"No, I'm afraid not. It quite slipped my mind to even look in all the excitement," he admitted sheepishly.
Harry shrugged, "No matter, we'll just have to go back then. But first things first, I want out of these." Ostensibly so he could jump his husband for reunion sex, but Newt didn't have to know that until it was too late.
"But how are you going to – " Newt trailed off in confusion, and then squawked in surprise when Harry casually climbed up and over him to the exit of the suitcase. "Harry! You can't go out there in just your nightclothes!" the Hufflepuff squawked, catching one of his ankles in one hand. Usually his skin would have felt like fire to Harry, but they felt strangely cool now – a sign that he really needed to get these cuffs off and get his wands back, he needed to work some magic off and soon. The problem when you had so much of it was that if you didn't use it, the situation became rather like a medically painful case of blue-balls.
Harry grinned wickedly, shifting his hips slightly so Newt would have no problem seeing up his night-shirt from his current angle, "I'll show you my party trick," he teased salaciously watching in smug satisfaction as the mythozoologist went rather pink, eyes flickering a moment before his grip slackened enough for Harry to make a swift lunge for the ceiling, slipping out of his grasp before he could snatch him back.
"Harry!" Newt yelped, scrambling up after him as the Gryffindor escaped the suitcase onto the roof he'd warded in the middle of the city. He sighed, slumping against the lip of the suitcase as Harry stretched happily in the sun, breathing deeply in satisfaction. Gryffindors. Designed to drive everyone into the grave with stress just trying to keep up with them. "Would you get back in the case please, Harry? You're in nothing but a night-shirt, it's hardly appropriate," he scolded tiredly as he hauled himself out properly, "And I thought we were going to get your wands back?" he added pointedly.
Harry laughed, "In a bit. I want to show you my party trick," he cheered.
Newt went pink, "I'm sure I can imagine what it might be. And this is hardly the best place."
The Gryffindor shorted, and then swirled away in a short apparation to the otherside of the roof, right next to Newt – the loud clang of his bracelets, anklets, collar, and chastity belt hitting the roof.
Along with his shirt.
Newt stared at the fallen pile in open mouthed shock, before he looked over to his husband, bare as the day he was born, grinning like the cat that ate the canary and stole a saucer of milk to wash it down.
He lifted his arms teasingly, "Ta'dah!"
And then pounced on the stunned Hufflepuff.
000
Sa'id's palace was still like a kicked over ant-hill, but this time muggles were involved, and Harry could see several white people in the mix as well. He shook his head as he saw people blatantly using magic in front of them as they sifted through the ruins that the erumpet, Evie as Newt had now named her, caused the previous evening. Either way, the action seemed to be mostly divorced from the General's office, so they should be safe to raid it for Harry's belongings no problem.
Harry apparated them to the bushes just outside his office where they wouldn't be seen, a quick peek through the leaves showed the office was empty, and the two quietly snuck in.
Newt went for the desk, while Harry started hunting through the cupboards around the office.
"He... had a child?" Newt asked, no doubt having found the draw of finger-paintings.
"William. About four years old. Cute kid. I made arrangements for him to escape with his mother, Lakisha, and Asha, remember the snake animagus back when we first met? Her," Harry explained as he found his clothes, and some of his auror kit in one of the cupboards.
Newt stared down at the art-work in his hands, and huffed a small smile, "Is that why it took you so long to escape?" he asked quietly. In the few villages and towns they'd passed through, Newt would have had to have been particularly blind and obtuse not to notice how Harry's behaviour changed around children, not to mention how he spoke about his godson Teddy, his bestfriend's children Hugo and baby Rose, little Freddie who was already proving to be as much of a live-wire as his namesake, and the little madam that was Victoire. All of them Harry's godchildren, because apparently his friends could think of no one safer to care for their children should the worst happen to them. It was kind of sweet in a way, and watching Harry playing with some of the children in the rural villages they passed through when Newt went hunting for information on local wildlife only made it obvious just why.
Harry nodded absently, "Yep. The kid appeared literally as I was about to ram a shard of glass in the back of his neck. Shitty timing, but it was a good thing he wasn't a split second later, or I'd have felt super-bad," he admitted as he used his magi-glass to look for the familiar signature of the Elder Wand in the office.
Bingo, behind the tapestry.
Pulling the tapestry down as fairly easy – even if he did have to dodge the falling pole it was attached to. The 'safe' was little more than a warded wooden cupboard with locking charms and Harry could only shake his head in disgust. As far as Dark Lords went, Sa'id was one of the very few frighteningly intelligent ones that actually used muggle technology in conjunction with magical abilities, giving him a range of power and adaptability that was unlike any of the fools Harry had had to deal with in the past. For Circe's sake, he was the only one to successfully take over the fucking country, magical and muggle. He had a position of power within the muggle government and held most of them under the imperio, and had taken over the magical government as well, he'd even taken things a step further by annexing the muggle Sultan to Zanzibar where the old treatise and laws couldn't be put into effect. He had been terrifyingly intelligent and underhanded in a way that only Blaise Zabini had been in the past.
And he had a warded wooden cupboard as his secret safe.
Harry wasn't sure if he should be disgusted or disappointed, or perhaps both.
Using an elbow, he broke the cupboard without bothering to try and remove the locking charms or break the wards. No point. No need. They were all there to keep it from being noticed, and unlocked. Harry's magi-glass meant he could see the wards, and he wasn't even trying to unlock it.
Inside was both of his wands, his wedding ring, and a few other odds and ends, a diary, a stack of letters, and a necklace.
With a familiar symbol on it.
Harry blanched as he stared at the symbol of the Deathly Hallows.
Of fucking course Ochuka was working with Grindelwald.
000
The last thing Charlus Potter expected to find when he walked into the office of the late General Sa'id Ochuka, was his bestfriend's younger brother rifling through the man's desk like an auror on a mission.
Newt twitched and looked up, those chameleon coloured eyes of his widening in surprise and then horror.
"Harry no!"
That wasn't what he expec-
Something rammed into him, hard, fast, and he hit the ground, feeling hands and legs twisting around his body as they rolled – Merlin's left tit what just happened?
He gagged as the grip on him tightened, and at that moment, he realised he was face down on the floor, his arms and legs pinned into awkward placements, someone was on his back, but he couldn't move enough to see them or shake them off, or even more worryingly, reach his wand.
The sound of Newt hurrying over was, however, reassuring. He was a quick little bastard when he got it into his head to move, both he and Theseus had made sure of it, and he was perhaps the most physically strong of all three of them, having enough power to wrestle with disagreeable hippogriff stallions, sans wand. And hadn't that been an eye-opener when he witnessed it.
"Harry, it's fine, it's fine. I know him! He's safe, you can let him up, I promise," Newt was babbling to whomever it was holding him down. Charlus had his suspicions, in fact he was pretty certain who this person was.
"Newt, given what I just found in that safe – " the stranger grit out darkly, his grip tightening.
"It's my brother's bestfriend, Harry, I promise you whatever it was he isn't involved," Newt soothed.
"You can't guarantee that. What the fuck is he even doing in Kenya?"
"What are you two doing in Kenya is a better question," the young Potter demanded with a huff, "And, could you shift a bit, you're crushing my lungs," he wheezed out.
For a moment there was nothing, but then an ever so tiny shift of weight and instead of the weight pressing on his chest, it moved to his shoulders. Less painful, but also practically impossible to break out of. Sweet Circe, had Newt taken up with some kind of super Hit-Wziard or something? Not even his best aurors could pin him this effectively, Thee was actually the best at putting him down but he had to use a wand to do it.
"Newt...?"
"This is Charlus Potter, my brother's bestfriend, Harry, he's safe, I promise," the younger Scamander continued, stepping closer.
"Bollocks," the figure above him cursed, "Newt – he – I'm not – "
Not what? Please don't tell him that his bestfriend's baby brother had taken up with a criminal?
"It's fine. I won't let anything happen."
"Motherfucker, Newt, you know it isn't that simple!"
"Harry..." there was a tone of warning there, and Newt took another step forward, the figure above him shifted, and went very still. "Trust me."
"...That is just unfair," the figure above him complained softly, the barest trace of a whine in his tone before suddenly Charlus found himself released, and a pair of unfamiliar boots moved into his line of sight, Newt shifted away a few paces letting the Gryffindor get to his feet. And that was when he finally got a good look at the young man that had been causing them all so much trouble at home.
He was tiny.
"This is your husband?" Charlus found himself blurting out.
Judging by the look of alarm on the smaller man's face, he hadn't known anyone knew about them back in England, judging by the look of alarm on Newt's face he was unaware anyone knew about them back in England.
"What?" the smaller of the pair blurted, before turning a horrified and semi-accusatory look onto the Hufflepuff. Newt caught it from the corner of his eye and quickly shook his head, hands up in surrender.
"I didn't – I never got the chance to send any letters back! They don't – shouldn't – " he turned to Charlus with a complete look of confused anxiousness on his face, a small part of the Gryffindor going out to him in sympathy because no doubt he was very afraid of how his mother and brother were reacting to the news, and then the complete lack of contact from him, "How did you even – "
"The family tapestries," Charlus explained, watching as Newt's face cleared in realisation, and then crumpled in horror.
"The what?" his husband demanded in rising trepidation.
Charlus offered him a warm smile, "Our family tapestries. It caused quite a stir when mother was checking it and found a new Potter, one that just so happened to have married into an allied family." He grinned then, sticking his hand out because he'd always wanted a younger brother, and this man's name was the closest to his on all the tapestries, even if it wasn't connected by any lines, which meant they were in fact the most closely related (it had confused everyone), "It's nice to finally meet you, cousin Harry."
In that split second, green eyes went wide, and then his entire expression crumpled before the young man turned on heel and marched away. Newt flinched, hunching up when he passed without a word.
Charlus stared after him in confusion, and hurt.
"Please... don't take it to heart," Newt whispered miserably, Charlus slowly dropped his hand and looked over to him, "Family is a painful subject," the Hufflepuff admitted quietly, glancing over to where the young man was roughly pulling things out from an obscured cubbyhole in the wall.
"I don't – did I say something wrong?" he asked warily.
Newt shrugged a shoulder, "Not... as such. Family is just painful. Does... did mother..." he trailed off awkwardly, and Charlus allowed himself to snort in bitter amusement, trying to turn his attention away from the fact that apparently his new cousin wanted nothing to do with him.
"Oh yes, you are in deep trouble Newton Artemis Fido Scamander. Deep trouble."
Newt winced, but allowed himself a smile, "I'm sure I'll survive."
Charlus snorted, and folded his arms, "My question still stands. What are you doing here?" he demanded blandly.
The Hufflepuff suddenly scowled ferociously, taking the Gryffindor aback a moment, he hadn't seen that facial expression on the younger man's face since he walked into one of the biggest vicious arguments between him and Theseus he'd ever witnessed back during the war.
"He took Harry. So I took him back," the mythozoologist grit out, casting a glance over to his husband who was flipping through a pile of parchments.
Charlus blinked slowly, "He... took Harry?"
Newt nodded shortly, "He... attacked us while we were passing through. We witnessed them attacking a herd of erumpet, taking one. A short while later while we were examining a streeler habitat we were attacked. Then barely two or three hours later they brought mortars to our second camp, Harry... he went down. And they took him. So, I – I snuck in and found him." He shrugged a shoulder self-consciously as he glanced around the office, "He... I spoke to one of the locals, she was surprisingly informative about the General's activities, none of them good, and when I looked into it, her information lined – Charlus, to put it plain, he was a Dark Lord. Harry had been held under the Cruciatus when I got to him! His magic had already turned in on itself and begun to rip him apart from the inside!" Newt blurted furiously, "I should have torn his throat out myself!"
"He was also working with Grindelwald," Harry announced as he shoved a letter into Newt's hands, having approached during their conversation without notice. "Our boy Ochuka's not only been providing China with illegal creatures, smuggling and supplies, but he's also been doing under the table deals with Grindelwald, providing him with ingredients and the like." Those letters were shoved at Charlus who gaped down at them in horrified bewilderment.
"What is – I'm – supposed to be investigating his murder."
He didn't miss the way that Newt immediately stepped closer to the diminutive man, or the way his cousin's gaze sharpened up. Hadn't Newt said something about... tearing the man's throat out?
"Investigate away," the unknown Potter told him blandly, handing him a leather bound diary.
"Be careful in the greenhouses," Newt warned him seriously, "He kept a local creature known as Swooping Evil in there, it operates much like a Dementor but in opposite. It consumes bad memories and leaves only the pleasant ones. The General was using its venom in the local water supply. Its why no one has been able to report his activities," he explained, turning his attention back to his husband, and gently dragging a hand through the young man's hair, "No one could remember any of the awful things he was doing."
"Likely as not you'll also have to deal with some very confused muggles, and a pissed off Kenyan Ministry," his cousin added, leaning into the touch like an affectionate cat, "He held a lot of people under the imperius curse."
"Merlin," Charlus breathed before turning his attention to the book in his hands.
"Oh, and watch yourself. Apparently powerful people are unusual outside of England, so everyone gets a hard-on for them, which is weird," his cousin added with a wrinkled nose while Newt blinked and looked down at him in confusion.
Charlus stared, "What?"
"Language Harry," Newt reminded him gently.
"Oh. I mean, magically powerful people are common in England, so it isn't a big deal. Elsewhere in the world, magically powerful people are rarer, so there's a much higher sexual interest in us. Watch yourself, because people get fucking creepy."
Charlus snorted a helpless laugh, "That... explains the Empress."
The two blinked and then looked at each other in askance before back to him, "What... do you mean? I know I saw you in China, but what were you even doing there?" his cousin asked warily.
The older Potter rolled his shoulders, "Grindelwald's got himself some new followers that seem to have it out for my family. Fleamont's had to go into hiding with his wife, Harold's had to deal with one assassination attempt already, and I've had far more 'workplace accidents' than can be explained away. Even Dorea's getting some unusual attention in that area. The Minister decided to send me out on some diplomatic visitations to get me out of the way, in light of Grindelwald's activities, I'm supposed to be gathering allies to deal with him. Well, Theseus is supposed to, I'm officially there as protection. In actuality, he's there as my protection because your brother is a bone-headed dragon when it comes to people he cares about. You nearly gave him a heart attack by the way with that stunt in the flea market."
"Oh god, Thee was there?" Newt asked tightly in horror.
Charlus nodded solemnly, "Yes. He says your duelling technique has slipped by the way, but your animate transfiguration is, as always, flawless. It took us over an hour to deal with that pygmy Ironbelly by the way you little shit. You owe me alcohol for that," he added with an irritable scowl. Newt chuckled sheepishly. "Imagine our surprise when we're in talks with the Chinese Ministry a few days later, and suddenly an envoy from the Magical Empress arrives officially inviting us to dinner as an apology for inconveniencing the Scamander family."
Newt put his head in his hands, while his husband stared with wide eyes.
Charlus shrugged a shoulder, a semi-hysterical smile curling on the edge of his lips, "The Empress was quite taken with Thee."
"Oh Merlin," Newt moaned.
"She never gives up..." Harry muttered faintly.
"Oh no," Charlus refused, "That one was all Theseus."
0000
Charlus wasn't even supposed to be mentioned until MACUSA. Nothing about the Scamander and Potter families knowing about the wedding was supposed to be brought up until MACUSA when the fucking Minister of England asks Newt "And I suppose this is your husband, Mister Potter?" And the two of them have a minor freak out. But instead, I ran into a writer's block wall. Charlus picked me up, hopped it, and ran off while I was screaming about his going in the wrong direction. Bastard.
Due to request the name of Sa'id has been changed. All characters within my fics unless otherwise stated are fictional, all resemblances to peoples living or dead is entirely coincidental.