"
" : talking
/… / : thinking
Chapter 4: A new life
/Bodyguard?… MASTER Harry…? / Harry was stunned. He could only stare at Severus who had lowered his eyes to the floor again.
As he was going to ask Severus to explain things to him, Lucius came back. He looked at the two of them and asked, "Is there something wrong?"
"He just told me that he was my bodyguard and called me 'Master' Harry! Care to explain, DAD?" Harry answered in a dangerous purr.
For once, Lucius looked slightly embarrassed in front of his son.
"Well… hum… Well… After I fell in love with your mother and decided to live with her, I was constantly worried that something would happen to her when I was not with her. I suggested she let me give her a bodyguard, but she refused, arguing that she was strong enough to take care of herself. I accepted and did not bring the subject again until you came.
"At that moment, I was adamant about the bodyguard, but she still refused. However, when you asked for a private teacher I took the opportunity and ordered Severus to look after you without telling your mother. Not long after, she discovered the truth, but finally accepted."
Harry said nothing, but then he narrowed his eyes and asked Severus, "If you are my bodyguard… WHERE WERE YOU WHEN WE WERE ATTACKED?!"
Severus lowered his head and Lucius answered for him, his voice hoarse, "He was with me. We were in Knockturn Alley for some business dealing with potions and so I needed him. Because of the wards surrounding the house I thought you would be safe. I never thought he would be able to enter the house…"
"He took the appearance of Sirius," Harry said.
"I know. Sirius arrived not long after I found you. They had managed to capture him, put him under the Imperius curse and make him enter the house then they knocked him unconscious. I think they planned on taking him to their basement to 'play' with him for a while after the attack."
"Oh." Was Harry's only reply.
"Where is he now?", he asked after a moment.
"He is resting in one of the guest rooms."
"Okay."
There was a heavy silence.
"So… where is my new room?" Harry finally asked in a low voice.
"Let me show you," His father answered.They walked out of the room, Severus following behind the two other men. On the way to the
new room, Harry suddenly asked, "And what about the 'Master' thing?"
"Severus is working for the Malfoys, and so he has to be respectful towards the membersof the family, as you are a part of it, one of the important parts in fact, it's only logical and normal. Don't be upset about it," Lucius said.
"But he's my friend!" Harry exclaimed.
"I'm sorry, Harry but here he can't talk with you as he used to."
"But…" Harry tried to argue.
"Well, at least not when there are other people around. Ah, here we are!" His father said.
They stopped in front of the heavy, finely sculpted door.
"I really hope you'll like it." And with that he opened the door wide.
Harry entered and stopped, speechless. The room was incredibly BIG. He could not believe his eyes. The colours were a bright red and a golden yellow and there was an enormous crystal chandelier in the middle of the high ceiling. On his left, there were several large windows with delicate curtains that were still thick enough to hide the light of the sun if he wanted to.
The bed was on his right near the wall; a four-poster bed with refined curtains too. Harry walked closer and touched them. They felt like silk. Five people could easily sleep in the bed. A fireplace faced the door. There were carvings on its frame representing unicorns and griffins. In front of the fireplace stood a very comfortable-looking couch A writing desk was placed under one of the windows, next to Hedwig's cage and in one of the corner was
Harry's Firebolt. The other walls were covered with bookshelves. The majority of the books were ones Harry had already read and they were his favourites. There were also books he had never read but he planned to. There was also a part of the wall where a poster of his favourite Quidditch team was hung. On the mantelpiece were pictures of himself with his parents, and some others of his mother alone. Above the mantelpiece stood a rather large mirror with a frame which was also beautifully sculpted.
Harry stood in the middle of his new chamber looking lost in his thoughts.
"Do you like it?" his father asked.
There was no reply, and then, "It's incredible. Are all the rooms like this?"
"Almost. After all you are at Malfoy Manor now," Lucius answered, rather smugly.
"Well… about that, what happens to me now? What are you going to tell your other… 'family'?" Harry asked, unsure.
"I know it will be another shock for you, but for the rest of the world, James Potter is dead. Lily put in her testament that she chose me, Lucius Malfoy, as your legal guardian until you are 18. As for the 'others', they still don't know about you."
"My 'father' is… dead? And you are my guardian? How are they going to react?"
"I really don't care. In any case, they would never do something to hurt you, they wouldn't dare risk my anger," Lucius said in a dangerous tone.
"On another subject, I have to say that your mother's funeral will take place in three days and until then you are allowed to stay at home," he added, his voice now a low murmur.
Harry stiffened a little. Suddenly, Lucius took him in his arms again for a tight hug. He finally released him and said, "So, I'll let you rest and I will return to take you to dinner, okay?"
Harry nodded and Lucius went out.
Severus stood near the door, arms crossed on his chest and head lowered. After a while, Harry finally spoke. "You heard, dad said you don't have to call me 'Master' Harry. Just call me Harry like before."
"But you heard him too. He also said that in Malfoy Manor, I'm your employee and so I have to show you respect."
"You were my 'employee' at home before and I never heard you call me that!"
"But your status was different then, you were Harry Potter; now you are…"
"What? The illegitimate son of Lucius Malfoy? I don't think it's a reason to call me 'master'. On the contrary, I think most people would treat me with disdain."
"No! You are the son of Lucius Malfoy. And he loves you very much. I must be respectful to you," Severus said, looking into Harry's eyes.
"Please, Severus, stop it. I'm here in a strange new house, facing a new life, a life I don't want and here you stand, one of the last pieces linking me to my former life. Please, please, don't destroy it. Aren't we still friends?" By now, Harry's voice was thick with sadness.
"Of course we are!" Severus could not stop himself from shouting his answer. "Of course we are," he repeated. "It's just, you know how people react when they hear the name 'Malfoy'; they expect the people linked to that name to be frightening and very much attached to social position. I have to maintain the façade, at least in public," he finally added.
"So, when we're alone, you'll act like before?" Harry asked, his voice full of hope.
"If it's what you want…"
"Of course I want it!" And with that he threw himself into the arms of his bodyguard. Harry embraced him close until he realized what he was doing and jerked abruptly away from the warm circle of Severus' arms. "Sorry," he whispered, blushing.
Before Severus could answer, a knock on the door was heard. "Who is it?" Harry enquired.
"It's Sirius."
Harry opened the door and jumped into his godfather's arms. "Sirius! Are you okay now?" he asked just after the door closed.
"Yes, yes. I recovered completely. Oh Harry, I'm so sorry, it's all my fault, it's all my fault…" Sirius sobbed, tightening his embrace, his face buried in his godson's hair.
Harry felt tears spreading on his cheeks too.
"No, Sirius, don't say that. It was not your fault. How could you have known that that bastard would be after you? It was not your fault."
Little by little, Sirius' sobs lessened. He finally raised his head and met Harry's brilliant eyes that smiled at him through his own tears.
"What a mess we are now! If your dad enters now, he's likely to hex me into next month for having made his precious boy cry," Sirius stated in a low murmur,trying to lighten the atmosphere.
Harry giggled at that, knowing it was true. "Yeah, do you have a tissue? Because I don't."
Suddenly, a handful of Kleenex appeared in front of them. Severus looked at them still holding the tissues and saying nothing.
"Thanks," Sirius and Harry said at the same time.
After that, Harry, Sirius and Severus tried to have a normal conversation, talking generally about Quidditch, comfortably installed on the sofa.
But Harry could not relax. He felt very nervous. After all, he was going to meet the other part of his father's life. How were they going to react?
He began pacing back and forth in front of the fireplace, Sirius and Severus witnessing his behaviour with a quizzical looks on their faces.
"Harry, what's the problem?" Sirius finally asked. "Please, stop pacing like that, you're going to make me dizzy."
"How are they going to react?" Harry asked them bluntly.
"What? Who?"
"Dad's other family. They'll reject me, I'm sure of it."
"Calm down Harry," Sirius said. "You know your father will never let them talk to you
nastily."
"That's not the point. Well… no, in fact it is. Aaaaaaaahhhhhhh……..! Why am I even bothering to worry about it? They'll hate me anyway."
Severus was going to reply when a knock was heard and Lucius entered the room.
"Harry, it's time. Sirius! How are you?" he asked, concerned.
"I'm fine, Luc. Well… I think I'll go back to my room and take dinner there. See you later Harry," Sirius said as he left.
"Ready to go?" Lucius asked.
"Not really, but I suppose I'll never be. Let's go, dad. Are you coming Severus?"
Severus simply nodded.
When they finally reached the dining room, Harry felt a little lost. They had turned so many times and taken so many different corridors that he was sure he would not be able to find his rooms again. But as soon as he saw the dining room, that thought vanished to be replaced by awe.
It was huge! It was brightly lit with what looked like thousands of candles and at the centre of the room stood a rectangular table that was very, very large. It was at that moment that Harry saw them, a woman and a young man.
The woman was sitting at one of the end of the table. She had long fair hair, styled into a French braid and pale blue eyes that were cold as ice. She wore a blue silk dress robe, looking very expensive and matching the colour of her eyes. She was beautiful but her appearance was altogether cold.
And the young man… Harry's eyes widened in recognition. It was the same man he had seen flirting with Severus last year! He had short blond hair slicked back on his head, and cool grey eyes. He wore leather trousers with a bottle green shirt tucked into them, outlining his slim form. He was sitting at the woman's right.
When the young man saw them arrive, he stood, but the woman remained in her seat. Moving Harry in front of him and setting his hands on Harry's shoulders, Lucius finally spoke.
"This is Harry Potter. He will live with us from now on. Harry, this is my wife, Narcissa, and my son, Draco."
Harry approached the young man and said, rather unsure, "How do you do?" with his right hand outstretched.
The other young man looked at it but did not shake it nor did he respond to Harry.
Lucius growled, "Draco…"
"It's okay, don't worry dad."
As soon as he said the word 'dad', Harry clapped his hand on his mouth and turned towards his father rather panicked. Lucius just smiled and said, "Don't worry my sweet, I was going to tell them anyway." Then, turning towards the other two in front of him, whose faces had not even looked surprised at Harry's words, he added coldly, "Yes, Harry is my son. I don't want to hear any questions about it. You'll behave accordingly towards him, but no one outside the manor must know he is my son. If you ever tell anybody, I swear you'll regret it."
Harry was shocked. He had never heard his father talking like that before. He understood at that moment why Lucius Malfoy was so feared in the wizarding world.
After this little speech, Lucius took his place at the other end of the table leading Harry to his place as well. Harry was on his right and Severus on his left. Draco sat at the place he had before.
The dinner went rather awkwardly for Harry. First, they were served by house elves, which shocked him a little. He remembered the conversations he had on this subject with his mother; she had always disapproved of their slavery. Second was the attitude of his father. Actually, it did not change from before, but it was the fact that he acted like that as Lucius Malfoy and in front of his other family. He acted like a mother hen, continually asking if everything was alright, if he liked what he was eating, or if he wanted some more of the food.
For Harry, the worst moment was when his father asked him if he wanted some salt. After he declined, Lucius put back the saltcellar on the table, but then Draco asked for it and Lucius just said, "Come and take it".
In a way, Harry felt very sorry for Draco and Narcissa. He remembered what his mother had confessed to him in her letter, the fact that she had asked Lucius to never love them as he loved her and Harry. But at the same time, he thought of Draco and Severus together and the way Draco had seemed to flirt with Severus that day.
As soon as he finished his meal, Harry asked his father if he could go back to his rooms. Lucius at first refused, saying that he had not eaten dessert, but Harry told him he was a bit tired. So immediately, his father stood to take him back to his rooms but Harry refused, arguing that he had not finished his own meal. Severus then stood up and said he would do it as he had finished.
Lucius thanked him, kissed Harry on his forehead and wished him a good night. Harry smiled and left, glancing at Narcissa and Draco and wishing them good night. He saw Draco looking at him in a strange way. As before he did not receive any reply.
Harry felt eyes on his back as he was exiting the room.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Severus led the way to Harry's chamber. Harry took note of some markers to be able to go back to the dining room for breakfast the next day.
They finally reached the door of his room. Harry had decided to ask his father to put a sign on it to help him recognize where his room was until he didn't need it anymore.
He opened his door, then turn around and asked, "Where are your rooms, Severus?"
"They are just next to yours." He answered indicating the room on his left.
"How come?"
"Your father wants me to be always near you from now on. In fact, he even wanted me to sleep in your room, but I argued that you'll need private space."
Harry just looked at him, his eyes widened a bit because of the information and he blushed at the idea of Severus sleeping in the same room as him.
"Well, um, would you mind staying with me a little bit please? I don't feel like being alone right now," Harry stuttered, hands clenched at his side.
"Of course, no problem." And they entered Harry's room together.
They reached the couch and sat down. There was a fire blazing in the fireplace. "I don't remember starting a fire," Harry said, perplexed.
"It must be the house elves. After all, we are in October and it's a little cold outside."
"I can't believe my father has house elves. I mean, after all the debates we had with mum, I would have never thought he would use them," Harry said in a low voice.
"He is Lucius Malfoy. The Malfoy family has used house elves for generations. He can't break from that."
"But he is also my father and I know my father would never use slaves!"
"Harry, it's complicated now, you know that. He is your loving father but he is also Lucius Malfoy. He has to keep the façade now 'James' is dead. He will only show you his love inside the manor. Do you understand?"
"No… yes… Why does my life have to be so complicated?" Harry tucked up his knees, crossed his arms over them and put his head on top.
"I'm sorry you have to go through this. You should rest now. Go to bed." Severus helped Harry up and put him in bed.
"Good night," Harry whispered.
"Good night," Severus replied softly. "Sweet dreams," he added in a whisper, after he closed the door.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
The three days that followed were torture for Harry. He could not bear the cold atmosphere of the house. Even if his father was there, he could not stay with Harry all the time as he had to go to work. Harry had tried again to deepen his relationship with Draco and Narcissa but whenever Lucius took off for work, they just ignored him and he did not want to create problems by saying that to his father.
At least there was still Severus, but he, too, did not talk to him very much when the others were around. And as Harry had to stay in the manor for security, he wandered around it all the time instead of staying in his room.
Sirius had left the day after the real first night Harry had spent in the manor as Lucius' son.
Harry felt more and more depressed; he felt he was out of place there. Sometimes, he could feel Draco's eyes on him and Severus. Even if Draco still did not speak to him, he spoke to Severus which unnerved Harry. To be blunt, he was simply jealous. He did not know why; it was just a fact.
Then, the day of the funerals of Lily and James came. Harry cried through the whole ceremony. His friends were there to comfort him, but he could not stop the tears from falling. He really had the impression that both his parents had died.
During the reading of the last will of James and Lily, everybody was shocked to learn that Lucius Malfoy was Harry's legal guardian. In fact, there was even a line that stated that if they both died, Harry would be adopted by Lucius. So, Harry Potter became Harry Malfoy a few hours later.
When he went back to his still 'new' home (Harry found it difficult to just call it 'home'), he lay on his bed. His father had to go and fix some details of the adoption documents.
Harry felt drained and completely alone. He began to cry silently, his arms crossed over his face. He did not hear the knock on his door, nor did he see Severus coming in. So he was surprised when he heard his voice.
"Harry, I know it's difficult and painful, but you have to be strong, at least for your father."
"But he didn't even CRY! He just stood there as if it was nothing!" Harry shot back.
"Harry you are not being fair; you know he can't show his real feelings. Malfoys never cry in public. You have to be strong now, you are a Malfoy, too."
"But I don't want to, if it means that I have to act like an utter bastard! 'Malfoys don't cry,
Malfoys don't show any emotions'! But I'm not a Malfoy, I'm Harry Potter! Potter!" he said and sobbed uncontrollably.
"Harry, think about your father! Do you think he is happy not being able to show his sorrow over the death of the only woman he has ever loved? You can't hate him, he loves you so much! For him you are his only son! Draco doesn't exist for him!" Severus exclaimed.
This seemed to calm Harry. His sobs lessened. He sat on his bed, looking for the tissues that Severus had given him. After regaining control of himself, Harry whispered, "Yeah, I noticed. I'm kinda sorry for Draco. Dad is so kind with me and so cold with him."
Severus just nodded.
"Is that why you are so kind to him? Do you love him?" Harry asked suddenly.
"Excuse me?" Severus asked, taken aback.
"Well, he talks to you and when he does, he always seems happy. And… I saw you and him once, last year. He looked like he was flirting with you." Harry whispered.
"Him? Flirting with me? No! He's like a little brother to me!" Severus said vehemently.
Harry felt relieved. "Really? Is it the same with me?" he asked.
Severus looked at him a little shocked. "No, no… it's different…"
"So you've never kissed him?" Harry asked shyly.
"No."
There was an awkward silence following this dialogue. Severus had his eyes on the floor and had decided to leave, but then he felt a warm hand on his arm. He looked up and his gaze plunged into the emerald orbs that were in front of him.
Unconsciously, their faces were going closer and closer to each other until there was only half an inch between them.
Harry closed his eyes and took the last step. Severus closed his eyes too and felt warm lips on his. He leaned towards them softly. For a few seconds, it was just two mouths sealed in a tender kiss, but this brief, shy kiss woke something deeper in Severus.
His mouth became more curious. He tilted his head on one side and ran his tongue along Harry's bottom lip, begging for entrance. Harry was startled and he opened his lips to say something but his mouth was invaded by a warm, searching tongue. Harry did not
fight it and accepted it with a great joy. Their tongues entwined and stroked each other sensually.
Harry felt arms circling him, rubbing his back in a soothing gesture. Then one of the hands slid to his neck and nestled there, massaging his skull and stroking his hair. Harry, too, embraced Severus and just melted under the assault of sensations.
Eventually they had to stop to come up for some air. They rested their foreheads against one another and thought at the same time /OH MY GOD!/