Contrary to Bill Weasley's prediction, the owl from Molly Weasley - once again the apparently-on-his-last-wings Errol - had arrived before sunset, with an invitation for Harry and his "new family" to brunch the next day.
Tony left Errol resting - recuperating? - on the roof and sent Hedwig with an affirmative reply that three would be coming, and did she prefer to provide driving directions, or would another mode of transport be better? After Hedwig left, Tony spoke to Harry about appropriate hostess gifts and then placed an order with JARVIS.
When Tony woke the next morning, Hedwig had returned with a note saying that Bill and Arthur Weasley would come to side-along apparate the three of them to the Burrow at 10:30.
Upon hearing that, Harry promptly refused breakfast. "I know, I know - I need to eat more. But Mrs. Weasley always puts out enough for twice the people she's actually serving. I'll eat there, I promise."
"See that you do," was all Tony said, though it lacked force. Harry just grinned at him.
Bill Weasley might be under an Unbreakable Vow, but Arthur Weasley wasn't, so Sirius apparated away at ten - just in case the Weasley men arrived early - promising to be back by dinnertime.
At 10:20, a soft pop sounded and Tony looked up from his e-reader to see Bill Weasley and an older man with graying red hair standing in the lounge.
"Good morning," Bill said. "I hope you don't mind that we're a few minutes early. Dad couldn't wait to see a Muggle home."
The older man was looking around with keen interest - and a hint of mild disappointment. "It's so - bare."
"It's not my permanent home," Tony said. "Just an apartment for when I'm in London."
Both men's eyes widened. Bill cleared his throat. "I'm sorry, Dad - I didn't realize that. Dad, this is Tony Stark, Harry's biological father. Tony, my father, Arthur Weasley."
Tony powered down the e-reader as he exchanged good mornings with Arthur. "When we're finally settled, I'll have you over so you can see Harry's new home."
"Would you?" Arthur asked. "That'd be wonderful - my wife worries about him, you know. Almost like he's one of our own."
"To be fair," Tony said, "there was good reason for her to worry until now. JARVIS, tell Harry and Spangles that we're ready to go."
"I'll explain later, Dad," Bill murmured, obviously knowing his father's expressions well.
Harry came in from his bedroom, then, and grinned at their visitors. "Hi, Mr. Weasley. Hi, Bill."
Bill crossed to him, drawing his wand to perform what Tony assumed was a diagnostic of some kind. "How are you feeling after yesterday?"
"Lots better," Harry replied. "Lighter, like some heavy hat has been removed."
Steve emerged from the elevator then, one hand casually in his trousers pocket. Probably, Tony thought, both amused and grateful, holding a few marbles in it.
Introductions were quickly made, then the five of them joined hands in a circle. Arthur counted down from three, and then Tony felt like he was being sucked through a straw. Or maybe a wormhole. Either way, he felt squeezed from every direction.
The feeling passed quickly enough, and suddenly Tony was stumbling to regain his balance in front of a building that defied the laws of physics as he understood them.
It looked to have started as a farmhouse, but several crooked stories had been added, and Tony wondered how in hell it stayed standing without significant use of cantilevering.
Magic, of course.
Tony shook that thought off and turned to check on Harry and Steve. Both had recovered from the trip without any problems.
"This way," Arthur said, gesturing them toward what Tony assumed was the back of the house. "We thought, since the day's fine, we'd have brunch by the orchard."
"Sounds good," Tony replied and followed the other man around the house, still making idle calculations to do with gravity and mass in his head. The house absolutely should not be standing.
"Harry!" A redheaded kid - and looking beyond him, Tony saw a lot of redheaded kids - ran up to them. "C'mon - Bill said he'd play with the twins against you, me, and Ginny! You brought your broom, right?"
Harry looked up at Tony, bit his lip, then looked at Arthur. "Is there time before we eat?"
"Go on, Harry," Arthur said - then glanced at Tony. "If your father doesn't mind?"
"Not at all," Tony said. "I'd like to watch a game."
"This won't be a full game," Arthur said as Harry pulled his shrunken broom from a pocket and followed Ron and Bill toward the orchard and the small paddock Tony could just make out at this distance. "Three players on a side instead of seven. But you'll get the feel of it, I think."
While the kids - well, Bill wasn't really a kid, but he wasn't that old, either - got their game organized, Tony and Steve followed Arthur to a long table that could fit twelve but was set for eleven where a short, plump redheaded woman was apparently guiding napkins and silverware into place via magic.
"Yes!" Tony exclaimed. "This is what I've been wanting to see - magic used in everyday life."
The woman looked up with a kind smile. "Welcome to the Burrow, Mr. Stark. It is Mr. Stark, yes?" she added, glancing between him and Steve.
"The one and only," Tony replied with a grin. "My friend, Steve Rogers."
"I'm Molly Weasley. The twins are Fred and George, you met Ron, and my youngest is Ginny." She looked up as another redheaded boy, this one appearing in his mid-to-late teens, came up carrying a casserole dish of some kind. "And this is Percy. He's staring his last year at Hogwarts this year."
"Pleasure," Tony murmured. "Why are you carrying that instead of levitating it?"
"I'm not seventeen until the twenty-second," he said. "Can't do magic outside of school until then."
"Right, I forgot." He was about to turn back to Molly when he saw six kids on brooms flying around.
Harry and Bill had taken positions above the other four, who were throwing a ball between them and attempting to get it into one of three hoops set up at either end of the makeshift pitch.
Tony watched them play as Steve offered to help Percy bring out other dishes from the house.
To one side, he heard Molly, he assumed, take in a breath, because Arthur said quietly, "Now, Molly - we have no right."
Tony turned away from the game to focus on the Weasleys. "No right to - what? Ask about me and Harry?"
"Well, yes," Molly said. "Ever since he stayed with us last year, I've started to think of him as one of my own."
"You have a kind heart, Mrs. Weasley," Tony said. "The short version is that James Potter was cursed impotent, and he and Lily asked me to donate sperm so they could still have a child. When they were killed, I should've been notified, but I wasn't. I recently started looking for him and found him in hospital after a car crash killed Lily's sister."
"Why?" Molly asked. "Why'd you start looking for him now?"
"Aliens invaded, and I started to re-evaluate my priorities."
"Aliens? From another planet?" Percy demanded. "Don't be daft!"
"Yeah, we didn't believe it, either," Tony said wryly, "until they invaded Manhattan."
"Well," Molly said, cutting off what appeared to be the beginnings of a rant from her son, who huffed and stalked back toward the house, Steve following behind him, "that's all well and good - but what are your plans for Harry now?"
"Make sure he has every opportunity I can give him," Tony replied immediately. "Learn how to be a father along the way."
"That's something you never stop learning," Arthur said. "Each child brings new challenges."
Steve and Percy returned with the last of the dishes - and Tony suddenly understood why Harry had skipped breakfast. All the components for a full English breakfast were on the table in quantity, plus two different breakfast casseroles, yogurt and fresh fruit, and what looked like oatmeal. Or did they call it porridge over here?
"And those are both admirable goals," Molly added. Then she cleared her throat, touched her wand to it, and said, "Sonorus. All right, kids, come on down to eat."
The last sentence echoed loudly over the pitch, though without the distortion that sometimes happened with a megaphone, as did the final word she said, "Quietus."
"That's handy," Tony observed, then looked up when Steve cleared his throat.
Steve quirked one eyebrow and patted the front pocket of his trousers.
"Oh, right," Tony said. "Completely forgot my manners - though I'll need your help with it."
"With what?" Arthur asked, as Molly corralled the kids and got them seated at the table.
"Hostess gift." Tony reached into his own pocket and pulled out a small drawstring bag. From it, he withdrew a tiny bottle and small box before placing them on the table at Molly's place. "They need to be un-shrunk."
Arthur drew his wand and sent a "Finite" at them. Tony grinned like a child as the items regained their normal size, resolving into a bottle of Coates & Seely Blanc de Blancs and a box of Alain Ducasse chocolates.
"Oh, my!" Molly said. "Thank you!"
"Are these Muggle products?" Arthur asked eagerly.
"They are," Tony replied, wondering why that mattered.
"Wonderful!" Arthur exclaimed. "I don't think I've ever tried any."
"We'll try them later," Molly said. "Perhaps after the children are in bed?"
Tony chuckled at Arthur's sudden embarrassment and followed Molly's pointing finger for where to sit. Harry, he noticed, was between the youngest boy - Ron - and the girl, Ginny, across the table from him. Steve sat at Arthur's right, and Tony found himself between Bill on one side and the twins on the other. Percy filled in the seat closest to Molly.
"Who won?" Tony asked. Harry's face lit with a smile.
"I beat Bill to the Snitch twice out of three times!"
"You're really good, Harry," Bill said. "Better than Charlie. You keep that up and you could be a professional if you want."
"Charlie's our second," Arthur said. "He works at the dragon preserve in Romania."
"Dragons?" Tony perked up. "Really? Can we go see them?"
"Not today," Steve put in hastily.
"Of course not today," Tony agreed. "But sometime? I'd like to see a real dragon."
"We have," Ron said. "Harry and me. First year. Hagrid hatched one in his hut. And then Charlie had to come and get it so it wouldn't burn the hut down."
"Really?" Tony grinned, but shot a glance at Harry. "I haven't heard that story before."
That story turned into others, not just from those two - everyone had an amusing story to tell, and Tony was glad that the Weasleys seemed as interested in his and Steve's non-magical stories as he was in their magical ones.
When Tony thought the meal was over, Molly surprised him by saying, "Now, we wouldn't normally have dessert after breakfast, but it was Harry's birthday recently."
"Technically, it's brunch, Mum," Percy said.
"Yes, very true, Percy," Molly replied. "But I baked a treacle tart - I know it's Harry's favorite."
Harry's eyes lit up again, and Tony made a mental note of his son's favorite.
When everyone had been served dessert, Tony cleared his throat and, surprisingly at a table this full, got silence relatively quickly.
"I want to thank you all for inviting me and Steve into your home," he said.
"You're not actually-" began one of the twins.
"-in our home," the other finished. Both of them wore mischievous grins.
"Details." Tony shot back with a matching grin. "You've been part of Harry's life longer than we have, and I just wanted to thank you. And also to apologize for your vacation being cut short. Rogers tells me that I need to learn how to say thank you without spending money, and I'm sure I will, someday, but today is not that day. Can I get one of you to un-shrink these things?"
"Sure," Bill said.
Tony rummaged in the drawstring bag again and pulled out a small box. A tap of Bill's wand later, it became a StarkPhone, which he passed to Ron.
"What is it?" Ron asked, tearing into the package.
"It's a telephone," Harry said, and Ron frowned.
"It doesn't look like any telephone I've seen before," Ron said.
Harry looked between Tony and Molly. "May we be excused, so I can show him how it works?"
"Of course," Arthur said. "But you'll explain it to me later, right?"
Harry just grinned, and then he and Ron rose from the table and headed back toward the orchard.
Tony handed out the rest of the gifts quickly - a handful of classic middle grade books for Ginny, all of whom featured smart young girls as the protagonist; magic kits and books of jokes for the twins; a day planner and set of pens for Percy; a science and engineering explorer kit for Arthur, who looked even more pleased than the twins at that; and finally a gift certificate for Molly.
Molly took it and frowned. "I don't know what a day spa is."
"It's a place where you can relax and be pampered," Tony said. "Massage, sauna, they have a lot of services."
"Oh. Well, thank you, but I'm not sure I'd know how to find it, or what to do if I did."
Tony grinned. "No problem. I got the same thing for Hermione's mom. I hope she'll be able to answer any questions you have, but if that turns into an issue, just let me know. I'll find someone who can walk you through the process."
"How?" Arthur asked, and there was a hint of suspicion in his voice.
"I know a few magicals who are comfortable in both worlds," Tony replied easily. "I'm sure one of them will help if you need it."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE NOT GOING BACK TO HOGWARTS?"
Tony jumped at the shout and looked up to see Ron and Harry talking - or, well, Harry looked like he was talking while Ron's face was flushed red that Tony could see even at this distance.
"What does he mean?" Ginny demanded.
"He means that we're still discussing Harry's schooling," Tony answered evenly.
"But Harry has to come back to Hogwarts!"
"That's a decision for his father to make, Ginny dear," Molly said in a kind but firm voice before turning to Tony. "Though I am curious why you don't want Harry to go back. It's the best magical school in Europe."
"So I've heard," Tony said. "But it's sure not the safest, and his safety is my first priority."
"Well," Molly said after a moment, "I certainly can't argue with you about that - not after what happened with Ginny last year. Where will he go instead?"
"Haven't decided yet. I want to look into American schools before we decide."
"You don't have much time," Arthur pointed out. "School starts soon."
"I know. So I've got tutors - or will have tutors - for at least the start of this year."
"Good ones, I hope," Molly said. "Some of those tutors barely passed their O.W.L.s."
"Crispian Paddington for Herbology and Potions," Tony offered.
"Paddington?" All of the Weasleys at the table looked surprised by that, except Bill, who'd met him, and Ginny, who just looked confused.
Arthur cleared his throat, "Sorry, just - Crispian, son of Clive Paddington?"
"Yeah. Why?"
"It's just - surprising that you know him," Arthur said. "The Paddingtons are an old, respected family."
The angelic and devilish sides of Tony debated for a moment. The devilish side won.
"Crispian works for my company."
HP | HP |HP | HP | HP
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU'RE NOT GOING BACK TO HOGWARTS?"
Harry flinched away from the anger in Ron's question, at the same time suppressing a sigh. The lesson in how to use a smartphone had been going well, until he mentioned the reason Tony had given Ron the phone. Harry took a breath and forced himself to answer calmly. "I said I don't know if I'm going back. Tony hasn't decided yet."
"Well, why wouldn't you?" Ron demanded.
"Voldemort," Harry answered immediately. "I've been at Hogwarts two years, and each year I've faced him somehow."
"And you've won! We've won!"
Harry blew out a breath and offered Ron a smile - weak, but a smile regardless. "We're thirteen, Ron. Should we be facing down the worst dark wizard in recent memory at thirteen?"
"Well, no," Ron admitted. "But it's Hogwarts! Your parents went there."
"They did, and I'm glad I got to see it. But it's not worth risking my life every year."
"But - Quidditch won't be the same. We'll lose the house cup again."
Ron sounded miserable, and Harry understood. When Tony had first raised the possibility of not returning to Hogwarts, Harry had felt much the same. It was only with time, and with really thinking over Tony's points, that Harry had concluded that it was the right decision.
Assuming he could find some other school. Or tutors.
Tony said he'd take care of it. He's kept his word until now, so give him a chance.
Harry brought his attention back to Ron. "I'm sorry for that - but winning the cup isn't a good trade-off for risking my life - and yours, and everyone else at Hogwarts."
Ron frowned for a minute before his expression cleared. "Oh! You mean if You-Know-Who comes back again."
"Right. It's not fair to risk the students at Hogwarts." Harry blew out a breath. "I didn't have a choice, before - Hogwarts was so much better than my aunt and uncle, even with Voldemort making a hobby of haunting the school."
"But you have a choice now," Ron said, and then it was his turn to blow out a breath. "I get it, Harry, I do. It's just - you're my friend."
"And you're my friend, too," Harry assured him. "My first friend - or at least, my first human friend. I got Hedwig before I met you."
"We'll still be friends, won't we? Even if you don't come back?"
Harry heard the pleading in Ron's voice, knew he would sound the same if their positions were reversed. "That's why Tony got you the phone. So we can keep in touch. And maybe - maybe I can come visit next summer."
Ron grinned widely, his eyes alight. "That would be brilliant!"
Harry grinned back. Then, "So - want to show off your phone skill?"
"How?"
"Let's call Hermione. I'll show you how to set up a three-way call."