Chapter 7

A Strained Burrow

Harry did not want to leave. It was July 10th and Harry was dreading the two days he would have to suffer with the Dursleys before Dumbledore came for him. He wished that Voldemort would keep him longer, that he could stay with Draco longer, but it couldn't be so. Voldemort told him that it would be alright, that he would have to trust him. Harry did, but he still was nervous.

He would return after dinner, that was Voldemort's decision, so Mrs. Malfoy had the house elves make all of Harry's favorite, no matter how "low-class" Mr. Malfoy said they were. Draco pulled Harry away after dinner, bringing him to the garden.

Floating balls of light illuminated the garden, hovering softly as they all gave a warm glow over the flowers. Draco was holding Harry's hand as they walked through the garden, the Alpha surprisingly nervous as he and Harry walked. Harry wondered what he was so nervous about as Draco suddenly stopped and turned around. "Harry," he said softly. It was obvious now that he was nervous. His cheeks were pink, and he couldn't stand fully. "I, I—"

Harry chuckled. "Come on Malfoy, you can say it," he smirked. "Think of it as a Quidditch match and I'm kicking your butt."

"Will you stop that I'm trying to be romantic!" Draco snapped.

Harry laughed, "That got rid of your nerves?" he asked.

"What—yes," Draco said, he glared at Harry before composing himself. "I know we had a checkered past, but I don't see my life without you. I want you in it not just as my friend, but as my Omega. If you would give me a chance, I will show you how good an Alpha I can be. I'll protect you, support you, take care of you. I'll court you properly and treat you like how an Omega is supposed to be treated. So please, if you would…" Draco cleared his throat and pulled out a necklace from his pocket. It had a gold chain that connected to a small pendant with an emerald in the center, surrounded by tiny stones of rubies and pearls in a pattern. Harry felt it and immediately his body shivered as he felt what he could only describe as pure Alpha. "It's my Bonding Necklace. I've made it last night," Draco said.

Harry swallowed. He looked up at Draco and bit his lip. "Draco—"

"Please Harry, it would mean a lot if you would," Draco insisted, blushing deeply. Harry felt something inside him pull him, and he decided to follow it. He nodded and leaned forward, capturing Draco's lips in a simple chaste kiss. "Would you put it on me, Alpha?" he breathed.

Draco gave a victorious smirk. "Turn around, my Omega," Draco commanded.

Harry felt a rush as he obeyed, turning around. Draco's hands were on him, and Harry let out a soft purr as Draco pressed his body against his. The necklace came into view again and settled on Harry's chest, pulling upwards slightly as Draco did the small lock on it. "There, beautiful," he whispered, turning Harry around. Harry felt a strange happiness. The necklace felt comfortable on his chest. It was warm, like he could feel his Alpha onto him, almost smell him. He smiled and Draco brought him into a long kiss, both moaning as their mouths danced.

"Promise that you will write, Harry," Draco whispered, "and I never want you to hide your necklace, understand?"

"I'll never hide it, Alpha," Harry smiled. "Thank you. I'll write whenever I can."

Draco smiled and kissed Harry once more. "Don't you dare fall for Weasley while we're separated," he warned with a smile.

Harry rolled his eyes and said, "Who knew Malfoys were so easily jealous? Come on, I have to go back to the muggles now."

"Those disgusting muggles," Draco muttered but he held Harry's hand and brought him back inside to Voldemort. The man's eyes fell upon Harry's necklace but said nothing. Instead he just nodded to Draco and placed a hand on Harry's back and instructed him to hold onto him. Harry did so and with a half-step, they disappeared.

Malfoy Manor turned into Surrey in a second. They were on the sidewalk outside of the Dursley's home. "I see that Malfoy did give you the necklace," he muttered.

"Y-Yeah," Harry blushed, looking down at it. "Is that alright?"

"He asked me last night if he could give you the necklace," Voldemort said. "I tortured him obviously for daring to try and steal my son, but he kept strong throughout it, and so I agreed in the end."

"Wait—you tortured Draco!?" Harry asked, staring at his father. "How could you?"

"It was just the Cruciatus Curse," Voldemort muttered, rubbing the back of his head. "Besides, I've dreamt of doing far worse things to you when I thought you were a Potter."

"Father that's—that's horrible," Harry frowned. "I get that you're a Dark Lord, but can you try to be less, I don't know, quick on torturing?"

"That would be like asking birds to stop flying," Voldemort commented. "You are fine with me killing these muggles, why are you so opposed to me making sure that Malfoy is serious in his courtship?"

"The muggles abused me," Harry said, "They tried to kill my soul and mind just as Dumbledore suppressed my magic. But all Draco did was ask you for permission. That was no reason for you to do that to him."

"Then we shall agree that it was a test for him and move on," Voldemort said, walking forward. "Come along Harry, I have some muggles to take care of."

Knowing that he couldn't argue any further, Harry followed his father up to the door. Voldemort did not knock, he just opened the door and walked in, followed by Harry. Uncle Vernon was the first to see them, sitting in his chair, watching the television. He first saw Harry. "Oh, you're back," he muttered, "you have some gall leaving us boy. You ungrateful—"

Voldemort had his wand out and Uncle Vernon immediately cowered before his face turned purple. "You! You're another one of those freaks!"

"Cease your infernal yapping," Voldemort demanded. Uncle Vernon opened his mouth as though he was yelling, but no sound came out. He tried again and again but no matter how purple his face turned or how tightly his balled his fists, no sound came out of him. "Harry, call the other two here," Voldemort commanded but he did not need to as a second later Mrs. Dursley walked in wearing industrial rubber gloves and a night coat, obviously in the middle of doing dishes, and Dudley walked in front the stairs. "Who are you?" he asked, "Dad!" He said, his eyes growing when he saw his father gasping for air.

With a snap of his fingers, both Dudley and Aunt Petunia's voices were gone as well. Voldemort waved his hand, and both walked automatically to the couch to sit down, their bodies moving stiffly though their faces panicked. Dudley looked to be on the edge of crying. "Harry, where are your belongings?" Voldemort asked.

"In there, father," Harry said, getting a dark sense of glee at the confused faces on the Dursleys' faces as he pointed to the cupboard. Voldemort moved to the cupboard and unlocked it with his wand. The door opened and all of Harry's possessions floated out. Harry immediately went for his wand, smiling at finally having it once more. Voldemort looked inside the cupboard and memorized every dent and faded stain, along with the dirty mattress and pillow. Frowning, he felt anger rise in him but bottled them again for later, when he will have his retribution, and revenge for his son.

Turning to the muggles, Voldemort pointed his wand finally at them. "You three are fortunate that my son needs you alive until the twelfth, and so I will leave you alive till then. However, while your bodies work, your minds will be dulled. These two days will be a day of relaxation for my child. If any of you attempt or even think of hurting him, you are risking your own pains. Not that it matters as your consciousness will be buried deep inside yourselves." He chuckled and waved his wand. A purple mist appeared and enveloped the three muggles, all of them having a dazed look.

"What did you do to them? That wasn't the Imperius Curse," Harry said.

"No, it is a modification I made myself," Voldemort said with pride. "That was what I did during my free time when I was younger, studied and modified spells both Dark and Light. I was planning to publish a book on it all, until you were kidnapped, and my sanity left."

"Well, now you can continue the book, right?" Harry said hopefully.

"I may," Voldemort shrugged. "Now," he tapped his wand and Harry's trunk and broom floated into the air. "Would you care to escort me to where you sleep?"

"You mean my room?" Harry asked.

"No, your room is home, in Malfoy Manor currently," Voldemort said strictly. "I mean the place you sleep here." It was a weird phrase but it warmed Harry's heart either way. He led Voldemort to his room, which Voldemort commented was the cleanest of the house.

"I can see you've inherited your dad's need of cleanliness," Voldemort commented. Harry gave a soft smile and shrugged. The trunk landed softly at the base of Harry's bed and Voldemort opened it. "Give me a moment and I will enchant your trunk, connecting it to your wardrobes. All pureblood children have their trunks enchanted that way."

Harry nodded and looked around the room. It was exactly as he left it. Nothing out of place, nothing moved or even bothered with. He was surprised at how much he did not care that the Dursleys didn't seemed bothered by his absence. He had a new family now with Voldemort, his real family. That thought tugged at his brain as he tried to rationalize why the old grandfatherly man he knew would do this. "Father," he said, "I don't know how to begin to ask Dumbledore about why he did what he did."

"Carefully," Voldemort said. "Dumbledore is wily. He will not answer direct questions. Which reminds me, I will have to construct a barrier around your mind, just in case the old man decides to use Legilimency."

Harry didn't question it, but still a small part of him wanted to hear Dumbledore's side and hoped that this was all a misunderstanding or some tragedy on both sides. Voldemort stood and stepped to Harry. He held Harry's head gently, pressing his fingers against the sides of his skull. He breathed and closed his eyes as he concentrated. Harry felt something push inside him, melding with his brain. It prickled but wasn't honestly painful. The sensation went away quickly, and Voldemort removed his fingers. "That should protect you my son," Voldemort said. He looked around the room as if searching for something.

Voldemort looked back again at Harry. "You will write to me," he commanded. "I will find a way to see you while you are with the Weasleys, and before you go to Hogwarts. Do not worry about going against Dumbledore, or about my war. You are my son; all you should be worried about is being a teenager."

"Okay," Harry nodded. The two stood awkwardly and Harry took the first move. He hugged his father and stood on his toes to kiss Voldemort's cheek. "I better hear about you looking for your own happiness," he said strictly. "I don't want to hear about you being alone. And no, Mama Nagini does not count."

Voldemort chuckled, "She would bite you if she heard that," he said.

"I know, that's why I said it here," Harry grinned. "Go… I'll be alright."

Voldemort gave a short nod and left Harry's room. Harry looked around for a moment before sitting down on his bed. He wondered how the next two days will go. He knew that his father charmed the Dursleys but how exactly will that change him? Feeling the warm feeling of his necklace, Harry looked down and smiled as he thought of Draco. However the Dursleys act, he knew that he would survive. After all, he has his wand, along with his Alpha.

The answer to Harry's question towards the Dursleys was weird. They acted oddly pleasant. Aunt Petunia made breakfast and actually gave Harry a proper portion instead of scraps, Uncle Vernon muttered a good morning from behind his morning paper, and weirdest of all Dudley did chores. Harry was left with nothing to do besides the garden. It was a tiny patch of weeds compared to the Malfoy's garden; however, it was something that Harry could call fully his and he tended to it with care. When he was done there were no yelling from Uncle Vernon to do more chores, no sneers from Aunt Petunia and Dudley could barely look at him at all. Harry was left alone, allowed to lounge wherever he wanted.

The two days passed like a floating dream, and before Harry knew it, Dumbledore was there to pick him up. He asked no question on how Harry was fairing, instead he was strictly business as he talked with Uncle Vernon and Aunt Petunia. Harry did not listen intensely, and before he knew it both were walking out of the door. Dumbledore looked the same however for his arm, it looked shriveled and dead-like. He was wearing a rather ugly ring on his finger, but Harry did not feel like asking about it.

They did not go directly to the Burrow as Harry expected. Instead, Dumbledore insisted that they go on a small detour to hopefully convince an old professor out of retirement. This old professor was a wide man with a walrus mustache named Professor Slughorn. Harry felt strange near the man. He seemed friendly enough, but he always looked at Harry oddly, mentioning how he was "The Chosen One" and that he is a "very interesting read on the papers." The only part that Harry liked about the whole ordeal was finding a picture of his father, his real father, along with another picture of Lily Potter. When Slughorn agreed to come back, Harry was all too glad to leave.

Harry was all too glad to see the familiar sight of the Burrow. As they went near the properly, Dumbledore explained about the added security the Ministry has added to the property. Harry doubted him. Harry and Dumbledore approached the back door of the Burrow, which was surrounded by the familiar litter of old Wellington boots and rusty cauldrons; Harry could hear the soft clucking of sleepy chickens coming from a distant shed. Dumbledore knocked three times and Harry saw sudden movement behind the kitchen window.

"Who's there?" said a nervous voice he recognized as Mrs. Weasley's. "Declare yourself!"

"It is I, Dumbledore, bringing Harry."

The door opened at once. There stood Mrs. Weasley, short, plump, and wearing an old green dressing gown.

"Harry, dear! Gracious, Albus, you gave me a fright, you said not to expect you before morning!"

"We were lucky," Dumbledore said, ushering Harry over the threshold. "Slughorn proved much more persuadable than I had expected. Harry's doing, of course. Ah, hello Nymphadora!"

Harry looked around and saw that Mrs. Weasley was not alone, despite the lateness of the hour. A young witch with a pale, heart-shaped face and mousy brown hair was sitting at the table clutching a large mug between her hands.

"Hello, Professor," she said. "Wotcher, Harry."

"Hi, Tonks."

Harry thought she looked drawn, even ill, and there was something forced in her smile. Certainly her appearance was less colorful than usual without her customary shade of bubble-pink hair.

"I'd better be off," she said quickly, standing up and pulling her cloak around her shoulders. "Thanks for the tea and sympathy, Molly."

"Please, don't leave on my account," Dumbledore said courteously, "I cannot stay, I have urgent matters to discuss with Rufus Scrimgeour." Harry peaked at that.

"No, no, I need to get going," Tonks said, not meeting Dumbledore's eyes. "'Night—"

"Dear, why not come to dinner at the weekend, Remus and Mad-Eye are coming—?"

"No really, Molly … thanks anyway … Good night, everyone." Tonks hurried past Dumbledore and Harry into the yard; a few paces beyond the doorstep, she turned on the spot and vanished into thin air. Harry noticed that Mrs. Weasley looked troubled.

"Well, I shall see you at Hogwarts, Harry," Dumbledore said. "Take care of yourself, Molly, your servant."

He made Mrs. Weasley a bow and followed Tonks. Harry opened his mouth to stop him but glanced at Mrs. Weasley. He didn't want to ask him these questions in front of her, and yet he also did not want to seem suspicious. Dumbledore disappeared. Mrs. Weasley closed the door on the empty yard and then steered Harry by the shoulders into the full glow of the lantern on the table to examine his appearance.

"You're just like Ron," she sighed, looking him up and down. "Both of you look as though you've had Stretching Jinxes put on you. I swear since his inheritance Ron's grown half a foot! Are you hungry, Harry?"

"No thank you, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said politely, "I'm actually tired but I can use a quill and paper please?"

"Writing a letter, are you dearie?" Mrs. Weasley asked. Harry nodded and pulled his necklace out from under his shirt. She looked at it. "Oh—oh, oh. You have one?" she asked, pointing at the necklace. Harry's cheeks grew rosy as he smiled and nodded. "Well sorry, I just thought that all the stuff written about you was malarkey," she said. "You know, slanders and lies like that woman usually writes. I'm sorry Harry, but I actually thought you were an Alpha, if not at least a Beta."

"They are, but I am an Omega, Mrs. Weasley," Harry said. "I just want to write to my Alpha that I'm alright."

"Well that's good and all, I am positive that she is absolutely worried," Mrs. Weasley nodded. Harry bit his lip as she scurried around the kitchen, grabbing a piece of parchment and opening a random drawer for ink and an old quill.

"He," Harry corrected.

"I'm sorry?" Mrs. Weasley said, giving Harry the items.

"You said she but my Alpha… he's a guy."

"Oh. Yes well," Mrs. Weasley said a little awkwardly. "Write your letter up and go take some rest Harry—you have the twins' old room, I'm sure you know where that is, right? The two insist on staying in that little flat above their shop even though they know the dangers about living there. Oh and Hedwig is there, the smart owl. She arrived a few hours ago. Fed her some bits and now she's sleeping."

"Yes, Mrs. Weasley and thank you," Harry nodded. He quickly started writing as Mrs. Weasley fiddled with the dishes in the sink.

Draco,

I'm safe at the Burrow. Dumbledore did not bring me there right away. Instead, he had me go to this old retired professor named Slughorn to convince him to come out of retirement. Funny enough he had pictures of himself with a group of students that he taught, one of them had Lily Potter and the other had not only my dad but your grandfather as well. I guess he's your grandfather because he looks as obnoxious and snobby as you. They were there along with other students that were famous and stuff now.

Anyway, I wanted to talk with Dumbledore however I couldn't, he left no room for me to question or talk to him, and even now when we reached the Burrow he left before I could talk. He warned me of extra protection that the Ministry placed on the Burrow, mostly because of me being the Chosen One I guess. They might insult me and call me a whore, but I guess at the end of the day they still need me to do their job. Funny how that works, isn't it?

Is it strange that I miss you already? And I missed the garden. There were some books in your library about gardening actually, and according to them, your house-elves are treating the Black Dahlia wrong, they're giving it too much water. Also the Lily of the Valleys are exposed to too much sunlight. They like partial shade. Oh! And next time we meet I'm going to totally beat you in Quidditch.

I'm going to sleep now; I'll write to you more when I learn more or when something interesting happens. If you would bring this letter to Father to read, that would be helpful. I'm a bit scared to write to him myself, he is still very intimidating.

Harry

P.S. I forgot to mention it but Dumbledore looks different. His hand looks deathly and shriveled, and he wore a rather ugly black ring on it.

With his letter done, Harry folded it and placed the quill and ink back in place. "Thank you Mrs. Weasley," he said.

"You're welcome dear—oh I don't know whether Ron's told you in any of his letters—it's only just happened—but Arthur's been promoted!"

"That's great!" Harry said earnestly.

"You're sweet," Mrs. Weasley beamed. "Yes, Rufus Scrimgeour has set up several new offices in response to the present situation, and Arthur's heading the Office for the Detection and Confiscation of Counterfeit Defensive Spells and Protective Objects. It's a big job, he's got ten people reporting to him now!"

"What exactly does he do?" Harry asked curiously.

"Well, you see, in all the panic about You-Know-Who, odd things have been cropping up for sale everywhere, things that are supposed to guard against You-Know-Who and the Death Eaters. You can imagine the kind of thing—so-called protective potions that are really gravy with a bit of bubotuber pus added, or instructions for defensive jinxes that actually make your ears fall off. ...Well, in the main the perpetrators are just people like Mundungus Fletcher, who's never done an honest day's work in their lives and are taking advantage of how frightened everybody is, but every now and then something really nasty turns up. The other day Arthur confiscated a box of cursed Sneakoscopes that were almost certainly planted by a Death Eater. So, you see, it's a very important job, and I tell him it's just silly to miss dealing with spark plugs and toasters and all the rest of that Muggle rubbish," Mrs. Weasley ended her speech with a stern look, as if it had been Harry suggesting that it was natural to miss spark plugs.

"Is Mr. Weasley still at work?"

"Yes, he is. As a matter of fact, he's a tiny bit late. But don't worry about him, go straight to bed with you," Mrs. Weasley smiled. Harry nodded and turned to leave the kitchen. He made it quickly to Fred and George's room, which seemed to look more like a storage room for their Weasley Wheezes supplies as stacked boxes took up much of the space. Hedwig was perched in a cage by the window, its door opened. She was sleeping, and Harry did not want to disturb her. He placed the letter in the cage and immediately fell to the floor, kicking off his shoes before he fell asleep.

He woke up smelling Ron. Groping for his glasses he looked around with a hazy mind as Ron stood excitedly. "I didn't know you were here already!" Ron said in a loud and excited voice. "When did you get here? Mum just told us!"

"About one in the morning, I think," Harry said. He looked at his friend clearly. The Alpha really looked different. He was taller, naturally, but his body swelled with muscles just like Draco's. However unlike Draco, Ron looked bigger, his muscles much more bulging and developed. He grinned and flexed his arms. "Charlie's been teaching me," he said. "But never mind that, how was it?"

"It was my Uncle and Aunt they were awful," Harry muttered.

"Not that, Dumbledore!" Ron said.

"Oh, it wasn't exciting," Harry said, sitting up in his bed. "He just wanted me to help him persuade this old teacher to come out of retirement. His name is Horace Slughorn.

"Oh," Ron said, looking disappointed. "I thought it would be some training or something—you know, for You-Know-Who."

"Yeah, about that," Harry sighed. He pulled the blankets out and got out of bed, stretching fully. Ron looked at him oddly and leaned in, sniffing. "Stop that, you jerk! I know I haven't showered since the day before!" Harry said, pushing Ron out of the way.

"Not that, it's just why do you smell like Malfoy?" Ron frowned.

"That I need to explain too," Harry said. He brought his necklace up, his cheeks blushing madly. "He gave me this yesterday," he said.

"MALFOY GAVE YOU A BONDING NECKLACE!?" Ron screamed and Harry immediately covered his friend's mouth, shushing him.

"Ron! Don't scream like that!" He hushed.

"When did you even see him? What did the prudish prince just stroll up to you while you were at your Muggles' home and just give it to you? Why did he even give it to you in the first place?" Ron demanded. "Is that why you said you didn't want one from me? OH GOD did he read about what happened and forced that onto you?"

"What? Ron—no, just calm down and listen, okay?" Harry said.

"My best mate is being courted by Malfoy! How am I not supposed to stay calm?" Ron demanded. He didn't look angry, instead he looked mostly shocked.

"Because the next thing I have to tell you might make you hate me," Harry said, "and I don't want to keep it a secret because you know I'm bullocks with them."

"Oh god," Ron moaned. "Just tell me so I can say I don't hate you."

Like ripping off a band-aid, Harry winced as he said, "Voldemort is actually my father."

"I don't hate you—wait what?" Ron blinked. "What!? No, say that again."

Harry sighed and sat back on his bed. He looked up at Ron and patted next to him. His friend walked and sat next to Harry, both silent for a moment as Harry gathered his thoughts. "It all started the day of that article," he said. "I was really sad and really angry, so I walked out of the Dursleys' house and into a nearby woods." Harry proceeded to tell Ron everything he could remember about the past week at Malfoy Manor. Ron listened intently, for once never interrupting and demanding questions. Instead, he just had a sort of frown on his face as he concentrated on what Harry said. The Alpha crossed his arms when Harry finished his story.

"So uh, if I get this right, you are You-Know-Who's and this guy named Adrian's son who was kidnapped when you were a month old. … Dumbledore had something to do with that as well as giving you to the Potters and placing this magic sucking spell on the Muggles' house when you lived there. … And despite all of that you decided that the best thing to do is accept a Bonding Necklace from Malfoy!?"

Harry blinked. "Why is me and Draco's bonding the most unbelievable thing of what I said?" He demanded.

"Because it's Malfoy!" Ron countered. "And honestly, it kind of rubbed me wrong, the way Dumbledore's keep forcing you back to the muggles even though they do all this horrible stuff to you. I even ask him if you could come straight to here, but he said no. Wait—what does this mean about the war and all?"

"Who knows, I didn't get around to ask my dad about that," Harry shrugged. "He won't even talk to me about it."

"So nothing really changes on that end, eh?" Ron said, giving him a supportive smile. Harry blinked at that.

"You're not scared or freaking out?" He asked.

"Oh believe me mate, I'm freaking out," Ron said, "but honestly I don't think you want me to scream that You-Know-Bloody-Who is your dad."

"Yeah, I rather not let that out," Harry nodded. "And this changes nothing between us?" he asked.

"There's no bloody way I'm calling you Harrison," Ron said strictly. Harry laughed and smiled He gave Ron a one-armed hug and grinned.

"So how long until you're okay with me and Draco?" he asked.

"As soon as I get to punch him," Ron said. "Come on, let's go get breakfast I'm starved." He jumped up and left the room.

Harry couldn't help but laugh at his friend, following him. If all the Weasleys were like Ron, he was sure that everything would be alright. Hopefully.

A/N: Ron is a good friend. Also This is the first time I'm writing Weasley bashing so please be kind to me lmao. Keep on reviewing because I love reading and responding!

Thatcrazedbooknerd: I feel you are correct!

Mycookiesgaara: Thank you! I'm glad you love this!

Jwstahle: I update every Thursday however I'm trying to get further ahead so I can justify updating twice a week.

HoneyBear84: Me neither, Ron and Hermione seemed besties at best and Harry and Ginny is just Harry marrying the girl who looks like his dead mom so Joanne's Harry has Mommy Issues. And the implied gays are for her to get cookie points.

Bookivore: You're right Luna might be cute and I've never written her before, thanks I'll put her on the list!

DheeDixon: thank you!

WereBunny87: Good! The day I disappoint it is probably a Weds.

Janessa Wolf: Woot! Thanks for sticking around! At least I hope you will like the Drarry here as well as the relationship between Harry and Voldemort, and Voldemort and his partner.

AnnaMerteuil: Thank you! I'm happy that you're glad the Drarry is progressing smoothly

Angelbear1: Thank you very much!

Rori Potter: I mean will they be pregnant before 20? Who knows. It's possible but I feel both parents will be very angry.