Chapter 16

A Spilled Truth

It was a rather beautiful day to torture an Apothecarist, in Voldemort's opinion. The sky was grey and dim with a constant threat of rain always on the edge. For the first time in his recent memory, Voldemort was walking down Diagon Alley openly, confidently, with his arm around his beautiful Omega Remus Lupin. They were both dressed in their finest, Voldemort in an expensive suit with a waistcoat that looked surprisingly modern while Remus walked around a little uncomfortably in a brown robe. "They're staring," Remus blushed as he noticed people looking at them.

"Let them my puppy, everyone is jealous to see that I have the most beautiful Omega in the world," Voldemort said with pride.

"I just don't feel that way," Remus admitted. "Especially with how we're both dressed. I love the clothes you've gotten for me but, they don't really—"

"No need to explain yourself, I'll admit I did go a little overboard when I brought you an entirely new wardrobe," Voldemort said. "It went so well with my Harrison, that I thought I could do it again for you, but this time as a surprise."

Remus gave a small smile and patted Voldemort's shoulder. "The thought was greatly appreciated," he said, "just um, how about next time I come with you?"

"Of course, my love, of course," Voldemort said. "Ah, here we are," he pointed to the Apothecary right next to Flourish and Blotts. Remus frowned and looked around, "You never really told me what exactly you need here," he said.

Voldemort sighed and looked at Remus, "Two reasons, one is that I am actually going low on an important ingredient for your monthly medicine, one which I need in order to experiment with it. I hope to add some of my essences to see if your beautiful wolf will submit to me just as willingly as you do. The second, and more pressing, is this: here is where the friend's mother and Dumbledore have been getting their Alpha Protein to poison my Harrison."

Remus frowned at that. "Are you sure?" he asked.

"Positively," Voldemort nodded, and he opened the shop's door, walking in with Remus following closely, the younger man looking around with a slight frown. The shop was empty, and Remus stayed near the door as Voldemort moved smoothly towards the back where the same man he saw in Mrs. Weasley's memory waited. "Good morning sir, how may I help you today?" he smiled.

"Yes actually," Voldemort smiled pleasantly. "I require two things, first I need to restock my supply of monkshood."

"How much?" the man asked.

"A whole bag's full," Voldemort replied and watched as the man left behind the counter to get the monkshood. Remus returned to his side by then just as the man returned. "Would you be needing anything else, sir?"

"Yes, a few weeks ago, you have given a woman 'supplements' at the order of Dumbledore," Voldemort said. "You will tell me everything you know."

"Why would I do that?" the man demanded, becoming defensive. "I'm sorry but I do not talk about other customers' businesses, especially when it involves someone as renowned as Mr. Dumbledore."

Voldemort took a deep breath, but smelling nothing, he mentally scowled Beta. Still, he allowed his phonemes to fill the room, Remus tensing next to him momentarily before relaxing immensely. The man also froze but only for a second. "Your Alpha-ness doesn't work on a Beta," he said.

"Oh?" Voldemort chuckled. "True, you are not melting in my hands like my sweet Omega here, but still, I can see you trembling." He took a step closer and placed his hands on the counter, leaning towards the smaller man. "You will tell me everything about this supplement. Albus Dumbledore ordered and picked up a portion of the order, while a small dumpy woman with ginger red hair picked up the rest. She acted nervously, but then when she asked about the order, she relaxed and started talking about my son."

"Yes, yes, I remember, but sir please, I just supply them, I don't know why they both needed those supplements."

"I think you do," Voldemort said. "You know exactly what those supplements and vitamins are. They were Alpha Protein, weren't they?"

"Y-Yes but—"

"Then why don't you show me Dumbledore's receipts?" Voldemort asked. "It is your civil duty, after all, the man has been feeding them to my son, an Omega, without anyone knowing."

"O-Omega?" the man stuttered. "But Dumbledore said—"

"Dumbledore is trying to kill my precious son, all because of who he is. A pawn who is finished of being a pawn, and has decided to become a deadly queen," Voldemort waxed poetically. He smiled at his own imagery for a moment, but it was lost on both men. He scowled at the two of them and glared at the shopkeeper. "I will give you an ultimatum," he warned. "Either you give me all of Professor Dumbledore's receipts of everything he ordered here, especially the Alpha Protein, or else I will make sure your shop runs into financial ruin. That is if I do not burn it to the ground first."

"Tom!" Remus said, shocked.

"This is for my son," Voldemort said. "I will stop at nothing to protect my Harrison."

"H-Harrison? But Dumbledore said that it's for Harry—"

"Give me the receipts NOW!" Voldemort demanded, and in his rage he waved his wand and shattered several jars, their contents spilling and catching fire. The man jumped and ran off saying meekly, "Okay! Okay!"

Voldemort took a deep breath and pocketed his wand. He turned to Remus, frowning, "I'm so sorry I lost my temper my love, please do not think less of me."

Remus, however, had a thoughtful expression on his face. He glanced at Voldemort and shook his head, "It's fine," he muttered, "it's just, there is something I would like to ask you once we are home."

"Of course, my puppy," Voldemort nodded. He turned back to the counter and waited. A moment later, the man returned holding several sheets of paper. Voldemort snatched them all and quickly glanced through them. "These are all?" he asked.

"Y-Yes, every copy of the transaction and receipts," the man nodded. "All from my ledger."

Voldemort hummed and filtered through them again, smirking when he saw that they all held Dumbledore's signature. He pocketed the papers and turned to the man, "Thank you for doing business with us, a good friend of mine will be around in a couple of days to make sure that you have not suddenly disappeared, or worse run and tell Dumbledore." He gave a cruel smile and the shopkeeper backed away in horror. Voldemort took Remus' hand and the two walked out, apparating home once they were outside.

Voldemort looked at Remus expectantly, but Remus shook his head. "Inside," he said and pulled his lover in. He did not let go until they were in their living room, both sitting down. Remus took a deep breath and stared at Voldemort. "Your Harrison," he began. "He's Harry Potter? Isn't he?"

Voldemort was silent for a moment before giving a rueful smile, "What gave it away?"

"I had my suspicions at first," Remus said. "Sirius and I always knew that Harry was adopted. Lily and James told us the news the day after they got Harry. Dumbledore told them that his parents tragically died and, well, they've been trying since they got married. That, as well as the fact that I never had a Harrison as a student, not in any of my years and the way you describe him and Harry's reactions, they both added up."

Voldemort nodded and sighed, "I never meant to fool you, my love. I am just truly scared for my son's well-being."

"As I am, Harry's well-being has always been my and Sirius' priority," Remus said. He took a breath and frowned, "So I'm guessing the woman you mentioned was Molly?"

"Yes," Voldemort said grimly.

"Did she know?" Remus asked.

Voldemort hesitated. "I have my suspicion that no, she did not know, or at least not truly," he said. "Most likely, she, like all of us, have been duped by Dumbledore. She believed that she was helping Harrison, feeding him vitamins and supplements to offset the terrible things those muggles did to him."

Remus was silent. He just hummed and nodded silently. He looked around the room and sighed, "Well," he said after a moment. "Now what?"

"I'll review the receipts and figure out what to do next," Voldemort said. "Most likely I will go to a trusted friend to publicize them."

"I mean about Harry," Remus said. "Does he know?"

Voldemort frowned, "Yes," he said softly. "He knew. I asked him to keep it a secret from you until I was ready."

"Gee, great," Remus said a little bitterly. "Even my godson is keeping secrets from me." If only you knew my little puppy, Voldemort thought. But the man was sly and slick, and so he did not worry. Instead, he gave Remus a sympathetic look and said "I did not want to lie to you, it burned me that I had to. But you must understand I just got my son back, my sweet little Harrison after sixteen years. I love you with all my heart and soul, however, I was still afraid, stupidly so, that if the connection between my Harrison and Harry Potter was made, then something terrible would happen."

"Tom Riddle, you idiot," Remus said, shaking his head lightly. "You could have trusted me with this. What is it with the men I am attracted to and rushing off to do things 'for Harry' without thinking?"

Voldemort frowned at that. Remus just sighed and stood up, "Well, I'm just going to write to Molly, ask her about the vitamins she gave Harry," he said. "I'm not mad at you Tom, just a little disappointed."

"I would be too," Voldemort muttered. He stood as well and quickly kissed Remus. "Puppy, I love you. You know that right?"

"'Course I do," Remus smiled, "and I love you too, Tom." He gave Tom a hug and the adults both separated to do their tasks.

Ron was mentally swearing. The Alpha had his date with Lavender Brown very soon, and he could feel his armpits feel very, very moist. He wasn't even sure he ever was moist before but that was how he felt! It was perhaps because of what he was wearing. Both Hermione and Harry insisted that he tried to dress up for the occasion, however, Ron did not listen to them. Instead, he just wore their uniform button-up shirt and slacks without his robes and his Gryffindor tie which was rather loose. He waited in the entrance hall with sweaty palms, looking around awkwardly as he waited for the Omega.

He smelled Lavender Brown before he saw her. It was a really overpowering smell like a mixture of floral flowers and apples. Ron found the smell weird and turned to see Lavender walking towards him wearing her regular uniform and holding a basket. Oh thank Merlin's sweaty pants she didn't dress up, he praised mentally. She smiled at Ron when she got near, "Hello Ron," she said, "shall we go?"

"Uh—uh yeah, ahem yeah," Ron said, clearing his throat. Lavender held out her hand at Ron stared at it for a moment before realizing that she wants him to hold it. He quickly wiped his hand against his pants and hoped that it wasn't too sweaty as he took hers.

They walked outside and thankfully; it was a beautiful day. Ron already had a spot in mind, he spent the morning looking over the grounds for it and picked one of his and his friends' favorite spots by the lakeside. He found himself walking a little awkwardly as he held Lavender's hand. "So, where are we going to set up?" she asked.

"Oh! Uh there's this spot by the lake, yeah, has a really nice view," Ron said. "We're going there."

"Oh, that's so sweet," Lavender gushed.

"Really? I mean Harry, Hermione and I go there all the time, but I don't think it's rather sweet," Ron said. "It's a nice view though."

"Oh," Lavender said, her smile deflating a little, but Ron did not notice, he was too busy focusing on making sure he didn't trip. Lavender's smell made it awkward for him as it was very distracting. "Uh Lavender," he said, "what perfume did you use?"

"A blend of my own," Lavender smiled, "I mixed apples with my favorite scent, smells good right?"

"Uhh, it's a bit distracting," Ron admitted, shrugging. Lavender's cheeks reddened. "Oh," she said once more, but smiled, "Well, it's a good distracting, right?"

Ron didn't answer, instead, he pulled Lavender further, "We're almost there," he said.

They reached the lakeshore and Ron took the basket from Lavender. He took out the blanket and spread it out before pulling out the food and sitting down. Lavender sat next to him, smoothing her skirt as she smiled at him. "Well, here we are," she said.

"Yeah," Ron said. Lavender packed a few small sandwiches as well as cookies and pastries. Ron took a sandwich and took a large bite out of it, smiling. He barely remembered to swallow before saying, "This is good."

"Yeah, I found the kitchens in preparation for this," Lavender said, sounding very proud of herself, "I asked them to make all of this for us."

"Yeah, it's in the basement behind a painting of fruit," Ron nodded. "Hermione found it during our fourth year and showed Harry and me."

"Oh that's… nice," Lavender said awkwardly. She cleared her throat and looked out at the lake. She picked up a sandwich and took a small bite, glancing at Ron as she did so. Ron was eating obliviously, his nerves calming as he ate. "So, are you going to try out Quidditch team?" she asked. "I loved watching you play last year. You look so handsome riding a broom."

"No," Ron said immediately, "I'm not."

"Aww, that's too bad," Lavender pouted, "Why not?"

"Cause they kicked Harry out," Ron said. "Katie's captain and she kicked Harry."

"That's horrible," Lavender frowned, "However I'm sure she did it for Harry's well-being. I mean, after all, Quidditch is a dangerous sport. I don't think it's really an Omega's place to play it, even if he was very good."

Ron stared at her, "You're kidding!" he said.

"No, have you seen those Bludgers? It makes me very scared just thinking of them," Lavender shivered. "So Harry should really be thanking Katie for kicking him off, it really isn't his place anyway." Ron frowned and shoved the rest of his sandwich in his mouth to keep him from replying. Lavender just smiled and took another bite, "Anyway, I think you should still give it a go," she went on. "You'll look brilliant as a Keeper."

"No," Ron said, and left it at that. A silence followed, interrupted only by the sound of them eating. Ron mentally shuffled in his mind, trying to find something to talk about as he swallowed the last of his sandwich. "You know," he said, "Hermione's real good at like charms and stuff."

"Oh really?"

"Yeah," Ron smiled, "Brilliant, I'm rubbish but she lets me write off her notes at times."

"Oh… that's nice," Lavender said disinterestedly. Ron frowned and licked his lips. His hands started to feel sweaty again and he looked around. All of his food was done, and it looked like Lavender was halfway done with hers. He did not really think it was going well and wanted to go away. He kept glancing at Lavender, who kept glancing at him. She placed her sandwich down and leaned towards Ron.

"You know," she whispered, "we haven't kissed once."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, don't you think it's rude for an Alpha to not kiss the Omega he's dating?" Lavender asked.

"Uhh," Ron said awkwardly, "Look I got to go—thanks for the food." Ron immediately got up and turned to walk away.

"What!?" Lavender demanded.

"Yeah, sorry," Ron shrugged, "Uhm, good luck on your perfume?" Ron said and immediately walked quickly away, too scared to turn back.

He rushed back to the Gryffindor common room where Harry and Hermione were. "That was fast, how did it go?" Hermione asked as Ron sat with them.

"Horrible," Ron moaned, "that was the worst thing I ever went through."

"Come on Ron, it couldn't be that bad," Harry smiled.

"She tried to kiss me!" Ron said, "and I just ran away!"

"Well, did you want to kiss her back?" Harry asked.

"Not really," Ron muttered. "And I think I kept saying bad things because she didn't like them."

"Like what?" Hermione asked.

"Her perfume smelled bad, like apples and flowers or something, and she asked how I liked her smell," Ron said.

"Ron, you didn't," Hermione groaned.

"It was distracting! So I told her!" Ron said.

Both Hermione and Harry sighed. "Did anything good go on during the date?" Hermione asked.

"Not really," Ron said, "She wanted a picnic, so I thought to bring her to our place, cause it has a nice view you know, by the lake, but she didn't like that! Then when we tried talking she got me mad! She said that I should try for Quidditch and that it was a good thing you were kicked off Harry!"

"What!?"

"My words exactly!" Ron said. "And she really did smell distracting." He sighed and deflated in his chair. "I'm a bad Alpha," he muttered.

"No, it was just a bad date," Hermione said. "We're not all going to find our Omegas first time," she glanced at Harry who nodded.

"Yeah, Draco and I were just lucky."

"The lucky slimy git," Ron muttered. "I would punch him if he wasn't your boyfriend."

"I'll pretend you didn't say that," Harry said. "Anyway, don't beat yourself up just because you had a bad date, Ron."

"Harry's right, you'll have other dates," Hermione nodded. "Some good, some bad."

"Easy for you two to say, you're not dating and you're in a courtship!" Ron moaned. Harry and Hermione shared a look, but Harry shook his head.

"Look," he said. "You're an Alpha. You'll know when you find an Omega worthy of you. It won't be an instant attraction, but you'll know. But you're not going to find them by moping about just because you had one bad date."

"But she's in our year! What are we going to do? What if she spreads rumors about me?" Ron asked. Harry just stared at him with a slight frown. Ron stared back before realizing what he said, "Oh shi—sorry Harry, uh what I mean is—"

"It's fine," Harry said, shaking his head. "Look, you had a bad date let's move on and forget about it. What to play some Wizards' Chess?"

"Yeah," Ron nodded.

The three stayed in the common room. Harry and Ron played a few rounds of Wizards Chess before Hermione forced them to stop to do some homework for Transfiguration. The only break they had was dinner, and afterward, the three just sat around until it was time for Harry's lesson with Dumbledore.

He stood up and took a breath, "I'll talk to you guys when it's done," he said.

"Good luck," Hermione said as Ron nodded silently.

Harry left and made his way to the Headmaster's office, a small fear and regret growing inside him as he forced himself to stay calm. He hoped that his father's shields around his mind were still active as he reached the stone gargoyle. "Acid Pops," he said and the gargoyle leaped aside; the wall behind it slid apart, and a moving spiral stone staircase was revealed, onto which Harry stepped, so that he was carried in smooth circles up to the door with the brass knocker that led to Dumbledore's office.

Harry hesitated then knocked.

"Come in," said Dumbledore's voice.

"Good evening, sir," Harry said, walking into the headmaster's office. He felt like a small prey walking into a predator's lair.

"Ah, good evening, Harry. Sit down," Dumbledore said, smiling. "I hope you've had an enjoyable first week back at school?"

"Yes, thanks, sir," Harry said.

"You must have been busy, a detention under your belt already!"

"Uh," Harry began awkwardly, but Dumbledore did not look too stern.

"I have arranged with Professor Snape that you will do your detention next Saturday instead."

"Right," Harry said, he looked around surreptitiously for some indication of what Dumbledore was planning to do with him this evening. The circular office looked just as it always did; the delicate silver instruments stood on spindle-legged tables, puffing smoke and whirling; portraits of previous headmasters and headmistresses dozed in their frames, and Dumbledore's magnificent phoenix, Fawkes, stood on his perch behind the door, watching Harry with bright interest. It did not even look as though Dumbledore had cleared a space for dueling practice.

"So, Harry," Dumbledore said in a business-like tone, "you have been wondering, I am sure, what I have planned for you during these—for lack of a better word—lessons?"

"Yes, sir."

"Well, I have decided that it is time, now that you know what prompted Lord Voldemort to try and kill you fifteen years ago, for you to be given certain information."

You mean the false prophecy, Harry thought. He just nodded as there was a pause.

"We are going, from this point forward, into the unknown. We shall be journeying together through the murky marshes of memory into the thickets of wildest guesswork. From here on in, Harry, I may be as woefully wrong as Humphrey Belcher, who believed the time was ripe for a cheese cauldron."

"But you think you're right?" Harry asked.

"Naturally, I do, but as I have already proven to you, I make mistakes like the next man. In fact, being—forgive me—rather cleverer than most men, my mistakes tend to be correspondingly huger."

"What does this have to do with Voldemort and the prophecy?" Harry asked.

"This has a very great deal to do with the prophecy," Dumbledore said casually, "and I certainly hope that it will help you survive." He stood up and walked around his desk, past Harry, and towards the cabinet beside the door. Harry stood up to follow when a glint of gold caught his eye. On a small table near the door sat the ring that Dumbledore was wearing himself. He glanced at Dumbledore then quickly pulled out his wand, pointing at the ring. Accio Ring, he thought and the ring flew from the table into his hand. He quickly pocketed. Dumbledore returned to the desk, holding a familiar shallow stone basin etched with odd markings around its rim. He placed the Pensieve on the desk in front of Harry. "I must confess to you Harry," he said. "Before we head into the memories of Bog Ogden, an employee of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, I have to say that I am truly grateful at the commitment you are giving this. What we learn together will surely help everyone survive. I was afraid of how you might react to the news, however, I am truly happy to see that you have kept your head above it all."

Harry blinked. "Excuse me?" he said. "What do you mean?"

"Your commitment to defeating Lord Voldemort," Dumbledore said. "This is the most important task in our lives, Harry. It would be awful if we both had distractions during this time."

"Distractions?" Harry frowned. He stared at Dumbledore for a long moment and saw a glint in his eye. "Wait—you mean it was you?" Harry asked. "You were the one who told the Prophet about my Second Gender? And my relationship with Viktor?"

"Regrettably, yes, however, it was for the greater good—"

"You were the one who told them about the prophecy!" Harry yelled, standing suddenly. "You're to blame for all the bullying I had to endure!"

"An awful price to pay but I must have—"

"YOU ARE THE REASON EVERYONE IN MAGICAL BRITAIN THINKS IM A STUPID WHORE!" Harry exploded.

"Harry, calm down—"

"NO, I WILL NOT CALM DOWN!" Harry roared, "EVERYTHING THAT HAPPENED TO ME—EVERYONE TREATING ME LIKE A FUCKING SEX DOLL OR ATTENTION SEEKING TRAMP! IT IS ALL BECAUSE OF YOU!" He took a step back and he felt something break inside him. For a moment, if not even half a second, he saw in his mind clear as day his father smiling at him. Harry gasped and stared at Dumbledore who looked at him in equal shock.

"Harry," Dumbledore breathed but Harry did not stay to explain or listen. He ran out of the office, down the spiraling staircase and away from the gargoyle. Dumbledore did not chase him. Nor did he yell for Harry to stop. Not that Harry would listen. He just kept running, his legs carrying him further and further away from the Headmaster's office. For a second he thought to return to Gryffindor Tower but thought better of it. If Dumbledore would look for him, there would be the first place he would check. So instead he ran down. Jumping down steps, skipping them three at a time whenever he could, almost tripping over himself as his heart raced and his brain ached as the vision of his father seared into his mind.

"I'm—so—stupid!" Harry huffed as he continued to run all the way down into the dungeons where he followed his instinct to find his Alpha. The Omega reached a dead end and clawed at the walls before remembering the password. He screamed it and ran inside before the doorway was fully open.

Parkinson saw him first but immediately looked away as Draco stood up and immediately grabbed onto him. "He knows, he knows, he knows," Harry cried out. "I'm so stupid! He baited me and I fell for it! I'm sorry Draco, I'm so sorry."

"Calm down, Harry Calm down," Draco said. He held Harry tightly and made his Omega inhale his scent until he was calm. Harry whimpered but was still crying, looking defenseless and the opposite of the boy Draco knew and loved. "My precious boywife, tell me what happened," Draco whispered.

Harry sniffled and wiped away his tears. "We have to tell my father," Harry said. "Dumbledore knows, he broke into my mind and saw him."

A/N: Oh dear. As always please review, I love to read them.

AnnaMerteuil: Nah

HoneyBear84: Thanks!

Jwstahle: I hope you enjoyed!

Love Faith Embers: Ahhh I see... Still seems like cheating lmao.

Mizzrazz72: Too right you are!

Porshia Johnson: Say please?

Rori Potter: Well, keep reading and find out.