Rubatosis

The unsettling awareness of your heartbeat

He could feel the blood drain from his face as frost had settled into his veins, seeping any warmth from him at all. Everything else had faded into the background as he fought to keep his face expressionless. All that he could hear was the sound of his beating heart as it rattled through his chest.

That child deeply unsettled him when Lucius had set his eyes on him as they approached each other on the staircase. As the Head of House for the Ancient and Most Noble of Malfoy, he was raised with the quintessential Pureblood training to prepare him for his future. As a result, he was attuned to the nature of his magic, intimately aware of his internal magic and how to interact with the external magic that was rich in the Magical world.

The education to bond with one's magic was the prime reason why Purebloods separated themselves from Half-Bloods, who were typically raised with a predominantly Muggle upbringing, and Muggleborns, who were exclusively raised in the Muggle World and ignorant to their superior magical nature, diluted by Muggles as it was.

When that child had bumped into him, Lucius was acutely aware of said child's magic—a void of endless depth that immediately made the hairs on the back of his neck stand in caution. It was such a dichotomy between his obviously young age and overwhelming depth of magic within him.

It was a hauntingly similar sensation that met him as the boy's magic washed over him warningly, not entirely hostile nor entirely friendly. And then, Lucius couldn't breathe, not from the boy's magic, but from the sheer terror of feeling the magic behind his Death Eater mark thrum and then pulse weakly but surely.

It was not the dreadfully painful sensation of heated needles that stabbed through his forearm, thankfully. But nonetheless, Lucius was filled with a deep-set terror that stemmed from the trauma of serving a lord who cared so little for even his most "valued" subjects—a far miss from the charismatic figure which his grandfather Abraxas had portrayed.

"Oh dear, would you look at the time," the boy said in a mocking tilt, drawing out his words in an obviously insulting manner. It was a tactic that Lucius employed himself to make his standing clear—above whomever he spoke to. "Forgive me, Lord Malfoy. I'm afraid I'm pressed for time as I still need to gather the rest of my supplies."

The boy smiled innocently, looking as though all was well in the world and he hadn't emitted such a startlingly heavy aura of magic filled with sheer intent. The boy's choice of dress would obviously point to a Muggleborn heritage yet the control which he possessed over his magic, his vernacular and mannerisms all screamed of a Pureblood upbringing.

Lucius inhaled heavily, forcing himself to calm as he felt the boy's magic quickly recede when the privacy ward—when and how did the boy cast such an advanced spell, nonverbally and silently at that?—was lowered.

He reevaluated the boy as he took in his appearance—jet-black hair, vibrant green eyes, and pale skin. The British Wizarding World was rather secular and that made it easier to recognize others faced on distinct or trademark characteristics. The Black Family was well-known for their jet-black hair as people compared it to the darkness of the magic they favored. Green eyes were rather uncommon and couldn't exactly be pinpointed to any specific family, but the specific hue of green was unnervingly familiar. In the right lighting, Lucius was nearly positive that the boy's green eyes would match the exact shade of green that came from the Killing Curse.

The boy seemed to notice how Lucius was trying to piece together what family he hailed from based on his appearance by the indulgent smile that tugged at the boy's cheek. The boy peered curiously and leaned in, the movement shaking some of his fringe from his forehead.

"It's a pleasure to be acquainted with you, Lord Malfoy. It's a bit late for introductions, but may I present my humble self as Hadrian James Potter." As the boy introduced himself, revealing the faint yet unmistakable trace of the infamous scar of the Boy-Who-Lived. There was a hint of magic that lingered within the scar as an everlasting trace from the Killing Curse; coupled with the fact that the scar itself was unmistakably the rune sowilo, known to represent guidance and success, it was impossible for the boy to be an imposter.

Lucius forced himself to regain his composure. "A pleasure, I'm sure." Potter would be a great asset to have on his side if he played his cards right—a powerful, handy ally despite their regrettable first meeting. "I believe I should be finished with my purchases for the day, but perhaps you wouldn't be too opposed to some company? I'm sure it would be helpful to have a guide."

Potter's smiles twitched minutely, as though he had read through Lucius's intentions entirely. If that were the case, then Potter was either indulging Lucius or had something in mind. "I would be honored, Lord Malfoy."

With that, the two descended down the stairs and approached the front counter. Potter reached the counter first and set down his basket down. The books began to float out from the basket and into the clerk's waiting hand.

Harry knew Lucius's type—men who lusted after power of all kinds and was willing to own up to their losses for the sake of a greater payoff in the future. For all his pride, Lucius Malfoy was a smart man and knew when to admit defeat, even if it meant it put him in a more difficult position.

Were he anyone but Harry Potter and the so-called savior of the Wizarding World—an exaggerated title when he could only loosely be called as such for the British enclave—and Lucius would have eviscerated him with all his political and monetary might.

Harry pushed such thoughts aside as he slid into the persona of a younger sibling. He supposed that it would be best to create an actual fake identity to use in the future. He reckoned that it would be far easier for his peace of mind to go out as a nobody rather than a somebody.

Half-truths were always the best lies. He could pose as a Half-Blood raised in the Muggle World by his Muggleborn mother while his Muggle father had "left" the family—a politer way to insinuate that his father hadn't reacted to the reality of magic too well and was thus obliviated. Obviously, his false backstory would need more work and credibility to stand scrutiny but that was for the future. If anything, Harry knew he could rely on the Goblins to whip a suitable identity for him when he sent them a request.

"So, did you find everything alright? I reckon your older sibling is a Ravenclaw, huh?"

Harry nodded and smiled shyly. "Yes, he is. That's why I was sent here, to make sure he didn't get too carried away and forget to buy all the books he actually needed."

The clerk let out a cheery laugh and nodded. "Very true. Still, this is a great deal of books. Some of these aren't on a first-year level. Smuggling in some extra books for your brother, huh. For an extra three galleons, I can add a bottomless pouch to your purchase to make things easier."

Harry nodded his head. "That would be greatly appreciated, sir."

"Brilliant! Your total comes out to 56 galleons and 12 sickles."

Harry brought out the pouch that Griphook had handed him before, which he decided to connect to the Malfoy account before Lucius stepped in gracefully to pay for it in an ironic twist. He set down more than the correct amount on the counter and waved the top of his cane, motioning for the books to enter into the supposed bottomless pouch, a rather tacky pouch that could be worn around the neck.

"This will cover his books, along with mine. A pleasure doing business with you, Botts."

Lucius then ushered Harry through the door without waiting for a response.

Lucius considered his words carefully. Potter had already revealed his hand, proving himself as a formidable wizard and definitely not one to be crossed. He knew that such a move was not one made by a careless and naïve child as he could see the gleam of intelligence lurking behind those haunting green eyes.

It would be a shame to lose such an opportunity to ally himself with Potter when he was intimately aware of the sheer power which Potter wielded. As the heir to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Potter, he was allocated two seats which Dumbledore was currently proxy for as Potter's magical guardian, and another two seats as the heir apparent to the Most Noble and Ancient House of Black since Sirius Black was still behind bars in Azkaban, locked away until Potter became of age. As the heir to two Most Noble and Ancient Houses, there were old family treaties just waiting to be reinstated and one of those was between the Malfoy House and Black House.

His desire to ally himself with Potter and reinstate the Malfoy-Black family alliance was not his own reason and it wasn't entirely selfish. He knew how Narcissa lamented the fall of the Black House and its ruined state now.

Sirius Black could no longer inherit Lordship since he was in Azkaban. Regulus Black had gone missing near the end of the Second Blood War and was presumed dead. Andromeda Black had been casted off from the family tree when she married the Muggleborn Edward Tonks. Bellatrix and Narcissa were no longer eligible when they married into the LeStrange and Malfoy Houses respectively, not to mention that Bellatrix had also been tossed into Azkaban. As such, Potter was next in line to inherit Lordship per Sirius Black's will of succession and only after Potter would Draco be able to inherit Lordship.

His priority at the moment was expressing his desire to form an alliance with Potter without coming across as desperate or weak. Lesser families had formed alliances and ended up utterly ruined because the allied family took advantage of the desperation or weakness that the other family had shown. Alliances were only ever cemented by political marriages as was the case with his marriage to Narcissa, but their saving grace was that they were thankfully very much bonded and avoided a loveless marriage.

"I take it this is your first excursion to Diagon Alley alone?" Lucius asked. Is this your first time in the Wizarding World, was left unmentioned, as was the insinuation behind coming alone, namely without an escort. He needed to determine the full potential of Potter to gauge how far he should invest in a potential alliance with the boy.

Potter smiled, not quite a smirk but still lined with a mocking quality. "Indeed. I did have Mr. Diggle guide me through the Leaky Cauldron to get to Gringotts, but we parted ways afterwards."

There was an assessing gleam in Potter's eyes that made Lucius suddenly feel on edge, aware once more of the hammering beat of his heart. Those were the eyes of a predator judging whether to take up on the hunt. It was entirely unnerving to be on the receiving end of such a heavy look, that penetrated his very being to look into his soul to judge him worthy or not.

It was clear that Potter was testing him, judging his reaction to the slip of information that Potter had thrown him. It was just a matter of whether Lucius could pass Potter's little test by giving him the correct answer. A chill snaked down Lucius's back as he was acutely reminded of how he felt when he reported back to the Dark Lord during his time as a Death Eater.

To answer incorrectly was to seek death—that was what he felt from the penetrating gaze of those haunting green eyes.

"One of Dumbledore's followers, if I remember correctly," Lucius said carefully. "A word of advice, Mr. Potter, but I do suggest you keep your guard up around Dumbledore, regardless of the praises sung of him."

Potter gazed at him coolly, seemingly looking down on Lucius despite the obvious height difference. There was an imposing aura that wrapped itself around Potter and it filled him with apprehension, waiting for the heavy weight of Potter's magic to press down on him again.

Instead, Potter smiled. In that instance, he looked like a cherubic angel who had been sent forth from the heavens. "Full of potential, I'll give you that, Lucius. If you play your cards right, I do believe this will be the start of a rather promising alliance that can benefit us both. Not that you had any say in the matter, but it's the thought that counts," Potter said cryptically.

I doubt anyone will actually read this, but does anyone have any recommendations of time travel, AU's, and cross-overs of the following?

-Katekyo Hitman Reborn

-Naruto

-Bleach

-Boku no Hero Academia

-Is It Wrong to Pick Up Girls in the Dungeon? (in general)