Co-written with Stormypup
Beta'd by Carpet Diemon
Chapter Eight
By ten the next morning, the decision was made for them by a letter that fell into their post box.
According to the Prophet, you're well enough to waltz around Hogwarts, so I assume you can come get your kid now. About time you did your job, Snape. I'll be sending directions later, but I have some conditions. Harry comes alone. If I see even a hint of anyone else, especially Snape, the kid and I will be gone before you can blink. You'll surrender your wand, or again, we'll be gone. Don't do anything stupid, Snape, or you'll regret it. You'll be hearing from me soon.
"What happened to him?" Harry asked to the room. He sat down on one of the wooden chairs at the table, reading the terse words a few times. This sounded nothing like the Justin he had known. Even if the other boy had been acting weirdly by the end of their final semester, he'd never been this cruel.
"What happened to whom?" Severus asked, coming out from the lab in search of tea.
"Justin sent another note," he explained, holding it out for Severus to take.
Severus read through it quickly. "This is not going to happen," he said, shaking his head and crumpling the letter in his hand. "You're not going alone."
"I don't like it either, but I don't want Douglas hurt."
"What happens if you collapse? You'll die before anyone can get you back to the lake! I won't lose you both!"
Harry fingered the edge of the table. "Is there a way to strengthen it? The potion?"
"I don't know," Severus answered, rubbing his face tiredly. "I don't think it's going to get any better than it is now."
"How long would that give me then?"
"An hour would be pushing it."
Harry sighed, slouching in the chair. "Damn it."
"And I don't know how it will react if you Apparate."
"I'd have to Portkey, or take the floo." He wrinkled his nose at the last suggestion.
Severus nodded. "Portkey. You're going to take a Portkey with you. As soon as you have Douglas, activate it and come home."
"Can you make one or are we going to have to ask for one?"
"I'll speak to Albus. I have no intention of getting the Ministry involved."
Harry sighed in frustration. "We may have to."
"And we may not."
"I just want Douglas back."
"And we're going to get him back," Severus said fiercely.
Harry stood, crossing the kitchen in three steps before wrapping arms around Severus, shivering. Severus held him tightly, his mind trying to conceive of a way to get their son back without risking Harry in the process.
"I hate this," Harry whispered.
"It's going to be over soon," Severus assured him.
"Why couldn't he have left the directions already?" Harry mumbled, his fingers clenching in the folds of Severus' work robes. "I just want Douglas home."
Three hours later, Harry had his wish. He ran to the lab, shouting for Severus. He waved the letter in the air with an eager, but grim expression. This would be the hard part, convincing Severus to let him go alone.
Severus set the pestle down on the counter top. "What does it say?"
"He's waiting at a bar in the center of London." Harry set the note on the counter top and pulled a stool over from behind him with his foot. He straddled it and placed his elbows on the smooth surface of the worktable.
"When are you supposed to meet him?"
"In two hours. He once again emphasized the need to go alone, and also, Merlin, Severus I don't know what to make of this last sentence."
He pushed the note towards Severus with a worried expression.
Severus read the note through, frowning at the last sentence.
Do this or the innocent continues to suffer.
"It sounded odd to me," Harry murmured, tracing the designs in the marble top. "Like poetry almost, too flowery for Justin to have thought it up on his own."
"He is a dead man," Snape hissed. That the fool could be so callous about his son's suffering. Severus' nails dug into the top of the counter.
"Remember," Harry chided, as he took back the slip of paper, not parchment, none of the messages had been on parchment, "we need him to take us to Douglas first, and then you can kill him."
He gazed at the light blue lines running through the page, it was from a Muggle pad, which explained almost everything. Why hadn't they considered the possibility of the perpetrator hiding in the Muggle world? A wizard or witch could disappear into anonymity there, and no one could find them. They'd just have to never use magic and they'd be completely untraceable. Being muggleborn, Justin was more than capable of taking care of himself amongst his own.
"We're going to need to contact the Ministry."
"Why? So they can blunder in and ruin everything?"
"No, so you can have him arrested the moment Douglas is safe."
"The moment Douglas is safe, I'm going to kill him," Severus said, his voice cold steel.
"Then you go to Azkaban and we have a new set of problems."
"He took our son! I'm not going to just turn him over to the Ministry! They're incompetent fools who have no concept of justice!"
"I know how bad the Ministry is, but if they find out you killed him they aren't going to be lenient at all. I don't want you in Azkaban just as much as you don't want me to go get Douglas alone."
"Give me five minutes alone with him, then I'll let the Ministry have him." Severus wasn't about to let the little bastard get away from this with only a stint in Azkaban.
Harry smiled at the counter top, "Fine. Five minutes, no killing."
"I'll merely make him wish that he was," Severus answered darkly.
"I know you will." Harry's eyes swept over the scrawled message one more time. "Two more hours," he murmured, setting the note on fire.
Severus pressed two Portkeys into Harry's hand. One to get him there and one to bring him and Douglas home. "The first chance you get, come home," Severus ordered as Harry pocketed the second Portkey.
Next, he held up two vials of the potion. "If the first one begins to wear off, drink the second. Hopefully, it will stabilize you enough to get you out of there."
"What are you going to do?" Harry asked, slipping the vials into his pocket.
"The only thing I can do, wait." He was lying, but Harry needn't know what he planned to do. In fact, it was probably better that he didn't.
Harry readjusted his shirt, the material itchy on his skin. He could honestly say he never wished to dress like this again. He looked 'professional', or at least that was what Hermione had called him when they had sent her a message to come as quickly as possible. The suit jacket was warm and uncomfortable, but he would deal with it, if only to be able to hold his son again.
"I'm ready," he proclaimed, fiddling with his tie until it was a bit looser. He gazed up, meeting cool black eyes. Leaning forward, he pressing a chaste kiss to slow yielding lips. "You aren't going to follow me, are you?"
Severus shook his head. "Bring our son home."
Harry nodded, giving him a crooked smile. "I love you."
"You're going to make me say it, aren't you?"
Harry merely grinned.
Severus sighed as if put upon. "I love you too."
"Oh good, was getting worried there for a second..." Harry's smile turned shy for a moment, "Will you go the surface with me?"
"Of course." Severus took Harry's hand and raised it to his lips, kissing the back of his hand softly. He frowned.
"Come back to me, Harry," he said, the fear that he was going to lose both his mate and his son nearly overwhelming him.
"I will. There's no place I'd rather be."
Severus smiled. He was going to do whatever was necessary to see that his family came home.