Gradually Lucius and Severus came to. The transformation was painful, and had knocked them both out.
Tom had stayed long enough to confirm that the change was successful before apparating away, praying that, just this once, he was mistaken.
Lucius was the first to regain consciousness with an irritated grumble.
~That's the last time I take one of your potions Severus. Why the hell do you carry a forced animagus potion around with you anyway?~ Lucius complained. But only muted barks and growls emitted from his mouth. Apparently, their communication was telepathic.
'Great.' Severus thought to himself. 'Now the insufferable twit is in my head.'
But to Lucius he replied, ~You won't be saying that next time you need a headache potion after one of Draco's fits… intolerable brat.~
~Wow Severus.~ Lucius snarked back. ~That's usually a Potter-reserved insult.~
Severus just rolled his eyes and replied to Lucius' earlier question, turning to gaze at his friend. ~It's easier to transport an unconscious animal than an unconscious human, and a lot less conspicuous. Not that I'd expect you to know anything about that Lucius. Infamous Malfoy need for drama, and all that.~ Severus smirked at Lucius' insulted huff. ~Oh, and your form is fitting. Silver fox cub, not conspicuous at all.Sarcasm and mirth coloring his voice.
Lucius growled before rolling over to face his companion, ready to give him a piece of his mind… before breaking out in uncontrollable barks of laughter.
Severus frowned in puzzlement and irritation. That was not the reaction he was going for. He eyed his hysterical… well, friend might be a bit presumptuous at this moment, since this loud, obnoxious, uncontrollable thing was definitely not his companion (although in future arguments he'd profess to Lucius being all three of these things)- with slight concern and thinly veiled disgust.
~And what, pray tell, has you behaving like an inebriated muggle-born Hufflepuff, dear Lucius?~
That caused the reaction he was hoping for. Lucius ceased his laughter, fixing Severus with an indignant glare, fully intending to tear him a new one for such a distasteful, dreadful insult. But as soon as his gaze landed upon the irritated Potions Master, he broke out snickering again, unable to contain himself, as he formulated a half-coherent answer to Severus' rude question. Severus could barely understand the fox-man-cub through his mirth.
~You… McGonagall… oh I so owe Tom for this excellent blackmail material… oh so priceless…
~WHAT?~ Severus finally snapped, yelling in his frustration.
~You're a cat Severus… a kitten. Like Minerva McGonagall, Head of Gryffindor, house of Lions!
One blink.
Lucius stopped laughing.
Two.
Oh Merlin he was mad…
Three.
Lucius was starting to panic now.
Four…
Oh Slytherin, Morgana, and Mordred, sorry Tom, we aren't finding out anything about the Potter boy now because Severus is going to kill me.
Then…
~WHAT?Severus repeated for the second time in 60 seconds. But this wasn't just a scream. Oh no, this was a shriek of complete and utter horror, outrage, and fury that Lucius barked in shock and- if anyone brought this up later, Lucius would firmly deny it- fear, and leapt to his feet, bolting into the forest, an enraged Severus hot on his tail, yowling and hissing, claws unsheathed.
Lucius ran as fast as his newly acquired furry paws could take him. But he knew there was no use. He was doomed. He needed a miracle, oh please oh please oh please just anything…
Then anything happened.
He broke out of the forest and collided with something hard, abruptly halting his mad dash and causing him to tumble ungracefully to the pavement with a yelp. Which caused him immediate irritation. Malfoys do not yelp, and they are always graceful. It's, like, a family rule or something.
So when a boy leaned over him- the same hard surface that he recently collided with- and reached out, he snapped at him instinctively.
"Look," a familiar voice whispered, and Lucius looked up in shock into the face of the Boy-Who-Lived. "I know you're irritated and angry, but please be quiet or they'll find us." Potter stared down at him almost imploringly, large green eyes wide in earnest.
Lucius took a small moment to observe the boy. He took in the gaunt appearance, the over-sized, filthy clothes, the large bruise coloring the right side of his face and neck, and the stark fear in the boy's eyes. All this worried Lucius, even when facing Tom- or rather, Voldemort; the two were not the same- the boy had never shown fear. As a matter of fact, Potter had never been fearful. What he and Severus had always assumed to be arrogance might be something more… and that fact didn't sit well with Lucius.
So he decided to trust the boy, for now, in that whatever was looking for him was definitely not good, and so nodded his head, silently agreeing to be quiet. The boy sighed in relief.
That was, until the still yowling Severus burst from the forest finally, his exclamations of anger echoing in the surrounding area as well as in Lucius' head.
~Where are you, you insipid, evil, intolerable, insufferable, self-righteous, self-conceited, DEAD mutt?~ Lucius had barely enough time to catch the look of terror upon the boy's face before Severus beset him, claws ready to strike, mouth open in a hiss of fury. Lucius braced himself.
But then Severus was gone. Lucius blinked for a moment, before he realized that Potter had grabbed Severus and clamped his hand over his muzzle, effectively silencing him. He couldn't hold his claws though, and Severus was currently inflicting long, vicious scratches upon Potter's arms, still caught up in his blood-haze.
Potter didn't flinch, he didn't even seem to notice, so caught up was he in listening to see if they'd been discovered.
Lucius took this moment to berate Severus mentally. ~Severus! Cease this instant! Your ill-timed temper-tantrum is currently harming our charge! Dammit Severus, DESIST!~
Severus abruptly halted, reason returning to those still-Onyx eyes, along with a small bit of sheepishness. Lucius sighed in relief before glaring at Severus. ~Are you quite done?~
Severus nodded meekly, still trying to gain his famous calm and equilibrium. Lucius made a mental note to show Tom this particular memory at a later date, preferably when Severus was far, far away… maybe Australia. This lapse in Severus' character was history-book-making.
Their attention was swiftly brought back to Potter as he released a quiet sigh of relief, letting go of Severus gently.
"Are you quite alright?" The boy asked timidly. Lucius watched as Severus took in the same details as he had earlier, and Severus' discomfort and unsettlement matched his own.
"It seems as though they didn't hear us… which is a miracle given the amount of noise you were making little one." Here the boy gave a timid smile in Severus' direction, who just huffed in response.
This caused Potter to laugh, a hoarse, quiet sound, as though he wasn't used to the action. Then the boy seemed to gain control of himself, because he once again grew somber.
"Listen, if you know what's good for you, you'll get far, far away from me. Dudley and his gang take pleasure from hurting small animals, and if you know me, well, he'll kill you, quite frankly." Then, under his breath, "Before beating the shit out of me."
Lucius and Severus exchanged a wary and worried glance at this.
Potter continued, "You must be new around here, because all the other animals have already learned this by now. And you guys are so beautiful… you wouldn't want to be around me anyways… I wouldn't want to get you dirty." Under his breath, "So dirty…"
Before either of the two friends had time to consider the implications of this statement, a group of five large boys burst from around the corner, quickly trapping the trio. A large, obese, grotesque boy approached Potter- who was now trembling minutely- and began taunting him.
"Awww lookee here boys! It seems like the freak has made himself some 'wittle fwiends'!" The sycophantic group laughed as if on que. "Well we can't have that now can we freak? What did we tell you about friends?"
Potter remained silent, eyes flitting about nervously, trying- and failing- to find an escape. He maneuvered Lucius and Severus behind himself, trying to shield them from the gang.
Dudley, obviously displeased with the boy's silence, lunged forwards and punched him in the face before grabbing the front of his ratted shirt, shoving his own bloated face into that of Potter's.
"You'll answer when I speak to you freak! What did dad say about friends?" Lucius raised an eyebrow at this. The boy's whispered answer shocked him even more, and he could feel Severus' matching emotions.
"Freaks don't deserve friends. Freaks aren't seen or heard. You don't love a freak, you just put up with them. Freaks should be grateful for what they get, because they don't deserve anything."
The large boy smirked evilly before patting Potter on the head patronizingly. "Good boy. Now was that so hard." The minions chuckled meanly. Then the lard-bucket adopted a sick, falsely-confused tone. "But, if that's true Harry," He said Potter's name in such a way that made it seem like the boy didn't even deserve that, "then what are you doing with those vermin? Oh Harry, Harry, Harry. You've been such a bad boy." A chorus of outright guffaws met this latest insult.
Potter started trembling. "No no no no no please Dudley, d-don't hurt them… I-I'll be g-good, j-just don't hurt them a-and d-don't t-tell Uncle V-Vernon. P-please Dudley, please…"
The whale boy- Dudley, Lucius mind filled in the blank- pretended to consider the request for a minute, before, "No. Pierce, snap their necks." And then began beating into Potter as the other four boys advanced upon Lucius and Severus.
"NOOO!" Potter struggled, unconcerned about the fists raining upon him, desperate only to save the two innocent animals who'd had the misfortune of running into the bloody Boy-Who-Wouldn't-Die.
Lucius snarled and snapped at the nearest boy while Severus yowled and slashed his claws warningly.
~Dammit! This is definitely NOT good Severus!~ Lucius wouldn't admit it, but he felt naked and vulnerable without his wand and magic. And it was just… insulting to think that a Malfoy was currently at the mercy of muggle children. How positively revolting.
~Excellent observation Lucius! If your brilliant mind can deign to deduce anything more enlightening, I shall be much impressed!~ But Severus' sarcastic voice was tinged with panic. Why the hell did he have to be a damn kitten?
One of the boys took advantage of Severus' distraction and grabbed him by the tail, swinging him into a nearby tree violently, causing Severus to yowl in pain and outrage.
Lucius barked in fury before launching himself at the boy, biting his leg rather viciously. The brat dropped Severus with a yell of pain before a kick from one of the other boys landed against Lucius' ribs with a resounding crack.
Lucius yelped and flew into the third boy, broken ribs grinding painfully as he whimpered. Before Severus could come to his rescue, injuries be damned, the first boy- Pierce, or some such nonsense- stepped on Severus' tail, halting him with a yowl of agony.
"NOO!" The Potter boy yelled before clawing viciously at his cousin's face, kicking him in the family jewels while he was distracted. The whale howled as his grip loosened on Potter, and the boy took the opportunity the wriggle out of his grasp and sprint towards where Severus and Lucius were being tormented.
In quick succession, he elbowed Pierce in the eye, kicked the boy who was looming over Lucius in the shin, and bit the terror who was still standing on Severus' tail hard enough to draw blood before picking them both up and running full out for the safety of the forest, firmly ignoring the yells and screams of rage and fury behind them.
Potter ran and ran and ran… until the sounds of the horrible boys were long silenced. Finally the boy stopped and collapsed to the ground, not labored for breath at all. This suggested that Potter was used to escaping such abuse.
The boy gently placed both injured animals on the ground before looking them over carefully. He healed the lacerations from Severus' unfortunate collision with the tree easily, unknowingly shocking the two disguised Slytherins with the almost nonchalant use of wandless magic.
As he examined Lucius, Severus took this chance to examine the brat for himself. He didn't like what he saw.
A bleeding nose, black eye, and split lip paled in significance to the ugly, hand-shaped purple and yellow bruise that was displayed on the boys shoulder by the overly-large shirt slipping. An old bruise.
The fact that the boy was tending to Lucius first, despite the rather obvious and painful injuries, told Severus two things that, if he cared to admit it to himself, disturbed him.
One: Potter was used to pain.
Two: He was used to not treating- or not being allowed to treat, Severus thought- his own wounds.
He was brought out of his musings by Lucius' yelp. Apparently Potter had discovered Lucius' injuries.
"Sorry," the brat apologized! As if it was his fault! Severus did not like what he was seeing. "I'll be gentle." He continued prodding, then remarked, "You've got one broken rib and two cracked ones. I can leave the cracked ones, since they'll heal soon, but I'm going to have to take care of the broken one right away, since it could set wrong if I don't. Now, I'm going to have to set it first before I heal it. It'll hurt like a bitch for about a minute, but then it'll go away. I'm sorry."
Again, another troubling realization: Potter was accustomed to having and dealing- on his own- with broken ribs. Severus had a sick, queasy feeling in the pit of his stomach.
Lucius nodded before taking a deep breath. The boy laid his hands on the silver fox and, with a whispered apology, snapped the bone in place with a loud crack!
Lucius barked and yelped in pain and, instinctively, bit into Potter's hand, drawing blood. But the boy took no notice, as soft golden light swirled around his hands and into Lucius' body, causing him to release a soft sigh of relief before releasing the boy's hand sheepishly.
Meanwhile, Severus could only stare. No one- NO ONE- had ever had a pure gold aura before. Not even Merlin, whose aura was a sort of burnished copper. There were speculations about the meanings behind such an aura, but since everything was purely hypothetical, it was believed that such an aura didn't exist. It just wasn't possible!
It seemed that the boy was done, as the magic faded and Potter smiled down at Lucius softly. "There. You did very well." And he just shook the blood from his hand before petting Lucius' tail softly, then sitting back and removing his shirt.
As Severus was slightly to the side and behind the boy, he had a rather clear view of Potter's torso. And what he saw caused his breath to catch in his chest and his mind to completely blank.
Old and new scars littered the boy's back, covered by severe, painful-looking welts that seemed to be slightly infected. But what really caught Severus' eye was the large, ugly, raised FREAK carved across his shoulders.
Potter's voice managed to gradually filter through the fog of shock that Severus' mind had become.
"…careful… a bit to mend… come with… hide you… not safe… have to… healed…"
Severus came to himself to find Potter wrapping an equally shocked Lucius in his shirt.
And he hasn't even seen his back yet. Severus thought rather hysterically. Tom's going to be mental.
When Potter lifted Lucius, he yelped. Apparently the pain of jostling his still tender ribs was enough to revive Lucius from his stupor.
Potter winced. "Sorry again. I know it's not safe, but really, you've got to heal, and out here isn't the place to. Please, I promise to protect you as best I can, but you've got to be quiet no matter what. Can you do that? Please?"
Lucius took one look at the boy's anxious and terrified face before nodding immediately. Potter let out a relieved breath. Then he looked down at Severus and crouched slightly, still holding the bundle that was Lucius.
"And you?" The brat questioned. "I think you'd want to be with your friend, but you have to know that it's dangerous. And if you're anything like my 'friends', that'll be enough for you to get to safety." This last part was mumbled, but both snakes heard it, and exchanged puzzled and worried glances.
Severus leapt onto the boy's shoulder, careful of his injuries, and nodded his acquiescence.
Potter smiled brightly. "Good." He then looked up at the rapidly dimming sky with a sigh. "Well, we've got to go back. If I hurry, I can get back before U-Uncle V-Vernon," again, both Slytherins caught the stutter and filed the information away, "does, and hide you away before this evening's 'punishment'."
Potter sighed in resignation before squaring his shoulders and beginning the long trek through the forest, towards the place that would create scars for one, nightmares for another, and flashbacks from his own past for the last.
Number Four Privet Drive.