Thanks to those who reviewed!
Also, a reviewer pointed out to me that Harry would have turned 16 the year following OotP, so I have changed the story accordingly! I have no idea how I made that mistake, and how no one caught it before chapter 9 but oh well, it's fixed now.
Three days in to the first week back at Uni, and boy is it sucking!
Chapter Eleven
4 days after the concert Harry woke up in time to join the family for breakfast. The past few days couldn't particularly be called uneventful but they certainly could be called typical of the lives of the people currently residing in Snape Manor. Harry went out only one of the three nights, and spent the rest of the time alternating between listening to music, considering a new Tattoo design, catching up on sleep using his little known stash of sleeping potions and playing with Tainen. He just couldn't really be stuffed doing much, sometimes holidays should mean just that.
2 days before, Snape had been called. Harry had found it rather anti-climatic. Dinner had just ended and Harry noticed Snape grit his teeth slightly while twisting his arm to press it flat into the table. It didn't take a genius to figure out what it meant, so he really wasn't too surprised when Snape excused himself and Cassi offered he and Tainen some lame excuse about Snape having forgotten to mention he had to brew a potion that night.
The next morning Snape was back at breakfast, not looking particularly the worse for ware despite the fact that Harry knew Voldemort had tortured him for not getting enough intel from Dumbledore, and then he had been ordered to make some potion Harry hadn't recognized the name of which took half the night. Visions may suck, and give new meaning to pain every time, but at least he learned interesting facts occasionally. No body mentioned a thing about it.
Harry OWL results had also arrived. There were several reasons he felt this sucked. Firstly, he wasn't sure he really wanted to know how badly he screwed up on his exams, secondly, he knew that Snape and Cassi were gonna be all about wanting to know, like it was their business or something, and thirdly, he just really hated reminders during the summer holidays of the other life he lead during the year, it always put a real downer on him.
He had calmly set the letter aside and went back to eating his fruit salad with extra crispy bacon on the side, determined to ignore the slightly desperate glances Snape and Cassi kept throwing his way. Harry was used to being watched but he still really hated being watched when eating, he was actually surprised he hadn't developed some form of eating disorder from being stared at so often during meals, and no, eating smallish portions wasn't a disorder he'll thank you very much to recall. After breakfast he had taken the letter upstairs, dumped it in his trunk and deliberately forgotten about it
Today was a new day though and Harry had plans. He was going to head into London after lunch and add to his collection of tattoos, and then tonight he was heading to a club he knew called Pure. A cute name for a club that was anything but. Showering quickly and headed down stairs dressed for a new day Harry was in an oddly good mood, a natural high which he rarely experienced.
Which just goes to reinforce his theory that he is fate's bitch. Snape and Co were in the lounge room, as breakfast wouldn't be served for another 15 minutes, and Harry was at the top of the stairs about to descend, when the fire flared green. Stepping through like he owned the place was none other then Draco Malfoy.
"Dwaco!" Tainen seemed happy to see him even if Severus and Cassi were quietly panicking. How were they going to prevent Draco and Harry from seeing each other? There was no way that they could warn him without it looking suspicious, and they couldn't just ask Draco to leave, he had always been welcome there. Careless, they had been so careless.
"Hey Tainen. How are you? What have you been doing?" Draco asked as he swung Tainen up into his arms, merely nodding hello with a smile, allowing the little boy to keep his undivided attention.
"I been pwayen wif H!" Cassi and Sev could only thank Merlin that Tainen had heard Harry muttering to himself, he always tended to call himself HJ when talking to himself, and refused to call his brother anything else since. ((I been playing with H))
"H?" Draco asked, expecting a new teddy bear or something equally thrilling to a little boy. Therefore the new voice coming from the stairs, damn near giving him a heart attack, was unexpected.
"Yes, H. Tai insists on calling me that, always has. Hello, I'm Alexander. And you are?" Harry figured he was already headed downstairs, and it would be really inconvenient if Draco discovered his presence in some other way. Better to control the situation from the beginning. To that end he dropped his morph, allowing himself to look like a mix between Severus and Lily, he figured Draco would only see Snape and never suspect the red highlights and green eyes came from Lily Evens Potter. A new name, the first thing that flew out of his mouth, and he was a whole new person.
Severus couldn't seem to breath. The glamour had finally dropped and he now knew what his son looked like. A beautiful mix of his and Lily's features, and there was no mistaking who he belonged to. Cassi was just glad that the dropping of the glamour had happened at such a fortuitist moment. But had no idea what game Harry was playing, or how he was going to explain all this.
"Malfoy, Draco Malfoy" Harry tried very hard not to laugh, did the boy always introduce himself that way?
"Pleasure, I'm sure. Draco Malfoy? Ah yes, I believe my dear father may have mentioned you at some point." Harry couldn't help the slight sneer that appeared on his lips, but he figured he could swing it as a part of the current character he was playing.
"Your father?"
With an eye role Harry explained "Well, I can't say it's a surprise that he never mentioned me. We're not exactly close. My mother tended to be of the opinion that I was her child and dear Daddy here merely contributed half the DNA required. But alas, it seems here we all are, it's a bright shinny day, breakfast should be being served right now, and I haven't had any coffee yet this morning; let's eat."
Harry could pull off sarcastic bitch like no ones business when he tried, and Draco was so busy being shocked over discovering that Severus had another son, one his age, that he bought the story straight up. They all headed into the dining room as Tainen, unaware of the problem, continued to inform Draco about his fantastic last few weeks, including H's arrival and the subsequent fun.
Draco seemed to gather himself once they were seated. "So, my Godfather has a son about my age and he never mentioned it?"
It's a good thing Harry didn't lose his grip on a character easily or he would have had serious trouble not glaring incredulously at Snape. Godson! Well no wonder he let Malfoy get away with bloody murder all the time.
"Well, like I said, we aren't close. In fact this summer is the first time I have ever stayed here, normally I never even come to the manor."
"So, who's your mother?"
"I fail to see how that could be any of your business. The Motobon people do not speak the name of their dead." Harry filled his coffee cup for the third time and decided that Severus should put in a little effort for this story too. "I suppose my father may opt to answer some questions about my mother, he never did respect her peoples customs. I guess that is why she made sure I went to live with her relatives after her death instead of letting him take custody. Well, that and political reasons of course."
Harry was giving Severus the beginnings of a story for him to build on when he answered Draco's questions, and also firmly beginning to establish the fact that he was not going to follow in his father's footsteps and join the dark lord.
"You don't go to Hogwarts?" It was a statement, but Draco maybe it seem like a question.
"No. You're quite the inquisitive one aren't you Draco? So what do we all have planned for today? Draco, no one mentioned you were coming today. Are you staying long?" Enough about me, let's talk about you…
"Well, my Godfather has never minded when I dropped in before. I was planning on maybe staying a few days, school goes back soon and I wanted to spend some time with Tainen before that. I really have no specific plans for the day." A cocky smirk accompanied this statement, like he was more welcome at the manor then Snape's own 'son' was, and oh boy did Harry really not care at all.
"Cassi?" Harry asked. This conversation was a little too one-on-one for him.
"Humm? Sorry Alex, what?" She wasn't sure what the question was, she was too busy trying to breath through the heart wrenching fear of Severus' cover being blown by Draco's arrival.
"Your plans for the day, Cass?"
"Oh, I thought Tainen and I might head into the village for the day, do a spot of shopping. Both you and Draco are welcome to join us of course."
"Thanks, but I was going to head into London and get a new tattoo, but you guys have fun without me. What about you daddy dearest?"
"I have a meeting with the Headmaster about the coming semester this morning. You're getting a new tattoo?" Meeting about the coming semester? Harry's perky, shapely arse it was about that. Harry would bet the farm and possibly the old people living on it that it was an Order meeting. And what was with the disapproving look when asking about Harry's plan for a new tattoo? Who the hell did he think he was, his father? Blood don't make a father, and Harry was an orphan.
"Yes, I'm getting a new tattoo." The sneered statement left no doubt that Harry really didn't feel this was particularly Snape's business.
"Well, that's lovely Alex. Do you already have the design picked out?" You really had to love Cassi. She always knew just when to jump in with a question to avoid possible fights.
"I'm going to get a Native American Tribal Labyrinth on the back of my neck, done in earthy tones, I want it about 3 inches in diameter so it'll probably go down onto my back a bit. I thought I'd get it charmed so that it was ever changing, never having the same path. Of course a Native American Labyrinth has no ending, they believe that even after we die our journey continues, that you are never really gone." Harry really hoped he was the only one who noticed the slightly wistful tone of voice at the end there, but he had the feeling Cass and Snape had caught it, even if Malfoy hadn't.
"I'm sure that will look great with your other tattoos. Are you going to do your school shopping while your there?" Bringing up school wasn't actually a good idea. Giving Draco openings to ask questions about areas Harry hadn't already planned a story for, or could create one at the drop of a hat, wasn't a good idea, but Harry knew Cassi had no idea that the question was so ill advised.
"No, I'm just getting the Tattoo and then heading back I think. I have a few things to get done today before I head out tonight." Harry' plans for that evening was a much better topic to distract Malfoy.
"Oh, you're going out tonight? Where? Meeting up with friends for a party, or a concert or something else entirely?"
"Tonight I'm going to one of my favorite clubs. I'll probably run into some friends, it's pretty popular with my friends but there are no plans to meet."
"A club? You're not old enough to get into clubs." Ah, he knew that would distract Malfoy.
"I think you'll find that I rarely let a little thing like age stop me from doing what I want. Well, I seem to be finished breakfast, best be getting ready and heading off. Draco it was lovely to meet you, I'm sure well have quantity time to bond during your visit. Cass, you and Tai have fun. Enjoy your meeting, father mine." With a kiss to Tainen's head Harry was out the door, patting himself on the back for a brilliant performance, and hoping Malfoy didn't decide to visit for too long.
He was ready quickly enough and on his way to London with a hissed password.
A/N: Man, this chapter took forever! It just did now want to come together!
Please R&R!