Response to Guest's questions: Yes. Remus, Sirius, and Michael do know about what happened to Harry. They were the ones who went to Tender's and saw the photo album in Chapter 5. The fate of Lily and James is currently being avoided for now since they don't know that Michael went looking for his brother, but their destiny will be discussed soon.

Finally, I'm posting this chapter. I've been working on this on and off for what seems like FOREVER! Anyway, READ, REVIEW, REPEAT!

Chapter 9: Frustration

A week later Harry sat in the parlor with his rediscovered family, basking in their attentions. He'd been somewhat shy at first, blushing at their compliments and hiding his face in their sides like a child. Eventually though, he'd grown used to them once again, laughing silently at Sirius's jokes and whenever Remus would hit him for them. He cuddled with his brother, Michael accepting the close contact with a smile and no criticisms or whining. The older boy had returned his hugs with even more enthusiasm than Harry put into them, nearly squeezing the life out of his brother several times.

Sometime around ten o'clock, Michael shockingly fell asleep, one hand clutching Harry's. It made the younger boy smile when he saw their hands clenched around each other's, their skin tones matching perfectly. He had missed his brother dearly. Michael had always protected him, took care of him when he lived with them. He made sure that his brother ate, that he had something to do during the day, and that he was taken along on family outings. Michael had been the most important person in Harry's early life up until the point where he was forced to grow up.

Sighing softly, Harry turned onto his side on the couch, his legs curled up to his chest. Michael leaned back against the cushions that Harry sat on, his legs spread haphazardly across the expensive rug. Sirius and Remus sat in two chairs, quietly conversing while the older boy slept and the younger drifted from thought to thought.

Hearing his sigh, the two men glanced over at Harry, curious. He shot them a smile and a silent laugh, motioning to where Michael was clutching his hand. Sirius grinned widely and barked with laughter. Snapping a hand over his friend's mouth, Remus glared at Sirius.

"Be quiet, you idiot. There's no need to wake him up with your barking," Remus snarled playfully.

"Aw, but Remus-"

"No, Sirius. I know that you can barely control your level of volume, but please try to refrain," the werewolf sighed.

Harry's smile grew wider as he watched the two men. He'd known since he was a young child that they were together. They'd always visited the family together, went home together, and whenever Harry stayed over, he would climb into their bed for a cuddle and the warmth. It didn't bother him at all. They loved each other more than anything else.

Something caught in his throat and Harry pulled his legs tighter against his body, a sudden sadness washing over him. He may have been at the manor for only a few days, but he had become quite attached to Severus, more so than he probably should. The dark man had been with him nearly every waking moment since he'd transported the boys from that hell-like room at Fudge's house. Whether it was Severus reading some heavy tome to search for some unknown rune or Harry was teaching him the silent language that he and the other boys had created, they were always doing something and it was always together.

Since his family's arrival, Severus had made himself scarce most of the time, spending no more than a few minutes a day with Harry. While Lucius tried to reassure him that the dark-haired man was just busy, Harry wasn't so sure. He didn't understand really. Before, they had been sort of like Sirius and Remus, but without the love.

He nearly gasped when he realized what was missing: love. Severus didn't love him, or at least not like Harry loved him. The small teenager knew that Severus liked him on some level. Severus had spent time with him, after all. No one had done that without paying for years as long as you excluded the other boys that he'd lived with. His heart sank at the thought that Severus didn't love him, but it hurt when he wondered if the man had became annoyed with the teen and decided to abandon him while he was distracted.

If he hadn't been so well trained to not show such emotions, Harry would have pouted. Instead, he pulled the blanket that had been draped over his shoulders a few hours earlier tighter around him, burying his face in the soft fabric. He took a deep breath, closing his eyes for a moment.

"Harry?"

Jerking up, the small boy glanced over at the two adults. They both fixed him with an expression that he couldn't read. He tipped his head a little to the side, silently questioning them.

"Are you alright?" Sirius asked in a surprisingly soft voice.

Nodding vigorously, the teenager tried to smile again, but he found it painful. Remus glanced at Sirius before he stood and came over to sit beside Harry, taking a seat on the edge of the couch. Reaching under his blanket, he took his free hand, squeezing it gently.

"Something is wrong," he said. "You never could lie to us, not even when you were a child. I remember this one time, you were at our house for the night and you accidentally knocked over a glass of milk. You scurried around to clean it up before I knew. Some of the milk dripped off the edge of the table, I guess and got in your hair because when Sirius and I tucked you in that night, your hair was sticky. When I asked you about it, you tried to tell us that you must have gotten something in it while playing in the backyard that afternoon. We both knew you were lying though and after a little coaxing-"

"-And a cookie!" Sirius quietly chimed in, fighting to stay quiet so he wouldn't wake Michael.

"-You finally told us," Remus chuckled. "So come on, puppy. What's wrong?"

Harry glanced down at the cushions beneath him, pulling the blanket up tight against his chin. He thought for a moment, searching for what to tell them. Slowly, he sat up, carefully dropping Michael's hand down onto the rug beside him. Sitting forward, Harry grabbed the quill and blank paper that rested on the small coffee table beside the couch. He scribbled his response, handing it over to Remus with a shaking hand.

A small smile adorned the werewolf's face as he read, letting go of Harry's left hand to run it through the small teenager's dark hair. Harry kept his gaze glued to his secondary godfather, eyes ready to water at the first instance of rejection. In his chair on the other side of the rug, Sirius was grumbling a little under his breath, although Harry didn't pay him any attention.

When he was finished, Remus put the paper aside and ruffled Harry's hair violently with both hands, practically shaking the teenager's head. Green eyes stared up at him with curious suspicion and he laughed.

"I already knew that, puppy. There's no reason to feel ashamed. You'll be seventeen in a matter of weeks, an adult in this world. Things like this happen," the werewolf said.

Harry nodded weakly, shuffling on his knees over to the older man. Remus hugged him close and buried his nose in the dark hair. Sirius shifted uncomfortably in his chair, clearing his throat to draw their attention to him.

"So, you like the sniveling bat, huh?" Sirius said slowly.

Hunching his shoulders, the teen beside Remus nodded. Sirius paused for a moment, thinking. He tented his fingers together, resting them against his upper lip. He met Remus's warning stare, his mouth twitching behind his hands.

"Do you want us to help you get him, puppy?" Sirius asked, snarling somewhat. "He does seem to adore you, I'll give him that. He has good taste at least even if his personality leaves much to be desired."

Perking up, Harry tipped his head to the side and frowned. He glanced from Sirius to Remus and back again, his frown growing deeper. Snatching the paper from the table and the quill once again, he furiously scribed a few words before holding it up. Sirius and Remus read it at the same time, blinking in surprise.

He likes me?

Remus snorted, holding back a laugh. He pulled Harry into his side, starting to run his fingers through the thick dark hair again.

"Of course he does. We both noticed it the day we arrived.

"If he were anyone else, he probably would have been drooling all over you," Sirius sighed.

"Like you?" the werewolf teased.

Sirius snarled silently at his lover, pouting heavily. Rolling his eyes, Remus turned back to Harry. The teenager was staring down at the paper in his hands, eyebrows furrowed as he thought intensely. Remus couldn't help but smile at the adorable image. How anyone wouldn't find this cute, he couldn't understand.

Finally, Harry wrote another question on the paper and slowly lifted it. His green eyes fixed on Remus as he held the parchment up in front of his mouth, hiding any facial expression that he bore. No one moved for a few moments, the silence filling the room. As the seconds ticked by, Harry became more anxious, fidgeting in his seat. He shifted his weight back and forth from one knee to the other, shrugging his shoulders a little as he waited. In complete panic, he dropped his eyes to his lap, pulling his bottom lip into his mouth. When a heavy hand rested on the crown of his head, he glanced up, meeting his godfather's bright eyes. The older man's mouth twitched and he silently nodded.

From where he sat beside Harry, Remus watched the godson and godfather in their silent exchange of understanding. He was thrilled really, his intelligent mind racing as he thought of the possibilities. Remus Lupin had never been a frivolous man and Sirius had always been the bigger gossip between the two of them, but the werewolf sincerely hoped that Severus accepted their puppy's love. He knew with his entire being that the older man felt the same for Harry.

They will look cute together, he decided with conviction.

Several floors below them, Severus was facing a similar dilemma. He had just ruined another potion, turning the traditionally green substance into a bright red bubbling cauldron of acid. With a swish of his wand, it was gone, but the feelings that it evoked didn't.

Sneering, he threw himself into a chair, arms crossed over his chest. He glared at the wall, snarling at the shadows as they seemed to laugh at him. His fingers dug into the fabric of his sleeves and pinched into the skin on his arms. He ignored the tight feeling and with a snarl, threw himself up and out of his chair.

He began to pace around the dungeon room, hands clenched into fists. It had been years since he'd been this frustrated, this distracted. He'd been trying all week to perfect even the simplest of potions and somehow it escaped him every time. This was something he should be able to do in his sleep. Instead, he was left to fret and worry over a simple healing potion. Not even his Occulmency was helping at all. Every time he tried to sink behind his mental walls and organize his thoughts, the control was always ripped away from him.

He felt like a child again, unable to control his emotions or thoughts. The control that he had once craved was gone.

Of course, he knew the source of his troubles and it was something –someone- that he would rather not admit to thinking about, or at least not in this context. The dog and the werewolf would kill him for even thinking such a thing, not that he really cared what they did.

The dreams that haunted him were not always at night, seeping into his awake state to take over his entire being. A shiver ran through his body as he thought about them, a mix of pleasure and revulsion directed towards himself.

Damn idiot, he thought. How dare you even fantasize about Ha- that boy! He went through hell to get here and now you're prepared to throw him right back into it.

Well, that's not exactly true. Unlike those men, you wouldn't pay him for the sex. He'd be your partner in everything, instead, another part of his mind whispered.

Shut up! he cursed, whipping around as though to face some enemy.

He began storming off in the other direction, circling the perimeter of the room. The thought of what someone would see if they came into his private lab didn't bother him. He was frustrated, annoyed, and downright in love with the sixteen-year-old, former prostitute brother of Michael Potter and magical heir to the Dark Lord. If anything, the situation gave him the right to throw a fit now and then.

As he stomped around the room, he thought of the boy that he somehow had come to love completely and absolutely. He was small for his age, barely coming up to Severus's shoulder. His hair was long and smooth, thick like his father's and brother's, but not nearly as wild. The boy was so pale, so thin, and so beautiful. His eyes, as green as anything he'd ever seen, were terrifying and exhilarating to look at. One moment they were submissive and doe-like, then stubborn and filled with fire the next. With a thin jaw, high cheekbones, and that gently sloped forehead, he resembled his mother quite a bit, a touch of femininity gracing his features. Everything about him though was so small. It almost made him wonder if-

Shaking himself out of the thought, he stopped his pacing and stepped over to the cauldron again. Picking up bottle of ingredients, he started the fire once again and began preparing to try again.

Water, poppy sand, frog's toes, stir three times clockwise, green clay, chopped laurel leaves, and let simmer for-

He was cut off by a sharp knock at the door. Looking up, he placed a stasis charm over the potion and stormed over to the door, robes billowing. He threw it open, eyes sharpening into his signature glare.

They quickly softened when he saw the small, dark-haired teenager standing in front of him.

Harry cleared his throat and looked sheepish, hands clasped in front of him as he looked up at Severus. He opened his mouth to speak, then closed it again. Severus watched as the teenager furrowed his eyebrows for a moment, glancing down at the stone floor before he turned his gaze to the Potions Master again. The hands that were clenched in front of him slowly dropped to his sides as the man and the boy stared at each other.

"Is there something-"

Tiny hands grabbed the collar of his robes, pulling down to the firm, small mouth as Harry drew him into a kiss. Severus froze for a moment, unsure what to do. His mind numbed as his entire mind, his being, his soul focused on the boy –no, man- in front of him. He grabbed at the thin hips and hoisted Harry up into his arms, deepening the kiss. They both groaned at the movement and the dark-haired teen wrapped his arms around Severus's neck. Their tongues clashed as they opened their moths to each other.

Perfection, the Potions Master thought.

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