Chapter 6
"Charlie, there's a letter here for you." Draco called out as the owl that had delivered it flew off.
"Who's it from?" Charlie asked while trying to get Teddy to stop climbing on random pieces of furniture. Babysitting for the little bugger was proving to be more of a hassle than they'd imagined, but hey if it was helping Harry, it was worth it.
"I'm not sure, I've not seen the owl before and there's no name." Draco said, walking up to the other man and switching the letter for the toddler.
Charlie glanced at it while Draco squealed like a girl because Teddy pulled his hair. "You know, you ought to get it cut again or start wearing it in a ponytail." He commented before unfolding the parchment and looking it over. His demeanor immediately changed and he became silent.
"What is it?" Draco asked, holding the toddler out in front of him so he couldn't reach the platinum blond locks. "Charlie? What's wrong? Teddy stop that for a minute. Charlie?"
"Hmm, what?" Charlie asked, snapping his gaze to his fiance.
"What's wrong?"
"It's from Bill."
"Oh well that's wonderful, he's not missing then." Draco said while Teddy reached out and grabbed at his nose.
"No, he's still missing."
"I don't understand. Teddy stop, please."
"Unca Dray down now!" Teddy demanded.
"Do you promise to stop climbing on furniture?" Draco asked the boy.
"No." Teddy said silently with big pleading eyes.
Draco blinked at the boy and smiled. "Well I suppose that's better than saying yes and going off to do it again anyway. Sorry, but if you're going to scale Mount Table, I'm going to keep holding you."
"Mowtan bul?" Teddy asked quite confused.
"Nevermind." Draco said with a small chuckle. "Here, go draw a family picture, alright?"
"Kay!" Teddy said scrambling down and running to the room he was staying in.
"Now, what's this about Bill being found but missing?"
"This letter's from Bill, but it's dated from June 5th." Charlie explained. "He said he was gonna go out and just wander around the world for a while, popping in from one wizarding community to the other, and to not worry about him."
"Well there you go, he's not missing, he's exploring. What's wrong with that?" Draco asked curiously.
"He would never do something like this. He used to ride me all the time because I wanted to go exploring while in Romania, not to mention he called me 'Charles'."
"Well, that is your name."
"No, in every letter I've ever gotten from him, he calls me either 'little bro', 'Charlie', or 'Charlesworth', never 'Charles'."
"Charlesworth?" Draco asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Yeah, when I was little one day I asked him if his name was 'Williamsworth', and he said it wasn't, then I asked if I could call him that, and he said only if he could call me 'Charlesworth'. It was kind of a running joke after that. He would never address such a casual sounding letter to 'Charles', and he would never go off and explore the world." Charlie explained.
"Unca Cha... Chawr... Chawerlery?" Teddy tried, toddling back in to the sitting room.
Charlie coughed lightly to cover up his chuckle at the butchered name. "Yes Teddy?"
"How much red Weezeys dey are?"
"Eight." He replied with another small cough.
"How many dat?"
Charlie lifted 8 of his fingers to the small boy. "That many."
Teddy looked at the mans fingers, then at his own and copied the movement. He wrinkled his little nose and popped down one of the fingers from his right hand, sprouting a 6th on his left, and continued to do this until his left had had 8 fingers. "Dat many?" He asked, holding it out to the man.
Charlie stared at the little metamorphmagus for a moment then shook himself out of it. "Yes, that... yes."
"Kay tanks." Teddy called heading back to the room.
Draco and Charlie shared looks of astonishment. "Did you know he could do that?" The blond inquired.
"No, did you?"
"No."
"We should tell Harry and Severus."
"Right. But first w-"
"Excuse me." A female voice called from their fireplace. "Is Charlie zere?"
"Fleur?" Charlie asked looking towards the green fire.
"Oh good, Charlie. Somezing is wrong. I got a note from Bill but it's not right, and I can't find Molly and Arthur."
"Mum and dad have gone to France to look for him. He's been missing ever since you two split." Charlie said with a hint of scorn.
"I am so sorry." Fleur said unhappily. "I was stupid and should 'ave never said all zat. Bill is a good man, you are all good people. I was taking my anger out on you. But please, we 'ave no time for zat. Zis letter is-"
"Charlie? Draco?" Harry's voice called as his head popped into the fire as well. "Charlie?"
"'Arry?"
"Fleur?"
"Harry?"
"Potter?"
"Whoa whoa whoa, everybody stop." Charlie ordered. "Harry, what is it, I'm kind of in the middle of something."
"I got a letter from Bill-"
"You too?" Fleur asked. "I did as well. But it's not right."
"Yes exactly." Harry said.
"He uses words that he normally wouldn't." Charlie stated.
"You got one as well?" Fleur inquired.
"Yes, just a little bit ago." Charlie said.
"Does it also say to not worry?" Fleur asked.
"Yes." Harry and Charlie both replied.
"I think someone should contact the Weasleys Senior in France and tell them what's going on." Draco suggested.
"But we do not know what is going on." Fleur reminded him.
Suddenly Ron popped in to the room clutching a parchment with the twins on either side of him. "Charlie!" Ron called out.
"Look, half the family's here." Fred said.
"Did everyone get a letter?" George asked.
A resounding yes was heard from everyone else. "Alright." Charlie said, rubbing at his temples. Apparently when mum, dad, and Bill were out of the picture, Charlie was the go-to Weasley. "Harry, you and Severus get over here, Fleur, you as well. Fred, George, Ron; Fleur is sorry for being so vindictive over the last bit, don't be mean. Someone should conta-"
"Charlie?" Another voice called from the fireplace.
"Percy, I was just thinking about you."
"I got a-"
"A letter, yes I know. Floo in here now."
Fireplaces flared to life all around the UK, and one in France as well. Once everyone had arrived and were talking, yelling more like, with each other, Draco called their attention by standing on the couch. "QUIET!" He yelled, effectively silencing the group. "Now, I don't know about you lot, but I for one would quite like to hear what's going on." Murmurs of apologies and agreement were heard and he gave a sharp nod and stepped down, sitting on the couch and pulling Teddy up with him. "Now, first, Percy, stop giving Fleur the death glare, you can't pull it off, and she's apologized for being a-" He covered Teddy's ears with his hands and continued without missing a beat. "bitch." He moved his hands back down. "Secondly, Harry and Severus, Teddy can sprout extra fingers as part of his mum's inherited thing. Third, everyone with a letter, put them on the table. Charlie and Percy, since you two are the oldest here and have known Bill the longest, you go through and pick out the words that sound wrong. Ron, you call Hermione to get her in on this because she's smart. Severus, you and her will work together with whatever Charlie and Percy come up with. Fred and George, you find Molly and Arthur. Harry, you go back to Hogwarts, pick Alden up and bring him here, I think everyone's going to wind up staying the night and it wouldn't be good leave your kid there with no idea where you went. Fleur, you're going to watch Teddy and Alden so they don't get into trouble while we're trying to figure this out. Everybody got it?"
"What will you be doing?" Harry asked.
"I will be keeping everything organized so you lot don't run around like a bunch of nifflers with your heads cut off. Anyone who doesn't have anything to do, report to me and I'll find something to keep you busy."
"Who made you boss?" Ron demanded.
"In case you forgot, this is Malfoy Manor. Last I checked, my name was Malfoy. Now get on with it." Draco ordered.
(¯`·. Hp/Ss .·´¯)
"Confringo!" A voice called out.
"Recrepo!" Alden cried. The sound of several books falling from their shelves was heard.
"Fluignus!" The first voice yelled back.
"Aguamenti!" Alden countered.
"Tendocorpis!" The person shouted, but before the spell could reach Alden, Harry had stopped it with a wandless, wordless Recrepo.
Storming in to the Slytherin common-room, Harry, with eyes ablaze, levitated the fool, held his arms and legs out, snatched his wand away, and shoved him into a wall, where shackles emerged from that held the boy in place. "What the HELL do you think you're doing to my son?" Harry bellowed.
"Harry!" Alden called out in surprise. He looked to the other boy and gasped. Jeffery Loaxis was plastered against a wall, shaking, eyes wide, and trying to talk, but no sound would come out. "Harry let him go!" Alden tried pulling on the man's robe sleeve and whimpering when he saw that red had replaced once green eyes.
Severus popped into the room clutching the wrist with his bracelet and quickly assessed the situation. "Alden are you alright?" He asked, ignoring the frightened boy against the wall and his husband who was transfiguring a book into a rope.
"Severus, make Harry let him go! Jefferey was helping me!" Alden tried, tears forming in his eyes.
Snape immediately transferred his attention to Harry and snatched the rope from the air that was heading towards the boy, banishing it. "Harry stop." He said in a deceptively calm voice stepping between the two.
"Move." Harry ordered, pushing Severus out of the way.
Severus quickly went back into position grabbing the younger man and pulling him in, holding tightly. "Stop it, now." He ordered.
Harry's eye twitched and he focused his attention on the dark wizard clutching him, sending pulse after pulse of something akin to an electric shock through the dark mark.
Jefferey collapsed to the floor and fought to catch his breath while Alden ran to his side. "Are you alright?" He asked the other boy.
"What the hell's going on?" Loaxis asked horrified while watching Professor Potter back Professor Snape into a corner, the latter of which contorting in pain while blood started seeping out from his sleeve, staining the white bit that was poking out and dripping to the ground.
"Uh, long story but I'll try to shorten it, when Harry killed Voldemort, he siphoned his power, and now when he thinks someone he cares for is in danger that power kinda takes over him which explains why the eyes go red, and Severus is the only one that's allowed to bring him out of it, but that makes him the new target since he interrupted but it works because Harry has to see someone he loves in pain directly caused by him before his humanity comes back and allows him to realize what he's done." Alden tried to explain while helping him to his feet.
Suddenly, as if the mentioning of it brought him out of it, Harry dropped his arm and blinked, watching as his husband fell to his knees to the ground. His eyes widened in horror when he saw the blood trail on Severus' hand and the wet spot in the sleeve where the dark mark was. His hand flew to his mouth and he looked around catching Alden's eye, then Jefferey's, and back to Alden. "Why was he hurting you?" Harry asked shakily.
"He wasn't. He was helping me train because I couldn't find you and I don't know how to work the Room of Requirement, and I thought working on my reflexes again might be benificial." The boy said looking as if he might cry.
Harry closed his eyes as the red started fading out and took in a trembling breath. He wasn't looking that far off from an emotional break down himself. "Jefferey, did I hurt you?"
"N-no sir. You did scare the living shit out of me though." The 7th year replied.
Harry gave a pained laugh that quickly turned in to a sob and went over to Severus, helping him up. "I've got to get him to the infirmary." He said while trying desperately to control his breathing so he didn't hyperventilate. For god's sake, it had almost been a year since he last did this, it was supposed to be over! "Alden can you explain to-"
"I already have." He said, putting Snape's other arm around his shoulder.
Jeffery shook his head. "Move Alden, you're too short, no offense." He said, lifting the man's arm and taking Alden's place.
"Why are you helping? Why aren't you off to report me to the Headmistress?" Harry asked the boy.
"Well, you didn't know what we were doing, you saw a 7th year sending offensive spells at a 4th year who happened to be your son, you jumped in as any good father would and defended him, and I assume that because Alden and Professor Snape know, Headmistress McGonagall also knows so it wouldn't come as a surprise to her. You didn't actually hurt me you just restrained me, and before we started Alden made the comment that if you were to walk in on it you might jump to a conclusion and wind up hurting me, so it was a calculated risk I was willing to take to help him out." Loaxis explained while they walked down the deserted hallway. Harry had never been so glad it was a Hogsmeade weekend.
Harry just shook his head as they came on the infirmary. The doors seemed to open of their own accord, but Alden quickly explained that it was Harry's wandless and wordless magic.
Severus groaned and his head lolled backward. "Alden get Loaxis, hurry." He ordered in a near whisper.
Harry's dry sob returned. "Poppy, it happened again." He called out. When the Medi-Witch came hurrying, he elaborated. "It's worse this time, he actually passed out."
"Oh good grief Mr. Potter, set him down on the bed. Where's the blood coming from?"
"The dark mark." Harry said before his eyebrows went into an oblique position and his bottom lip found itself being bitten harshly by his teeth.
"Harry!" She exclaimed while banishing the sleeve of his robe. "You said you'd never do that!"
"The werewolves taught me to use everything I knew about someone in a situation like this, I was going on instinct Poppy!"
Alden pulled Jefferey off to the side. "You don't have to stay if you want, but I should probably warn you, they'll want to put a memory charm on you so you forget this happened."
"I'd rather them not." The older boy admitted. "I don't like the idea of my memory being muddled with."
"Well, it's more to keep them safe than it is for you. I mean, if you accidentally say something about it later on and word gets out that Harry goes red-eyed and can control the dark mark that's left on those who used to be Death Eaters or spies, well... needless to say there would be an uprising."
"I didn't think of it that way." Jefferey admitted. He sighed and looked towards his professors, one of which was sobbing into the hand of the other, who was trying desperately to console him while Poppy fussed over his arm and shoved potions at him. "I suppose the only thing to do is to wait here until one of them is able to..." He made a disgusted face. "muddle with my memory."
"Well I could probably get Aunt Minnie to do it. Er, I mean, Headmistress McGonagall."
"'Aunt Minnie'?"
"Heh, yeah. She sees herself as more of Severus' sister and since me and Teddy are his sons, she's Aunt Minnie."
"Get over here." Snape's voice called out, jolting the two from their conversation. When they reached him he glared at them both. He looked to Alden. "You, no training unless one of us knows. If you can't find us, wait. Got it?"
"Yes Sir." The young boy said glancing downward.
Severus switched his gaze to Loaxis. "You, while we appreciate your attempt to help Alden, don't. Unless it's with schoolwork or some such thing. You're getting a memory charm, so is there anything you wish to say before you forget?"
"I kind of feel like this is all my fault, considering I'm the one that suggested we duel. I'm not too comfortable with the knowledge that I'll have someone poking about my mind, but I suppose I won't remember that so have at it."
Severus nodded and pointed his wand at the young man, engulfing his head with a pastel green blob. Jefferey stood there swaying a bit before blinking himself back into reality. "What happened? Professor Snape, are you alright?"
"Don't ask. I'll be fine. For future reference, if you ever feel like helping someone by dueling them, just don't." Snape told the young man.
Loaxis' eyebrows knitted together in confusion, but he nodded. "Yes Sir. Uh, what am I doing here?"
"You came with me because I was worried when I heard Severus was in the infirmary." Alden supplied with a straight face.
"Oh, right." Jefferey said not really remembering that at all. "Uh, what day is it?"
"Saturday." Severus told him. "A Hogsmeade weekend."
The last of the green blob seeped into the boy's head and he closed his eyes, shaking it a bit. He yawned suddenly from the influx of information he hadn't had before, not that he knew why. "I must be tired. I hope you get better Professor Snape." He said, walking from the hospital wing.
Severus let his head fall back on to his pillow. "We need to get back to Malfoy Manor. The Weasleys are sure to be worried by now."
"You are not leaving until your arm gets properly wrapped." Poppy stated assuredly. "And you, Mr. Potter, are going to wrap it."
(¯`·. Hp/Ss .·´¯)
A/N: Just a quick reference for the spells that aren't canon. Feel free to use them in your own fics.
Recrepo – A repelling charm that acts as a mirror reflecting the spell back in the caster's general direction. A 6th year spell.
Fluignus – A curse in which flames shoot from the wand's tip like a stream of water would from a hose. A 7th year spell.
Tendocorpis – A jinx that causes the limbs of a person to become stretched much like those of a rubber doll. A 5th year spell.