Title: The Boys Who Lived
Author: Shara Lunison
Beta: Batsutousai
Rating for this Chapter: T
Pairings: Harry/Henry (OMC), others
Warnings: SLASH, eventual twincest, slightly manipulative!Dumbledore, grey Harry/Henry, OoC-ness, others as I think of them.
Summary: The Potter twins are attacked by Voldemort and somehow defeat him. Now the Dark Lord has returned and they have to choose between light and dark. SLASH, Twincest, rated M for later chapters.
Disclaim Her: This story is based on characters and situations created and owned by JK Rowling, various publishers including but not limited to Bloomsbury Books, Scholastic Books and Raincoast Books, and Warner Bros., Inc. No money is being made and no copyright or trademark infringement is intended.
Chapter Twelve: A Very Interesting Summer
Henry sighed, staring at the stack of letters on his desk. It was a month into the summer holidays, and every single letter he tried sending to Draco had been returned. Aside from talking to his brother or Abe, he only really had the occasional letter to and from Ron and Hermione, and sometimes Blaise or Pansy to keep him occupied now that his summer work was done.
He stood and stared out the little window of the study room. Harry was down there helping Abe feed the goats. His little brother seemed to have developed a knack for animal care after their many stints up at the castle helping Hagrid with his beasts. The goats still puzzled them both—every last one of them was male, but neither had worked up the courage to ask why yet.
Abe had filled them in on one Albus Dumbledore over the past month. Aside from the shocking news that the Headmaster was once in love with Grindelwald, they hadn't really heard any surprising news. They had been told Abe's version of the story of their sister's death. Dumbledore had told the truth when he said that it was impossible to tell who had accidentally killed her, but he hadn't mentioned that Ariana could not care for herself and that he had neglected his responsibility of her while friends with Grindelwald. The fight in which she died was between all three men with the dark wizard wanting to send her to St. Mungo's, Albus wanting to hire a caretaker, and Abe wanting to take care of her himself.
Harry had spent a lot of time in quiet conversation with the portrait of Ariana Dumbledore that hung over the mantel in the silent bar. She spoke very little, but was an angel when listening to someone else's troubles. Henry wasn't sure why, but every time the Headmaster was mentioned around Harry, he now went all cold and stiff and refused to talk about him. Of course, as far as he was concerned, this was a good thing. Aside from the invasion of his privacy, he didn't trust the way Dumbledore had told his brother how the mirror worked or how he had suspected Quirrell but done nothing about it. It was as though the Headmaster wanted them to face near death so that they would come out stronger in the end. It made no sense coming from a man whose profession demanded that he protect the children under his care.
Sighing, Henry glanced at the letters on his desk again. He had attempted to talk to Draco about all of these worries, but the letters hadn't gone through. Maybe he should write to Blaise or Pansy and ask if they knew what was going on with his best friend. At the very least, maybe he could find out when Draco was going to Diagon Alley for his supplies and waylay him there.
-o-0-o-
Harry grinned at the bleating white head with the curling horns that was head butting him, trying to get some more of the grain in the bag he was holding. Aberforth had six goats that he kept in separate pens in the back yard of the Hog's Head. Every single one of them was white with long curled horns over their ears and well-kept little beards on their chins. All of them were also male. Harry had decided that today he was finally going to ask the question he and Hen had been pondering all summer.
"Abe?" he asked, starting out casually.
"Hm?" was the grunted reply.
"Why are all of your goats male? And why do you keep them in separate pens?"
The older man stopped and turned to look at the boy who was trying unsuccessfully to remove the corner of his grain bag from the goat's stubborn teeth. Harry was obviously trying to appear nonchalant.
"Gryffindors," he muttered softly under his breath. "No tact." Raising his voice, he decided to sate the boy's curiosity, "They aren't male."
Harry paused, leaning slightly to the side to glance between the legs of the goat he was feeding and then at the ones in the pens on either side. "I beg to differ."
Abe grinned. "They aren't male. They aren't female either. They're both."
"BOTH?" Harry asked incredulously. "How? Why?"
The bartended laughed to himself as he remembered how it had started. "When I was much younger, I decided to get Albus back a bit more properly than just breaking his nose. So I started working on inventing a charm to let men get pregnant. I figured I'd just cast it on old Albus once I got it right, and then he'd get himself in trouble and be the first wizard to give birth." He laughed again. "Of course, I wasn't thinking about the poor child born from my brother, but that's beside the point now."
"So what happened?" Harry had stopped fighting the goat and was watching Abe with round eyes.
"Well, I had it near about perfect, but I needed to test it. And I wasn't about to test it on myself, mind. But I happened to have a pair of male goats that, well, were rather fond of each other, if you get my meaning."
Harry nodded.
"So I cast it on one of them and then waited a few weeks to see what happened. Soon enough it became apparent that ol' Al was pregnant." Abe pointed to the ugly old goat that he had named after his brother. "So I went ahead and cast it on my brother. Of course he ruined it by not getting involved with anyone after Gellert, but it's just as well." He shook his head ruefully as he looked at the penned up goats. "Turns out, the spell worked the way I planned, but for one flaw. Every goat born after that has been both male and female. I think muggles call them hermaphrodites. Except for these guys, both sets of organs are functional. So they can both get pregnant and make the others pregnant. That's why I have to keep them separate."
Harry looked at the goat next to him with wide eyes. "Isn't creating and testing a charm like that kind of… illegal?" he asked finally.
Abe sighed and nodded. "Yeah. The ministry gave me a pretty hefty fine for doing it. And I have to keep this little herd here separate from other goats until they all pass away. I'm still working on paying them off. I'd probably have managed it by now if I weren't so determined to keep Albus away from my bar." He winked at the Gryffindor boy, whom he had shared a little secret with the week before.
The Hog's Head wasn't really dirty. It was simply covered floor to ceiling in charms to make it appear dirty and badly kept. There were smearing charms on all the glasses, potions stains on every rag, apron, and tablecloth, magical cobwebs covered the ceiling and filled corners, stubbornly resistant to being swatted down by a broomstick. The regular patrons were in on the joke, and it was considered polite to wear a dark hooded cloak into the bar to add to the atmosphere.
Harry shook his head in amazement at his summer guardian. "So the Headmaster is a… a hermaphrodite?"
Abe grinned. "Yup. The Ministry never bothered to make a counter for it, and my dear brother never admitted that I had cast it on him. And that's a rumor I dare you to spread around the school this coming year. I can't wait for Albus to come down here and demand to know what stories I've been spreading around about him." He frowned, realizing that that would make Albus visit him. "On second thought, maybe you had better not."
Harry howled with laughter and went back to feeding the goats.
-o-0-o-
On the morning of July 31st, the boys came downstairs to find their Potions professor sitting at the bar, wrapped in a hooded cloak and wearing a scowl.
"Professor!" Harry cried in surprise. "What are you doing here?"
Snape grimaced, lowering his hood. "The Headmaster has somehow managed to coerce me into taking you to Diagon Alley again this year. I have come to collect you."
"Excellent!" Henry said. "Draco will be there today as well. I asked the Headmaster if we could go today, but he told me he wasn't sure if someone would be available."
Snape's eyes fastened onto Henry's. "You have been in contact with Draco?"
He shook his head sadly. "I had to ask some of the other Slytherins to ask him when he was going. All my letters keep getting returned when I send them."
The Professor nodded. "Very well, come along. Abe, I will speak with you some more when I return," he promised the barkeeper.
The trio used the floo connection in the Hog's Head to travel to the Leaky Cauldron in London before making their way into the alley.
"What sort of marks did you receive at the end of last year?" the Professor asked curiously, leading them to Gringotts.
"I think Hermione had top marks in almost everything for our year," Harry volunteered, "but I had the highest grade in DADA and Henry somehow managed to beat out Draco in your class, sir."
Snape smirked. "I'm sure he will be quite upset with you over that, Mr. Potter," he told Henry.
They trundled down to the vault and refilled their moneybags for the year. Reemerging from the darkness of the bank, they saw that there was some sort of event being held at Flourish and Blotts.
"No doubt the idiot Dumbledore hired for Defense this year is making a nuisance of himself." Snape sneered. "Let's get your books last. Hopefully by then the crowd will have dissipated and Henry can spend a little more time perusing books, since he could not last year." He smiled down at his student and led them first into the apothecary.
"Two second year ingredient sets," Henry asked politely. "Professor, neither of us has grown enough for new robes, so other than ingredients and books, we only really need to visit the creature store to get treats for Serash and Hedwig and get Harry a broom at the Quidditch store."
"A broom, Mr. Potter?" Snape asked, looking at Harry.
The boy blushed. "I'm going to try out for seeker on the Gryffindor team this year, sir. And I know Draco is doing the same for Slytherin, so I'm going to need a good enough broom to keep up with him."
"And I take it you aren't much of a Quidditch player?" he asked Henry.
"No, sir." Hen grinned. "I prefer my books, thanks."
Snape gave him a strangely fond smile and led them across the street to the Magical Menagerie. Harry got some owl treats, while Henry pretended to get some for cats but actually bought a bag of desiccated mice for his snake familiar that could be reconstituted with a simple charm. It would be nice to have something to give his pet when the snake was unable to hunt anything himself.
Their final stop before the bookstore was Quality Quidditch Supplies. Despite his lack of interest in the game, Henry still enjoyed looking over the sleek designs that had been released over the summer in preparation for World Cup tryouts. There were two new top line brooms that Harry was having trouble choosing between. The baby blue Cirrus 6000 was the more well rounded of the two, with equal ability in speed, breaking, and maneuverability, and capable of higher altitudes than most brooms. But the Nimbostratus 10 had raw power and speed, which better suited Harry's seeker abilities.
"Get the Cirrus," Snape told him.
Harry looked up at him curiously. "Why?"
"It is more deceptive," the professor explained, "It may not be as fast or as powerful as the other broom, but I think with your abilities you will be able to get more out of it. You may be a seeker, but from what I have seen of your flying, you perform more towards agility than brute strength. The Nimbostratus would only suit a very few number of seekers I have seen fly. You are not one of them."
Henry nodded at the man's assessment. "He's right. You need a broom that will let you turn the other way at top speed. Only the Cirrus will do that."
After considering the thunder grey Nimbostratus for another moment, Harry decided they were right and found a sales clerk to request one of the Cirrus models.
"Sixty galleons," the man told him, not moving to get the broom until he was sure the kid could pay.
Harry handed over the money with no argument and a few minutes later left the store with a lightly wrapped broomstick in one hand.
"Books?" Henry asked the professor eagerly.
"Books." Snape hid a smile by looking away.
The activity around the bookstore had, thankfully, died down to almost nothing. Apparently whoever had been drawing the crowd was now gone.
"Who is the new Defense professor?" Harry asked curiously. "And please tell me he's not as worthless as Quirrell was."
Henry blanched as they entered and were confronted with a giant cardboard cutout of a blue-eyed blond-haired man winking and smiling at them with his blindingly white teeth. "No," he whispered in horror.
"Yes," Snape grumbled.
"The new DADA professor is worse than Quirrell, Har. He's a fraud. A completely worthless lay about who only cares about one thing: himself."
Harry looked at the poster his brother was staring at with horror. "This guy? How do you know anything about him?"
"I got all those extra books last year, remember? Every single one that mentions defense says that this guy is the absolute worst authority on DADA. How in the name of Merlin did he get the job at Hogwarts?" Henry asked Snape.
The dark-eyed man sneered. "Charm."
"We're meant to buy his entire series!" Harry cried indignantly.
Henry snorted. "Don't bother. Second year we should be studying more creatures and start in on minor curses. Follow me, I'll find us some useful books to study instead of Lockhart's masterpieces of fraud."
They walked around the corner towards the defense section and came upon Mr. Weasley and Mr. Malfoy practically lunging at each others' throats. As soon as Draco's father saw the Potters round the corner, however, he stuffed something small in his hand inside of a tattered copy of Beginning Potions and dropped it into the youngest Weasley's cauldron.
"Good day, Arthur," he snarled before motioning to the previously hidden form of Draco and stalking past the Potters and Snape on his way out of the shop. As the blond boy passed Henry, he thrust a folded piece of parchment into his chest and let it go. Henry just managed to catch it and watched the Malfoys leave the shop.
"What was that about, Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked, approaching the group of red heads. He shared a smile with Ron and raised his eyebrows when the girl holding the cauldron blushed furiously and promptly dropped it.
"I'm not entirely sure," Arthur admitted. "It was somewhat uncharacteristic of Lucius to pick a fight with me so violently and publicly."
Henry gallantly picked up Ginny Weasley's cauldron and the potions book that had fallen out of it and returned them to her with a smile.
"Th-thank you," she stuttered.
"No problem." Hen grinned.
Mrs. Weasley was studying the shelves of Lockhart's books with a worried frown. "I don't understand why they don't have any used copies. I mean, he's a popular, brilliant man, but surely someone would return a book every once in a while?"
"Mrs. Weasley?" Harry said. "Hen was telling me that he could find us better books for this year among the regular defense section. I'm sure there would be used versions with the same information. The new DADA professor is only asking for Lockhart's books because he is Lockhart."
"Really, dear?" Molly asked Henry, who nodded reassuringly. "In that case, could you pick out a first year book for Ginny and whatever books you're getting for Ron? She'll be starting Hogwarts this year and it seems that only the students through third year need the full set, so the twins and Percy are fine."
"Sure thing, Mrs. Weasley." Henry started perusing the defense section, pocketing the letter from Draco and something else as he filled a basket with books for the others. "Harry, why don't you look at these too?" he asked. "Since you're top of the year in DADA, you should find these more interesting than most of your other textbooks."
"Oh, all right." Harry sighed and squatted down to look at one of the lower shelves. A book on dueling techniques immediately caught his eye.
"Here you go, Mrs. Weasley." Henry handed over a basket that had two defense books for Ron and one for Ginny, all of them reasonably well cared for used books.
"Thank you very much, dear. I'll just go pay for these, then. Why don't you and Harry grab the rest of your books and we can all go eat at the Leaky Cauldron for lunch?" she offered.
"Can we?" Harry pleaded to Snape with big eyes. He was holding a small stack of defense books in addition to the other required texts for this year.
The professor sighed. "I suppose. Merlin knows I'd rather take my time getting back to the castle. Albus has been running me ragged trying to finish the repairs on the wards before September 1st."
The two boys quickly paid for their books before the potions professor could change his mind.
Lunch in the Leaky was a splendid affair. All of the younger Weasleys plus their parents, the Potters, and Snape took over the largest table in the center of the pub and shared a delicious meal. The younger children caught up with one another and Henry quickly realized that Ginny had a horrible crush on both he and Harry. Hero-worship one might call it. She barely spoke a word through the whole meal, and kept dropping bits of sandwich and chips in her lap every time one of them looked at her. He decided that it was rather nice, even if he was too far from proper puberty to really appreciate the attention and reciprocate.
At the end of the meal, everyone promised to meet on the platform and share a compartment back to school and the twins plus Snape flooed back to the Hog's Head with all of their purchases.
Harry and Henry both dashed upstairs to put their things away while the Potions Master loitered around the bar with his hood back up as Abe brought him a shot of firewhiskey.
Harry came back down the stairs with his broom in hand to show Abe a few minutes later and was just rounding the corner into the bar area when he heard he and Henry's names.
"And the Potters?" Snape was asking softly, "They've been safe here this summer? No one has bothered them?"
"Albus made sure no one would be able to. It's kept out some of my better customers, but they've been well protected, rest assured."
"Lucius has been in contact with Him."
Abe paused while wiping off a glass to stare at the man across the bar from him.
"He wants them protected as well," Severus continued.
"Why?"
"I don't know." Severus sighed and drained his shot in one gulp. "Keep one eye on them always, Abe." The Potions Master set down his glass and placed three sickles beside it before leaving without another backward glance.
Abe set down the cloth and the glass with a sigh and glanced at the portrait of Ariana. "What should I do, little sister?"
Harry tiptoed away from the corner and back upstairs.
"I thought you were going to Hogwarts to test that out?" Henry asked, glancing up from the letter Draco had handed him.
Harry quickly repeated the conversation he had overheard between Abe and Snape.
Henry sighed and held up his letter. "I think you had better read this. It seems several people have recently taken an interest in our welfare."
Harry took the letter and read it slowly.
Dear Henry,
I want to apologize first, because your letters can't get through the new wards father has placed on the manor. He has ordered me to drop my friendships with you, Harry, Ron, and Hermione and just stick to the others in Slytherin that he approves of. As a result, any letters from you or them can't get through.
I think I may have almost gotten him to reconsider you and Harry, though. But now I don't think that's such a good thing. Two weeks ago a strange man came to the manor and my father has been spending most of his time catering to his every whim. I don't know who he is, and he always goes around wearing a black cloak with the hood up to hide his face. It's so frustrating not to even know what he looks like! But I think I don't really want to know. He really creeps me out, Hen. And he's dangerous. I think it's because of him that father is reconsidering my friendship with you and your brother. He's got these notions now that if I'm friends with you, it will be easier for him and his "associates" to control you.
The only thing that I've been able to find out is that something is going to happen at Hogwarts this year. Father was rather keen on the idea of timing our trip to Diagon Alley to coincide with the Weasleys. I hope to give you this letter there, and one for Ron as well. Share it with Harry, I've told Ron to do the same when he sees Hermione. Then burn it. I have no idea what's going to happen, but I don't want my friends to be in danger because of one of my father's schemes.
One more thing, Henry. Whatever is going to happen, father wants you and Harry to be well out of it. Someone (I suspect our illustrious guest) wants you protected. I'll come to your compartment on the train to threaten everyone. Give me your reply then.
Stay safe,
Draco
"Voldemort?" Harry asked. Hen nodded. "Do you think he's found a new body and is staying with the Malfoys now?"
"Exactly. And that's not all. I know why Mr. Malfoy wanted to be in Diagon when the Weasleys were there. He slipped this diary into Ginny's potions book when he put it back in her cauldron." Henry showed the small leather journal to his brother. He felt strangely fascinated by it, as though it was something he used to own that he had only recently found again.
Harry examined the book, flipping through the blank pages and running his fingers over the embossed letters on the front. "TMR?"
"I would assume that is the name of the prior owner. I've tried thinking of wizard families that have last names ending in 'R' and the list is rather short."
"Ravenclaw," Harry agreed. "Though I'm sure there are other less famous ones that we don't know about. Wait, there was a Demelza Robins on the quidditch team for Gryffindor last year. But she's graduated now. Could be her family."
"Maybe," Henry said reluctantly. "There's a couple other students with 'R' last names, but somehow I doubt it has anything to do with them. That diary looks pretty old, despite the nice condition it's in. Could be someone's parents' I guess."
"There's also the fact it could belong to a muggle or muggleborn or someone like Seamus whose dad is a muggle. The name could be anything really."
"I'd have to research the lines of those we know of when we get back to school to find out for sure," Henry said. He hesitated. "I've been thinking…"
"I was wondering when you were going to tell me your idea for this thing." Harry grinned.
Hen smiled sheepishly. "There's no way that's just a blank diary. Otherwise, Mr. Malfoy wouldn't have tried to give it to Ginny. He hates the Weasleys. It's probably something dangerous."
Harry nodded. "What do you suggest?"
"I think one of us should write in it and see what happens. Just an ink spot on the page. We can destroy it later, but I'd like to know what we're dealing with first."
"All right. You write in it. Let me fetch my wand and I'll cover your back just in case something happens."
"Why me?" Hen complained, sitting down at his desk and laying the book on top.
"Who got the best marks in defense?" Harry teased. "Just hang on a tic, and I'll grab my wand."
Henry pulled out one of his quills, wiping dried ink from the nib and dipping it into the pot of black on the corner of the desk. Harry returned. "Right, go ahead." As his brother brandished his wand at the book, Hen opened it and rested his loaded quill against the clean parchment. A large black spot soaked into the page and, as they watched, was absorbed.
"Definitely not normal," Harry muttered.
"I'm going to try asking who 'TMR' is," Henry said. He wrote out the sentence and watched as the ink disappeared once more. This time, however, a new stream of ink appeared in someone else's handwriting.
'Tom Marvolo Riddle. Who are you?'
Henry slammed the book shut and threw it into an empty drawer on the desk, his face pale.
"Right. Well now we have a name to look up. I don't like the fact that it can hold a conversation, though," said Harry.
"Me either. Let's leave it alone until school starts. We can find out who that is and then destroy it."
"Why not get rid of it now?" Harry asked, confused.
Henry hesitated. Why not? "Because… knowing who it belonged to might not answer the question of what the diary has to do with what Mr. Malfoy is planning at the school. We might have to ask it more questions if that's the case."
"All right." Harry frowned at his brother. Hen was staring intently at the closed drawer, a fine line of sweat forming in the creases on his forehead. He pulled his twin to his feet. "Come on, let's go read some of those books you picked up for us. Might as well do it before school starts."
"You're not going to go flying?" Hen asked in surprise. A weight seemed to lift from his shoulders once they left the study room.
"Nah. I can go tomorrow. I'm actually pretty interested in reading that book on dueling I found. After Flitwick's duel for the Stone last year, I feel like it would be good to know how."
"All right." Henry glanced back at the closed door to the study but followed Harry into their room to select a book to read. A niggling feeling in the back of his mind kept distracting him from the first chapter, so he eventually gave up and went downstairs to help Abe with the dinner patrons.
That night, Henry dreamt of a boy who looked remarkably like himself and Harry. He was taller, and older, with well-kept black hair that just reached his collar and stormy grey-green eyes. He whispered things in Henry's ear all night. And in the morning, he couldn't remember what he had dreamt about at all.
-o-0-o-
A/N: MUWAHAHAHAHAHA!! Please read and review! P.S.—I realize that I had totally forgotten about Serash (or really, didn't have any reason to bring him up) but he's not going to be essential to this story. I just wanted Henry to have a better handle on his Parseltongue before year two and to have a familiar that wasn't an owl.
~Shara