"Go!"

There wasn't a person in the entire Manor who didn't feel the intense shaking of the building, and yet, there were only a few who knew what could have caused it. So, when Draco came walking through the foyer, headed to the kitchen, while arguing with Remus, Fred and Ron followed with intense curiosity.

"He was trying to explain to me why it wasn't in my best interest to blow that bi…uh, Misti, off the face of the Earth and I was being, stubborn…"

"An arse would be my guess," Remus muttered.

"Well, yes; I mean she could have killed my Mum. Anyway, I wasn't listening and he was getting frustrated, then he was glowing and shaking and I knew something was about to happen so I told him to go and then…boom," Draco finished casually shrugging his shoulders.

"Uh, shouldn't we go and check on him?" Narcissa said worriedly as she walked into the kitchen with Severus and the remaining Weasley's.

"Yeah, I will. I just want to give him a minute to calm down and for the debris to settle. If I get hit with something again, he's liable to blow the place up."

"How can you be so cavalier about this? What if he's hurt?" Hermione asked.

Severus waved Draco to the stairs as he answered, "Because we've been through this before and Draco is very capable of helping Harry when he gets like this. They'll be fine. Let's all have a seat and wait. Harry will be quite embarrassed when he comes up and Draco will try to convince him that there's no need."

"Severus, how often does this happen?"

"Well," he began as he pulled the chair out for Molly, "I believe there have been only three other instances. This is the first in a while."

Molly was worried for Harry and she and Narcissa exchanged a worried look as the rest of the inhabitants settled around and the elves appeared with tea and biscuits.

"Temper, temper love."

"Shut it you prat." Harry was brushing the brick dust off his pants and shirt as he walked out of the basement. "Are you done being a stubborn arse?"

"Yeah, I guess."

Harry kissed Draco and smiled, "I understand how you feel. I would have reacted the same way."

"Well why in the hell didn't you say that before? We could have avoided destroying this corner of the basement."

"Because, regardless of the fact that I would have wanted to blow her off the face of the Earth, I wouldn't have done it. You needed to work your way through it and come to the right decision. Remember that being on the side of good means thinking before acting."

"It's hard to remember when it's someone I love, but I get it." Draco took Harry's hand in his and said, "Hon, everyone is upstairs waiting to see if you're okay and to hear about what happened."

Harry squeezed his hand and smile deviously, "Well, I guess it's best they see what happens when I get mad."

Draco laughed and pulled Harry upstairs for the inquisition.

A flurry of voices hit Harry as he walked through the door and he held his hands up in defeat. "Yeah I know, you all have questions, just hang on and I'll answer them. One at a time."

"Harry dear, are you okay?"

Harry smiled at the statuesque blonde and said, "Yes Cissa, I'm fine."

"Is my basement?"

Harry blushed and sat down. "Right, who's next?"

Harry spent the better part of the next half hour explaining about his power increase and his efforts at controlling it.

"Harry dear, what can we all do to help you?"

Harry walked to his second mother and hugged her fiercely, "Absolutely nothing Molly. Draco's got it under control, contrary to my earlier display. Right now, we've got a little project to work on, so I need Drake, Severus, Remus and the Twins to help."

Hermione smiled, "Molly, Narcissa, I was hoping I could get your help with a little project."

Hermione led the woman into the garden to discuss Harry's upcoming birthday. She was hoping, between the three of them, they could make it a day he wouldn't forget.

"Okay gentlemen, here's what I've come up with…." Ron began explaining the diagrams he'd layed out on the table in the study. He'd slipped from the kitchen once he knew Harry was alright and had begun to set up his plans for the Dursleys.

"So we should get going now if we're to be set in time."

"Severus, I'm leaving now and I need you all to be about fifteen minutes behind me. If there's anything not right when I get there, I'll send my patronus. Ron thanks for putting this together so quickly."

"No problem mate. See you in a few."

Draco walked Harry to the gate of the Manor, where he could apparate from without alerting the rest of the house. "Be safe, I'll be right behind you."

"Relax." Harry placed a soft kiss on Draco's pouting mouth and apparated to Little Whinging.

Harry walked up the path to the front door of the house, where he'd been tortured for most of his childhood, with little trepidation. He knew that when this was over, he would be able to walk away and not look back. This was the easy part.

Harry knocked on the door and waited. He didn't realise he was holding his breath until the door opened and he exhaled.

"What are you doing here freak? I thought we were rid of you."

"Good to see you too Dudley. I need to speak with Aunt Petunia"

"Duddy, who's at the door?"

Petunia walked up behind her rotund son and looked at the boy on the other side of the door, "How dare you come to our door like this. We're done with you. You're not welcome here."

Harry didn't wait to be invited in, he simply walked past the two stunned Dursley's and made his way to the sitting room. He patiently waited on the couch until his Aunt and Cousin finally entered and sat, uncomfortably, across from him.

"I'm here to ask that you not attend your Friday night meal at the club tonight."

"And why ever would we not? We've not missed a Friday dinner since Dudley was borne and we'll not miss this one. You may leave now."

"Actually, I'm not done here yet. Petunia," Harry paused at her gasp, "you are aware of the many dangers in my world. There is now one less as I killed Voldemort, however, you have become the target of someone who is trying to get to me. They believe, wrongly of course, that we have a relationship that will cause me to be so upset by an attack on you, that I will be so grieved that I will become an easy target."

Dudley shifted his bulk closer to his mother as he didn't like this Harry. This Harry wasn't afraid of them. This Harry called his mother by her name as though she was just another adult. This Harry wouldn't back down if Dudley asserted himself.

"And how is it that you know all this? And what exactly makes you think I would even believe you?"

"Look, I've come to see if I can help you by keeping you safe and alive. If you don't want my help, I'm prepared to give it to you against your will. The only choice you really have at this point is whether you want me to openly help you, or make a scene about it."

"You may leave now. We will not be changing any of our plans just because you say. You are not welcome here, not that you ever were, and I will ask that you leave. Now."

"Fine, but you've left me no choice. You will be seeing me again." Harry walked out the door and headed straight to the door of the house across the street. The door opened as he reached it and he walked inside without so much as a pause.

"Am I to understand that it didn't go well?"

"No Severus, it didn't go well. You know how Petunia can be."

Harry walked to the slight woman who cowered by the fireplace and smiled as he leaned in and kissed her cheek. "Mrs. Figg, I can't thank you enough for allowing us to use your home for this. You've always been so kind to me."

The mousey woman smiled, "You were always a good boy and they didn't deserve you. I'm just glad I was able to help." She nodded toward Draco, "Your young man is quite nice as well. I do hope you plan on making his yours permanently."

Harry flushed and laughed, "I haven't thought that far ahead, but I am quite partial to him."

Draco raised an eyebrow at the two smiling faces looking at him. Harry shook his head slightly and Draco nodded, knowing he'd hear all about it later.

"Harry, they're leaving."

"Thanks George."

Remus and Fred place platters of sandwiches on the table along with jugs of juice and water. "Now we wait. Harry, about when will they be home?" Remus asked as he settled himself on a chair by the table.

"They should be home at eight. They're never late so we need to be ready."

At two minutes to eight, George announced, "Here comes a car."

Harry, Remus, Severus, Draco and the Twins gathered by the door ready to burst out fighting at the slightest sign of danger.

"That's not their car."

"Are you sure Harry?"

Harry watched as the car pulled into the Dursley's drive and the trio emerged from the back seat.

Draco was about to comment of the girth of the Dursley men, when the couple in the front emerged, "Bloody hell! Is that who I think that is?"

"Son of a bitch!" Harry hollered as he ran from the door.

As Harry ran across the street, followed by the rest of his band of fighters, the Dursley's graciously welcomed their new neighbours into their home and beckoned them toward the sitting room.

Petunia had just begun to compliment the woman on her lovely ginger hair when Harry burst into the house.

Vernon stood beside the couch his wife was seated and watched as his hated nephew skidded into the room, followed by six men, all with wands drawn. "GET OUT OF HERE THIS INSTANT! YOU ARE NOT WELCOME HERE"

Vernon turned his jowly, reddening face toward their guests to apologise, only to be met with green light jetting from the wand pointed at his face. Petunia screamed as Vernon's fleshy bulk collapsed at her feet and the fighting began around her.

Wolves began to appear, seemingly from nowhere, as Greyback howled, grabbing Petunia by the neck and holding her off the ground like a shield.

"Potter, you will surrender to me now or your humans will die."

Harry laughed, "They aren't my humans and I couldn't begin to care less what you do with them. I will never surrender to you or anyone else."

"Harry please, I don't want to see you hurt. Please just come and fight with us and we'll leave them alone."

"Ginevra," Harry said, his eyes reflecting the sadness his soul felt at seeing the girl he'd always thought of as his sister, standing up for the beast in front of him, "I am disappointed in you. When did you become so much of a coward that you would follow someone so blindly?"

Ginny's face deepened to a red reminiscent of a lobster and threw a string of curses his way.

Harry blocked each curse as though it was nothing but air and sent a stunner her way that hit its mark easily. "She's gotten slow. Now, put Petunia down, surrender and I'll make sure you only get time in Azkaban."

"Ah, cub, I see you're here as well. Any chance I can get you to come to me on your own? If not, I can't say I won't enjoy just taking you. Your father told me of your proclivities before his untimely demise, and I've thought of little else since. I can't wait to be buried inside you."

Draco didn't rise to the taunt; he simply smiled, politely responding, "Like you'll ever get that chance. You have no idea the kind of magic you're messing around with Fenrir. Taunts and threats will not be in your best interest."

"Cub, you couldn't hurt me. You've never been strong enough."

Draco could feel Harry's magic rising with his anger and knew it wouldn't be long before he lost control, "It's not me that you have to worry about wolf. I'm not the one that will be eviscerating you. I'm just here to distract you long enough so the others can do what they are now."

Greyback surveyed the room and discovered his fighters were being challenged by the rest of Harry's group. He watched as Severus bound one of the younger ones and then moved to help Ron with a large russet coloured wolf who had just joined the pack. His confidence in his team faltered when he saw Remus take down his strongest fighter with just a flick of his wand.

He turned his head back to Harry, whose wand was still pointing at his chest, and smiled. With a quick howl, Greyback summoned reinforcements and began throwing curses at the bodies positioned around the room.

Draco erected a shield around himself and then went to help Severus, whose back was unguarded.

"Why involve the muggles?"

"Because I knew you'd come to their defense. You are hopelessly predictable."

Petunia, still hanging from Greyback's hand, whimpered a plea for help and Dudley, who'd been completely still until now, stood demanding, "Put my mother down."

"Or what piggy?"

Dudley lumbered toward the wolf holding his mother, but made it no further than three steps before he was seized by a new arrival, whose own size was just smaller than Greyback's.

"May I?"

Greyback sneered, "Of course, who am I to deny you a meal."

Harry reared back as the wolf's teeth sank into Dudley, who immediately began screaming in pain and begging for help.

Remus, having dispatched three captive wolves to the ministry cells, fired an amped up stunner at the wolf snacking on Dudley and hit his mark square in the back. He bound the wolf and sent him to the holding cells. Dudley lay on the floor beside his dead father bleeding profusely.

Greyback threw his burden toward the fleshy heap on the floor as Harry began to circle in battle stance.

Remus dragged the Dursley's out of the way, with the Twins help, and they all gathered to watch the showdown.

Harry circled to his right keeping his total focus on the wolf in front of him. He felt the magic sizzling across his skin as he threw the first curse, "Diffindo" and watched as a large wound opened on Greyback's arm and blood poured from it.

Greyback quickly fired off an entrail-expelling curse, which bounced off Harry's shield.

"Incarcerous!"

Greyback deflected the spell and countered with "Expelliarmus!"

Harry's wand flew from his hand and everyone gasped. Harry smiled, "That won't help you wolf."

Harry drew a deep breath and as Greyback flung his next hex, "Crucio!," Harry threw "Sectumsempra" and fell to the side as the hex winged him, causing an inordinate amount of pain to fly through his wand arm.

Greyback had a gash open across his chest from his left shoulder down to his right hip and he immediately disapparated, leaving the remainder of his pack to fend for themselves and his blood began to seep into the carpet and mingle with Dudley's and the other's.

Ginny woke, seeing her mate leaving and followed, unnoticed and unhurt. But not before flinging a silent hex at Harry as he fell. Harry never felt the curse hit him, nor did he feel the wound open and the blood begin to flow.

Draco screamed Harry's name as the brunette fell to the floor and was at his side the minute his body touched the carpet. "Are you okay? What can I do? Where did he hit you? Where's all this blood from?"

"Drake calm down," Harry said gasping at the pain in his arm. "The curse just winged me. I'm fine."

"All the blood?"

"Dudley…got bit."

"Harry, I've got him," Remus said, inspecting the wound and dressing it.

Severus was checking Petunia over, deciding that aside from a broken arm her only problem was shock.

Draco help Harry stand and quickly grabbed him as Harry's legs gave out beneath him. "Harry! Uncle Sev, something's wrong. There's so much blood!"

Severus and the Twins ran to Draco's side and saw the wound on Harry's leg, "Its hit the artery, hurry!"

The Twins put pressure on the wound while Severus tore a section of his own robe off and tied it around Harry's thigh to staunch the bleeding. Remus had stopped Dudley's bleeding and, assisted by Ron, had moved the boy and his mother to the kitchen floor. "Mrs. Dursley, my name is Remus Lupin, you and I will need to sit down and have a chat about your son's future in the next couple days. For now, he's doing fine. Please make sure he eats some raw hamburger or a steak within the next two hours and then again as soon as he wakes in the morning. I'll be here tomorrow noon to discuss his future and explain his condition. Also, your husband's body is on the sitting room floor. Unfortunately, his heart gave out in the stress of the robbery attempt."

Petunia simply nodded at the strange man's words, stood and walked to the other room to find her husband. She sank onto the floor beside him and cried for what seemed an eternity then she walked back into the kitchen, picked up the phone and dialed emergency to report the robbery attempt and her husband's death.

Remus addressed Dudley's wound and cast glamour to make it appear as though it was an old injury and not an animal bite. He spoke quietly to the boy before apparating back to Hogwarts where the rest of the party had gone.

"Poppy! Harry's hurt, we need a few blood replenishing potions and…" Severus stopped as the Medi-Witch ran to his side carrying a box labeled 'Harry's injured' and began drawing potions, ointments and bandages from the box.

Severus layed Harry on the bed and stepped back as Poppy cast diagnostic spells to determine the extent of his injuries. A quill scratching the results of the scan was the only sound in the infirmary. Draco had collapsed in the hall outside and Ron and the Twins had gone back to the Manor to explain what had happened.

Remus strode up to the infirmary doors and saw the blonde on the floor, head on his bent knees, and feared the worst. "Draco is he…"

Draco waved his hand at the doors mumbling, "So much blood. So pale."

Remus pushed through the doors and saw Poppy retying the bandage around Harry's thigh and Severus sitting beside the bed with his head in his hands. "Severus?"

Severus looked up at the weary man, "Lost too much blood. I didn't get there fast enough."

"Remus, he'll be fine in a few days. His wound will not magically seal so I'll have to keep him here to redress the wound and clean it over the next twenty four hours. Unless you all have been injured, why don't you head back to the Manor and rest."

"Can Draco come in and see him before we go? He's quite upset."

"Of course. It will do them both some good to see each other right now. Maybe you all can tell me how all this happened."

"Harry squared off against Greyback and he won. He got off easy compared to the wounds on Greyback."

"Gentleman, I believe Mr. Malfoy would like to come in," Minerva said, standing beside the tear stained blonde.

Remus nodded and left, smiling at Draco as he passed. Severus stood and beckoned to Draco who walked forward stiffly, his eyes never leaving the prone form of his boyfriend.

"He's going to be fine Draco," Severus said, embracing him in a one-armed hug. "Stay as long at she'll let you and let me know when you come home."

Draco nodded to Severus' retreating figure and approached the bed. He sat down beside the unconscious boy and took his pale, clammy hand in his, stroking it softly with his thumb.

"Draco, Severus was correct. Poppy has assured me that he will be fine in a couple of days. He needs some blood replenishing potions and some extra nutrient potions but will be just fine. You may stay for an hour but then you need to go home and get some sleep. Your mother will be here to get you when it's time to go."

Draco nodded at Minerva and she left the two alone. "Harry, I'm so sorry. I should have done more. I should have been paying closer attention. I'm sorry I failed you."

"You didn't fail me, Drake," came the weak reply. "I'm alive and so are you."

"Harry, someone hit you with a curse that caused you to almost bleed out. I don't know who, when or what curse. You could have died."

Harry lightly squeezed the hand holding his, "But I didn't. And I owe that to you and Severus. Now stop crying and relax. When can I leave?"

Draco shook himself out of the wallowing guilt and said, "Yeah about that. You're gonna be here for a few days yet." Draco suddenly noticed the twitching in Harry's legs and closed his eyes to focus on the feelings from his partner. "Harry, can you still feel your magic?"

"I feel tingly, but that could be because of the Cruciatus that Greyback hit me with."

"I don't think so. Budge over, I'm coming in." Draco helped Harry scoot over in the bed and climbed in beside him. He draped an arm across Harry's chest and snuggled up to his side, placing his head on his shoulder. "Relax and let your magic flow back to your core. Just close your eyes and rest. I'm not leaving until you're better settled."

Harry pulled Draco closer and breathed in his scent. He felt the aroma flow through him as his body relaxed to the familiar, comforting smell of strawberries, cinnamon and chocolate. He hummed as his muscles began to unclench and he discovered, if he concentrated hard enough, he could see his magic flowing through him. He watched as the golden ribbons slowly retracted into his core and the twitching in his legs stopped.

He looked down at the blonde blanket quietly breathing beside him and smiled. Draco had fallen asleep and had a small smile on his face. Harry leaned down and kissed the top of his head before drifting off to sleep himself.

An hour later, Narcissa walked into the infirmary with Poppy, and found the two in the same position. "Poppy, can't they stay together tonight?"

Poppy looked at the two and smiled, "Yes, well, I suppose there's no reason they can't. Draco's likely got a mild case of shock anyway so the rest will do him good." She smiled at the boys and then turned to Narcissa, "They are quite a pair aren't they."

"Yes, life with my boys in never going to be dull."

Draco snuggled closer as the women left and softly whispered, "I love you Harry," before drifting back to sleep.

AN: Just wanted to say Happy Memorial Day to one and all and thank you all for sharing a little time by reading this. And my biggest thanx for the wonderfully encouraging reviews. I hope this chapter didn't let you down.