Thank you everyone for following the story and for the kind reviews. =)
Goldpen, you're right of course. The fact is that in Italy we usually use as speech indicators (or - - for me since I'm lazy) and " " are used mostly for thoughts. I'm used to read with the right indicators in english but for some reasons I didn't think about it while writing, I changed them in all the chapters now. I'm glad you like the story =D
Chapter 7
-Love of Legend-
When he woke up Aries found himself on the softest bed he ever slept on. Being too tired to care the previous night, he examined his new room.
The floor was a shining silver marble with emerald green soft rugs here and there. His bed was a big four poster that could house at least four people, on the bedpost there were fine cavings of snakes slithering between the grass, the soft black silk sheets caressed his skin and the pillows were big and soft. The curtains of the bed were tied to the posts so he could see the rest of the room. He swung his legs over the bed and walked around.
A wide window took almost the entirety of a wall leading to a private balcony from where he could see the gardens and woods, there was a wide couch in front of it where he knew he would spend a lot of time.
On the right there was the entry to another room, his private study where the walls were covered in shelves so he could store his books there were an ancient looking desk with a comfortable looking armchair behind and a couple of couches in front of the fireplace. It was done in a soft cream color with little accents of black. Another door led to his walk in wardrobe where, with a flick of his wand, he stored all his clothes that were in the trunk and did the same with the books in the study soon after. The last door led to his bathroom. It was done in marble too, light greens and white were the colors. He could see a big shower a and a pool like tub on one side.
He decided to take a warm shower before going down for breakfast.
Putting on a pair of black trousers and a red button up shirt he remembered his familiars.
"How do I call an elf here?" he thought out loud.
There was a sharp crack and an elf wearing a uniform with the Slytherin crest appeared. "What Dibby can do for young Master?"
"Um, could you go to Black beach in LA and retrieve the animals in the house? And then bring the dragon, falcon and wolf to Kieran please." he asked.
The elf nodded and after a few minutes his familiars were with him. Yoru was excited at the new place and was running around pouncing on invisible things. Vidar on the other hand preferred to curl on the bed and take a nap, same with Charon who went to his perch.
Only after walking around for a few minutes he realized he did not know where the dining room was.
"Are you lost dear?" the voice of his mum greeted him from one of the paintings.
"Yeah. Can you help me mum?" he asked, delighted in being able to finally use the word.
"Of course, prince. Come I'll lead you." she went from painting to painting until they arrived in the right room.
Everybody was already there so he took a seat on the right of his father, who was at the head table reading the paper and making disgusted expressions.
"Morning pup" greeted Sirius opposite to him. He smiled and bade good morning to the others too.
Breakfast went in silence, apart from the twins no one were morning people.
"Anything interesting on the paper?" Kieran asked at the tenth grunt from the man.
"If you deem interesting the idiot Fudge promoting the toad Umbridge to Undersecretary of the Minister…then yes" he was not a morning person, and people's idiocy made it worse.
"That woman? It's ridiculus!" complained Sirius.
"Who is she?" inquired Aries not knowing what was so wrong with her. He did not doubt that the ministry was full of idiots but to deserve such treatment she must have done something particular.
"She's the imbecile bigot who drafted the anti-werewolf legislation that makes impossible for them to find a work and lead a decent life. Of course the mighty Dumbledore was too busy to stop that from happening, sucking his lemon drops and such.. Also she wants to round merpeople and.. don't remember. But knowing the kind maybe she plans to shot them. She despise any kind of half breed, funny thing since she looks like an hybrid toad in pink run over by a truck." Kieran explained in his best 'I know everything but I'm too bored' voice while reading a newspaper from LA. It was still a very sexy voice in Aries opinion.
"Exactly" agreed Tom "nice to see you're not an idiot, too" hell would freeze over before he let an ignorant brat anywhere near his son. The twins laughed out loud at that , they liked Kieran from what they'd seen so far and were happy their little brother had found someone special.
Aries wrinkled his nose, his boyfriend was not an idiot. "So is she on your hit list?"
"Weren't you the one against killing?" Tom arched an eyebrow, still put out that he could not kill the despicable muggles.
Shrugging his shoulders Aries replied calmly "I don't like her" and then got back to his toast.
"Luciuss!"
Said man hurried down the stairs at his wife scream, fearing something bad happened. It was not always that a Malfoy did such things.
They were not the frigid people they portrayed to the public of course, that was just a mask. Like every pureblood they could not be seen as weak and being feared helped keep the gold diggers away.
In the privacy of their house, Lord Malfoy was a caring father and a loving husband. Just as Narcissa was a gentle and motherly woman and Draco was not the spoiled prejudiced brat he portrayed at school.
"Narcissa, what it is?" he asked entering the family living room. Said woman was crying and laughing at the same time while holding a letter close to her chest.
"He's back! He's back!"
"Who is back, Cissy?" he was starting to get worried. His wife was not making any sense.
"Our godson, Luce! He found him! He's alive!" she insisted shoving the letter in his face.
He scowled at the treatment and opened the crumpled piece of paper.
Dear Lucius,
I have great news my friend. Upon returning to the manor Selena revealed that our son is alive.
Only yesterday, on his birthday he contacted me after finding his real identity. He's here with me now and I would like to invite your family for lunch with us.
Please extend the invitation to Severus, I know he's most likely holed up in your potion lab.
Tom Riddle
P.S. we all have a bad past with Aries so be on your best behavior. The grumpy bat too.
The man was confused at the mention of a bad past. Who could the boy have been before?
Leave it to Dumbledore to change his godson identity for his purposes ..
"Oh Fuck!"
"Lucius! Don't swear, it's unbecoming to a Lord." his wife scolded him like she would with their son "And what's the problem? Are you not happy?"
"Of course I'm happy, Cissy dear. I just realized that me and our son were both on very bad terms with Aries in the last years." she did not understand so he supplied "Harry Potter"
She gasped, horrified at the thought that her godson, her best friend Selena's baby, could hate them. She would have to talk with her dragon and knock some sense into him. It was at times like this that she hated the pureblood mask. And Dumbledore, more than usual.
Heading upstairs she went to her son bedroom. He was surely still asleep, being very lazy during summer, but she could pass over that after all he worked hard during school term to have perfect scores.
"Dragon, dear. I need you to wake up." she shook the boy lightly by the shoulder and ordered him to wash and dress, they had important family matters to speak about.
Meanwhile Lucius went in the dungeons to call Severus. His friend always came to the manor during the summer. He tried to be as far away as possible from the manipulative headmaster, who forced him to teach in the school after the first war.
Severus loved Hogwarts even if it was full of bad memories, courtesy of Potter senior, it was a safe haven from home when he was a child. But he absolutely loathed teaching children, as much as he loved potions, he had not the patience to deal with them.
Another reason Severus took refuge with the Malfoys was that after the first war and the trials even if he was acknowledged as a spy for the light, thanks to his perfect acting, his vaults and assets remained blocked by the ministry. No doubt a move of the old man to try and control him.
Severus was a rich man after all, being the only heir to the Most Noble and Most Ancient House of Prince. But Prince Manor and vaults remained inaccessible for him. He lived on the profits made by selling his potions and the patents of his inventions. Being a genius came handy in such situations.
Opening the door of the lab he was assaulted by the fumes of the many potions his friend was working on.
"Sev, I need you upstairs. News came from Tom." he told him from the doorway.
"I'm coming, give me a minute"
"So, what are the plans for today?" asked the twins after breakfast. They were all reunited in the family living room, the same where they appeared the day before.
"I'm going for a run, I think" replied Kieran from his armchair, while pulling Aries to sit on his lap.
"Why would you do that?" inquired Sirius, grinning at his blushing godson.
"Because, dear uncle, I like to keep in shape. The reason why English aurors sucks so much is because they are not taught to exercise, and the majority of the purebloods think something like running is below them. They're all a bunch of lazy idiots that will find themselves out of breath after a minute of dueling and let's not talk about their inability to fight without a wand." he criticized.
"So, you know how to fight? Muggle style I mean?" inquired Remus.
"Of course, we are trained in several martial arts and to use any kind of weapon too. My school is very strict about it" he omitted saying that it was not simple exercise, they were all highly trained warriors.
"Cool!" exclaimed the twins "you have" "too teach us" "oh great master!"
"Why don't you come to run with us then?" proposed Aries smiling. He had already started to exercise while in Los Angeles, and luckily he wasn't in a so bad shape. He could keep up with Key while running without problems, but needed to gain some muscle. Then Kieran promised to teach him some martial art suited for him and how to use the weapons they brought. He could not wait to know how to use his katana.
"If you need it" intercepted Tom "the manor has a fully equipped gym. I completely agree with you on the matter staying fit. Just call for an elf and they will show you the way"
"Thank you, sir" he would have to remember going to look at it.
"You can call me Tom. We have guests for lunch so don't be late, son. Now, if you excuse me I have evil paperwork waiting for me." he got up and headed to his office with a resigned expression on his face. Who knew being a dark lord meant paperwork?
"What is so important that you had to drag me away from my potions?" inquired a very grumpy Severus.
"Sev, Draco. I know what you think of the young Potter" started Lucius eyeing the two "forget it!"
Both were going to protest or say something not very nice about the golden boy, but he stopped by raising his hand "no, I'm serious. Tom would be most displeased with you." he stressed "He just found his lost son, who I think may be Potter, and invited us to lunch. I don't want to give my godson an even worse impression than he already has on us."
"Don't be ridiculus, Luc" Severus could not believe it "the Potter brat is.."
"He's not a Potter, Sev. He's the son of Selena, the woman you saw like a sister, and Tom. You need to let go of this hatred towards him" implored the blond. "and even if he wasn't, he didn't do anything to deserve your treatment of him, just because he looks like his father you should not forget he is Lily's son."
"If he is really Aries, as you think, I will forget about it. And even apologize to the boy. Happy now?" yielded the black haired wizard, but still not ready to give up his hatred towards Potter.
"Yes, immensely" he smirked "You too Draco. I know that you're still not happy that he refused your hand in such a way in first year, but he was raised by muggles. I doubt he realized the insult of such an action. And your rivalry is petty and problematic, you should try and play nice" attempting to make him see reason with words was worth a try.
"But father I .."a stern look from said man silenced him. "As you wish father" he obeyed with a resigned sigh. Severus patted his leg in a show of solidarity. They were both on the same boat.
"Oh I can't wait to see Aries! He must be a beautiful boy, with such good looking parents.. maybe he'll let me take him to do some shopping.." she trailed on while the men dutifully nodded without listening to a single word she said, all of them lost in thought.
Draco always wanted to become friends with Harry Potter, having grown up with all his stories it was not a surprising thing. Even with his child mind he knew a lot of these things were invented, but he was still famous. After meeting him he knew he was not how the wizarding world imagined.
The boy was like a puzzle he could not solve, one moment he was a reckless lion and the next you could nearly see him acting like a snake. He was also a good liar, noticed Draco during the years, but there was always that something in his eyes that he could not decipher.
What he really did not understand was how could he accept Weasley's friendship? Never mind the boy was as good as a muggle, but even an idiot could see the weasel was around only for the reflected fame that came with being the best friend of the boy-who-lived. You have to be really naïve not to notice, and Potter was not that bad, was he?
Still, his father wanted him to play nice, not so difficult, without the red head to insult him around scarhead seemed almost bearable.
Severus was conflicted. He had to be civil with Potter. If Aries was really the same boy he tormented in the last four years.
He hated Potter so much. Not only he made his life hell at school, but took away Lily from him.
He was not in love with her, contrary of popular belief on the light side. No, Lily was like a little sister for him, just like Selena.
Having grown up together with the red head girl, they were very close, but house rivalry tried to keep them apart. Where that failed, Potter succeeded.
After six years, Potter made her fall for him, and soon she spent less and less time with him. Even after the incident when he called her a mudblood they remained close, she was understanding because the marauders had been taunting him until seconds before and he was not known for patience.
He regretted her death, more than anything. But as much as he wanted to blame himself for delivering the prophecy to Tom, when he was in his pained state, he knew who was really to blame.
Dumbledore was the one to make the false prophecy, and make sure he listened on the conversation. He was the one that pushed the Potters into hiding, practically drawing a huge target on them.
He loathed the Potter boy only because he looked so much like his father, he never tried to see him any different, he was really blind as to who Harry Potter was. He sighed admitting to himself that either way, he would have to be civil with both Aries and the Potter boy, the two mothers would never forgive him if he did otherwise.
Albus Dumbledore started the day really well. He had his usual cup of tea while reading the last letters and reports. Nothing unusual.
That was until the whole Order of the Phoenix barged in his office. They were all shouting but he could make the words "headquarters" "closed" "twins". Thinking of the worst, being the devil twins involved he casted a silencio on the whole group, leaving only Moody able to talk.
"Now, Alastor my friend would you be so kind to tell me what is the problem?" he inquired before taking one of his laced lemon drops. He felt he would need the calming effect of the draught.
"The house is closed. No one can enter. And the twins cannot be found." he summed up.
"It is not possible. I am the one to hold the fidelius and .." something was missing. He searched in his mind for the tread of magic linked to said charm. He widened his eyes in horror realizing that it was not there anymore. It was impossible! He was powerful enough to hold the magic, the only other option would be that the Lord Black broke it and ordered all of them to be evicted from the house. Sirius would never do it, the man was not even officially Lord of the House, without the ring he couldn't do anything. And he was still loyal to him, completely under his thumb, the idiot would go mad in a matter of weeks inside that house unable to go out, just like he planned before getting rid of him once and for all.
He noticed that along with the twins, Remus and Sirius were missing too. Probably it was just a prank of theirs that in some way managed to interfere with the fidelius charm. He would have to have a serious talk with them, to find out what they did and make sure they knew he was disappointed in them. The grandfatherly act always worked on this idiots.
"I'm sure it is all an armless prank. Go back to your homes, all will go back to normal soon." he reassured his followers while stroking his long beard.
He was starting to lose patience with the pranksters, always creating commotion in the headquarters and during meetings. Maybe he could convince Molly to leave her noisy offspring at the Burrow, and send the wolf to a mission somewhere away from England. Yes, that would work nicely.
In the end both the twins and the marauders joined them running. It was hilarious, with Gred and Forge cracking jokes and Remus making fun of Sirius who complained he was going to die at every step.
"Come on, you lazy mutt! You're not going to die for so little" grinned the wolf, his curse was useful for something at least, great strength and stamina. The animagus was sprawled on the ground at the end after an hour of jogging around the manor.
It was still to take into consideration that the man did not move for twelve years, blocked in a little cell in Azkaban. He would have to follow a strict diet regimen and work hard to get back to a good physical condition.
"How is the shop going?" the green eyed wizard asked, while sitting with in back against a tree. Aries gave his winnings of the tournament to the twins so they could realize they dreams, he hoped it was going well.
"We found a possible location" "for the shop" "but because of the order" "and our mother too" "we could not contact" "the owner yet" they replied in the usual twin talk.
"Maybe we could go together tomorrow" proposed Aries.
"We would love" "for our investor" "to come!" they were also planning of making Aries owner of a share of their shop so it would be great to go together.
"Brilliant. After all I may decide to invest more in your project." he grinned.
"What kind of shop would that be?" inquired Key who was laying on the ground with his head on Aries legs.
"Pranks of course!" the twins plus Aries exclaimed in unison. Sirius grinned at the idea, maybe the marauders could share some of their tricks. He missed playing and inventing pranks.
"What products are you planning on selling?" Remus too was intrigued at the idea. Merlin knows their world needed a good laugh.
"Canary Creams" "Extendable Ears" "Ton-Tongue Toffee" "Love potions" "and we're working on more!" they listed proud of their ideas.
"Sounds promising" chuckled Kieran "pity here in England you're limited with what you can use" he smiled mysteriously and then got up stating he needed a shower.
"May it be that my nephew is a prankster too?" wondered Sirius looking at the other. Aries just shrugged his shoulders and followed the other.
Saying that Aries was nervous when lunch time came was understatement. He was pacing in his room trying to decide what to wear. Should he go casual? Or maybe formal?
"Ssstop pacing around, you're giving me a headache!" snapped Vidar from his spot on the bed."asss if the hyperactive cub wassn't enough" he complained sending a glare at the playing ball of fur.
"Sshe's young. What ssshould I wear?" Aries was reduced to implore his familiar for advice.
"The black trousserss and the emerald shirt. It bringss out your eyesss. Now let me sssleep" he grumbled.
"But what if they..?" "They won't do anything. Your father will curssse them before they even could think of doing ssomething. If not I'll bite them. Now get out of here" smiling Aries put on the clothes suggested and went back downstairs after stroking lovingly the basilisk.
Kieran was already in the living room reading a book seated on the couch when he arrived. He went there and curled up next to his boyfriend who wrapped an arm around him.
"Nervous my little Emerald?" he whispered in his ear making him shiver.
"Yeah. A bit… ok a lot" he rectified after a look from the other. He could not avoid it, Snape and both Malfoys hated him for years. Would a name change make a difference for them?
"Aries.." he started while the boy put his head in the crook of his neck "they don't know you, never did. They saw the golden boy or a replica of their childhood tormentor and nothing else. Now they have a chance to see the real Aries. And I really doubt your godparents would be mean towards you. You told me also that Snape was close friends with your mother" he tried to reason with the insecure boy.
"He was friends with Lily too, but he still treated me like shit." complained the green eyed wizard.
"You're too stubborn for your own good" he smiled while ruffling his little boyfriend's hair "and thinking too much too. No one would let them upset you, love. Don't worry." he lowered his head and kissed him softly trying to calm him and letting him know that he was there for him.
Aries lost himself in the kiss, like always happened. It was like a pleasurable infusion of love, confidence and sense of protection. He would never stop, pity he needed air.
He nestled back on Kieran side with a small smile on his lips. Soon all the others came, waiting for the guests to join them.
The floo flashed green meaning the guests were arriving. One by one the Malfoys and Snape appeared in the living room, cleaning themselves of the ash.
'Here we go' thought Aries taking a deep breath. He hoped nothing bad would happen.