AN: I was feeling antsy, so I decided to go ahead and get another chapter done as soon as I could. I know that this is a rare pair, but for those of you who are reading it, I hope you enjoy it so far. I've never written this ship before, so please bear with me on this. I've enjoyed writing it so far though, and I hope I'll be able to see it through.
Also, nothing of the sexual nature will occur until Harry is of age. For now, this will be a friendship with building feelings until later chapters.
A reminder: Harry is Fifteen in this story, not fourteen like in canon.
Also, a warning: This chapter will have Harry talking about his childhood. Be warned for mentions of abuse.
"What do you plan on doing over the summer, Harry?" Barty asked one night, having decided that it would be wise for them to retire to his quarters. Not only would it offer privacy, but it would offer the pair a chance to relax. It wasn't often, besides sleeping that is, that Barty was able to parade as himself and not as an uncomfortable ex-auror. Dumbledore was swamped with dealing with the judges and trying to find out who had placed the trophy in the maze, so it was a bonus for them.
"There's not much I can do," Harry spoke with a scowl, looking elsewhere. "I'll be shipped back to the Dursley's and expected to remain there until Dumbledore deems it worthy that I return to the magical world." The older wizard was looking at him intently, his thoughts racing as he listening to everything the younger one had to say. "I'm safe there, apparently. Blood wards and all." Harry scoffed. "If you ask me, they use it as an excuse to keep me out of the affairs of the wizarding world." Barty was frowning as Harry said that, drumming his fingers in thought.
There was so much that he wanted to comment on, so much that he knew could be fixed if the boy only knew. So, he decided to start off small, wanting to also get to know the other more.
"You mentioned these…. Dursleys. Relatives, I presume?" He tilted his head as the other snorted. "Not overly fond of them I take it?"
"They're the ones who aren't fond of me." Harry chuckled bitterly. "They hate magic with a passion, and that includes me. I'm nothing more than a burden to them, a freak if you will. I hate being trapped there during the summer." His fist clenched automatically at the term and Barty had to swallow down his anger.
"They abuse you." It was a statement and Harry felt his body tense up, giving a jerky nod. "Who have you spoken with about this?"
"Hermione knows and does her best to help me out during the summers by owling me food when she's able. The same goes for the twins. They rescued me, along with Ron in my second year when Vernon placed bars on my window and locked me in the room. They threatened to never allow me to return to Hogwarts and my 'freaky' friends." Barty took a second to calm as his blood began to boil, red hot anger flowing through his veins.
"And they allowed you to go back there each summer? Even when they saw what your home life was like?" He asked slowly, gritting his teeth and clenching his jaw as he finished.
"Dumbledore kept insisting that everything would be fine, and I was overreacting. I first told him about it in my first year here, which he waved off. I tried again in my third year, but he gave me the bullshit excuse about the blood wards. He said that it would be the safest place for me because of it and I found a hard time believing it. I've stopped trying to get him to understand at this point. He doesn't care what happens. If his tool for the war is where he wants it to be, all is fine to him." Harry admitted, looking away again.
From the way the green-eyed wizard spoke, Barty had an inkling that the younger rarely talked about his problems to anyone. He watched as the friendship between him and the youngest male Weasley deteriorated over the year, leaving the boy with a small handful of friends, one of which being the only person Harry would talk to about his home life. It reminded him so very much of the horrors his father put him through- and he had very few friends that he felt close enough to share It with.
Barty was beginning to understand why he felt a connection with the younger wizard. They really were so very alike, almost blatant, in fact. He felt a yearning in his heart as he reached for the younger wizard's hand and grasped it gently. Harry was a little surprised but didn't pull his hand away.
"You're always welcome to talk to me about this if you want. I'm worried you don't have many people that have been willing to listen." He knew that feeling all too well and gave a gentle squeeze to the trembling hand. It took a moment for the other wizard to say anything in return, but he took a shaky breath.
"It's been getting worse," Harry admitted shakily, suddenly finding the courage to talk about it. There was something about Barty that made him trust the man unquestionably. "I'm always terrified of going back there. As each year passes, they become crueler, more violent." Harry's hand was trembling as he spoke, clinging to the warmth of Barty's own hand. It was more comforting than he thought it would be. "And I can't use much wandless magic. I can do some wandless magic sure, but not enough to heal myself every day."
"Every day?" Barty breathed out, keeping tight control over his magic. He didn't want to lash out and scare Harry, not when he was in this state. "What do they do?" He moved closer, still holding his hand.
"It depends. They mostly lock me in the cupboard, or Dudley's old room until it's time for me to cook for them or tend to the chores. I'm required to cook all the meals for them and if I don't do it fast enough, or something's burnt," Harry trailed off, screwing his eyes shut. "Then Vernon gets out his belt." Harry took a steadying breath, nearly choking on the air. "They used to burn me, but they had to stop when the teachers at my primary school began to suspect something. Since then, they always kept the bruises and lashes at spots that could be hidden."
Oh, Barty was so going to kill these disgusting pieces of muggle filth. He would personally drag them into his master's dungeon and have a go at them. They deserved to suffer for all the pain they had caused the trembling wizard resting against his side.
"Dudley had free reign, though. He'd punch me in the face and laugh about it, and they would encourage him to do it. I'm his personal punching bag." Harry snorts sadly, running his other hand through his hair as he tries to control the slight shaking in it. "I'd be more upset if it weren't for the fact that he's an utter idiot. All brawn and no brains-so the muggle version of Crabbe and Goyle." Despite the serious situation, Barty lets out a laugh at the comparison, making Harry smirk at how he could always manage to get a wonderful laugh from this man. He allows the feeling to linger before continuing.
"His group of friends are the same way," He sighs, thinking about it. "They're just as dumb as he is, but they're also as strong as he is. Their favorite game is Harry Hunting." The fake professor frowns at that and tilts his head to the side, tongue flicking over his bottom lip.
"Harry hunting?" He questioned, already dreading the rest of it.
"When we were at primary school, they liked to chase me around at recess and shove me around. I got better at hiding when they nearly broke my arm one day." He paused, holding back another sigh. "It continued more after that. Since I no longer go to school with them, they take it upon themselves to use the summer holidays to torment me."
Barty could tell that there was more Harry wanted to say but was holding back when it went quiet. Shifting closer, he watches him carefully and gives a gentle squeeze in response.
"You don't have to tell me anything you're not comfortable with, Harry." The dark wizard soothes, giving another squeeze, making a small smile etch across the younger wizard's face.
"It's not that, it's just…" Harry trails off, trying to form his thoughts into words. "I'm just thinking about how it wasn't so bad at one point. I was good at dogging things and staying out of arms reach, but it wasn't enough." Harry whispered, swallowing hard as unwanted tears sprung into his eyes. "The more time I spent at Hogwarts, the more they would become intolerant. As my magic became stronger, so did their fists and anger." He took a steadying breath, exhaling afterward.
"I'm terrified of going back there and dealing with more of their wrath," He choked out, causing Barty's heart to ache. His eyes were full of unshed tears that were moments away from spilling over. "I'm sorry. I don't usually get so emotional about this," Harry admitted, quickly rubbing his eyes.
"Hey, look at me." He gently coaxed a chin up, his chocolate eyes meeting bright green. "You have nothing to apologize for. You're the victim here. You're allowed to be as emotional as you want." Barty mumbled, once again knowing exactly how the younger wizard felt. He wouldn't bring it up yet, but he would in the future in order to help Harry with his trauma. "You've also never been able to fully get this off your chest," He pointed out, giving another squeeze.
Harry observed him though, something clicking in his mind.
"Barty?" He asked after a bit, gaining the other's attention. "You were abused too." And like before, it was a statement rather than a question.
"Yes." The death eater admitted after a moment, nodding. "I was." It was his hand that was gently squeezed this time.
"About what you said earlier, the same goes for me. You're welcome to talk to me about it if you want." Something in Barty warmed when Harry uttered those words, a slight smile playing on the edge of his lips.
"I'll tell you about it someday, Potter. For now, this is about you." The older responded, leaning back. "Besides, I've got a plan on making sure you never have to be with those disguising creatures again." Harry lit up at that, sitting up immediately. "You'll be able to stay with me if you'd like." Harry immediately nodded but paused.
"But Dumbledore and the order-"
"Won't be able to do anything about it." Barty grinned toothily at him, eyes gleaming. "It would have already worked out regardless, but the tournament may have just made things even easier for you."
"How so?" Harry was trying to catch up with Barty's brain, his brows furrowing in thought.
"You were in the tournament." The death eater simply stated, which through Harry in for a loop, until he connected some dots from previous studies on the wizarding culture.
"Only those of magical maturity can enter." He stated, worrying his bottom lip in thought. "I don't know much about the culture of wizards, but I take it I should be able to claim my independence and lordships now that I'm seen as magically mature, which also means I'm legally allowed to choose where I want to live?"
"Bingo!" Barty grinned at him. "As for the lordships, that can depend on the requirements of your family. Some set an age limit that must be met. For example, my family had a requirement of twenty instead of seventeen." Barty explained. "That can be changed if it's a family that's about to die out and only the heir remains."
"Like me," Harry mumbled, pressing his lips together. "What if you have more than one lordship?" He questioned.
"There's no limit on how many you can claim. You have to be a descendant, and it has to be unclaimed." He informed the other. "Unless you are blood adopted. In that case, you don't need to be a direct descendant because of the magic in the ritual."
"You know a lot about this." Harry grinned at him and Barty huffed.
"Well, my father was a huge figure in the ministry when I was a kid. I had these concepts ingrained into my head at a young age." He felt the twinge of unease when thinking about his father but quickly shoved it aside.
"So, all I have to do is go to Gringotts then? I won't have to go to the ministry?"
"You shouldn't have to. Worried about that?" Barty asked, watching Harry fidget.
"I'm the boy-who-lived. I can't do much without attracting unwanted attention." Humming, Barty shook his head.
"They shouldn't have control over this matter. Most of these events take place at Gringotts and that has always been separated from politics." Harry seemed to relax at that and gave a small nod. Again, he bit his bottom lip in thought.
"Are you sure I can stay with you? I don't want to be a bother."
"You won't be." Barty immediately rebutted. "I'm not letting you go back to those monsters, Harry. You don't deserve the shit they've put you through." He practically growled, eyes widening in surprise when arms wrapped around his torso in a tight hug.
"Thank you. No one besides Sirius has offered that to me. It…it means so much." He whispered. Slowly, the man began to hug back, pulling him closer.
"You don't need to thank me for this. You deserve so much better." Barty mumbled back, never wanting to let go as he held on protectively.
R&R, please. Comments are greatly appreciated and keep me motivated.