The Young Ones
Chapter Four: Granddad Arthur
Harry woke to small bodies shuffling at his sides and what seemed to be a pecking at the bedroom window. His bones also hurt, again. He had felt the pain in his bones before, a number of times, but it hadn't been as constant or as bad as it was now.
Then again, he realised that what he told Severus yesterday was indeed correct. With everything going on his whole life he hadn't the time to truly feel the issues in his body.
He groaned as the pecking got louder and more persistent, Severus did also. Tom waved his hand and the window opened, letting in the small owl Harry recognised as Pig. He groaned again, sighing gratefully when Severus gave him the potion to relieve his pain.
The kids were still sleeping, somehow.
Pig landed on Harry's stomach and gave some kind of owlish grin to him, Harry smiled back as he took the letter attached to the owl's leg.
"Do we have any food for him?" Harry asked Tom, surprised at the grin on the man's face at the use of the word 'we'.
"Yes, the elves can give him some if he goes to the owlery,"
Harry looked at Pig who nodded once before flying back out the window.
Harry moved to sit against the headboard of the bed, smiling slightly when his two youngest moved so that could wrap around his legs.
After a few minutes of looking lovingly at the kids he took a deep breath and looked at the letter in his hands. He recognised the writing as Arthur's straight away and his breath caught in his throat. A whole lot of him was terrified to read the letter. Terrified that he had lost one of his father figures. Thankfully it wasn't a howler, but really that didn't mean anything.
With a shaking hand Harry unsealed the parchment and started to read;
Harry,
Dumbledore has told the Order and the Aurors about what happened in the Great Hall the other night. Although, he seemed to be rather reluctant to mention your true mother. Not that I can blame him, I suppose, he did kidnap you. The Aurors want to talk to yourself and Severus about that, to see if you would like to press charges.
I am sorry it has taken me a few days to write to you. Truthfully I was trying to process the news that the child I thought of as a seventh son has four children of his own, even if they are from the future.
Molly has made this a difficult process, spouting off about you being evil for protecting your children. Saying you are evil for going with You… Voldemort. I have also found out some troubling stuff about her and my two youngest lately in regards to you. I am sorry I didn't notice it sooner, and I am sorry that my two youngest tried to hurt you and your children.
I just want you to know that I support you. I still love you. I know, Harry, that all you want is a family. And I also know that you would never marry someone who isn't worthy, someone who didn't love you. And those children… I know you wouldn't have children with anyone who couldn't or wouldn't love them. So, I trust you, and I would like a portkey, if at all possible, so that I can come and meet my grandchildren and speak to you.
By the way, that isn't me trying to impose on Severus' new role in your life, but you have been like a son to me since that first day I met you, and I love you. And even though I haven't met them yet, I already love your children. I am sorry that I haven't done more to help you over the years, I wish I could have, but there have been many obstacles in my way which I hope to tell you about in person.
I understand if you don't want to see me, after all, I haven't been in your life all that much, and my two youngest children did try to hurt you and yours. But I hope that we can become closer. I rather liked all those private chats we had when you would stay at the Burrow. And I hope to remain a part of your life.
Love,
Arthur Weasley.
Harry breathed a sigh of sad relief when it finally sunk in that Arthur didn't hate him. That he still cared. Despite his wife.
Harry was rather upset that Molly would believe the worst of him. But he wasn't all that surprised, the younger two are a lot closer to their mother than their father and can be quite like her in many ways.
"Can we send a portkey to Arthur Weasley, please?" Harry asked, only to be practically deafened by a squeal coming from his oldest daughter.
"Is granddad Arthur coming? Is he?" Aurora said.
Despite his ringing eardrums he couldn't stop the relieved smile that brightened his face, as he knew now that Arthur was a part of his life, always.
"Of course, I will send him a portkey when you are all ready for the day," Tom said.
The children cheered happily.
The youngest two both nuzzled Harry's stomach, kissing it gently, "Good morning, baby," they both said before jumping off the bed and following the older two out of the room.
"I mean, we could always get you pregnant so that they aren't disappointed when no baby comes out," Tom said, a sly smirk on his face.
"Don't you dare," Severus growled, glaring at the smirking man.
"It wouldn't work anyway. They are expecting a brother in four months, a pregnancy lasts nine," Harry said, blushing slightly as he refused to look at either of them.
He also just… couldn't. Not yet. Not until he knew what happened in the future. Not until he knew his children were okay. Not until he was of age. Not until he was ready.
"I didn't say we had to have sex, Severus. There is a thing called artificial insemination," Tom chuckled as Severus growled some more.
"I just got my son back, I am not letting him have a child until he is at least thirty so I can make up for lost time," Severus muttered.
"We don't know when they are born, Severus, but we do know we have at least four kids, plus one on the way. They are here, right now. From the future. Do you want to find out when they were born?" Tom was still smirking. Harry could hear it in his voice even as he looked down at the letter with a bright blush on his face.
Severus still growled.
"Look, just stop, please. I am not having a baby until I know my babies are okay. Until I know…" he trailed off, climbing out of the bed.
He couldn't say it. He couldn't even think of it.
He walked to the desk and wrote a note to go with the portkey. He gave it to Tom who said he would make it and send it when he was dressed before leaving the room.
"I'm sorry," Severus said, causing Harry to look at him in shock.
"What for?"
"Everything, really. The way I have treated you over the years, even though I didn't really have much choice given how Albus… And most recently for upsetting you just now by trying to control your life, like everyone else has been doing over the years,"
"I… I accept your apology… But I wasn't upset about what you said just now. I mean, that is a typical parent thing to say, right? No having sex until you're thirty. I get it. I mean, I have only just met them, and despite the circumstances of it all I definitely do not want them to be popping out kids until they're at least thirty. That isn't to say that I won't love them any less if they have one before then, but… it's the protectiveness I feel for them. And the need for them to not grow up too fast. Right? It must be similar for you, except maybe harder because you thought I was… and here I am, sixteen years old, reunited with you because my kids from the future showed up. We're all just… trying to get used to everything, I guess,
"And anyway, I'm not ready for… well, anything, yet. I would like to get to know him, the real him, first. And… as I said, I can't have a baby until I know what happened… I can't have a baby without knowing that my babies are okay. I can't… I would also like to spend some time getting to know you before I actually pop out the kids, you know? I want… I want a family before I add to it, if that makes any sense,"
"It makes sense," Severus whispered and Harry looked at him to find a deep sadness in his dark eyes.
"As a Potions Master you are also a qualified Healer, aren't you?" Harry asked suddenly.
"Yes, where did you find that out?"
"Well, erm, I mean… No one ever told me anything about wizarding careers and such, they just expected me to know and want to be an Auror… like James. But in my fourth year, when nearly everyone was ignoring or bullying me, I decided to hide out in the library and research careers. But anyway, I would like it if you could do some scans on the children. I need to know if they are okay,"
"Of course, I will do so before they go to bed tonight. Did you manage to find a career you are interested in?"
"I mean, I would maybe like to be a Healer myself. Or a teacher, I quite liked teaching the DA last year. But, I don't know. I also just kinda want to rest for a bit after, well, everything. Not that there will be much rest with the kids, depending on when they are born. But being a stay-at-home mum sounds nice. Or maybe figure something out so I only work part-time. I don't know,"
"You know, you could ask the kids when they were born," Severus smirked.
Harry blushed.
"I will find out anyway when I run their scans, I can quite easily tell you, without the need for you to ask them. Plus, it might be nice to do something for their birthdays if any of their birthdays take place whilst they are here,"
"Well, yes, I would like to do something for their birthdays. But I don't need to know the year they were born in order to do that," Harry was still blushing.
"You know that Tom will ask, right?"
"Yes. But that doesn't mean that I have to know. I just need to know if they are healthy. That is all that matters… I might ask if I ever get any siblings, though. It might be nice to have a little brother or sister to spoil until the kids enter the world," Harry grinned as it was Severus' turn to blush.
"You don't have any siblings," Severus muttered.
"Yet. I could always set you up with a nice bloke and demand a sibling,"
"Well," Severus cleared his throat, "don't you think it would be weird for your children to have an aunt or uncle only potentially a few years older than them?"
"Nope. It happens fairly frequently in the Muggle world, a fair few people I went to school with have an aunt or uncle only a few years older, and sometimes even younger than they are. I am sure it happens here also, I mean, with our longer life expectancies and magic helping us to produce children until we're what, one hundred. You have loads of time to pop out some siblings for me. And I have loads of time to have loads of kids, I am sure some of which will have nieces and nephews older than they are. I mean, I do want a large family after all. And if you are worried about Regulus, I am sure he just wants you to be happy, and he will be fine with it, but we could always talk to him when I get my necromancy skills,"
"How are you so good at acting so seriously?" Severus was so red by this point that Harry honestly thought he was going to pass out from all the extra blood in his system.
"That would be because I am five hundred percent serious. I want a large family, including as many siblings as you can give me," Harry had an innocent look on his face that Severus thought was him just covering his tracks, but Harry was being innocent. He was telling the truth.
He wanted some siblings.
And apparently Severus could see that Harry was telling the truth because he started scowling, though there was no true heat behind it.
"You aren't setting me up with anyone,"
"I just want to see you happy,"
"I am happy,"
Harry rolled his eyes.
"There is no need to take that attitude with me, young man," Harry beamed, "You aren't going to set me up with anyone. If you even try you will be grounded for the rest of your life,"
"Well, maybe I don't need to set you up. Hopefully you will find someone on your own,"
"No,"
"We'll see. Plus, you can't ground me for life. If you did then your grandchildren won't be born. Well, your grandchildren from me, anyway,"
"Just… Just get dressed so we can go to breakfast,"
"Okay,"
…
Arthur arrived in the entrance hall of Slytherin Manor both nervous and excited about what was to come. He looked around the grand entrance and marvelled at its beauty and elegance. The pale grey stone was lit gloriously by a gorgeous crystal chandelier with dozens of candles, and of course, a magnificent fireplace. Despite being large, the windows on either side of the front door enabled enough light in alongside the fireplace and candles, and the furniture (chairs, cupboards and drawers) made the place feel rather homely.
Then there was the sound of young children laughing, which seemed to be getting closer to him. His heart fluttered in happiness at the obvious glee coming from the children. And he paused, staring in shock as the four children, their parents and Severus Snape rounded a corner.
"Granddad!" the children exclaimed as they saw him.
They ran to him and he opened his arms, falling to his knees as they hit him, wrapping their small arms around his body. He held them, breathing in their scent as they chattered away.
He looked at Harry and saw the boy smiling at him, but also saw a sadness in his eyes and he wondered why. He looked at Severus and saw the man wearing his usual impassive mask, but there was also a hint of pain in his eyes. He could understand, if he were to believe for sixteen years that one of his children was dead, only to find out that they were actually kidnapped from you… it was more painful than he could imagine.
He looked at Voldemort, surprised when he didn't see the snake-like skin Harry told him about, but actually a thirty something man. His eyes were red, though, that was what clued him in on the man being Voldemort. He was, and yet wasn't, shocked when he saw awe, and love, and hope in his eyes when he looked at his children, in Arthur's arms.
Arthur pulled back slightly from the children and looked at them properly. Taking them in. They were all beautiful mixtures of Harry, Severus and Voldemort. And yet all completely themselves. And he was in love with them. His grandchildren.
The children introduced themselves and he smiled, love and awe in his eyes as he looked at them.
Salazar helped him stand and held his hand as he led him over to Harry, Severus and Tom.
"Hello, Arthur," Harry said, a bright smile on his face, even with the lingering sadness in his eyes.
Arthur pulled the young man into his arms and held him, smiling slightly when Harry melted into him, holding him back.
"Are you okay, Harry?" he whispered into his son's ear.
"Erm… I'll talk to you later, if that is okay. When the kids are in bed. If you are able to stay that long anyway," Harry said nervously.
"Of course. Anything for you, Harry," Arthur said, looking over at Severus to find a somewhat dark look in his eyes, along with the distant pain. He smiled slightly at the other man, trying to convey that he wasn't there to steal his son from him.
Severus nodded slightly. Neither noticed the looks the children were giving them. Tom did, however, and he smirked.
"Welcome to Slytherin Manor, Mr Weasley. I unfortunately have some business to attend to with some colleagues of mine, however, I am sure that Harry, Severus and the children would like to give you a tour of the place," Voldemort said, smiling slightly when he mentioned his children, causing Arthur to smile at him.
"Thank you for inviting me. I would very much like to join them on a tour of your beautiful home,"
"Then I hope you enjoy your day, and I shall see you all at lunch," Voldemort nodded and walked away.
"Right, why don't you four lead the way since I am sure you know the Manor better than Severus and I," Harry said to the children as he pulled out of Arthur's arms.
The children all nodded, smiling brightly. Lyra launching herself into Arthur's arms before pointing her finger towards a door and squealing, "Onwards,"
The tour of the Manor was enjoyable. The children chatting and laughing about everything in the grand, yet homely home. The three of them laughing along with the children as they regaled some tales of things that had occurred in their time. They were holding back some things, though, Harry could tell.
During lunch Arthur was rather awkward at first, but he soon relaxed thanks to the children bringing everyone into a conversation about foods. Everyone was happy, but he could see some sadness in Harry still, and although both Voldemort and Severus weren't showing many emotions, he could tell there was some sadness in them also. He didn't understand why, however. At least, not fully.
He obviously knew some of the reasons why Harry and Severus would be feeling upset, but he could tell there was something more there. And he wanted to know, so he could help, maybe. But he also didn't want to intrude.
After lunch everyone apart from Tom and a few of his inner circle went to the main family room. Everyone breaking off into groups to play games, talk, or read. Everyone felt at home with each other, which shocked Harry immensely given, well, everything.
Harry sat with Severus, Arthur and Lyra, who was curled up in Arthur's arms, napping, as the older man looked down at her in awe, his fingers carding gently through her dark hair.
"I have to say, Harry, the children are beautiful," Arthur said, love filling his voice.
"Thank you," Harry blushed.
"Do you know when they are going to be born?" Arthur asked, looking at Harry completely innocently.
"Erm, no,"
"I am running some scans on them later to make sure they are okay, the scans will tell me their birthdays," Severus said, a grin on his face.
"Ah, well, if you could tell me when they are, Severus, that would be great. I would like to try and sort out some things for them if their birthdays happen whilst they are here,"
"Of course, Arthur," Severus grinned.
"Why does everyone want to know when they are born? Why can't it be a surprise?" Harry muttered.
"Because, our dearest Harry, what fun is a surprise when we can know and help you out as much as possible?" Neville said from his seat at a nearby table.
"I mean, given the state of things at the moment, it is definitely for the best that we know so that we can protect you all, right?" Theo said from next to Neville.
"How so?" Harry asked.
"Because, if we know when you get pregnant, we can better protect you during that time," Hannah said, a bright grin on her face.
"And yet, if any of you get pregnant, we won't be able to better protect you," Harry said.
"Well, we could always ask the kids if any of us have any kids and when they were born and make educated guesses. But, Harry, you are the one that deserves the most protection. And you are probably the one with the most enemies to protect you from," Susan said.
"You all deserve protecting too," Harry muttered.
"We do. But we haven't been through nearly as much as you have. And we know that all of us will be protecting everyone as much as we can. You are just the one who will need the most protection," Luna said.
"They have a point, you know, Harry. If we know when you are pregnant we will be better able to protect you and the children," Arthur said.
All Harry could think about though was the probable child that wasn't there. The one that they wouldn't know the birthday of. Harry knew. He could sense, somewhat, that there was someone else who was meant to be there. The baby he didn't know.
Harry stood and left the room, not noticing everyone's worried eyes as he was too deep in his own thoughts.
He went to the place by the lake that he and Orion sat in the day before. He sat, leaning against the tree, just staring out into the distance, his knees pulled to his chest.
Someone sat next to him and he turned his head to find Arthur sitting there, watching him worriedly.
"What's going on, Harry?"
"The kids have said some things that hint at… things I would really rather not think about… and yet, it is all I can think about… Also, I am a necromancer. Or, I will be, when I turn seventeen,"
Arthur gasped and Harry turned away from him, not wanting to see the look of hatred on his face. A tear slips out Harry's eye and that is when he notices that his face is wet. He had been crying.
"Harry, look at me,"
Harry refused, not wanting to see the look on the man's face. A gentle hand, however, guided his face to look at the man's.
"Harry, I know that a lot of Light people hate necromancers for what they are supposedly able to do. But I am not one of them. I am also not as stupid as people seem to believe I am. I know what necromancers are actually capable of. It is a subject that I was rather interested in at school. I was interested in learning anything I could about anything. So I read all the books on the subject. As a result, I don't hate you, or fear you, or anything of the sort. I love you,
"You are one of my sons, Harry. Maybe not biologically, but in my heart you are. I will never not love you. No matter what happens. No matter what you do. I will always love you. I will always be here to support you. I know I haven't done an amazing job of it in the past. If I had I would have noticed what my youngest two and my wife were planning sooner. But I will do my best for you now. I mean, I would rather like to continue our chats about the muggle world. And chat about anything really. I would also like to get to know your children, and be there for you all when you are pregnant, and when you give birth if you want me to, and when you are raising them. I also just want to be there for you, to see you grow into the amazing man that I know you will be,"
"I want you in my life, Arthur. Especially now that I have heard them call you 'granddad'," Harry whispered.
"I am glad," Arthur beamed, though there was a hint of sadness in his eyes, "What have they been hinting at?"
"I… I think one of my babies dies," Harry whispered, trying to get control of his tears, and yet failing.
"Oh, Harry," Arthur pulled Harry into his arms, holding him close to his chest as Harry's shoulders began to shake.
Another person joined them, on the other side of Harry and started rubbing the younger man's back gently, "Harry…" the deep voice trailed off as Harry launched himself into his mother's arms, Arthur moving closer to them to rub Harry's back as Severus ran his long fingers through Harry's hair.
"I can't lose my baby, mum, I can't," Harry whispered, not noticing the gasp that Severus let out at being called 'mum'. Arthur noticed the tears in the man's dark eyes though and smiled slightly at him, rubbing his arm with his free hand gently in a show of support.
"Harry, we don't know yet what happened in their time. And we will watch those memories that Salazar gave you last night when the kids are in bed. Maybe there is a way we can change it. But no matter what happens, I will always be here for you. I am never letting you go again, I promise. There are also so many other people here who will help you; your friends, Tom, Arthur. You aren't alone anymore, Harry. You will never be alone again. I promise. I love you. I always have, and always will,"
"We are all here for you, Harry. Always. No matter what happens. I will always love you," Arthur said, wanting to make sure that Harry understood that he wasn't alone anymore.
"It will be okay, baby, I promise. There has to be a reason you sent them back to us. Maybe it was to make sure they were all safe and okay. Maybe it was to change the things that happened. But we will know soon. And we will be here to help and support you all through it. I promise. I am not going anywhere. No matter what," Severus said, not knowing what else to do. He had been prepared to raise Harry from a baby, but that chance had been stolen from him.
But he would try his best. He would be there. He would never leave.
He placed a kiss on the top of Harry's head and vowed to himself that he would never let his son go again, that he would always be there for him, and love him. He would be the best mother, and grandmother, he could be.
Hiya, I hope you are all well!
Thank you so much for your support on this story so far. I am glad so many of you are enjoying it. I hope you enjoyed this chapter also. I hope to update again soon.
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Anyhow, I hope you are having a lovely day!