Thank you again for all the reviews!

Chapter Three—The Meditation Garden

"Can you see the pool of clear water I told you about in your mind?"

"Yes."

Harry's voice is soft, lulling and lulled. Theo smiles at him. Harry is sitting cross-legged in the quietest part of the grounds, surrounded by huge banks of roses that help to muffle sound. There's a real pool, kept artificially still with magic, a few meters away, and a ward shimmering across the entrance to this small garden so that Black can't come dancing in with his Animagus form and interrupt.

"Good." Theo takes a deep breath and steadies himself. "Now, can you feel it?"

A long pause. Theo waits. He had patience drummed into him by his father as a child, for bad reasons but good results. He can certainly wait for Harry to begin reaching out to his meditation pool with all his senses.

"Yes," Harry whispers finally. "It feels—cool on my fingers, as if I'm touching a wet cloth."

Theo nods. "And can you hear it?"

A longer pause, and then Harry sighs and opens his eyes. "No," he mutters. "I know you said I should be able to hear sounds from it even though I have to picture it being absolutely still, but I don't know how."

"Don't worry about it." Theo scooted towards him across the grass, and Harry leans his head on Theo's shoulder with a sigh. "I used to imagine frogs hidden in the grass along the surface making croaking noises. That might work for you, or it might not, but you could try it."

"I'm so stupid. Why did I think it had to be the water making the sound?"

Theo digs his hands into Harry's shoulders. Harry relaxes against him with a little moan. It seems that clearing his mind and doing his best to meditate tenses up his body.

"You're not stupid," Theo whispers, leaning down near Harry's ear. He wants to say how furious hearing Harry say that makes him, and how he wants to do something to the Muggles who made Harry believe it, and the people at school (like Snape) who reinforced it. But that won't have the desired results. Harry will just claim that those things don't affect him or he doesn't want to talk about them. So Theo pursues a different path instead. "Unless you think I'm stupid for not getting it immediately as a child."

"What? No, of course not! Your bastard of a father—"

Theo conceals a smile as he listens to Harry speak passionately for a bit. That's the best way to get him to understand: mention a situation that happened to someone else and let him get ready to protect them.

"You were a child," Harry says, and Theo steps back into the conversation.

"Yes. The way you were a child when you had to start fighting Voldemort. The way that you were an infant when he first confronted you." Theo reaches out and lets his finger trail across Harry's lips for a moment. "If fighting him were easy, Lockhart would have claimed that he'd done it."

Harry laughs a little, and the tension finally drops from his shoulders. He leans in as if to kiss Theo, but halts with his mouth a short distance away, murmuring, "How is it that you always know what to say to make me feel better?"

"Because I'm the best boyfriend in the world?"

"Yeah, there's a chance that's it," Harry says, and then he's kissing Theo, more confident than he usually is, pressing closer, and he's making Theo's head spin.

They end up on the grass near one of the rose hedges. Theo's brain is spinning, now, too, part of it saying that they should be careful of the thorns sticking out, but he doesn't mind, he doesn't care, Harry is pressing him down into the dirt and parts of Theo are going, gone, and his brain is quiet—

"Harry!"

There's a shimmering flare of sparks right after the shout, followed by a lot of swearing. Theo, fully present again, lets his head fall back into the grass and stares at the sky.

"Sirius?"

"I put up a ward so that he couldn't run in and interrupt you in the middle of your meditation," Theo murmurs, sitting up and shaking his head a little when Harry glances at him in concern. He didn't sprain anything when Harry pressed him down, unless you count the way his dick deflated.

"No, you put up the ward so you could have sex with my godson!"

"Sirius," Harry moans, and drags a hand through his hair. Theo admires it, even with the skewed view he has of it right now. "You realize that I'm a participant here, right? That I'm making an informed decision?"

"You could find a nice boy to settle down with," Black says desperately.

"I don't want a nice boy! I want Theo!"

Theo has to hold back a snicker at the moan Black gives at that. The only thing that would be better was if he had found Harry and Theo having sex—no, as entertaining as the expression on his face would have been, Theo doesn't really want to share such a private moment with anyone but Harry.

He stands up and walks over to Harry, draping an arm over his shoulder. Black is standing beyond the ward, and even in human form, he looks like a dog desperately trying to fight his way past a closed door. "Don't you think you should leave off tormenting him, love?"

"Why?" Harry asks, not looking away from Black. He's frowning. "He just keeps ignoring what I'm saying, and he would have interrupted my Occlumency lesson if he'd come in earlier."

"You're learning Occlumency?" Black asks, looking alarmed, despite having been there the other day when Harry told him about it. Theo was there, too, and remembers Black waving Harry's words away before plunging into complaints about his Mind-Healer. "That's dangerous, Harry! The effects it could have on an undeveloped mind—"

"That's infants, Black," Theo says.

"No! It's any children!"

Theo shakes his head slowly. That's just a superstition, not true. If it was true, Theo's father would have known about it, and as disappointed in Theo as he turned out to be, he still wouldn't have taken the chance of destroying his son's mind before that son was old enough to sire a more manipulable child.

"That's unfounded," Theo says, as kindly as he can. "I'm just helping Harry practice meditation right now, anyway, Black. I put up the ward because any interruption can break the meditative state and make it harder to—"

"You could also influence Harry! You could reach into his mind with Legilimency and make him think—"

"Enough."

Theo blinks and glances around, surprised at the sudden invasion of winter magic. Several of the roses are drooping off their branches, coated with ice. And the source is Harry, who's staring at Black and practically vibrating in place.

More cold magic glitters around Harry as he snarls, "I trust Theo. I know why you don't trust him, Sirius. But he's helped free you, and given you shelter in his house, and suggested Mind-Healing, and saved your life. I want you to stop suggesting that he's taking advantage of me and whining about everything he's doing for me.

"I know why you're doing this, even more than just not trusting him," Harry continues, while Black starts to protest. "You couldn't be there for me when I was a kid, and you want to help me. You're worried that Theo is going to push you out of my life somehow. But he's not, all right? I only have one godfather. And I only want one boyfriend. Okay?"

Black opens and closes his mouth a few times. Theo watches, interested. This is the quietest he's ever seen Black, even after Harry confronted him that one time a few weeks ago.

Black finally sighs and says, "He doesn't like me."

"Then I'd say you're bloody even!" This time, the gust of icy wind from Harry freezes the pool they've been using as an example for Harry to work with meditation on. "You don't like him, either! Hate Theo as much as you want, but keep your mouth shut about it, okay?" Harry rushes a hand through his hair and closes his eyes. He looks tired. Theo doesn't think it's just from the expenditure of magic. "I don't want to hear it."

"He…doesn't bad-mouth me to you?"

"No."

Theo just nods when Black catches his eye. Black scowls, but to accuse Theo of lying, he would have to accuse Harry of it, and he must know that in this mood, Harry might just tell Theo to kick Black out of the house already.

"Fine," Black says reluctantly. "I'll try."

"You can do more than try, Sirius. Yeah, I know you were in Azkaban for twelve years, but that doesn't somehow result in an inability to keep your mouth shut around people who have helped you."

Theo watches Black's jaw clench and flex. He's probably battling the temptation to point out yet again that Theo is a Slytherin and the son of a Death Eater.

Theo almost wishes he would. It would be entertaining to see Harry lose his temper again.

And the thing is, Harry doesn't seem to be in pain because of Black's doubt, just exasperated. He's finally lost his patience with Black, which is fine, actually, because most people would have lost theirs long since.

(Harry might be better than Theo deserves, but Theo is keeping him).

"Fine," Black says at last. "I'll do that."

"Good. Now, please, go away, Sirius. I want to spend some quality time with my boyfriend."

Black stands there for a second longer, glaring at Theo as if he can make him change Harry's mind. Theo tilts his head a little and raises his eyebrows. Black huffs and spins away, trudging back towards the house.

Harry breathes out slowly. His eyes come to rest on Theo, and he shakes his head. "I owe you an apology."

"He can't help what was done to him," Theo murmurs, reaching up to clasp Harry's hand, "or who he is. And you've finally spoken to him in the way that I hoped you would speak to him long since. He can accept it or keep fighting. I think he'll accept it."

"You realize that I wouldn't give you up if he didn't?"

"You wouldn't give either of us up."

Harry takes a long breath and kneels beside Theo, his fingers scraping gently down his shoulder. Theo smiles and rests his head against Harry's leg.

"I feel almost as if I should," Harry says softly. "Give him up because he was awful to you. But I want you both, and I'm selfish. You've taught me I can have what I want, so I'm going to take it."

Theo grins at him, as thrilled as though he's watched a spell fly from Harry's hand. "The only thing I'm going to say is that I hope you don't want Black the way you want me."

"Gross, Theo."

Theo laughs, and pulls Harry down on top of him.

"An interesting coincidence."

Blaise's voice is light, but Theo only shrugs. He doesn't think it's a coincidence any more than Blaise does, although Theo isn't actually sure that Lucius Malfoy would coordinate with Dumbledore. One of them keeping an eye on the other and sending an owl when they saw the other send post isn't impossible, however.

The letter from Dumbledore is simple and short, just a request for a private meeting with Harry at a location that Harry could pick and that wasn't the house. The request from Lucius is for a private meeting with Theo, at a warded location in Knockturn Alley where no one will be able to use magic.

"Please tell me that the two of you aren't thinking of going," Blaise adds, leaning forwards around Theo to frown at Harry. They're in one of the small sitting rooms on the house's first floor, one with just three chairs, a fireplace, and a tiny inlaid table, and the door warded against everyone else.

As much as Theo has learned to like Neville, he doesn't think the other boy would offer a useful perspective right now. The other Gryffindors in the house certainly wouldn't. And they don't need Luna wandering in to add her own flavor of sweet nonsense to the proceedings.

"I think we should," Harry says, with a quick glance at Theo. "But I was going to suggest a change that I think you'll approve of."

"Theo will, or we both will?" Blaise asks.

Harry grins at him. Theo is a little startled at how easy they are around each other, but he attributes a lot of that to Harry deciding that Mrs. Zabini really isn't trying to control him. "I think you both will. It'll allow Theo to keep me safer, and it'll allow you to do something other than just staying in the house to keep Theo company."

Blaise straightens, his eyebrows flying up. "Do tell."

"I think Theo and I should both go to the meeting with Malfoy." Harry spins his wand absently over and over in his hand. Blaise's eyes go to it, but, a sign of his own comfort around Harry, he doesn't react negatively. "I'll go under my Invisibility Cloak. There are some people who can see through it, but I have no reason to think Malfoy is one of them."

"And me?"

"Go disguised as me, with Polyjuice, to meet Dumbledore."

There's a long silence, and then Blaise laughs, sounding amused and pleased and disbelieving all at once. Theo grins at him, leaning his chin for a moment on Harry's shoulder. Harry accepts the affection easily, the way he always does, without looking away from Blaise. He doesn't seem to pick up on the silent messages between Theo and Blaise.

Then again, maybe he doesn't need to. He trusts both of them.

"Do you know how we're going to get hold of Polyjuice, exactly?" Blaise asks dryly. "It does take a month to brew."

"The Weasley twins will have some on hand."

Theo raises his own eyebrows. "You've been in communication with the Weasley twins?"

"They've been in communication with me," Harry says. "They learned how to cast Patronuses, and both of them showed up in my bedroom yesterday evening to talk about how they're on my side and they'll supply any potions or ingredients I need. And they can Apparate now, so their parents can't stop them from coming to see me."

Harry looks deeply self-satisfied. Blaise is considering him with the kind of look that Theo knows can lead to either laughter or respect. He tries to talk so that it doesn't change into either. "Are they living somewhere separate from their parents? I've heard enough incidentally about Mrs. Weasley that I think she would notice."

"They are. They have a flat."

Theo nods. "Explain to me why you think this plan would work."

"I want to be with you when you meet Mr. Malfoy. I know you don't agree, but I don't think Dumbledore is as dangerous as he is." Harry folds his arms. "And I know that you know Occlumency, Zabini, so that removes a danger Dumbledore could pose to you that I would still be vulnerable to."

"Why aren't you calling me Blaise?"

"You said the other day that you didn't want me to."

"I was joking, Potter."

"Couldn't tell, Blaise."

Blaise laughs. Theo blinks, a little surprised. He didn't know that Blaise and Harry were spending time together apart from him, enough to have conversations and arguments and jokes of their own. But he likes the warmth that thought produces in his stomach.

"I do think Malfoy is more dangerous than Dumbledore," Theo says, because he has to have a chance to fight for his own perspective. "That's exactly why I don't want you near him."

"Can he see through Invisibility Cloaks?"

"Not that I'm aware of."

"Then I should be there." Harry lifts a hand when Theo starts to argue, and Theo falls obediently silent to listen. "You've spent so much time saving and defending me, Theo, and the only thing I've really done for you is stand up to Sirius."

"And put that story about Voldemort in the papers."

"Yes, but that benefited me, too."

Theo opens his mouth to argue, then closes it again when Blaise gives him a glance like a subtle kick. Yes, Blaise is probably right. Theo doesn't want to coddle Harry, or make him uncomfortable, or turn him into someone he isn't. He has to let Harry help.

"Well, if Blaise is willing to go under the Polyjuice, then we can do it."

Blaise grins at once. "It sounds exciting."

"And something your mother would want you to do?" Theo can picture many ways that Mrs. Zabini would hurt them for hurting her son.

"If I was going to talk to Malfoy? Probably not. But Albus Dumbledore?" Blaise turns and looks at Harry. "You don't have the feeling that he really wants to hurt you, do you?"

"No," Harry says quietly, his head tilted a little. "I have the feeling that he wouldn't be able to live with himself if he did that. He—I don't know how to explain it, exactly. He wants me to do things he wants, like stopping my relationship with Theo, but he wants to persuade me to do them, not force me."

Theo privately holds his opinion of the likelihood of that to himself. Maybe Dumbledore doesn't want to use force right now. Maybe he would be open to using it in the future.

But that has little to do with Blaise undertaking the meeting with Dumbledore in Harry disguise right now, so he holds his peace and watches Harry and Blaise make excited plans with their heads bent close together.

If nothing else, this will allow Harry to make some Slytherin friends other than me.