Vault #453; Gringgotts Bank:

At the tumble and fall of parchment from trembling fingers, a silent inhalation of a stuttering breath echoed deafeningly against the hollow vault walls with a tinged note of unbearable sorrow and hesitant fright. Weaving, spinning and invoking the staggering sensation of a single life shattering before one's very eyes. It was once again offering young Harry a glimpse of what utter despair and fear felt like.

His life was now like a thousand intricate glittering sparks woven between webs of lies and expectations he had no idea he could fulfil satisfactorily or what to believe. He had no idea who he was anymore or what to believe. He was completely powerless to stall the pain that ate away at the edges of his soul and lingered as acidic fire racing through his veins.

In that single moment that shattered time the young wizard was left without a choice, without any sort of balance to himself and no pillar of strength to keep him standing. This time Harry James Potter had no idea who he could trust and who not, and he didn't wish to admit that it was breaking him apart inside. For there was no mistake in what the parchment on the floor whispered of. His adoption was only made because his fathers were both supposedly dead. Yet, Harry knew both of them and it was nothing but a passing lie. Knew that both Lucius Malfoy and Severus Snape were both alive, probably living a life of torture alone without their child for so long. It left him grasping for the whole truth more, and concurrently left Harry more confused than ever before.

Just who was it that been lying? And for what purpose?

Altogether though it invoked within him the compulsion to empty the meagre contents of his stomach onto the floor ungracefully. The days upon days of nausea finally caught up to him with undue haste. This time it was an urge Harry could no longer hold back and shuddered at the bile rising in his throat, suddenly threatening to overwhelm his heaving gulps of precious air. It did not help that his vision was blackening at the edges with his mind spinning out of control. 

When the frosty touch of the stone wall blossomed across his cheek as he staggered towards the entrance, Harry fought against the knowledge and sensation creeping up his spine that he was not going to be able to move for a while when this shock finally wore off. He cringed as the pain from ages old emotional scars fluttered then ripped and shredded the walls of his heart once again. All the carefully constructed walls surrounding his heart shattering in that instant, rebuilding themselves much stronger with more conviction and filled with terrified reluctance against possible betrayal. All the trust Harry had once possessed was ripped from under him and trampled upon with the new knowledge he had just discovered.

 On the floor, laying at his feet and written in the blood of truth were the records inscribed on expensive ministry parchment. The legitimate parentage it spoke of so carelessly - glared at him with its obvious revelation. Sadly it contained only a revelation of dread, fear, uncertainty, unrepressed rage and also, dare he so much as admit it subconsciously, a touch of hope looming on the ever dark horizon that was Harry's life.

Forcing several large gulps of air into his lungs, Harry hesitatingly gathered the scattered parchments that had fallen from his fingers and replaced them on the bed of dark green velvet. Careful to keep his curiosity in check as the letter he dared not touch in this state drew his eyes once more. No, he needed answers face to face. He no longer wanted to trust what was written on parchment fifteen years old. He desperately needed someone to tell him the truth.

When he shut the lacquered box there was a distinctive click as the lock slid back into its place. A shimmering black mist trickled from out the bolt before fading when it brushed against his fingers in a caressing touch of deceptive warmth. Suddenly gripping the box tightly against his chest in search of comfort, Harry did not know if he should throw it on the ground or keep it close to his stuttering heart.  In the end he decided against neither and gripped it to his side. He leaned against the far wall for support and slid his way towards the door on swaying steps. The large double doors swung open as he got close enough to step outside. It took only a moment before Harry practically fell into Remus' arms when the werewolf stepped forward, noticing something amiss when Harry emerged from the darkness within. 

"Harry?! Har...e....ar...all...ght!" Harry's eyes were glazed over in a film of glass, staring at something far away that others were not privy to. The words the DADA Professor frantically shouted at him over and over again barely registered in Harry's wandering thoughts and confounded mind. It was almost as if someone had cast a confundus charm on him and he had no idea how to pull himself out of it. All he was aware of were the beady eyes of the goblin trained solely on him and Remus' arms, warm and inviting, wrapped securely against his waist as he was tugged ever closer to that ever beating heart against his ear.

 Even at the tugging tone of panicked concern in his previous professor's voice, Harry did not answer. He simply couldn't get his lips to open or his tongue to work could not even form the words in his head. So instead he turned tearful, pleading green eyes towards Remus. At last allowing all of his misery, despair and eternal fear to spill over into heaving sobs of hopelessness. He could feel Remus starting to panic, those arms tightening around his waist to pull him closer to the werewolf as one hand strayed to his locks and gently carded through the strands in hopes of bringing him a semblance of comfort.

"Harry please, please tell me what happened?" Harry remained quiet, interrupted only by his own sobs of hopelessness. His life was lost to him; a life lived in lies, compulsions of others and unfairly cast magic. It was liberating in a sense, but devastating in another. Devastating as Harry not only lived through his own misery but empathised well with his two fathers and it broke him inside. The knowing that he was alive and they may have never known their own child, the child that so obviously stolen from him for reasons no one understood. That alone was enough to send him into another painful wave of desperation and utter panic. 

When his shuddering breaths became hard to breathe and his chest struggled to rise and fall, Harry buried his face in teacher's robes and fought to calm himself as much as necessary to catch his breath before he suffocated. The scent of the open forest, crackling flames, ash and pine surrounded Remus so wholly, almost like a cloud of addictively comforting scents that proved a counter point to Harry's emotions so wholly engulfing him in burning flames.

How long they stood there, locked in an embrace and him shaking with desperate cries Harry did not know and hoped he would be unable to count, yet when what felt like an eternity passed, his mind finally cleared somewhat of the fog that had settled over it. The young wizard felt exhausted, his legs weak, his chest hurt, his soul weary and afraid of what the next moment would bring. It was only in the soft nonsensical things that Remus whispered in his ear that Harry could draw little comfort from. 

For the werewolf personally though, there was his own sense of protectiveness seeping in his bones at the sight of one so young, so desperately affected by his emotions. It made his heart ache within his chest and he breathed a soft sigh of relief as Harry's panic calmed to a more manageable level. The one that he had adopted into his small pack when he first met Harry as a teacher was eating away at his haggard control at being so vulnerable in front of him. It left a slow building anger simmering in his blood and great concern streaking across his heart.

From the moment Remus had seen Harry step out of the vault he knew something terrible had gone wrong. It was not only the deathly ashen pale skin of Harry that told him so or the trembling in his limbs. It was the way his entire scent changed, transforming into something he had never smelt before. It was the scent of utter desperation.

"Harry? Will you let me take you back to Grimmauld's Place? We don't have to meet Ron and Hermione at Flourish and Botts."

"NO! N-no." Harry shuddered. There was no way he was going to back there. Not now, not ever if he could help it. It stung him more than he could admit. The immense betrayal that he had witnessed in the recorded names of the witnesses and the outcome of misplaced trust. Sirius Black had been at his adoption and had known all along that Harry was not Harry but a child stolen from his true parents, he was Augustus Saturnus Malfoy-Snape. 

Harry needed to see the only man who he knew would tell him the truth, the one man that could tell him that this was either real or a very elaborate attempt to shake up his life from the ground upwards.

"Harry?"

"Please Remus, I n-need to see Professor S-Snape. No one else." Within his voice bellied with a tone that offered no wavering argument otherwise. The werewolf seemed to contemplate his request seriously and after a while he gave a nod of consent. Harry let out a small breath of relief, wetting his dry lips with a swipe of his tongue as he queasily made his way towards the cart and ultimately back to the floo room.

"He should be at Hogwarts these last two weeks preparing for the term. I'll take you there, but I cannot guarantee that he will be in a good mood when we arrive."

"I know. But please Remus, I r-really, really need to see him and only him. No one else. There is no one I can trust more at the moment." And it surprised Harry that he found himself speaking nothing but the truth. Never in his life had so much as thought for a single moment that he require the help and guidance of Hogwarts' most snarky and strictest Professors. But deep down Harry knew for certain that he was the one man that never once lied to him or tried to be anything but frank with him.

~~~~

When Severus Snape had sat down to start his lesson plans for the coming year less than an hour ago, it never once crossed his mind that Remus Lupin would be reaching out to him in pure desperation and panic. It was a cry for help that left the Potions Master not only confused but filled with trepidation as well. He hadn't even gotten the truth from the distressed werewolf of the situation he was in before the floo call was abruptly cut off and one Remus Lupin stepped into his private office, nearly tumbling to the ground in his haste. Severus could see almost immediately that there was something very wrong with the picture that his previous colleague made as he staggered through the emerald green flames. Looking even more dishevelled than usual, those striking eyes frantically darting from side to side as if awaiting a deadly threat to assault him at any moment.

 A small bundle of out of control black hair, ashen pale skin and clothes that seemed to swallow the petite frame of a child that was clutched protectively against a strong chest. Within those usually softly glowing amber eyes, were the yellowing tinges of rage that the wolf caused within Lupin that sent a shudder racing up Severus' spine. Moony was there, just beneath the surface, biding its time and awaiting the right moment to tear free from its human bonds.

For the Potions Professor to come so close to those ruthless eyes for the second time in his life was disconcerting, it spoke volumes of the power that was hidden just beneath the surface.  Yet when those eyes turned to him, the anger seemed to fade just as quickly and quietly as it had come. An immense sense of control Severus did not come across often and begrudge as he was to admit it, offered a new sense of respect for the man in front of him.

"What is it Lupin? What the hell is going on?" His voice was barely a hiss as he pointed to the bundle in Lupin's arms. The question, harshly spoken and to the point, seemed to snap the wolf out of his stupor as he suddenly began pushing through Severus' private office frantically. Leaving the young Potions Master to hurriedly follow after him before his quarters became the battleground for a raging wolf's anger and unknown anxiety.

"I am not above stunning you Wolf. Now. Tell. Me. What. Is. Going. On." Severus bit out. Each word dripping with more venom than the last, his ebony wand already brandished in defence. He was wavering dangerously on the edge of going through with his threat. The imminent danger seemed to still Lupin, those eyes now locked on him was filled with forlorn and wary concern as he laid down the bundle on one of Severus' velvet couches. The latter of the two adults hadn't even realized they had moved into his private quarters yet. 

"It's Harry, Severus. I-I took him to Gringgotts as Lily's letter asked and when he came out of the vault he was so distraught. That accursed box clutched tightly against his chest and he just won't let it go. When I contacted you, he was already like this. It's like his very essence is fading from him...I-I don't know what he found there but he wouldn't tell me...he...he just wouldn't..." Severus frowned at the flood of information that stung his ears but ignored it for the moment in the wake of the situation. Casting unfathomable dark eyes downwards to observe the young wizard curled up on his couch and sure enough there were just enough features visible to distinguish the bundle of clothes and pale skin as none other than the Boy-Who-Lived, Harry James Potter. A box not much bigger than a shoe box decorated with an elaborate golden dragon, clasped tightly to his heaving chest and in pale ashen hands. Cheeks, hidden by the wavy mess of his unusually long black hair were highlighted with the touch of a fever.

At first Severus was sure that the box had been the cause for the collapse but there was not a lick of dark magic surrounding the box, no it was just plain - locked with a ward that seemed to shimmering around it surface. It must have been something else then that had caused this magical drain, for even Severus Snape could see the very atmosphere surrounding the boy shimmering in a pale blue light, cocooned in a cloth of magic that was slowly leaking out around his form. The wolf was right. It was almost as if the magic was fading, dissipating into the atmosphere and rearranging it...

"Why did you bring him here? The Headmaster would have been able to help better than I, even Poppy..." Severus trailed of, pushing aside his own confusion and emotions as he cast a diagnostic charm on the child in any case. It wouldn't do to let him suffer whatever it was that had the child in its dangerous grip. Severus ran his eyes over the small frame, wondering once again in confusion just why the child was so small and wraith like. He looked almost like he was balanced on the edge of an Ancient Wood Elf Inheritance and a life of under nourishment.

So childlike and small, innocent too. No matter what he saw or did, that was one thing Severus was sure would never fade from Potter. His inane innocence. He didn't think that Potter would grow beyond his five foot four inches height either, no matter how the years would pass him by.

It was information he quickly filed away for later analysis...

He had been forced to train as a fully qualified Medi-Wizard in order to pass his Potions Master's Apprentice exam but that did not mean that he was as well trained as Poppy or possessed the vast vestiges of knowledge that Dumbledore had in that specific field nor tha...

"Harry said that he would not go anywhere else but to you. He said that you were the only one that he can trust." Snape's thoughts were suddenly cast aside with those words, a frown of concentration and confusion crossing his forehead. Never had he ever thought a Potter would trust him with anything.

He sucked in a surprised breath as the diagnostic charm returned the results in shimmering white. Waving his wand with expert precision, he began summoned various potions, salves and distilled draughts that he knew was needed. Severus was deeply concerned as to what his quick charm had picked up and the array of injuries that mapped the child's body. It was disconcerting, the astounding similarities it bore to an abusive household.

"Lupin?! W-what the hell has this child been through?" His voice was now a low growl of anger as the Potions Master set to work on his patient. Tipping Harry's head back to stare deeply into those glazed over, far away eyes. They were so lost and forlorn, with not only shock, but pain as well. It tore at the cold man's heart. Reddened cheeks, clearly an indication that his body was fighting off a high fever was only a prelude to clammy skin and scorching flesh that furthered the claim. And peeking out just beneath the collar of an overly large shirt, were darkened bruises that were clearly inflicted by another human being.

This could not have been done by anyone other than the others who had looked after him for the summer...

"W-what are you talking about Severus? Is Harry hurt? I-I don't know, Severus. I just told you..."

"Not that you imbecile! The child's body... It's like he was in a fight and only barely escaped with his life. These injuries are more than two days old but that does not mean they are not dangerous anymore. In fact, if this infection spreads it can become very dangerous. It's no wonder his magic is failing him. It's trying to preserve his strength, eating away at itself..."

"Just sit quietly and let me work. We can discuss this later." And in that reprimand, Severus' whole demeanour changed drastically as he was faced with a victim and not a student that more than often bore the brunt of his temper. His tense shoulders relaxed slightly as dark eyes darkened even further in concentration. Clasped in his right hand was his wand, as his left carefully unfolded the child's curled up limbs, now and again using both hands to help steady the form and stretch him out on the couch. A small whimper licked at his ears sympathetically and despite himself, Severus allowed a soft sigh to escape his lips. The hard facade that he was so well known for, fell away with his layers of concern.

No one but a select few people ever knew that there was a softer and much gentler side to the Potions Master than he ever allowed others to see. And in cases like these, where he knew something could easily go wrong if a patient were to panic, he was forced to allow that side to show through. He would of course murder anyone who ever suggested that it existed but for once he found himself losing his self control. It had been a very long time since he had seen abuse at such a level.

"Hush Harry. I know that it hurts but I need you to stay like this so I can mend your bones. It'll only take a second, I promise." The whining keen that the child let past his lips made Severus cringe on the inside. His fingers gently brushed away dark sticky long strands from a scorching forehead, resting his hand on the skin there to keep a physical connection with the child. It was tempting to force his way into Potter's mind to see who had done this, but he refrained from the urge and used the contact to rather focus the patient's attention on him. With a swift wave of an ebony wand, his voice's whispers echoed through the room as another cry left Harry's lips at the resetting of his cracked ribs. Severus murmured a soft apology before sweeping the wand over the length of the teen's body once again, carefully checking the progress of his work untill he was completely satisfied. 

With a small sigh of relief, the Potions Master turned to the process of healing that he excelled in. Potions. Mending bones with his wand was not a problem but it was when it came to smaller things, like reducing a fever and trying to calm the obvious shock the boy had suffered, it became much more difficult. Besides a good potion was much better than foolish wand waving, it offered a longer range of relief and controlled remedy.

Reaching for the four vials on the coffee table behind him, Severus helped the sick teen swallow them with much coaxing on his part. After that came the jar of bruise salve, smearing it across the black and blue marks that decorated pale, smooth skin. Irrevocably it angered him to see such darkening colours but he forced himself to never falter in his task. After that came the easier things, like transfiguring those hideous clothes into soft pyjamas, a feather pillow and a warm blanket before he reached for the last vial. 

Before he could administer the draught though, small hands stopped him and those glassy green eyes cleared in a moment of clarity. Dark locks falling over emerald eyes as Potter shook his head from side to side vehemently. His eyes, seeming much brighter without his glasses, stilled Severus with its plea.

"P-please w-wait. B-before you...t-the box. O-oopen it. R-read i...promise me..."

"I promise." Severus replied. He was more stunned than anything that Potter had recognized the dreamless sleep draught by mere smell alone than absorbing the words he had spoken but he gently tipped back the contents of the crystal vial. He had understood the request but why would he be  the one requested to open it? He quirked it up to one of the child's passing fancies and nothing more. He remained kneeled by Harry's side for a little longer, not wanting to shatter the spell that had settled over him in his exhaustion. His hand never once strayed from the warm flesh of Harry's forehead, checking the temperature untill it started reducing itself.

The child had given him quite a scare. Deep down, though loath as he was to admit it, Severus felt something stir within him that he had almost forgotten about completely. The cold life he had been living for fifteen years, flitted gently with the tiniest touch of warmth he had not felt since his child... 

Cursing his sudden weakness, Severus tried hard to discern the feeling of contended calm he got from stroking his fingers through those soft locks. Amazed that it was much softer than it seemed, finer too. The feeling of completeness he gathered from being so close to the small creature that was now deeply asleep on his couch was absolutely astonishing. He didn't think he would ever feel anything like it ever again.

"Severus?" That was his cue to stand and drag himself from his out of control thoughts. Rising from his kneeling position, he tugged the black box closer to him before settling it on the table with a small amount of trepidation. Summoning two glasses from his kitchen and a bottle of his finest scotch, Severus set about pouring himself and Lupin a generous helping of alcohol. He needed it for the trembling in his hands and the subdued sensation of panic boiling in his stomach, though why it was there was still much of a mystery. Long elegant fingers traced the outline of the golden dragon and its shadow pearl as he leaned forward in his armchair. Steeling himself when the lock click open with little coaxing on his part, the amber liquid rippling against the crystal structure of the glass in his left hand.

Severus Snape's Personal Quarters; Hogwarts:

Severus shuddered suddenly, he was cold, so achingly cold when his infinite dark eyes swept across the pieces parchment; not once but several times over and over. Willing himself to believe just what it was that was staring him in the face. Subtly it was offering the truth to answers he had sought since the night of 30th December 1980.

That lonely night, as the snow flurried across Malfoy Manor estate and the small cottage on the grounds that he and Lucius receded to when his beloved wasn't needed in the Manor, was one he would never forget. He and Lucius had just come home from a trip to Diagon Alley to find their beloved child, sweet little Augustus, stolen straight from his crib. His nurse and protector dead on the floor, the only one who could have known who stole their little boy, gone and dead with no answers. It left both him and Lucius in a panic with no inkling as to who had stolen their little baby and why and even how they has passed the manor wards.

Now though...bitter bile rose up in his throat and the Potions Master felt his breath hitch in his chest. That hated night had scarred Severus both emotionally and physically when he had turned his wand on himself mere weeks later when the Aurors suggested his child was dead and called off the search. He had been shattered beyond repair, when not even the best of the private Aurors Lucius hired could find Augustus after months and months of fruitless searching. It had devastated both him and Lucius and if it had not been for Narcissa, already raising a five month old Draco in the manor, imploring Severus to help as his godfather Severus would truly have taken it upon himself to die of the overwhelming grief and panicked pain.

All that aching, all that suffering and sorrow. Had it all been punishment for past sins? For if it were Severus was sure that nothing would have hurt him more deeply than this and now knowing the truth, hurt him even more. The jealousy he had always felt towards Lily when her son was born a week after his was taken was enough to create a deep seated hatred for one Harry Potter and his features that reminded him so much of his tormentor at school did not help at all. Only now, Harry was no longer a damn Potter, had never been one to begin with.

No, he was Severus and Lucius' little Saturn-August.

"What have I done?" Severus mourned deeply. His only child, the shared proof of his eternal love between him and Lucius, had left behind a shattered hopeless soul the night when his life had turned itself upside down. Deep, deep, deep down inside of him Severus felt a wall crumble and something crack inside his soul. Tumbling and falling with not only pain but an immense sense of relief as well. It left him shaken, almost afraid to believe the words written in official ink in case they were not real. For if he did believe them, it meant not only was he betrayed by his best friend and her hated husband but by his mentor and father figure Albus Dumbledore as well...

The last fifteen years spent in constant turmoil and pain made sure that all he wanted was nothing more than believe that his child was alive and well somewhere. And now that he did know, it did not change the pain and immense sorrow. His fingers curled into fists, knuckles stark white with suppressed rage was the prelude to the sudden fit of uncontrolled emotion and magic that shot from within his core. Fuelled by rage and sorrow, Severus magic became unpredictable and volatile. It made Severus inconsolable as a shuddering breath of uncertainty left his lips in a cry of misery. He did not even flinch as every single piece of glass in the sitting room and beyond shattered into a million pieces and fell to the floor with the sound of tinkling glass.

Gripping at his temples, hateful tears brushed against his cheeks and carved a path over his features as the Potions Professor fought for desperate control over his uncontainable emotions. He hated this weakness that he was forced to show but Severus knew that he needed Lucius and he needed him now! Before his magic got so out of control that he hurt those around him and himself as well.

This had happened only once before and that night left him the cold and distant man he was today. Standing on shaking legs and forcing his way towards the fireplace Severus was surprised when strong arms kept him from crashing to the floor in his swift weakness. He knew his attempts would be futile with a damn Gryffindor so close by. Cursing the werewolf for his interference, Severus tried to steady himself before throwing a heated glare over his shoulder at the man's good intentions. He would not be able to reach the fireplace to contact Lucius if this went on for much longer, even now he could feel his magic unhinging completely and he could not reel it back in. Not without help...

"Severus? Just what the hell is going on?!" Ignoring the Lupin's calls to him and demanding an explanation, Severus tried to walk forward again only to collapse onto the hard unforgiving ground. Despair was eating him up from the inside as his back collided painfully against the towering bookshelf, the books tumbled towards the ground only to be caught up with a magical whirlwind rushing through his quarters. Many books floating and rushing through the air that could not be stopped...

"G-get Lucius." Severus managed to bite out before his vision started dancing with black spots that spoke of his magic forcing itself out of him at such a force that it would render him unconscious sooner than he thought. His eyes rested on the sleeping form, just peeking out from under a warm blanket and he felt an icy hand encircling his heart, squeezing, squeezing and threatening to steal the life out of him. He couldn't breathe, couldn't think and his white hot rage was almost painful in its intensity...

"He stole my child!"He chocked out. "The bastard stole my child! How could he? HE STOLE MY CHILD! My innocent little baby boy and turned him into a target for the Dark Lord! I will never forgive him. NEVER!" Severus' throat was now raw as his screams echoed off of the walls. Shattering his heart as they bounced back towards him.

"Severus? Severus Snape! Look at me." The gentle murmur of his beloved's baritone drew Severus from his staggering and overwhelming thoughts and emotions. Fingers that he knew so well tugged his chin upwards, causing black to clash with frantic silver and in that single touch and gaze Severus felt his uncontrollable magic vanishing. Leaving the Potions Master feeling hollow inside and simultaneously desperately afraid of what was to come. Lucius was going to be livid when he found out but that did not matter to Severus, no, not now when all he wanted was to fall into a coma and never wake up again with these mortifying emotions eating away at his soul.

"Severus what happened?" With the dull thud of books falling to the floor and the shattered glass turning to sand, Severus felt all of his energy drain from his body and the feeling of being pulled into the secure arms of his lover was nothing more than bliss to his frazzled nerves. His fingers automatically dug into smooth robes as he hid his shameful expression from his lover as best he could. He had always had such impeccable control, having lost it now made him feel uncomfortable and fearful of his own adverse reactions. 

"I-I f-found him." Dark eyes watched from beneath the curtain of equally dark hair as Lucius' pallor paled even more. Silver eyes, so expressive in their emotions, and so ruthless other times, spoke of disbelief, horror and fear at the words he had just spoken. It was news they had waited fifteen years for...fifteen years of agonizing suffering and the news that had so very nearly shattered their relationship many times over. 

"W-who have you found?" The question that Lucius spoke tore at him. He knew who Severus was speaking of but his ears did not want to believe, his heart feeling brittle in that single instant and soft mutter of words. After so many years of hoping and praying, never knowing if their child would ever come back had worn on his soul and those four words hurt to even think.

When Lucius had stepped into Severus' office after a frantic call to his office from a blasted werewolf, he had not known what to make of the situation but when he saw a panicked Severus he knew it would be nothing good. There were very little things that could shake up his lover like this and their lost son was just one of those things. This could only mean one thing, something very bad had happened and now after that claim Lucius was afraid of just what it might be. He did not want to know that the son he had lost so long ago was dead...he didn't think he could survive another bout of such dep...

"Little Augustus." That was it, the taboo name that was no longer spoken between them. It shattered Lucius, devastating his mental shields as his body sagged into Severus'. Whether it was of relief in believing Augustus was alive or fear that he was dead, Lucius could not tell but the emotions swirling around him was very real as Severus pressed closer to his chest. The smaller professor curled closer against his lover's chest as tears stained fine, immaculately kept robes. Lucius felt nothing but dread. Numb to the rest of the world, feeling only his own swirling emotions as he absently rested his fingers in those silky dark strands to find and ground himself.

Closing his eyes in an attempt to hide the shimmer that gathered at the corner of pale silver lashes, Lucius Malfoy felt a subtle tremble settle over his body.

"Darling Severus, please tell me what happened." A note of pleading emotion in his voice allowed Lucius the first break in his ever composed facade. It hurt and he could not deny it, it felt as if his soul was ripping itself in two pieces with wanting to know and not wanting to. His question however only brought on another bout of soft sobs from Severus and quietly rubbed gentle circles on his beloved's back. Lucius rested his cheek on top of Severus' head and hoped for an answer that would not tear him apart more that he already was. 

"Hush now. Please calm yourself and tell me, I need to know beloved. I need to..." He trailed off, that annoying stinging was back in his eyes and even his voice sounded haggard to his own ears. His grandfather would roll in his grave should he now see Lucius undignified actions but he could not help it. It seemed like hours of eternity before Severus' shivering stilled and those dark eyes, haunted and guarded looked up to him in quiet despair.

~~~~

Lucius Malfoy sat curled up against the arm of the second velvet couch, Severus' head resting in his lap as he carded his fingers absently through silky strands of ink black. Contrary to what it seemed, those dark strands were not oily at all. Not when his beloved had not worked over potions for hours and hours on end. It was soft, gentle and the finest strands Lucius had ever felt. They were almost like spun ebony, and Lucius loved them most. Just like those infinite dark eyes that held such secrets and emotions only he and Severus could ever understand. He could not say if he was in shock or that he had quietly accepted the truth without much a fuss, but the calmed awareness of the dark haired teen fast asleep on the velvet couch less than ten feet from them offered Lucius, a  usually cold man, a calm and contented feeling that he indulged in almost guilty.

If he stretched his senses now, feeling the subtle glow of their young one's magic; it called out to him fiercely in need. A spark of recognition that he only really felt with Draco, played across his magic and flitted across his skin unbeknownst to Severus. He could feel it, the powerful blood spell casted fifteen years ago, it was starting to wear off. The innate wrongness he had felt when he had first met Potter was now fading with the glow of shimmering light blue mist engulfing his body. The twist of his core magic was changing, stretching and rearranging itself and soon, over the course of twenty four hours, his features would be changing too.

It won't be long before there was not a single thread of a Potter left in their little Saturn-August. He could barely suppress the excitement and anticipation building through his vein, a soft smile tugged at his lips as he finally understood what it was that had happened so long ago. It won't be long now until he could start his revenge on everyone who had known of this. 

Lucius reflected that they had found their child just in time. And though as loath as Lucius was to admit it, he was ever grateful to Remus Lupin who had headed back to Grimmauld's Place to spin an elaborate story of Potter going missing in Muggle London just outside the Leaky Cauldron. It was not a very satisfactory story that would hold up for very long, but it gave him and Severus about six more hours to get Augustus back to Malfoy Manor before his magic started changing things irrevocably and attracted unwanted attention from certain lurking Head Masters. He knew that this had to stay secret, no one was to know but those in his family who knew of Augustus' existence before.

Their child came first and the magical coma ahead of little August would not be spent anywhere close to that man. At the mere thought of the man, Lucius shamefully allowed his protective creature side to show through with a haunting growl. Never again would he allow his child out of sight or trust anyone with him besides his son, Severus and Narcissa. No, not after they had just found him again.

With a sigh, Lucius tapped Severus' shoulder to wake him from his slumber. It would be better if they left now, creating less of a risk in Dumbledore finding them again. They could figure out later what to do in the long run. For now, Lucius had to get out of the confined space that was Severus' quarters. Being of creature inheritance, Lucius hated small spaces. Preferring the wide open spaces of nature and the familiarity that the forest could bring him. Severus on the other hand loved to hole himself up in small spaces, preferring enclosed spaces that he knew no other human being could bother him within.

"We should go." He whispered, quietly standing on shaky legs and walking towards the sleeping form on the couch. Saturn-August would be waking soon and then, Lucius knew, all hell was going to break lose. It was not often that you were told your entire life was a lie and the people you had been raised to hate became your parents. Maybe he should enlist Draco's help on this one, perhaps having someone of August's own age would help. But he doubted it. Especially because of the animosity between the two.

"He will be contacting us soon, are you sure you will be ready to talk to him Severus?" Lucius asked, surprised at how light the child was in his arms as he picked him up. He hardly weighed anything at all. Oh, there was a lot of things that needed to be done and tracking down those muggles that were supposed to be raising his son were going to pay. For Lucius there was no doubt.  

"I'll just have to be. There is no way I am going to lose my child again. Now go ahead before he comes through and discovers you and Harry here." Lucius nodded, placing a soft kiss on Severus' forehead and whispering a soft endearment before he stepped through the emerald green flames of Severus' private floo. The last image that he saw was his beloved waving his wand and repairing the damage his magic had done. The large explosion of magic had come as an advantage to them both as it was so strong the Headmaster would not even be able to sense any other magical signature lingering in the room.

"When you awaken my little Saturn child, you'll have a new family and a new life." Lucius whispered softly as walked into his private study. The wards eagerly welcoming a new addition it had so poorly protected before with a soft hum brushing against Lucius' ears.