Severus glanced at the ceiling, he could hear little feet of the boys in their play room and he was content for the moment. The playroom was childproof so they had no chance of getting hurt. And on the off chance they did, there was an elf keeping watch to alert them of any troubles. He sighed, still feeling uneasy from this morning, and he was thankful that Albus and Remus had come back.

"Did either of you come back to the manor this morning and didn't come out to see us?" Severus asked after a moment.

"No, I've been at the Castle all day looking at placements for the Dursely boy," Albus replied honestly, as he looked at his friend in confusion. What was going on?

"No, this is my first time coming back here. Did someone floo over?" Remus asked quietly, his whole body tensed at the implications of that.

 "Yes, someone was here, though I'm not sure who it was. Whoever it was didn't come out to see us. They did watch us from the kitchen window, as I felt their gaze on the back of my neck," Severus said quietly.

 "Whoever it was, clearly didn't mean anyone harm. Who is all keyed in?" Albus said slowly, knowing how Severus was about his wards.

 "You two, the boys, Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, and a few other people. Most of the people I haven't heard from them in years, and I know for a fact that the Malfoy's are on Holiday," Severus said with a quiet sigh.

 "Originally they were my first thought, sometimes Lucius comes to talk, but he usually sends me a letter. He never just drops by unannounced," Severus said before his eyes narrowed as he saw a familiar regal owl flying towards the window. He flicked his wand, to open the window to let the owl come through.

 "I think it appears that you spoke too soon," Albus said dryly. He recognized that owl from seeing it deliver items to the Draco in the Great Hall.

"This doesn't bode well for us," Remus said quietly before he turned and watched Severus open the letter.

 Severus,

I came by the manor today needing to speak with you urgently. While there, I discovered something that I had no idea was even possible. I'm not sure how I feel that my oldest friend has kept something like this from me, but Narcissa believes I should give you the benefit of the doubt so I will. I will be flooing you tonight at 5pm, it's imperative that you are there to pick up. I do not want to make an enemy out of one of my good friends. See you tonight,

Lucius

Severus read the letter impassively for a moment, his whole body tensed as he took in the almost threatening words in the letter. He blinked before he passed it to Remus to read, knowing he had no choice. Lucius had already seen, what had the man even been over here for?

"Not at all, I know that you and Remus had plans tonight but would you mind staying upstairs with the boys while he comes?" Severus asked tightly.

"Of course, I was going to do that anyway," Remus said with a dry smile. He blew out a breath, wishing they could just obliviate the knowledge from the man's mind. But even he as a Gryffindor knew that the Blonde Slytherin had things in place for such an act. They just hoped that whatever Lucius had to say wouldn't hurt any of those boys upstairs.

~*~*Line break~&~&~&&~

The Day passed by both quickly and slowly for the three men. Severus was worried about the children and was unable to hide that emotion from Neville. He had dodged many worried glances from the child, but he didn't even want to try to explain to the child what was going on. 

And before he knew it the time of reckoning was upon them; Remus and Albus quickly ushered the boys up the steps when his floo flared. He didn't spell the room, as he wanted Remus and Albus to hear the conversation. He knew they would spell the playroom accordingly so that no sound would make it's way downstairs.

"Severus may I come through?" Lucius's voice smoothly called.

"Yes," Severus replied neutrally as he snapped his fingers before informing his house elf to provide them with tea. He blew out a breath, his face blank as the man flooed over.

Lucius vanished the soot from his robes, before he took in the obvious defensive posture that Severus was currently sporting.  "Sorry about the nature of the letter, I just didn't want you putting this off," he said lightly before he took a seat.

Severus acknowledged the apology with a nod of his head before he too, took a seat, "Why didn't you just come outside to see us?"

"Because I know you, you would have stunned and obliviated me," Lucius said dryly.

Severus grimaced but he didn't deny it. "Very well, what are you hoping to get out of this?" He said quietly, he didn't want to play this game. He would much rather go upstairs and play with the boys again.

"Nothing really, I just wanted to know what happened," Lucius replied honestly.

"They were working on a shrinking solution and Neville Longbottom turned it into a de-aging one. It's quite ingenious if I do say so myself. Nonetheless, the three boys were in the closest vicinity and were hit with the potion. You said you were going on Holiday with Narcissa and I thought this would be the perfect time to strengthen my Godfather bond with Draco," Severus said truthfully.

Lucius nodded before he sighed. "I'm not angry this happened, I actually had thought Draco a lost hope at this point," he admitted.

"He's not, he's very taken with Albus," Severus interjected out slyly, wondering what the man would think of that.

"Interesting," Lucius said and it was. He could understand what the man was trying to say to him, his influence currently wasn't there and he was grateful for that now. "When will they turn back?"

"The day after New Year's," Severus replied promptly. "What brought this on Lucius? Why did you drop by unannounced yesterday?"

"I wanted to ask you what you had to do, to get out of the Dark Lord's service," Lucius said quietly.

Severus stared at the man in shock, before his face blanked over.  "What do you mean?"

"Do you take me for a fool Severus? I know you, and so does Narcissa, you were always our fall back plan if something were to happen to us. We were assured that Draco would be away and out of his influence. But I need you to help me now," Lucius said almost pleadingly.

"What has happened?" Severus asked quietly. For Lucius Malfoy to turn his back on the dark meant that Narcissa had something to do with it. Something big must have happened, had she finally threatened him with a divorce?

"Narcissa is with child, we just got back from the Healers yesterday. I'm going to have a little girl," Lucius said a rare smile gracing his face.

To say Severus was shocked was putting it lightly, but he kept the impassive look on his face anyway. "Why do you need my help in this?" He asked carefully, unsure of what the man was planning.

"I don't want my little girl to grow up with the Dark Mark hanging over her head. I don't want her to grow up in that fear, of doing the most evilness of things," Lucius admitted truthfully. He didn't want that life for his little one.

"Oh really? I find this very hypocritical of you Lucius. What about Draco? Doesn't he matter anymore? You groomed him for the Dark Lord and now you're going to leave him to his fate," Severus said bitterly as he realized exactly what the man was doing now.

Lucius gave a long sigh, seemly to slump down in his chair tiredly before he looked up at his friend. "I fear that Draco is beyond help at this point," he admitted shamefully.

"He's not, I told you earlier that Draco has inserted himself into Albus's life. They have a bond, he will be saved from the dark, believe me," Severus promised him fiercely. "I'm not sure how much he'll remember but after living with us for these past weeks he has definitely had a change in perceptions," he added.

"Good, I do not want any of my children in that life. I was so blind, why hadn't I seen?" Lucius muttered out to himself.

Severus didn't say anything, he knew Hindsight was twenty/twenty, he was just glad that the blonde man had come to his senses. "What are you going to do now?"

"Go back home and upgrade the wards on the manor," Lucius said truthfully.

"That's a good start, I'll talk to Albus and I'll get back to you," he promised. "When is she due?"

"In June," Lucius said with a smile.

"Do you think I can take Draco this summer?" Severus asked lightly.

"Of course," Lucius said seriously, he knew they were going to be devoting the majority of their time to the new baby. And he didn't want Draco around the manor until he had cleansed it of all his dark artifacts. That was not the life his son was going to be a part of any longer.

"Great, I have a few things I want to do with them," Severus said easily.

"Why do you have Longbottom and Potter?" Lucius said curiously, that had been on his mind since yesterday. He knew that as Godfather, that Severus would take Draco in an emergency but where did the others fall on that.

"Technically speaking Longbottom is now also my Godson, and Harry is my son," Severus said proudly.

"I've only been gone for two weeks, so much has happened," Lucius said ruefully, trying and failing to hide his shock.

"You have no idea," Severus said before he jumped right in and indulged the man about what he wished to know.

~*~*~*line break~*~*~*~*~*

Upstairs Remus and Albus were waiting in the hallway, listening in on the conversation in apt attention. "Well I'll be damned," Remus murmured in shock at their new information.

"I can work with this," Albus said softly, the next war would be a little bit easier, especially because they had two inner circle members now.

"Do you think he'll switch sides again, when it seems the odds are against us?" Remus asked seriously. Lucius Malfoy was a slippery Slytherin, through and through.

"He won't have a choice; and I won't leave this up to chance. The first chance we get he will make an unbreakable vow. He won't mind, especially if it means that his daughter won't have to grow up in fear for her life," Albus said knowingly.

"Good," he said before he turned back to listen. He froze however as he heard the next words of the man and he swallowed thickly as he turned to look at the Headmaster.

"Don't worry Remus, we will be down there too," Albus said joyfully before he opened the playroom door to get the boys.

~&~&~line break&~&~&~&~&

Back downstairs, Severus was still sitting in his chair, a small weight that had been placed on his chest about the future of his godson was gone. Oh, they would still have to defeat the Dark Lord, but it would be significantly easier. Lucius was his right-hand man, and he was his left. He was glad they were on the same side now. He relaxed his stiff shoulders as he drunk some more of his tea.

"May I see Draco?" Lucius asked after a moment of silence had gone by.

"Of course," he said easily, knowing he couldn't deny him. This was the man's child after all. "Just brace yourself," he warned him, his lips twitching at how the child would react.

Lucius gave him a grin in return, his gaze turned towards the door. He could hear footsteps on the stairs, as well as hear both Lupin and the Headmaster carefully walking the boys down the steps. He took a breath before he stood up, his Malfoy mask disappearing a moment later as he saw the platinum blonde hair of his child.

Draco's eyes widened comically as he looked at the man talking to his godfather. "Daddy!" He squealed out excitedly before he ran full speed at the man.

Lucius had taken Severus's words to heart and had braced himself, but the child was only five and he easily swung him up in the air, appearances be damned. He laughed at the child's squeals coming from his young son. "Hello Dragon," he cooed before he hugged the boy to his chest. He wasn't embarrassed at the others seeing him interact with his child, and when Draco was aged back up he would need to remember to keep dropping the Malfoy mask. He wanted his son's face open like it currently was.

"Uncle Sebbus didn't say you was coming! Is mummy hewe too?" Draco asked excitedly.

"No dragon it's just me, I missed you," Lucius said pulling the child slightly back to look at him.

"I missed you too Daddy!" Draco said before he laid his head contently on his father's shoulder.

"I heard you've been having a lot of fun," Lucius started knowing his son had been quite the chatterbox when he was younger. The boy could talk your ear off once he got going.

"I haff, Neville and I and Hawwy just love living wiff Uncle Sebbus," Draco said happily before he turned to look at his friends. He frowned slightly as he caught sight of Harry. The raven-haired child was hidden behind his godfather's legs, casually peeking out but it was obvious that he was wary. He knew his friend was scared and he wasn't even going to try to get him to move.

"Daddy, I don't wanna go over dere," Harry whispered out to the man.

"You don't have too Harry," Severus soothed, knowing that the sudden appearance of a new person would bring out the child's skittish nature. It just couldn't be helped at the moment.

"Neville, come meet my daddy!" Draco called out, as he turned to look at the other pureblooded boy.

Neville could feel the uneasiness of his Uncle Remus but he didn't know why that was. He gave a small smile before he moved away from the werewolf intent on saying hello to his friend's father. That was the intended plan anyway, as the moment he moved out of the vicinity of the werewolf he felt the sudden darkness and his body involuntarily froze in fear.

He stared almost unseeingly at the blonde man across the way, trying to figure out what was so different. This man was also marked in the way that Severus was, only the difference between them was despite the love the man clearly showed for his son, he was not as good in his heart like the Potion's Master. Neville could feel the evil leaking off the dark mark and the man himself.

He did not want to come any closer, if anything his instincts were telling him to get as far away as possible. He knew it would be considered quite rude to just run away without any given reason, and he didn't want Draco mad at him for refusing to meet his dad. He stood there with a painful look on his face, aware that his silence was confusing the adults in the room.

"What's the matter Neville?" Severus asked quietly, aware of how out of character the child in question was asking.

Neville contemplated how to answer that, his gut wanted him to scream out how evil the new male was, but that would not be the right way to show Draco the support he clearly wanted. He swallowed thickly before he gave an uncomfortable squirm in place.

Remus saw the squirm quite clearly and shook his head in amusement. Naturally the child would be embarrassed about it and wouldn't be sure on how was the correct way to just leave the conversation despite his pureblood manners. "Cub, do you need to use the toilet?" He asked casually.

Neville turned in surprise at the sudden question, his head already giving a frantic nod as he knew this was his way out. "Sowwy," he said apologetically, his eyes flickering back to Draco who thankfully was hugging his daddy and paying no attention to the scene he had caused.

"Don't be, go potty," Severus encouraged, not wanting the child to think that he had to stay here when he needed to relieve himself.

Neville blew out a breath before he turned and hurried out of the room, choosing to head to the upstairs on in their room, rather than the one downstairs.

Albus watched Neville leave fondly before he turns back to the elder Malfoy. "When are you free in the next upcoming days? There are things we need to talk about," he said lightly knowing the other man would know what he was talking about.

"I will send you an owl," Lucius said stiffly before he turned back to his son. He knew they were now technically on the same side but he still held resentment for the man and he didn't know how to handle it. He would work on it with his wife.

"How long awe you gonna stay daddy?" Draco asked curiously.

"Just for a little while longer, I need to go back to your mummy," Lucius explained easily.

Draco nodded easily, as he was used to just staying with his godfather anyway so he wasn't upset or anything of that nature.

"I'm going to go check on Neville," Remus said after a moment, when the small child didn't reappear.

Severus nodded, he had been wondering why the other boy had been taking so long as well, but he knew as the host he couldn't leave himself. "He went upstairs," he said helpfully.

Remus nodded before he too headed upstairs, letting himself into the boy's room. He was surprised to find the child in question sitting on his bed quietly. The boy was in a defensive position, he had his legs drawn up to this chest.  "Did something happen Neville?" He asked softly.

"I can't go back down there, not until Dwaco's daddy leaves," Neville admitted, as he rested his child on his knees.

"Why not?" Remus asked curiously.

"He feels too evil, not at all like Uncle Sebbus, it scawes me," he said softly before he hunched into himself. He wasn't sure how Remus felt about the other man and he just hoped he hadn't offended him or something.

"Believe me I know exactly how you feel. We don't have to go back down then," he promised him as he made his way over to the child and picked him up. He gave him the comfort the child so desperately needed.

Neville breathed in the calm emotions of the man, his little body relaxing a moment later as he allowed himself to comforted. He would never get tired of this. He closed his eyes trying to soak up as much as he could of the moment, never noticing as he fell asleep.

~*~*line break~*~**~*~*~

When he heard the floo flare, Remus finally laid the boy down on the bed before he quietly made his way out of the room. He headed back downstairs to find the Elder Malfoy was gone and Draco was currently playing with the Headmaster and Harry.

"You and Neville never came back down," Severus said quietly, wanting to know what was wrong.

"He was afraid, he told me that he could feel the evilness coming off Malfoy. I must admit, he even made my wolf uneasy," Remus said seriously.

"I had forgotten about his abilities, but that makes sense," Severus said, now worried about the young boy.

"He's fine, he just fell asleep," Remus offered.

Severus nodded but he would be checking up on him soon. "Whose ready for dinner?" He asked the other two.

~*~*~Line break*~*~*~*~*

Neville woke up the next morning a bit disoriented, he hadn't even remembered falling asleep. He could tell that Harry and Draco were still in their beds and sleeping, and he laid there a bit trying to gather his thoughts. He had a dream last night, of them being in Hogwarts. Only unlike when the time they had gone during Christmas this dream was just like that one when Uncle Severus had been yelling at him.

He saw his body, he was older, and so was Harry and Draco. They weren't all friends though, Draco made fun of him and Harry.  This just didn't make any sense; he knew he wasn't a seer so he started pulling out the possibilities of what might have happened. He didn't know to explain it but something was telling him that they were all supposed to be older now and they currently weren't.

He didn't think he wanted to go back to that reality, because he didn't want to lose the closeness that they all had. When we would they turn back to their normal age? The five-year-old gave a sad sigh, already knowing he couldn't keep this a secret from his godbrothers. Neville rolled off his bed silently, eyes glancing at their closed door, knowing that no one was currently coming.

It was just 7am and even if the grown-ups were up, he knew how much they enjoyed their morning chats without them there. Neville made his way over to Draco's bed and climbed up on it. He looked at the sleeping blonde for a moment before he sighed. He didn't have to wake them up at this very moment. Jumping down off the bed, the little boy headed into their ensuite so he could get a shower knowing a house elf would be there to keep watch.

As the little boy showered, his mind thought back to the flashes of memories and visions that he seemed to be getting. He zoned out for a bit as his mind, started to categorized them in his mindset. He watched the memories impassively, seeing things he had forgotten. His eyes burned as some of the memories came forth and he watched them, with a sort of sick fascination. Had Draco always been this mean?

'I do feel sorry,' said Draco Malfoy, one Potions class, 'for all those people who have to stay at Hogwarts for Christmas because they're not wanted at home,'

Why had he wanted to hurt Harry so much? Especially because he now knew that Harry's relatives liked to hurt him. Who would make fun of someone for not wanting to go home? That should have garnered the attention of the adults. Why hadn't anyone noticed anything was wrong?

'You know how I think they choose people for the Gryffindor team?' said Malfoy a few minutes later, as Snape awarded Hufflepuff another penalty for no reason at all. 'It's people they feel sorry for. See, there's Potter, who's got no parents, then there's the Weasleys, who've got no money - you should be on the team, Longbottom, you've got no brains.

Neville's eyes unconsciously filled with tears at the male's words, even if he himself knew he wasn't stupid. It was just so hurtful. Had it made Draco feel so much better for acting like a bully? Why would you bring up Harry's lack of parents, his own parents didn't even know who he was? And while they weren't dead, they might as well have been for all the good they did him.

'Longbottom, if brains were gold you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something

'Draco Malfoy,' Harry explained. 'He hates me.

'Jealous?... Of what? I don't want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don't think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself.'

'You fainted, Potter? Is Longbottom telling the truth? You actually fainted!'

Neville was unable to stop the tears from flowing down his cheeks, mixing with the water from the shower as his head dropped low. In that moment, he hated Draco Malfoy. How could he? He shook the memories away; they didn't mean anything anymore. The Draco he had gotten to know wasn't like this, and he wouldn't stand by for the boy to become a jerk again. He wouldn't lose his brother.

"Is young Master okay? Does Missy need to get Master Severus?" The house elf asked, when she couldn't take the young child crying in the shower any longer.

Neville jerked out of his stupor and turned around to look at the concerned house elf. "No Missy, I'm okay. I just I was remembering something," he admitted tearfully before he turned off the shower and grabbed his towel.

Missy didn't believe him but she let it go for now before she disappeared with a pop. They would be keeping an eye on the child, and if he started crying again, one of the men would know.

Neville sniffled loudly before he stepped out of the tub, quickly drying himself off. He stepped on the little stool and looked at himself in the mirror. What had happened to them? Would Severus tell him if he asked? Did he truly wish to know? He just wanted to know how to prevent those awful memories from being true.

 As much as he didn't want to wake up the other two boys yet, he was awfully confused and he knew that the three of them would be able to think of something rather than just him alone. Steeling himself he walked out of the bathroom and headed over to the Green bed he knew to be Harry's. Neville was surprised to find that Harry was awake and looking at him.

"How long haff you been up Harry?" Neville asked curiously.

"Just now," Harry said with a sleepy smile. "What's up?"

"I've got something important to tell you," Neville said seriously.

"What's wong?" Harry said quietly, a feeling of dread in his tummy at the tone of the other boy's voice.

"I keep haffing these dweams about us," Neville said quietly as he made his way over to Harry's bed.

"Awe they bad dweams?" Harry asked softly.

"I don't know, we awen't weally five. We awe older now, I fink somefing happened to us," Neville said with a frown on his face.

Harry nodded empathetically, but honestly he had already known that something strange was going on. That first night when he had woken up in the infirmary, he hadn't understood how he could have gotten there. He knew he had gone to sleep in his cupboard, only to wake up in a hospital and in a bed to boot? He knew it had to be magic. "What awe we supposed to do den? Do we tell Daddy and Gwanpa and Uncle Wemus?" Harry wanted to know.

"No, I think they know already," Neville said after a moment of thought. "We just haff to talk to Dwaco, he wasn't weally nice to us when we get older," Neville admitted.

Harry nodded silently, as he glanced at the other sleeping boy. He knew that Draco had been jealous before and was mean so he could believe it. He just hoped the other male didn't revert to whenever that was. He didn't think he could stand it. "When do you fink we'll go back to da age we supposed to be?"

"I don't know, but I know that Uncle Severus being Potion's Master, knows the answer to that. And I trust him," Neville said truthfully.

"Me too," Harry said before he climbed out of his bed, intent on getting his own shower. It didn't bother him because magic was so new to him, anything was possible. He would let Neville tell Draco about his dreams, as he had no idea how the blonde boy would react.

Neville sighed softly as he glanced back over at Draco's bed before shaking his head and walking out of the room and towards the playroom. He didn't want to risk it, with the blonde boy. There was no telling how the other boy might react and he didn't want to end up pushing him away even more. He would just need to play it by ear, and tell Harry not to say anything.

~*~*~New Year's Day~*~*~

Midmorning found the occupants of Prince Manor, making their way to the famous Alchemist, Nickolas Flamel to spend the day with. The boys were very excited to visit another wizarding home, not to mention Severus. There was just so many things that he wanted to talk to the old wizard about.

There was so many things he could learn from a being that was over 600 years old. The trip there went smoothly as Severus had learned from his mistakes and had each little boy drink a small spoonful of stomach soother so they wouldn't get sick on arrival from the apparition.

"I hope today goes well," Severus murmured out quietly as he gently led Harry along. The boy was looking a bit shy at meeting new people of course but he also was looking very excited.

"It will, Nickolas cannot wait to meet the boys. And Penelle, is very fond of children," Albus told him firmly.

"I just can't wait to see the different kinds of chocolate they have. Once cannot have lived that long without tasting so much," Remus said with a wistful smile.

Neville snickered at his Uncle's expression as the other men outright laughed. They all knew about the werewolf's slight obsession with chocolate.

"This will be very beneficial for everyone," Albus said as they walked to the front door of the ancestral home.

"I sure you are right," Severus said dryly.

"I am," Albus promised as he gave a firm knock on the door, quieting as the door opened.

~*~*~Line Break*~*~*~

The trip to the Flamels' went as smoothly as one could expect with 3 children under the age of 5, which meant that everything they didn't want to happen, did. Thankfully the Flamels' were used to the antics of children, and in fact Nickolas himself, was like a big child. He enjoyed everything that they brought and was quite sad to see them go.

He made Albus promise to bring them all back once they aged up so he could meet them all properly. And as much as Severus enjoyed conversing with the famous potion Master he was quite happy to just be back home where he could allow the children to let loose without worry.

"Keep your coats on boys and go outside and play," Severus told them the moment they stepped inside of the house.

"Can we fwy?" Harry asked hopefully as he turned his emerald gaze to his father.

"I suppose, Missy will watch out for you," Severus said easily.

He wasn't worried, they had all been gifted with child sized brooms, and that made him aware of something else he was grateful for. Neville's fear of heights was gone, he truly hoped that carried over when they aged up. The boy was a fair flyer, and he knew that with Sirius as his adoptive father that Quidditch would probably be in the boy's near future.

Hanging up his cloak, Severus walked to the kitchen where they would be able to have a nice cup of tea to talk about the farce that was today and the potion he knew he would need to give the boys tonight.

 Not to mention, the window in the kitchen looked out onto the backward so they would be able to watch over the boys without going outside.  He wanted them to have a couple days to adjust, especially when school started back in a few days' time. He only hoped that there wouldn't be any complications or issues to crop up.

~*~*~*Line Break~*~*~

Harry grabbed his broom, and easily took to the air, turning around to make sure that his companions were right behind him. "Want to pway tag or look fow da snitch?" He asked excitedly.

"I wanna pway tag, I'm not good at looking for the snitch. You and Dwaco are the only good ones at that," Neville said with a frown.

"That's twue," Draco said with a smile. "I can be it fiwst?" He offered.

"No I can do it," Harry said shyly, they usually didn't let him be it because it reminded him to much of Dudley and how unfair they used to treat him awfully.

"Awight, count to five and then come after us," Neville instructed him before he flew off.

Harry nodded eagerly and loudly started counting. He ended at five proudly before he took off on his broom, the wind blew in his hair and he smiled brightly, he loved being in the air. He didn't go after Neville right away but to Draco who was flying a bit slower than usual. He giggled as he stretched.

"I'm gonna get you Dwaco!" He called out loudly.

"Nuh uh!" Draco giggled out before he turned sharply to the right trying to get away from Harry.

"Yes huh!" Harry countered back happily as he turned the opposite way before doubling back and tagging the blonde boy on the shoulder. "Got you!" He said before flying up and away from the other boy.

Draco frowned at that, as he flew down to the ground. "Dat doesn't count!" He called out, disgruntled about the whole thing.

"Awe you cheating?" Neville asked quietly as he came to fly by the other male.

"No but I wasn't fwying da best I could," Draco pouted out.

"Why not?" Harry asked skeptically. He wondered if Draco was really going to try to make him be it again.

"I need to go inside fow a minute," he huffed out as he laid his broom on the ground.

"Uncle Sev'rus wants us to stay out here, he's talking wiff Gwanpa and Uncle Wemus," Neville pointed out.

"I know, but I gotta potty," Draco said as he bit his lip worriedly, wondering if he would get in trouble then.

"Oh, dat's okay then," Neville said with a shrug.

"Do you fink I'll be in twouble?" Draco asked worriedly.

"Naw you'll be fine, Daddy doesn't wike it when we hold it. He doesn't want us to haff any askidents," Harry said smartly.

"Too true Harry," Neville said softly before he nodded to the blonde boy to go in.

"Otay den. I be back. Just keep pwaying," Draco told the other two boys before he turned and ran back into the manor and to the toilet.

It didn't seem like the men even noticed he had gone back into the house and he was thankful. As much as Neville was assured that he wouldn't get into trouble, he didn't want to tempt fate by drawing attention to himself.  

Draco finished up and washed his hands before he headed towards the kitchen, hoping he might be able to get a snack, only to hesitate when he heard the voices coming from his guardians. Ever the little Slytherin, he stopped to listen, wondering what they were talking about.

"What do you think might be the best course of action when it comes to aging up the boys?" Albus asked curiously, while they had the cure he didn't know the plan to administer it.

"We might have to separate them, there is no telling how they may lash out. Draco is very hot-headed at times and I don't want him to hurt anyone including himself. His words will be unkind to say the least," Severus informed them.

"Would that truly be the best? Harry might not thrive well in a separate room," Remus pointed out, fretting slightly at the thought of them being on their own.

"Well none of them will be truly alone, one of us will be there. And I will spell their bed for the moment of awareness," Severus pointed out.

"I suppose that can work," Albus said after a moment before sighing. He hoped everything went well.

Draco swallowed thickly before he quietly slunk back towards the hallway where he had come from so they wouldn't hear him. His heart was thudding quickly in his heart, unsure of what he had heard but it didn't sound good.

What were they talking about? Why did they want to split them up? He turned and made his way out to the back, running towards where he had dropped his broom before taking to the air.

"Hawwy? Nebille, we hafta talk," He called to them, as he tightened his grip on his little broom. His brain was full of conflicting thoughts, and he was oh so confused. Maybe Neville and Harry would be able to shed some light on what he had just learned.

"What's the matter?" Harry asked seeing the look on Draco's face.

"I heawd somefing when I was inside," Draco whispered out fearfully.

"What was it?" Neville asked quietly, picking up on the other male's fear.

"Pwomise me dat you and Hawwy won't forget me. Pwomise me dat no matter what Uncle Sebbus and Uncle Wemus and Gwanpa Albus say," Draco whispered out harshly.

"What awe you talking about Dwaco? What's wong?" Harry asked worriedly, wondering what on earth had happened.

"Nothing will ever make me forget you Draco, how could I? You and Harry are the best friends I could ever have," Neville told him firmly, wondering what on earth that Draco would have possibly heard.

"Otay," Draco blew out in relief, his hands still tightening on the handle of his broomstick, wishing that he could be certain that they would never push him away.

"It will be okay, I pwomise you dat Dwaco," Neville said kindly.

Draco nodded before he flew a bit away from them. "I'll count to five den?" He called out.

Harry was staring after the blonde boy in confusion before shifting his gaze to Neville questioningly. "What's going on?" He asked softly.

"I don't know," Neville lied quietly, as he glanced back towards Draco. "Just fwy Harry," he encouraged.

He watched as the Raven-haired child flew off as the blonde-haired child raced after him. He put his little fist to his heart and bowed his head hoping that whatever Draco had heard didn't come to past. He meant what he said, there was no way that he was letting Draco and Harry go. They were his brothers now, and he would protect them with every fiber of his being.