Chapter 9 – Think on Your Feet

Harry didn’t know how the evening had descended into chaos. It had been a fun day. He’d come to the Snapes for Christmas to avoid returning to the Dursleys so he wouldn’t be their slave ad have a miserable Christmas and then have a miserable school year upon his return.

He’d not expected to enjoy himself at the Snapes, given the Potions Master’s attitude towards him during the school year. However, he had. He loved Snape’s family and wished they were his.

Despite what Snape thought, he didn’t have a big head, but truthfully, he did do the bulk of the work in the kitchen today. But unlike with the Dursleys, everyone in the kitchen had pitched in. Petunia would have been in the kitchen, shrieking orders in her shrill voice and doing the minimum, while Vernon and Dudley complained from the front room about how hungry they were, despite eating the massive breakfast Harry would have made them.

Then their guest, Iain Baker, had said what he did about Harry’s mum. Now, logically Harry knew he was talking about the fake mum who broke Snape’s cold heart, but he couldn’t help but think of Marge and her horrible comments about Harry’s real mum.

Though, Nana had stood up for Harry, it reminded him that this was a world of make-believe. This wasn’t Harry’s family, and Snape wouldn’t bring him back no matter what he wished. It was obvious Snape didn’t like Harry here. So, he withdrew into himself and let their chatter flow around him, forcing himself not to get lulled into it again.

He’d come to the den to remind himself it was all temporary and wished desperately for Hedwig, his one true friend who always kept him company when he was with the Dursleys during the summer. Instead, Maya had followed him, as she had been doing all day since he’d given her the boxing gloves. Then Iain Baker had come down as Harry tried to persuade Maya to give him some time.

Yet, Maya wouldn’t let the older man near Harry, stood protectively in front of him, reminding him of his friends. It confused him and delighted him in the same instance, but he’d still tried to move her away.

“I didn’t mean what I’d said, boy,” Mr Baker had said, looking contrite. Harry had been more than willing to accept the apology. He’d never see the man again after today, nor see any of Snape’s family again after the holidays.

However, Maya still became more agitated whenever Mr Baker tried to step closer – it was just to shake Harry’s hand, but Maya had been adamant Mr Baker stay away. Seeing her alarm, Mr Baker looked as confused as Harry and tried to back away.

Everything just went downhill from there.

Maya refused to let go of Harry. Mr Baker was on the floor, looking dazed. Snape came running in with Alfred and Jacky and tried to blame Harry for – well, everything. But that wasn’t new to Harry.

Then, in an even more bizarre twist, Alfred and Jacky stood between Harry and Snape. To protect Harry.

It confused Harry to no end.

But hold on – because the surprises weren’t over yet.

Not when Alfred returned from answering the front door, with guests in tow, whom Harry recognised immediately – Malfoy’s parents!

“Everyone,” Alfred said, getting everyone’s attention, “this is Claudia. And her husband, Luke.”

So he was somewhat confused when Narcissa Malfoy opened her mouth and said,

“Hello, Severus. I apologise for dropping by on your family gathering unannounced. I simply missed Harry. So much.”

Harry, despite what Snape thought of him, wasn’t all that slow on the uptake. For some reason, the Malfoys were here pretending to be – well, Narcissa was pretending to be Claudia, Snape’s ex and Harry’s mother. But that must mean that Lucius was pretending to be Harry’s stepfather?

Where the heck was Malfoy? He looked around the room, taking in everyone’s expressions. Snape was frozen in shock. The children were confused as heck. The adults exchanged glances, trying to figure out what was happening, and Nana looked between Harry and Narcissa with a frown.

“Harry, darling, aren’t you going to come up and hug your mother? It’s Christmas,” Narcissa beckoned with a smile that looked so genuine that Harry was almost taken in by it.

“Mum?” Harry said hesitantly, standing up uncertainly, but Maya kept a hold of him still.

Harry looked between Snape and the Malfoys indecisively. Snape never gave him a clear direction with his family, only told him to be on his best behaviour. Harry had taken that and run with it and inveigled himself into everyone’s good graces and enjoyed being there. Snape was the one who couldn’t get his act together and behave like a father, but Narcissa Malfoy had come in and turned everything upside down in seconds. There’s been no script for Harry to begin with, and Narcissa had come to steal the show.

When Snape failed to give him any direction again, Harry made to move towards Narcissa, but was stopped by Maya’s hand.

“Let him go, honey,” Jacky said, coming to stand beside her daughter.

Maya reluctantly let go of Harry’s arm and Harry, self-consciously walked to Narcissa, who was holding her arms out for a hug. It felt decidedly unnatural to have Draco Malfoy’s mother hugging him, and even more so when Draco Malfoy’s father gave him a patently paternal smile. He felt something, a piece of paper, being slipped into his hand.

Nana gave him a questioning look, to which he could only shrug helplessly in reply.

“Well, it looks like your father is going to be rude and not introduce us to his family,” Narcissa said, pulling away from Harry. “Harry, will you do the honours?”

“Er, yeah. Mum, this is Uncle Alfred, he’s – he’s dad’s cousin. That’s his wife, Gloria,” Harry stiltedly introduced everyone, each person nodding or waving confusedly, before ending with, “and that’s Lexi, holding on to her rabbit, Marley.”

“It’s lovely to finally meet you all,” Narcissa said with the same pleased smile she’d sported when she stepped into the house. “I’m sure we all agree that this meeting is long overdue.”

“Long overdue,” Nana Bea agreed dryly. “Why don’t you take a seat? I’m sure you’ve had a long journey from…”

“Wiltshire,” Lucius answered smoothly. “And thank you.”

“That’s a little over a four-hour drive,” Gloria pointed out.

“More than worth seeing my son for,” Narcissa said, following Lucius to the sofa where Barry and Gloria moved from to let the guests sit.

Harry perched awkwardly on the armrest next to Narcissa.

Severus was still in shock, following the movements of the Malfoys like an automaton.

“Sit down, Severus,” Nana suggested, wheeling her chair forward. Snape automatically did as he was told.

An awkward atmosphere descended on the room as no one spoke.

“If you wouldn’t mind, as you said, it’s been a long journey,” Lucius said, standing up after barely sitting down for a minute, “if I could use your washroom?”

“Of course,” Nana nodded. “Harry, could you show your stepfather to the downstairs bathroom?”

“Yeah,” Harry said immediately, jumping up, knowing it was a ruse to get him alone.

Harry silently led the way towards the bathroom. Lucius cast some sort of privacy spell once they were alone.

“The note is from Dumbledore,” Lucius told him. “He said you would know the password to verify it was from him.”

“Right,” Harry said, pulling the paper from his sleeve. It was blank, presumably waiting for him to speak the password. But he ignored it for the moment. “Why did he send you here?”

“Narcissa and I volunteered. This morning we got some shocking news,” Lucius told him. “We were the only ones who knew where Severus’s family lived, and we have a somewhat tenuous connection to you.”

Harry wasn’t any less confused.

“Read the note,” Lucius suggested neutrally. “I understand you have no reason to trust my word, given your current rivalry with my son and recent circumstances. However, you can believe Dumbledore.”

“It’s Christmas Day,” Harry pointed out. “You gave up the day to come deliver Dumbledore’s note?”

“Christmas is a Muggle holiday,” Lucius told him. “Traditional Purebloods celebrate Yuletide, which holds a completely different meaning to Christmas. This particular day means less to us than it does to muggles, so coming here today doesn’t spoil our Christmas.”

Harry nodded his understanding. The Weasleys had never mentioned Yuletide, but he’d been around them long enough to understand that they weren’t exactly traditional.

“The bathroom’s that way,” he said, though he didn’t really believe Malfoy wanted to use it. Harry hurried to the den so he could read the note.

Closing the door behind him, he swallowed before whispering the password, “I solemnly swear I am up to no good.”

Dear Harry, he read,

This ingenious map of yours was most invaluable indeed, and I thank you for leaving it in my safekeeping. You can rest assured that I have not told anyone else about it, and upon your return to school, I promise to return it to you.

Because of this map, the other professors and I were able to set a trap for Sirius Black, and thus we were able to capture him.

Harry read the note with increasing confusion as it detailed Sirius Black’s lack of trial before he’d been sent to Azkaban and how Dumbledore would ensure he was fairly tried. With disbelief and disgust, Harry read that Ron’s pet was really a wizard masquerading as a rat. Dumbledore gave a brief summary of Pettigrew. It detailed that Sirius Black was Narcissa’s cousin, hence why he’d sent the Malfoys. Dumbledore’s note created more questions than it answered.

Harry already knew that Black was the one who betrayed Harry’s parent’s to Voldemort, and that he was apparently Harry’s godfather. If he was reading the note correctly, Dumbledore was implying that perhaps Black might be innocent? Harry had no clue what this meant for him. Harry suffered greatly under the Dementors' presence since he’d first encountered them. He couldn’t imagine what shape, mentally, Black would be in.

“Mischief Managed,” he whispered, and the note became blank again. He stuffed it into his trunk and came out of the den to see Lucius was waiting for him.

“Before we head back inside,” Lucius said, stopping Harry, “is there anything we should know about… well, anything you deem important?”

Harry thought quickly but asked, “How did you get here? Are we supposed to leave today? Muggle transport is scarce on Christmas day.”

“We came in a carriage, on winged abaraxon. They’re glamoured to look like a muggle car and have a muggle-repelling charm, so no one should approach them. As to whether we leave today, I’m sure Severus would be more than willing to leave, given a chance.”

Harry nodded. He’d be sorry to cut the holiday short, but firmly reminded himself that this wasn’t his family.

“Where’s Malfoy?” Harry asked, suddenly aware that the annoying ponce was nowhere around.

“With friends,” Lucius answered. “You need not worry about him.”

Though the look he bestowed on Harry showed he knew that the younger wizard didn’t care about his son. Harry belated remembered that Draco was egging his father on about executing an innocent hippogriff. However, now was not the time to air that grievance. One crisis at a time.

“Now, is there anything I need to know about keeping this façade going?” Lucius asked again.

Harry could tell that they were only doing this for Snape.

“Snape and I are pretending that we’re not very close. Everyone thinks that – er Mum, is a horrible shrew who never let my – er – dad  - anywhere near me,” Harry said.

Lucius nodded with an amused look. Harry realised the elder Malfoy already knew some of this.

“I’m a good cook,” Harry told him, “do it all the time at home. I learned it from my mum’s sister.”

Lucius nodded again to show his understanding.

“What’s your speciality?”

“Chocolate fudge cake,” he answered. Dudley loved anything chocolate, so it was something he’d become good at.

Harry racked his brain, aware they’d spent loads of time away from the Sitting room and needed to go back.

“And you’re really generous with my allowance,” Harry added.

“I hope you spend it wisely,” Lucius smirked.

They were about to enter the Sitting room again, when Harry suddenly remembered, “Eyes!”

Ignoring Lucius’s startled look, Harry asked, “What colour are Mrs Malfoy’s eyes?”

“Blue,” Lucius answered.

“I told everyone I got my eyes from my mum,” Harry told him.

Lucius stared at Harry’s green eyes intently and nodded. “I’ll take care of it.”

They entered the room again, where the atmosphere was still awkward, and everyone seemed to be waiting for Harry and Lucius to return. Snape still seemed stuck on Narcissa.

Maya looked relieved at Harry’s return, whereas Jacky and Gloria eyed him critically. Lucius retook his seat next to Narcissa, with Harry on her other side. He tried not to feel startled as Narcissa took his hand.

Nana cleared her throat and asked, “Have you eaten? You must not have had a decent dinner if you’ve spent it on the road. We still have food left over. We can warm up for you.”

Narcissa and Lucius looked at each other, communicating the way Harry had seen Vernon and Petunia do when they were leaving Dudley, but mostly Harry, out of the conversation.

“We don’t want to put you through any trouble,” Lucius said when they broke eye contact.

“Of course, it’s no trouble,” Alfred answered.

“Perhaps a small meal,” Narcissa conceded. “I’d like to wash up, if that’s okay.”

Gloria offered to take Narcissa to the bathroom, as Alfred and Jacky led the way to the Dining room. The table had been cleared already.

Lucius sat down near the end of the table.

“Won’t you be joining us?” the blond asked, looking at everyone around him.

“We’ve already eaten,” Nana answered.

With Narcissa out of the room, Snape seemed to have transferred his unsettling gaze onto Lucius.

“However, we were going to sit down to dessert soon,” Nana continued.

Harry hovered self-consciously next to her wheelchair, Maya standing next to him. Nana was the only one from Snape’s family who knew that he wasn’t Snape’s son and that Narcissa wasn’t his mother or Snape’s ex. However, she seemed to be having fun with the situation.

Narcissa returned with Gloria and, to Harry’s surprise, came back with green eyes. He determined it must be a glamour of some sort but wondered at what point Lucius might have communicated that information to his wife.

“It’s so good of you to share your food with us,” Narcissa said, appropriately grateful, “but perhaps, it – well, I only – you see, I rarely get to see him during the school year since he’s started boarding at Severus’s alma mater. The school holidays are the only time I get to see him. I feel awful for intruding on your family time together.”

“We understand,” Alfred said, softening a little. “We were excited to have Harry over as well. We know so little about him, and yourself. And Severus too, when it comes down to it.”

“Why are you here?” Snape blurted out, belatedly.

“Do keep up, Severus. She’s already said she’s come to see Harry,” Nana admonished. “Claudia, please take a seat. We’ll bring the food out shortly.”

“Oh no,” Narcissa waved off, “please, don’t bother on our behalf.”

“It’s no bother,” Nana insisted. “You’ve come all this way. You must have cut your own meal short. If you had one at all.”

Narcissa still hesitated.

“Harry’s worked hard on the meal,” Alfred said, as if this was supposed to be some sort of incentive.

“Harry’s worked hard on the meal?” Narcissa repeated, slowly, confused.

“Well, of course,” Alfred confirmed, looking confused himself.

“You mean he helped in the kitchen,” Narcissa said, “not that he made the whole thing himself.”

“Well, truthfully, we helped Harry more than he helped us,” Gloria confessed. “He’s a very skilled boy. You must be proud of him.”

Narcissa, however, didn’t seem to be listening. She was stepping towards Snape, looking suddenly furious.

“You begged me to take my son to visit your family,” Narcissa hissed. “You said they were dying to meet him. You said they would dote on him.”

Harry looked wide-eyed as Malfoy’s mother squared off against Snape.

“Now, hold on,” Alfred tried to interfere, looking bewildered.

Narcissa said, her voice slightly above a whisper, “Is that why you brought him here? Because you were sick of eating food your cousin made, and you thought you would bring my son up here and have - You allowed my son to cook your Christmas dinner like some servant? He’s just a boy!”

Lucius got up from his seat to stand behind his wife, pulling her cautiously away from Snape as if she was liable to slap the Potions Master. Harry was almost fooled into believing she really was a concerned mother berating an absent father for using him as a House-elf for the day for his own gain. He admired her acting skills – wanting to put it down to her being a sneaky Slytherin, but that didn’t seem to apply to Snape. Harry felt someone like Snape was too blunt to be sneaky – he might be secretive but lacked the patience for subterfuge. Of course, Harry could be completely wrong about that.

Alfred and the others looked horrified.

“You complained about my cooking to your ex?” Jacky said indignantly.

“Honey,” Lucius said, pulling her back even further, “I’m sure that’s not what Severus intended. And you know what Harry’s like. He loves being in the kitchen and experimenting with recipes.”

“Yeah,” Harry tacked on quickly, “I volunteered. I didn’t mind. Honestly. I made cinnamon rolls too.”

“Your mother’s favourite,” Lucius added, still holding on to Narcissa, as if afraid if he let go, she would launch herself at Severus.

“Oh, Harry. You were thinking of me too?” Narcissa said with an indulgent smile.

Harry’s lips twitched as he said, “Of course. Always.”

“Listen,” Alfred interrupted, “we’ve loved having Harry here, and he’s welcome back here any time. As are you. We didn’t expect him to make our Christmas dinner, nor did we encourage him to. If anything, your boy has been a good influence on our children. My nephew Andrew seems more interested in learning to cook since Harry showed his skills.”

“Harry’s the best,” Maya piped up.

Harry smiled down gently at her. He missed Lucius and Narcissa taking in the girl’s protective stance.

“Don’t worry about serving us dinner,” Narcissa told them. “However, if you’re about to have dessert, I won’t say no to cinnamon rolls. Especially if my Harry’s made them – I’ll admit they’re not as good as his chocolate fudge cake.”

Harry had to remind himself this was all an act, as Narcissa was certainly acting like a warm and caring mother. He found himself envying Malfoy. The ponce might have been spoilt slimy git, but Harry might have grown up the same if his mother spoiled him as she apparently did her son.

He was unaware of the sadness entering his green eyes that almost everyone noticed. He shook off his thoughts. This was supposed to be an act, and he had to remind himself that he’d never see Snape’s family again after today.

“Take a seat,” Nana said, gesturing towards the dining table. “You too, Harry. Sit with your mother.”

“Yes, Harry, come sit with us,” Narcissa said, beckoning him closer.

“I’ll fetch some more chairs,” Alfred said. They would need them now that they had two more to add to their table.

Jacky was forced to sit as well, and she gratefully sank into a chair next to where Nana wheeled her chair.

“Would you like tea, coffee or hot chocolate?” Gloria asked.

“Hot chocolate, please,” Lucius answered for both.

“We’ll be out shortly,” Gloria said.

Snape sat down opposite Narcissa. He finally seemed to have woken up from his daze.

“Have you come to take - Harry away?” the Potions Master asked stiffly.

“Should we?” Narcissa parried back.

“Oh, please don’t take Harry away,” Maya begged, clutching his arm again.

Narcissa’s eyes softened as she gently pointed out, “He can’t stay forever, darling.”

“He could,” Maya argued.

“Are you okay?” Harry asked as he patted her hands gently.

Maya stared at him, her eyes glistening and trying to convey something important to him before breaking eye contact and looking helplessly at her mother.

“We’ll get to the bottom of it, honey,” Jacky said, her words a promise that confused Harry, the Malfoys and Snape.

Nana Bea looked at her granddaughter in askance, to which Jacky replied with an odd emphasis on her words as she placed a hand on Nana’s back, “Harry’s one of us.”

There was a strange darkening in Nana’s eyes, as if she was angry at something, but whatever it was disappeared as quickly as it appeared. She did, however, give Harry a sharp look.

“Is all well?” Lucius asked, taking in the byplay.

“We shall see,” Nana said mysteriously.

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Narcissa broke the silence when no other answers were forthcoming, “how far along are you?”

“A little over five months,” Jacky answered softly, placing her hand protectively over her swollen belly. “My due date is somewhere around the end of April.”

“My … Harry - was born early, by several weeks,” Narcissa shared. Looking sad, she softly added, “I almost lost him.”

Lucius took Narcissa’s hand; her other one had reached for Harry’s.

“I suppose that’s why I may spoil my son,” Narcissa said, looking at Harry with meaning.

Harry nodded, beginning to understand a little more about Draco Malfoy than he would have liked. The Dursleys doted on Dudley so much that his cousin knew no boundaries or consequences. He wondered briefly whether Petunia might have gone through similar trauma, which is why she and Vernon pampered Dudley so much. Though he firmly believed that their extreme behaviour was due to Harry’s presence in their lives.

He still didn’t feel like it excused Dudley’s or Draco’s attitude. They were both brats; sneaky and underhanded - and content to blame others (usually Harry) when things didn’t go their way.

Narcissa and Jacky chatted while waiting for the desserts to be brought out, exchanging pregnancy tips. Harry felt his cheeks heating up and sat through the conversation red-faced as he listened to Malfoy’s mum talk about all her cravings during her pregnancy and all the stuff her unborn baby put her through. It was stuff he never expected or wanted to hear.

“I think I need to use the bathroom – again,” Lucius said hastily, getting up as the conversation descended into highly private territory.

“I’ll show you,” Snape said just as hastily, as if Lucius might have forgotten.

Harry had no doubt that Snape wanted to get away just as much as Lucius, but would use the opportunity to interrogate his friend regarding his current presence in a muggle residence.

Malfoy always seemed to act like muggles were beneath him, but his parents were surprisingly comfortable being on a muggle farm run by a veterinary or were just that good at acting.

“I should see if they need help in the kitchen,” Harry said, scrambling from his seat. “It’s only polite.”

“I’ll go with you,” Maya tacked on, looking mortified.

Nana looked amused at the sudden mass exodus.

ooOoo

Jacky found herself liking Harry’s mother. The woman was much warmer than Severus presented her as, yet, despite her words saying she spoiled her son, he was not.

Claudia was affectionate and protective – blaming Severus for having Harry make Christmas dinner for them. And Jacky could see why the woman would be angry at that. Severus, as Harry’s parent, should have stood up for his son and not allowed the boy to take on so much work. It was only right that Claudia held Severus accountable for that.

In the scenario where she and Barry might split up and share custody, it would be up to Barry or Jacky to ensure their children were treated fairly. Jacky still made herself feel better by assuring herself that Harry hadn’t been alone to cook in the kitchen at any point. She, Gloria, Andrew and Maya had been there to share the burden every step of the way. And the poor darling had been so patient with them in the kitchen, giving them clear directions on how each food needed to be presented.

Andrew paid more attention to Harry’s words than he had to any teacher, and even took notes every chance he got.

 And Harry’s food had been gorgeous. It had been decades since Nana cooked, who was wonderful in the kitchen herself, but if Jacky had a choice between picking Harry’s food and Nana’s – Harry would win, hands down.

The way he handled each ingredient with such precision and expertise - and his knife skills – they were brilliant. She’d seen Severus handle the knife with the same proficiency, but he seemed as horrible in the kitchen as Jacky.

“Harry’s a credit to you,” Jacky told the other woman. However, despite the easy camaraderie, Jacky got the feeling Claudia was hiding something. Though it was clear the woman doted on her son, there was still a question about how Harry got those scars on his back. Jacky might not have seen the scars herself, but she trusted her daughter’s judgement and had no reason to doubt her word.

Harry seemed comfortable enough with his mother and stepfather. In fact, he’d shown no hesitation in leaving the room with Luke, so she doubted he was abused by either of them. Could it have been Severus? Jacky didn’t want to believe it, but truthfully, she didn’t know her cousin that well. Heaven help him if Severus touched a hair on little Harry’s head.

After a while, Luke and Severus poked their head back into the Dining room to see if it was safe to enter again. Jacky found herself amused at their embarrassment and at poor Harry’s. Maya was used to her mother embarrassing her, but perhaps this might have been a step too far, though it wouldn’t be long before Maya was due for the Birds and Bees talk.

Being vets, Alfred and Barry had experienced complicated pregnancies with their own patients, so they would have taken the topic with less awkwardness.

Upon Severus and Luke’s re-entry, Jacky excused herself to ostensibly check things in the kitchen, though most of the others were already there. The previous dishes had been cleared and washed away sometime in the last half hour.

Jacky sent the children back to the dining room with new dishes (and extra chairs) and sent Brian to fetch Iain from the Sitting room. She’d almost forgotten his presence and was looking forward to the man’s attitude towards the woman he'd called a bitch more than an hour ago.

God, that incident felt like it happened yesterday. So much had happened so quickly. She blamed herself for her loose lips and contributing towards Harry's distress and defence of her mother. The boy had worked so hard at the meal, only to end up not enjoying it as he should have been able to due to Iain’s crass words spoken at an inopportune moment.

Once the children were out of the kitchen, the adults turned to each, gathering around the kettle to exchange information at rapid speed and regroup. Gloria didn’t even tell Nana off for wheeling her chair into the clean kitchen when she came to join them.

“What’s actually happened?” Barry asked, the last one to be brought into the loop.

“Maya saw scars like ours on Harry’s back,” Jacky relayed.

Understanding dawned in Barry and Alfred’s eyes. They’d all put down her closeness to Harry due to hero worship following the gift he’d given her, which she treasured above all other presents she’d got today.

None of them asked if Maya had misinterpreted what she’d seen. Their children had been well-trained in treating abuse seriously and would never joke about anything like that. 

“Who do you think?” Barry asked, completely serious.

“I don’t know,” Jacky admitted with a sigh. “Harry doesn’t act scared around Claudia and Luke. He felt safe enough to leave the room with him.”

“Severus?”

Alfred answered, “It could be.”

Her brother hadn’t hesitated to stand beside Jacky when she’d stood up their cousin when – whatever happened in the den with Harry and Maya. Iain had been dazed, and Harry had looked confused, but Jacky didn’t believe for a second that Harry might have pushed Iain away. However, something had happened, and it was one more thing they needed to look into.

“Seems we have more sleuthing to do,” Jacky declared.

“Should we talk to Claudia about our suspicions?” Gloria suggested.

“No,” Nana said firmly, who’d been curiously silent until that point. “I think there’s more to her than meets the eye.”

Jacky nodded, trusting her grandmother’s judgement.

Getting Harry away from his parents would be difficult, but they wouldn’t hesitate to challenge Claudia or Severus if they had to.

Though they had no clear direction to help Harry, they felt better being on the same page. Deciding they would not let Claudia leave with Harry was the best plan they had, and they would insist that they keep to the original plan to have Harry and Severus stay until the end of the year.

Harry seemed in a much better mood than he was during dinner. The children had insisted Harry sit between them again instead of near his mother. However, Claudia didn’t seem to mind and seemed to be engaged in conversation with the young girls. Even Luke seemed to be taken by Lexi. Jacky caught a wistful look he aimed at the children and his wife.

Seeing how they behaved with the other children, Jacky couldn’t imagine they had been the ones to hurt Harry. Alfred and Jacky’s father never bothered showing a kind nature to those outside the family – there was no trickery in his attitude. He never presented himself as two-faced. When people had found out about Zachary Snape abusing his children, no one was surprised.

However, Jacky and Alfred had seen many abuse cases over the years – more than they liked to admit. She knew that not all monsters were as obvious as Zachary and Tobias Snape. Sadly, they’d not been able to help them all, the reasons varying in each case but primarily due to feeling powerless. Jacky refused to feel helpless for Harry. He was family.

She and Barry were going to start house-hunting in the new year; their family was growing with a new baby on the way. Finding a house with an extra bedroom for Harry wouldn’t be too much of a stretch. Children deserve to feel safe.

“I’m sorry,” Claudia was saying to Iain, her tone inquisitive, “I thought I knew all of Severus’s family. Which of his cousins are you?”

Harry looked up from his conversation with Sarah, eying Iain intently.

Jacky was pleasantly surprised to see the old gruff blush in embarrassment.

Alfred answered, almost amused, “Iain’s one of our neighbours. We invited him after he missed the train to Glasgow.”

Claudia nodded.

“Are you planning to drive back today?” Nana asked, once everyone had been served.

Jacky assumed her grandmother was trying to establish whether they would be leaving today and planning to take Harry with them.

“We were,” Luke answered for both.

“I wish we could have offered you a room here,” Nana said, and Jacky was surprised to hear how fake Nana, who was usually so kind, sounded. “However, I’m afraid there’s simply no extra space with everyone staying over.”

“Jacqueline’s house is nearby and empty,” Severus pointed out.

“Glad you feel comfortable enough to offer my home to strangers,” Jacky said archly.

Severus grimaced in embarrassment.

Claudia interjected, “Truly, there’s no need. We shall be leaving soon.”

“Without Harry,” Alfred said firmly. “Severus promised us that he and Harry would spend until New years with us. After all, this is the first time we’ve seen Harry since his birth. We have a lot of catching up to do still.”

“Are you sure you’re not wanting to keep Harry so you have someone to cook for you?” Severus asked, bristling a little.

“We’ll eat bread and jam for the rest of the holidays,” Gloria said, “but you don’t need to worry about thinking that we only want to keep Harry for his cooking skills. Harry has many other talents that make him an invaluable part of the family.”

“Like his cleaning skills?” Severus added disdainfully.

Gloria glared at Severus.

“You made him clean as well?” Claudia asked stiffly.

“I helped a little,” Harry added, more nervously than he needed to. “We all cleaned together. No different to the chores you have me do at home... Mum.”

Claudia seemed to calm down a little but still turned to her ex and said, “You and I shall be having words, Severus.”

“You’re making a bigger deal out of this than it is,” Severus said, “for no reason.”

“Claudia has every right to defend her son,” Alfred said. Then turning to the woman in question, he continued, “All chores are divided equally in this house. Harry’s only been here with us for a week, but truly, he’s quickly become family to us. We’d never do anything to hurt him, and that includes abusing his gentle nature by allowing him to cook and clean for us. If anything, he’s set a good example for our children.”

The children in question watched in silence, absently eating their cinnamon rolls. Lexi had frosting smeared on her face as she took gigantic bites and chewed as she darted her eyes between the adults.

“Harry’s safe here with us,” Nana added gently as she looked at Claudia intently.

Claudia and Luke subtly exchanged puzzled glances.

“Are you implying that he’s not safe with us?” Luke asked.

He didn’t seem defensive, Jacky was able to determine. Just baffled.

Severus, on the other hand, looked cross.

“What has the boy been telling you?” he demanded as he pushed his plate and cup away, his dessert untouched.

Harry paused, his spoon frozen inches away from his lips.

“Don’t get angry at Harry,” Maya said, glaring indignantly at Severus.

“What on earth is going on?” Claudia asked, looking between everyone.

“The boy seems to be telling tales,” Severus said, looking at Harry irritatedly, deciding to ignore Maya.

“I haven’t said anything to anyone,” Harry said defensively.

Nana looked at Alfred and Jacky. That was another familiar phrase. It was looking more and more likely that Severus was the one hurting Harry.

“Severus, Harry hasn’t spoken an ill word about you since the moment he arrived,” Nana snapped, surprising the man, “which is more than I can say about you. Every other word you speak about the boy is about how lazy he is, how big his ego is, how much of a bully he is – but the only bully I see here is you.”

Severus paled, looking hurt.

“That’s what you’ve been telling your family about our son?” Claudia asked mildly.

“Nana?” Harry said, looking uncertain as to whether he should interfere or not.

“Children, I want all of you to take your food into the Sitting room,” Nana ordered, seeming to have had enough.

There was a pause where the children looked at each other indecisively, but at Nana’s prompting, they complied, though they moved slower than they usually would. Jacky hadn’t seen Nana get this angry in, well, decades, to be fair. After Uncle Tobias passed away, peace settled on their family. They’d had their ups and downs over the years, but nothing had ever upset Nana this much. Not until Jacky told her that Harry had scars like they did.

Nana seemed to have run out of patience dead quickly for her to go straight to the heart of the matter. Not that Jacky minded. In fact, she wholeheartedly approved.

“You too, Harry,” Jacky added when the boy paused.

Iain, sensing the family matter, also got up. Barry helped carry the older man’s food and tea, as he would have struggled with both due to his cane.

It would figure, that the one time they get an edible Christmas dinner, they wouldn’t be able to fully enjoy it due to rising tensions.

Gloria exchanged a look with her husband before getting up and leaving.

Prudently, Claudia took her husband and exited gracefully, sending a sympathetic glance towards her ex, which Jacky felt was rather gracious given how much and how often Severus badmouthed her in the past.

“You really think I’m a bully, Nana?” Severus asked, sounding distressed.

“What do you think, Severus?” Nana volleyed back.

This wasn’t how Jacky anticipated Christmas would go, but Severus needed to hear some harsh truths.

ooOoo

Andrew and the others invited Harry to join them upstairs, where they’d decided to retreat after finishing their treats and hot chocolate – at speed. However, Harry decided to stay behind and have a quiet conversation with Narcissa and Lucius first.

Harry suspected they didn’t want to spend more time around Iain Baker than they had to, so they’d absconded upstairs. They even took Marley, carrying the rabbit for Lexi.

Harry led Narcissa and Lucius towards the den, allowing them to cast a quick Privacy and Proximity ward.

“What’s been happening here?” Narcissa asked.

However, Lucius seemed to be looking around the den that still showed signs of the earlier… scuffle – and asked, “What happened in here?”

“Accidental magic,” Harry answered but hurried on before they could delve too much into that. “Sn- er- Professor Snape’s been having some problems with his family.”

The Malfoys gave him twin looks, silently asking him to elucidate.

Harry sighed. As much as he came to love Snape’s family, this whole thing was becoming ridiculous.

“Snape asked me to come here with him and told me to be on my best behaviour,” he told them.

They nodded, seeming to know that and didn’t correct Harry’s lack of honorific.

“But, I take from their comments, that he’s not painted the best picture of you to his family,” Narcissa said shrewdly.

“Well, he’s told them that you’re – as in his ex – is -er that – ” Harry stuttered before deciding to spit it out, “he’s said Claudia’s a horrible person who purposely kept his son from him and spoiled him – as in me- rotten. And how he – me – I have no work ethic and how I’m lazy and, you know, don’t play well with others.”

The Malfoys looked amused, smiling as they exchanged looks.

“And you proved the opposite?” Lucius smirked.

Harry shrugged and repeated, “He told me to be on my best behaviour.”

Narcissa shook her head exasperatedly and said, “Severus did like to make things difficult for himself.”

“And what else?” Lucius prompted.

“Well, things were going well,” Harry said. He decided not to mention kicking Snape, or the fact Nana could walk, or that she knew about magic or even share his suspicions about Maya. “We were opening presents together, and Snape gave his usual presents to everyone –”

“The money,” Lucius said knowingly.

“Yes,” Harry nodded. “Except, he gave Sarah, the oldest, more than he usually would.”

“I recall him mentioning it. For her education, wasn’t it? How much did he gift?” Narcissa asked curiously.

“A cheque for a thousand pounds,” Harry said.

Both had a brief look of concentration as they mentally converted that into galleons.

“Is that a lot in muggle money?”

“It’s a significant amount to give,” Harry said with another shrug. “To help Sarah with her book and tuition."

"And I take the gesture didn’t go down well?” Lucius stated more than asked.

“It caused some upset,” Harry admitted cautiously.

“Pride seems to be a strong trait around the Snape family,” Narcissa muttered.

Harry wisely pressed his lips together to stop a retort about hypocrisy from escaping. Their son had antagonised a creature he had been warned about offending and was too proud to admit he hadn’t been listening and paid the price for it. And because he’d made such a huge fuss about a tiny scratch that Pomfrey had healed within seconds, he was too proud to back down and insisted on having the poor creature's head.

“What happened during dinner? Before we arrived?” Narcissa persisted in her questioning.

“It gets a little confusing,” Harry offered warily, deciding not to mention his own upset over Iain Baker’s callous remark during dinner. “Er, Mr Baker came to join us for dinner because he was alone, and the Snapes took pity on him and invited him over. But he’s not well-liked by the children.”

“Why not?”

“He’s – a little loud with his opinions,” Harry told them. “Which can be offensive.”

“What did he say?” Narcissa asked her tone a blend between curiosity and resignation.

“Many things,” Harry prevaricated. “I wasn’t there for all of it, but he said something about Snape being girly because of his long hair and how boys shouldn’t be in the kitchen. And during dinner, he might have said something offensive about you – er, Claudia.”

“Might have?” Lucius pressed.

“Well, all right – yeah, he said Claudia was a bitch,” Harry conceded.

“You know, that would explain why everyone was looking at me so peculiarly when I was speaking to him,” Narcissa said with realisation.

“And how did Severus react?” Lucius asked with a raised brow.

“Well, he wasn’t happy,” Harry relayed.

“Probably didn’t like his fake upset with his fake ex being bandied about to a stranger,” Narcissa chuckled, not the least bit offended.

“That’s everything?” Lucius pressed with a narrow-eyed look at Harry. “Why do they think you need protecting? From Severus?”

“I don’t know,” Harry confessed, genuinely confused. He couldn’t deny that he enjoyed how protective they seemed of him, but he didn’t know where that stemmed from. Ever since she opened his gift to her, Maya had to be forced to leave his side. He hoped the hero worship would wear off soon. Ginny and Colin were enough; he couldn’t handle another groupie.

Andrew had been a little quiet at one point in the kitchen. He’d gone out to ask Gloria (when they stepped out to talk about Iain Baker- or so he assumed) about the potato masher, but had come back subdued. Harry put it down to being told off for interrupting the adults in their conversation, and Andrew seemed to pull himself out of his funk quick enough, so Harry didn’t think much of it.

He didn’t know what else could have happened.

“What caused the accidental magic?” Lucius asked.

Startled, Harry realised he was staring at the spot where Baker had fallen down, and Lucius and Narcissa’s eyes followed his gaze.

“I don’t know,” Harry said shortly. “It just happened.”

“Did anyone get hurt?” Narcissa asked.

“No.”

Neither seemed to believe him, but neither of them pressed the matter.

“So, what’s happening now?” he asked, moving the topic forward. “Dumbledore’s letter wasn’t clear.”

“What did his letter say?”

“Dumbledore said that Black never got a trial and that he would get one as soon as possible. He said that Black might be declared innocent depending on the trial's outcome. ”

“Anything else?” Lucius asked.

Harry shrugged and added, “Dumbledore said he’s your cousin or something and something about Sirius Black being my godfather.”

Lucius seemed to do a full body eye roll, clearly exasperated by the headmaster.

“Do you know what that means?” Narcissa asked, ignoring her husband’s body language and observing Harry intently.

Harry shook his head.

“Being named a godparent is a great honour in the wizarding world. Should something happen to a child’s parents, unless the Will stipulates otherwise, the godparent is the first in line to take custody,” Narcissa explained.

Harry nodded to show his understanding.

“Your parents never left a Will,” Lucius took over. “Perhaps they never get around to it. Perhaps they did write one but didn’t get a chance to lodge it with the Ministry or Gringotts. They were in hiding, so the latter is a strong possibility.”

 “Sirius should have been the one to take you in by default,” Narcissa added, her tone gentle.

“Except he was sent to Azkaban,” Harry said, ignoring how Narcissa was trying to sugarcoat the situation. He didn’t know whether Sirius Black was genuinely innocent or not or what it would mean for Harry if he was.

He dared not hope that he could leave the Dursleys. After blowing up Aunt Marge in August, Harry never thought his aunt and uncle would take him back, but for some reason, they had agreed after speaking to Fudge. The Dursleys had long memories when it came to Harry’s freakishness and knew he had only delayed the inevitable by avoiding going to Privet Drive for Christmas. He had no doubt that Vernon’s belt was waiting for him. Or that Petunia was already compiling a list of back-breaking labour that would keep him occupied all summer. Though he hoped that the Weasleys would come to break him out again.

Harry’s luck was notoriously fickle. As much as he would like to leave the Dursleys behind forever, he firmly refused to entertain the thought that it could happen.

“So, how come you’re involved?” Harry asked when there was no other information forthcoming.

“I won’t bore you with my family history right now,  but as you already know, Sirius is my cousin,” Narcissa told him. “I have two sisters, both older than me. Bella is in Azkaban, and trust me when I say she deserves that place. My other sister Andromeda was cast from the family for marrying a muggle-born. We were all close at one point in our lives.”

Harry nodded but truthfully didn’t understand why the Malfoys still travelled to a muggle farm, interrupting the Snape family holiday, and their own, to impart this knowledge.

Seeming to pick up on his thoughts, Lucius said, “We came for two reasons. The first was to check on Severus. We know this is the longest he’s ever spent with his extended family, and frankly, we were curious as to whom he decided to settle on to play the part of his son.”

“We had a good chuckle when Dumbledore told us it was you,” Narcissa added.

“What’s the second reason?”

“You’re family now,” Narcissa said simply.

When Harry gave them a look of disbelief, Narcissa continued smiling, “You are. I always had doubts about Sirius’s innocence for reasons I won’t go into right now. Andromeda and I feel dreadfully guilty that we didn’t push, and I can’t speak for Andromeda, but I had other reasons why I never looked deeper. I never even realised that Sirius hadn’t been given a fair trial. I firmly believe Sirius will be proven innocent, and when he does, he will insist on taking custody of you.”

Harry hated the way his heart leapt at the thought that someone might take him away from the Dursleys, but he still refused to give in to that feeling.

Recalling the picture that had been published in the Daily Prophet when Black escaped prison and comparing it to the one in his photo album of the wizard at his parents’ wedding, Harry said, “He’s spent twelve years in Azkaban. He can’t be in the right state to look after himself, let alone take responsibility for someone else.”

“You’re right,” Narcissa conceded without argument. “Which is why you and Sirius will be moving in with us.”

Harry laughed in disbelief.

“I bet Malfoy loved that idea,” he scoffed.

“Draco is still getting used to it,” Lucius shrugged.

“That’s a terrible idea,” Harry said, shaking his head.

“Sirius has no home, not one that is habitable currently,” Narcissa said. “And for the foreseeable future, he will be recuperating from his enforced incarceration. That will not, however, stop him from insisting on taking custody of his godson.”

“He didn’t seem to care about custody of me when he went off chasing after Peter Pettigrew,” Harry argued. “I don’t see why it seems to matter to him now. He doesn’t even know me. I don’t know him.”

Narcissa’s expression settled into something one of understanding, and something in Harry hated it even though he realised it was irrational.

“Besides,” Harry continued before either Malfoy could say anything, “Malfoy and I don’t get on. He’s a spoiled brat, and you’re both helping him destroy the life of an innocent creature because he’s too stupid to follow instructions… and- and – and – no one’s even asked me whether I even want to leave my aunt and uncle!”

Harry doesn’t know why he’s arguing about this. This could be his chance to leave the Dursleys. Forever. Except he didn’t know Sirius Black. And the reason he couldn’t stand Draco Malfoy was because he reminded Harry of Dudley, who was also a horrible bully.

Everything Snape accused Harry of was so completely wrong. It was Dudley and Draco who were the spoiled, arrogant brats who got away with murder.

So, by his logic, if Draco was the magical version of Dudley, then Draco’s were surely the magical version of Vernon and Petunia. Snape was Draco’s godfather, and Harry already knew what he was like.

Harry wasn’t stupid. He knew the Malfoys were probably on Voldemort’s side in the last war. What if this was just some sort of scheme to get Harry under their control?

Why would Dumbledore even go along with it? Harry trusted Dumbledore’s judgement but wasn’t it Headmaster who insisted that Harry return to his relatives?

And besides, as much as he hated the Dursleys and wanted to get away from them, they were still known to him. Sirius Black and the Malfoys – Harry didn’t know where he stood with them. There must have been a reason why everyone thought Sirius Black was dark that they chucked him in prison without even a trial.

It all seemed to hinge on Black coming out innocent, which might not even happen. He could end up back in Azkaban, which meant Harry would still be returning to the Dursleys, and everyone was giving him hope for no reason.

“You would prefer to return to your muggle relatives?” Lucius asked.

“What’s wrong with them?” Harry said, crossing his arms defensively.

“They’re muggles,” Lucius said as if that was reason enough.

“You’re standing in a muggle house,” Harry pointed out.

“Temporarily,” Lucius said. “You would have to return to them permanently. You would choose them over your true world?”

Harry had no answer to that.

“Sirius Black might not be innocent,” Harry said instead, “in which case, I’ll still be with my muggle relatives, and all this is moot.”

And if that happened, then Harry had no place with the Malfoys either.

Lucius probably would have argued the point, but Narcissa stopped him by resting her hand on his arm.

“Then, for Sirius’s sake, I will take on his responsibility,” Narcissa said, “and still offer you a home where I promise you will not be harmed.”

But Harry couldn’t trust her words. The Dursleys made their feelings for Harry exceedingly clear. Sirius Black had chosen to chase after Peter Pettigrew rather than stay and look after Harry. The Malfoys only offered a home with them because of some sense of duty towards Sirius. Snape’s family liked him, but only because they thought he was Snape’s son. Nana might know the truth, but that didn’t mean she, or any of the others, would welcome him back once the whole truth came out.

Which Harry fully believed it would, one day and soon. Snape couldn’t keep up the pretence forever.

“Think about it, Harry,” Narcissa encouraged.

“I have to go – upstairs,” he said and backed out of the room.

They didn’t stop him. He slowly made his way upstairs, lost in thought and hoped for the distraction of a conversation with the others. Maybe Maya wanted another round of kickboxing, or Andrew wanted to pick his brain about cooking or whatever conversation he could get to distract himself from the insidious hope beginning to lodge into his heart of getting away from Vernon, Petunia, and Dudley.

The door to Sarah’s room was wide open, and their voices trailed out. He paused, just out of view and took a deep breath to centre himself. He didn’t want them to know he was upset; it’s not like he could explain why.

Feeling ready to face them, he took another step, bringing him to the threshold. Everyone had their backs to the door. Sarah was out of sight, but the twins were sitting on the bed. Beth, Laurel and Lexi were on the floor around Marley but looked up intermittently towards the boys.

Harry couldn’t see Maya anywhere but assumed she was around.

He was about to give a polite knock before entering when he heard his name and froze.

“… well, even if he’s not really our cousin, at least we got a decent Christmas dinner out of it. He’s worth keeping around just for that…”

Even though they had been joking about that most of the day and Harry had joined in earlier, he still found the words hurt when Andrew said them.

“So- so- so, I’m only family because I cooked for you?”  Harry said stiltedly.

They all whirled around in surprise. Sarah and Maya stepped into view, looking delighted to see him as if they’d not laid eyes on him for years, but Harry could only think about Andrew’s words.

Andrew was laughing as he saw Harry, as if he’d said nothing wrong, but the expression fell away when he saw how upset Harry was.

“What’s wrong?” Andrew asked in concern. “Did something happen?”

“Only that I’m just good enough to keep around because you think I’ll cook for you,” Harry said blankly, feeling betrayed.

Looking alarmed, Andrew stepped forward, “No, Harry. That’s not what I meant.”

“I think I understood it well enough,” Harry said and backed away, turning to head back downstairs.

Furious at himself, he strode back to the den to pack his stuff. Lucius and Narcissa were back in the Sitting room from the sounds of their voices, and he didn’t know if Nana and the others were out of the Dining room yet.

Only moments ago, he’d told himself that the others would find out that he wasn’t really Snape’s son and would treat him differently, and he hated that he was so right about it. He’d gone out of his to inveigle himself in their good graces, but it seemed he’d done too good a job when they only seemed to care that he could cook them a decent meal.

Tears prickled in his ears, and he furiously told himself he was being stupid. He knew this wouldn’t last. He knew it! But his treacherous heart still hurt upon hearing how he was only worth keeping around because it benefitted someone else.

At least the Dursleys were open and honest about their feelings.

There was nothing here for him. The Snapes weren’t his family. With that thought, he yanked off his Christmas jumper and dumped it on his cot. Then he reached for his trunk, opening it up to bring out the Weasley jumper he’d taken off before because it had a hole.

Weasley jumper on, he took out the other three Christmas jumpers gifted to him and piled them neatly on his cot, along with the other presents gifted to him. They were for Snape’s son. Not Harry Potter.

“Why are you packing?”

Harry jumped at the sound of Maya’s voice.

“Are you leaving?” she asked when he didn’t answer.

“Yeah,” Harry said. Then forced himself to add, “With my parents.”

“Please don’t go,” she implored. “Andrew didn’t mean it. It was just a joke.”

“I have to go,” Harry said, ignoring the rest.

“But you’re supposed to stay until after the new year,” Maya insisted.

Harry couldn’t answer. He checked blindly around the room to make sure he’d not left anything out.

Maya made a noise of frustration and darted away.

Harry spotted a pad and pen. He hesitated before grabbing it and scrawled out a quick note to Nana. He folded it twice and then used a spare piece of leftover wrapping paper to make a makeshift envelope, upon which he scribbled ‘Nana’ in block capitals.

He detoured to Nana’s room and left it on her bed before heading to the Sitting room, where Maya was trying to persuade her dad to speak to Harry.

Lucius and Narcissa looked concerned, as was Iain, as they listened to Maya’s babble.

“I don’t understand,” Barry was saying to his daughter. Then, spotting Harry, he looked at him in confusion, “Are you okay, Harry? Have you and the boys had a fight?”

“No,” Harry denied instantly, “no fight.”

“Why do you have your bag?” Barry questioned.

“Harry said he’s going. Please, dad, he can’t go,” Maya begged.

“Harry?” Narcissa asked.

“Can we home?” Harry said, looking at her intently. “Right now?”

“Of course,” she said slowly.

“Harry, listen,” Barry implored, “whatever happened between you and the boys, I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding.”

“There’s no misunderstanding,” Harry said in a brittle voice. “Nothing happened. I would just like to go home.”

Though he wished he had a home to go to.

“I’m not sure what’s happened, but clearly, Harry isn’t feeling comfortable here, so perhaps we should leave,” Lucius said smoothly. “Please give our gratitude to your family and offer our apologies for leaving without seeing them."

“Hold on now,” Barry protested, “Harry came with Severus, and he’ll be leaving with Severus.”

“Harry,” said a soft voice.

Andrew and the others crowded the hallway but didn’t quite step into the Sitting room.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Andrew tried to explain. “I just meant that it didn’t matter-”

“I know,” Harry lied, cutting off the other boy’s words. “I just have to go.”

Andrew looked heartbroken, but Harry turned away.

While Lucius and Narcissa were arguing with Barry, Harry moved to the front entrance, grabbing his coat from the rack and jamming his feet into his batter trainers. He’d not opened his new ones yet. He had to put his trunk down so he could put his coat on, but picked it back up immediately and opened the front door to go wait by the carriage for the Malfoys.

“Please don’t leave, Harry,” Maya said, having followed him.

“You have fun with those gloves, yeah?” he said without looking at her. “Show everyone how strong you are. Kick some arse.”

When Maya didn’t respond, Harry made the mistake of turning around and looking her in the eye.

She threw herself at him, forcing him to drop his trunk to brace himself and her.

“You’ll come back, won’t you?”

Harry wished he was cruel like Draco Malfoy or Dudley, but he wasn’t. So, he quite honestly told her, “We’ll see each other next year.”

“You promise?”

“Yeah,” he said, looking down at her hopeful face. “I promise.”

The words made her relax, and she reluctantly let go of him. He picked his trunk back up and encouraged her to go back inside.

“Go on,” he said, “you’re letting all the heat out.”

He didn’t look back as he trudged to the carriage, seeing through the glamour, and waited for the Malfoys to join him.

The journey to Malfoy Manor was made in grateful silence.