Familiar

.

A/N…I made a mistake in the last chapters review response, when Palkitty asked me how the demons bred with humans I included the Draco as a humanoid creature, the Draco is not humanoid. It is a snake like creature with wings. How it came to breed with a human is unknown but as the Draco has a seemingly unlimited magic level, I suppose anything is possible. Some things just have to be taken at face value as they can’t be explained.

Thank you to everyone who reviewed…

Thrnbrooke, Aaliyah, Sampdoria, jbj1031965, darkshadowarchfiend, redneckmama, Jan, Tay baby, PotionsPet, vladimir mithrander and PleiadesWolfe.

harrydraco4life…Remus n Sev asked Harry to live with them cos they finally can. It doesn’t matter if they live at Spinner’s end or Potter Manor, or even if they stay at Hogwarts. The whole point is that when its all over Harry will have a family.

Katt…I love it when people say they’re trying to figure out what im doing next. About having more people than Harry’s parents n Sirius show up, that is quite possible, but you’ll have to read this to see. And yes Harry can talk to any ancestor, he can talk to anybody who wants to come, not just blood relations. As for plot bunnies, mine keep multiplying. My next story which is about half way written just popped out another bunny but that’s for a sequel. I now have 15 separate ideas not including oneshots. So don’t worry I think my house now has its own personal hutch. Grins.

Katie //_^…Yep you’re right Krai is more shy and hesitant about speaking out but then again has Harry really asked him what happened to him. He definitely hasn’t probed very deeply. Dumbledore is most certainly the one who poisoned him but did anything else happen. Authors flaming other authors is a pet peeve of mine as well.

WeasleyWench…don’t worry about it. I understand completely. And don’t worry Harry and Draco cant really hold off much longer can they in fact I think I see a particularly amorous bunny on the horizon.

Heksy…Thanks for the prezzy hun, I drank it all. I’ve learnt to leave none around when that elf of yours comes to call. And of course I recommended your story, it is brilliant after all.


Chapter 36: Advice and Tears

Blaise Zabini was sat before his bonfire, listening to the supportive words of his ancestors. He felt lucky that not all of his relations were dark, Draco didn’t have that luck. He could see his friend out of the corner of his eye wincing with almost every word said by the ghostly figure of his Grandfather. It was lucky for Draco that neither his Father or his Mother spoke to their ancestors, if they had Draco would have been found out long ago.

He turned his attention back to his own family, he couldn’t do anything to help Draco right now.


***


Ron Weasley was currently chatting with two members of his Mother’s family. And he was really intimidated. Gideon and Fabian Prewett, heroes to the end and they had come to talk to him. They’d already talked about his family, his Mother, brothers and sisters and his Dad’s obsession with Muggle things, which they’d found quite funny. They’d talked about a certain young man that Ron was starting to like. Ron had never thought a ghost could make him blush. The strangest thing was that they seemed to approve of his choice, even if he was a Slytherin.

Then they talked about Harry and the war. There was one thing that they said that worried him.

‘Things will change soon. The role you play will be different for a while.’

They gave him no more information than that, but it left him unsettled. He continued to talk to them for the rest of the night.


***


Hermione Granger was very confused. Every family member that came through told her not to worry and that everything would be alright soon. It was her Grandmother at the moment…

‘Right now you don’t know what’s going on, you don’t know what’s happening and you feel strange. Well don’t worry, it’ll all come right in the end, you’ll see.’


She didn’t know what they meant.


***


Draco wasn’t having a good time at all, his Grandfather had crossed over the moment he could and hadn’t stopped berating him since. He was just glad that the man couldn’t hurt him in anyway or he’d more than likely be black and blue, which was not a good colour for a Malfoy.

‘You are a disgrace. You are not of my blood. She has to have slept with a sappy, love struck Hufflepuff! How did you end up in Slytherin? Oh if your father only knew about this he’d be…’

Draco blocked him out again. He kept his eyes on Harry, watching his mate talk with his own family. He wished in a way that he could have that. A happy family. He felt jealous that his mate had that…but Harry didn’t really have that did he. He had Harry, but they didn’t.

Would they be a family like that? When they left school, when the war was over…would they have kids and be like that? Would they spend Christmas together, laughing and joking, opening presents and laughing when someone gave Sev a red and gold jumper. Of course after that they’d all be going to a funeral.

Would they lie and say they liked the other persons presents, or would they do what his Mother did, scowl and ask for the receipt.

He wanted to give Harry that, a proper family but there were so many things in their way right now. And half of them hadn’t even come out of the shadows yet. Would Harry defeat the Dark Lord only to fall to this curse that had plagued their descendents?

He didn’t know, but at least the hat had said they would have that picture, that family for a short while. Even five minutes would make everything perfect.

He sighed softly, wishing that someone else would come to talk to him. But no one was brave enough to push his Grandfather away.


***


Harry laughed. His Father and Sirius had been regaling him with stories of the Marauders for a while and his Mother had begun to scowl at the topic.

So Sirius had gotten his revenge by telling him all about James attempts to win her over and how a bouquet of flowers and a sappy poem had finally done it. His Father had blushed red and his Mother had tried to hit Sirius’s arm, making the man laugh all the harder when her arm went straight through him.

‘It wasn’t like that.’ She kept insisting.

‘I know Lils you just realised he was perfect for you.’

She blushed again, while his Dad just shot Sirius a smug look.

‘He’d been telling me for years that he’d make her realise that eventually, but a twelve year old just doesn’t realise that dumping a jar of frogspawn over a girl just doesn’t get her to notice you, well not in the way you want her to.’ The smug look vanished and his Dad’s face turned red again.

All this talk of his parents being meant for each other gave Harry the opening for a question he’d been wanting to ask.

‘Do you approve of him?’ He kept his voice silent and didn’t speak Draco’s name knowing his parents knew who ‘him’ was.

‘He’s your mate Harry.’ His Dad said. ‘Even if we didn’t approve it wouldn’t make a difference.’

‘We do approve though Harry.’ His Mother said, his Dad just nodded in agreement.

‘He’s a Slytherin, doesn’t that bother you?’ he asked his Dad.

‘When I was alive it might have done, but your still my son and I would have approved of anyone who treats you the way he does.’ Harry’s look must have been disbelieving because the man grinned. ‘When you’re on the other side you get an insight into every aspect of life, though I didn’t like the idea I did look into the lives of Slytherins and a lot of them aren’t as rosy as they appear. If I was ignored by my parents emotionally but still given the best that money can buy, I think I’d have turned out like they have.’ He looked Harry square in the eye then.

‘I want you to do me a favour if you can Harry.’ Harry nodded.

‘I want you to apologise to Severus for me. I would have done it myself but the man hasn’t been near a Halloween fire in years. I want to apologise for every name I’ve ever called him and every prank I’ve ever pulled. All I can say for my actions is that I’ve had time to get to know him in a way, the circumstances of his life, I understand him better now. I didn’t then and I didn’t make the effort to get to know him but I wish I had. I want you to tell him and Moony that they have my blessing. It may not be much and it may not matter at all, as even if I disagreed I couldn’t stop them. I just think, if we’d all been friends maybe their lives and your lives would have been different.’

‘Tell Severus we don’t blame him for telling Voldemort of the prophecy.’ Lily added. ‘Give them my blessing as well.’

‘And mine.’ Sirius added.

Harry just smiled, he knew that would mean a lot to the Snape he had come to know. And for Remus, it would probably mean even more.

‘I feel sorry for the boy.’ James said suddenly. The others followed his gaze to Draco’s fire. Harry’s mate was cringing at every other word spoken to him. The man, obviously his Grandfather was gesturing wildly and obviously ranting. Harry made to stand up but before he could he saw Sirius disappear back into the earth.

A moment later two ghostly hands were stretching out of the dying flames at Draco’s feet. His mates Grandfather seemed to shriek before his body was sucked back into the earth. Sirius hauled himself out and smiled at the shocked boy before him.

Back at his own fire Harry was smiling, he’d never loved his Godfather more than he did at that moment in time.


***


‘Hey kiddo.’

Draco just stared at him for a moment, disbelief in his eyes. ‘Mr Black.’ He said respectfully.

Sirius tutted. ‘Oh there’s no need for that. Call me Sirius, we are family after all.’ Draco smiled and sighed.

The conversation was a little awkward, neither of them really knowing each other at all, all they had to go on were the opinions of other people that they’d heard so long ago.

There wasn’t much time left in which they could talk but the good deed Sirius had done earned him the forgiveness of a certain dark haired man who had been watching them.


***


‘Harry listen what we have to tell you now isn’t much but its all we know. Your father and I, the sorting hat told us of the curse too. But out of all the Potter descendents there have been only you can find the answers. Maybe your children will have the skill but we don’t know. All we know is you have the chance to make a life with Draco.’

‘It’s a lot to put on your shoulders son, we must have wronged the fates at some point in our history, either way you can end it. For centuries now no Potter has ever lived beyond the age of twenty five. The Malfoy family though still heirs have allowed their blood to be weakened too much by the failing Pureblood lines. The blood of the Founders remains strong in us and that is why you are exhibiting the true legacies of that line. If Draco has shown no signs of creature manifestation by now then it is unlikely he ever will. And that we think is why Lucius and Narcissa still live, the blood connection is too weak to be affected by the curse.

‘Does that mean that Draco will be safe from the curse?’ Harry asked.

His Father just gave him a sad smile. ‘No, by being your mate the curse will affect him too.’

Harry sighed and said more to himself than to anyone. ‘How can I keep him safe?’

‘By using the information Salazar Slytherin left behind.’ Lily interrupted. ‘Keep your wits about you Harry, you already know where the answers lie you just have to find a way to get to them.’

‘Do you know how to get that shield down?’ he asked, that was the only thing in his way.

‘No we don’t, the dead don’t know everything and what they do know depends heavily on chance. We get glimpses of the past. When we first crossed over we saw an image of a painting, one hidden that no normal man could reach. And we heard the snake language. We watched you enter the Chamber of Secrets, knowing you could find it.’

‘Find what?’

‘There’s a room somewhere in the Castle, hidden and only accessible to those who speak Parceltongue. If you find that room Harry, you’ll have all of your answers.’

Why didn’t he think of that before? It was the most obvious thing! Of course Salazar would create more than one chamber. They’d heard stories of the legendary Founder’s apartments since they arrived at the school, it would make sense that Salazar’s own quarters would be protected by his own special skill. The fact that a room contained all the answers he needed was definitely possible but it wasn’t a certainty. Thinking back over what they’d said earlier, he asked his parents about something else.

‘Do you know about the memory I have blocked?’ he asked, his worry increasing when he saw the angry and distraught expressions cross their faces. ‘Do you know what it is?’

‘We do.’ James answered. Lily seemed beyond words right now, her tears were flowing much faster than they had before.

‘Oh my baby, oh my poor boy!’

‘Lily hush now darling, please.’ His Dad’s face showed its own sorrow, but the man rallied and locked his emotions behind a sombre mask.

‘Harry.’ he choked. ‘Oh Harry I’m so sorry for what you’ve had to endure.’

‘What is it? What don’t I know?’

‘We can’t tell you Harry.’ His Dad said while his Mother sobbed.

‘Why not?’ he asked bewildered. If he’d expected anyone to withhold information from him it wouldn’t have been his parents.

‘Harry look at Hermione.’ His Dad said. ‘Why don’t you try harder to make her remember her old life?’

‘Because there’s a chance that doing so will put her more in danger.’ He answered quickly.

‘Well the one who has cast the memory charm on you would probably react that way.’ His Dad said sadly.

‘But it’s more than that.’ His Mother said. ‘Forcing you to remember that before you’re ready will do more harm than good.’

‘Trust in Krai Harry, he’ll be able to break it when it’s time.’

‘So does Krai know what this memory is?’ he asked deliberately trying to keep his voice even.

‘Don’t be that way Harry.’ Lily admonished. ‘Sometimes there are things that just have to be left alone.’

‘Son, how would you have reacted if Krai had told you that Draco was your mate before you figured out that the Slytherin was playing a role, just like you were.’

‘I wouldn’t have believed it.’

‘You wouldn’t have accepted it.’ James said clearly. ‘And would have fought it every step of the way.’

‘But by waiting for the right moment, everything came right in the end didn’t it?’ Lily interrupted.

Harry glanced over at Draco who was now chatting animatedly with Sirius and smiled. If it had happened any other way would they be like this now. Fair to well they weren’t like a normal couple, but normal couples didn’t have the worries they did. But if Krai had gone about it differently would they still be enemies? Probably. And according to all the information he had found on the bond, if he ever killed Voldemort without reconciling with Draco, then Draco would become his new enemy. He couldn’t imagine that.

‘You can’t put it off any longer Harry.’ His Dad said.

‘You may not want to discuss this with your parents Harry but it’s time you forgot all about this need to be the hero.’ His Mum added.

‘It’s time you did something for yourself Harry. You and Draco are supposed to be together and putting that off just because you think it will keep him safe, while commendable is also hurting the both of you .’

‘You mean I shouldn’t put off the bonding any longer?’

They hesitated a moment, casting quick glances at the other. ‘Not necessarily bonding no.’ His Dad was quick to say.

His Mother looked a bit ashen. ‘There’s plenty of time for that later Harry.’

Harry decided to keep his suspicions to himself and just enjoy the time left with his parents.


***




A/N…Sorry bout how long this took guys, a lot of stuff came up and I didn’t have much time to write. This chapter was going to be twice as long as it is but I stopped it there, as I just wanted to get it out.

Well that’s it for the Halloween chat, wotcha think?

Oh and this may be a stupid question but does anyone know any stories they could rec under the following pairings…
Harry/Salazar, bit odd but I like the idea.
Harry/Remus,

Or any Harry goes to a different magic school fic (slash).

Don’t care what happens in any of them, just want ones that are complete or that the author still updates. Thanks in advance.





RECOMMENDATIONS…

I wanted to rec this as it’s a sequel to an earlier fic. If you didn’t read the previous one or dint like it skip down to the next rec.


Hiss me again, Harry

By LdDurham

http://lddurham.livejournal.com/138009.html

HP/DM. I wasn’t sure if anyone would have noticed this as it is not on AFF (CHECK). It is the sequel to Hiss Me Harry, the story I recommended in an earlier chapter. Where Harry’s a kitty. This is the sequel, its only short but kinda cute. Harry’s sick of draco treating him like a pet and decides to take matters into his own hands and change Draco’s mind.

The Pandora Complex

By Nimori

http://www.walkingtheplank.org/archive/viewstory.php?sid=1006&warning=4

HP/SS. Sev discovers that fanfiction gets everywhere even the Potions classroom. And the little cretins have even paired him up with Potter!

Whats a man to do? Read it of course! And search for more.

This is fun, hot, n slightly odd. The characters of both Snape and Harry are perfect. Its totally believable and the hook up is great.

You may have to join the archive to read it though. I cant remember.

…