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Well, Ain't That Strange?	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male Views: 56074 -:- Recommendations : 2 -:- Currently Reading : 12
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Chapter List
- 10
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Chapter 10

“I think we know what caused the wards to fall,” Albus told everyone at the table, shaking his head and looking crestfallen. Glancing at Harry, he said, keeping a soft tone that was as soothing as he could manage, “Petunia and Vernon kicked Harry out. They refuse to let him come back, blaming him for the actions of others. We tried to convince them to rethink their decision, but they are adamant about it. It appears that what happened makes them think they'll be safer without Harry there. We tried explaining that as long as Harry is there, the Blood Wards are the strongest protections anyone can provide. Vernon refused to believe it, taking a firm stance. After an hour, the wards were completely gone and there is no chance we can reactivate them. I'm sorry, Harry.”
Shaking his head, Harry shrugged, “It doesn't matter.”
Reaching out to pat Harry's hand, Albus said, “We'll make sure you're provided for, never fear.”
“Yeah, you'll just stay here with me. Don't worry about it,” Sirius said, giving his godson a squeeze. He knew, at this juncture, saying that would ensure that Harry stayed right where he was because of the magic associated with the bonding. Harry wasn't going anywhere, he didn't give a damn what Albus had to say on the matter.
“This summer, yes, it's wise to stay here. There is some kind of big push on to do something. As of yet, we don't know what that might be. Because of that, you need to stay here. We've got the Burrow fortified the best we can manage. From this point on, we'll be looking at more permanent measures to up protections there. At the end of the school year, we'll revisit the topic and see what we decide about the matter,” Albus explained, giving Harry a reassuring smile.
“We're good, don't worry,” Harry told him, sipping his butterbeer. “I don't mind staying here. Sirius and I can find all kinds of things to do.”
“We will,” Sirius nodded with a grin. “It'll be just us and Remus for the most part, but we'll manage.”
“We'll try to come over during the day most times,” Molly told him with a smile. “There is still plenty that needs cleaned. We can tackle that. It's—well, it's just going to take a week or so to settle and get everything up right at home to start that. It's best we don't stay here this year because of what happened. I'm sorry.”
“I'm fine,” Harry told her honestly. “It's nothing to worry about. Sirius and I did fine on Privet Drive, we'll do fine here. Especially since we don't have to stay out of the house all day or worry about my family, then end up confined to that small room all night.”
“Yeah, we'll be good,” Sirius told them. Looking at Albus, he asked, though knew the answer, “Any idea at all what in the hell is going on? It's big, it has to be. Bella and Lucius showing up? That tells me huge and we aren't going to like it, whatever it is.”
“No,” Albus sighed with a sad shake of his head. “Severus is going to try to find out. At the moment, he's hearing rumblings, but that's all. Just give us a couple of more days to see what he can manage. Once he knows, he'll fill us in. He was summoned, so that's where he is now. He told me he's going to see if he can't get a feel for whatever that side is planning. Once he knows, he'll pass it along then I'll let everyone know.”
Pleased that Sirius and Lucius' plan worked to perfection, Remus looked around then said, “I think, maybe, I might have a plan to at least help with protections at the Burrow. It's not warding, though some will have to be put in place for it.”
“What's that?” Arthur asked, looking at the werewolf. As he knew this was nothing to worry about, he was curious as to what Remus might be thinking.
“Is it possible to layer warding to keep an animal in with all that we put up?” Remus asked, glancing around.
“Oh yes,” Albus nodded. “That's not a problem and won't affect anything we put in place or anything else we think to add. Why?”
“Buckbeak,” Remus said with a smile. “Take him there. There are plenty of food sources for him to eat. He'll be out in the open again. I'm sure we can easily take one of the out buildings and make it into a shelter for him. No one in their right mind is going to take on a hippogriff. If we play this right, no one will even know what is there until they are foolish enough to try to get through the warding. He would work better for the house than any guard dog we could ever find. Plus, as intelligent as he is, he can give plenty of fair warning if something is amiss.” This wasn't something any of them had thought of, but if Sirius was getting out, he wanted to make sure that the hippogriff was taken care of and would be somewhere he was happy. This was ideal for that.
Not having thought about that, though adoring the idea, Sirius nodded, “Damned good suggestion! It would be perfect and great protection!”
“We can easily do that,” Arthur told them, looking around. He had no problems with the hippogriff being there at all. In fact, it would protect them from all kinds of things and work wonders at pest elimination. “Charlie will be in the country for the next couple of days. As he knows what he's doing with moving such animals, we can let him handle doing that. Sirius, let Buckbeak know what we're doing. We'll start tomorrow on cleaning out one of the out buildings for him and making it comfortable then putting up the warding so he doesn't go beyond the property boundaries. We can then get him over there. The garden gnomes alone will keep him fed for weeks. Plus, there are plenty of other pests around that he can easily dine on.”
Seeing Molly give a firm nod, appearing happy with that, Albus looked around then imparted, “We'll go with that plan. It will work well. When we move him, we'll have Hagrid help. We'll rename him, of course, so no one is the wiser just who he is. Plus, Hagrid can easily get across to him what we want him to do. I'm sure he'll be far happier there than cooped up in that room.”
“I'll talk to him tomorrow,” Sirius told them firmly. Chuckling, he grinned then added, “We were a bit worried that he might think Hobbes was a snack of some kind. Which reminds me; Remus?” Seeing his old friend look at him, he said, “Tomorrow, can you go to the Alley and get the standard cat signal? Hobbes goes out a few hours a day to hunt. This way, we can get him back in unless we want to just add the standard cat door. Up to you lot there. I don't think even the door is going to bother anything, what with the protections around. That way he can get out as I don't want to chance turning him loose in the backyard until we can get that cleaned. Even if we decide to attempt that, it's going to take days to even make a dent.”
“I think that a cat flap is fine,” Albus told them with dismissive wave. “It won't harm anything. That way he can come and go at will. You and Remus can easily set that up tonight once we've all gone.” Quietly, he asked, “You did check for the standard problem areas with him? Including an Animagus?”
“We're good, Albus,” Sirius told him firmly. “I made sure of it before we brought him home. Just—everyone needs to keep in mind he's temperamental. Nothing more than that. Harry and I are fine with him. He just gets tetchy with everyone else, so it's best to leave him be unless he makes a move that he wants you to engage.”
“We'll remember that,” Molly said with a smile. “He's a beautiful animal!”
“Yeah, he is,” Sirius admitted with a grin.
“I do think it's best that Harry and Sirius stay inside, well, until you get the backyard cleaned anyway, for the duration,” Albus said, looking between the two. “We're sure that no one from the other side knows where this place is, of course, but I don't want to take a chance. It's safest if you don't go out, for plenty of reasons. With you being on the verge of getting cleared, Sirius, we don't want to take the chance of someone spying you then the Ministry stepping in. Once that happens, and they tell me it's probably a sure bet, we need Harry to stay out of sight. At least until we can figure out what that side is planning. Whatever things to do with the house that are needed, we'll handle another way. I know the two of you are used to getting out, but it's best you don't.”
“Understood,” Sirius nodded, having expected that. “We'll manage, don't worry. There's plenty around here to keep us busy.” Thinking it over, brow furrowed as he did, he said, “Let me see what I can do to find us a couple of elves to help. I should be able to manage that, even with my position. They can take on the worst that's here and give a big damned hand on many things, like shopping.” Glancing around, ignoring Hermione's disgruntled look at that, he waited to see what was said. If he went about it this way, Lucius' elves could take over plenty around the house and they wouldn't have to worry about keeping them hidden.
“That may be wise, yes,” Albus conceded with a nod. “You should be able to go through Gringotts to procure a couple of elves. Yes, do that. Just contact them tomorrow through the way you have been when it comes to dealing with so much and go from there. We'll work with it after that to set up things like an account for food and whatnot that you'll need.”
“And, for the record,” he said, looking around, “Harry's staying in my room. I have something up that's a partition for privacy. With all that's going on, it's best he stay close, though it's doubtful anyone could manage anything with this house. I'm warning you now, you cannot get in that room. I've made sure of it. Only he or I can let you in via our wand. You can't just open the door and walk in. It might be paranoid, but I want it in place until we figure out what's going on with this nightmare. Not to mention the Ministry.”
“That is best, yes,” Albus nodded. “The more protections, the better in this case. There is plenty of room, I take it?”
“More than enough,” Sirius assured him. “It's a damned sight bigger, even partitioned, than what he had on Privet Drive. We'll be fine, don't worry.”
Nodding at that, Albus looked around then folded his hands on the table. “What we're going to do with protection is this—there will be regular patrols around Privet Drive, obviously. Arabella knows to contact us if she sees anything off. I'm looking into more warding around the house to see what I can find. Once I do, we'll layer more on it. I fear that with Harry gone, the Dursleys may end up targeted to see if Tom can't draw Harry out. This way, if someone does try, we have time to get there.”
Seeing nods from everyone, he pressed on. “With the Burrow, we're working to find more to fortify it as well. That's a problem because of issues with the wards to start with. For this week, we want everyone staying there with at least one adult in attendance at all times to keep watch for anything that might show up. We have a system in place that's for an alert if something does crop up. Molly should be around all the time, so it's not a concern, but Bill has agreed to come in as well if he's needed. We should be good after a week and have it protected to the utmost. If anyone sees anything odd at all, don't hesitate to use the signal. We won't mind false alarms or something odd that just needs checked. We'd rather have that than something real that blindsides us.”
When he was sure everyone understood, he continued, “Here we should be fine. We're just going to be far more mindful of who comes and goes then looking around before coming through the wards. Also for the checking of tracking spells when we come in. Nothing more than that. If we see something amiss, we'll put more in place. We just don't want to set up full security if we don't have to as that's just going to call attention to ourselves if they didn't already know we're here.” Looking at Harry, he added, “Keep Hedwig inside as much as you can. She's very distinctive and owls are very uncommon in the city. Hobbes should be fine as he's a cat.”
“Will do,” Harry said with a nod.
“We'll get on the backyard in a couple of days if I can't get my hands on elves so she can go out. I'll have a few start hunting around for a small owlery for her. If we can find one, we'll get it out there now. I'll also ensure to put warding up she can't go beyond. If we can, she can now get out as she's been around enough magical creatures so she won't get hurt.”
“Good plan,” Albus nodded. Looking around, he sighed then began to run down the list of events of the day so that those that weren't there could keep up with what was going on. He wanted everyone to stay as informed as they could so they were wary. Plus, if they talked it out, some might see parts others didn't that could prepare them. That he always liked to do.

Coming back in the room with Hobbes, Harry shut the door behind them with a sigh. Setting Lucius down, he watched him transform back then flopped on the bed. “Oh, this is far better,” he grinned as he bounced a little on the very comfortable mattress.
“Yes, the elves made sure that we had something comfortable,” Lucius told Harry as he seated himself in one of the very comfy chairs. Crossing his legs and taking a drink from an elf, he sipped it then asked, “Is there anything I need to know about from the meeting? And where is Sirius?”
“A few things,” Harry nodded then told him about some of what was discussed. After that, he added, “Sirius and Remus are installing your cat flap now. That way you can come and go. Just keep an eye out for who's around is all.”
Pleased with what the young man told him, Lucius nodded. “In a couple of days, I'll produce a fake bill of sale for the elves so that it'll appear Sirius bought them. That way they can take on the house and clean what's needed without us having to worry about so much.”
“Good! Because this is nasty. No one is going to deny that,” Harry laughed, propping himself up on the pillows.
“It's also going to hold off Molly bring the brood over here to do it,” Lucius told him firmly. “That we need to be wary of.”
“Yeah,” Harry agreed with a sigh. Looking up when the door opened, he nodded as Sirius came in and shut it firmly behind him. “Everything alright?”
“We're good,” Sirius said coming over and sitting down on the bed with a contented groan. “Alright, cat flap is in place. Just—don't transform back in the park across the street. There are a couple of vacant lots down the road that have plenty of cover. Do it there. As on high alert as everyone is now, it's best to be wary and keep an eye out.”
“Will do and not a problem,” Lucius told him with a firm nod.
“Remus knows that if something's up that you're going to head to his room if you can't make it up here. He already has the standard spell up to let you in and is working on warding it tonight. You're good there. He said just make sure you stay as a cat for anyone that might poke their head in and to save him from having a heart attack when he walks in,” Sirius assured him with a grin. Seeing a pleased nod, he pressed on, “Alright, we can expect all kinds of company tonight because plenty are going to keep watch and work on wards, so I'm saying hold off on the consummation until tomorrow night. I don't know if I'll be called out to attend to whatever, so it's best not to get in the middle of something and have anyone question why it takes me so long to get down there. Tomorrow night I'll make damned sure we're left alone and Remus will run interference if he has to.”
“Not a problem,” Lucius assured him. With a bemused snort, he smirked then said, “I think a night of rest is for the best anyway. We haven't had a decent one since we've been holed up in that small hovel.” Quickly, he ran Sirius through what he mentioned about the elves. Thinking it over, he told him, tone distracted, “What I can do is have Narcissa pick out a couple of our elves and send them instead. That way they can be bound to all three of us. That might be the better way to go about this. No one would think that is off and Kreacher, if he encounters them, won't get suspicious about anything.”
“We'll go that route,” Sirius told him firmly. “That way no one can question anything. Good idea.”
Sighing, Harry reached up and ran his fingers through his hair, “Yeah, this is far better. More to watch out for, no doubt there, but definitely more comfortable. And the old man thinks the wards fell because the Dursleys kicked me out. Even better.”
“It is,” Sirius grinned with a nod. “That means he doesn't suspect anything is off yet. Good. It's coming, but I want to hold that off as long as possible.”
“I'll head over tomorrow to help set things in motion with Wormtail. That way we can get the looming sentence off our plate. That we need. I'm also going to have the Dark Lord have people still appearing here and there to keep the old man on his toes. We don't want it to look odd that Harry vanishes and all activity stops. It won't be anything big, of course, but just to be seen.”
“Good idea,” Sirius admitted. “I didn't think of that.”
“He'll handle it and no one will end up hurt,” Lucius told him firmly. “However, it is good that they've conceded that Harry needs to stay right here for the summer. That's perfect and what we need.” Sighing and shaking his head, he said, “We now just have to work on how in Merlin's good name to get us all out before the start of term.”
“Yeah, that's the big one. Something has to look good here. We'll come up with something. I say we table even thinking that direction for a week so we can handle what's here, adjusting and keeping an eye out.” Seeing Lucius nod, he said, “I want you to do me a favor.”
“What's that?” Lucius asked, curious.
“Meetings and whatever, especially if a lot are around, keep an ear peeled for anything you hear. That way we have a heads up if someone thinks to start pulling something. No one is going to suspect a damned thing when it comes to you as I've assured them I checked everything and you're nothing but a cat.”
“I will,” Lucius said with a firm nod. “This week I'll ensure that people see me 'making friends' with Remus and Arthur. If you aren't around, I can cozy up to them and no one will think anything off. That way I can get in and out of meetings without anyone raising an eyebrow. If you will, you may want to put food dishes in the kitchen. That way it won't look off if I go roaming in that direction.”
“It'll be handled,” Sirius said. “I'll send Remus to the store for some cat food and such tomorrow so that no one thinks anything is off. Same with the box and litter. We'll have a couple placed around the house.”
“Just so no one expects me to actually consume that vile food or use that box we're fine,” Lucius said with a raised eyebrow.
Laughing, Sirius shook his head, “We won't. I'll make it clear treats are human food of some kind. I'll just tell them Harry spoiled you rotten and that you get most of what you eat when out hunting. Just don't expect your normal nobby fare. That would look very odd.”
“I won't. Just no cat kibble or treats,” Lucius said with a sigh, shifting around. “This—oh, yes, far better. Much more relaxing. Without the vile Dursleys to worry about. And an en suite! Perfect.”
“And we're going to completely agree with you,” Sirius groaned, flopping back and resting his head on Harry's legs. Snorting then grinning, he said, “Between the three of us, Arthur and Remus, we make a damned good team at spinning people in circles and getting them moving the way we want them. We're going to have to remember that in the future!”

“We are,” Lucius said with a smug smirk.
“Alright, I vote we get some sleep. I'm exhausted and bet I'm going to get roused more than once tonight. It's been a long damned day. So, Lucius, you go first for the loo then Harry and I'll use it when you're done.”
Downing the last of his drink, Lucius nodded then stood. He was pleased with this, that's for sure. Now they only had to worry about getting out. That was good!
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Well, Ain't That Strange?