Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Preventative Measures	By : SpeedyTomato Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male Views: 151582 -:- Recommendations : 8 -:- Currently Reading : 30
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter and make no money off this work in perversion

Chapter List
- 20
- 21
- 22
Chapter 21

Beta'd by the amazing Tenchi. Thanks, woman, you're the best!

Just a reminder of what's on my profile; reviews complaining or whinging about the lack 'o sex in stories will get deleted. If you want a smut-filled romp, you need to find another story to read.

After fixing herself a strong cup of tea and checking on the food, Molly took a seat at the table across from Remus. She had come over before the rest of the family so she could cook the meal. That and she wanted to check on Harry to see how he was doing. So far, though, she hadn't seen him. After taking a sip of her tea, she asked, quietly, “How's Harry doing?”
“He's having a rough day,” Remus told her honestly, taking a sip of his own drink. “At the moment, he's upstairs and Sirius is working with him. By the time everyone arrives, he should be fine. Just let Sirius manage what he can there.”
“Can I ask what the problem is?” She inquired softly. “I hope it's not something we've done.”
“It's not,” Remus assured her. Sighing, looking down at the table he told her, “Today is really the first time since his court hearing that Harry truly realized how many people know just what he had to live through and he now has to face them knowing they're aware of the abuse.” That was the honest truth. Up until this point, Harry had done very well dealing with much of what happened because he had focused on what he got out of the whole mess. That morning, while they were cleaning a little and talking about the gathering that night, it had finally hit Harry that Molly, Arthur and Bill knew, in detail, what Vernon had done to him then it began to cause issues.
Sitting her beaker aside, Molly clasped her hands and looked down at the table, shaking her head. “Poor Harry. We won't say anything to him, of course. And we will not ever tell the kids what we know. You can pass that along from me when you feel it's appropriate.”
“I think, from some of what he said, it's more just knowing and fearing the looks he might get,” Remus told her. “Severus talked to him for a while, alone, and that seemed to help. Sirius is now working with him on the matter. That should have him calmed down. We were expecting this to come, honestly, so we now have to deal with it. Just give it time, Molly, and don't take offense if he seems cold over some things. Harry has odd ways of dealing with some of his problems.”
Nodding, she sighed then said, quietly, “Bill said something yesterday about getting Harry to see a Mind Healer. I think that might be an option you want to check into. It can only help. I do understand that doing that is touchy, what with some of what Harry knows, but he needs something to help deal with this.”
“Severus and I discussed that for a time today after he talked to Harry. There are just—multiple problems with that, including the one you just mentioned. What we thought was giving it some time before we even attempt to bring up the topic. I don't see Harry agreeing to even discuss that now. He has his own way to tackle the issue and is going about it through that route. It's not the best one, we all know that, but it's allowing him to deal with it. And Severus made a point on the subject I hadn't thought of. For whatever a Mind Healer can do to work involves a great deal of trust. That's the whole base for it as you have to open up and discuss matters that are very sensitive. As little as Harry trusts anyone, he's not going to do that with a stranger, no matter what degree they may have in the field or assurances they give him. We thought to give us all some time to work with the trust area with him before we bring up the topic.”
“I didn't think of that either,” Molly told him, brow furrowed. “Do you think you can manage?”
“With us, yes,” Remus told her with a firm nod. “We have several things in place to accomplish that and they are working. Severus and I are both making it clear that we aren't plotting or planning behind his back. We explain what we want and the reason for it to show we have nothing to hide. Then we're making it clear that if he needs to talk privately, we'll listen and not discuss it with anyone else unless we have his permission to do that. We also tell him when we do discuss matters pertaining to him with others and what is said. Severus comes over a couple of times a day to check on the situation and has promised to check in via owl once a day when he's at school. Harry's room is one we used a partition on as it's a section of Sirius'. Because of the trust he has in Sirius, that partition isn't up. It's making it easy to know he's protected as he knows Sirius won't harm him and will keep him safe. Sirius has no problem with that. Severus, Sirius and I warded that room as heavily as we can. No one can get in there by just opening the door. Sirius or Harry has to open it via their wand. So far, even if they do that, the only ones able to get in when it comes to those in the Order are Severus and myself. No one else can manage, not even your kids or Hermione. That's helping more than any of you can imagine. Harry feels perfectly safe, something he never really has before. He sits with us when we go over what we're going to do and plan so he knows. We've also given him our assurances that he has the power of veto on most things, other than something that we do to protect him physically. We'll manage some of this, it's just going to take us time.”
“That's good,” Molly said with a firm nod, looking up as the door opened. When she saw Severus come in, she summoned him a cup of tea then said, shaking her head, “We're all second guessing so much of what we had seen with him by now. Arthur and I—we realize there were some signs, but had no idea what they meant.”
Quickly catching on what the conversation was about, Severus said, after sitting down and taking a sip of his tea, “We all are. I think Black and myself saw many more than the rest of you did and just didn't realize what they were at the time. There are many self-recriminations going around over that.”
“I saw a few myself,” Remus told her with a sigh, rubbing a hand over his face. “The big one that should have been the brightest thing in the world, all three of us didn't read right.” Seeing Molly look like she was going to ask, he said, quietly, “When Harry was ready to take off with Sirius only an hour after he met him. Yes, by then it was very clear that Sirius didn't do what he was sent to prison for, but most people would have been leery of just taking off with him. Harry was ready to go. If that wasn't the most shining warning sign there was, I don't know what is. We all missed it.”
“We did,” Severus said, looking dour.
Remembering that, Molly shook her head and let out a ragged sigh. Thinking it over, she asked, “Do you think there's a chance any of the rest of us can build trust with him?” Stopping, she looked between the two.
Pondering that, Severus looked at Remus, who was glancing at him then decided to lay out the truth, bluntly, hoping it might do some good. “At this juncture? It's doubtful. Especially if the attitude we saw at that meeting keeps happening. He's going to pick up on that in minutes and will shut down, then no one's going to get anywhere with him.”
Remus wasn't sure what Severus meant by that, honestly, so he was going to stay out of it and see what was said. He was curious, though, wondering where this was going.
“What do you mean?” Molly asked, looking between the two.
“Think about what was said after it was revealed that Harry had been on the receiving end of sexual assaults for years. None of you mentioned anything about how to help him, personally. We heard what do to with him, who should 'work with him', where he should go, how this will come out in the papers, how it affects Albus, how it affects the Order, how it affects what we're trying to do, what charges may come. Never once did Harry's well-being get mentioned or even the question of how he was doing come up. That's rather cold and callous. We heard how this affects Albus, how he feels guilt and excuses, but never once did any of you tell Albus what he did was wrong. Minerva actually chided Black for saying something along those lines that she felt was too harsh. Have any of you since then told Albus what he did was wrong and how this has to affect Harry? Or are all of you ignoring that part? Albus played a big role in how miserable Harry's life was. The only ones that said anything along those lines were Lupin, Black and myself.” Stopping, he waited.
Looking down at the table, Molly let out a ragged sigh then admitted, “No, we haven't. We've been talking about what we can do to help and how to get him to trust us. Albus—we haven't thought about that end.”
“I thought not,” Severus told her, pushing his beaker back and folding his hands on the table. “Let me ask this; what would you be doing right now if the situation was with one of your children, Molly? If this had happened to them and Albus pulled that stunt? Would you be seeing how to work with the situation and get them to trust you?”
Going pale, she lifted her eyes and looked at him, swallowing thickly.
“I thought so as well,” Severus said, eyes locked on her face. “Harry is not a pawn or someone to be manipulated. He's a troubled young man that needs support and help. Albus knew full well what he was doing and what may come of it. He knew he was breaking the law in not reporting the abuse, taking the money from Harry's vaults and all the other things he did. There are consequences to that, something he ignored because he didn't think anyone would find out. In this situation, he's also the adult that held responsibility for so much. Why are all of you absolving him of that and trying to wiggle so it's not revealed? Harry is going to trust none of you, I guarantee that. Because every single one of you is not going to put what's best for him first and do it because of what Albus wants. He needs protected, no one, anywhere, will argue with that. However, as long as all of you follow Albus' lead in everything, doing what he wants, Harry's not going to trust you. And I can't say I blame him.” Stopping, he looked at her then picked up his tea and took a sip.
Looking at Severus, Remus nodded slowly, not having thought of it that way. Quietly, he said, “He's right, Molly. That's what happened and what's going on. And Harry's going to know. He knows what was said at that meeting because we told him as it pertains to him. We won't tell him about Order business in other areas and, quite frankly, he doesn't care or want to know. However, he does have the right to know when it comes to areas like this and we will tell him.”
Putting a hand over her mouth, Molly looked down at the table, not sure what to say, trembling slightly.
“I would suggest before any of you try to 'work with him', that you decide which comes first in this; what Albus wants or him. When you decide that, you press on. He knows with the three of us what does and it's him. We've guaranteed him that and prove it.” Severus told her bluntly. “Because it's one thing to tell someone you care and will do the right thing, but a whole other thing to prove it.”
“Understood,” she said quietly after a couple of moments. Looking between the two, she asked, changing tracks as that topic was now one she needed to think long and hard about, “If Harry is granted the emancipation, something that I was told will probably happen, how are you going to work with the situation? It's my understanding, from what Arthur said, that he's basically a legal adult that can do what he wants other than both of you supervising for a couple of hours a day.”
“That's the gist of it, yes,” Severus told her with a firm nod. “From what we gather, he's more than willing to allow what's now going on to continue. Black is the one that's going to take the lead in so much as he has a relationship with Harry unlike what the rest of us have and a trust that is different. He seems to be able to manage things we can't with him. So, it's our thought to allow that to go on as it's something Harry does need and will only help.”
“Though Severus has a more long-standing relationship with Harry, Sirius has one that's very different. With Severus going to be back at school before long, we're content to let things go on as they are. Harry's made no mention of going elsewhere or finding another place to live. In fact, he's helping us clean the house and planning for how we're going to work his schooling. He does know what the emancipation means, but wants to be here with Sirius,” Remus told her.
“Good,” she said with a relieved sigh. “Arthur and I were wondering, what with his mention of leaving Britain.”
“He's made no mention of that since the hearing,” Remus told her honestly.
Pushing her cup aside, Molly excused herself then stood to go tend to a personal need.
Watching her go and waiting until she was out of earshot, Severus asked Remus, smirking as he did, “Would you like to take a flier on the odds of her completely blowing up on everyone at the next Order meeting?”
Smiling, covering his mouth with his hand, Remus muttered back, “I would say about as certain as the moon rising each night. That was masterful, Severus. Not only did you drive the point home in a way she's not apt to forget, but many people are going to get the right reaming they deserve.”
“Indeed,” Severus said smoothly, a sadistically joyous look on his face at the mere thought.

Shifting around, leaning fully back against Sirius' chest, Harry sighed softly, clutching Elliot close. The two of them were on the bed with him sitting between Sirius' spread, bent legs. He was only in his nappy at the moment. They had finished their bath not long ago and were just relaxing before they dressed to go downstairs. Shutting his eyes, he relaxed the best he could.
Holding his godson close, Sirius asked, gently, “Feeling less stressed?” They had spent the last few hours up here just relaxing after Harry had talked to Snape alone for a while. For a time, it looked like Harry was going to have a meltdown of some kind at the thought of dealing with those that knew just what had happened with Vernon. Remus told him, when they were alone, that he was actually surprised it had taken Harry this long before that occurred. Once it was all explained to him, he got the problem and decided to spend some time alone before they had to deal with everyone.
“Yeah,” Harry admitted with a nod, though his voice was quiet. “It's just—you know.”
“I do,” Sirius told him gently. “Don't worry about it. Keep in mind what Snape told you; he's going to be right there, so one hint of anything in that direction and he'll signal me then we'll leave while he deals with it. That's all there is to it. I doubt that's coming though. Arse kissing is, that's for damned sure, and some befuddlement by those that don't know you're not going back, but I doubt anyone's going to mention anything about what happened. We'll get all this done as fast as we can then we'll come back up and spend time alone. Besides, you have more presents up here to open.”
Sighing, Harry nodded. “Alright. I can deal with this. Just, for a while, I want to avoid most everyone.”
“I get that,” Sirius said softly. “It's probably not a good idea, though, Harry. Just keep in mind to let us handle it. I'm Daddy and it's my job to protect you. I'll make damned sure no one says or does anything to dance close to that topic. Snape and Remus are going to run interference for us as well. Let us handle it and we'll go on from there. Just trust me, that's all you have to do.”
“That I can do,” Harry told him, smiling a little as he held Elliot close.
“Good,” Sirius smiled. Holding him tightly, he said, “We'll get through this as fast as we can then Remus and Snape will get them out. While dealing with it, keep an eye on Fred and George. Remus and I are going to drop hints about just who the Marauders are. That should be a laugh riot. Remus is in the middle of negotiations with Snape on the map and how to do this so we don't end up hexed into the next century over it.” Hearing Harry chuckle a little, he then added, “And the look on Ron and Hermione's faces when they learn you aren't going back will be a riot.”
“There is that,” Harry snickered, shaking his head. “That and Ginny's. She has that crush thing going still. It's going to break her heart.”
“Yeah, it is,” Sirius told him, grinning himself. “She's got no chance in hell here. You're mine and Daddy Lucius'.”
“True,” Harry grinned, holding Elliot tightly.
“No way she can compete with us,” Sirius told him smugly with a chuckle.
“Nope,” Harry agreed with a laugh.
Knowing that was a good sign, Sirius switched to a different topic, hoping to get Harry as calm as he could before they had to go downstairs.

Watching Mrs. Weasley send the last of the dishes to the sink and clearing the table of the left overs, sending them to be put up, Harry shifted around. He was sitting between Sirius and Severus. So far, it hadn't been bad. He was ignoring most of the conversation and didn't answer unless directly asked something. Ron and Hermione had tried to get him to talk to them, but he wouldn't let them, instead making it a point to talk to someone else and ignoring them.
Feeling Sirius nudge him under the table and seeing a bit of a grin on his godfather's face, Harry picked up his butterbeer then took a sip to hide a chuckle. This meant Sirius was up to something that he wanted to see.
“Moony, why don't you go get the presents. We'll open those before we have the cake,” Sirius said, glancing at Fred and George, whose heads came up then they gave each other a wide-eyed look
“Good idea, Padfoot,” Remus said with a genial smile as he stood to go retrieve the presents.
Fighting off the laugh that was bubbling up at the look on the twins faces, Harry just shook his head. Oh, this should be interesting.
Trying not to give an amused snort at the wide-eyed looks of astonishment, Severus said nothing though, figuring what would come of it was something he would appreciate Looking at Harry, he said, “You had better appreciate this, Mr. Potter. I was forced to shop, almost at wand-point.”
“I do,” Harry grinned at him.
Watching Remus levitate the mass of gifts in, Sirius snorted, “You enjoyed it. For at least one of them anyway. You went overboard with that one.”
“Perhaps,” Severus said, smoothly, smirking.
Looking between Remus, who was just sitting down again, then to Sirius, Fred then glanced at George, still wide-eyed, not sure what to think. Those names! Oh, they knew them well!
Glancing back at his brother, George then looked around and asked, “Where did you get that nickname, Sirius?”
“Back in school,” Sirius told him with a shrug, trying not to grin. “It's from the animagus form.” Nudging Harry, he said, “That reminds me; we need to work on seeing if you can manage that. We can add that into Transfiguration lessons. That way we can give you a better nickname than Son of Prongs.”
Snickering, unable to stop it as Remus began to sort through the presents, Harry said, “We can do that.”
“Son of Prongs?” Fred asked, eyes wider.
“Yeah, James was Prongs,” Sirius explained, taking the first of the presents Remus passed over and putting them in front of Harry. Seeing the wheels start to turn, he chuckled then said, planning to press on now that the seed was planted, “Get to it, Harry.”
Grabbing the first present, Harry began to tear into it. Quickly, he worked through the small stack. As they were from the Weasley's and Hermione, they weren't anything big, just things like sweets, a sweater and the like. After thanking them, he took the next one Remus handed over. Seeing it was from Severus, he opened it, figuring it would be interesting. After getting the wrapping off of it, he opened the box then grinned as he pulled out several books. Reading the titles, he began to nod, grin growing. “Poe, Lovecraft and Wells, all my favorites! Thank you, Severus.” Looking at the bindings then the information on the inside, he said, “First editions too! Brilliant!”
Almost snorting aloud at the looks on the younger set's faces as Harry used his first name, Severus said, smoothly, “Black said these were some of your favorites. I thought you might like a copy to keep.”
“They are and this is brilliant!” Harry told him with a firm nod. Holding up the copy of The Island of Dr. Moreau, he said, “This is my absolute favorite. I've read it several times by now.”
“It's one of his best, yes. I've enjoyed it many times myself,” Severus told him with a firm nod.
Grinning at him, Harry said, “Thank you! That's great and I appreciate them!”
“I figured you would get enough 'toys' that literature would be needed here to keep brain cells from dying,” Severus told him with a smirk, seeing the grin there.
Looking at Ron then to Molly and Arthur as Harry used the Professors first name, Hermione was confused. It was even more confusing when Snape didn't say anything about it. Seeing Arthur mouth the word 'later', she nodded, but was wondering what was going on.
Taking the next one, the gift from Remus, he opened it and pulled out more books. Looking them over, he didn't recognize the titles, but the blurbs in them looked fascinating. “Thanks, Remus!”
“Severus and Sirius said you love to read, so I thought you would like those,” Remus told him with a smile. “They are our kind of books, though in the same genres as the one Severus gave you. I thought you might find it intriguing to read our version for a change.”
“I will! Thanks! This is great,” Harry grinned, setting them aside.
“Remus knows the good ones, so chances are you'll find them entertaining,” Sirius told him, passing over a good-sized box. “This was going to be from just me, but the person that was in charge of picking it out went overboard to the point that there's so much in there that we all chipped in. So, it's from the three of us.”
Laughing from the smug look on Severus' face, Harry tore into the wrapping then opened the box. Grinning from ear to ear, he chuckled as he looked in and said, “Big box 'o junk food!” Then he began to pull out all kinds of candy bars, crisps, soda and all manner of Muggle snacks. “Oh, this is brilliant! Thanks!”
“Yeah, he did good there,” Sirius grinned as he looked at the pleased expression on his godson's face. Nudging him, he said, “Keep in mind, you're sharing!”
Picking up a can of Mt. Dew, Severus said, smoothly, “I ensured I got some of this so you can bounce off the walls, driving Black and Lupin to distraction.”
Opening the can of Dew, Harry took a sip then grinned, “Yeah, it's great, but I know better than to drink too much of it. I wouldn't sleep if I did.”
Taking the can from his godson, Sirius looked at it then said, “So, this is Mt. Dew. I was wondering what it was after you mentioned it that one time.” Taking a sip, he said, “Wow! That's sweet, isn't it?”
“Oh, yes. It causes serious sugar overload,” Severus smirked bigger. “Not to mention it has almost the highest caffeine content of any soft drink out there. It has more in it than coffee.”
“And none of this is good for you,” Hermione said, eying the snacks disapprovingly as Arthur looked through them, an excited expression on his face.
“Harry knows not to eat too much,” Sirius told her, giving her a firm look to shut her up on the topic. Grinning, he said, “Besides, he's going to share.” Then he passed the soda back to his godson.
“These are all so very different than what we have,” Arthur enthused, looking around at the snacks. “I may have to try some of them as well if you have them out when we're around.”
“They're good and I'll share,” Harry told him with a grin as he looked at the various types of crisps there.
“And Snape complains I'm a bad influence on you yet he shows up with this mass,” Sirius chuckled, beginning to put it all back in the box.
“He has self-control, so I knew he could handle it,” Severus said smoothly, still smirking.
Snickering at that, Harry shook his head.
Handing Harry the smallest of the packages left, Sirius said, “This is from all of us. Snape was able to come up with it for us and we thought it would work.”
Opening it, Harry found a smaller version of the hourglasses used at Hogwarts for the houses. This one, though was mounted on a dragon plaque that was the same color as Elliot. Below it was emblazoned Harry House. There were a couple of jewels in it, ones that were gold in the shape of tear-drops. Looking around, he waited to see what it was for.
“We thought you needed your own system like at Hogwarts since you'll be following the curriculum there,” Remus said, smiling a little. “We're going to put it up here in the kitchen since it'll probably be where we do the most work.”
“Yeah, we figure you're going to rack up a ton of points just complimenting Snape and will probably rival all the houses at school in a short time,” Sirius grinned, nudging Harry.
Getting it now, Harry grinned and nodded then added, “He deserves it for all he does.” He then laughed when a couple of gold drops plinked into the hourglass.
Eyes wide, Ron looked at Hermione, who appeared stunned then asked, “What do you mean his own house? He's going back with us and doesn't need that. I don't understand.”
“We'll talk about that when we get home, Ron,” Molly said softly, smiling at the gift. “It's very nice and a wonderful idea! I don't think any of us thought to do that.”
“We thought it was appropriate,” Severus told her. “It gives incentive. We're going to work it slightly differently as something akin to a rewards system for when he accumulates so many. And it'll include points from all that help him as well as his grades on various assignments. Nothing outlandish, of course, but things like a trip to the local shoppette or something similar.”
“That is a great idea, Severus,” Arthur told him with a firm nod. “We can easily handle that.”
“Harry? What's going on?” Ginny asked, confused and a bit worried. “You're going back with us, so why do you need your own house points system?” She could see her mother shooting her a look, but ignored it, wanting an answer.
After a surreptitious glance as Sirius, who nodded, Harry said, sitting the hourglass aside, “I'm not going back to Hogwarts. I've been withdrawn and am being homeschooled instead.”
“What? You have to go back, Harry!” Hermione said, mildly panicked, looking around.
“He's not,” Sirius told her, looking between the astonished faces. “We have the signed paperwork that he's going to be homeschooled for various reasons. It's been enacted, so it's official.”
“We'll talk about it when we get home,” Molly said firmly, glaring at her brood and Hermione.
Mouth opening and closing on its own, Ron didn't know what to say, just staring at Harry.
“We'll discuss it when we get home,” Arthur said before it went any further. They had put this off so far and they shouldn't have, now they would have to deal with it.
“What about Quidditch and that?” Ron finally asked. “We need you for that.”
“You'll have to do without me,” Harry shrugged, sipping his Dew.
“Yeah, that's the one thing we can't manage, Harry,” Sirius grinned. “Not enough bodies on a regular basis for teams here. We'll get the backyard cleaned out for you so you can fly a little. Well, we have to, that's for sure. You haven't gotten to try out your new Firebolt yet. We have to remedy that soon,” Sirius said, trying not to glance at Ron as he did.
“No rush there. There's other things to take care of before that,” Harry said, taking the next stack of packages from Remus. “It's been busy enough with all that's going on and getting settled that we haven't had much of a chance to do anything.”
“True, but we can't let that sit around either! You have to try it out,” Sirius told him with a grin and a nudge.
“You got a new Firebolt?” Ron asked, tone quiet, trying to fight off the wave of jealousy.
“Earlier in the week,” Sirius told Ron.
“People around here are intent upon spoiling Harry,” Severus snorted, sipping his drink, amused by the expression on Ron's face.
“He deserves it,” Sirius said quietly. Changing topics, he said, grinning and giving Harry a nudge, “And these are from me. Lots of good stuff here.”
“Oh, I can only imagine knowing you,” Harry grinned, shaking his head. Picking up the smallest of the packages, Harry began to open it.
Glancing at Ron, wide-eyed, as Snape called Harry by his first name, Hermione didn't know what to think of this. It was strange and there was plenty going on that they didn't know about. She wanted filled in too, but didn't know how to go about it.
After getting the flat package open, Harry read what was on the box and grinned again. “This allows you to run Muggle electronics in a magical house?” He asked, looking at Sirius.
“If it runs on batteries, yeah,” Sirius told him with a nod. “I've heard of them before, so I sent Snape on the hunt for it. I thought you might like it for your computer.”
“Absolutely brilliant,” Harry grinned bigger, giving an enthusiastic nod.
“The clerk told me to pick the room with the least amount of magic to do it in. So, we'll find you one that's not used often. It needs recharged after use, but that's simple,” Snape explained, pointing to the instructions on the box. “The more magic around, the faster the charm is going to wear down.”
“This is great! I was wondering how I would use it in this house.” Harry said with an enthusiastic nod.
“We'll get it figured out tonight and see how well it works,” Sirius told him, passing the next one over.
Looking at the tag, Harry saw it was from Lucius and Narcissa. Figuring, from Lucius' insistence that he open it in front of Ron, it was expensive, he pulled the paper off. It looked like a shoebox, though had a logo on it he didn't recognize. Opening it, he pulled out a very expensive looking pair of black boots.
“Wow! Dragonhide,” Fred said, eyes wide.
“Those are very nice, Harry,” George said with a firm nod.
Now understanding, Harry looked at them, grinning. “These are great!”
Pulling out the small card that came with them, Sirius said, “This spell will make sure they fit perfect and it has the cleaning charm for them. We'll work on that later. They'll last you forever and are comfortable.”
“Real dragonhide?” Ron asked, looking at the boots. He knew those were really expensive.
“Yup,” Sirius grinned, passing the next package over.
“As I said; spoiling,” Snape said, amused, shaking his head.
“We're allowed,” Sirius told him with a grin.
Seeing this one was from Narcissa, Harry opened it and pulled out several pairs of dragonhide pants, jeans and some silk shirts. Nodding, impressed, he said, “These look great!”
“Oh, those are very nice,” Molly said with a pleased nod. Smiling, she added, “You'll look very handsome in them, Harry.”
“Thanks,” he said with a sheepish grin as he set it aside then took the next one. This one was from Sirius. Opening it, he chuckled at the dragonhide motorcycle jacket. “I've always wanted one of these!”
“I'm going to get my bike back from Hagrid and we'll go riding a little at some point,” Sirius told him with a nudge. “It's also got every shielding charm on it out there, so you're protected when you wear it. I thought it would be good for you to have when you go out so you stay safe.”
“Very good idea, Black,” Severus said, pleased with that. He was also amused by the fact that the youngest Weasley male was trying to hold onto his jealousy and not let it show, failing at it.
Picking up the last one, Harry saw it was from Lucius and chuckled, opening it. This one was several silk robes and an over-robe of dragonhide, similar to the robes they wore to protect themselves in Quidditch. “Oh, these are nice!” He said, pulling the over-robe out and holding it up.
“They are,” Arthur said, firmly. “They will last you a very long time, Harry. And are the kind that are very comfortable. That was a wise choice.”
“Yeah, especially since I don't have any robes other than my ones for school,” Harry said, sitting them aside.
“Mate, those are real silk,” Ron said softly, fingering them, shaking his head. He couldn't believe all that Harry just got and didn't know how to react.
“Yeah, they'll be good for him,” Sirius said, sipping his drink.
Looking at the last package, a small one, Remus frowned. There was a tag on it but no name that he could see. Handing it over, he said, “I don't know who it's from. I don't see a name on the tag.”
Taking it, Harry looked at the tag, face going stony as he did. Stiffening up, he shoved it away and hissed, “I'm not opening that.”
Picking it up, bewildered, Sirius looked at the tag then asked, “Who's it from? I don't see a name on it.”
“It's from Dumbledore,” Harry seethed, glaring at it.
Stiffening up, Arthur said, tone hard, “Give it to me, if you would. I'll handle it.”
Shoving it over to Arthur, Sirius grabbed the boxes with the boots and clothes then nudged Harry, “Come on, let's see how these fit then you can show everyone.”
Standing, glaring at the package, Harry then left the room, still seething.
Making sure he had everything, Sirius told Arthur, tone deadly, “Tell him that was not at all appreciated and not to do it again. It sure as hell didn't help anything.”
“I will,” Arthur said firmly with a nod, tucking the package into his robes.
Thunderous look on his face, Sirius went to find his godson.
“Why is Harry so upset? It's very nice that Professor Dumbledore thought of him on his birthday,” Hermione said softly, looking between the angry faces of the adults, confused.
“It's something else we'll discuss when we get home,” Molly said, face reddening. Having Remus and Severus start to gather the presents, she stood to get the cake and plates.
Leaning over to Hermione, Ginny whispered, “Something really strange is going on here. I don't get this.”
“I know,” Hermione sighed, shaking her head. “I think we need to figure out just what's going on.
“Did you see those presents? They cost a small fortune,” Ron muttered, eyes wide. “Harry always gets some great stuff, but that was really over the top. Something is wonky here and we need to figure out what.”
“We'll sit down tonight and sort it out,” Hermione assured him, straightening up as Mrs. Weasley came back over with the cake.

Sitting cross-legged on the bed, Harry looked at the last few presents he had opened, grinning, though flushed slightly, holding onto Elliot. One was a rocking chair, though big enough to hold both him and Sirius comfortably, a plush blanket, the kind Muggles called microfiber that were now becoming popular, with dragons on it, a book on the 'kink' they were playing with and some toys, though like kids but bigger meant for someone adult-sized.
Sending the rocking chair off to the corner, Sirius said, softly, “That one was my idea. I thought we could sit in it when you're stressed. The same with the blanket. You can wrap up in it while we sit in the chair so you feel safe while I hold you. It's big enough for you to completely cover up with and won't look odd. Plus it's nice and warm.” Picking up the book, he said, softly, “Over the next couple of days, we want you to read it then Lucius is going to get with you on some of what's in there. We're going to try to press on a little with this since you're doing better. Work for you?”
Taking the book and looking it over, Harry nodded. “I can do that. What kind of pressing on?”

“I'm going to let Daddy Lucius cover that with you to see what you're ready for as you're not as comfortable with him yet. It's nothing huge, but some minor stuff. Some of it you actually already do, at least in some way, so it shouldn't be hard. Other parts, it's more like a change of some kind of behavior at times. Nothing hard and I don't think you'll get stressed about it. He's just better at explaining and getting it across than I am since he's done this before. That's all.”
Flipping through the book, pausing to look at some of the pictures here and there, Harry said, “Alright, I'll see what he has to say.”
“Nothing at all to worry about. We’re over the biggest hurdle to all of it. You just have to trust us, nothing more, and let us take care of you. You've agreed to that and are doing it to an extent.” Seeing his godson nod, Sirius nudged him and said, “Come on, grab your computer and we'll get that pad to work. I want to hear some of that music you have. Plus, see some of those pictures you talked about having on it. I've been real interested in those for a long time now.”
Laughing at that, Harry said, “We can do that.” Bailing off the bed, he went to get his computer.
Leaning back and stretching out, Sirius chuckled, “Oh, did you see the look on everyone's face when you said you weren't going back? That was a bloody riot! Not to mention Fred and George's? I about died there.”
Snickering as he pulled his computer out, Harry said, “You two are about to get bribed within an inch of your lives to give up some of your secrets.”
“It's going to be great!” Sirius laughed. “I can't wait for this!”
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Preventative Measures