Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

A Prince in Lion's Clothing	By : Sablesilverrain Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Tom Views: 36576 -:- Recommendations : 8 -:- Currently Reading : 10
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, or anything you recognise here. I make no money off of this, and am writing it purely for entertainment. Don't take it too seriously.

Chapter List
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Harry decided on the way back to Gryffindor Tower that a small lie was in order. He didn’t want his friends to think he was rushing things, so he was going to make it abundantly clear that he hadn’t chosen to be Tom’s consort just yet.

Even though he had.

It was in his best interests to let them get used to the idea slowly, and if he told a small lie, he could pretend to accept over the summer without raising suspicion.

Because telling the whole truth would be a sure-fire way to make Hermione disapprove wholeheartedly.

It was best to start small.

He walked into the common room and Fred and George jumped up.

“Our intrepid leader returns!” George said, sinking into a kneel.

“My Liege Lord!” Fred added, doing the same.

Harry smiled, walked up to their kneeling forms and placed a hand on each head, saying, “Rise, my knights of flame-hair. You have waited, and I am home.”

Snorts were heard all over the common room.

Fred and George rose to their feet, grinning. “So, how was your trip?” Fred asked.

“And why didn’t you tell us Snape was your dad?” George asked more quietly.

Harry shrugged. “Didn’t know how you'd take it.” He answered honestly.

Fred shrugged. “Doesn’t change you. You're still our youngest brother.”

“Favourite, even.” George whispered.

Harry smiled. “Thanks, guys. It’s nice to know I still have some support here.”

“Ginny’s upset, thinks it will change how you feel about her.” George told him.

Harry grimaced.

“We told her she'll always be your little sister.” Fred added.

Then, together, they chorused, “That didn’t seem to help things any.”

Harry laughed. “No, I don’t imagine so. She is, though. I don’t think I can ever see her differently at this point.”

“Such a shame.” George said.

“Her Knight in shining Armor—” Fred added.

Harry cut in, “Plays for the other team.”

Fred and George turned shocked, and somewhat interested, looks on him.

“Oh?” Fred asked.

George grinned widely. “Tell us more. Hell, tell us all!” He added.

Harry laughed. “Not much to tell. I met a man, and I’m saving myself for him.”

“Man? Not boy?” Feed asked.

Harry laughed. “No, definitely not a boy.”

George looked him up and down. “Off the market, then? Shame. Damn shame.” He said.

Harry smiled. “Even if I wasn’t taken, I know better than to get involved with you two. You'd eat me alive!” He told them.

“And you'd enjoy every second of it.” Fred told him.

“Maybe so, but I’d never be the same.”

“Ah, give us a chance!” George said.

“No way in hell, guys. I'm going to go have a word with Hermione and Neville now.” He said, shaking them off as he headed over.

He sat in the armchair. “You two free for a little chat? It's kind of important.” He said.

Hermione and Neville nodded, gathering their things and following him as he led the way up the stairs to the dormitory.

He sat down on his bed and they joined him.

“I need to put you two under a lip-locker, keyed to my presence before I tell you this. You’ll be able to talk about it, but only with me present. It’s extremely sensitive information.” Harry told them.

Hermione bit her lip, but nodded.

Neville frowned. “What if we want to discuss it without you, between ourselves?”

Harry hummed. “I can lock myself in my bed so I can’t see you and cast a deafness charm while you two talk. The spell is keyed to my presence, not my ability to hear. It should let you talk about it if we’re still in the same room.”

Neville nodded. “Alright, then.”

Harry cast the charm on them both, then took a deep breath. “I’m switching sides.” He said abruptly.

Hermione’s mouth dropped open and she paled.

Neville’s breath hitched and he looked terrified.

“But why?” Hermione asked. “Harry, he murdered your parents! He wants people like me dead!”

Harry shook his head. “Severus explained some things. He only killed one of my parents that night, and he told her to step aside three times. He tried to let her live. She decided to martyr herself. For me. And he also doesn’t want to kill Muggleborns. He wants to make them assimilate into the magical world, yes, but not with deadly force. He wants to do it by changing the laws, making them stricter, but not unreasonable. Besides that, Dumbledore has questionable methods and doesn’t much care for helping people if they truly need help. He knew about the Dursley’s abuse.”

Hermione shook her head. “How could he have?” She asked.

Harry’s look turned dark. “He knew because I told him. I begged him to take me out of that house! I told him about the beatings, the starvation, the names, the—Some other things I didn’t tell you guys.” He said, staring unflinchingly into her eyes.

His eyes were haunted, Hermione realised with a sinking feeling. More haunted than beatings and starvation would account for. She drew in a deep breath as she realised what he had kept from them.

“Harry, the abuse… Was it ever… Did they…” She gulped, unable to continue. Just thinking about it turned her stomach.

Harry sighed, but nodded reluctantly. “Vernon. Every summer. Starting before first year. I told Dumbledore, and he told me not to lie about things I didn’t understand. How could I have known things like that at that age unless it was the truth?!” He choked out, a few stray tears escaping.

Hermione began to cry, too. “Oh, Harry.” She made an aborted move toward him, then stopped, realising he may have problems being touched. Survivors of that kind of thing sometimes did.

Harry saw the move and sniffed. “You can hug me. It’s okay.” He told her.

Hermione wrapped her arms around him, and Neville laid a hand on his shoulder.

“We believe you, Harry.” He said supportively. “I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“It’s done with now.” Harry said, tears stopping as he took a deep breath. “I’m not going back there. Severus knows, and he’d rather die than see me go back. I know he’ll move heaven and Earth to keep me with him if he has to.”

“You should have said something!” Hermione said, still shaken.

Harry laughed derisively. “What would it have changed? Dumbledore had all the control over where I went, it would have served no purpose at all.”

Hermione cleared her throat. “So you’re switching.” She said, sounding interested now, rather than horrified by his choice. “Do you have the Mark?” She asked.

Harry shook his head. “He doesn’t Mark underage Wizards and Witches. And actually, he wants me in… A different capacity.” He added softly.

“Different how?” Neville asked.

Harry flushed, then whispered, “Consort.”

Hermione’s dander was immediately up. “Then he’s no better than Vernon! Asking that of someone our age!” She spat.

“He’s asking, not demanding! I have a choice this time! And if I decide to accept, because I haven’t yet, he will go at my pace! He promised, and I trust him!” Harry shouted, temper flaring at the misunderstanding. He calmed, and added, “Being given the choice to say no makes all the difference. If I tell him I don’t want that, he will back off. He won’t like it, but he won’t punish me for it. It’s truly my choice.”

Hermione looked concerned. “Do you think… Do you think you’re considering being with an older man because it’s what you know? It’s familiar?”

Harry shook his head. “I’m not even sure if I like guys only yet, but I will admit when I saw him after the potion Severus gave him to bring back his good looks, I was… Intrigued. Attracted. He looks about mid-twenties now, and he’s a very good-looking man. I like the look of him, but we’re taking things exceptionally slowly. We’ve kissed. That’s all.”

Hermione frowned and muttered, “That’s enough.”

Harry grinned at her. “For now.” He agreed, amused.

Neville cracked a grin. “Do you want him? You sound like you’ve already decided.”

Harry cleared his throat, flushing. “Well, I… He is hot. And I suppose if I can see him that way it means my tastes do run that way. And I’d be pretty safe as his consort, you have to admit. There is a certain appeal to the idea.”

Hermione laughed. “Little Harry is growing up.” She teased.

“Yes, finally.” Harry agreed, chuckling himself.

Neville smiled. “So you like guys? Or both?” He asked.

Harry shrugged. “Don’t know yet. Not for sure. Haven’t found a girl yet that tempts me that way, but that doesn’t mean it won’t happen.”

“So what do you even call him?” Hermione asked. “Voldy?”

“Depends on the situation.” Harry answered. “When discussing him, the Dark Lord. When around him and his Death Eaters, he’s insisted on Marvolo. When it’s just us two, or just us and Severus, I’m allowed to call him Tom. He’s letting me under duress, though, as he’s made clear.” He said with a laugh.

Hermione grew serious. “So what does that mean for us?” She asked. “Do you want us to switch with you?”

Harry sighed. “I want you to do what you feel is best, within limits. Stay away from Dumbledore, if at all possible. Join the Dark side, or stay neutral. He will probably target you if you go Light, but he won’t outright kill unless provoked or threatened. He will fight back if you go after him. And his followers are sometimes unpredictable. I will ask him to spare you if you stay out of it, and I think he will do that for me. Again, if you stay out of the conflicts.” Harry repeated firmly.

Hermione took a deep breath. “I… I need time. To think. And research.” She muttered to herself.

Harry smiled. “We have plenty of that. He won’t be asking for your allegiance until you’re of age, but by then, you have to have made up your mind.”

Hermione nodded. “It will take me a matter of weeks, maybe months. But I will decide by summer, and give you my answer by the time we leave Hogwarts.”

Neville hummed. “Gran won’t like this at all. I’m not going to tell her about you, couldn’t even if I wanted to, but I’ll have to tell her I’m staying neutral. Even if I join you and switch, I’ll need to lie to her.” He added.

Harry sighed. “I don’t want to make you lie to your family. Stay neutral if you have to.”

Neville’s eyes flashed. “Neville Longbottom doesn’t do anything by halves.” He said firmly. “And I’m no coward!” He added hotly.

“Never said you were.” Harry said mildly.

“I’ll let you know. Give me two months.” Neville said.

Harry smiled. “No rush. You’ve got six.” He told his friend.

Neville nodded.

Hermione got up. “I’m going to go to the library. I promise to keep quiet about this, but I’m going to start my research now.” She told them, then rushed out of the room.

“I trust you.” Neville said. “That’s the only reason I’m not freaking out about all this. Don’t make me regret it.”

Harry smiled. “I don’t intend to. But if you’re going to, let me know. We can discuss options if we need to.” He offered.

“I’ll keep that in mind.” Neville accepted. “For now, let’s get ready for bed. The others will be up in an hour or so.”

Harry nodded. “Good idea. Showers?”

“If I hear you moaning out ‘Tom,’ I may be sick.” Neville teased.

“Mm, that’s because you haven’t seen him lately.” Harry shot back. “But I’ll bite my lip for you.” He added.

Neville snorted. “Good.”
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A Prince in Lion's Clothing