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Family Means More Than Blood	By : WingsofaDream Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Draco Views: 59825 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 7
Disclaimer: Harry Potter and its associated characters are property of J K Rowling, not me. This story is not being written for profit, just for the lols.

Chapter List
- 23
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- 25
19th August 1992: Midday

Harry staggered out of the dusty fire place awkwardly, tripping over his feet in the process and landing on the wooden floorboards with a loud thud. A harsh cough forced its way out and he pushed himself up onto his elbows to give his chest room to move. Once his coughing eased, he pushed himself up the rest of the way, getting onto his knees before hauling himself up onto his feet uneasily. Then, he looked around himself.

He was not the Leaky Cauldron.

But that was unsurprising considering he had sneezed half way through saying Diagon Alley. Now he did not know where he was and he did not know how he was going to find Lucius or Draco who he had originally been coming with. Although he was not certain where he was, Harry had a horrible feeling that he was somewhere in Knockturn Alley. The room he was in was terribly gloomy and there were gruesome-looking objects covering every surface covered in a copious amount of dust.

Giving a small sigh, Harry started forward, intending to just leave and find his way back to the Leaky Cauldron. However, he did not notice the small table just next to his thigh and he walked right into it. He gave a yelp of pain and jumped back just as the table tipped and the books which had been resting on top of it fell to the floor. With a small mutter of annoyance, Harry quickly righted the table and then knelt down and began to gather the books, holding them into a pile in his arms. Then, he touched one book and he gasped as his vision swam for a second before everything turned completely black.

He stood quickly, instantly on edge despite the fact He was pretty sure nothing was going to hurt Him; it was more like He was wary of what He might see. And slowly, what He was meant to see came moving out of the darkness, as if stepping into an area of light despite the fact there was none. It was a boy, maybe a little older than Himself. He could not make out the face properly but He did recognise what the boy was wearing; Hogwarts Slytherin robes.

Suddenly, the dark shop returned to Harry in the blink of an eye and he was aware that he was still kneeling on the floor and there was now a hand on his shoulder. Quickly, he glanced upwards and found an ugly old man standing over him, his skin dry and dusty looking and his lower face covered with rough, grey whiskers. Harry bolted up onto his feet quickly and moved away from the man a little; he was only too aware of the rumours that went around about the sort of business that went on in Knockturn Alley.

"Something caught your eye, sonny?" The man asked with a strange grin.

"No, I accidently knocked over a table, I was just picking everything up." Harry replied carefully as he went to set the pile of books onto the small table. Once they were settled, he went to move his arms away when the man reached out for him again and grabbed his right arm with his bony, grey hand. Harry slowly lifted his gaze to meet that of the man's, all the while trying to figure out how likely it was that he would be able to simply shove the man away from him and bolt for it if the opportunity arose.

"Such a kind boy you are, I insist on rewarding you."

"But it was my fault in the first place."

"But you could've just left, yet you stayed and helped an old man out. You deserve to be rewarded." The grey man insisted and only increased Harry's suspicion; they were wizards, picking up a few books was hardly strenuous even for the elderly. "Here, you can have this." He continued, taking the book which had caused Harry's vision and holding it out to him. "It's a diary; I'm sure a pretty boy like you has a lot to say for himself."

Harry accepted the book carefully, only wanting to get out of the shop and away from the man as quickly as possible. He glanced at the black leather cover and noticed that at the bottom, on the front, in gold print, were the words T.M.Riddle. It was probably only the maker so he thought nothing of it, instead opening it and flicking through the blank pages. Indeed, it did seem to be nothing more than a diary. Lifting his gaze again to address the man, Harry was rather startled to find himself on his own once again. There was no sign of the man anywhere around him and there was no apparent way that the man could have left which was odd.

A frown spread itself across Harry's features and he slowly backed over to the shop's door, the diary still in hand. When he had reached the door, he opened it quickly and dashed out, turning left when he was outside despite the fact he had no idea where he was going. He did not stop running until a view of sunlight caught his eye. Only then did he slow to a stop in order to get a better look at what was off further to his left. When he recognised it as a part of Diagon Alley, he breathed a heavy sigh of relief and hastily jogged his way over to the end of Knockturn Alley, thankful that he had finally made his way out.

He happily stepped out into the sunshine which filled Diagon Alley, instantly glancing around himself in the off-chance that he spotted either Lucius or Draco. Not surprisingly, he saw neither but that did not matter now; he could make his way to the Leaky Cauldron from here and then wait for them there. Before he went on his way though, he paused to look at the diary which he still held in his hand. It seemed to be harmless enough but that did not mean it was wise not to be wary of it. Harry could not bring himself to just abandon the book though, just in case it was something dangerous. So, he slipped it inside an inside pocket of his cloak, deciding it would probably be best to give it to his father to check out when he got back home.

"Boo!" A voice suddenly yelled in his ear as two pairs of hands fell down onto each of his shoulders.

Harry nearly jumped out of his skin at the cry, his whole body twitching in shock as he sucked in a startled gasp. He pulled away from the hands and turned around quickly only to find that he could relax again. "Did you have to do that?" He frowned at Fred and George who were standing just in front of him, looking far too pleased with themselves.

"Course we did." Fred said in all seriousness.

"Gotta keep you on your toes." George added as he and his brother stepped forward to come to stand either side of their friend. "So, why didn't you tell us you were heading in Diagon Alley on this fair day?"

"You could've come with us."

"I'm supposed to be here with Uncle Lucius and Draco but I sneezed in the middle of using the Floo and I ended up being spat back out in a shop in Knockturn Alley." Harry explained as he allowed the twins to lead him, what he was guessed, was towards the rest of the Weasleys.

"Knockturn Alley?"

"Congratulations on getting out un-hexed."

"It can't be that bad down there."

"If your dad worked at the Ministry then you'd know that, actually, it is." George murmured to him just as Flourish & Blotts came into view, along with the sight of Hermione looking from side to side. When she caught sight of the three boys, she headed straight over to them.

"Harry, it's so good to see you." She greeted the dark haired boy with an enthusiastic smile.

"It's good to see you too." Harry returned the greeting with a smile of his own.

Hermione held his attention for a few more moments before she turned to give a pointed look to Fred and George. "And there you two are! We've been looking for you for ages. Why did you wander off like that?"

"Unlike the entire female,"

"And a good proportion of the male as well probably,"

"Population, we don't really want to stand in an over-crowded book store,"

"And pander to Gilderoy Lockhart."

"Gilderoy Lockhart's in Flourish & Blotts?" Harry asked, interrupting the twins's double act.

"His new autobiography's out." Hermione answered, sounding rather excited again. She reached forward and grabbed Harry's arm before pulling him towards the shop entrance. "Come in, everyone'll be glad to see that you're here and you're just in time for Lockhart's book signing."

Harry threw a slightly desperate look over his shoulder at the twins but they could only grin at him in amusement as they trailed along behind.

The four of them entered the shop and Harry was instantly struck by how many people had managed to cram themselves into the relatively small space. He was pulled through by Hermione and was only released when they were near the front of the group that had crowded near the back of the shop, no doubt in anticipation for the entrance of Gilderoy Lockhart. Once Hermione had let Harry's arm go, he noticed that she went over to a man and a woman in Muggle clothing, giving the woman a quick kiss on the cheek, and common sense told him that they must be her parents. He was instantly intrigued and wanted to maybe have a bit of a chat with them as he had never really met a Muggle properly before. However, his attention was called away by Fred and George as they once again joined him, both standing to his right. It was also the moment that Ron decided to join them too, moving around Mrs Weasley to come and stand to Harry's left.

"He ain't come out yet then?" George murmured, looking around at everyone who was standing around them.

"Probably still trying to figure out whether he should wear the powder blue or the mint green." Fred grinned.

George looked as though he was about to add to that comment but found he had to stop as the crowd began to applaud. Turning their attention to the front, the three boys saw that Gilderoy Lockhart had just appeared from the back with a rather self-satisfied smirk on his face. His long blond hair was tied behind him loosely with a pale blue satin bow and he wore a matching, floor-length blue satin coat with ruffles of white lace from his shirt behind coming through, down the length of his chest. Harry glanced down at his side to where Hermione was clapping earnestly while gazing on at the man with a dreamy look in her eyes. Directly beside him, Mrs Weasley was looking rather star-struck as well.

"Mum fancies him." Ron murmured to Harry then, only to be promptly smacked on the arm by the woman.

Harry gave a small laugh at that, muffling it as much as possible so as not to disturb the silence that had now fallen in the shop. It was as this silence came that Lockhart's gaze settled on Harry after posing for a picture.

The man's eyes widened slightly. "It can't be...Haryon Snape?" All eyes were instantly on Harry and he cringed lightly before it was replaced with a look of surprise as the reporter grabbed hold of his arm and pulled him forward with an exclamation of his name. Harry was guided towards Lockhart who instantly pulling him to his side when he was in reach. "Big smile now, Haryon; I bet you and I make the front page." He said through one of his famous smiles. On his part, Harry was too stunned to smile.

With the picture taken, the Daily Prophet photographer scuttled away and Harry went to move away as well, figuring that this whole embarrassing episode was over. However, Lockhart's arm remained around his shoulders and even tightened slightly to keep him in place.

"Ladies and gentlemen, little did Haryon know that this afternoon when he came into Flourish & Blotts to purchase a copy of my autobiography "Magical Me"," he paused when the small applause came, "he would, in fact, be leaving with my entire literary collection," the blond man shoved a whole pile of books into Harry's chest, making the teenager accept them, "free of charge." That earned yet more applause while Ron looked around at everyone as if they were nuts and the twins merely grinned in amusement. "Now," Lockhart said, pushing Harry away now that he was no longer needed and sitting down behind the table. "Who's first?"

Harry made his way stiffly over to the Weasley and was immediately relieved of his new books by Mrs Weasley. "All right, Harry, I'll take these and get them signed for you. Now I want all of you to wait outside." She instructed them and the teenagers and children all shuffled to do as they were told.

Instead of following the rest of the Weasleys to the front entrance however, Harry paused by Mr and Mrs Granger. "Erm, hello, I don't believe we've met; you're Hermione's parents right?" He said with a polite smile.

"Yes, that's right." Hermione's mother said with a smile of her own. She frowned a little in confusion. "Haven't I seen you in one of her books?"

Harry blushed and looked down at the floor awkwardly. "Erm, yeah, I'm, erm, I'm a bit famous."

"That explains why that bloke up there seemed so eager to get a picture with you." Hermione's father said before holding out his hand for Harry to shake. "It's very nice to meet you..."

"Haryon Snape." Harry filled in, shaking the man's hand. "But most people just call me Harry so feel free to as well."

"Are you here with your parents Harry?" Mrs Granger asked.

"No, my father's busy today. I was supposed to be here with my godfather and his son but I got separated from them. Hermione told me once that you're both dentists? Would you mind if I asked you a question?"

"By all means."

"How do you do it without magic?"

So, then the two parents went into a brief description of what they did and Harry listened carefully, absolutely fascinated. He could tell why Mr Weasley was so interested in Muggles now, they really did have some peculiar ways. Imagine having to look into people's mouths all day for a living. Wizard dentists just used charms and the such to tell them whether there was anything wrong or not. To actually have to look inside someone's mouth and poke about in there was...Well, it was weird and could in no way be hygienic.

Just as Harry was about to ask another question, something over by the entrance to the book shop caught his eye. Lucius was standing in front of all the Weasleys and seemed to actually be talking to them and Harry was unsure if that was a good thing or not. "Erm, if you'll please excuse me; it was lovely meeting the both of you." He said to the two Muggles quickly but politely. Before they even got a chance to return the sentiment, the boy was hurrying away, over to the gathering by the front of the shop. Getting closer to the group, he could start to pick up on what was being said:

"I do hope they're paying you over-time for all those extra raids Arthur," his godfather was saying to Mr Weasley as he held up what appeared to be a couple of Ginny's books. "But judging from the state of these, I doubt it." Lucius dumped the books back into Ginny's cauldron before shaking his head slightly. "What's the sense in being a disgrace to the name of Wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

"We have very different ideas of what disgraces the name of Wizard, Malfoy." Mr Weasley told the aristocrat and Harry mentally cheered for the come-back.

"Clearly." Lucius smirked before his eyes flickered over to Mr and Mrs Granger, apparently missing Harry. "Associating with Muggles." He murmured in distaste before turning back to Mr Weasley. "And I thought your family could sink no longer."

"Uncle Lucius." Harry stepped forward and greeted his godfather coldly, no longer willing to put up with the man insulting the Weasleys as he was.

"Ah, Haryon, there you are. Draco and I hoped you'd only gone one grate too far." Lucius said to him with a cool smile which meant so much more when coming form a Malfoy in public.

"The Weasley's were kind enough to allow me to join with them when they found me." Harry revealed, his tone still cold.

Lucius had noticed it and, to Harry who had known the man his whole young life, he was obviously confused by his godson's sudden distance. He hid it well though and merely gave Harry another small smile. "Well, now that you're found again, we had best be moving on. We have a lot to do today."

"No." Harry replied coolly despite the fact his heart was racing a mile a minute; this was the first time he had ever spoken against his godfather and it was rather nerve-wracking.

"Pardon?"

"I said no, I do not wish to spend my day with you now. As long as it's all right with Mr and Mrs Weasley, I would prefer to share their company this afternoon."

Lucius glared openly at Harry now and it took all of the teenager's self-control to not shy away from the stare or look away. It was terrifying and all Harry wanted to do was apologise and go with the man but it was a matter of principle; he did not agree with anything that Lucius had just said and he was going to make his displeasure known and hopefully teach the man a lesson. Such beliefs were old-fashioned, bigoted and completely not true and for Lucius to openly admit he believed such thing was an embarrassment.

Eventually, Harry could no longer look his godfather in the eyes and so looked off to the side. He made no move towards the Malfoy though and the blond seemed to finally realise that Harry was serious about not coming with him. Glaring once at Mr Weasley, Lucius turned on his heel gracefully and left the shop and, if he had not been so cultured, it would have been a flounce. Malfoy's did not flounce though so it was merely an angry exit.

When the blond man was out of the shop, Harry gave a sigh of relief before turning to Mr Weasley and bowing his head. "I am so sorry, Mr Weasley, my godfather's behaviour was inexcusable."

"There's no need for you to apologise, Harry." Mr Weasley assured him, giving him a few pats on the shoulder as reassurance. "C'mon you lot." He said to the rest of the Weasley off-spring in a cheerful tone which was only slightly forced. "Let's be off, shall we?"

They all gave small murmurs of agreement and began to shuffle out of the shop, Fred and George falling in beside Harry as they went. "That was wicked." Fred murmured in the dark haired boy's ear with a happy grin.

"Yeah, way to tell off your godfather." George added happily.

Harry gave them a weak smile back which was totally forced. Neither boy seemed to notice or if they did they passed no comment on it and they all spilled out onto the street. As they did, Harry was jogged slightly, causing him to stumble a little but he managed to keep up on his feet. Once he was out of the crowd, Harry allowed his face to fall the moment he was sure no one was paying proper attention and he released a sigh, closing his eyes lightly. The, when he felt someone step up to him again, he quickly opened them again to see Ginny standing next to him, looking up worriedly.

"Are you all right?" She asked shyly, a faint blush tinging her cheeks.

Harry could not help but smile at her softly at that enquiry. "Yeah, I'm all right." He assured her truthfully, because he was fine, he was just dreading the next time he had to see his godfather again.

*********************************************************************

19th August 1992: Evening

Harry stepped out of the fireplace in his house uneasily, almost tripping over his own feet once again. He had had a wonderful afternoon with the Weasleys (and Hermione and her parents too up until they and Ron had gone off with the Potters) and he had got everything he needed for when he went back to school. The unpleasantness involving Lucius had quickly been forgotten and Harry had not thought about it for even a second since Fred and George managed to get a magical "Kick Me" sign onto Johnathan Potter's back.

Walking further into the living room, Harry settled his newly bought things on the coffee table before he took off his cloak and then once again gathered everything up in his arms. He made his way out of the living room, turning right to hang his cloak up by the front door as he called out: "Father?"

"In the kitchen." His father's voice replied.

Harry smiled lightly at that and turned around before walking forwards, heading towards the kitchen door. When he reached it, he turned slightly to nudge it open with his shoulder. "How's your day been, Father?" He began to ask cheerfully as he opened then door further. "Mine turned out to be great, well, at least it did after Gilderoy Lockhart had finished dragging me up from the crowd in Flourish..." Harry's voice trailed off when he was greeted with the sight of Severus sitting at the kitchen table along with Lucius. The smile was wiped off of his face instantly and he turned around to leave again without further word.

"Haryon." Severus called him back and Harry stopped dutifully but did not turn around. "What's this hear about you talking back to your godfather?"

"I was merely standing up to an injustice." Harry replied neutrally, finally turning around to face the others in the room. Lucius gave a small snort at that and Harry glared at him, his temper flaring up. "What you said to the Weasleys wasn't right or fair in any way. Do you know how embarrassing it was for me once you had gone? I was so humiliated that you would talk to them like that! I mean, was it really necessary? Did you really have to say all that to them? What was the purpose of it?"

"Haryon, I apologise if..." Lucius began to say but was cut off by a humourless laugh from his godson.

"You, apologise? Hold on, let me call the Daily Prophet."

"Haryon..."

"No Father, I can't ignore this." He said before turning to Lucius. "The things you said; how can you still believe in such things? That you're somehow better than someone else because of your job, because you have no association with Muggles? Because of your blood? You honestly believe that?"

"And why should I not?"

"Because it's simply not true!" Harry cried and if his hands had not been full of books he would have thrown his arms up. "Uncle Lucius how can you think that blood and status makes you better than someone? Father's a half-blood and me, well, we don't know what I am do we? I mean, what if I'm Muggle-born? Would that change your out look or would it change what you think of me?"

"Don't be ridiculous, Haryon, your father found you in a Wizarding part of London, a Muggle wouldn't have been able to leave you there."

"But we don't know for sure! And you're avoiding my question! What if I were a Muggle-born...Would you still love me?" Harry sighed sadly and blinked back the tears that suddenly stung his eyes. "I can't stop you from thinking such horrible things, but I can leave so I don't have to hear them." He murmured quietly, as he turned and left the room silently. The kitchen remained silent behind him and he hugged his pile of books to his chest tightly, trying to hold back his tears until he had at least reached his bedroom.

His pace remained slow and steady, mostly because he could not run with an armful of books, until he reached his bedroom. He edged open the door with his foot enough to get through and then stepped inside, closing it behind him with his foot. And then he stopped. He continued to hold his new books and he leaned back against the door and let out a shuddered breath. His heart was still pounding and he still felt like he wanted to cry but he refused to. There was no reason to cry, he had been perfectly justified in telling his godfather off, but that did not stop his heart from aching.

A sniff escaped Harry and he shook his head irritably as a couple of tears ran down his cheeks. He glared angrily, angry with himself, as he went over to his desk and set his books down before snaking his finger underneath his glasses and scrubbing at his eyes roughly. As he took in a deep breath through his nose and let it out through his mouth, his bedroom door opened with a small knock. He turned, fully intending to yell if it was Lucius or reassure if it was Severus. So, it was rather surprising when he saw Draco standing in the open doorway.

"I didn't know you were here." Harry murmured, glancing at the blond teenager before looking away, hoping against hope that Draco failed to notice his slightly puffy eyes.

"I was in the bathroom." Draco said neutrally as he moved forward and then closed the door. "Though I did hear what you said to my father, parts of it anyway." He closed the distance between them and then wrapped his arms around Harry tightly. "Merlin, I wish I'd been down there to see his face. I'm guessing you didn't find it fun though, your shaking."

"I'm all right." Harry said gently though he buried his face against Draco shoulder.

"C'mon, let's sit down and you can tell me exactly what happened; Father refused to tell me when he came out of Flourish & Blotts, just said you were going to spend the afternoon with the Weasleys." Draco explained as he guided Harry over to the bed and made him sit down on the edge, settling down with him and keeping an arm around his shoulders.

"I just heard him saying some stuff that I thought was wrong."

"And you told him off about it and that's good." Draco congratulated sincerely, resting his cheek on his best friend's head and running his fingers lightly over the dark hair. "Now if you could just learn to do the same with Sev then you'll be set."

"Baby steps, Draco, baby steps." Harry said with a small laugh, allowing himself to lounge against the blond. He felt a small kiss being pressed to the top of his head and he smiled a little more, content to sit there peacefully and give himself time to calm down fully.

A couple of minutes passed before there was another knock at Harry's bedroom door before it opened and Severus stepped in. He rose an eyebrow at the position of the two teenagers; Harry blushed all the brighter and Draco simply gave him a slightly challenging look. "You're father's leaving now, Draco." He told the blond boy and the silent command for him to follow was clear.

Draco sighed slightly irritably and reluctantly pulled his arm away from Harry. "I'll probably see you tomorrow."

Harry just gave him a small nod and a weak smile.

Draco hesitated a moment, half standing up and half stooped over, seemingly trying to decide on something, before he made up his mind and straightened up completely. He gave Harry another smile before turning and leaving the bedroom without another word. Once he had left the room, Severus watched him go down the stairs as Harry amused himself with picking at the wool-throw which was spread over the end of his bed. He heard the door being shut once again and then the sound of soft footsteps making their way over to him. The mattress next to him dipped under a new weight a few seconds later but he still did not look up, not completely sure what he was supposed to expect from his father.

"That was certainly uncharacteristic of you."

"Draco approved."

"Yes, well, he would." The man sighed lightly and then Harry felt the black eyes move onto him. "Haryon, is there something wrong? Besides what Lucius said."

"No, not particularly. What makes you ask?"

"I merely felt it was necessary to check just to make sure. What was it about what Lucius said that upset you the most?"

"There wasn't really one part, it was just the whole thing. I just...I don't understand how he can honestly believe such terrible things."

"Lucius, in many ways, is a man very much stuck in the past."

"Doesn't it hurt you that he thinks he's better than you, than people like you, because of your blood and his blood?"

"No, it doesn't, because I know that he doesn't mean it about myself or about you." He paused before continuing. "Your godfather was raised in a very specific way and he still holds certain beliefs. Such beliefs are frowned upon now, but beliefs are hard things to change. To reject who you are is a hard thing to do; I struggle with it every day."

Gently, Severus reached out and cupped the back of his son's head, running the pad of his thumb over the soft hair. Harry closed his eyes, suddenly feeling incredibly guilty. "I shouldn't have yelled, I should've tried to understand..."

"No, I think you did very well considering. Your argument structure needs work and..."

"You sound like you're marking an essay." Harry laughed lightly, his voice still sounding a little shaken.

"Yes, well that's what happens when you spend ten months of the year doing just that." Severus said with a small smirk which passed for grin with him.

Harry glanced over to his father quickly before giving another small laugh and shuffling over, moving to rest against Severus' side. The Potions Master curled his arm around the teenager, his hand holding his waist in a supportive manner. "Was he really angry?"

"I think he was more miffed than angry." The man assured gently, his tone rather amused. "Don't worry yourself with it though; things will be better in the morning, once we've all had time to calm down."

"I'm not going to apologise first."

Severus chuckled low in his chest and gave his son a playful jostle. "And that doesn't surprise me in the least."

*********************************************************************

20th August 1992: Morning

Harry felt around the pockets of the cloak with a small frown of confusion on his face. He patted the material all over from where it was still hanging by the front door and then opened it so he could actually have a look at the pockets on the inside of it. However, it soon became totally official that there was nothing inside any of the pockets of his cloak which was strange as he had not taken the diary he had received the previous day in Knockturn Alley out and he vividly remembered putting it in a pocket inside his cloak.

Had he dropped it somehow? Or had someone picked it out of his pocket? That was unlikely as it was an inside pocket it had been in though, with magic, it may have been possible. Would anyone have really been odd enough to want to steal a diary though? It may have been taken without the pick-pocketer knowing what it was but it was still a very odd thing to steal, especially considering that he had been carrying money on him as well.

With an annoyed sigh, Harry yanked his cloak back into position again, deciding it was time to give up. There was no little black book there and he was unsure whether to be concerned or not. He had to face it, there was no proof pointing towards the book being dangerous other than the fact he had been given it by a suspicious old man in a creepy shop in Knockturn Alley. To think that everyone in Knockturn Alley was someone to be wary of and a loyal Death Eater was a hateful stereotype and it was impossible that everyone down there was a dark wizard or witch, after all, Severus still went down there occasionally to get certain potions ingredients. The old man and the diary could quite easily be completely innocent. He could not deny that he was more than a little uncertain with it all though.

"What are you doing?" Severus's voice suddenly asked and Harry turned to look to see the man standing at the living room door way.

"Nothing, just checking something." Harry said, dismissing the question easily.

"Then you're currently occupied with something?"

"No...Why?"

"Your godfather's here to talk to you."

"Oh..." Already? Harry had not been expecting the blond man to come so early. He thought he still had at least another twelve hours before he had to face this.

"Eloquent as always." Severus smirked as he stepped aside to allow Harry into the living room.

Harry entered the room and immediately met the gaze of Lucius who sat gracefully on the sofa beside the fire. He heard the gentle click of the door shutting and he knew that his father had left him and the blond man alone. Nervously, the boy made his way over to the arm-chair that Severus usually sat in and settled down, making sure to sweep his hair out of the way as he had not bothered to tie it into a braid that morning.

For the next few minutes, neither occupant of the room spoke. They sat directly opposite each other and while Lucius never took his eyes off of his godson, Harry stubbornly kept his gaze down on his lap the whole time. He did not look up even when his godfather finally spoke. "I apologise for embarrassing you yesterday. I would never have said what I did if I had realised you were that familiar with the Weasleys."

"So you're apologising that you said it but not for what you said."

"You wish for me to lie to you then?"

"No, of course not. I just wish..." Harry hesitated and sighed lightly. "I just wish you didn't think such things."

"I was raised in a different time, Haryon."

"Yes, that's what Father said." The boy agreed, his gaze held intently on his fingers which were twiddling together on his lap nervously. Lucius had apologised for what he had done wrong; it was only fair that Harry did the same now. "I'm sorry I yelled at you."

"I know you are. But I must tell you that I am rather proud that you stood up to me."

Harry finally lifted his head, looking across at his godfather in surprise.

"You're growing into a young man now, Haryon, and it's only natural that you'll be developing ideas of your own. To have the courage to stand up to someone when what you see as an injustice is carried out is very commendable."

Harry could not help but blush slightly at that comment and he let his head drop into a bow again. After another little while of silence, he spoke a little uncertainly. "So, erm, are we, I mean, we're okay now, right?"

"I see no reason why we shouldn't be." Lucius drawled, sounding slightly mocking. It was a playful mocking though and it only confirmed to Harry that everything really was all right between him and his godfather again.

Feeling relatively comfortable for the first time since he entered the living room, Harry lifted his head again and met eyes with Lucius. The man quirked an eyebrow at him gently and gave a small smirk. Harry gave a small laugh at the expression which was obviously the right thing to do as the smirk faded from Lucius's face only to be replaced with a genuine smile.

Everything was all right with the world once again.
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Family Means More Than Blood