Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Pilfered Progeny - Stolen Dreams	By : SisterGryffindor Category: Harry Potter AU/AR > Slash - Male/Male Views: 14679 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 1
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Chapter List
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~~~~~~TIME SHIFT BACK TO PRESENT DAY~~~~~~~~~~~

Lucius relaxed back in his favorite chair before the fire, running his finger over the ring that now hung on a chain about his neck. It had been the ring that he had given James, one that his young love had worn when he had left the castle for Easter break but had vanished upon his return. He frowned slightly in thought. “Well it’s nice to know the entire story.” He said quietly.

“I’m not finished yet.” Damitri assured. “She is alive; she had a good childhood safe from the manipulation of your father and the obsessions of the Dark Lord.”

“That’s the only consolation I take from all of this… you have not found her?”

“I have put out every lead I can; if nothing pays off soon I will return to the town and see if her stepfather cannot get her to come and speak with me and in turn, you.”

“You think she may not wish to meet me?” Lucius asked.

“She may not even know you were her father; the man who raised her did not even want to divulge that she was not his. Your time spent in Azkaban during Draco’s final year in school was not kept quiet, Lucius. Once she knows the entire truth, she may not trust you.”

He sighed softly. “At that time, I didn’t trust myself. All I could think about was the safety and security of my wife and son…”

“I will see what I can do… don’t give up hope, old friend.”

“To hope.” He said, raising his glass to Damitri, who raised his glass to join in the salute.

“To hope.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Lucius moved into the nursery, gazing at the children in their little groups. The Dark Circle was incomplete today; Alyssa was off somewhere else leaving the four together. As always, the two little guardians did not play; Erin had a small ball in hand but was not playing with it; Erik sat near the Prince looking as if he was about to pass out on the spot, battling to keep his eyes open. Alerick was playing ball with Mallek, rolling the ball back and forth. The other children were on the other side of the room, playing a game of chase and tag, supervised by the nannies, the sounds of giggling and laughter echoed across the room, a sound that soothed Lucius' heart and made him feel better about the world in general.



Severus Snape had suggested intermittent and sometimes extended periods of separation for the boys; it was time that he began to implement that advice. Lucius was still considering creative ways to get the twins separated from their beloved little Lord; lately they had been more than normally obsessive about watching him every moment of the day. Severus was supposed to be by later today to begin work on isolating and locking away the memories of their training, and all of the adults involved agreed that the best route was to begin with the twins, Erik in particular. The dark-haired guardian had been dosed with a sleeping potion at breakfast and now, twenty minutes later, he looked as if he was fighting hard to remain awake.

Lucius strode over to the foursome and the play stopped, all of them looking up at the tall man. “Narcissa is going to be off shopping today, Alerick. I will need you to assist me in the nursery with the littlest children." Lucius told the boy.

"As you wish, Lord Father Malfoy." he agreed, rising to his feet and giving the elder man a respectful bow. "I will help as you command..."

"No, mine...!" Mallek said with a bit of a whine as he grabbed hold of Alerick's sleeve, pouting at the adult who had the audacity to order his friend away.

"I'm not leaving, my Lord Mallek; I'm just going to help the Lord Father." he reassured the babe, turning to give him a hug. The twins glared at Lucius but did nothing toward him. Alerick soothed and talked to Mallek until the boy released him, then he moved to join Lucius.

"He will be back with you for lunch." Lucius told Mallek as he turned and led the slim blonde boy out of the room.

Mallek looked torn between being angry and being upset, his lower lip stuck out as he watched them leave. One fat tear rolled down his cheek and he mumbled “Mine…” softly before throwing the ball away and beginning to whimper, fat tears rolling down his cheeks.

Erin moved to him, unsure what to do, awkwardly touching his arm. The little prince pushed her away and pointed at Camilla and babbled demandingly, tears rolling unchecked.

"Her…? But she’s not one of the circle… are you sure my lord?" She asked, looking over at the girl.

He stamped his foot in irritation and pointed again. Erin turned and hurried over to the other girl, while Erik tried to rouse himself enough to stand steadily at the Prince's side.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Alerick was quiet as he followed Lucius down the hall back up to the east wing where he and Narcissa had their rooms, along with the twins. “What will we be doing, My Lord Father?” He finally asked curiously.

“You will learn what it is to take care of someone who truly depends upon you for everything, Alerick." He answered.

The young boy tilted his head curiously. “I have never tended to babies, my Lord Father…” he admitted. “Even in my other home I was not expected to help at all…”

“They were not allowing you to be a true man, then. To be served is a privilege reserved for few, for Malfoys of course, but you must never take complete advantage of such a privilege. You need to know how to do many things, my son.” Lucius explained.

“But if we have servants why do we bother to do such menial things? Servants serve; that is their purpose in life.” Alerick answered innocently, gazing up at his father.

“There will be times you wish to do these things for yourself. When the child is your own, it does not do for any other to tend that child except for yourself.”

“You tend infants, my lord?”

“Of course. And you shall as well today.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Draco sat in his room with little James cradled in his arms wrapped in his blanket, humming a soft tune to the infant who was contentedly sucking on his pacifier, quite content and feeling that all was right with the world.

He looked over as the door drifted open; a little girl, the one that his father had renamed Camilla toddled in giving him a big sweet smile. He wasn't surprised to see her; he'd heard about her escape penchant from his father already. He was had not expected, however, to see who was right behind her.

Mallek peered into the room. "Rick...?" He asked with his big green eyes full of worry and fear.

Draco sat up slightly in the chair. "Mallek...? What are you doing on this side of the house...?" he asked.

The dark-haired boy gazed at him, his lip trembling, and he toddled to him as quickly as he could, clinging to his leg, beginning to cry. His emerald green eyes, so like Harry’s, were full of tears and fat tears rolled down his chubby cheeks.

Hanging back in the doorway were both Erin and Erik. Camilla moved on past, curiously heading for the bathroom.

There was no way Draco could ever resist that sad little face; he had to do something to make the boy happy again. "Oh... what's wrong, Mallek...?" Draco asked, shifting James in one arm and reaching down to pick up the trembling little mirror image of his love. He lifted the boy with one arm and cradled him against his side. Mallek clung to him, sobbing only increasing, his tears staining Draco's silk jacket. “Easy now, its all right… everything will be all right…” Draco said softly as he settled the child comfortably in one arm while holding his own son in the other. No words he said comforted the boy so he decided to sing the boy a soft lullaby that his mother had sang to him when he was a child.

     Hush now, my baby, the daylight is done

     Your scales catching moonlight instead of the sun

     So lay down your head till the dawn comes anew

     For here there be dragons to watch over you.

     Dream now, my baby, of life in the clouds;

     Your head held so high and your wings spread so proud;

     For I know a secret I promise it’s true

     Here there be dragons and one of them’s you.

     Twelve years, I grant, was a long time to wait

     But I knew you’d get here I knew it was fate

     But sometimes a dragon takes longer to birth

     Because to create them it takes the whole earth

     Within you, the fires of Africa glow;

     The east Asian winds; Scandinavian snow

     The mountains, the forests, the rivers, the skies;

     The whole of creation is there in your eyes

     Hush now, my baby, and dream how you will

     You have your whole life for your dreams to fulfill

     And don’t be afraid of the things you dream of

     For here there be dragons below and above

     You’re a dragon, you’re life; you’re a dragon, you’re love.

    (This song is by Tom Smith and it is entitled “Dragon’s Lullabye”. We bought it on I-tunes.)

Harry, meanwhile, had been finishing his bath in the bathing room connected to their bedroom. He looked up as he pulled on his shirt at a slight noise at the door; Camilla was toddling in through the door, her face excited with the prospect of exploring yet another new room. He chuckled and scooped the eleven month old up in his arms, tickling her. “What are you doing in here, you little escape artist?” He said in a fond voice.

“Out!” She giggled, eyes sparkling.

Harry laughed and moved out of the room halfway through Draco’s song; he stopped to listen to the song and his husband’s melodious voice. Even Camilla stopped squirming long enough to listen.

“That’s beautiful, Dray.” Harry smiled as he moved to join Draco, giving him a soft kiss on the lips.

“Mother used to sing it to me… it has calmed him a bit…” Draco said, smiling at Harry a moment before he kissed little Mallek on top of his head. “I’m not sure what’s wrong with him though. I think he got Camilla to get him out of the room without being seen.”

"My Lord Prince Mallek wants his consort, Lord Father..." Erin answered in her quiet voice, gazing with confusion at the boy who usually showed only anger or joy. This sadness put her into uncomfortable and unfamiliar territory with her Lord. Erik, unnoticed, had quietly sank to his knees, sitting beside the chair and leaning his arm and head on the seat of the chair.

"He wants Alerick...? Where’s he gone off to?" Draco asked.

"Lord Father Malfoy took him away to help him with the littles." she answered, looking at her brother worriedly. "My Prince wished to find him..."

"Erik...?" Harry moved to the boy's side, more concerned about the boy who usually was the most alert creature on the entire mansion grounds. Erik had drifted off where he sat, his mouth parted, clearly sound asleep.

"Is he okay, my Lord...?" Erin asked timidly.

Harry checked the boy, and then smiled softly. "He will be fine; they both will, Erin. Nothing to worry about." he assured.

"You really do love Alerick, don't you little one?" Draco asked, stroking Mallek's hair.

The boy refused to release his grip on him, whimpering sadly. “Want mine…” he complained. “Want my Rik…”

Harry set Camilla down and relieved Draco of holding two by scooping James out of his arm to allow him to properly soothe the trembling boy. "I think I need to go find out what's going on." Harry said, kissing his son before he moved to gently put the sleeping baby into his bassinet.

"I can do that, Harry, honestly. I'm much better, even the doctor said I shouldn't have any restrictions now." Draco said, holding Mallek as he got to his feet with a bit of unsteadiness. "There we go; no, don't worry..." he assured Mallek, who clung to him with fierce determination. "I'm not going to put you down."

"It’s a good thing that James just went to sleep.” Harry said, scooping up Camilla before she managed to get back into the bathroom, then moved over and scooped up Erik as well. “I’ll get these two back to the nursery.”

“And I’ll find father and see what to do with our little man.” Draco said, giving Mallek a soft kiss on the top of his head.

“Sounds like a plan… You little escape artist; we’ve got to find a spell that will keep you in a single room, don’t we Camilla…?” Harry grinned at the girl, who giggled happily, grabbing hold of Harry’s nose as he carried the two out of the room.

Draco chuckled softly as he carried Mallek the other way, Erin following him with longing glances back at her brother. He decided that he should check the nursery of the twins first; Lucius was usually there in the mornings taking time to tend to the babies.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Alerick gazed down at the tiny little girl he held in his arms, completely enraptured by her as she fed, gazing up at him.

Lucius smiled, watching very carefully; he knew that there was no way this boy had ever received any training on raising children; on the contrary he’d been instructed to never do anything considered menial for himself. Until he had come to the mansion he had never dressed himself, had never even brushed his own hair. Here he was learning to take on such tasks for himself before the nanny was allowed to do such things for him.

“How quickly will she grow, sir?” the boy asked.

“She will not grow as quickly as some might like but much too quickly for my liking. She’s already double the weight she was when she came home.” He said with a fond smile at the infant.

Alerick set the empty bottle down without taking his eyes off the infant’s face, using the towel as Lucius had instructed to dab her mouth. The baby was drowsing, nearly asleep in his arm. He had helped Lucius to change the child’s wet nappy and now to feed her.

Lucius smiled at the young boy, who was trying hard to do everything as he was instructed. “All right, now you must help her to burp.”

“She can’t burp on her own?” He looked at the girl in surprise. “I thought everyone could do that.”

“She’s not able to do many things on her own, and a bubble in her tummy will make her feel sick and in pain. We must burp them.” Lucius said, turning little Remus Severus and moving to help Alerick turn little Lilly in his arms holding her carefully and patting her to burp her.

“She’s so tiny…” he murmured, handling the little girl like she was made of spun glass, looking at Lucius constantly to reassure himself that he was doing this properly.

A whimper from the door caught both their attention and Draco pushed the door open, stepping in with a still weeping Mallek cradled close in his arms. “There he is, Mallek… see? He’s just fine.” Draco said.

Mallek looked about at his consort, trembling, lip protruding, his sweet little face tear streaked.

Alerick gazed at him, his eyes sparkling. “Look, my Prince, it’s a baby!”

Mallek began to squirm to be put down, pushing at Draco. “My ‘Rik…! Not baby! Mine!” He said in an angered tone as Draco put him down to the floor.

“Mallek, Alerick must learn to assist others as well as you in life.” Lucius said firmly.

The toddler, nearly to Alerick’s side, halted to look at him, frowning. “Mine…!” he insisted, turning to Erin. “Want mine! Now!” He commanded, stamping one foot on the floor. Erin stepped forward, the power springing to life in her hands but she was unsure what to do. The baby was on the consort’s chest, how was she to make it leave without hurting Alerick…?

Alerick looked frightened. “No, my lord please, I will put her down, please don’t harm the baby…”

Lucius simply interposed himself between Alerick in the rocking chair and Erin. “We’ll have none of that, young miss!” he said firmly, eyes narrowed. She gazed at him, the power fading from her hands as she looked back at Mallek for instruction.

Mallek sniffled, gazing at Alerick. “Mine…” he pouted.

“He is your friend and companion, Mallek. But he is my son, and you must learn that his time cannot all belong to you.” Lucius said firmly.

He allowed the toddler with the wild black hair to move to Alerick’s side, frowning at the baby with clear jealousy. Erin hung back, unsure of what to do and rather confused by how the day was going so far.   “Baby bad…!” Mallek grumped.

“Her name is Lilly, my Prince… she is much younger and smaller than you…” Alerick tried to show his Prince the baby, but Mallek did not look impressed, jealousy clear.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Severus Snape stepped out of the fireplace, dusting his robes off. He had managed to have a fairly decent night’s sleep, despite all the problems he had to focus on.

He had sent word to Lucius by owl this morning to give Erik a potion in his breakfast to make the boy sleep. He wanted to finally get started on the complicated yet delicate operation of isolating and sealing away some of the dangerous knowledge that was inside that boy’s mind.

Merlin’s beard; it boggled his mind to think of the knowledge that lurked within such a tiny child’s mind. Just past three years old and he had known not only the verbal component of Sectumsempra he had known the wand movement and gestures as well. How had they taught him that spell? It had been one that Severus himself had created; how many more unsavory spells lurked within that mind?

If only he could get his hands on the man who had been teaching this boy daily… but that wasn’t possible. He understood from Lucius that the man had been… disposed of.

He brushed away such thoughts; wishing to speak with the man who was dead was counterproductive and he simply had too much work to do. He strode through the house toward the playroom with his cloak billowing out behind him sweeping the floor as he walked. He was certain he would find the child there sleeping, succumbed to the potion that Lucius undoubtedly had ensured he had taken. He slowed, rather surprised to see Harry coming down the stairs with the sleeping boy on his shoulder.

“Severus? Good morning…” Harry greeted.

“Ah, I see the potion has functioned as planned. If you will just pass the boy to me I can get directly to work…” he said, moving to meet Harry.

“Working on the memories?” he asked.

“What else, Potter?” Severus asked, rolling his eyes as he took custody of the boy.

Harry paused. “I could call in to work and do my work on his Dark Mark while you work on his memories…”

“A good plan; you go take care of that while I get this boy settled and prepare for what I need to do.” Severus said, moving down the hall and going into the same room he had used before; the pentagram remained upon the floor.

Severus gestured with his wand and transfigured the chair in the center of the diagram into a soft child’s bed, then summoned two chairs for either side of the bed. He laid young Erik down on the bed and removed his shirt, then turned the child onto his stomach, arranging his limbs so that he would be sleeping comfortably.

He then took one of the chairs, gesturing and a small table slid to his side. He set two phials of potion on the table and a small bag then turned toward the boy.

When Harry came into the room Severus was already beginning his work; the boy lay peacefully sleeping with the retired potions master at the head of the bed in his chair, eyes closed and fingertips in contact with the boy’s scalp.

Harry said nothing, moving quietly to his place, drawing his wand as he took his seat. He simply began to work on the mark as well.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

“Draco? Love, I’m glad I caught you.” Narcissa smiled, moving into the room. Draco had just scooped Mallek back up and was preparing to return him and Erin to the playroom for the nannies to prepare them for lunch. “I would like to take Angel out to do a bit of shopping for her newest brother.” She told him. “And I think Angel wants to purchase something for Harry’s birthday as well.” He confided.

“I’ll just fetch her for you, then, shall I?” Draco offered.

"Thank you, love." she smiled at him sweetly as she turned back to the door. “And do have her bring a light jacket; we’ve been having a bit of humidity lately.”

“Of course, mother.” Draco smiled back at her and turned, making his way down first to the playroom to put a very grumpy Mallek and a confused Erin in the hands of the nannies. He then returned to Angel's room and halted in the doorway. He couldn't help but smirk at the scene that lay before him.

In the middle of the floor, seated cross-legged on the floor, was Jerrod Warrington. Although he was dressed in his usual dark blue robes, Draco would never have expected the man to look as he did at this moment.

He was shrouded in a huge pink fluffy towel that draped over his back and around his shoulders. Draco was given the impression that the man’s head was poking out of the top of a pink teepee. His hair… no one word described the man’s hair. It wasn’t even all one color; it was blue in places and pink in others, and a stripe that hung between his eyes had somehow been turned green.

Huge pink rollers were wound up and clipped in other parts of his hair, and he had two ponytails with big red bows, and one was in loopy curls. Behind him stood both Angel and Alyssa, giggling as they played “hair stylist”.

This was the first independent play that Draco had seen any of the children of the Dark Circle partake in since the circle had been brought together. Alerick had played with Angel before Mallek had come, but had been inseparable from him since then. Alyssa seemed to be quite content making her birth father resemble some fantastic alien creature and Angel was doing her share of damage to the man’s hair.

He looked far from happy but did not even attempt to move away from the girls. Jerrod looked over, and then sighed, closing his eyes as his shoulders slumped.

"Angel? Nona sent me to fetch you; she wishes to take you shopping." Draco announced, preferring to allow his fellow Slytherin a moment of silence for the sake of his dignity.

"Can I go too?" Alyssa asked timidly, looking hopeful and excited.

"I'm sorry, Alyssa, but you can't. Not just yet." Draco said, and Angel looked crestfallen.

Alyssa looked positively heartbroken. “But why…?”

“You can’t leave the grounds for a while yet, little dove…” Draco began.

She turned away and moved around to sit in Jerrod's lap, burying her face in his chest. "Can't you take me daddy...?"

"No, I’m not allowed to leave the grounds either." he said, his arms slipping about the girl to comfort her. "It looks like we're stuck here together."

"It’s okay... if we're together." she said, voice muffled but definitely on the verge of tears.

"I'm sorry Alyssa... I'll bring you back something if I can..." Angel said, looking a bit sad at leaving her playmate behind as she moved to Draco, taking his hand.

“It’s okay Angel…” she murmured, not looking over at them, clearly upset but taking comfort in settling into the arms of her father. Jerrod looked a bit uncomfortable, but did not push the girl off his lap, simply sitting with his arms resting about her.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

“Master Warrington is in Missy Angel’s room…” the house elf said, looking very nervous as it gazed up at George.

“Hm. Well, I suppose I’ll just have to find him then.” He said, turning and starting off.

“But Master Warrington asked not to be disturbed, sir… he is with little Missy Alyssa…” the elf began timidly.

“My daughter.” George nodded, moving on unperturbed. “Don’t worry, I’m family to them. It’s all right.” He assured.

The house elf, having no specific instructions on what to do if anyone did care to disturb them, simply vanished to return to the kitchens.

George made his way through the house to the area he knew the kids were roomed, glancing in each of the open doors to see if he saw anyone. Finally he did spot who he was looking for. If Jerrod had not been holding Alyssa he might have burst out laughing at how the man looked; it was clear he had allowed the girls to do things to his hair that no sane man would permit. She must have ‘persuaded’ him to play with them. At least they hadn’t covered him in makeup.

He stepped into the room and cleared his throat. Both Jerrod and Alyssa looked over; the young girl brightened somewhat. “Look daddy; its Lord Father Weasley…”

“Please, just call me Papa George, all right?” he suggested, going down to one knee. The girl was really upset about something to judge by the tears in her eyes and the hangdog expression on her face.

“Yes, Papa George…” she pushed to her feet and hurried to him, hugging him.

He scooped her into his arms and held her closely, hugging her as his own parents had hugged him when something had upset or hurt him. “Easy, little Lissa…” he soothed. “Easy now. Tell me what’s wrong; I’ll see what I can do about it…”

Jerrod only scowled, clearly irritated that he had come back again. “I really should go back to my lab now… You’ll be fine with him Alyssa…”

“No, wait. I have something for the both of you.” George started.

“I’m not in the mood, Weasley.” Jerrod shot back, rising to his feet, looking comical with his wild hair of multiple colors and fat hair rollers.

“Please, daddy…?” Alyssa looked over at him, clearly about to cry again. “I don’t want you to go…”

Jerrod’s anger faded as he gazed back at the girl; he wasn’t sure if he calmed on his own or if she had made him calm down. “Fine… but I do have work to do and I’ve spent half the morning in here with you two girls…”

“Two? There’s only one…”

“Well spotted, Weasley; nice to see you can still count.” Jerrod said sourly. “This is Angel’s room; she left with Narcissa a while ago. That’s why Alyssa is upset; she wanted to go too.”

“Well the answer to that one is easy. We just take our little Alyssa out for a day on the town.” George grinned.

“Really…?” She asked, getting hopeful again. “Could we daddy?”

“Absolutely not!” Warrington responded with an angry scowl. “I swear, Weasley, you take her a step off these grounds and I’ll hex you myself! Parkinson is still out there and I won’t have the old bastard hurting her by activating her mark. Alyssa is worth a lot more to him and his cause than I am; he won’t hesitate to snatch her if he finds her out and about!”

Alyssa sighed sadly. “So I can’t go nowhere Papa George, because the bad man is still out there…”

“Maybe we can’t leave here, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have a jolly time here. Come, I’m sure we could find a fantastic game to play right here in the Manor.” George suggested.

“Could we?”

“Of course we can, no one is going to have anything to say about that. Now I want you to go find the washroom and clean up; I have a surprise for you and I won’t give it to a teary-faced little waif…”

She squirmed immediately to get down and he set her on her feet, chuckling softly as he watched her hurry off to clean up.

“I don’t have time to play anymore, Weasley.”

“You’re always so damned busy being angry you slap away every attempt at friendship… ever wonder if maybe that’s why you never got into any long-lasting relationships, Jerrod?” George asked, turning to face him.

“Maybe I wasn’t ready for anything serious.” He scowled, folding his arms. He wasn’t giving an inch to this tall redheaded man; he was tired of being pushed around.

He couldn’t help but smirk at the state of his hair. “Look, I can get that mess out of your hair and help you look more like yourself… and I have something for you as well.”

“I don’t want gifts from you.” He grumbled.

“I didn’t ask you. I got it anyway.” George shrugged, gesturing to a chair. Jerrod glared at him, but moved and sat in the chair with clear mistrust. George examined the mess from the back. “You know, Jerrod, you look like you’ve been attacked by an enchanted beauty shop…”

“Did you really have to tell me that? I’m sure I look ridiculous.”   Warrington grumped.

George chuckled good-naturedly and started removing the curlers and pins and hair bows. “Well, there’s one consolation at least… they didn’t cut any of it.”

“I told them there wouldn’t be any cutting or I wouldn’t do it. It was more fun for them to play together and…”

“And Alyssa was actually playing with someone outside her little circle. It was very generous and actually rather sweet of you, Jerrod… I’d never have believed you capable of that from the guy that I knew back in school.”

That comment made his scowl return. “Why would you say that?”

“Huh…?”

“Why don’t you think I’d play with the kids?”

George shrugged, looking rather thoughtful. “Well, the only place I really knew you from was the Inquisitorial Squad…”

“Draco was on it too.” He answered. “Would you make that same statement about him?”

“Well, no…”

“All right then; you’ve learned a lesson. Don’t judge a book by its cover. You never know what’s inside.” He said softly, his tone revealing some past hurt for only a moment. “Besides, when you were at school all I knew about you was that you were an absolute prat and played pranks on everyone you ran into…”

“Not everyone… we didn’t prank Harry.” George chuckled.

“But you did everyone else, even the ghosts and that irritating poltergeist Peeves…” he reminded, feeling rather uncomfortable with the other man’s fingers running through his hair, loosening the braids and removing the many hairdressing items still tangled up in it.

“Yeah… we had a hell of a time in school.” George grinned.

“I’m back Papa George… Oh, can I help, daddy…?” Alyssa offered, hurrying over to help eagerly.

Jerrod sat quietly, grimacing in pain quite often as his hair was extricated from the clips and bows and rubber bands. Finally he took a brush and began to brush it out. He’d get the colors out as soon as he could, right now he just wanted to be done with this mess. “Go on, give the girl her surprise; you’ve promised it to her already…” He told George grumpily.

“But I wanna see what he got for you first, daddy. Can I? Please?” Alyssa asked, touching his hand.

“I don’t want what he got for me, Alyssa. He’s going to take it back.” Jerrod answered calmly.

“Aw… Did you see it already? Can I please see before he takes it away?”

“He hasn’t seen it at all, little Lissa. Your daddy needs help learning how to be gracious when people offer him a gift. I’m sure you know how to be gracious… shall we teach your daddy?” George shot a smirk Jerrod’s way.

“I’d love to Papa… daddy’s taught me so much…”

“Then you get your gift first.” He said, going down on his knees and pulling a box from his pocket. “This is for you.”

She took the box, eyes sparkling with excitement but she did not forget that she was ‘teaching’ her daddy how to be polite and use his manners. “Really…? Oh thank you Papa, thank you very much.” She said with very precise and proper manners and then opened the little blue box. Inside laid a small teardrop pendant of Bavarian crystal, sparkling in the late morning light. “Oh… oh Papa it’s beautiful, thank you!” She threw her arms about his neck and hugged him tight, kissing him on the cheek.

“It’s a special pendant, love, and I made it just for you. Here, let me show you.” George picked the box out of her hand and opened it up, taking the necklace out and putting the delicate chain about the girl’s neck. “There… now pick up the crystal and gaze into it.” He instructed.

She looked at him curiously, and then did as he asked. She gazed over at him questioningly. “It’s all white inside. Shouldn’t I be able to see through it?”

“You would, if it were a simple crystal. But your Papa is cleverer than that. You are seeing what can be seen through my ring.” He moved his hand so the crystal on it was turned toward Jerrod.

She giggled. “Daddy, I can see you in my necklace!” She said, looking over at him with wide eyes.

Jerrod was forced to admit that the gift was a very smart one for this girl who seemed to crave to have a family about her at all times. “Clever gift.” Jerrod said reluctantly.

George didn’t allow his negativity to affect him at all, focusing on the girl instead. “This way if you ever get lonesome you can look into your pendant and see where I am. And I can look into my ring to see where you are. We’ll never be out of touch.”

Warrington couldn’t help but get in a snide comment at this point. “And here I was thinking your choice in rings was simply garish.” He smirked. George just gave him a smirk in response.

“Oh papa it’s the best gift I ever got…!” she hugged him tightly once more.

George chuckled, returning the embrace. “My pleasure, little one. My pleasure…”

“I must admit, that suits her much better than that doll you bought her the second day.” Warrington agreed.

“You have an advantage over me, Jerrod. You’ve known about her since her birth; I’m just starting to learn about her.” George grinned at him. “Now, can you be gracious and accept the gift I have for you?”

Warrington sighed, it seemed as if there was no way out of it for him, he would have to at least look at what George had brought him. “Just don’t expect me to go all bubbly and jump on you and hug you like Alyssa did.” Jerrod returned sourly.

Alyssa giggled. “You’re silly Papa…”

“Yes, that he is love.” George agreed, pulling out a larger box that was clearly a jewelry box.

“Don’t even think I’m going to accept any kind of a ring from you, George Weasley.” He said, immediately defensive, giving the box a suspicious look.

“Don’t be daft; I wouldn’t buy a ring for you. You work with potions and it would just be in the way. Besides, I know better than to move that quickly.” George smirked. “Just open the box.”

Hesitantly Warrington took the box from him and opened it. Inside laid a classic-looking silver man’s pocket watch. Engraved upon the cover to the watch portion was a Japanese symbol, and Warrington had no clue whatsoever what the damned thing stood for. He looked at George questioningly. “A muggle watch…?”

“Not quite.” George reached over and hit the release for the clasp and the watch popped open. Inside was a watch on the right side, but the left side had a little mirror. From that mirror he could see an image of what was in the room; he was actually seeing himself from a different angle in the mirror. It didn’t look like any mirror he’d ever seen before. “It’s linked to Alyssa’s pendant as well; you can check on her anytime and not disturb her playtime or her nap.” George explained.

“Is it now? Humph.” He grunted, studying it. Silver was an excellent choice of metal because it would not react to many of the substances that he worked with in his potions making every day. And a watch of his own could help him to keep track of brewing times and ensure that nothing brewed overlong. This was actually quite a clever gift, and one that he could use.

“You’re supposed to say thank you daddy.” Alyssa whispered urgently in his ear as if reminding him of something quite important. “And tell him you like it.”

“Thank you, Weasley. It is… a very thoughtful gift.” He said quietly.

“You’re welcome.” George answered, smiling. “Now come on, Alyssa. Let’s let your daddy get back to work, while you and I find something to do. Maybe I’ll take you for a broom ride around the grounds, how does that sound?”

“That sounds great, Papa George.” She said, finally looking happy as she took his hand.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

“Ooooh, it’s so pretty, Nona!” Angel beamed up at her grandmother, carefully holding the little cherub angel rattle she had found in the store. “Can we buy it for the baby…?”

“Of course, my dear. The baby will need plenty of toys to play with once he is a bit older. Right now we need to focus on clothing for him as well as nappies…”

“And warm blankets, and a good bed, and a table to change on too…” Angel said, proud that she knew what was needed.

“Yes, my little Angel, they certainly do.” Narcissa smiled indulgently down at the girl.

Angel carefully put the rattle into the basket, then looked up at her grandmother. “Nona..? May I please buy something special for Alyssa? She wanted to come, but Papa said that she couldn’t come with us. She was very sad…”

“Of course we can. We’ll head over to find something suitable once we’ve finished here.” She reassured, leaning over to kiss the girl on the forehead.

“Thank you Nona!” She beamed at her happily, taking her hand.

The two spent over an hour in the infant section of the store, finding this item and that for the baby that was due to be born soon. Narcissa took care of paying the bill, then led her little granddaughter onward to the next store to find a suitable gift for little Alyssa.

“Can I go look over here Nona?” Angel asked, gazing down the aisle of books and stuffed animals.

“All right, dear, but stay inside the store.” Narcissa advised, seeing a display of toy brooms and children’s cauldrons. She had discussed several times over the past few days with all three of the men in her life, Lucius, Harry and Draco, the fact that the older children could indeed do with a tutor to work on things that they SHOULD be learning… “I’ll be just over here for a moment…”

“Yes, Nona.” She smiled at her, moving off down the aisle, her eyes bright as she looked at all the toys and things, trying to figure out what would be good for her new friend, her cousin Alyssa.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Malcolm Parkinson moved into a potions store, glancing about, well disguised with his own spells and confident that he would not be recognized. He walked to the register and eyed the clerk for a moment. “You had some news for the Park…?” He asked quietly.

The clerk, a young man of maybe eighteen, clean-cut and wearing a store uniform, looked at him oddly. “Yeah, I do, but who the bloody hell are you?”

“None of your business.” He snapped, then caught hold of his temper. It would not do to give himself away even to this useless peon. “What news?”

“I seen Miz Malfoy, she’s here in Diagon Alley.”

“We don’t care about her, that’s not…”

“And she has a little girl with her.” He interrupted.

“A girl…? Where are they?”

“Pay up first.” He held out his hand and Malcolm placed a small bag of galleons into it.

The young man opened the bag and carefully counted all the coins, then smiled as he pocketed it. “She’s gone into the variety shop three doors down, just left the store there across the way and went down there about ten minutes or so ago…”

“Excellent.” He said, turning and walking out swiftly. His features had been changed by the potions he was taking but he was running out of his supplies… his gold was running out and he was unsure of exactly what Pansy had done with the hundreds of thousands of Galleons she had squirreled away… he would have to find it, and soon. He ignored everything else the shopkeeper had to say as he hurried out of the building and across the street.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~.

Angel bit her lip as she tried to make up her mind on a gift for Alyssa. She knew the girl didn’t like baby dolls but she did like to do things for her daddy, and since she couldn’t leave the mansion she couldn’t get anything for him. She didn’t notice the man moving up the aisle at a slow pace, because he was picking up and setting things down.

Malcolm glanced at the girl, unable to keep his face from creasing into a confused frown. This was not Erin, nor any of the circle children. Who was this waif, clearly dressed in expensive clothing such as a Malfoy would be entitled to? He could easily see that she was Potter’s offspring; same green eyes, same nose, same tone of hair. He’d seen Narcissa a moment ago down the next aisle, she’d come around twice already to check on this little girl. Well, if she meant that much to her, she must mean something to the Malfoy line. And that was enough for him.

He moved a bit closer, seeing that the girl was examining several types of cologne. Strange choice, since there were so many different toys and dolls and things that would have attraction for any little girl. He wasn’t going to wait a moment longer; if she was worth enough to Malfoy he might have a chance of getting his precious Dark Prince back.

Narcissa rounded the end of the aisle to see this odd little man standing beside Angel suddenly turn to her and seize the girl, who let out a little scream. The man drew a wand and Narcissa realized he was about to apparate away with the girl.

“No!” she cried out, lunging forward and to seize hold of the edge of his robes.

The clerk, running over to response of the scream of the girl, saw the three spin away out of sight as Malcolm Parkinson apparated away from the store with little Angel in his grip and Narcissa clinging desperately to his robe.
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Pilfered Progeny - Stolen Dreams