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A Prince in Lion's Clothing	By : Sablesilverrain Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Tom Views: 36570 -:- Recommendations : 7 -:- Currently Reading : 9
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.

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Severus walked into Barty Crouch's office and offered him the vial of blood. “Here.”

Barty took it. “Forcibly taken?” He asked.

Severus shook his head. “Blood of an ally, freely given. Harry knows what it is for, and consents to its use. He also wants to support us.”

Barty’s eyes met Severus' in shock. “How did you manage that?” He asked.

Severus smiled. “I answered his questions and told him the truth. Plus, he already doesn’t trust Dumbledore. The boy is smarter than he lets on.” He revealed.

Barty nodded slowly. “The ritual will require some reworking.” He murmured.

Severus held out a scroll. “This one will work. It will require two things of his imbued with his magical signature be placed in the cauldron with him. I would not suggest his wand, as the items will be consumed.” He warned.

Barty frowned. “I’m sure he knows of something we can use.” He said.

“You will have it done by Christmas?” Severus checked.

Barty shrugged. “Maybe.” He said. “By New Years, at least. Thanks to your help.”

“I look forward to it.” Severus told him, then left.

*****

Barty knelt in front of his Lord and showed him the vial. “Severus was able to procure you Potter's blood, My Lord, but there is an alteration. He supplied us with a different ritual, because this is actually ‘blood of an ally, freely given.’ We will need two items with your magical signature on them. They will be consumed.”

Voldemort nodded slowly. “I will send Wormtail to retrieve one tomorrow. I have another right here.” He said softly, glancing over at the cup he'd been siphoning magic out of slowly. He'd have to stop that and the ritual would need to be moved up a bit, but he was ready now. He didn’t want to stay in this wretched body any longer. “We will do this thing next week. And then I will be ready to begin our work again.” He said. “Talking to Potter will be a first move. The boy is continuing to surprise me. I must find out how Severus changed his mind about us.” He said, pleased as well as confused.

*****

Dumbledore frowned, watching the Gryffindor table.

Something had happened.

Harry was sitting with Neville and Hermione, which was fine, he supposed, but Ronald Weasley was sitting at the end of the table with the first years, not talking to anyone.

What had happened between the two boys to make Harry shun Ron so? He had never done this before.

And Ron looked furious.

Dumbledore decided it was high time he have another chat with Harry. If that didn’t work out, he would have to try and get Ron’s side of things.

One way or another, he intended to make sure Harry stayed friends with the boy. He needed Harry to be under the influence of the Weasleys. They were some of his staunchest supporters, and would keep Harry firmly planted in the light. He didn’t need the boy straying, and he was so like the young Tom Riddle. He could easily slip if he wasn’t firmly led.

He finished his meal and went into his office, writing a quick note and sending it with Fawkes to Harry, waiting for the boy.

He smiled when Harry walked in and took his usual seat. “Harry, my boy! How are you?” He asked genially.

Harry smiled, though it looked somewhat forced. “I’m fine, Sir.”

“You seem to be having another row with Mr. Weasley. Would you like to tell me about it? I might be able to help out.” Dumbledore offered.

Harry shook his head. “I don’t think you can, Sir.” He said, meeting Dumbledore’s eyes for just long enough for Dumbledore to discover the boy knew some Occlumency. Enough to keep him out, at least.

Dumbledore’s teeth clenched. Damn Severus! “Are you sure, Harry? What happened? You were always the best of friends.”

Harry sighed, looking down at the hands folded in his lap. “Well, I told him a secret, Sir. And he took it badly. I don’t think there’s anything I can do to fix things, and I’m not so sure I want to. I’m better off without friends that are so willing to drop someone over something so stupid.” He said.

“I see.” Dumbledore murmured, thoughtfully. “Would you mind telling me what this secret was?”

Harry shook his head. “I can’t, Sir. It’s not only my secret to tell.” He explained.

Dumbledore nodded his acceptance, even though the boy shouldn’t have any secrets from him. He was only trying to help. “Very well. You may go. I will see you later, my boy.” He said kindly.

Harry gave him another small, not-quite-sincere smile. “See you, Sir.”

Dumbledore would have to get the rest of the story from Ronald Weasley, it seemed.

*****

Harry walked into ‘Moody's office and got the man's attention.

“Yes, boy? What do you want?” He asked.

Harry sat in front of the desk. “I know a bit about you from Severus, but I'd like to know more. I have a free block right now that I know coincides with one of yours. We can talk, or I can tell Dumbledore you're not Moody, and you can go. Your choice.” He said lightly, with a courage he was not feeling. His bravado paid off, though, when the man sighed.

“What do you want to know, Potter?” He asked.

Harry tilted his head and considered the man, then shook his head. “Not who you really are, that's not important right now. How is… The Dark Lord doing?” He asked. “When will he be returning? Do I need to be involved in any other way?”

Barty stared at the boy, incredulous. Was he really worried about the Dark Lord? What had changed? “He is… Well. He will be doing the ritual to return on Saturday next. You have served your purpose. Unless… Do you want to attend his resurrection? You can do it under a disillusionment charm if you aren’t quite ready to talk with him yet, but it might be beneficial to see what your blood does for him.”

Harry fidgeted. “I will go, but I have something I trust more than your charm. I will need you to Apparate me there and back, though.” He said.

Barty smiled. “I can do that for you. He won't even know you're there. I won’t tell. You can just observe.” He promised.

Harry nodded. “I’m going to trust you this once. If you let me down or lie to me, you will have to deal with Severus as well as me. I may not be very scary, but if you're a smart man, you know to fear him.” He warned.

Barty paled. “Yes, I know Severus well enough to be wary of him. I'll make sure you get there and back safely.”

“Good. This will be our secret. Don’t tell Severus.” Harry said with a smile before leaving the room.

He knew this was risky, but he was prepared to deal with any situations that arose. Not involving Severus made it doubly dangerous, but he knew his father wouldn’t let him go. And Harry was nothing if not an irrepressible rule-breaker. If Severus wasn’t already expecting something like this, he would learn better soon enough.

Harry's situation may have changed, but his personality was still the same.

He headed back to the common room and took a seat next to Neville. “What are you working on?”

Neville hummed. “Charms. Did you finish yours?” He asked.

Harry pulled it out and handed it over. “Paraphrase anything you don’t already have. Got Herbology finished?”

Neville snorted, rummaging around in his bag and handing his over. “Same.” He told Harry.

Harry nodded and began looking for new information. He found several points he hadn’t added and both he and Neville were able to finish their essays.

“Where’s Ron?” Harry asked, noticing a certain lack of redhead anywhere in the tower.

“Meeting with Dumbledore.” Neville answered.

Harry cursed. “He knows Legilimency! Does Ron know Occlumency?”

Neville shook his head. “I don’t think so.”

Harry groaned. “Great. Dumbledore is going to find out Severus is my father. What’s he going to do about it?” He asked.

Neville shrugged. “Dunno, but is it really so bad? He trusts Snape, otherwise he wouldn’t have the man working here, right? He can’t honestly think he’s going to be a bad influence on you or anything.” He said pragmatically.

“I guess you're right.” Harry agreed, thought the tone was reluctant. “We'll just have to hope for the best, I suppose.”

*****

Dumbledore indicated for Ron to take the seat in front of him.

Ron sat, looking uneasy.

“How are you, Mr. Weasley?” Dumbledore asked.

“Er, I’m fine, Sir.” He answered.

“Good, good. I’ve noticed you seem to have had a falling-out with young Harry. I asked him about it, but he was most tight-lipped about the whole situation. Would you kind giving me your version of events? I admit that the animosity between you is rather startling when you two were as close as you were.” Dumbledore gazed at him expectantly.

“His Dad! It's—” Ron started babbling nonsense words, and Dumbledore frowned.

“A tongue-tying charm, of course.” Dumbledore sighed. “I can pluck the information from your mind if you concentrate on it. With your permission?” He asked, drawing his wand.

Ron nodded eagerly.

Dumbledore delved into his mind and immediately found the source of the contention. So Severus was the boy's true father. Interesting, Dumbledore thought as he pulled back out.

“I see.” He said mildly. “While you may dislike Professor Snape, surely you can put your personal feelings on the matter aside for the sake of your friendship? Harry needs friends like you, to keep him connected to the ideals that are right and just. Your family are the perfect people to do that, but you have to keep close to him to be able to help him. Could you try, for me?” Dumbledore asked. “I am not asking you to like or trust Professor Snape, just keep Harry close to you. He needs support, as Voldemort grows ever stronger.” He said, ignoring the boy's flinch at the name.

“I… I guess I can try. I don’t want Harry going Dark, or anything. I need to do what I can to prevent that, I guess.” Ron said mulishly.

Dumbledore smiled. “Thank you, Mr. Weasley. That means a lot to me. You may go now.”

Ron quickly left the room, heading back to Gryffindor Tower.
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A Prince in Lion's Clothing