Chapter Twenty
James was eating breakfast when Frankie came down looking more refreshed than James thought he had any right to be. All he had to show for his drunk night was the dark bags under his eyes.
“Do I have you to thank for putting me in bed with that thing that passes as a human?” Frankie asked
“Oh no that was all you. You practically insisted on it.”
“He snores when he’s drunk. I don’t mean like a soft snore, I mean like a monster snore. I think he learned it from all those creatures he studies.”
“If I ever have to share his bed I will make sure to hide the liquor.” James said, “So Harry talks about you a lot.”
“I’d hope so I am his fun uncle.” Frankie said with a grin, “We used to hold sleepovers at least once a month, sometimes more especially after he was attacked.”
“He spends Full Moons with you doesn’t he?”
“When he shifts, yes. He spends his free time with the pack too especially when Henry is out of the country, Harry doesn’t like to be alone. Well he likes to be alone, just not alone.”
“What was he like? I mean Henry told me a few things of course, but he’s a bit biased.”
“What? You don’t think I am?” Frankie asked smirking
“Yeah but you have the uncle's perspective he has the parent one. They are very different.”
“That’s true.” Frankie poured his tea and took a small tentative sip before answering, “He was spoiled and loved and happy and believe it or not he didn’t care to learn a single thing that was on anything except the moon or space or creatures. Those were his favorite subjects. He was smart but he didn’t use it that much as a kid.”
“It’s always the moon with that one. Even as a baby.” James said looking down at his mug, “He was obsessed with the thing, I never understood it.”
“I remember Harry was jealous of us because the moon changed us, but didn’t change him. He threw the biggest tantrum when he was three when he realized, in his words, the moon liked us more than it liked him.”
“He did not.”
“Oh he did. He threatened to run away and be raised by real wolves if we didn’t help make the moon like him. Thus we began to camp outside every night except the night before, during, and after the Full Moon. Harry eventually realized those three nights were important so we let him camp out the night before sometimes or the night after other times. Then he realized the full moon was the important one. That’s when he started in on us about camping out on a Full Moon night.”
“And you caved.” James said
“Eventually. Unfortunately. He agreed for it to be only the one night and if he didn’t shift, which he wouldn’t of course, then he’d drop it. One night was all it took.”
“We don’t fault you guys at all you know. Charlie got out on the Full Moon three times before he fully understood how dangerous it was and after that another two times because he wanted to help too. Ariel did it I want to say three times in total. Remus never got dangerously close to them and even if he had we’d have been able to stop anything from happening, but the fact they were outside at all paranoid us all. We’d lock everything five times, double check every passageway, but they still found a way.”
“That’s different. You tried to protect them, we let him outside. We allowed it.”
“You also killed someone that night. Don’t get me wrong I would kill for my kids too, but you actually did it. When it mattered you protected him to the best of your ability and you all acted as fast as you could. From what I’ve been told Henry almost drained him of his entire blood supply to try and get all of the venom out.”
“That he did. I still remember the smell of it the next morning. I came into the house and…werewolf venom has this death scent to it. Normally you can’t smell it because it’s inside the body, but this was in jars, on the table, on the floor, everywhere. Harry was lying in his bed, his entire leg and his torso was bandaged, Henry was sitting in the chair beside him still covered in blood.”
“Where was Matteo?” James asked
“He left. I’m not sure when, but he wasn’t in the house, his scent was too weak to be there. I didn’t ask and he didn’t tell me. I do know he didn’t come back for a few hours and when he did he and Henry didn’t speak much, they clearly fought about something.”
“Harry?”
“Most likely.”
Frankie followed James outside to the balcony overlooking the large land expanding to the line of trees that made up a forest probably full of the creatures James swore he heard some of last night.
“So James?” Frankie said, a small smirk pulling at his lips as he turned to look at him, “What’s going on between you and Henry?”
*****
-Sirius, Remus, and Harry-
“Harry?” Sirius asked entering their room, noon had come and went with no sign of the teen. Harry was in the middle of the bed curled up with the blanket pulled to his chin and the pillows pulled to his nose. He grunted, but otherwise didn’t move or say anything to acknowledge them.
“Hey you okay?” Remus asked, stepping into the room. Another grunt came from him as Remus rounded the bed.
“Hey, is it your leg again?” Sirius asked worried as he came to the bed and sat on the edge of the mattress. Harry grunted again, “That’s not an answer.”
“Not like that..it’s just throbbing. Honestly nine times out of ten I wake up in some sort of leg pain and I haven’t been doing my stretches since my NEWTs really picked up. I’ll be fine, I just need to lay down. It happens.”
“Well why don’t we lay with you then?” Remus asked, already moving to lift the covers and slide his way under them, Harry immediately curled into him, his nose finding it’s designated spot by his neck. Sirius slid in behind Harry, his arms wrapping around his waist and pulling him closer.
“See? Feeling better already.” Harry said
“We do have to leave later though. Promised to have dinner with James and the family at Henry's.”
“We’re going home?” Harry asked, perking up a little, “Wait, we're going to the house I grew up in.…to have dinner with James, Charlie, and Ariel? Why?”
“Henry wanted us to eat there.”
“....this is a trap. I don’t know if it’s for you two or for me… but this is definitely a trap.”
“Why do you say that?”
“Because I know my Papa.”
Sirius and Remus shared a look over Harry’s head, but otherwise didn’t say anything and instead spent the next few hours curled up in bed with Harry between them as they all took a nap.
“Are you sure you’ll be okay?” Remus asked a few hours later as he watched Harry favor his unscarred leg heavily and visibly winced twice in the short hour they've been getting ready to leave.
“If you ask me that again I will castrate you with my teeth.” Harry said as he grabbed his last bag from the couch, having slapped Sirius’ hand away when he tried to reach for it.
Remus looked to Sirius who was silently suffering from his own threat of castration by nails in the corner. He walked over to his husband and sighed.
“On the bright side this is our last day with him.” Sirius said quietly as he pushed himself off of the wall.
“I’ll remind you of your words in a few hours when you’re tossing and turning in your sleep because your own personal growling noise machine is not in bed with us.” Sirius at least had the decency to blush at the reminder he couldn’t sleep very well without Harry in their bed.
“Here make yourselves useful.” Harry said, suddenly thrusting the very bag he had smacked Sirius’ hand over into his chest and another bag into Remus’ before he made his way to the fireplace. Sirius shared a look with Remus.
“What was the bright side again?” Remus asked, making Sirius chuckle.
“Come on. The sooner we get him over there the sooner we’re not his only target. We both know James is his favorite to fight with.”
*****
It took less than five minutes for Frankie and Henry to realize Harry was in pain despite his best attempts to pretend otherwise. They didn’t draw attention to it, but it was clear they were watching Harry from that moment on, making sure to not let him get off the couch or chair too many times.
Harry was not sulking.
In fact he doesn’t sulk.
Sulking is not something he knew how to do or did ever.
Well except that one time when he was six, but that was justified no matter what his Papa says.
The point is Harry doesn’t sulk or pout or brood or mope.
He doesn’t.
That’s not what he is doing as he watches his Papa show Charlie and Ariel the stables where Harry’s Hippogriff resides most of the time and where some of their wild Hippogriffs come to steal food they leave out for them or the two Abraxans his Papa nursed from foal to adult.
That’s not what he was doing when he watched his Papa play a friendly round of Quidditch with Charlie or watched his Papa show Ariel how to approach Gryffinclaw and pet him the way he likes.
That wasn’t what he was doing, because he doesn’t mope or brood or pout or sulk or- you get the idea. He doesn’t do it. He is a mature adult who is very secure in his Papa’s life.
He was just…moody because of the pain is all.
“Harry, your Papa is like…wicked. He said he’d show us how to mount and ride Gryffinclaw if you’re okay with it? Said he hasn’t flown in awhile so it’d be good for him too.”
“Yeah sure. I can come with-” Harry was pushing himself to stand when Charlie interrupted him and made him sit back down.
“No. Don’t forget I can feel your pain, well not all of it, but my leg is sort of..throbby? But I can ignore it, you can’t. You sit and relax, Henry can show us.” Charlie was standing and running to his Papa and Ariel before he had finished talking, leaving Harry on the lounge chair alone while Charlie walked ahead of his Papa and Ariel walked beside him, seeming to be talking his ear off. James was walking on Ariel’s other side shouting after Charlie.
Harry wasn’t pouting or sulking or brooding or moping.
He wasn’t.
Standing up Harry heading inside where Frankie, Remus, and SIrius were. Remus and Frankie still had a fair bit of distance between them, but they seemed to be talking without an problems.
“Hey where are the others?” SIrius asked when Harry came and sat beside Remus on the new velvet couch Harry had an opinion on that he would be sure to tell his Papa about…later…when it was just them two…not that he wanted his brother and sister to leave and never come back as soon as possible or anything because that would suggest he was pouting which he isn't.
“Went to the stables.” Harry said
“What’s with the face?” Frankie asked
“What face? I don’t have a face.”
“That face.”
“I don’t have a face.” Harry said, looking away from his Uncle to instead look at the wall as he adjusted to get comfortable on the sofa.
“How’s your leg?”
“Fine.”
“Ooh, someone is moody. What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.” Frankie stared at him for a moment before a small smile spread across his lips until it slowly turned into a knowing grin.
“Harry-” Harry stood up quickly, shooting a sharp glare at his amused Uncle before heading upstairs. At first he went to his Papa’s room to lay down in his bed, but that eventually turned into him taking his pillow and blankets to his nest.
When Henry and the Potters came into the house an hour later Henry immediately noticed Harry wasn’t in the room.
“Where’s Harry?” Henry asked, looking around for any sign of him.
“Probably pouting still.” Frankie said looking amused
“Pouting? Over what?”
“I’ll tell you later.” Or code word for I’ll tell you when everyone else is gone so Harry. Henry nodded slowly but was still frowning.
“I’m going to go talk to him.”
“I’d look in your room first.” Henry looked at Frankie confused, but didn’t comment as he headed up the stairs towards his room. Finding his bed stripped of everything except the sheet and one pillow which Frankie used last night set alarms off. He headed to the guest room Harry had claimed as his nesting area and found him curled up in a ball hugging the pillow and blanket close.
“Hey what’s wrong?” Henry asked gently as he crawled onto the two mattresses pushed together on the floor.
“I’m fine.”
“You are not fine. You’re laying in your nest crying. Why?”
“It’s stupid.” Harry said, tears building in his eyes all over again.
“If it makes you feel something then it’s never stupid.”
“Yes it is. It’s so stupid.”
“Agree to disagree then. Now talk to me.”
“You’ll laugh.”
“When have I ever laughed at a problem you have?”
“When I rubbed myself raw after my first sexual heat.” Henry snorted as he remembered that, “See?”
“You’re right I’m sorry. I promise I will try my best not to laugh this time. Now please tell me?”
“I know you love me…I know that. I know Charlie and Ariel aren’t plotting against me to keep you all to themselves like that one boy at the park when I was six. I know them coming into our lives, our home isn’t like….replacing me…but…I just…. I never had to share you before.” Harry looked at Henry with tearfilled eyes, “I never had to sit on the sidelines and watch you do the things you did with me with some other kid, one of them looking almost exactly like me that it almost felt like I was being replaced even though I know that’s not what was happening and it’s just so stupid.”
“It is not stupid Harry.” Henry said cupping his son’s cheek and making him look at him, “It’s not. Harry, I love you. I. Love. You. You are my son, the little boy I raised from age 2 to now. I’ve known you for fifteen years, I’ve known them for what? Three hours? No one is replacing you, not even your twin brother. We’ll talk more once everyone is gone, okay?”
“I'm not really in the mood for company, can I just stay up here?”
“Sure. I’ll bring you a plate when we start eating.”
“Thanks Papa.” Henry pressed a kiss to Harry’s forehead.
“I love you. Rest a bit, once everyone is gone I’ll come back and we’ll talk.” Harry nodded then watched Henry until he was closing the door behind him.
“Is Harry okay?” James asked when Henry came back down.
“He’s fine. His leg is just bothering him and when that happens sometimes his emotions can be easily affected too. Harry liked to keep his emotions private most of the time, especially when those emotions don’t completely make sense to himself. So he’s laying down in his nest. He’ll be fine though he just wants to be alone for now. I’m sure he’ll come down or at least move to his room before anyone leaves so you all can say your farewells.” James nodded though it didn’t stop him from looking worried the entire time they hung around the kitchen while Henry started on dinner.
Dinner was filled with conversation from Henry asking Remus and Sirius most about themselves to Frankie giving not so subtle hints about Henry and James to James prying for as much information about Harry as a child from Frankie and Henry as possible. Charlie and Ariel were involved as well of course, they asked them about school and quidditch. Ariel seemed interested in Henry’s career.
James teased her about following her big brother’s first career choice. Henry just teased James that he was jealous his daughter was getting all of his attention which resulted in a red face spluttering James which was quickly becoming Henry’s favorite.
After dinner Harry came down long enough to steal a slice of chocolate cake, hug everyone, and steal two bites of Sirius’ slice of cake before he was retreating back upstairs limping a little worse than he had been earlier that day.
When everyone was gone except Henry headed upstairs to Harry’s nest to cuddle his son. He knew deep down Harry wasn’t really worried, Harry knew deep down he wasn’t really worried, but Henry took every chance he could to cuddle his growing boy and Harry’s small bout of insecurity seemed like a perfect excuse to smother him in love.
Even the small laughing protest of “Papa I’m too old for the kissing monster” didn’t deter him. He was one of the lucky ones after all, most teenagers wouldn’t be caught dead hugging their parents, especially teenage boys.