Nearly

Three weeks into the school year, after a particularly fun and thrilling DADA lesson where they got to study Kappas — water-dwelling creatures that usually live in ponds and try to strangle anyone they come across with their scaly, webbed hands — Remus once again asks Harry to stay behind at the end of the lesson. They wait for the last students to file out of the classroom and then move into the adjoining office. Remus tells Harry to take a seat and then more or less collapses into his own chair. 

Harry gingerly perches on the edge of his seat and studies his daddy’s face with a frown… He hadn’t noticed it at all during the lesson, but the man looks ill… His complexion is pale, almost ashen and he’s clearly exhausted…

”Daddy, what’s wrong?”

”I’m fine, Harry”, Remus says with a tired smile. ”Or I will be, at any rate…”

”What do you mean?” Harry says in alarm.

”I have a condition… Now, I don’t want you to worry about me. I’ve had this since I was a little boy and it’s not… It’s nothing to worry about. It’s under control. However, occasionally I get very ill and need bedrest—”

”What do you mean you’ve had it since you were a boy? I’ve never even seen you ill once—!”

”Your dad and I decided not to tell you before, because we didn’t want you to worry. So instead we told you that I had to travel for work…”

Harry’s ears are pounding… All those mysterious trips… His daddy telling him he’d tell him all about them when he got older… This is it, he’s finally telling me… But Harry doesn’t want to know anymore. Not this. He doesn’t want to know this. His dads are never ill, they’re never weak, they always know what to do and Harry doesn’t. want. to. know. any. different —

”I will be fine, Harry. I just need to rest for a few days. Professor Snape will be filling in for me and I’ll be back before you know it, I promise —”

A sudden knock ont he door interrupts him and with a last worried look at Harry’s face he turns to face the door, calling out ”Come in!”

Harry hears the door slide open with a familiar creak and a couple of swift footsteps approach — also familiar — then stop again abruptly. 

”Ah, Severus”, Remus says softly. ”Speak of the trolls…” 

Harry turns his head and looks up at his Head of House, frowning in confusion at the smoking goblet in the man’s hand. 

”Thanks very much”, Remus adds quickly. ”Could you leave it here on the desk for me, please?”

Severus narrowed eyes flicker away from Harry and back to his daddy, narrowing even further as an unimpressed frown stretches his face. 

”You should drink it immediately”, he says shortly and strides forward, placing the goblet on the desk.

”Yes, yes, I will”, Remus says with a polite smile, his gaze flickering over to Harry nervously. 

”What is it?” Harry asks. 

”I made an entire cauldronful”, Severus says, ignoring him. ”If you need more.”

”More of what?” Harry insists. 

”It’s for my condition”, Remus says quickly and shoots him a warning look before turning back to smile at Severus. ”Thanks very much, Severus. I should probably take some again tomorrow.”

Severus gives him a curt nod and then proceeds to spin on his heal and sweep out of the office again without so much as a look in Harry’s direction. 

”It’s nothing to worry about, Harry”, Remus says. ”It’s really very fortunate that Severus is working here. This is a very complex potion and he’s one of very few who can brew it properly and it’s the only potion that helps my condition. If it weren’t for him, I probably wouldn’t be able to work at Hogwarts…”

”What is your condition, though?” Harry asks finally, silently wishing not to find out which is why, when Remus makes a vague excuse and changes the subject, Harry doesn’t press the matter. 

*

Harry had known he’d miss Quidditch, but never in a million years would he have guessed how almost painful his longing to fly would become. It’s like the absence of that adrenaline rush, that sense of complete freedom leaves a hole inside him, a gaping, throbbing wound… 

Of course, it can have something to do with aching for Draco as well, it’s difficult if not impossible to tell the difference. Most likely it’s a combination of both, though. But if only Harry could take his Nimbus out for a soar, then dealing with his heartache would be so much easier, he’s sure… 

On the upside, all his classes are going extremely well now that he has more time to focus on his homework. Even Divination is going all right; All he has to do is make up some predictions about his own death and Professor Trewlawny gives him an O. Of course, then he has to put up with her dramatically telling the rest of the class what a brave young man he is and how losing him too soon like this will be the tragedy of their generation, which is always a little awkward… 

But all things considered, Theodore had been right in thinking Divination is an easy O and with Potions and Transfiguration being as hard as they are, and History of Magic as dull… Harry figures he needs Divination and Care of Magical Creatures to balance things out. Although, ever since Draco’s injury, Care of Magical Creatures has gone from easy to dull as well, which kind of sucks but at least it’s another class in which he can be on auto-pilot now… 

Draco continues to make sure to keep as much distance between them as physically possible and although it still stings, it gets easier and easier for Harry to ignore the more used to it he becomes… The other Slytherins are slowly getting used to it as well, awkwardly adjusting around the sudden fissure in their previously solid group and making the best of an awkward situation, like the snakes they are… 

Harry is happy that most of his friends have stuck around and not decided to take sides or something… Although, admittedly, they kind of have — except his instead of Draco’s — and the blonde might feel less than happy about it… 

Harry glances over at the other side of the classroom where Draco and Pansy sit with their heads close together, whispering and snickering… Heart pounding and with a sour surge of jealousy at the back of his throat, Harry quickly looks away again… He looks happy enough, he thinks bitterly, and before he’s even aware of thinking it, he’s making plans to become happy too — That will show him! 

Harry spends the better part of an afternoon devising elaborate strategies for getting over Draco and then as a plan B, in case he can’t get over him, ways of making the other boy believe he has, even if he hasn’t… By the time the sun has set and the green water outside the windows has darkened to a murky black, he’s feeling positively hopeful about the whole plan and it’s with a spring in his step that he jogs to catch up with Blaise and Seamus heading up to the Great Hall for the Halloween Feast. 

The other boys give him weird looks, but instinctively return his grin with wry smiles of their own. 

”What’s got your wand shooting sparks?” Seamus asks drily. 

”Nothing special”, Harry says with a shrug. ”Just excited about the feast!”

Seamus makes a face that says Fair enough, but the eyebrow Blaise raises at him is less gullible. Harry pretends not to notice and looks away under the pretence of admiring the Halloween decorations as they file inside the Great Hall. 

Harry is feeling so good about himself that he barely notices anyone else at the table and just starts shovelling his favourite foods onto his plate. 

It’s not until Blaise says ”Pans, where’s Draco?” that he looks up from the spread for the first time and notices the blonde’s absence. The excitement of earlier deflates like a burst balloon and plummets to the pit of his stomach. 

”He’s not feeling well, the poor thing”, Pansy says airily and flutters her hand in one of her usual vague gestures.

”What”, Harry says before he can stop himself.

”Did I stutter?” the girl scoffs and shoots him an unimpressed look that makes him want to throttle her, but he takes a deep breath and counts backwards from ten like his dad has taught him. 

”What’s wrong with him?” he asks calmly as soon as he’s able. 

”What’s it to you”, she counters. ”It’s not like you’re friends anymore…”

She might as well has stabbed him in the chest with her fork, it probably would have felt much the same, Harry thinks as he stares down at his overflowing plate and counts mechanically from ten in his head for a second time. 

”Hey, that’s not necessary”, Seamus says, standing up for him, but Harry isn’t paying attention any more and doesn’t catch the girl’s reply. 

He pushes the untouched plate away from him again. 

”Harry —” Blaise begins, but Harry ignores him and stands up abruptly. 

”He doesn’t want to talk to you!” Pansy’s shrill voice echoes in the Hall behind him as he turns around and walks out.

Harry concentrates on putting one foot in front of the other until he finds himself in the middle of the Slytherin common room. Blinking, he looks around. The room is unsurprisingly deserted. He makes his way to the dormitory, but there’s no sign of Draco anywhere there either. 

Heart sinking, Harry walks up to the window next to his four-poster bed and stares out into the murky darkness and tries to think… Where would Draco go? 

Truth is, Harry doesn’t know. 

Before, when they were still… He swallows thickly past the growing lump in his throat. Before when they were still talking… If Draco was ill or upset, he’d go to Harry… But now… Harry has no idea where he’d go now. 

To Severus maybe? 

But the Potions Master is at the feast like everyone else and Harry walked past the doors to his office as well as the Potions classroom and Draco hadn’t been sitting outside either of them waiting for their Head of House to show up. 

Maybe he’s outside? 

That’s where Harry would be, he thinks. If he still had his Nimbus and wanted to get away from everyone and everything for a while, he’d go outside and fly around the edges of the Forest to clear his head. 

The more Harry thinks about it, the more certain he becomes that that’s where Draco is, maybe not at the edge of the Forest, but somewhere around the Quidditch pitch… His dads — well, his daddy — made him leave the Invisibility Cloak at home at the start of the school year, so he will definitely risk getting caught if he leaves the castle, but… He has to make sure Draco is all right! 

Mind made up, Harry turns around and runs out of the dorm again and doesn’t slow down until he’s outside the Common Room and then with both ears open for any sign of Peeves or improbably patrolling prefects, he begins to make his way down the corridor… A sudden noise cutting through the heavy silence makes him come to an abrupt halt and he flattens himself along the wall, holding his breath as he listens… 

And there it is again… A soft whimpering, followed by a series of muffled sniffles… 

Heart lodged in his throat, Harry follows the now unmistakable sound of someone crying to the boys bathroom at the end of the corridor. The door is left slightly ajar and Harry inches closer to the crack. Someone — Draco, Draco, Draco, his heartbeat chants — is definitely crying in there…

Carefully nudging the door open, Harry slips inside. Slowly and quietly, he walks further into the dim room and tracks the noises to the only light source inside the bathroom which turns out to be the glowing tip of the wand clutched in Draco’s hand where he sits in the far corner of the room, hugging his knees to his chest and hiding his white-blonde head in his arms. 

”Draco?” 

The blonde chokes on a sob and gasps, scrambling to his feet and pointing his wand to the room at large, the weak glow of his Lumos spell flickering as his arm shakes. 

”Wh-who’s there?” he says shrilly.

”Relax, it’s just me!” Harry says and holds up his hands. ”Just me, Harry…”

”What are you doing here?” Draco demands. ”What’s wrong with you? Can’t you take a hint? I don’t want anything to do with you! Why won’t you just leave me alone?”

Ignoring the stab in his chest, Harry reminds himself of what his daddy told him that one time in his office… It might be easier for Draco to keep his resolve and stay away from you if you’re angry with him, so he pushes you away… Taking a deep breath, Harry focuses on the other boy’s face; His eyes are red and swollen, his pale cheeks shine with tears. He looks absolutely wrecked, Harry realises with a stab of sympathy. 

”I have been”, he says softly. 

The blonde’s face crumbles completely then and his arm falls to his side, the wand pointing at the floor instead and casting a dim orb of light around his feet. A strangled sob shoots out of the his mouth before he slaps his hand over it and turns his back to Harry, who immediately feels his own eyes sting at the sight of the other boy’s shaking shoulders.

”If you want me to go, I will…” he says slowly. ”But no-one knows we’re here and… If you want me to stay, no-one needs to find out…”

The silence that stretches out between them as they both seem to be holding their breaths is almost deafening. Harry’s heart is halfway out of his chest by the time the blonde finally turns back around to face him. His hair is hanging into his face and for a second Harry is distracted by the realisation how long it’s got, but his grey eyes are clearly visible between the white-blonde strands as he peers over at Harry. 

”Why are you so nice to me?” he says in a small voice. ”After… After everything…?”

”You know why”, Harry says with an awkward shrug. 

”Yeah”, the other boy mumbles and looks away. ”Yeah, don’t say it… Fuck, you make it so hard… Every single day. Why do you have to make it so hard?”

”I’m sorry”, Harry says with a wry smile. 

”No, you’re not”, Draco mutters. 

”No, I’m not”, Harry agrees and lets his smile stretch out completely. 

Draco gives him a sideways look. He doesn’t smile back, but his face seems to smooth out a little, which Harry counts as a victory, because… Well, perspective! 

Draco’s gaze quickly flits away again and he takes a deep breath, visibly pulling himself together again. Harry’s fingertips tingle with the urge to reach out and wipe the traces of tears away from his face, but he knows better than to push the other boy, especially when he already feels cornered, or he’ll just end up pushing him away completely. 

”I’m all right”, Draco says finally and almost sounds it. ”You can go, it’s fine…”

”When’s the last time you ate anything?”

”I’m all right”, Draco says again and shoots him a glare. 

”I already ate”, Harry lies. ”So I’m just going to go to bed, so… You can go to the feast, I won’t be there and… Yeah… You can eat something.”

”What is it with you”, Draco says and throws his hands up in exasperation, the light from his wand following the movement and distorting the shadows between them. ”Why do you have to —?”

”Care?” Harry cuts in. 

”Meddle!” Draco says fiercely. 

”I guess it’s the Gryffindor side of me.”

”Wh-what?” Draco says, blinking in surprise. ”What do you mean?”

”Remember? The Hat was debating whether to put me in Gryffindor or Slytherin?”

He can tell when the memory comes back to Draco, because his eyes widen and then in quick succession there’s a flash of affection followed by hurt inside them. Harry gives him a pinched smile. He won’t say it aloud, it’s enough that Draco remembers, that he’s thinking about it now… 

The reason I wanted to be in Slytherin in the first place, when the Sorting Hat asked me 

What’s that?

You

”Right”, Draco says, his voice oddly choked. ”I remember…”

”Yeah”, Harry says and shrugs again. 

”Harry…?”

”Yeah, Draco?”

”Will you please… Go… Please?”

If it wasn’t for the pleading look in Draco’s eyes, Harry would feel quite disheartened. As it is, he gets it… Don’t push him, he reminds himself. Let him come to you. 

”Yeah, okay…” he says softly. 

With one a final sad smile, he turns around and walks out of the bathroom again. He listens intensely for any sign the other boy starts crying again behind him, but the bathroom remains eerily quiet. He pauses in the door and waits for a second, but nothing happens… Don’t push… With a soft sigh, he gently eases the door shut behind him and makes his way back to the Slytherin common room and even though sleep is the last thing on his mind, he goes to bed early like he’d told Draco he would. 

*

The next day, Draco is avoiding him as usual but Harry doesn’t feel as awful about it anymore now that he knows how the other boy really feels, how he still feels about Harry… It doesn’t make it any less frustrating, though… 

Not for the first time, Harry finds himself regretting his impulsive decision to help that house-elf, but he immediately feels bad about it and tells himself that he did the right thing and the right thing is always the right thing, no matter how much the consequences suck… 

Staring up at the enchanted ceiling of the Great Hall, picturing what it would feel like to be flying amongst the clouds crowding inside the space, he sighs… These consequences couldn’t be any suckier, he thinks sullenly and shovels another mouthful of porridge into his mouth. 

Glancing up at the Head Table, his heart clenches further when he’s reminded of his daddy’s absence… Thinking back over the course of his childhood and all those trips his daddy took — and there were a lot of them — that he now knows weren’t trips at all, but… What? His daddy was hiding out somewhere, weak with illness, or in pain even? 

And he had to go through it all alone, because Sirius had to stay with Harry, and for some reason neither if them wanted him to know the truth… 

It breaks Harry’s heart a little to think about it; his daddy who’s always taking care of him, always, always, always, ill and in pain and all on his own, with no-one to take care of him for a change… 

Well, I know now, Harry thinks fervently. So he won’t have to suffer alone anymore, because I’ll take care of him! After classes today, I’m going to go see him!

His resolve only grows stronger when he walks into the Defence classroom for his last lesson of the day — Double DADA with the Gryffindors — to see Professor Snape standing at the teacher’s desk where his daddy ought to be. 

Harry quickly takes a seat next to Seamus on the unofficial Slytherin side of the classroom and digs out his textbook from his book bag and sullenly flicks the pages until he reaches the chapter on Hinkypunks that they’re about to start, only half-listening to Snape when he informs the class that Professor Lupin is feeling too ill to teach today… 

Seamus leans in to whisper something, probably to ask him what’s wrong with his daddy, but Harry shoves his head away before he has a chance to open his mouth. 

”Hey!” the boy hisses and shoves him back. 

”Mister Finnigan”, Snape’s long-suffering voice exclaims from the front of the classroom. 

”Sorry, Professor”, Seamus says quickly. 

”Now, as I was saying”, Snape continues. ”Professor Lupin has left no record of the topics you have covered so far —”

”Please, Sir—!” Granger’s voice pipes up from the Gryffindor side of the room and Harry glances over to see her hand twitch eagerly in the air. ”We’ve done Boggarts, Red Caps, Kappas and Grindylows, and we’re about to start —”

”Be quiet”, Snape snaps coldly. ”I was not asking for information, I was merely commenting on Professor Lupin’s…”

He cuts himself off suddenly and takes a quick, deep breath. Harry frowns, sure he saw the man’s dark eyes flicker over to him for a split second. 

”Never mind”, Snape says curtly and turns back to the textbook in front of him on top of teacher’s desk. ”Today we shall discuss…” 

He starts flicking through the textbook with an air of idleness that seems almost staged, at least to Harry who has studied the Professor quite closely for over two years now, trying to get a sense of the man. He narrows his eyes suspiciously when the Professor now continues to flick the pages of the book until he finally reaches what must be one of the very last chapters. 

”…Werewolves!” 

”But, Sir”, Granger blurts out. ”We’re not supposed to do werewolves yet, we’re due to start Hinkypunks —”

”Miss Granger”, Snape says with a deceptive calm, contradicted only by the flashing fury in his eyes. ”I was under the impression that I was taking this lesson, not you. And I am telling you all to turn to page three hundred and ninety-four. Now.”

Harry dutifully starts flicking the pages of his book until he gets to the chapter on werewolves, smirking to himself — Yep, the very last chapter of the book!

”Which of you can tell me how to distinguish between a werewolf and a true wolf?” Snape asks. 

Everyone except for Granger sit in motionless silence, exchanging curious looks. No-one seems surprised to see Granger’s hand high in the air again, least of all Snape who promptly ignores her and turns to the Slytherin side. 

”Anyone?” he prompts, his eyes flickering over to Harry’s. ”No?”

Harry shakes his head numbly. He could easily glance down at the book and scan the pages for the the answer, and if his daddy was teaching right now he probably would have, but with Professor Snape, that is the best way to earn yourself an acidic insult and Harry doesn’t really feel like being on the receiving end of one of those right now… 

”Well, that is disappointing…” Snape says. ”I never thought I’d meet a third-year class incapable of recognising a werewolf if they saw one, Professor Lupin —”

He cuts himself off again and pinches his lips together in frustration. Harry narrows his eyes and watches as he takes another deep breath and flicks his gaze down to the textbook once again. 

Releasing a half-amused breath, Harry shakes his head a little… He’s holding back, he thinks incredulously. He’s holding back from insulting my daddy, even though he clearly wants to! 

Harry’s feels a weird mix of pique and amusement, and just a hint of affection, because what other reason could Snape possibly have to hold back other than Harry being in the room? He must obviously care enough about him to not want to hurt his feelings, why else would he stop himself from speaking his mind?

Smiling wryly to himself, Harry tears his eyes away from the Professor and starts to follow along in the text as the man begins to read out loud. 

When the bell finally rings, they’ve covered the whole chapter and Harry has accumulated almost eight inches worth of notes. 

”You will each write an essay, to be handed in to me”, Snape says loudly and clearly over the ruckus of everyone gathering up their things, and then ignoring the collective groan that this homework assignment garners, continues, ”on the ways you recognise werewolves. I want two rolls of parchment on the subject, and I want it by Monday morning… Class dismissed.”

Swallowing a heavy sigh, Harry quickly stuffs his textbook and notes into his bag and drags himself to his feet. 

”Harry, you fancy a game of Exploding Snap before dinner?” Seamus says. 

”Erm, yeah, maybe later”, he says. ”I’m just going to go see my daddy quickly, okay?”

”Oh, okay, catch up with you in the common room then?”

”Yeah, yeah”, Harry says. ”I’ll meet you there…”

He waits for the last stragglers to file out of the classroom before he hoists his bag onto his shoulder and makes his way up to the front of the classroom. Snape looks up and narrows his eyes at him. 

”What is it, Harry?”

”Nothing”, Harry says and shifts his feet awkwardly. ”I was just going to…”

He gestures towards the door of his daddy’s office, knowing that his sleeping quarters are situated in an adjoining room accessed through the office itself. 

There’s a flash of realisation in Potion Master’s dark eyes and he presses his thin lips together. 

”I wanted to check on my daddy”, Harry clarifies. ”Just to see that he’s okay…”

”He’s not in there”, Snape mutters and looks down, feigning interest in the textbook in front of him.

”Wh-what? Where is he? Is he in the Hospital Wing, or—?”

”Your father and I are not in the habit of sharing, as a general rule”, Snape says coldly, but Harry is too shocked to hear anyone refer to Remus as his father — which is usually said about James Potter, not one of his dads — to really take offence to the sniping remark and simply blinks. ”However, if I were to hazard an educated guess, I would say he’s chosen to recuperate in his permanent residence…”

”P-Permanent—?”

”Your home. In Hogsmeade. With Black”, Snape says impatiently. 

”Oh… He’s with my dad?” Harry says, relief washing over him and making him feel almost light-headed. 

”Presumably”, Snape mutters. 

Then something comes over him and he looks up slowly, his dark eyes narrowed and calculating and Harry feels an all too familiar impulse to argue his innocence, even though he has no idea what the man could possibly suspect him of, and has to bite his lip to keep from blurting something out. 

”You… Know about your father’s condition… Harry?”

And for the first time it strikes Harry that Professor Snape does know about his daddy’s condition, he must do if he’s been brewing that potion for him! 

Heart thudding excitedly in his chest, Harry schools his face in a neutral mask and nods. Snape’s eyes narrow further. 

”Y-yeah, of course”, Harry says brazenly, but he can tell immediately that Snape has seen right through him. 

”Go work on your essay, Potter”, Snape says with an exasperated eye-roll and gives him a dismissive flick of his hand before turning his attention back to the textbook and obviously ignoring him. 

”Yes, Sir…” Harry mutters and trundles out of the classroom, feeling disappointed.

As he reaches the first floor, Harry slows down and eyes the big oak doors. What he wouldn’t give to be able to go for a ride on his Nimbus right now… Even in this horrible autumn weather, it would give him just the boost he needs right now. Sighing, he turns towards the small corridor leading towards the stairs to the dungeons instead. 

”Hey Harry—!”

Looking up in surprise, Harry stops and turns back around to see the identical grinning faces of Fred and George Weasley as the older boys come bounding up to him. 

”Hey guys… How have you been?”

”Oh couldn’t be better”, Fred or George say with a cheeky grin. 

”Now that you’re off the Slytherin team Wood has finally relaxed a little”, his twin adds with a wink. 

”Great…” Harry says sarcastically. ”I’m so happy for you!”

The twins snicker good-naturedly and one of them gives his shoulder a playful shove. 

”What’s got your wand in a knot?” 

”Nothing…” Harry mutters. ”I just miss Quidditch, I guess…”

”Bet you’re glad you won’t have to play in this weather though?”

”He wouldn’t have to anyway”, the other twin interjects. ”Didn’t you hear? We’re not playing Slytherin tomorrow, they switched with Hufflepuff… Apparently their Seeker is still recovering from his arm injury!” he rolls his eyes and then gives Harry another wink. 

”Oh come off it”, the other Gryffindor says. ”There’s nothing wrong with Malfoy’s arm! Right, Harry?”

”I eh… Wouldn’t know”, Harry says shrewdly. ”I don’t really hang out with the team all that much anymore, I guess I miss flying more than anything… It always used to help clear my head, you know?”

”So go fly, what’s stopping you?” the winking twin says earnestly. ”You’re not banned from flying, are you?”

”Well, kind of… My dads made me promise not to go sneaking out of the castle anymore and they made me leave my — Ehm — Yeah, anyway”, he trails off awkwardly, realising he probably shouldn’t start a rumour about owning an Invisibility Cloak, but judging by the knowing looks on the two older boys’ faces, he has a sneaking suspicion that their younger brother has already told them all about it. 

”What if you knew you wouldn’t get caught?” one of the twins says in a hushed voice. 

Harry frowns, looking between the two of them… Their blue eyes glitter excitedly back at him. 

”Well, then, I guess… I guess I’d sneak out for a bit…”

He is immediately met with a pair of identical, almost maniacal grins and barely refrains from backing away. The two twins exchange a look, then one of them nods and they turn back to Harry again. 

”Come on… We might be able to help you out…” 

”Help me out?” Harry mutters uncertainly and lets the two boys grab each of his arms and steer him into the shadows next to the marble staircase. ”H-How?”

”Well…” one of the boys says slyly. ”We won’t be able to make you invisible, but… This will at least give you a fighting chance…”

With a flourish he produces a square bit of faded old parchment from inside his robes. Harry stares at it dumbly. 

”Er…”

”This, Harry, is the secret of our success!”

”It’s a wrench giving it to you, but… We think your needs are greater than ours at this point, besides—”

”—We know it off by heart by now, anyway! So it’s all yours…”

”And…” Harry peers up at the older boys’ curiously, weighing his words carefully as he half-expects this to be another one of the twins pranks. ”What exactly do I want with — Ehm — With it?”

The twins smirk knowingly at him. 

”Well, if used right, this little baby will show you how best to get around in this castle—”

”—and on the castle grounds—”

”—and it will also give you fair warning should a professor or a prefect—”

”—or even Peeves be close by!”

Harry blinks a couple of times, waiting for the punchline, but it doesn’t come. 

”What?”

”You see, Harry… When we were in first year, you know, young, carefree and innocent—”

Harry snorts.

”—Well, more innocent than we are now, at least—”

”—We got into a spot of bother with Filch—”

”—We’d let off a Dungbomb in the corridor and it upset him for some reason—”

”—So he hauled us into his office and was making his usual threats, you know—”

”—Detention, disembowelment—”

”—And that’s when we noticed a drawer in his filing cabinet marked Confiscated and Highly Dangerous, so of course, being the curious lads that we are—”

”—We decided to investigate! So George let off another Dungbomb to distract him and I whipped open the drawer and grabbed the first thing I got my hands on—”

”—This! We don’t reckon Filch ever figured out how to work it, but we think he suspected what it was or he wouldn’t have confiscated it in the first place…”

”Wait…” Harry says, feeling a jolt of excitement. ”How to work it? But what is it?”

Smirking, the twin that Harry now knows to be Fred brandishes his wand and gives the parchment a gentle tap, and says, ”I solemnly swear that I am up to no good…”

Harry gasps in excitement as ink black lines suddenly sprout out from beneath the wand tip like an intricate cobweb. 

”It’s… It’s a map!” he says. 

”Not just any old map… Check it out…”

George starts to unfold the parchment, revealing inch upon inch of the detailed map of Hogwarts. Harry catches a glimpse of a square entitled ”The Great Hall” before the older boy unfolds another section and points to three little black dots… Harry squints his eyes and stares more closely at the dots — they all have little labels that read —

”Wait a minute… Is that…?”

”Us”, the twins say in unison. 

Harry whips his head up and stares at them in amazement. The manic grins are back on their faces and they exchange an amused look with each other. 

”This map shows every person on the school grounds, wherever they go…”

”This is brilliant!” Harry gushes. ”But why would you give it to me?”

”Well, you did save our sister’s life”, Fred says off-handedly, but by the way the two boys look away awkwardly, Harry gets the feeling that they’re trying not to show what feelings that particular memory actually brings up and Harry politely lets it go. 

He’d almost forgotten about Ginny. He hasn’t really seen her around much this year, as opposed to last year when she seemed to pop up all over the place… Of course her brothers wouldn’t be so quick to forget the fact that he saved her from the Chamber of Secrets though… 

”Okay, well, just let me know when you want it back, I guess”, he says. 

”Nah, you keep it”, George says. ”Like I said, we know it by heart by this point, so… We bequeath it to you! Just remember to wipe it when you’re done—”

”—Just tap it again and say Mischief Managed, and it’ll go blank again!”

Then clapping him on each of his shoulders, both boys give him a wink and stride off into the Entrance Hall and disappearing up the marble staircase. 

Harry quickly finds the Entrance Hall on the map and follows the two dots labelled Fred Weasley and George Weasley as they ascend the stairs and he chuckles to himself. This is amazing!

He folds the map up again and notice for the first time the writing at the very top of the map; Messrs Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs, Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers, are proud to present THE MARAUDER’S MAP

Wait —

Harry’s heart stutters in his chest as he stares at the swirly words… Moony… 

”It can’t be…” he mumbles. 

But yes, that’s what the map says… Moony… 

But that’s, Harry thinks numbly. That’s dad’s pet name for… He always calls daddy that… Could this map have belonged to his dads when they were at Hogwarts? Could they have made this amazing map?

Heart pounding in his chest, Harry quickly fumbles with his wand and gives the map a tap and mutters, ”Mischief managed—!”

He watches in a sort of detached fascination as all the intricate little lines fade away from the parchment again, and then gently fold the whole thing up and puts it inside his robes pocket. He’ll ask his daddy about it when he sees him, when he’s feeling better… Except… I’d have to tell him about the map if I want to ask him about it, which would be the same as handing it in to a Professor… He hardly thinks the Weasley twins would be too happy about that. 

No, I’ll think of something, he thinks decisively as he starts to make his way towards the dungeons. I’ll just ask him about the pet name, I don’t have to mention the map at all, I’ll just ask him why dad calls him that and see what he says…