Disclaimer: As always I own nothing but the original characters and the situations all the characters find themselves in. Thanks so much for reading, I hope you enjoy this latest fic and let me know what you think.
Bonds Are Created
Scorpius Malfoy could only hope that his father didn't catch him hiding from Albus Potter again. But what else was he to do, Scorpius thought as he peered over one of the overstocked shelves, cursing the fact that today of all days Albus would chose to tag along with his father on Auror business. If the Gryffindor saw him in the store than the other man might feel obligated to talk to him and Scorpius could count the number of conversations he'd had with Albus outside of school on one hand. He would prefer to keep it that way. It wasn't that he disliked Potter, that wouldn't be a problem at all. He was expected to dislike Potters.
No, the problem was that he'd had an uncontrollable crush on the Gryffindor, and had for years.
Which, given his genetic make up, really shouldn't have been possible, Scorpius thought sadly. But bad things seemed to happen to his family with alarming regularity these days. That they so often brought it on themselves made it that much worse.
Not that anyone could possibly blame him, Scorpius mused as he watched the Gryffindor walk through the aisles, studying the various odds and ends on the shelves. All that raven black hair, which stopped an inch above the Gryffindor's broad shoulders, and those emerald green eyes that were so stunning that they actually made the black glasses he wore sexy. The man's body was just as sexy and that, combined with the man's intelligence, charm and rakish grin, were just some of the many reasons why Albus Potter was the most sought after man in Hogwarts.
Yup, every straight woman and gay man in Hogwarts lusted after the charismatic Gryffindor. Which was one of the many reasons why Albus barely knew he existed. Scorpius was willing to bet that if he hadn't been born a Malfoy Potter wouldn't have ever known he existed at all. The Gryffindor had kept a wary eye on him for their first couple of years at Hogwarts and than had dismissed him as an unlikely threat.
It was terribly depressing to know that he'd probably have to do someone serious physical harm if he ever wanted the other man to pay him serious attention.
And since he wasn't the violent type Scorpius figured that he'd spend the rest of his life pining from afar.
Resigned to that Scorpius turned his head to study the merchandise in front of him, knowing better than to touch anything. One didn't put their hands on anything in Borgin and Burkes if they wanted to remain whole and hearty. He knew a lot of his housemates loved to come to the store and look over the many Dark objects scattered throughout the store, but personally, the whole place gave him the creeps.
Deciding that he might as well see if his father had finished haggling with Mr. Borgin Scorpius reassured himself that Albus was far enough away before moving into the main aisle, his destination the front of the store.
)
Scorpius hadn't gotten far when the store suddenly began to shake like it had been hit by an earthquake. Falling onto the floor with a crashing thud Scorpius curled and rolled, instinctively covering his head with his arms. All around him came the sound of smashing glass and snapping wood, Scorpius lifting his arms away from his head when he heard his father yell out his name.
Scrambling to his feet, his only thought to get to his father, Scorpius staggered in the direction of the front counter, blinding pain hitting him out of nowhere as a marble statue fell off a nearby shelf to smack him in the forehead. Falling to his knees with a groan Scorpius's hands moved to press up against the wound, the Slytherin forcing himself to stay conscious as he called out his location to his father as the walls continued to shake, shelves and merchandise scattering all over the floor.
Then all was still.
Struggling to get to his feet Scorpius fell back onto his knees as his head spun, his head pounding like someone was using it as a gong. He couldn't think of anything now but the pain.
"Hey, are you okay?"
Looking through the one eye not covered by his hands Scorpius was in too much pain to behave as he usually did when he came face to face with Albus Potter. Vaguely he noted that the other man was filthy and bleeding from a few shallow cuts, and was glad that that seemed to be the worst of it.
Letting Albus move his hands aside Scorpius winced as the Gryffindor carefully prodded the wound.
Both men hearing their fathers call their names, the two called out their well being, much to their fathers' relief and their sons.
"The cut doesn't look too deep, but you're going to have one hell of a headache to go with that bump." Albus gave him a sympathetic look, having taken some blows to his noggin during Quidditch.
"I figured as much."
Feeling awkward, which was nothing unusual when it came to the Slytherin, Albus tried for a joking tone as he removed his hand from the man's marred forehead. "Glad you're okay. Stumbling over your dead body would have really ruined my day."
Not being an idiot Scorpius knew that the Gryffindor didn't mean that his death would be upsetting, but still, he couldn't stop himself from flushing a little at the idea that the other man would care.
Getting to his feet Albus prodded some of his own wounds before holding out a hand to help the Slytherin to his feet.
Worried about what would happen if he tried to stand up again Scorpius was about to suggest that the other man go find their fathers when both of their attentions were drawn to a strange sound coming towards them.
The two turned their heads to watch a large, egg shaped object rolling towards them. It was pure white and seemed to be made of crystal, though it didn't appear to have suffered any damage from its fall from its shelf. Neither boy knew why, but they couldn't seem to look away as the magical object came closer and closer, spinning to a stop beside them as if on cue. It seemed to glow with some inner light, beckoning them closer. And though both knew better than to touch something from the store Scorpius and Albus, as if in a trance, reached out and touched the object with their bare hands.
)
With a gasp Scorpius and Albus found their hands suddenly stuck on the smooth, white surface, their fingers spreading out of their own accord so that their combined hands covered most of the egg's surface. A strange heat moved up their arms then, and though it wasn't painful it was enough to have them focusing on that and not the pain from their various injuries.
And as they watched the crystal through their fingers it began to fill with blood red swirls.
It was then that Draco Malfoy and Harry Potter arrived on the scene, taking in their sons' situation in the blink of an eye. Each hurrying to kneel beside their respective son the two men tried to pull their boy from the object, both demanding an explanation from a visibly shaken Mr. Borgin.
"I don't know." The greasy man was all but wringing his hands as he watched the scene play out before him. "I don't know, I swear. That egg's been in here since my father owned the place. I don't know if my father even knew what it did. It's never reacting to anyone touching it before! I don't know what's going on." And now he looked close to crying. "I'll go out of business for this. I'll be run out of the country if the Chosen One's son dies or is cursed because of me. Ruined, I'll be ruined."
"I'm not dead yet." Albus pointed out dryly, gripping his own arm tightly with his free hand as he tried to help his father yank his hand away from the egg.
"Nobody is going to die." Was Draco's harsh decree as he pulled out his wand, his eyes a steely grey. "It can't hurt them if I get rid of it."
Harry shook his head, motioning for Draco to halt his plan. He understood the feeling, but he wasn't about to risk hurting the boys by behaving rashly. "We don't know what that would do."
Scorpius tilted his head up to look up at his father, noting in some part of his brain that it didn't hurt to do so. The pain in his head had vanished without him even noticing it. "It doesn't hurt, Father." He assured the older man, unable to explain why he wasn't more worried about his present situation. Scorpius didn't know why, but he just had the feeling that the egg wouldn't hurt them.
Moments later the egg's grip on their hands suddenly ended, the magical object dropping somehow delicately onto the ground to rest there, as if it had been set down for decoration.
The egg gleamed crimson and ivory before them, its earlier inner glow gone.
Straightening up Draco reached down and sliding his hands under his son's arms, lifting his son to his feet in one smooth motion. When he was sure his son was steady enough on his feet Draco turned his son around so that he could get a look at the damage, particularly the bump his son had sustained.
A couple feet away Harry did the same to his son, his brows drawing together as he saw the same thing that Draco did. There were scratches on their sons' bodies, but in both cases the wounds looked days old instead of fresh. The blood had disappeared from their skin as well, though it still stained their clothing.
What exactly had just happened to them?
Obviously striving to lighten the mood, Albus gave his father a questioning look as he reached out to brush aside the dust that had gotten all over his father during the store's destruction. "So…are you done interrogating Mr. Borgin about that bracelet, Dad?" Albus asked in a little boy voice. "Cause I could really go for some ice cream right about now."
Harry shook his head at his son's flippancy, smiling in spite of himself as he ruffled his boy's hair. "I suppose some ice cream is the least I can do, especially considering what your mother is going to have to say about all this."
"We're done as well. It's time to go home, Scorpius." Keeping a tight grip on his son's arm Draco gave Mr. Borgin a dark look. "And if my son suffers any ill effects from that damn egg I'll be back to have a little talk with you, Borgin."
"Wasn't my fault, Master Malfoy." The shopkeeper whined. "Tis my neighbor, he's crazy you see. Thinks he's some potions' master, always experimenting. As it is I've probably lost half my stock, don't know how the shop will recover from this."
"And that's a bad thing?" Was Albus's innocent resort.
)
Twenty minutes later Albus and his father were in Diagon Alley, visiting various shops as they completed the shopping list Ginny Potter had given them before they'd left home that day. Fighting back the urge to rub a hand over his heart, Albus tried to figure out how to connect what had happened in Borgin and Burkes with the sudden pain he was experiencing. It was getting worse too. It wasn't unbearable, but it was damn uncomfortable.
Eventually Albus noticed a pattern to the pain, realizing that the closer he was to Knockturn Alley, the better he felt. It didn't take him long to come up with a theory that had him finally admitting to his father how he was feeling and his suspicion that the egg was causing it.
"I just have this feeling that I have to have that egg, Dad."
Harry didn't like the idea of his son being anywhere near the egg again, but he didn't like his son being in pain either. And if the egg was in their possession than they could have it studied and examined for long term effects, he reasoned. So they would buy the damn thing and take it to Albus's grandfather's department for a look over. Hopefully that would shed some light on the matter.
Back at Borgin and Burkes they went and got the egg, Albus asking the shopkeeper if Scorpius had returned since they'd parted ways. When Mr. Borgin assured them that the Malfoys had not returned the Potters assumed that Scorpius was either fine or had yet to figure out what was causing the heart pains.
Leaving the store Harry gave his son a questioning look. "Why did you ask about Malfoy junior? I was under the impression that you two stayed as far away from each other as possible." In fact, Lily had told him that the Malfoy heir had a strange habit of fleeing the room whenever he saw Albus coming.
Albus shrugged. "He's okay. I think. He hasn't tried to kill me yet anyway."
Scorpius Malfoy was a weird man; that was for sure. Albus often thought of the Slytherin as being like a ghost, both in appearance and personality. The man's hair, eyes and skin were all pale, though reasonably good looking according his sister. The Malfoy heir never spoke unless spoken to and Albus was fairly sure that the man would always disappear into the background if given a choice. He'd gone to the same school as the Slytherin for years and Albus couldn't have told anyone what made the other man tic. But they certainly weren't the mortal enemies that their fathers had been.
"Which is a good thing." Knowing the new Malfoy wasn't a threat to his children was always a weight off his shoulders. Harry figured they had enough to deal with simply by being his children. They'd all borne the brute of his celebrity well, but one less thing for them to deal with was always a good thing.
Albus looked down at the box he carried, which held the egg. "Do you suppose I should have left Scorpius a message, telling him that if he was having the heart problems he should come see me? Or more specifically, the egg."
"I wouldn't worry about it just yet. Victoire works at St. Mungos after all. If the Malfoys bring Scorpius in than she can point them in the right direction. Though I don't know what we're going to do if you both need to stay near that egg." Harry could not see that going over well with the Malfoy clan.
"Yeah, that would definitely be a problem."
)
It was one in the morning when Harry and Ginny woke up with a start, still half asleep as their minds registered the meaning of the sound that had woken them up. It was one they were very familiar with and in well practiced tandem the two gave each other a considering look.
"It's your turn to get her." They said simultaneously.
Yet even as the words passed their lips the Potters realized with a start that the sound they were hearing couldn't possibly be their daughter. Lily was fifteen now.
Harry grabbed his glasses off his bedside table, blinking into the darkness before turning to look at his wife. "What the…."
Ginny just shrugged, both turning their heads in tandem when the sound came again. They definitely weren't dreaming.
Confusion written all over their faces the two pushed back the covers and headed out of their bedroom and into the hallway, listening intently for the sound which was coming from the opposite side of the house.
As they watched Lily's door opened, their youngest sticking her head out with bleary confusion. Sensing their presence the girl turned to look at them sleepily, rubbing her eyes as she struggled to wake up enough to comprehend what was going on. "What is that?"
"Guess we're all going to find out." Leading the way Harry didn't quite know what to make of the fact that the loud, piercing sound was coming from his youngest son's room. But it definitely was not Albus making that sound, which meant there was something or someone else in the room too. And then it occurred to the man that maybe the sound was coming from Albus, who might finally be feeling the effects of the Borgin and Burkes incident.
It was that fear that had him opening the door without knocking, rushing into his son's room with his wife and daughter on his heels.
Albus's bedside light was on, providing enough light for everyone to take in the scene before them.
His back braced up against his headboard Albus had a dazed look in his green eyes as he slowly lifted his messy head to meet his father's gaze.
The sound coming again, everyone automatically moved to stand at the side of Albus's bed, the three staring down at what was cradled in the boy's arms in stunned surprise.
Wrapped up in one of Albus's pillowcases was a baby who looked no more than a couple days old.
The source of all the noise.
"Albus?" Harry began, staring down at the squirming infant.
"The egg hatched."