serpenscript (serpenscript) wrote in lupin_snape, @ 2008-04-30 23:35:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | family fest, prompt: family fest |
Flying Lessons, PG13 - Family Fest Fic
Title: Flying Lessons
Author: Serpenscript
Rating: PG-13 for violent situations?
Pairings: Background Lupin/Snape
Word Count: 7,660
Disclaimer: Sadly, these belong to the woman with a warped psychology. We who write with them now are technically just borrowing them to play.
Written for: Family Fest 2008
Prompt: Teddy's learning to fly like Papa Snape. Harry Potter thinks he's being turned to the Dark side of Magic. Remus is torn between his adopted godson (Harry) and his family. Teddy--with wisdom out of the mouths of babes--will save the day.
Other Comments: Thanks go to TMM and Enigmalea, who both did last-minute betas! Any plothols still remaining are completely my own fault. EDIT: I redid the formatting, so it should be cleaner and I think I managed to get the comments out this time. T_T
Teddy liked flying. He loved the air tangling his hair (which was sometimes short, to better feel the wind against his scalp, and sometimes long and curly, to feel it whipping about behind him) and grabbing at his clothing, and the illusion of weightlessness as the ground dropped away beneath him.
But Teddy didn't like it when Papa Snape and Uncle Harry fought about it, and they usually did when Harry visited and saw Teddy's wind-reddened cheeks and tangled hair. And Daddy Remus never seemed to know what to do or whose side to take, or if he should take sides at all. Teddy just wished they wouldn't all shout at each other; it made his tummy hurt, and no one noticed when he turned his nose long and purple-spotted, hoping to make them laugh at him instead of yelling at each other.
"Teddy should be learning to fly on a broomstick like any decent wizard or witch!" Harry had shouted at Snape accusingly. "Not flitting about like some - some vampire with a madman's mark on their arm!"
"Is that what is about?" Snape said in a low, dangerous voice - a voice Teddy had never heard him use with his family. "I'm still just some evil malicious Death Eater looking to corrupt Teddy while your back's turned? Damnit, Potter - " He ground his teeth audibly; Teddy wondered if he'd need to see a Dentiwitch the following day. "I am teaching Teddy what is necessary to protect himself," he snarled, fingers turning white from gripping the chair in front of him. Since Papa Snape was very pale already, this seemed amazing to Teddy, who stared in awe.
He didn't even catch Harry's veiled threats and warnings, only looking away from Papa Snape's hands when he heard the door slam behind him.
* * * * *
"Daddy, why does Uncle Harry hate flying so much, and yell so much?" he asked Remus later, when they were trying to catch frogs with an illusory fly the werewolf had conjured. He tried to grab at a fat frog that had been lured close, only to have it escape with a derisive-sounding croak. "I really like flying, and Papa doesn't let anything happen to me, not even a scraped knee!" Well, only the first time at least, and that hadn't been the flying at all - he'd been running with his shoes untied on the way to his very first flying lesson, and had tripped and scraped his knee. Papa Snape had spelled away the scrape and the pain immediately, but told him that if he ran or didn't obey everything Papa said, that the flying lessons would be over immediately.
Papa always meant what he said; Teddy learned that early on. When Papa said that boys who didn't wash their hands before meals didn't get dessert, and he forgot to wash his hands, Teddy didn't get dessert. So when Papa Snape said running meant no flying lessons, he manfully kept to a walk, and if that walk sometimes became a bit of a hurried hop-skip, it was because his excitement couldn't quite be held in.
A frog hopping on top of Teddy's foot brought him out of his wool-gathering, and he wiggled his toes under the frog's plump weight a little, disappointed when the frog hopped back off.
Remus was frowning at his wand - and the illusory fly - with an intensely thoughtful expression Teddy secretly called the "How to answer Teddy" look. "It's not that your Uncle Harry hates flying, Teddy," he said carefully, "it's just the method."
Teddy turned that over in his mind slowly. "You mean because he flies with a broomstick? But what if he wants to fly and doesn't have a broom?"
Remus sat back on his heels, raking a muddy hand across his face and through his hair. It left a dirty smudge on his forehead, which Teddy delightedly mimicked. Remus barked a laugh before sighing. "Yes, well, that's why your Papa wants you to learn to fly without one."
* * * * *
A brisk wind was whipping through the field, making the grass ripple like a huge field of green colored puffskins. It made Teddy want to run wildly over them, but he remembered Papa Snape's rules and settled for spreading his arms and letting the wind buffet him. When he closed his eyes, he could pretend each gust of wind lifted him higher and higher from the ground. He wasn't afraid at all; if he fell, Papa would catch him.
"Standing with your arms out works if you are a bird," Papa Snape told him in that dry voice that Daddy Remus called his 'teaching voice'. Teddy just windmilled his arms.
"I'm air swimming," he informed his stepfather, who raised his eyebrows at his declaration.
"Indeed," Papa Snape drawled, "I thought both swimming and flying insinuated actually going somewhere?" Teddy liked that about Papa; he didn't try to talk down to Teddy or talk over his head, but talked to him and used fun words like 'insinuate' and 'obfuscate'. "Are you ready for your lesson?"
Teddy windmilled his arms to show how ready he was! "I'm ready to fly!"
They weren't really to the actual flying stage yet; so far Teddy could make himself light and land softly, but without a stiff wind he couldn't go anywhere, any more than a leaf falling from a tree flew. But floating softly to the ground was fun, too. He pretended he was a maple seed helicopter and spun in circles while floating down. It made his head spin and he staggered and fell, but since he was still feather-light he didn't even get bruised.
"When you fly you won't be able to spin like that," lectured Snape, though there was no steel behind it so Teddy knew it was ok to spin for now. "If you're in danger and it's somewhere high, the safest thing may to be to jump off and float down, but if you reach the ground and you're too dizzy to stand, you won't be able to run to safety." He looked sternly at the young boy in front of him.
Teddy wrinkled his nose. "Can't I just look different?" His hair switched from a dark brown-black that was in between Lupin's cinnamon hair and Snape's jet to the firey ginger of the Weasley brood. Snape pinched the bridge of his nose and looked cross, and quickly Teddy let his hair grow brown again. He'd forgotten that Papa didn't like the Weasleys, either. He was lucky Papa liked him!
"If you're in a place full of Muggles, it's not wise to do anything unnatural, and Muggles can't change their hair or face," he told him sternly, though it looked like his face was developing a tick. Daddy Remus had said that happened when he was hungry, angry, or trying to not to laugh, but Teddy usually couldn't tell the difference.
"Ok," Teddy agreed, and prepared to try floating again.
* * * * *
Teddy was practicing jump-and-floats in the front yard when Uncle Harry Apparated in for a visit. Teddy was getting really good at it; if he jumped really high or off the front porch with a running start, he could float several feet. He was proud of that; Papa Snape had told him that when he could float a full six feet, he'd let him try jumping off even higher heights alone.
Uncle Harry didn't seem to look happy to see his 'nephew' floating around like a leaf; his face looked like Papa Snape's when the puppy had gotten into his laboratory. "Hi, Uncle Harry," Teddy said nervously, floating to the ground in front of him. "Did you know me and Daddy caught a bunch of frogs - "
"It's 'Daddy and I', Teddy. Where is your father?" Harry said abruptly, and Teddy knew they were going to fight.
"If I tell you, will you promise to not yell?" he demanded, clenching his hands into fists. He hated it when they yelled over something stupid like flying, when everyone flew - just sometimes in different ways. Uncle Hagrid flew on a bike!
Harry's jaw clenched and he stepped around Teddy and strode towards the door, ignoring him. Teddy hated it when adults did that, ignoring you if they didn't like your question or the answer to it. To be mean back, he ran and jumped, and floated past Harry, yelling for Papa and Daddy. "Uncle Harry's here!" he yelled, as he landed awkwardly on the edge of the steps and pitched forward, catching himself before he banged his nose.
Remus was in the kitchen; Snape wasn't there, so he was probably in the laboratory making potions. He did that for a living; Daddy Remus said it was funny that people wouldn't hire a tame werewolf who was really strong, but would hire a meanie ex-Death Eater to make potions for them. Teddy didn't think it sounded funny at all, just a little sad. But Papa Snape was really good at potions; Teddy used to have crossed eyes and got headaches a lot, and Papa had made him a headache potion that tasted like chocolate milk.
"Where's Snape?" Harry said to Remus, breathing heavily like he'd just run a lot. His fists were clenched too; Teddy wondered if he should cover his ears.
"Harry, he's really busy right now, can't you wait - "
"I've told you what I think about the spells he's teaching Teddy! They're not normal spells! For all we know he could be corrupting your son, Remus. Do you know anyone else who can fly without a broom or flying device? How can you be so calm about this?"
Remus sighed wearily and raked a hand through his hair, a habit he had when he needed to think of what to say. "It may come as a surprise to you, Harry, but a good relationship is founded on trust, and I trust Severus. With my life-- and with Teddy's."
"Yeah, maybe I can trust him to keep Teddy alive, but what about what he teaches him? What if he thinks Dark Magic and curses are what will keep Teddy alive? Is that part of trust, too?" Harry fired back, oblivious to Teddy listening in.
Teddy's eyes were wide as he listened to Harry and Remus fight. He really didn't understand why Harry didn't like Papa at all. Daddy Remus had once tried to explain that Severus hadn't always been nice, that he had to pretend to be mean for a very long time until he had almost forgotten how to get along. Papa Snape had snorted and said the wolf had a tendency to oversimplify things and it would get him into trouble one day. He wondered if this was the trouble he had meant.
Lupin had thrown up his hands in surrender. "You obviously won't listen to me, and won't trust me when I vouch for him. What do you want me to do, Harry?" he asked wearily.
Harry lifted his chin and glared at his old mentor. "You can let me talk to Snape directly!"
* * * * *
The Potions Lab was made to be soundproof, so that if something blew up at night it wouldn't wake the whole house. But there was an alarm system set up so that if something triggered it, a beeper would go off in Papa and Daddy's room so they would know. When Uncle Harry went to the laboratory to yell at Papa, Teddy wanted to go too so he could tell them both to stop yelling and being stupid, but Lupin held them back. "Sometimes it's best to let them go at it," he said, and tried to smile.
Teddy thought that was a dumb reason, since at school teachers never let the bullies keep beating a kid who was down; they always said "Hey, break it up" and never "Let them go at it." He thought school would probably be a pretty lousy place if teachers didn't do stuff like that. He sometimes also thought adults should go back to school to learn things right. He told Daddy so, but Remus just shook his head and sighed and told him not all adults learned the right things in school, and that some people just took longer learning certain lessons.
Still, he was worried that Papa and Uncle Harry might blow up the laboratory, so he waited in their room watching the beeper, just in case. He stayed there until he heard footsteps outside, then he ran as fast as he could, floating down the stairs in one jump (wondering briefly how to measure the whole stairs) to save time.
Instead of Papa coming in, it was Uncle Harry. His face was red and he walked really fast like he was angry. Teddy supposed it was a good thing the laboratory was still standing.
Harry marched into the kitchen and announced tersely to Lupin, "Snape is allowing me to take Teddy for the day and check him for taints and Dark Magic." He was holding his wand in his hand tightly; Teddy wondered if he realised he was holding it like one of them was going to attack. He didn't like thinking his Uncle Harry might attack him; he wondered if he'd be hexed if he had that taint thing they were talking about.
"Where are you taking him, and for how long?" Remus asked, concern creasing his forehead. "He's never really been away over night."
Harry scowled. "I'll run some scans and diagnostics - have Poppy take a look at him, then maybe go to a park or something."
"Poppy? Is that really necessary?"
"Maybe if Dumbledore had paid a little more attention to Riddle we wouldn't have had a war to deal with!" Harry snapped, too angry to watch his words.
Daddy Remus seemed to be really upset at Harry's words; the anger in his face made Teddy's tummy start to hurt. Maybe that Tom person had teachers who'd encouraged him to 'go at it' instead of 'breaking it up', he thought, confused.
Teddy didn't want to listen to them fighting anymore, even if Daddy didn't really yell back. He didn't really like Uncle Harry when he was mad. So he turned his head into a torch - well, just his hair, really - took a deep breath, then yelled, "FIRE!"
He had to go change his clothes after both Harry and Remus doused immediately him with the Augamenti charm (and the water was so cold that he turned himself blue to get the point across), but at least they had stopped fighting.
* * * * *
Teddy thought Madam Pomfrey was kind of like a cross between Daddy and Papa - she fussed like Daddy and scolded like Papa. Even funnier, she seemed more interested in whether or not Uncle Harry had eaten enough greens lately and had enough sleep than checking if Teddy had 'horns, corns, and foreign forms', as she put it. Harry complained that she wasn't taking his concerns seriously, and for a moment Teddy considered sprouting a pair of horns just for fun and because he could, but Papa Snape had once talked to him about times that were for fun and times that weren't, and he was pretty sure this was one of the latter.
But Madam Pomfrey did have a charmed Golden Snitch that flew around and around his head and somehow managed to avoid his hands when he grabbed for it, no matter how fast or sneaky he tried to be. "Think he'll be a Seeker someday?" Harry laughed.
Teddy wasn't sure he wanted to be a Seeker. He thought it might be more fun to be a Beater and carry a big bat and look really intimidating. 'Intimidating' was one of Daddy's fun words; he liked to say that Papa Snape was a master of intimidation. Teddy always obeyed Papa, or tried to, but he didn't really think Papa was all that intimidating.
Whoops, Uncle Harry and Madam Pomfrey were talking. He tried to sit still and ignore the Snitch and listen, and even metamorphed his ears into rabbit ears to hear better. Then just for fun, he added a fluffy bunny tail, though it didn't fit well under his trousers (which had no hole for a tail to poke through, even a small tuft of a bunny tail) and made him squirm until he found a more comfortable position.
"Mr Potter, there is absolutely nothing wrong with young Theodore here," she said firmly, her hands on her hips like a soldier. "Sooner or later, you're going to have to stop looking for a Death Eater in every shadow and start trusting some people. The war's been over for several years now!"
"I know that!" Harry argued back, "But that doesn't mean all of Voldemort's supporters have been brought in. Just last week the Carrows escaped and have yet to be caught again -"
Madam Pomfrey saw Teddy listening, and interrupted Harry. "Between you and Severus and Remus, I doubt anyone could get to this child unless you wanted them to. Now, did you have plans for the rest of the day?"
Teddy recognised that as a classic not-for-young-ears move. He wanted to hear more about the Carrows, but forgot about it when Harry blinked, then turned towards Teddy and smiled. He tugged lightly on one of Teddy's rabbit ears. "Looks like someone's ears are a little too long! Well, I thought we'd go to the amusement park - eat some cotton candy, play some games, go on some rides. What do you think?"
"Yea!" he yelled, but then paused, thinking hard. "But can we bring back some candy for Daddy and Papa?" he asked, wishing they were going with them. He twisted his rabbit ears, which were a good deal stretchier than real rabbit ears, under his chin.
For a moment Uncle Harry scowled for a moment, then nodded. "I guess we could. But Teddy, you'll have to wear your own face and hair, and not change colors or anything while we're at the park. We'll be surrounded by Muggles, who don't don't know that magic is real, and they might be scared to see a little boy wearing a nose that doesn't belong to him." He grinned affectionately at Teddy and rumpled his hair. Teddy made a face, but shrunk down his ears until they were his own normal, human ears.
* * * * *
The amusement park was a lot bigger and noisier and color-er than Teddy expected. The rides were painted in bright red and yellow and blue, and everywhere there were stands selling candy or food or game booths set up everywhere. He could smell fried dough and hot dogs, and and he saw at least 5 people carrying bags of cotton candy as big as their heads! Then there were the bells ringing and whistles warning and merry-go-round music playing, and people talking and shouting to each other. It looked like a lot of fun, but it also looked just a little bit scary. He was suddenly glad Uncle Harry was with him, and reached for his hand.
Harry smiled down at Teddy. "What shall we do first? It's almost noon - do you want to go on some rides first, or eat first?" In response, Teddy's tummy growled loudly, and he sniffed hungrily at the air. "Food it is, then," Harry laughed, "Hot dogs and fried dough sound alright?"
It definitely sounded alright, and soon Teddy was settled at an umbrella table with two hot dogs piled high with ketchup, mustard, relish, and onions. Both Teddy and Papa liked onions in everything, but they made Daddy's nose wrinkle. Papa Snape said it was because wolves didn't like how onions smelled, but Teddy thought they smelled ok, and tasted good in food.
Teddy also had gotten a plate of chips and another of fried dough, with powdered sugar and a huge blob of ice cream on top. Harry had argued it would melt before he got to it, but Teddy had argued that he should be able to eat it first in this case, and Harry had laughed and said he could if he wanted. Teddy wanted, and he started with the ice cream first, pushing his hot dogs to the side and watching people go by.
It was hot and sunny out, and Teddy had to eat his ice cream fast before it melted; it had already begun melting fast from the hot fried dough underneath it, but the dough also absorbed the melted treat. Teddy decided it tasted like an ice cream flavoured doughnut, and wondered if he could convince Remus to make them for breakfast sometime.
He was debating breaking Uncle Harry's rules for metamorphing, just enough to give him a really big mouth to fit a whole hot dog at once, after the first bite had been so tightly squeezed to fit that a huge splot of condiments dribbled down the front of his shirt. He didn't think Harry would notice, since currently Harry was gulping his hot dogs down in nearly two bites. Not that the splot really annoyed him, since Papa or Daddy would Scourgify it later.
He decided against the metamorphing when a woman Uncle Harry's age sat at their table across from them. "Do you mind?" she asked tentatively. "The other tables are all full....I'm Deborah, and this is my son, Joey. He looks about the same as your.....?" Her voice trailed off like she was afraid to assume their relationship. Teddy looked at Joey; he had sandy too-long blond hair that was tangled, and ketchup and mustard smeared across one cheek. He reminded Teddy of the Weasley twins and the way they smiled when they had a prank planned, like when they put giggling goo into the Christmas punch. Kreacher had had to warm the Christmas goose twice while everyone got the giggles out of their system.
Teddy set his remaining hot dog down carefully and wiped his messy hands on his napkin (that he'd only picked up because Harry had insisted). "I'm Teddy, and this is my Uncle Harry. I've been to an amusement park twice before, what about you?"
* * * * *
The amusement park was more fun with Joey to go on rides with. Mrs Deborah didn't seem to like fast or swoopy rides like roller coasters, so Uncle Harry stayed with her while he and Joey went on rides together instead. Teddy liked pretending they were going to sick up on the people in front of them, and wished he could turn his face green, but he was pretty sure Joey was a Muggle and he shouldn't do magic in front of him. Still, he didn't mind – much - not being able to metamorph or use magic, and Joey was a lot of fun. Teddy thought that later, he'd see how he'd look with hair that blond. Just for fun.
They were going to go on the Skyline next. Teddy thought it sounded awfully boring, just dangling his feet and watching people below while the air car slowly moved. Joey thought it would be fun if they could just drop water balloons on people below. Uncle Harry said the kids should ride it since it was a longer ride and would let Mrs Deborah sit down in the shade for more than two minutes since she said her feet hurt. So Harry and Mrs Deborah found a bench below the Skyline so they could wave to the kids, and Teddy and Joey queued up. However, while they were waiting in queue, Joey began wiggling. "I have to go to the bathroom!" he complained. "I had too much soda!"
Teddy scowled; it was almost their turn to ride now, and he didn't want to leave the queue. Even if it was a boring ride, but it was better than sitting still with Uncle Harry and Mrs Deborah! "If you get out of queue now, you'll lose your place, they're not gonna let you back in!" he protested, "Can't you wait til after the ride? C'mon, think about something else. Anything but water!"
"That's not helping!" Joey grumbled, trying to cross his legs without being too obvious. "But I don't think I can wait, and there's a bathroom right at the start of the line, so I can be quick and maybe just a couple cars back?" Joey sounded hopeful, but the line had been pretty long.
"You can run really fast, I guess," Teddy said, frowning doubtfully. "I mean, if you can't wait, you can't wait. D'you want me to wait for you?"
"No, I'll be right back!" Joey said breathlessly, then bolted for the restrooms, ducking under the tape that guided the long winding line.
Teddy kept watching the long line for Joey's blond hair, but when the cars were ready to boarded again, Joey was still gone, so he slid into the sky car. He was really skinny for his age, and discovered that if he wanted to, he could slither out from under the bar that was supposed to hold him in. He thought if it were Joey it would scare him to think of falling out, but Teddy thought it might be fun to try to slip out. Not that he'd tell Joey, of course.
A squat, lumpy man with dark messy hair streaked with grey squashed in next to him. "Both of us riding alone, it seems. You don't mind, do you?" he asked, with a a wheezy giggle that made Teddy uncomfortable.
Teddy thought for a moment. "No, I don't think so, but I don't want to talk to strangers," he said finally. Uncle Harry wouldn't want him on the Skyline alone, but he'd also warned him to not talk to strange people. The man not only had a creepy laugh, but he smelled a little sour, like he was afraid, the way Papa Snape sometimes was on the night of a full moon. Teddy wondered if he was afraid of heights, but why would someone afraid of heights ride the Skyline?
The man smiled at him, but Teddy thought even that didn't look right; it was lopsided and didn't look entirely friendly. "That's just fine then. I won't make you talk to me, but you don't mind me talking, do you?"
Reluctantly Teddy shook his head. He wanted to say, "No, you smell funny!" but Daddy had said that it was always worth being polite to people, even if you didn't like them, so he said "I guess not."
The car lurched a little as they started moving; Teddy pretended the view was fascinating and tried to ignore the man next to him. Uncle Harry had been right, he could see the whole park. In particular there was a water ride that looped and curled, and looked like a lot of fun. He decided he and Joey would have to find that ride next. But he was almost pitched forward out of the car when the Skyline came to an abrupt halt, suspending them high over the park. From the corner of his eye he could see Uncle Harry down below on a bench, chatting with Mrs Deborah. Leaning over the bar, he waved to them.
"Here now, you don't want to lean too far out, do you? Might fall, and you don't want that." The man smiled one of those slimy-seeming not-smiles, and Teddy almost thought he'd be better off falling out, but he eased back into his seat anyway. "Say, aren't you here with Harry Potter? I'd love to - to thank the Hero of the Wizarding World in person; think you could point him out in this crowd?"
Teddy pointed briefly down to where Harry and Deborah sat, before venturing his own question. "Do you know why the cars stopped?" He squirmed uncomfortably; he didn't like being stuck in a non-moving Skycar with a creepy, smelly stranger.
"Well now, that's a good question. Why are you squirming?"
When the man's eyes narrowed at him suspiciously, Teddy thought frantically. Somehow he thought telling the man that he was creepy and smelly and made Teddy feel like running away was the bad thing to say, so he fibbed, "I have to go to the bathroom, but I didn't want to get out of queue."
"Is that so?" The man said. Teddy shivered; he didn't like the slimy look in the man's eyes. "If you'd had sense you would've gone to the bathroom with your friend, rather than get on a ride alone with Amycus Carrow!"
* * * * *
Harry hated when people used his full name; it always meant trouble of some kind. To his friends, he was always Harry, just plain Harry. When people started calling "Harry Potter!" whether being asked to kill a Dark Lord or to be given an award, trouble was usually just around the corner.
So hearing his full name being shouted from the Skyline made his heart sink with dread. It wasn't Teddy; he would have shouted for 'Uncle Harry'. Unconsciously, he slipped into Auror mode. Surrounded by Muggles, can't draw wand without needing a full Obliviation squad. Can I slip away? No –- Teddy –-
"Harry Potter, so called savior of the Wizarding World," sneered a squat, lumpy man from above. He was holding Teddy and leaning out of their car dangerously far. Down below, Harry felt his heart freeze before he forced his emotions away into a corner of his mind to deal with later. A glint of metal. He has a knife - who would threaten a child to get at me? Next to him, he heard Deborah inhale sharply, and a quick glance over her showed her eyes wide and frightened. He was pleased to see, however, that she didn't freeze up; her eyes were glancing around quickly, looking for Joey or perhaps an escape route.
Harry wrenched his attention back to Teddy and his captor, tuning out Deborah's presence. No, he recognised the voice. Amycus Carrow. Then Alecto is probably here. He ran a quick visual surveillance of the area. Probably hiding like the toad she is. Buy time, find out what's on. Can't send for help with a Patronus, too visible. "What do you need from me?" he called up, loud and clear enough to be heard, spreading his hands to show he wasn't taking the offensive. Not outwardly, at least. But I can't show my hand while he's got Teddy. Teddy, stop struggling, you could make it worse.
"What do I need? What do I need?" Amycus laughed, a sickening sort of giggle that didn't sound right coming from such a lump of a man. "What I need, Harry Potter, is everything you took away! Freedom, money, prestige, a new wand to replace the one the Ministry so crudely broke in two – I never got a stolen wand to work right - and yes - I want a full pardon, Potter, so I don't have to see your filthy Mudblood Aurors ever again!" He seemed to be working up into a frenzy, gripping Teddy closer and closer to that gleaming knife.
Were there not so many Muggles around he'd pull his wand without a thought, but even if he did pull his wand now, he was only so fast on the draw, and the knife was right there, against the skin of Teddy's neck. If Carrow saw his hands drop towards his wand, it'd be over.
"What makes you think I have the authority to grant those requests?" Harry was proud of how steady and noncommittal his voice was. He didn't dare turn around to see what Deborah was doing, but he heard her whisper lowly enough that Amycus couldn't hear, "I called security, they'll be here soon – try to keep stalling."
* * * * *
Teddy squirmed and struggled in Amycus Carrow's grasp, though the knife frightened him a lot. He wanted to try changing into a Porcupine and prick the arms holding him, but Uncle Harry had said not to. But this guy was trying to use Teddy to force Harry to do things for him. Vaguely Teddy remembered stories about the Carrows when they had been 'professors' at Hogwarts. Hundreds of times worse than Papa Snape, Remus had whispered once, when Papa wasn't listening.
Teddy needed to get away, so he couldn't be used to help the Carrows .He couldn't change his shape because he'd promised Uncle Harry, but he'd promised Papa Snape that he'd obey. And Papa had said, "If you're in danger and it's somewhere high, the safest thing may to be to jump off and float down," and he was pretty darn sure this was somewhere high and he was in danger. He struggled harder, trying to twist away from the knife and tuning out the conversation shouted back and forth between Harry and Amycus and the crowd gathering below for the spectacle.
Carrow squeezed him until he couldn't breathe; he felt the knife bite into the skin under his chin, and he started to panic. I'm going to die, I'm going to die, help me Daddy, Papa! And then, suddenly, he remembered a Muggle movie about someone else who had been kidnapped, and how they had escaped.... He squeezed his eyes shut and concentrated. It wasn't too hard, he was so scared he could almost wet himself from fear, but it was harder trying to do so on purpose.
He stopped struggling and Amycus let up on his neck, so he could breath, then Teddy said really fast before he could be strangled again, "Don't squeeze me so hard or I'll wet myself, I have to go really bad!"
Amycus snarled, "Then you'll just have to wait until you've served your purpose, won't you--" Suddenly he cut himself off and yelled in fury, thrusting Teddy away from him. He began cursing loudly, fanning at a spreading damp spot on his shorts that matched the one on the front of Teddy's shorts.
Teddy tried to appear apologetic. "I said I had to go really bad, and you were squeezing me, and I just couldn't hold it anymore - I, I have to go!" He cried, and pretended as if he were going to piss in the corner of the car, then let himself go limp and slide under the bar. It was a tight squeeze, so he made some parts of his head rubbery to fit, like his ears. He hoped Uncle Harry wouldn't mind that too much, as he still looked the same, and he slipped under the bar keeping them in the sky car, launching himself into the air beneath it.
Distantly he could hear cries of fear below him, but he ignored them, spreading his arms as he fell, and followed Snape's instructions. He knew it worked when the wind stopped roaring past his ears. Below him, the cries of fear became muted exclamations of amazement. Then he could hear Uncle Harry yelling Lumos Maxima and right after it, Petrificalus totalus! He was almost blinded by the light as his feet touched ground, feather-light.
Then a Patronus brushed past him and he stumbled into Uncle Harry's arms. Harry hugged him, pulled back, looked at him, cast a hasty Scourgify, and hugged him again. From the corner of his eye Teddy saw someone coming towards them, weaving comfortably between the Muggles dazed from the burst of light. As he got closer Teddy recognized the ginger mop of hair, and then identified him as Ron Weasley, who was an Auror just like Uncle Harry.
Harry pointed to the stalled Skyline above him, and to the car Teddy had been. "Amycus Carrow. Tried to hold Teddy hostage. Carrow's still up there. Can you take care of it?" Harry explained in terse sentences. Ron and Harry had worked together so much though, that Ron only nodded.
"Right, then. Any injuries? Backup?"
Harry shook his head. "No, but we're definitely going to need a squad of Obliviators - or at least a general forgotfulness or notice-me-not charm for this vicinity."
Ron nodded again just once, then strode off briskly, muttering under his breath (Teddy could just make out the words, which were Constant vigilance!), keeping a distrustful eye on the Skyline. And then it was just Teddy and Harry.
For a moment Teddy was afraid Uncle Harry would yell at him for using magic even though Harry had used magic too, and with a wand. But Harry just tugged him over to the bench where Mrs Deborah and he had been waiting for Teddy and Joey to ride the Skyline.
Mrs Deborah looked confused and pale; Teddy felt bad for scaring her, and apologised, but she quickly overrode him. "I am confused, certainly, but goodness knows stranger things have happened every day. Granted, not - not in front of me, but still... " she managed a smile for Teddy. "You're safe and that's what matters." She stood and picked up her purse. "I should find Joey. Do you know--"
Teddy interrupted her, sad that magic had made her so uncomfortable. "Joey had to go to the bathroom while we were in line. That's why I ended up with that horrid guy instead. I didn't mean to cause trouble, honest!"
"I know, trouble just seems to find children no matter whose they are. I'll just go look for Joey, shall I?" She left, quickly, leaving a dejected Teddy sitting next to Harry on the bench that, earlier that day, had held four new friends.
* * * * *
Teddy was explaining what had happened in the sky car to Harry when footsteps made them both lift their heads. Then Harry reached for his wand, because it was another wizard; a woman, squat and lumpy and scowling like Amycus, except she already had a wand extended and pointed at Teddy.
"Don't even try to move!" she snarled, and Teddy shifted nervously, freezing when her eyes narrowed. "You've cheated us out of our dues too many times, and I mean to make sure you pay for it. If not in Galleons and freedom, then in something even more dear! Look at what you've reduced us to – I had to steal a wand – who ever heard of a witch without a wand? Not to worry, the witch I stole it from will never need it again." She laughed unpleasantly, and her fingers gripped her wand so tightly they turned white. "That is, if you can call a mudblood any kind of witch!"
Harry tried to hide his frustration. "Alecto Carrow. I should have known that where one of you lurks, the other is sure to appear." His voice was flat and angry.
She stepped closer, wand arm not wavering, and her voice turned sing-song. "What price shall I demand? His wand arm, perhaps? His eyes, so he will never again look upon your face? His feet? Maybe I'll just cut him all to pieces, or skin him alive and make a rug of his skin. He is the offspring of an animal, isn't he?"
Only then did it click in Teddy's head that the threats were meant for him, and when he figured out that she was calling Daddy an animal, his temper sparked. He surged to his feet, fists clenched and face blotching in anger. "My Daddy is not an animal, he's good and kind and you're, you're nothing but an ugly beast!" he yelled.
Her free hand whipped out and struck him across the face. He staggered bacwards a step and his eyes teared a little, but he glared back at her. "You take that back!" he shouted. Behind her he could see Mrs Deborah and Joey coming towards them; Joey was pointing to them and tugging her along.
So he never even saw the wand move, and only barely heard the word Sectumsempra. He looked down when he felt pain blossoming over his shoulder and he felt a warm fluid flowing over his skin. Blood, he thought numbly. Harry fumbled for his wand, eyes wide with horror; there was a wicked smile on Alecto's face, the kind bad guys have in movies when they think they're about to win. Teddy wondered, a bit fuzzily, if he was going to die.
Then he heard a shout, and a blond head was charging towards them. "Hey! Pick on someone your own size!" Joey was yelling, and behind him Mrs Deborah was running towards them too. Teddy tried to tell Joey to run away, but Alecto was turning towards him, and Teddy couldn't seem to make himself move.
-- and Harry roared Protego! and cast a shield around Joey and Mrs Deborah,
But Alecto had spun and was already leveling her wand at Teddy. Harry, noticing his mistake, windmilled in an attempt to change direction,
-- and Mrs Deborah reached them, swinging her laden shoulder-bag, screaming shrilly with fear, "You leave him alone! Somebody help!" Her bag connected with the back of Alecto's head.
Alecto crumpled, just as Ron appeared on the scene, flushed and frantic. We were saved by Muggles, Teddy thought dimly, closing his eyes as Uncle Harry, Ron, Mrs Deborah, and Joey crowded around him.
* * * * *
Teddy woke to warmth and soft, fuzzy comfort. When he opened his eyes, he found himself back in his own room, covered in his own tatty patchwork quilt that Papa wanted to replace but Daddy said was ok to keep. Teddy liked it; it smelled like cinnamon and smoke and very faintly of biscuits. When he poked his nose out from under the coverlet and looked around, he noticed Snape dozing in a chair next to his bed, black clothes wrinkled as if he'd been sleeping there all night.
He tried to sit up and discovered his shoulder was wrapped in bandages and that it hurt to move, and he hissed. In the chair, Papa Snape stirred and then sat up straight, wide awake in an instant. "Don't move around," he said quickly. "We sealed the wound, but it will take another day or two of rest and strength and blood replenishing potions before you will feel recovered. Thankfully Potter had enough sense left to send for me immediately."
"Are Joey and Mrs Deborah ok?" he asked, a little nervously. They'd seen magic, and Muggles were usually Obliviated. "They had to be Oblivated, right?" He tried to hide the quiver in his voice, since sons of werewolves and Slytherins didn't cry without very good reason, but he had really liked hanging out with Joey, and he was funny and clever.
"Actually, we had a bit of a surprise when you passed out," said Daddy Remus, entering the room bearing a tray and closely followed by a very quiet Uncle Harry. He set the tray on the nightstand next to Teddy; it had a vegetable-chicken stew. Papa made it in large batches; Daddy liked it right after transformations, and they all liked it when any of them didn't feel quite tops.
Teddy sniffed at the tray; the delicious smells made his stomach growl, and he wondered how long it had been since he ate those hot dogs and fried dough. "So....Joey does remember me still?"
Remus summoned a loaf of fresh bread and a crock of butter from the kitchen before answering. "Well, normal circumstances would demand that Muggles who witness magic be Obliviated, but when you passed out from blood loss, it appears that Joey had a - well, one of the random occurrences of magic that happen spontaneously in the young under strong emotion. He somehow managed to hold the wound closed long enough for Severus to arrive and administer the counter curse." Teddy winced remembering when the curse had hit him; one of his hands moved to touch the bandage. He wondered how bad it was, and if he'd have scars now like Daddy.
"Deborah was a little stunned by the revelation," Remus continued, "but both she and Joey accompanied us to St Mungo's. Minerva flooed over to meet with her, and I think she's accepting of it; as well as can be accepted, of course. She's also proud as punch, since Joey pretty much saved your life. And so did she, taking on a Dark wizard with just a handbag!"
"Gryffindors," Snape grumbled from his chair, shooting a venomous glare at Harry, who shifted uncomfortably from his position near the door.
"Er, I have an apology to make, and I should say this in front of all of you. Teddy was able to escape from Amycus due to Snape teaching him to fly, and yet when it came down to it, I was completely ineffective at protecting him. When I saw him up there, when I didn't think there was anything I could do, and then saw him floating down after he got loose..." Harry swallowed, face flushed, and looked directly at Snape. "I'm sorry, I was wrong. Please, teach Teddy how to protect himself and stay safe. No one can do a better job."
Snape nodded curtly in acceptance, though Teddy knew by the set of his jaw that it would be a while before he went anywhere accompanied with just Uncle Harry. But that was ok, so long as the fighting stopped. He stole a peek over at Daddy Remus; he looked tired from worrying, but he smiled broadly at Papa.
But already Teddy was thinking of other things, and as he thought, his hair sprouted a startling blonde shade. "Hey, if Joey's a wizard now, does that mean I don't have to keep my metamorphing a secret?"
He took their cumulative groans as a yes.