Decreso Aetas

“What are we to do, Albus?” Madam Pomfrey asked. “We can’t have the school know about this!” The Headmaster paced along the foot of the bed, pinching the bridge of his nose in deep thought. He knew they couldn’t have a young child running around the castle. Who knew what problems that could cause?

“May I ask what has caused this, Poppy?” Professor Dumbledore asked, still pacing back and forth. The sight of the Headmaster looking so distraught was unnerving. The nurse didn’t hesitate to fill him in with what Ron and Hermione had told her.

“So, it had been Mr. Malfoy who had done this?” The nurse nodded. “Very well. Please go and find both Miss Granger and Mr. Weasley, as well as Mr. Malfoy. We need to sort this out.” Madam Pomfrey left right away. The Headmaster sat on the foot of Harry’s bed and looked closely at him. He looked so young and innocent. At the last comment, the professor chuckled despite himself, knowing the boy was far from it.

Within minutes the nurse hurried into the Hospital wing closely followed by Ron and Hermione, both looking apprehensive, and Draco, who was sulking behind them. The Headmaster stood up, shielding Harry from view for the time being.

“I am aware that you two have just brought him here,” he said, looking pointedly at the two Gryffindors, who nodded in response, “but the change Mr. Potter has underwent has occurred much sooner than Madam Pomfrey has expected.” He stepped aside to let them see Harry. Hermione gasped loudly, Ron muttered a quiet “Bloody hell!” and even Draco looked mildly surprised.

At that moment, Harry began to stir. The small boy opened his eyes, looking around at them all. He let out a small yelp and backed up against the headboard of the bed. Ron walked slowly over to the bed. “Are you okay, mate?“Harry backed up as far as he could go, his emerald eyes wide. Seeing his discomfort, Hermione rushed over toward Ron and pulled him away by the back of his robes.

“He’s not going to remember you!” she hissed into his ear. No doubt crossed anyone’s mind that she had read something involving this spell on humans before. Ron went slightly pale before he rounded on Draco.

“This is all your bloody fault!” he shouted. Madam Pomfrey hurried over to Ron, whose fingers were inches away from Draco’s throat, and pulled him away.

“Mr. Weasley! Please restrain yourself from strangling another student!” she said in a strained voice. Ron glared at Draco once more before going to sit in a chair by Harry’s bed. Professor Dumbledore cleared his throat, calling their attention toward him. The seething redhead continued sending death glares in the blonde’s direction. He balled his hands into fists, his fingers itching to wrap themselves around the blonde’s throat.

“I know you are all aware of Mr. Potter’s current situation. Despite the short period in which this transformation has occurred, I have come up with a plan for the time being,” the Headmaster began, pacing once more. He was all too aware of the terrified emerald eyes that followed his every move. “Hopefully, it will work. We know that no one can see him in his current state, as it may lead to problems that could eventually find their way to the Ministry.” The professor scowled after that last statement. He still had many differences to sort out with Cornelius Fudge, who was still riding strong as the Minister of Magic. “Our young Gryffindor will need to lie low and stay under supervision under any circumstance.” All three of the students, except for the small Gryffindor, nodded slowly. “As it was Mr. Malfoy’s doing, though by accident, Harry will be staying with him.”

After that last statement, all hell broke loose. The three older students all started shouting at once. Bits of “- but I’m Head Girl, he could stay with me! -”, “- You can’t trust the bloody ferret for all he’s worth! -”, and “- I am so not having a Gryffindor staying in my dormitory!” were heard. The Headmaster held up a hand and they silenced at once.

“Mr. Malfoy is Head boy,” the Headmaster stated. “I understand you are Head Girl, Miss Granger, but you have many more duties to attend to,” he said quickly as she opened her mouth to protest. “Mr. Potter will stay in Mr. Malfoy’s dormitories until the spell wears off. You are a very powerful wizard Mr. Malfoy, so this spell can last between a few weeks to a few months.” Draco’s mouth fell open.

“I will have to stay with Potter for a few months?” he half shouted. No one took notice of Harry, who was now hiding under the bedcovers.

“We’re not for certain, Mr. Malfoy,” Professor Dumbledore explained. “We will have him stay with you until it wears off. Some of his clothes, which will be reduced in size of course, will be sent to your dormitory. We will just need a cover story for both of you for missing your classes until then -”

“What?! I’m going to be missing my classes?” Draco shouted, the lump of blankets on the bed now quivering.

“Yes, Mr. Malfoy, you will be. You can’t have a five year old child following you throughout the school causing problems, now can you?” the Headmaster pointed out. “He cannot be left alone, as well. There is no other solution.” The room remained quiet until Hermione spoke out quietly.

“I think I have an idea for a cover story, Professor,” she said. The Headmaster nodded, telling her to go on. “I have heard that there is a nasty bout of the Emissio Veneficium flu going around this year. It is Latin for loose magic. You could tell the school that Harry and Malfoy have gotten a bad case of it and have to stay quarantined from the rest of the school. Otherwise, they would destroy anything in their path with uncontrolled magic.” She paused to take a breath, looking at the professor expectantly. He seemed to be considering her idea. Much to her pleasure, he broke into a smile.

“That is very nice thinking Miss Granger,” Professor Dumbledore said. He sighed, knowing he will have to round up the rest of the students that had been in the class and remind them not to say what had really happened to Harry and Draco. They would need to know where he was, as well. He then turned to look at the blonde, who was still sulking about having Harry stay in his dormitory. “I will announce to the school that you two are ill and unable to control your magic. I can get Mr. Weasley here to take over your Head Boy duties, and Mr. Zabini can take your position as the Slytherin Seeker for the time being.” Draco only scowled even more darkly. “Now, I guess we should get acquainted with our young Mr. Potter.” At the sound of his name, Harry peeked over the top of the sheet. His stunningly green eyes were as wide as ever.

“How do you know my name?” he asked quietly. Hermione smiled at him and Ron chuckled. Dumbledore thought quickly.

“Let’s just say your aunt and uncle told us your name when they brought you here,” he replied.

“You mean, I live here now?” he asked hopefully. “I never have to go back?” The Headmaster’s eyes twinkled slightly, and he gave the small boy a smile.

“For now, yes. We will make sure you are happy here, Harry,” Dumbledore replied, being rewarded with a smile that lit up the young Gryffindor’s face. “Now, why don’t you tell us a little about yourself?” Harry looked down, looking shy.

“My name is Harry James Potter and I live with my aunt, uncle, and my cousin Dudley,” he began. A sad look suddenly crossed over his young features. “My mum and dad died in a car crash when I was little,” he said quietly. A sniff was heard from Hermione and she smiled sadly. They all knew, including Draco, to everyone’s surprise, he had been force fed that lie because his aunt and uncle would never want to reveal the truth to him since it involved the dreaded ‘M’ word.

“What are your aunt, uncle, and cousin like?” Dumbledore asked. Draco leaned forward a little, as this would be new information to him. Harry never uttered a word to him about his sad excuse for a family, unless he let something slip about having a crummy life compared to him. Harry looked down and examined his small hands. When he spoke, his voice was very quiet.

“They aren’t very nice,” he began. “My uncle and cousin hit me even when I don’t do anything. Yesterday Uncle Vernon threw a book at me after I asked him to read it to me.” Harry lifted up his hospital robes and revealed an ugly bruise on one side of his stomach. Hermione began gasped, tears threatening to fall from her cinnamon brown eyes. He had never revealed that he had been abused. “Dudley always steals my food and eats it, even if he had eaten already. He chases me and punches me a lot. It hurts.” The young Gryffindor began sniffling, curling up under the sheet. The Headmaster immediately regretted his question about Harry’s family.

“Harry, it’s okay. They won’t be able to hurt you anymore,” the Headmaster said soothingly. “You will be very happy here in the castle.” Harry immediately sat up.

“I’m - I’m in a castle?” he whispered, looking amazed. He swung his small legs over the side of the bed and padded over to a window. His jaw fell open as his emerald eyes scanned the large grounds surrounding the castle. He caught sight of other towers, all rising toward the opalescent blue sky. His hands and nose were pressed against the glass. Hermione, Ron, and Professor Dumbledore laughed lightly. Even Draco had a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, which he quickly replaced with his trademark smirk.

“Yes, you are, Mr. Potter, and it is a very safe one. No one will be able to harm you here,” the professor added. Harry seemed to be off in his own world at the moment. His eyes were glazed over and he was biting his lip. The Headmaster walked over to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, breaking him out of his reverie. Harry turned around quickly, looking at them all. He began to look nervous again. Professor Dumbledore, being the quick-witted man he was, noticed this. “I guess I should tell you who we are, since you will be staying here with us.” He looked pointedly at Hermione, who stepped over and kneeled down in front of Harry, smiling brightly.

“Hello, Harry,” she said cheerfully. “My name is Hermione Granger. It’s nice to meet you.” Harry smiled at her.

“Hello, Her-my -” Harry paused, looking thoughtful. A smile then spread across his face. “Hello, ‘Mione!” She laughed lightly, as well as Ron, who was now stepping over to him.

“Hiya, mate,” he said, kneeling down in front of Harry. “My name is Ron Weasley.”

“Hi, Ron,” he replied, smiling at the redhead. Draco was waiting to see if the Headmaster would go before him, but he was receiving knowing glances from the three of them. Sighing, he stepped over toward the small boy and knelt down.

“Hello, Po-” Draco stopped in mid sentence as he received a stern glance from the professor. Sighing dejectedly, he tried again. “Hello, Harry.” The name sounded foreign when it came out of his mouth. Draco shuddered and stood up. Harry held onto his robes to keep him from walking away.

“What’s your name? You never told me,” Harry informed him. Once again, Draco sighed.

“My name is Draco,” Draco replied, not looking at Harry. It was then the Headmaster’s turn to step over to Harry.

“Hello, Harry. My name is Albus Dumbledore,” he began, smiling at Harry. “If you ever need any help, you can always ask Draco to bring you too me, or you could just ask these two.” He motioned toward the three teens in turn. The Headmaster turned toward Draco. “You will take him to your dormitory now, Mr. Malfoy, and I will be arriving there shortly.” He then turned to look at Ron and Hermione. “In the meantime, you can go back to your respected dorms as well. And remember,” he added, just as they turned to leave. “Don’t breathe a word about what has taken place.” The two Gryffindors nodded simultaneously and left together, whispering.

Draco turned to look at the anxious looking child who inched closer toward the Headmaster. The Slytherin narrowed his eyes at him and then began stalking toward the door. Harry looked to Professor Dumbledore, who merely nodded, and, though reluctantly, quickly followed him.

Harry looked up and down the corridor, looking frightened, before running after Draco while stumbling over the hospital gown. "Hey, wait for me!" he shouted after the blonde. Draco turned quickly and hurried over toward him, the Gryffindor stopping dead in his tracks.

"You have to be quiet," he hissed, placing his hand over Harry's mouth. "No one can know what has happened to you." Harry nodded quickly as he tried to peel away Draco's fingers, his emerald eyes wide and filled with emotions that could easily be read as confusion and fear. Draco looked at Harry's hospital gown, which was hanging off his small shoulders, with distaste. He took out his wand, which Harry looked at frightfully, and transfigured it to a t-shirt and a pair of jeans that fit perfectly. He was looking at himself, not sure about what had just happened to what he had been wearing. Harry then stepped out of his large shoes and pointed at them.

"Uh uh, I don't wanna wear 'em," he said in his small voice and backing against the wall, looking ready to take any insult or hit that could be thrown at him. Rolling his eyes, Draco picked up the shoes. He raised an eyebrow at them. "Damn, Potter, you had some big feet," he said before continuing to walk down the corridor, followed closely by a confused looking Harry.