The Blood At Dusk (HP AU)

Chapter 16: Venenum

"What about your friends? Weasley and Granger? Don't you like them? You hang around them constantly." The Malfoy heir asked, confused and determined to find the answer.

9:15pm. "Um, yeah. I recently found out that they were actually being paid to be friends with me... so they are now out of the picture..." Harry replied with a somber but frustrated tone. Saying it outloud was worse than thinking it. Without realising, tears had started to gather in his eyes, but he blinked them away before any could escape.

"They were paid?! That's just cruel!" Narcissa exclaimed. Harry chuckled and smiled knowing the fact that he wasn't getting upset over nothing. 

"Oh, wait! I just remembered that the Ministry of Magic is ordering a resorting because they found out the hat was letting students pick their own houses. Why it matters, i have no idea. Maybe you'll get sorted in one of the other houses." Lucius reminded himself. Harry and Draco perked up, Draco looked at Harry with a smile on his face and said cheerfully:

"That's great! Now you can be apart from those traitors. If you're sorted into Ravenclaw there's always that Lovegood girl and Hufflepuff will probably end up with Longbottom, so you'll have him as well."

"And if you're sorted into Slytherin, Draco and his friends can help you out." Narcissa added. All Malfoys suddenly had an urge to protect the bruised and bloody boy in front of them.

9:17pm. Harry smiled softly at them, his jaw hurting with the smallest amount of movement. But his smile was short lived "But... won't your friends mind. I mean, I haven't been the nicest to you in the past"

Draco put his hand on Harry's right hand, careful to not scare or hurt him. "If I tell them about Granger and Weasel, they won't care what you've done to them, besides we haven't been that nice to you either" Draco's eyes flashed out of their glamour. His right eye was a bright blue with a black sclera, just like Harry's, his other eye was purple with a yellow sclera. It relaxed Harry even more and thanked him.

"By the way, your eyes changed colour" Harry told Draco as Madam Malkin started to walk over with a 2 boxes of robes.

"Oh shit" Draco murmured under his breath, careful that his parents didn't hear. His glamour was applied once more and Harry laughed slightly at him as Draco rushed to make sure nothing had been uncovered. "Am I good?"

9:20pm. Harry laughed once more, "Yeah, everything's normal. Don't worry about it."

They all paid Madam Malkin and thanked her before walking out.

They all headed for the final stop. Scribbulus writing instruments, they grabbed some parchments, quills and ink pots. Harry however caught sight of an A3 notebook that would also double as a sketchbook. 

9:23pm. "Harry, get your arse over here now!" Draco whispered from a few feet away. Harry calmly walked over to Draco, looking at his face. It was frozen in fear as he stared at something on his black shirt sleeve. Harry looked at Draco's upper arm and suddenly understood why he was scared. There was a bloody scorpion on his arm.

"Wow, that fucking beautiful" It was about 4 inches long and was a pale yellow. "Oh fuck" Harry whispered under his breath. 

"What?"

"Not to scare you or anything, but that a Deathstalker scorpion." 

"Yes I know what it is. I also know it has a very dangerous poison. If you don't get it off now I will throw a fit"

9:25pm. Harry ignored the last bit of Draco's sentence and held his hand out to it, feeling a slight pull, like the kind of pull he felt when he found Ostium. The scorpion scurried onto Harry's hand. Draco looked amazed. "Ok 1 how did you do that? And 2 I'm a bit scared because I think I felt a pull towards it, like you know, the kind of pull when you find your familiar" Harry's head snapped up at Draco's words.

"That's weird because I just felt the same thing..." Draco and Harry looked each other in the eye and looked back down to the scorpion who was nuzzling against Harry's hand but still hanging onto Draco's sleeve, like it didn't want to leave Draco but stay with Harry at the same time. "Wait, I've read about this sort of thing. It's called a 'Joint Familiar Bond', it happens to people who have or will have a strong and stable relationship." They looked at each other, taking in the other's appearance.

"Yeah, we're going to be a bloody dream team." Harry replied calmly, laughing quietly along with Draco.

"Come on you two, you've got your supplies, now pay for them before I take the extra supplies away from both of you" Lucius demanded playfully. Harry and Draco smiled, and headed to the counter, with the scorpion in Draco's robe pocket. After they had gotten everything, Harry shrunk his things wandlessly and wordlessly and put them in his pocket. 

"So what should we call her?" Draco asked Harry as they walked out ahead of Lucius and Narcissa who were talking quietly behind them. 

"Maybe... Venenum? It means poison in Latin." Harry suggested, Ostium hissed happily from Harry's sleeve. He seemed to like the name.

Draco chuckled at Ostium and replied smiling, "It's perfect!"

9:38pm. Lucius came up behind Draco and slapped his hand on Draco's shoulder gently, "We best be getting back home. Hopefully we can see on the platform Harry."

"Alright, see you then. Sit with me on the back of the train Draco?" Harry asked happily.

"Yeah, definitely. Stay safe Harry, bye-" Draco was suddenly cut off as all three apparated out of Diagon Alley.

9:40pm. Harry smiled to himself, he finally had something to look forward to.

9:41pm. A sudden bolt of realisation shot through Harry's brain like lightning. It was 9:41pm, Vernon will be home soon. Tears began to build up in his eyes, the street was quiet, only the glow of Gringotts lit up his vision. His breath became shaky, his legs threatened to buckle and his heart felt like it was beating in his throat. A quick glamour was reapplied, before he shakily breathed in and pulled out the portkey.

"...Galleons..."