Harry nodded and allowed himself to be led away, going to the Owlery where he could send off his broom to be repaired. It was only once they were actually in the semi-privacy of the Owlery that he let two hot tears slide down his cheeks.
Lucius sighed. "Why are you crying? It will be fixed within a month. I'll make sure of it."
Harry shook his head. "I know that. It's just…Sirius gave me this broom. I've loved it as I loved him and now he's gone, so I…"
"You cling to the broom in his place." Lucius surmised as Harry fell silent.
Harry nodded. "Now it looks like this and it's all going to be replaced and it won't be the broom that he gave to me anymore, the parts of it that he actually touched with his own hands will be removed and replaced."
"The handle is still intact, it doesn't look to be compromised and ebony wood is very hard and dense, thus it takes considerable force to damage. It is only really the licencing that needs to be re-engraved and the tail twigs need to be replaced, he would have still held this broom in his hands, he still paid for it with his own money and the intent behind the gesture will not diminish merely because it needs to be serviced. He still loved you enough to buy this broom for you, he still wanted you to have it and you will have it back once it has been repaired. The memories attached to it will not leave you."
Harry sniffled and he nodded his head. "I understand, I just hate seeing something so precious to me like this."
"Then, let us send it off and be gone with this upsetting sight."
Harry nodded again and handed the Firebolt to Lucius, who used one of the numerous school owls to send the broomstick off to the manufacturers company, Ellerby and Spudmore. He watched the large owl carry off the ruined broomstick with a note written by Lucius about what had happened to it and what he wished to be done about it. Harry swallowed hard when it was finally out of sight and he turned back to Lucius, his face now dry of the few tears that had fallen.
"I have so few things to remember the people I love." He said softly. "When anyone damages those things, I get so angry and I lose control of my emotions. I'm sorry for that."
Lucius nodded. "I understand quite well, Harry, there is no need to apologise. I have only ever struck Draco in malice once in my life and he was just a boy, no more than six. He idolised me, as I believe he still might, but he often played with my jewellery and my dress robes. I would come home to find him in one of my most expensive robes, trailing it behind him and walking all over the internal fabric, wearing my chains and rings that were much too big for him. I never minded and it used to amuse me, so I never thought to stop him. He found a lockbox of mine in a cupboard out of his reach and he'd gotten our house-elf, Dobby, to open it for him and, as I had never told him not to open it, the elf did as he was told. Inside was a rather ancient family heirloom, dating back hundreds of years to Armand Malfoy. The gold was pure, meaning it was very soft and malleable and in the hands of a six-year-old, it did not last for very long until it broke. I was so furious that something so precious to my family, that had become so precious to me, had been broken by anyone, that I actually struck Draco across the face. Of course, such an action had severe consequences, none more so than my wife threatening to take our son and leave me. I regret what I did to my own son, but when I saw the ruined heirloom, I didn't even think before I acted. It is one of only a handful of times where I have acted without thought and it has served to remind me exactly how important it is to think before I act. I am unsure whether Draco remembers the incident or not, but he never played with my jewellery again and he never dressed up in my robes again and just a few months later, he hit another person for the first time; Astoria Greengrass, his own betrothed. I have a feeling that that was a direct consequence of what I'd done months earlier to him, but I could never be sure if it was a coincidence or not."
Harry had no idea what to say about that, so he stayed silent and held his tongue. Lucius ran a large hand over his shoulder and squeezed.
"Come, I think I'll spend an hour or so with you and Draco and check over all of your school assignments to make sure that you're exercising your full abilities."
"I am! I swear I am. I even considered dropping myself from the Quidditch team, though now I won't…I'm going to make that team the best I can and I'll do it on a school broom if I have to!"
Lucius smiled at him. "Strength of character…good. Keep that up and you might find yourself making something of yourself, now come along, I don't have endless amounts of time to spend here and I do want to spend some time with you and Draco before I have to leave."
Harry nodded and he turned on his heel and he followed Lucius out of the Owlery. He took the man to the library, where he found Draco and Blaise waiting for them with their homework spread out already. Harry settled himself down and he very much enjoyed the time that he spent with the three, even if it was just doing homework in the dusty school library.
Lucius sighed as he received the breakdown invoice from Ellerby and Spudmore. The Firebolt was in a bad way, but he had been correct, the ebony handle was not compromised and there were no fractures or splinters which could possibly cause a fatal accident for Harry if he flew it, it didn't need to be replaced. The birch tail twigs, however, were another matter entirely. They were unable to be salvaged and had needed to be completely stripped from the broom and fully replaced. The golden engraving of Harry's personal licencing numbers had been professionally retouched without damaging the broom handle and Lucius was very pleased. Very much so, especially after he'd seen exactly how much these services were going to cost.
He had made sure to inform the Minister of the incident in the form of small talk, which wasn't actually small talk at all but a perfectly placed, well thought out plantation of subtle information meant to discredit the Weasleys and Dumbledore under the guise of meaningless small talk about his adopted son, who just so happened to be Harry Potter, a boy that everyone was very interested in.
"Darling, I was making up Draco's monthly treat package and had the thought to make one for our Harry too, do you think he would prefer a gift card from Quality Quidditch Supplies or a subscription to Which Broomstick?"
Lucius smiled and turned to look at his wife, who was taking to Harry like a Grindylow to water.
"I believe that he would much prefer a subscription to The Quibbler, Dear. I have seen him reading it on occasion and I believe that it amuses him greatly. The young Lovegood is a friend of his."
"Are you sure that that girl is still talking to him? Draco says that since the start of the school year, our Harry has been very isolated from his house as they reacted very badly to his adoption."
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