Chapter 14

Tony rubbed his temple, his phone lighting up for the fifth time in the last half hour. Pepper again. He sighed and finally answered with a resigned, "Yeah, Pep?"

Her voice was clipped but concerned. "Tony, I can't hold the press off much longer. People are starting to notice you've disappeared. You dropped off the grid for almost a week. Board members are getting antsy, and the press is—"

"I know, I know," Tony muttered, pacing the hotel suite. He glanced toward the closed bedroom door where Harry was resting. "But I can't leave. Not yet."

Pepper lowered her voice. "Tony, what's going on?"

He hesitated. "Something important. Just… trust me a little longer, okay?" He hasn't told Pepper about whole magic thing. Besides I cannot talk about it over the phone, she call him crazy without any prove.

"I do," she said, softer now. "But whatever you're doing—don't disappear completely."

"I promise, I call you later"

Tony ended the call, then immediately rang Rhodey. "Rhodey, I need a Plan B. I'm getting swamped with attention. We have to move."

"You can leave with a decoy if you need to," Rhodey said, calm but firm on the other end. "But I'm guessing you're not leaving without Harry."

"Bingo," Tony said, dropping into a chair. "Not happening. I'm not letting him out of my sight until he's legally out of that nightmare."

Just then, a sharp knock came at the door.

Tony stood, already knowing who it was. He opened the door to find Amelia Bones and Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody standing in the hallway, both dressed in long cloaks. Moody's magical eye whirled around the hall before locking onto Tony.

"Stark," Amelia greeted, stepping inside with a thick folder in hand. "We have progress."

Tony closed the door behind them and gestured toward the table. "Let's hear it."

Amelia sat down and opened the folder, spreading out several parchment pages. "These are the guardianship documents. If you sign these, you'll be appointed Harry's legal guardian in the Muggle world. However—" she said, looking up, "you cannot be his magical guardian."

Tony blinked. "Why not?"

Moody grunted. "Because that role still legally belongs to Sirius Black."

Tony's eyes narrowed. "The guy who's in prison for betraying Harry's parents?" Right, Even if whole Godfather magic oath bomb if broken he blow up, Tony didn't believe that shit yet.

Amelia raised a hand. "No. We've confirmed what we suspected. Sirius Black is innocent. Wrongfully imprisoned without trial. That's being corrected as we speak. He'll have his day in court — soon."

Moody growled, "About bloody time, too. James was one of mine. The way they treated his best friend was criminal."

Tony looked between them, his mind processing. "So Sirius is the magical guardian, and I'd be… what, everything else?"

"Exactly," Amelia said. "School registration, healthcare, travel, home authority — all under your name. Sirius would be responsible for magical guidance when needed. Think of it like joint custody."

Tony exhaled, then picked up a quill from the parchment — it shimmered faintly in his hand.

"No ink?"

Amelia smiled slightly. "It uses blood to seal. Just a drop."

Tony raised an eyebrow, muttering, "Wizard documents and blood. Real subtle." Still, he pricked his finger and signed.

As the paper glowed and sealed itself with golden light, Moody gave a sharp nod. "It's done. He's yours."

Tony looked toward the room where Harry slept.

"Yeah," he said quietly. "He always was."

Harry stirred awake, blinking against the softness beneath him. For a moment, confusion clouded his thoughts. The bed was too soft, the sheets too clean. There was warmth in the air, not the usual musty cold of his cupboard or the stale draft of the smallest bedroom.

He sat up slowly.

Then he remembered.

The hotel. Tony. The food. The conversation. Amelia Bones, the grizzled man with the magical eye, and the way everyone had looked at him like… he mattered.

A soft flutter came from the window perch — Hedwig.

She looked regal and free, no lock on her cage, no tight corner to be stuffed in. She gave a short hoot, hopping down to rest on his shoulder as if encouraging him to get up.

It's not a dream, He tells himself. No, it's real. Whenever he wakes up, He thinks it's a dream but it isn't. He has to get used to this now.

Harry took a breath, rolled out of bed, and padded toward the scent of food wafting through the suite. Tony was at the dinner table, reading something on a tablet with a plate of food already set out — and another still warm waiting across from him.

"Morning, kid," Tony said, looking up with a grin. "Or, well… evening. You kinda missed lunch. Sleeping beauty act working for you?"

Harry rubbed the back of his neck, sheepish. "Sorry. I was… tired." He has been sleepy lately. It never happen to him before than again, it was like at Hogwarts too. But, here it's more different and comfortable.

Tony waved it off. "No big deal. Sit. Eat. You've got catching up to do."

Harry sat across from him, eyeing the food but still a bit hesitant. It wasn't just the generous helping that made him nervous. It was that he didn't feel like he had to earn it. Not by mopping floors or staying quiet.

He started picking at the potatoes when Tony set the tablet aside and leaned forward.

"I've got some news for you," Tony said gently. "Big news."

Harry looked up.

Tony's expression softened — almost hesitant, but not unsure. "Those people… the Dursleys — they're being charged. Child endangerment, abuse, fraud. They're not getting away with what they did to you."

Harry froze, fork halfway to his mouth. His heart leapt into his throat, and he didn't dare to speak just yet.

Tony went on, voice steady. "Their son — Dudley — he's not staying with them either. He's being placed with that whale's sister. Some normal folks. Away from all this mess."

Harry blinked hard, struggling to believe it. "They're… gone? I don't have to go back?"

"You're not going back. Ever," Tony said firmly. "It's done. And you're staying with me now. That's legal, signed, sealed, magical seal and all. You're safe."

Harry's hand trembled slightly as he set the fork down. He didn't even notice the food anymore. There was a roaring silence in his head — something between disbelief and fragile hope.

Safe. He hadn't realized how foreign the word felt.

"They said I had to stay there. Dumbledore said it was for my protection." Harry remember telling the headmaster, How doesn't want to return back, He do anything. Heck, Orphanage sounds better than his relatives but he didn't agreed, He told him it was safe place for him. No matter how much Harry plead, he dismiss him.

Tony's expression darkened slightly. "Yeah, well… a lot of things were said. Turns out, they weren't all true. You deserve better. Period."

Harry looked down, struggling to keep his voice steady. "So… I can just… live here? With you?"

"Until you're ready to live wherever you want," Tony said. "And even then, I'll still be here. No cupboard under the stairs. Just… real space. Real family."

The words hit Harry like a tidal wave.

Real family.

His breath hitched before he could stop it. The floodgates opened as he stood and crossed the small space between them, arms thrown around Tony's middle in a sudden, tight hug.

Tony froze only for a second before wrapping his arms around the boy protectively.

Harry's voice was muffled, but Tony heard it: "Thank you."

Tony didn't say anything at first. Just held him tighter.

Finally, he whispered back, "You don't have to thank me. You're my kid too now. Whether you like it or not. My brother"

Harry cracked the faintest smile, eyes still wet.

For the first time in a long while — maybe ever — he felt like he could breathe.