Chapter One
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, JK Rowling does and unfortunately I am not her. However, I do own all my OCs.
Summary: After the Second Wizarding War, a Guardian was given to each child of the main families that helped in the war. They were all tasked with a simple job, protect their allocated person with their life. Somehow, Freya screwed it up in the biggest way. She fell in love.
There are going to be a lot of OCs, but the focus is going to be on Freya.
I also realise that I've written the word 'Guardians' quite a few times, so I apologise in advance!
Also, this is the first AU that I've written, so please be nice!
Enjoy!
HARRY POTTER
June, 2002
Kingsley Shacklebolt sat at his desk, looking through a load of documents. The Second Wizarding War had only just ended no more than four years ago, and many things were still so raw for people. His heart went out for the people who had lost family members and loved ones. Kingsley had made it his mission to ensure that every fallen Wizard and Witch was given a send-off they deserved. Sighing deeply, Kingsley looked down at the documents. Now, he was dealing with all the rogue Death Eaters, still loyal to Voldemort. Ever since the fall of their Dark Lord, many had renounced their loyalty, like the Malfoys. However, there were others that didn't. The Death Eaters still loyal to Voldemort had been attacking muggles in organised chaos which was very unnerving. He was sending many Auror's after them, but the Death Eaters always seemed to be able to get away in time.
It was hard being the Minister of Magic, especially when dealing with the aftermath of war.
There was a knock on his door, alerting him of someone's presence.
"Enter," Kingsley said, his voice sounding commanding and strong. No one could see him weak otherwise they might try and get him out of office.
The door opened and a man stepped inside. This man was tall and looked to be in his early thirties. He had salt and pepper hair that seemed thick was pushed back. His eyes were a brilliant icy blue and his three piece suite showed he was wealthy.
"Lance, what is it you want?" Kingsley asked, frowning when he sees who it is.
Lance Johnson was an Auror and a very good one. He had been helping Kingsley with the paperwork regarding the Death Eaters and was leading the teams to eliminate them and bring them to justice. Lance was very well respected, seeing as he was trained under Moody himself.
Lance walked further into the room, "I'm afraid I have some disturbing news." He said as his face became grim.
Kingsley waved his hand, indicating to get it over with.
"After interrogating a Death Eater, I've found out that they're planning another uprising," Lance informed him.
This got him Kingsley's full attention.
"What?" Kingsley asked in an incredulous tone. The War had only just ended, and now the Death Eaters were planning another attack. The thought was preposterous, people hadn't got over the Second Wizard War; there couldn't a third so close together.
Lance nodded his head, "Unfortunately yes. It would seem as though Voldemort had a backup plan in case he should fail. He made sure to have a spawn."
Kingsley brought his hands up to rub his temple and he spoke, "Then we need to find this child and eliminate it." The thought of killing a child disgusted him, but if it meant there would be no war in the future then he would do it. There weren't many Auror's who would be willing to do this job either, which was going to make this very difficult.
"The only trouble is, we don't actually know where or who the spawn is," Lance admitted, not looking too happy with this bit of information.
Kingsley stood up and began to pace. This wasn't good news either, and if anyone found out there would be wide state panic. If word got out that Voldemort had a child, every child may come under suspicion. It would become chaotic and the Death Eaters would be able to slip through the cracks.
"This information must not leave this room," Kingsley said, looking to Lance with the most serious face he could muster.
Lance nodded his head, "Of course."
Sighing deeply, Kingsley deflated slightly.
"I do have a suggestion though," Lance said, looking slightly nervous.
Kingsley looked up, "What is it?"
"There is a chance to stop the spawn of Voldemort when it's a teenager and not when it is at full power. There is a very good chance that it will attend Hogwarts." Lance suggested.
Kingsley took a seat at his desk once more, interest on his face. "You'll need to explain more."
Lance nodded his head, "As you know, all the war heroes families have been receiving threats. The threats circulating around their children and how they are going to attack them first. Harry Potter's godchild – Edward Lupin – has also been receiving threats and I imagine it will only get worse when Harry and Ginny do eventually have their own children." He said with a sigh in his tone.
Kingsley looked down at a pile of documents on his desk, most of them were the death threats each family had received from anonymous people. The Potter, Weasleys, Lovegoods, Longbottoms and even the Malfoys have received death threats. However, the Ministry had managed to intercept these letter before any of the families could receive them. The Weasleys had received more at this point due to the fact Bill and Fleur Weasley had already had their first child together – Victoire Weasley.
"What are you getting at?" Kingsley asked, looking at Lance with more caution in his eyes.
Lance grinned widely, his icy blue eyes almost seemed to glow in happiness. "To prevent the War Hero's children getting potentially harmed, I propose that we give each child a Guardian. They will guard them and look out for any potential threats. At the same time, they will be able to listen out for any chance of Voldemort's spawn."
Kingsley fell silent and stared at Lance with a blank expression.
Taking a step forward, Lance placed some documents on Kingsley's desk. "Read through this and it will all make sense." He said, seeming very confident.
Kingsley looked at the paper with a blank expression. After a few seconds, he picked the documents up and began to read it. There were only three pieces of paper, making it very easy to read through. The document was well outlined and was actually convincing until Kingsley read one part.
"You propose sending children to be their Guardians?" He asked, his tone becoming icy. He re-read this one line, making sure that he wasn't mistaken or he had read it wrong.
Lance nodded his head, "Yes, they will be specially trained though. That way they can fit in and no one would suspect them. If a load of Auror's appeared in Hogwarts then it would look suspicious."
"They're children!" Kingsley exclaimed, standing up from his sitting position.
"Death Eaters don't care who they kill. They will kill children, but they won't expect children to fight back. You also can't spare any Auror's either, they're all busy." Lance shot back immediately, it was as though he was ready for this.
Kingsley sighed and fell back into his chair.
Looking up, Kingsley asked. "What makes you think the children will be targeted?" Kingsley was trying to poke holes in Lance's proposal because it didn't sit right with him morally. But in all honesty, it was a pretty solid idea and it made sense. It also didn't help that Kingsley was becoming desperate to find a way to stop these potential death threats – which he was taking very seriously. Kingsley was having to send Auror's out to protect them but he didn't have enough people to do this. But he didn't like the thought of children fighting and he knew many other people wouldn't like the idea either.
"Would it interest you to know the Death Eater I interrogated also had plans to kidnap Victoire Weasley?" Lance asked, arching an eyebrow at him.
Kingsley frowned. He hadn't heard of this before and this concerned him. He knew that Death Eaters didn't care who they hurt or the age of the people they were killing. That's what made them dangerous and unpredictable.
Sighing, Kingsley asked. "How do you plan on getting people on board?" He was more curious than anything.
"I plan to have children of ex-Death Eaters in the course. It would give them a chance at redeeming themselves and at the same time we can still monitor them." Lance explained with ease.
Falling silent, Kingsley began to think.
After a few seconds, he looked up. "Alright, I agree with this proposal. But it must be kept hidden from everyone. No one must know about this. I trust you to monitor it and look after it." As he said this, his voice became commanding once more, making sure to emphasise how serious this was. Kingsley knew that if any of the families found out, there would be outrage.
Lance's icy blue eyes lit up. "Of course. I will ensure no one will ever find out about this."
Kingsley nodded his head, and motions to dismiss him.
Lance walked out of the office, the happy look in his eyes soon turning malicious.
HARRY POTTER
November 2012
A little girl around eight years old could be seen, sitting on the windowsill of her room. Freya had long brown hair and stormy grey eyes. As Freya was looking out the window, a frown was the most prominent thing on her face. She had been sent up by her mother because they had a visitor over. Freya didn't know who this person was, but she knew that it had to be someone of high importance to make her mother and father sweat so much.
"Freya! Come down this instance!" The shout of her mother echoed through the entire house.
Looking at the door, Freya wordlessly got up and headed towards her door. She walked down the tall stairs and walked into the living room. Her mother and father sat on one couch, and the visitor on the other side.
Freya's mother – Vivienne Williams was a tall woman with long brown hair and brown eyes. Her eyes were beady and her nose long. Her top lip was thinner and could hardly be seen. Her father – Rupert Williams was also a tall man, with a beard that covered most of his face and stormy grey eyes much like his daughter.
"Yes, mother?" Freya asked her mother, her little voice low and quiet.
The visitor turned his head at the sound of her voice. The minute Freya looked into his icy blue eyes, she felt a shiver rip through her. She knew those eyes, but she knew who those eyes belonged to more than anything. Freya had heard her parents speak much about Lance Johnson; they practically worshipped the ground he walked on. But Freya had always been creeped out by him and shied away, choosing to hide behind her older sister. However, she couldn't do that anymore.
Lance smiled when he saw her, "Hello Freya. What a beautiful young girl you are."
Freya said nothing and stared at him. She never spoke around him if she could help it – a little fact her parents didn't like much.
"I promise you, Lance, she'll do better than Lydia," Vivienne said, staring at Lance with adoration in her eyes.
Freya winced, looking down at the ground.
Lance seemed to ignore her and stood up. He walked over to the youngest member of the family, looking directly at her with an intense look in his eyes. When close enough, he kneeled down in front of her. "Freya, dear. How would you feel about doing something amazing and great for the Wizarding community?" He asked, his voice becoming sickly sweet.
Freya's gaze locked onto her mother's. Vivienne was glaring at her, silently commanding her to do what the man wanted. She then looked to her father and found him with a blank expression, revealing nothing. Looking back at the man in front of her, she asked. "What do you want me to do?"
The smile on Lance's face only grew bigger. "You are going to guard someone and protect them from any harm." As he said this, he stood up and went to sit back down on the couch, sipping the tea Vivienne had prepared.
Frowning, Freya looked to him and stared. As she did this, she began to think. Why would she need to guard someone? Freya wasn't an idiot, she was the smartest person in her class in her primary school. She was also very good at picking up silent cues and reading in-between the lines. She knew that there was something bigger going on.
"So, what do you say Freya?" Vivienne asked her daughter, a menacing look in her eyes.
Freya looked at her mother for a moment before answering. "No." She said, her voice quiet as she felt the fear filling her.
And for good reason too.
Rage appeared in Vivienne's eyes, her hands itching towards her wand in her pocket. Rupert was frozen in his seat, staring at his daughter with surprise in his eyes.
However, Lance laughed, diffusing any tension in the room.
After a few seconds, Lance calmed down. "You see Freya, you don't have a choice. You will become a Guardian whether you like it or not. If you don't, you may just end up joining Lydia." Lance said, acting nonchalant.
Freya froze where she was, the horror sinking into her.
Standing up, Lance walked past Freya and patted her head. "I think you'll make the right decision." He said before leaving the house.
Freya could feel the tears welling up in her eyes. She looked to her mother and father for comfort, but her father avoided her gaze completely and her mother looked smug. Freya knew she would receive no warmth from then, the only person who ever treated her nicely was her sister and Topaz.
Seeing her tears, Vivienne shouted while glaring. "We Williams' do not cry! We are not weak!" She stood up and stormed over to her daughter.
"But I don't want to be a guardian!" Freya shouted out, stamping her foot on the ground like the small child she was.
The room went deadly silent.
Vivienne stared at her daughter with so much hate and venom in her eyes that it made Freya recoil back. "How selfish can you be?! I've fed you and clothed you and this is how you repay us?!" Vivienne yelled, getting into her daughter's face and poking her shoulder with her bony fingers.
Freya yelped in pain and stepped back, but her mother was relentless.
"You will do as you're told! You will become a Guardian!" Vivienne continued to shout, her eyes becoming wild.
"No, I won't!" Freya yelled back.
The next thing Freya knew, she was on the floor and her cheek stung badly. Looking up, she saw her mother standing over with her hand out in the air. It didn't take Freya long to realise what had just happened; her mother had hit her. This realisation only made her cry harder.
Rupert stood up from his sitting position. This simple action got everyone's attention in the room. When he stood, his very presence commanded attention. "We go to the Ministry tomorrow to register you as a Guardian. Get over it and soon." With that, he walked away with his wife by his side who looked victorious.
Freya stood up and walked back to her room. The tears had now stopped falling, even though her cheek and shoulder were throbbing in pain.
Now in her room, Freya looked at herself in the mirror.
"But I don't want to be a Guardian…" She whispered lowly to herself. But even at that age, she knew that there was no way she could get out of it. The threat Lance left was still ringing in her ears and left her feeling scared.
HARRY POTTER
The next day
Just as her parents had promised, Freya was taken down to the Ministry of Magic. Looking around, she could see swarms of people and that made her nervous. She didn't like big crowds but she knew never to voice any complaints to her parents. As she and her parents were walking, Freya was able to see a reflection of herself in the shiny black walls. Clear as day, Freya could see a bruise on her cheek where her mother had slapped her, but no one seemed to question it.
Turning left, Rupert knocked on the wall three times and with a rhythm. Within seconds, the wall opened up and they walked through it. Once through, the wall behind them closed up. Looking around, Freya could see other children. Besides her, there were quite a few other children. All of them looked nervous, except the older ones who didn't seem to be showing any emotions.
They sat down, and the moment they did, there was an ear piercing scream from another room.
Freya's eyes widened and she looked to her parents, gauging their reaction. However, they had no reaction and were staring at the wall in front of them in the calmest manner. Freya looked at the other children's reactions and found that they too didn't show any outward reaction.
This made Freya nervous.
"I don't like this." She mumbled lowly to herself.
That's when Freya felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning her head, she saw a girl around her age. "How can you not like it?" The girl asked rather brashly.
"I don't want to be here that's why," Freya answered back. She didn't like this girl, Freya thought she was too happy after hearing that blood-curdling scream. In fact, everyone but her seemed calm about this.
The girl stared at Freya with a weird expression. "Don't you want to bring honour to your family?"
Freya looked at her, "What?"
The girl rolled her eyes, "Don't you know anything? When you become a Guardian, you bring honour to your family name."
Freya frowned, she did not liking being insulted.
Just as Freya was about to respond, the door on the far side opens. Lance steps out and looks around the room, "Freya Williams." He said, smiling when he sees her.
Freya felt herself freeze, especially when everyone looks in her direction. She never liked being the centre of attention.
Her parents stood up and her mother grabbed her by the arm and dragged her over to Lance. Freya attempted to struggle but her mother was far too strong. Freya was dragged into a room that had a chair and nothing else in the room. The walls were white and for some reason, it sent chills down Freya's spine.
"Go sit on the chair," Rupert said, looking down at his daughter.
Wordlessly, Freya does as she is asked. She sits on the chair, her legs dangling over the edge.
"I see you've changed your mind then?" Lance said, smiling down at her.
Freya just stared at him, not saying anything. She knew that Lance saw the bruise on her cheek; no one could miss it. With how pale Freya was, the bruise stood out just like her stormy grey eyes did. Freya looked at her mother and found her glaring.
Seeing her daughter wasn't going to answer, Vivienne answered for her. "She has, she had decided to become a Guardian," Vivienne said, adoration in her eyes as she stared at Lance.
Lance glared at her, "I want Freya to say it, not you." There was a low hiss in his tone, very menacing and full of venom.
Vivienne stiffened and slowly bowed, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to speak in her stead."
Lance smiled and waved it off, "Oh its fine. So Freya, have you decided to become a Guardian?" Lance turned his attention to Freya, there was an expecting look in his eyes.
Looking to her parents, Freya could see they were glaring at her – her mother especially. "Yes," Freya said lowly as she frowned. She knew she didn't have a choice in the matter anyway.
Lance's eyes brightened, "That's wonderful! Now, hold your hair up for me." He said, taking his wand out.
Freya looked confused for a moment before doing as he asked.
Walking around her, Lance stood behind her and waved his wand, starting his incantation.
At first, all Freya felt was confused. But that's when she felt this white hot burning pain on the back of her neck. Freya did the only thing that came to mind: scream. Freya screamed and attempted to move away, but that's when she felt two sets of arms grab her small body and hold her down, preventing her from getting away. Freya screamed louder, her struggling increasing as the pain got worse. Freya could hear herself screaming, begging to be let go, but no one listened to her.
Then, the pain was gone. The minute it was gone, Freya stopped screaming, but she felt exhausted and she couldn't move.
"What does the mark do?" Freya heard her father speak.
"With this mark, she won't be able to tell anyone about being Guardian, minus a few certain people. If she does, she'll experience pain worse than the Crucio curse." Lance said, sounding calm as ever.
Freya didn't understand what that meant, but she knew it was bad.
Just as her vision became dark, Freya heard Lance whisper to her. "You're mine now, Freya." He mumbled softly, stroking her hair in what was meant to be a soothing manner, but it just made her want to cry.
That's all Freya could remember before her vision went black.
HARRY POTTER
September 1st 2015
Now eleven years old, Freya stood on the platform nine and three quarters. This is the year she would be entering Hogwarts and any child would be excited. However, Freya didn't feel excited, all she felt was dread. Her mother and father stood beside her, but they did not interact with her. Freya could see all the other parents, hugging their children and wishing them a good year, but Freya got none of that.
This was her first year being a Guardian and Freya wanted nothing more than to run away.
"That is who you are to protect Freya." Rupert's strong voice snapped his daughter out of her thoughts.
Freya looked up and saw who her father is referring too. She could see a large family, most of them sporting ginger hair. She knew that they were the Weasleys and so Freya looked further ahead. That's when she spotted Harry Potter and his family. Next to him was James Sirius Potter. He had uncontrollable brown hair and hazel eyes. He looked slightly scrawny and thin. Like his father, James also had glasses.
Honestly, Freya wasn't impressed with what she saw.
For three years, it had been drilled into her that James would be the most important person in her life. She would have to trade her life for his if the time came. Freya was meant to protect him and watch over him. James had been made out to be almost like a godly figure in her family. Her family had made it obvious who was more important between the two of them.
Freya watched as James' family hugged him, Ginny crying slightly as she watched her first born child board the train.
Freya's chest tightened as she watched the family interact. Her fists clenched as she watched them interact with one another with warmth in their eyes.
She was jealous.
Freya looked up to her parents, hoping that since they've just seen other parents give affection to their kids that they would follow suit. However, Freya was disappointed when her parents did nothing.
Vivienne looks down at her daughter, "Remember, Slytherin is the house you want to be in." She said, her voice icy and stern,
"If not Slytherin, at least Ravenclaw." Rupert conceded with a flat look.
Freya nodded her head but says nothing.
With that, Vivienne and Rupert left their daughter all alone on the train platform. Her suitcase had already been taken and placed on the train. With nothing else to do, Freya resorted to watching the Potter family once more.
As she did so, she couldn't help the burning jealousy she was feeling.
Freya had only just met James once, and she didn't like him at all.
HARRY POTTER
Freya's POV
My name is Freya Williams.
I am a Guardian but not by choice.
Before I was born, a new section of the Ministry was made; in secret. It was called the Ministry of Guardians and it was very selective and very secret. Not many people knew about it, and if you had, you could never speak about it outside the members that were in it. Lance Johnson made sure of that by marking each and everyone one of its members.
Lance Johnson was a very persuasive man. He was the one who made the suggestion that would kick start the Ministry of Guardians. He had proposed an idea to Kingsley Shacklebolt, to give each child – whose families fought in the war – a Guardian to protect them from any future threats. Lance had reason to believe that if another war were to break out, the War Hero's children would be targeted to eliminate any future threats.
Families such as the Potters, Weasleys, Lovegoods (Scamanders), Longbottoms and even the Malfoys would be assigned a Guardian for each child that they had. Guardians would watch over their charges and would make sure that no harm came to them.
There was however a little clause that Kingsley Shacklebolt was never told before he approved this. I liked to believe that if he did know about this clause, there was no way that he would have approved it.
The Guardians are expendable.
We Guardians could be killed and easily replaced; we were not important. However, if any harm were to come to the charge, there was serious hell to pay. The Guardian would more than likely not survive the punishment, because Lance would make sure he was the one who gave the punishment personally.
Now there are a few rules that we Guardians have to abide by, and if we didn't, we'd be punished for it. If we even broken one rule, it would cost you severely.
Rule one: Protect the charge at all cost, no excuses.
Rule Two: The charge must never know you are protecting them.
Rule Three: You must have no contact with your charge.
Rule Four: You must NEVER fall in love with your charge.
Rule Five: You can never tell anyone about being a Guardian.
Rule Six: Anyone caught shirking their responsibilities will be immediately removed and replaced.
There are quite a few more, but you get my point. If anyone were to break even one of these rules, death was usually the punishment.
Here's the great part though.
I broke nearly every rule possible.
And here is how.