See chapter 1 for notes, disclaimer, and everything…
IMPORTANT NOTE: I've almost finished writing this story (over 130 pages already!!), but I need to format scenes to post them here. Stay tuned.
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Minerva contacted her long lost cousins, and they Apparated to the Mallards' to explain how schooling worked in this country.
Gibbs became an NIS agent, which delighted Shannon. The job could be dangerous, but now their family wouldn't have to move every other year until Jethro retired.
Kitty and Mrs Mallard took care of Harry when Ducky went to work.
Minerva visited as often as possible.
Back home, no one knew that Harry Potter was no longer in the country – no one except Albus Dumbledore, whose spy in Little Whinging had told him that the only baby at the Dursleys' was their own brat. Dumbledore cast a spell that showed that Lily's protection was still working for Harry, which was all he wanted. When Harry was of age to go to Hogwarts, then the school book would tell him where to send the letter for the Boy-Who-Lived – Dumbledore could wait.
Life was fairly normal until Harry and Kelly showed signs of magic. They both cast a spell to protect Shannon.
The Gibbses and the Mallards hadn't wanted to frighten the children, who had recently turned six, but Shannon had witnessed a murder. One day as she was shopping late, she saw a man shoot another one; it turned out that a Mexican drug dealer had murdered an FBI agent in cold blood, and Shannon's testimony was the only thing that could send the dealer to jail.
The dealer had found out where Shannon lived and was about to kill her when Kelly and Harry noticed the stranger with a gun. The dealer was aiming at Shannon when the children instinctively cast a spell that froze the criminal. The children had put a lot of strength into the spell, and the dealer fell down and broke flower pots.
'Go out the back door, and run to Nana Mallard's!' Shannon told Kelly and Harry.
'Mum!'
'Aunt Shannon!'
The children were protesting loudly.
Shannon resorted to the only "spell" she knew that would make the children obey and go to safety. 'Semper fi! Run to Nana, and tell her to call the police!' It was a good thing that Gibbs had repeatedly told both Kelly and Harry how important those two words were to the Marines.
Shannon was planning to take the dealer's weapon and aim it at him until an officer of the law arrived. Truth be told, she was ready to shoot the man if need be.
Harry had taken Kelly's hand and was ready to obey the woman he loved like an aunt when there was a loud pop that announced Apparition. Shannon and the children thought that Minerva was coming to their rescue – even though it was somewhat improbable for her to have felt that she was needed in Washington.
Two men, dressed like Muggles, were aiming their wands at the dealer. One of them was shaking, and he looked positively furious.
'Easy, boss! We must take care of the kids first,' said the other one, who was younger. He turned to Shannon and said, 'Do not worry, Ma'am. We're here to explain what your daughter and your young neighbour did. We have the pleasure and honour to tell you that your daughter can do magic.'
Shannon Gibbs stole the young man's thunder when she said, 'I may be a Muggle, but I know that Kelly's a witch. Harry's a wizard, I know that, too.'
Mrs Mallard was Apparated to the Gibbses' backyard by, and with, Kitty.
'Aurors!' Mrs Mallard exclaimed.
The younger of the two could feel that the old lady was a Squib, and yet she had a house-elf to serve her – which, by law, should not normally be possible in D.C. He was beginning to be too puzzled.
'Master Harry and Mistress Kelly showed their first signs of magic,' Kitty declared, her ears flapping excitedly.
'These kids immobilized the dog who killed my agent!' the other Auror spat.
'How could that Muggle kill a wizard?' Harry asked with a small voice.
The older Auror looked at Harry for the first time, and he froze.
'What's wrong, boss?' his fellow asked kindly.
With a flick of his wand, the older Auror bound and gagged the drug dealer. He crouched near Harry and Kelly. 'You're Lily's son,' he said softly, looking at Harry.
'Did you know my mum?' Harry asked eagerly.
'She was in the Order team I met years ago. I taught her a few Defence spells,' he explained. 'You did a great job, Harry.' The Auror turned towards Kelly and added, 'And you, Miss, you will have a very sure aim.'
'Thank you, Sir,' Harry and Kelly said in synch.
'I'm Auror Fornell; I work for the FBI as well. That bad man hurt one of my Muggle agents,' Fornell told the children.
'Mum, why did that man try to hurt you?' Kelly asked.
Shannon didn't want to frighten the children. They'd all agreed that they were too young to be told about the impending trial.
'You can't always protect them. And today, they protected you,' the younger Auror told Shannon.
She took a deep breath and nodded. 'I'm going to testify against that man because I saw him commit a crime,' she told them.
Kelly and Harry reached out for each other's hands and then asked, 'What happens now?'
'Auror Eppes, you should Apparate to Miss Kelly's dad. Our primary goal here is to register the children's first signs of magic,' Fornell said. 'Contact Harry's Protector, too.'
'Boss!' the younger Auror protested.
One glare from his superior silenced Don Eppes.
'You'll find Jethro and Ducky at NIS,' Mrs Mallard said.
'They work with Mike Franks,' Shannon added.
'Ten bucks says Mike swears like a sailor when he discovers I'm an Auror, too,' Fornell said.
'Deal!' Shannon said.
Fornell shook hands with her as Eppes Disapparated to the NIS headquarters.
'I'll have this man sent to the Department of Magic in town,' Fornell said. 'You, ladies, should take the kids back inside; Eppes and I will give you a few guidelines for them, and we'll tell you when to expect their tutors.'
'It's tea time,' Mrs Mallard pointed out. 'Kitty has baked cakes. Let's go, children.' She included Shannon in that word. She turned to Fornell and added, 'We'll be expecting you in a minute, Auror Fornell. Tea shall be served on time.'
He nodded – something told him that he had better obey the old Squib.
He waited until they were all at the Mallards', and then he drew his wand to kill the criminal who'd killed his youngest Muggle agent.
Fornell never knew how the small creature did it, but Kitty grabbed his hand. 'It are tea time, Auror. It are Kitty's duty to clean up here,' the house-elf declared.
Fornell was unsure.
'It are Kitty's duty to protect Master Harry. That Muggle are a threat,' she said coldly.
'Tea?' Fornell asked.
Kitty pointed one long finger towards the Mallards' and said, 'Tea!'
The instant Fornell closed the door behind him, he felt a powerful spell that made him shiver with primal, raw fear. Then and there he understood that no one would ever find any trace of the dealer's remains.
In a wink of an eye, Kitty was in front of him, carrying a trey with small cakes, as if nothing had happened. She turned towards the Auror and said casually, 'He must have got lost in transit to your Department of Magic, I suppose.'
'Kitty!' he called her.
'Auror Fornell?'
'House-elves in this country are restricted to the area of Salem. Why did the Department never spot you?' he asked her.
She knew that he was merely curious and in no way a threat. 'Master Ducky are my temporary master. My first link are with Master Dumbledore at Hogwarts,' she explained.
'What would happen if Dumbledore gave you an order right now?' Fornell wondered.
'Kitty would does what's best for Master Harry,' she answered.
Fornell grinned.
'I met James Potter only once; Harry seems to have inherited a lot from his mother,' Fornell said fondly.
Kitty nodded several times and said, 'Mistress Lily were a delight. Kitty banged her head on the kitchen table when she heard what He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named did to her and Master Potter.'
Abruptly Fornell stopped following her. 'Kitty?' he whispered.
'Auror Fornell?'
'Most wizards and witches here don't really care about what's going on in England because we don't see anything about it. Would you do something for me even though we don't belong to the same community?' he asked her.
'You liked teaching to Mistress Lily and want to help her only baby. What do Auror Fornell want?' Kitty asked.
'Contact me if things get nasty when Harry's older. If you need help to protect him, I'll lend you a hand. The cleaning you did deserves a reward,' he said.
'Kitty go back to the Hogwarts kitchen when Master Harry go to school there,' Kitty protested.
Fornell leant very close to her ear and murmured, 'Right, and if you stop protecting that kid then, then I'm Morgana herself!'
Something passed in the elf's eyes and her grin was cruel. 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named killed Mistress Lily. He killed my son, too. He shall not touch Master Harry as long as Kitty are alive,' she declared. 'Auror Fornell understand the way of the house-elves.'
'I'll be on your side,' he said.
'Kitty will warn Auror Fornell if his help are requested,' she promised.
Kitty and Fornell joined Mrs Mallard and her guests in the parlour the instant Eppes Apparated with Gibbs, Ducky and Mike.
'Why did you invite Mike, too?' Fornell asked Eppes.
'He's our friend, and he wanted to make sure that the children were all right,' Ducky snapped. 'And may I inquire who you are?'
'Special Agent Franks knows me as Special Agent Fornell, FBI, but I serve the Department of Magic as an Auror,' he said, waiting for Mike to realize that he was a wizard and to start cussing.
Mike blinked, opened his mouth to swear profusely, looked at Mrs Mallard… and closed his mouth faster than you could say "glaring lady".
Fornell started blinking. Shannon laughed softly and held one hand out to get her ten dollars.
'I live with them,' she explained.
Fornell was forced to admit that she'd been logical.
'What happened to the dealer?' Gibbs asked Fornell in a whisper.
'I sent him to the Department of Magic. A potion will make him confess his crimes, and your wife won't have to testify against him. He's out for good,' Fornell declared with so much assurance that Gibbs believed him – even Eppes believed him.
'What happens to the kids now?' Shannon inquired.
'Their first use of magic was registered at the Department – and a copy of Harry's registration will be sent to the Ministry in London. Potential tutors are being contacted as we speak, and the ones whose magic is best compatible with both kids will contact you within a few days,' Fornell said.
'The tutors and you will be free to agree on the kind of tutoring you want the children to have,' Eppes added.
'Where's the nearest school for Kelly?' Gibbs asked worriedly.
'Morticia's Academy for Witches in Glover Park. They even have a Magico-bus that takes the witches to school and back home,' Fornell said.
'How old is your daughter?' Shannon asked him.
'Five, and yes, that's the Academy we chose. Morticia has a few bats in the attic, but she's an efficient headmistress,' Fornell said.
Eppes chuckled.
'What?' Gibbs asked.
'I went to school with her husband. He's the one who made me want to become an Auror,' Eppes explained.
'Why?' Mike asked in his turn.
'Gomez started taking fencing lessons when we were twelve. By the time we were eighteen, he was training on me, and he'd taken to smoking those Cuban magical cigars as we fought,' Eppes said. 'The smell of those things was so foul that I learnt to Disapparate, duck and hex.'
'Why did you join the FBI, as well?' Ducky wondered.
'My little brother Charlie is a math genius,' Eppes paused and added softly, 'and he's a Squib. I wanted to be able to protect him without having to Memory-charm every Muggle around each time he needed me.'
'And it's very useful to have two jobs,' Fornell added.
Don Eppes ended up with the biggest piece of cake because Mrs Mallard was moved by the fact that he hadn't abandoned his Squib brother.
Gibbs knew that it would be a nice thing to do to change the topic that they knew was somewhat painful for Nana Mallard. 'That academy might be a good option for Kelly when it's time to send her to school,' he said.
'Won't we be contacted by Muggle schools in a few months? Kelly and Harry will be old enough to begin First grade then,' Shannon pointed out.
'The tutors will provide a home-schooling certificate,' Eppes explained.
'Tutor. Single form.'
They all turned towards the female voice who had spoken.
There was a young woman in the room with them. Neither the Aurors, nor the house-elf had felt her magic when she Apparated. She had to be extra special.
Kelly and Harry's tutor looked rather young. She was slim, not too tall, and rather pale with raven black hair in bunches. She wore military boots, a green mini-kilt, a white T-shirt – with the image of a red skull – that was at least one size too small, and a dog collar.
'Cool!' the children squealed happily, making the adults roll their eyes.
'Hi! I'm Abby Sciuto,' she said.
'Aren't you a bit young to have been named their tutor?' Eppes asked her.
Abby glared at him, which made Eppes flinch. 'My mentor declared me fit to share my knowledge. I've been a certified witch for two years, and I even graduated from a Muggle university last month,' she said.
'Where are you from, my dear child?' Mrs Mallard asked.
'New Orleans, Ma'am,' Abby answered.
'Oh! Wonderful place!' Mrs Mallard exclaimed.
Abby beamed at her.
'What did you read while at LSU?' Ducky asked.
'I majored in sociology, criminology and psychology,' she answered.
'You graduated with full honours, I'm sure,' Ducky said warmly. Abby winked at him.
'How did you know that she went to Louisiana State University? And how did you guess her grades?' Eppes wondered.
'Eppes, really!' Fornell growled at his fellow.
'What?!' Eppes exclaimed.
Fornell groaned.
'Bit slow for an Auror,' Abby teased him. He glared at her, but she went on, 'You'll have to keep in mind that in New Orleans, wizards and witches are all taught by mentors. They teach us everything we need to know to take our exams. We are a small community; most of us start magical research or learn more about the Muggles even before we take our final exams. We can't leave the state while we're being taught; therefore it was rather logical to consider I went to LSU.'
'A Squib beat you, kid!' Fornell told Eppes, who blushed deeply.
'I may be a Muggle, but I work for the NIS. I developed a few detective skills,' Ducky said.
'Understatement,' Mike coughed.
'My mentor's a criminalist!' Abby exclaimed. 'He worked as a coroner, too, while he taught me. He's going to California next, or maybe Nevada.'
'What's his name?' Gibbs inquired.
'Gil Grissom,' she answered.
'Holy…!' Mike started to say. His voice trailed off when Mrs Mallard glared at him.
The children giggled.
'Well, Miss Sciuto, if you want to come and work in our pretty lab, I'll be delighted to recommend you to our Director,' Mike said.
Abby swirled towards him and looked as if she were high on sugar – very high. 'Would you?!' she squealed excitedly.
'Did Grissom train you in non-magical areas?' Mike asked her.
She grinned, bounced on her heels and said, 'He taught me everything. He calls me his little knowledge sponge.'
Mike pointed a thumb towards Fornell and told Abby, 'If he can be an FBI agent and an Auror, then I bet you can be a forensics expert for us and a witch.'
Abby was beaming.
'She are more than a witch,' Kitty murmured.
Abby noticed the house-elf for the first time; she gaped, but curtseyed to greet Kitty. Kitty bowed.
'Where's your first bond?' Abby asked Kitty.
'Kitty are a Hogwarts house-elf, Mistress Abigail,' she answered.
Abby crouched in front of Kitty and said, 'Just Abby.'
'Good luck with that!' Gibbs intervened with a merry chuckle. 'Our sweet Kitty keeps calling me by my first name.'
Abby looked at Gibbs and winked at him.
'Will Mistress Abby live here with us?' Kitty asked.
'I don't want to bother you. I'll go hunt for an apartment as soon as we agree on programmes for the kids,' Abby protested.
'Don't be silly, you're no bother. Our house is big, and we've got a nice spare room,' Shannon said.
'I can will prepare it for you if Master Leroy and Mistress Shannon agree,' Kitty said.
'If it's okay with you, I think it would be good for the kids to have you live with us,' Gibbs said.
'And I must say I'm curious about the power you have over our Kitty,' Ducky added.
Abby blushed and mumbled, 'I don't have any power over her. She knows.'
'What does she know?' Harry asked softly.
'Kitty said Abby's more than a witch,' Kelly pointed out.
'Are you a super witch?' Harry asked Abby innocently.
'Aww! No, angel. I've just got a bit of extra witching training,' Abby explained.
'Are you going to teach us spells and magic and everything?' Kelly asked eagerly.
'Are you?' Harry asked in his turn.
'I'm going to give you as much as I can, but there are many things you'll learn at school,' Abby said.
'Shall I prepares a room for Mistress Abby?' Kitty asked.
'I could park a magi-trailer in your back gardens,' Abby said. 'I like loud music, and I really don't want to bother you.'
'You'll be training for when the kids are teens,' Gibbs declared. 'Kitty, go do whatever you think Abby might need in our spare room.'
'But…' Abby began to protest.
'Why doesn't you let him decide?' Kitty asked Abby.
'Listen to Kitty, young girl, and obey,' Gibbs said with his best "Marine" voice.
Abby chuckled and said, 'Sorry, but she didn't mean I should let you decide.'
'Who, then?' Mike inquired.
Abby opened her huge canvas handbag and a black kitten jumped out of it.
'MEOWWWW!'
'An Animagus?' Harry asked.
'No, a perfectly normal cat. How do you already know what an Animagus is?' Abby asked him.
'Aunt Minerva is a tabby cat,' Kelly explained.
Abby tilted her head and said, 'I thought you were a Muggle-born witch.'
'We share Aunt Minerva, but she's mine,' Harry explained.
Abby blinked and said, 'I'm glad to hear there's still one witch in your family.'
'Minerva is my son's companion,' Mrs Mallard declared.
Ducky was slightly blushing when he said, 'I can call her later if you wish to meet her. She's watching students who got detentions for two more hours.'
'I don't remember hearing about a Minerva teaching in this state and being an Animagus,' Abby said.
'Our aunt teaches at Hogwarts,' Kelly said proudly.
Abby, who was still crouching, sat on the floor.
Kitty put one hand on Abby's shoulder and asked, 'Are Mistress Abby all right?'
Abby hugged Kitty and pecked her cheek, which made the elf turn beetroot red. 'I didn't know that agreeing to tutor these kids would be so interesting. And now I discover that Professor McGonagall is in the mix. That's great!' she said.
'Do you know our aunt?' Harry inquired.
'I know her by reputation. Do you think she might agree to teach me how to become an Animagus?' Abby asked, looking at Ducky.
'I'll call her later, and then you can ask her, Abigail,' Ducky said.
The young tutor's cheeks turned pink.
All the others wondered why she didn't protest when he used her full name – then again, maybe it was part of Ducky's magic.
'MEOOWWWW!'
'I think your kitten wants a treat,' Eppes said.
'No, he wants to move into his new room,' Kelly declared.
Abby looked at Kelly strangely, and then turned to the girl's parents as she asked, 'May I start tutoring them right now?'
Gibbs and Shannon nodded; Ducky did, too.
Abby's wand appeared out of thin air, and she cast a spell around Kelly. 'If you develop your gift, you could become a true seer,' Abby told the girl.
'Can you help me do that?' Kelly asked.
Abby winked.
'MROOW!' the black kitten growled.
'Kitty, would you take my bag and my ball of fur to my new room?' she asked the house-elf. 'And, you, Severus, be quiet! We'll be staying here for five years.'
'Severus? What a strange name for a cat,' Mrs Mallard said.
'I don't know. It came to me,' Abby said.
'It could be much worse,' Harry said.
Abby grinned at him.
'Now, sit down on the sofa next to Shannon, my child, and have a cup of tea,' Mrs Mallard told Abby.
The tutor obeyed.
Fornell and Eppes left right after tea. They were deeply impressed by Abby, who had already planned a good half of what she wanted to do with he children until they went to their respective magical schools in five years.
Eppes noticed that his boss nodded at the house-elf once, just before they Disapparated and went back to the Department of Magic.
'Boss?' Eppes said softly.
'What, Don?' Fornell asked almost kindly.
'Is the situation that bad in the boy's country?' Eppes asked in his turn.
'You know a thing or two about Muggle history, don't you?' Fornell said. Eppes nodded. 'The Dark Lord they're fighting is a demented Hitler with quite a lot of magic and a clique of followers, who are power hungry. He wants to keep magic Pure and kill all those in our community who don't come from proper families – and kill off all Muggles. He disappeared after he killed Harry's parents and tried to kill him. Most wizards and witches over there are convinced that that Dark Lord was killed by Harry, but he can't be completely gone,' Fornell explained.
'So, you think the mad guy is going to come back to finish his work,' Eppes declared. It was Fornell's turn to nod. 'And you asked the elf to stay in touch with you,' Eppes concluded.
'A good Auror and a good agent,' Fornell said. One corner of his mouth was up.
'Boss,' Eppes said seriously, 'when Kitty calls you, I want to help. If that guy comes back, I want to protect those who can't fight with magic.'
Fornell nodded. 'You know, Don, I'm sure my Muggle wife would be delighted to invite you to lunch next weekend,' he said.
'Mrs Fornell doesn't have a sister or a cousin she'd like me to meet, does she?' Eppes asked warily. Fornell grinned and shook his head. 'I'll be honoured to meet your wife… and your little witch.'
'If, in the future, Joanna tries to introduce you to anyone, I'll understand it if you Disapparate,' Fornell said with a wink.
Eppes winked back.
They went back to their office to finish their work for Kelly Gibbs and Harry Potter.
By the time Kitty finally contacted them, Fornell had retired, and Eppes was the boss of his own teams for the FBI and the Auror Department in California.
Abby got used to her new life overnight, and even though she was very different from Mike, the Gibbses, Harry and the Mallards, she was truly adopted by her new friends.
Ducky was very happy to have the young Goth around – she was teaching Harry (and Kelly, whom he'd come to love as much as Harry) very well; she was making Mrs Mallard very happy because she was casting more spells than Kitty, and she had always potions brewing; she befriended Kitty, which made the faithful house-elf absolutely ecstatic, and last but not least, Minerva had taken to teaching Abby to become an Animagus, which allowed Ducky to spend much more time with his companion.
The threes Gibbses were quite fond of their new roommate. Shannon had found a little sister in the younger woman, and Kelly was turning into a mini-Abby – on the knowledge-sponge aspect, not the Goth one. Gibbs had started making one of his dreams come true: he was making a boat - and working on pieces of wood was making him tremendously happy. He worked on his boat with his daughter sometimes, and their resident certified witch had promised to put a spell on the boat to get it out of the basement when it was finished.
Mike was giving Gibbs books to pass on to Abby for her to be prepared to join the NIS one day. He must be conspiring with Grissom to train Abby to become an NIS Forensic Specialist as soon as she could slow down her tutoring of the children. Thanks to Grissom, Mike knew that tutoring the children would be intense during the first three years because Kelly and Harry needed to learn elementary magical things that they'd missed growing up as Muggles. Mike was planning to invite Abby to work part-time for the NIS as soon as possible.
Mike was beginning to think that retiring somewhere warm and quiet when the children went to school might be a good idea. Of course, he'd never tell his probie that he already thought he'd be a great Special Agent in charge of his own team, but Mike trusted Gibbs to become a splendid boss one day.
Abby was helping Kelly focus on her budding seer abilities – and it helped a lot that Abby had that gift, too. During a training session, the two girls felt that they had to work together with the rest of the family to plot something special for Harry's seventh birthday.
The evening the Gibbses announced that they'd spend their holidays in New Orleans, Harry thought that they'd all go together.
'Will we be there for my birthday, Uncle Ducky?' Harry asked just before dessert.
'No, we're planning something else, Harry,' Ducky said. It broke Ducky's heart to see Harry's beloved face fall – even for a few seconds. 'Do you trust your tutor and Kelly?' Ducky asked his ward.
'Did they make a prediction?' Harry asked eagerly. 'They're so cool it's scary sometimes!'
'You have a strange way of expressing yourself,' Mrs Mallard told Harry.
'Sorry, Nana,' the young apologized with a wide smile that made the old lady melt.
'You see, my dear Harry, your friend and your tutor declared that it would be important for you to visit your home country before you start attending Hogwarts. Kelly and her parents will stay with the Sciutos – apparently a bit of local tutoring is in store for your friend,' Ducky began to explain.
Harry interrupted him and exclaimed, 'That's why Aunt Abby put a spell on Uncle Jethro so that he can use sign language! Now he can talk with her parents.'
Abby's parents had been Aurors until a Dark spell had robbed them of their voices and had rendered them deaf, too. They could no longer be Aurors, but their magic had found other channels to allow them to keep practicing magic.
'Do not interrupt Donald!' Mrs Mallard told Harry.
'Sorry,' Harry apologized.
Ducky smiled and went on, 'While they'll spend a fortnight at the Sciutos', it was agreed that Abby would come with us to England for a month. There are a few interesting houses near Hogwarts, and there might be one that would suit us and that I could buy. Abby wants you to meet people – other than Minerva – in your future community, as well.'
'It's a family trip, but only half of the family – you, Nana, Kitty, Aunt Abby and I. Will we stay with Aunt Minerva?' Harry asked.
Ducky, his mother and even Kitty would never stop being grateful for the love Harry was giving them. The Mallards knew that Voldemort had killed many people and that they didn't stand a chance if such a formidable wizard decided to cast a Dark spell at them, but they knew that they'd try to protect Harry just the way James and Lily had.
'Mostly,' Ducky said. 'Abby is trying to find old friends of your parents, with Kitty's help.'
'But Kitty never wants to talk about Mum and Dad!' Harry exclaimed.
'Kitty are still too sad about Mistress Lily,' Kitty declared.
'Kitty?' Harry asked. He looked tense because he was gathering all his courage to ask an important question for the first time.
'Master Harry?' Kitty said.
'Why do you seldom mention my dad?' the boy asked.
Kitty dissolved into thin air, which prompted Harry to swirl to face Ducky. 'What's wrong?' the boy asked.
'Why don't you go brush your teeth and go to bed, I'll be with you in a minute,' Ducky said.
Harry knew that Ducky never lied to him, therefore the impatient boy decided to give his uncle a few moments. Harry pecked Mrs Mallard's cheek and went to his room.
'Kitty!' Ducky called.
'Master Ducky?' she said as she reappeared into the room. 'Kitty are sorry, but Kitty can will not lie to Master Harry.'
'And you are right, Kitty. He must be told the truth, but I will tell him gently,' Ducky declared.
'As always. Master Ducky are a good man,' she said as she dissolved in the air again.
'What are you going to tell him?' Mrs Mallard inquired.
Ducky kissed his mother's brow and admitted, 'I'm not sure how I'm going to tell him the truth.'
'Keep in mind that it's better for him to hear the truth from you than from a stranger. He's almost seven. He'll understand,' she said.
Ducky gave her another peck and went upstairs to Harry's room. The boy was waiting for him in bed.
Ducky sat on the bed, and like each time Ducky was about to tell a story, Harry slithered into his Uncle Ducky's arms – the only father he'd ever known.
'I remember the time when Mother sent me to Eton. You must understand that not all the boys were gentle or fair,' Ducky began his tale. He saw Harry look at him strangely, as if the boy was afraid that bad things had happened to his protector when he was in school. Ducky shook his head, caressed Harry's unruly hair and went on, 'There were boys who, because they were rich and noble, thought that the world belonged to them. They left me somewhat alone because they needed me on the cricket field, and they knew my family had a lot of money. We'd all been admitted to school for our academic achievements, and we were all supposed to be the future elite of the country.'
'It's never good when you use "supposed" in your sentences,' Harry pointed out.
Ducky nodded. 'There was a very small clique of people who decided who was worthy to attend our school and who wasn't. At the time, our teachers considered that our school was rehearsal for life, and they didn't intervene or protect the ones who were bullied – they had to learn to fend for themselves,' Ducky said.
'That's not nice,' Harry said with a small voice.
'You know that life isn't always nice, Harry,' Ducky said gently.
'Without you, Mum's sister would have let me die or somethin',' Harry mumbled barely above a whisper.
'No, Harry, I'm sure she would have taken you in. She must have been overwhelmed by what happened to your parents,' Ducky said.
'You think that because you're a good man, Uncle Ducky, but Aunt Minerva and Kitty told me how afraid they'd been about Albus Dumbledore's decision,' Harry said.
Ducky hugged his ward tighter.
'I know that life is weird, Uncle Ducky,' Harry said softly. He looked up at his protector and added, 'You know, usually, I follow your stories even when Aunt Minerva is completely lost, but I'm the one you lost this time.'
Ducky kissed Harry's brow and chuckled. 'I wanted to tell you what happened to me in school because I want you to know that Hogwarts could be a strange experience. You will have to deal with people who might think you didn't get the proper training because I, a Muggle, raised you. Others will believe that they should worship or fear you because you're supposedly the one who made Riddle disappear,' Ducky said.
'Uncle Jethro already told me so,' Harry admitted.
Ducky ruffled Harry's hair and declared, 'He really likes it when you call him "uncle". We're all family.'
Harry grinned and nodded fervently.
'There's one other thing that we haven't told you yet,' Ducky confessed.
'Don't look so sad! I know there are things you do to protect me. There's not much I could do now, but someday I'll have a lot of magic, and then I'll be the one protecting you,' Harry promised.
Ducky kissed Harry's brow again and started the most delicate part of his story, 'I told you about the noble boys who thought they were better than anyone else at Eton. There are people like that in the magical community; those who were born into families where magic has been active for a very long time think they should be the only ones with magic.'
'Riddle is one of those, then!' Harry exclaimed.
'Not literally, but it's his philosophy, yes. You'll end up being an Auror,' Ducky said with a merry chuckle.
'And an NIS agent!' the boy exclaimed.
'Did you tell Jethro?' Ducky inquired.
Harry blushed and shook his head.
'He'll be happy – and proud,' Ducky told his ward.
Harry kept blushing.
'Well, the point here is that a few people think magic should be only theirs. They call themselves Purebloods. A few of them – but not all of them, Harry – have a lot of money and a lot of arrogance,' Ducky explained.
'That has something to do with Kitty's reaction, right?' Harry said.
'A bit,' Ducky admitted. 'I want you to keep in mind that both of your parents loved you with all their hearts. Minerva knew them both – they were both sorted into her house.'
'Mum was like Kelly,' Harry said.
'She was a witch born into a Muggle family,' Ducky agreed.
'What about my dad?' Harry asked. Ducky didn't know how to tell his Harry that James Potter had been a bully. 'Oh! He was one of those people with old magic, wasn't he?' Harry asked.
'Yes, Harry, your dad was from an old family,' Ducky said.
'He had to have been nice to Mum if they got together, right?' Harry asked.
'They were deeply in love, Harry. Never doubt that,' Ducky said with passion.
'But?' Harry said.
'But they didn't get together until their last year at Hogwarts. They both joined the resistance,' Ducky started to say.
'The Order of the Phoenix,' Harry interrupted him.
'That's it, Darling. They worked with Minerva, too. They became Aurors, got married, and then were blessed with you,' Ducky said.
'But before they got together, and before Mum did with Dad what Aunt Shannon does with Uncle Jethro when she says he's being a fool, my dad was not fair at school. That's it, right?' Harry asked softly.
'Sometimes boys are a bit silly, but your dad grew up to be a good man,' Ducky said. 'You must keep that in mind.'
'Okay, Uncle Ducky,' Harry said obediently.
'You should sleep now,' Ducky said.
'Good night, Uncle Ducky.'
'Sleep tight, my boy.'
Ducky caressed Harry's hair, got up, turned the light off, and left the room.
Harry was a young boy, but he knew that there had to be much more than just what his uncle had told him. The Mallards had always been very careful and gentle with him; they'd told him he was adopted when he started to call Ducky "Dad", and they'd explained how his parents had really died when he was old enough to hear the truth.
This time, Harry felt that there was much more to learn about his dad. He knew that it might hurt, but he wanted to know everything – before Uncle Ducky and Nana Mallard thought that he was ready.
There was only one thing he could do. 'Kitty,' he called in a whisper.
The house-elf appeared instantly. 'Master Harry?'
'You liked my mum, right?' he asked. Kitty nodded fervently. 'Would you tell me how she was when she was at Hogwarts?' Harry asked. 'Without telling the rest of the family… at least for the moment.'
'I can will obey Master Harry,' Kitty said.
'Kitty?'
'Master Harry?'
'Aunt Abby told Kelly and me a bit about your magic and what binds you. There's something that I'd like from you – as a free elf,' Harry said.
'This could be dangerous, Harry Potter,' Kitty said with a strange voice.
'I trust you,' Harry declared seriously as he took the house-elf's hand.
Harry heard, more than he saw, her ears flapping.
'What does you wants to know, Master Harry?' she asked very kindly.
'I'd like to know why you don't like the boy that my dad was, but if it's too much for you, I'll understand.'
'Master Harry are too young,' Kitty protested.
'Kitty, I was just a baby when Riddle tried to kill me. If you wait for me to be old enough, it might be too late. I must know who Mum and Dad were,' Harry said.
'All right, but Master Harry should must sleep first,' she said.
'Nice try, but… no.'
'Just like your Mama – kind, but stubborn,' she said.
'Was my dad a bad boy, Kitty? What did he do to anger you so much even after all these years?' Harry asked.
Kitty sat down on Harry's bed. 'Lily Evans were a great witch, a witch worthy of Gryffindor. James Potter and his petty friends – all Purebloods,' she spat that word and went on, 'was brats. They had did bullied a few pupils. They had did took a special dislike to a friend of Lily Evans; the poor boy were a Slytherin, and they had did tortured him.'
'Tortured?' Harry sobbed.
'I are sorry, Master Harry. I doesn't know what Lily Evans did to change Potter, but Potter's Hogwarts days was dark,' Kitty said.
'What if I am like him when I go there?' Harry asked worriedly.
Kitty laughed softly. 'There are the courage of your father in you – the man he does became, not the child he were, but you has the heart of Lily Evans. If you steps out of line, your chosen sister will can smack you,' she declared.
'Kitty, I must know what they both did if I don't want to repeat history,' Harry said, sounding like his uncle Ducky.
Kitty snapped her fingers, and Harry fell asleep.
When he woke up in the morning, he realized that Kitty had shared with him her memories of Lily Evans and James Potter. Harry was not too happy with his dad, and he was particularly grateful that Ducky had rescued him from Petunia Dursley, née Evans.
Harry shared his secret with Kelly.
'You know what we should do?' she said. He shook his head. 'Ask Abby if there's a magical Who's Who.'
Harry and Kelly ran to their tutor.
Abby, their magical encyclopaedia on legs, thought that it would be a very good thing for both children to read something about the important people in the magical community in the UK. Doing so would expand Kelly's world by allowing her to get to know Harry's future friends and foes, and their families. At the same time, reading that book would help Harry make his future world more concrete by allowing him to browse the important names in the community.
In the Magical section of the Library of Congress Abby located the latest version of Who's Who in the Magical Community of the British Isles and had it delivered to the Mallards' house.
Kelly and Harry were convinced that Abby knew what they were looking for in that book; they were also convinced that it was part of Abby's tutoring. The book was bigger than a phone directory, and they wanted to read only the articles about the friends of Harry's parents; however, they didn't know if there was a spell to find exclusively the pages that could interest them – and if there was such a thing, they had no wand to cast it.
'That thing is huge,' Harry complained.
'Maybe we'll have even bigger books to read when we go to school,' she pointed out.
Harry shuddered and growled, 'Thanks chuck!'
She shrugged. 'What can we do without magic?' she wondered.
'Uncle Ducky would tell us to read it all, but I bet there are a lot of uninteresting people in that book. I don't want to read about them,' Harry said.
Kelly leafed through the book. She was forced to agree that quite a few of the entries looked rather boring. 'Maybe we could check the few names we know,' she suggested.
'Brilliant! Let's see what they say about Aunt Minerva,' Harry said.
They found the right page and giggled when the Minerva in her magical photo waved at them.
'I love that kind of pictures!' Kelly said joyfully.
Harry nodded. 'They're funny!' he agreed. 'Who next?'
'Your surname?'
Harry froze. 'Mum and Dad are angels, and I'm just a boy, Kel'. Aunt Minerva said I'm the last Potter. Why would I be in the book?' he said.
'Yeah, but you're not just any Potter,' she pointed out as she started turning the pages again.
Harry gasped when he saw that there was an article about him.
'They're mad!' Harry exclaimed. 'I'm just a boy!' he repeated.
'They've got it all wrong about you – except about your birthday – but there are a few things about your parents,' Kelly declared after scanning the page.
Harry was mesmerized by the photo that went with the article. It showed him as a baby in Lily's arms, while James waved with one arm around his wife's shoulder.
'Pity that it's black and white,' Kelly complained. 'We can't check if you've got your mum's eye-colour, but your poor eyesight definitely comes from your dad.'
'And we should do something about that.'
Harry and Kelly swirled towards their beloved tutor, who had appeared right behind them in complete silence.
'But my dad wore glasses!' Harry protested. 'It must be something that can't be changed or healed.'
'If you were a Muggle, you'd have to keep your glasses, but there's a potion that was invented a few years ago. I can give it to you after your birthday,' Abby said.
'Why not before we leave for London?' Harry asked.
'Because, Sweetie, there's a little something that's going to change in your magic after you turn seven, and then the potion will heal you completely. Now it would do only half its job, and it's one of the potions you can take only once in your life,' Abby explained.
'Will you travel with the potion?' Kelly inquired.
'It needs to be fresh. I'll brew it over there. It'll only take a few hours,' Abby answered.
'Thanks, Abbs!' Harry said happily.
She grinned and winked. 'Now, my little Aurors in the making, try to find a way to avoid turning all the pages one by one,' she said before Disapparating smoothly.
'Told you! There's got to be a way!' Kelly said. 'What kind of magic could we use?
'Kitty!' Harry exclaimed.
Kitty appeared in front of the children instantly.
'Can you help us, Kitty?' Kelly asked.
'What do Mistress Kelly need?' Kitty asked.
Kelly looked at Harry to encourage him to ask what he really wanted.
'Well… I'd like to know if there's something you can do to help us find only the pages we want to read,' Harry told the house-elf.
Kitty snapped her fingers and said, 'Open the book and the pages can will turn themselves by magic. First to the entries about allies, and then about enemies.'
'Enemies?' Kelly gasped.
'Not all Death Eaters was sent to Azkaban, Mistress Kelly,' Kitty explained.
'What's Azk'ban?' Kelly asked.
'Wizarding jail,' Kitty said with a shudder.
'And not all of Riddle's gang are behind bars?' Harry asked.
'No, Master Harry, most of them had did slither out of the Aurors' traps,' Kitty said sadly.
'It'll be better to read about them to know who they are,' Kelly declared with a little something of her dad's voice.
'I know that Uncle Ducky said growing up wasn't always fun, but maybe there's a nice Academy that would welcome me here,' Harry said with a small voice.
Kelly cuffed the back of Harry's head – the way she'd seen their Uncle Mike do with her dad when he'd done something that wasn't to Mike's liking.
'You'll never be alone in that fight, silly!' she growled.
'It'll be a bit tough when Abby's no longer our tutor and there's an ocean between us,' he said sadly.
'We could do what we saw in that movie yesterday,' Kelly suggested.
'Blood brothers?' he asked.
'I'm a girl!' she protested, adding a pout for good measure.
'Yea, I know, but you get the idea. Is that what you want? You'd really be my blood sister?' he asked.
'We're not… I mean… You're my brother, Harry,' Kelly said seriously.
He hugged his friend and said, 'Same here, Kel'. You're the only sister I'll ever have.'
'Except if Mum and Dad have another witch!' she giggled.
Kelly and Harry traded looks, and Kelly put one hand over her mouth.
'Prediction?' Harry inquired.
Keeping her hand where it was, Kelly nodded.
'Cool!' Harry said. 'Until we get a new witch in the clan and we can have her join, we could start a blood bond together. Okay?'
'Shouldn't we ask Abby?' Kelly wondered.
'I bet she'd be here if it were a problem,' Harry said, and Kelly had to agree with him.
Neither kid could have imagined that their tutor was busy analyzing something for Mike and Gibbs, and the blood bond between them wouldn't be discovered for a few years.
It took the children a week to read the pages that were interesting for Harry in the book.
Their family of the heart saw them taking down notes studiously – and painstakingly slowly.
When Harry gave Abby the book back, he looked a bit disappointed.
'What's wrong, Sweetie?' Abby asked.
'There was nothing about a few people I'm interested in. That must mean that I have to wait,' Harry said.
He'd found a small article about Peter Pettigrew's death, but there was nothing about the two other remaining friends of his dad, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. More disappointing for Harry, there was not a word about his mother's only friend, Severus Snape.
'There's a reason for everything,' Abby said philosophically.
'I know, Aunt Abbs,' he said softly.
.
(Next scene as soon as possible. It's typed and edited… I "just" need to format it for here)