Chapter Four

16th September - Grangers Residence, Crawley, East Sussex.

None of the Grangers had gotten much sleep the night before. Lily's emotions had been stretched and Hermione had spent most of the night trying to keep her Sister calm. Both Dan and Emma knew that Hermione was the best person to help Lily in that situation so they had stayed away, though they had not slept much either since they had received Minerva's note over dinner the previous evening.

Just as the previous day, Lily and Hermione were in their room while Dan and Emma waited in the living room. Both girls were trying to read but neither of them were making any headway. Dan was pacing again and even Emma looked nervous as she sat on the sofa watching the clock.

As before, promptly at 10am, there was a knock at the door. This time Emma went to answer it as she could not sit still long enough to wait for Dan to do it.

Outside there were four people standing. She recognised Minerva from the previous day but the others were unfamiliar to her. One was a tall man with a long white beard and brightly coloured robes. The second was a woman, shorter than Minerva, who had the look of a Nurse that Emma recognised only too well. The final one was a man of average height with black greasy hair that hung in curtains on either side of a face that was dominated by a large hooked nose that resembled a beak from a bird of prey.

Emma nodded and stood back to allow them to enter. Minerva led the way and soon the two Grangers and the four visitors were in the living room with the door firmly closed.

Dan, who had gotten up to meet the visitors, looked at Minerva with a questioning look in his eyes.

Minerva got the message and cleared her throat.

"Mr and Mrs Granger, I would like to introduce you to Poppy Pomfry." She said indicating the healer. "She is the Matron of Hogwarts and in charge of all health related matters. I brought her along so she could examine Lily." She paused as Dan and Emma nodded at the healer with smiles on their faces.

"Please to meet you." Emma said, shaking Poppys' hand. "I hope you can help with Lilys' health issues." She added.

"I'll certainly do my best Mrs Granger." Poppy replied returning the handshake.

"And this is Professor Severus Snape. He teaches potions at Hogwarts and will be responsible for brewing any potions that Lily may require now or in the future." Minerva continues, indicating Snape.

Dan looked at the potions teacher with a look of displeasure on his face, but decided to bite his tongue for the moment.

"Pleasure!" He said, not wanting to say anything else.

Snape scowled at the two Grangers but said nothing.

"And finally the Headmaster of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore." Minerva finished.

At this Dan glared at the old man and Emma would have slapped him had Dan not put his arm round her waist.

"Easy Love." He said. "Let's give him a chance to explain first." He said softly.

He then turned to Albus and in a tone that matched his expression, he snarled at the Headmaster.

"You've got a lot of nerve coming here! You abandoned a child who was only just over a year old on a doorstep in the middle of the night in November. What kind of sadistic creep does that?" He demanded.

Albus was taken aback by the force of the tone used but he needed to stay to resolve the situation so he decided to try and placate the angry Muggles.

"It was necessary for Harry to be brought up by his relatives. It was the safest place for him to be." He replied mildly, with the tone of one who is always trusted no matter what he says.

"Safe! You call the place Lily was left in safe?" Dan demanded. "Do you call a place where Lily was regularly beaten with a belt or a stick safe? How about a place where she never got more than one or at the very most two miniscule meals a day? What about being locked in a cupboard under the stairs? Or being forced to do chores at all hours of the day and night so her fat lazy Uncle could sit in front of the TV and do nothing? Do you think that any of that was a suitable place for a child to be left?" Dan demanded, his temper getting the better of him. It was now Emma's turn to stop him from hitting the old man.

At these remarks Minerva went white and had to sit down. Snape went paler than usual and for the first time dropped the scowl and looked at the Headmaster in concern.

Albus however was staring serenely at the Grangers. Dan wanted to take that silly smile and wipe it off the old mans' face.

"Now I'm sure it was not as bad as all that. Young Harry was probably exaggerating or even making it up as children are wont to do. Now if you will bring him down here, I'm sure we can get to the bottom of this!" He replied in a calm voice.

"Not quite yet!" Emma spoke up this time, seeing that Dan was so angry he couldn't speak. "Firstly, let me get something straight. There is no Harry in this house. We have two Daughters. Hermione and Lily. If you attempt to address Lily as anything other than either Lily or Miss Evans-Granger, you are unlikely to get an answer from her. Should you call her Harry, you are likely to get a very negative response." She paused. "And then of course there is Hermione. If her sister is upset in any way, Hermione will lay into you like you've never seen."

She paused again, looking around at the group.

"Before we get the girls down here, we need to establish the ground rules!" She paused and fixed Albus with a glare that matched her husbands. "First, as I've said, the girls answer to Lily and Hermione or by their surnames. No other name is to be used. Secondly, Lily as well as Hermione are both to be referred to as girls. There will be no he, him or his. Thirdly what the girls say goes. If they say no, do not try and push the issue. You can try and persuade us but if they refuse, then whatever it is, will not happen. Do you all understand this?" She asked, looking at their four guests.

Albus was puzzled at these remarks so he decided to enquire further.

"Why should I refer to Harry as anything other than Harry? Let alone as a girl. Harry is his name, I should know I was at his naming ceremony, He should get used to the fact!"

Emma rounded on the old man her eyes blazing with fury.

"Lily has been known by that name since before she arrived with us. It is her decision to refer to herself by that name as well as in the feminine context. Who do you think you are to come wading in and tell her differently?"

"I am an adult, as are you. It is our responsibility to guide children and to make sure they know what is and what is not. You have clearly failed in this responsibility. I am Harry's magical guardian and what I say goes!" Albus replied smugly.

Just then the door flew open and in the doorway stood Lily, her green eyes blazing with fury and with an equally annoyed Hermione just behind her. Both girls stormed into the room and Lily stood in front of the Headmaster trembling with anger.

"Magical guardian?" She shouted. "How dare you refer to yourself as my guardian? Guardians check up on their charges yet I saw no sign of you!"

"Now see here…" Albus tried to speak but Lily cut him off.

"Where were you when my Aunt and Uncle called me a Freak? How about the time when they broke my left leg? What about the time when I didn't eat for a week because I could read when I started school and Dudley couldn't? What about the time when Uncle Vernon beat me with a belt for burning the toast or Aunt Petunia hit me with a frying pan for not making the bacon crispy enough?" Lily paused as she recovered her breath. "A proper guardian would check up on their charge yet I never saw you once! You are not my guardian and you never will be!" Lily was almost screaming now and it both Hermione and Emma to hold the near hysterical girl back.

The shock on the face of the four wizards was plane to see. Emma looked at Dan, gave a nod and guided the two girls out of the room. She was back seconds later, closing the door behind her.

She walked over to the Headmaster and shook her head.

"Do you understand now?" She asked.

Albus dropped into a chair and sat staring into space, he could not process what had just happened. Poppy looked worried and was also thinking. However, once the shock had worn off both Snape and Minerva both had smiles of remembrance on their faces.

Dan looked at the pair of them with a question of his own.

"Ok. You two are not behaving as I was expecting. What's going on?" He demanded.

Minerva looked at Snape who nodded for her to speak.

"We were just remembering the other Lily Evans. Your Daughter's biological Mother." Minerva paused. "I was not only her teacher, but I was her Head of House and confidant too. She became estranged from her family not long after starting Hogwarts so I became something of a surrogate Mother figure for her." She paused again. "The way your Daughter behaved just now, is exactly the way her Mother behaved. In particular I was remembering a blazing row between her and Severus here." She indicated Snape. "The whole school became aware of it and nothing was the same again." She finished.

"Why would she be arguing with a teacher?" Emma asked.

"I wasn't a teacher at the time." Snape replied. "I was the same age as your Lilys' Mother and we were in the same year at school, though in different houses." He paused to organise his thoughts. "In fact, I grew up just down the street from Lily and Petunia and I remember several arguments between them as teenagers." He paused again. "That's what shocked me the most. The fact that, with little or no exposure to her biological Mother, she has become, for all intents and purposes, her double!"

Albus was still staring at the wall, not saying anything. Minerva looked at him worriedly.

"I think we'd better get him back to the castle. The three of us can fill him in later." She said.

The other two nodded in agreement. Minerva then turned to face the Grangers.

"Would you object if I summoned a house elf to take the Headmaster back?" She asked.

"Apart from not knowing what an elf is, I have no problem at all." Dan replied.

Minerva nodded again.

"Hoppy!" She called.

Seconds later there was a 'pop' and a small house elf, wearing Hogwarts robes, appeared in the middle of the living room.

"Mistress Kitty calls Hoppy!" The house elf said, bowing to Minerva.

"Yes Hoppy. Please take the Headmaster back to Hogwarts, put him to bed and get him a calming draft." Minerva ordered.

"Yes Mistress Kitty." The elf replied.

It then stepped forward, took one of Albus' hands and with another 'pop' they both vanished.

Once Albus had vanished, Dan looked at their three remaining guests.

"Well you asked for this meeting." He said, still looking rather cross. "What do you need from us?" He asked.

Minerva fidgeted, then cleared her throat.

"Primarily I intended for Madame Pomfry to thoroughly examine Lily and see if there is anything we can do to help her myriad of health issues." She replied.

At this remark, Emma fixed Minerva with a glare.

"I hope you are not including Lilys' gender identity in that remark?" She demanded.

At this, Poppy stepped forward so she was next to Minerva.

"I assure you Mrs Granger, that I have no intent of following the more bigoted members of society and attempt to 'treat' your Daughter." She stated emphatically. "While I have little personal experience in treating Transgender individuals, I have consulted with some experts in the field and I would like to ask some questions if that is permissible?" She asked softly.

This caused both Dan and Emma to look at each other and have one of their silent conversations. They then turned to face the Healer and Emma spoke up.

"Well it makes a change for someone to have done their homework." She replied. "I take it then Lily is not the first magical child to transition?"

Poppy gave her a smile and shook her head.

"I have not treated any Hogwarts student who is Transgender, and I have been Healer at Hogwarts for nearly 50 years." She replied. "However, it was covered as part of my medical training and as soon as Minerva explained the situation, I contacted St Mungo's and consulted with an expert in the field." She elaborated.

"St Mungo's?" Dan and Emma asked at the same time.

"It is the main magical hospital in Great Britain." Poppy replied. "And so I can understand what your Daughter will need when she attends Hogwarts, I will need to clarify a few points." She added.

Emma nodded, but Dan decided to clarify a point of his own.

"Please tell me, why should we entrust your school with the education of our daughters if the Headmaster is at least partially responsible for Lilys' other health issues? There must be other magical schools they can attend. If not in the UK, then abroad?"

All three of the Hogwarts staff looked at each other in panic before Minerva tried to address their concerns.

"I understand your concerns but it really is imperative that Lily attend Hogwarts. We can put measures in place to protect both your Daughters if necessary!" She replied.

"Why?" Dan demanded.

"Why protection?" Minerva enquired. "I would have thought that you would have wanted protection for Lily and Hermione?"

"Not why protection, though if they do attend your school I will certainly demand that. I meant, why do they need to attend your school?" He clarified.

The three staff members exchanged another look before Minerva continued.

"You remember yesterday when I told you that Lilys' birth name is the most famous name in magical Britain?" She asked.

Both the Grangers nodded.

"Well it is equally well known that your Daughter will be attending Hogwarts next September and she will certainly be looked for there. For her not to attend would cause a huge fallout both in Hogwarts in the wider magical Britain." Minerva continued.

"But why does that matter to us?" Dan asked. "Our only concern is the health and wellbeing of our Daughters and you have certainly not made a case for Hogwarts to be the best place for them! For starters, your Headmaster has claimed that he is Lilys' magical guardian! Is this true?" He asked.

"I can't say for certain." Minerva replied. "I would have to check it with the Ministry." She added.

"Ministry?" Dan echoed.

"The Ministry of Magic." Minerva replied. "It is the centre of government for magical Britain. They administer everything involved in magical society. It is led by the Minster of Magic, Cornelius Fudge. Many of the Ministrys' departments liaise with departments within the muggle world, but the interaction is kept to a minimum to preserve the Statute of Secrecy that I told you about yesterday."

Dan nodded in understanding.

"Well if it is the case that your Headmaster is Lilys' magical guardian, I want him removed from that job at once and before anything else happens. Does Hermione have a magical guardian too?" He asked.

"Not at the moment." Minerva replied. "But as soon as the offer to attend Hogwarts is accepted, she will be assigned one."

"And who will it be?" Dan asked.

"It is usually the Headmaster…" Minerva replied, and was about to continue when she was interrupted by Dan.

"That will not be happening!" He replied, his voice level but his tone did not brook argument. "If you want our Daughters to attend your school, and before anything else is decided or agreed on, I want a magical guardian that both my wife and I approve of! And nothing will be signed by us until that point is agreed."

Minerva nodded, completely understanding the Grangers point.

"Would you object if Poppy examines Lily anyway?" She asked. "Even if in the end you decide to send your Daughters elsewhere, we may be able to help with Lilys' other issues." She asked, knowing that they would not get much done until the guardian point is resolved.

This time it was Emma who spoke up.

"I have no problem with that at all. Even if all you can do is relieve some of the symptoms, it would be welcome. We try to ensure that she has a normal life but her Bipolar and Epilepsy restrict what she is capable of doing. Her ADD along with her dyslexia means that her education has to be carefully monitored and structured. Can you help in any of these cases?"

At this Poppy replied, placing her had on Minervas' arm to indicate that she would reply.

"I am familiar with Bipolar and Epilepsy, but not the other two. Could you explain what they are?"

Dan and Emma looked at each other in shock. Dan nodded for Emma to reply.

"ADD or Attention Deficit Disorder, is a condition that gives Lily a very short attention span and makes her get bored easily. When she gets bored, she starts to act up and disrupt the class. Dyslexia is a condition that causes problems with reading, writing, spelling and maths. Thankfully Lily only has a mild case and she copes without too many problems. Like Hermione, she is highly intelligent and is well above her age group in all her schoolwork. The doctors have said that they suspect that all of her conditions are as the result of trauma she suffered while at the Dursleys'." She replied, scowling at the name. "She is on medication to help with her Bipolar and Epilepsy, but you cannot medicate Dyslexia and the doctors are reluctant to give her medication to help with her ADD as they do not want her relying on it. How come you have never come across these two conditions before?" She asked.

Poppy nodded at this before replying.

"In some ways magical medicine is far in advance of what non-magical doctors have achieved. In other ways, we are far behind. I can say clearly that I have seen quite a few children with symptoms that you describe, but whether they suffered from the condition or not I can't say." Poppy paused. "Is Lily on any medication to assist with her transition?" She asked cautiously.

Emma shook her head.

"Not at the moment." She replied. "I'm not sure if you are aware but the options for Transgender children in the UK, at least the non-magical side, are rather limited. She sees a specialist at the Tavistock clinic, just outside London. Her doctor there has admitted that he would like to put her on hormone blockers in the next year or so, so she would not be forced to go through puberty. However the NHS will not allow the prescription of those drugs to anyone under the age of 16. We have considered going to either France or America where doctors there could treat her earlier. But we have not decided on anything yet. As you can imagine, Lily is quite upset about that as she does not want to go through 'male' puberty." Emma paused as she was getting quite emotional. Dan put his arm round her, despite not feeling particularly strong himself.

Poppy decided to offer them some hope.

"Well the magical world is somewhat different." She replied.

This caused Emma and Dan to look at her, hope clearly showing on their faces.

"Lily will have to be seen by a specialist at St Mungo's." Poppy began. "I can arrange this to be done as soon as possible as there is the distinct possibility of the need for more than one visit. And if they are satisfied with your Daughter being clear what she wants, she will be able to start on a potions regime."

Emma and Dan looked as though they could not believe their luck.

"What sort of potions?" Emma asked.

"They combine the effects of suppressing the male hormones and providing a level of oestrogen that any girl would have as she goes through puberty."

As this was mention. Both Dan and Snape reddened at the direction the conversation was heading.

"And the future?" Emma asked, knowing that Lily would want to know too.

"Well after she had been on the potions regime for at least two years and the specialists are satisfied that the next step is not only in Lily's best interest but that she wants it too, she will be admitted to St Mungo's. Where, over a period of at least two weeks, she will become a fully functioning biological woman."

"As in?" Emma could barely get the words out.

"As in the same as you and me Mrs Granger." Poppy replied. "Including the ability to conceive and give birth to children."

Emma almost wept at this. Hearing that Lilys' deepest hopes and dreams could come true.

"However, I ask you not to mention this to Lily before she has had a chance to meet with the specialist from St Mungo's. As I am sure you both will have many questions and I may not be able to answer them all." Poppy replied.

Emma nodded, though nothing could bring her down as she was currently floating on cloud 9. Dan decided to reply as his wife was to euphoric.

"You said you wanted to examine Lily?" He asked. "Where would the best place to be?"

"I can examine her best if she is lying down. So I suppose her bedroom would be best." Poppy replied.

By this time Emma was out of the clouds.

"I'll take you up." She replied. "Dan if you wait here with our other guests as we will not all fit. I plan to stay with Lily during your exam and it would take an extraordinary event to force Hermione away." She added.

Poppy smiled.

"That will not be a problem." She replied. "If you will show me the way, then we can get started."

Emma nodded and opened the door. She led the Healer up the stairs and was soon knocking on her Daughters' bedroom door.

Hermione opened it seconds later. On seeing her Mum, she opened the door wider and let the two adults in.

The room was large, with two beds, both with different bedspreads and a wide bay window with a double desk underneath it.

Lily was at the far end of the room by the window, still livid. Emma immediately went over and putting her arm around her youngest Daughter, guided her over to one of the beds.

"This is Madame Pomfry." Emma introduced the Healer. "She is going to give you a check over to see if there is anything she can do for you."

Lily nodded, trusting her Mum completely.

"Where do you want me" She asked.

"Lying on your bed would be best." Poppy replied.

"Do I need to undress?" Lily asked.

"Not at the moment. I may ask you to remove certain items of clothing, depending on what the scans reveal."

Lily nodded and lay down on the left hand bed and put her arms by her sides. Hermione and Emma sat on the other bed and watched.

Once Lily was settled, Poppy drew her wand and began to scan the young girl. Shen she saw the first results, she went pale and immediately did it again. With apparently the same result.

"What is the matter?" Emma asked, recognising that the Healer had found something both unexpected and troubling.

"This is serious. I recommend we either get the others up here, or we go downstairs to join them. I would prefer explaining this only once and I will need their help." Poppy replied.

"We'll go down." Replied Emma, looking at both her Daughters to confirm.

"Very well. Please lead the way." Poppy said.

With her arms round Lilys' shoulder, Hermione led the way. Followed by the two adults.

As they entered the living room, the three adults all got to their feet. Minerva was about to say something when she saw Poppys' face.

Dan looked at his wife, who shook her head and nodded at the healer. Dan sat back on the sofa and pulled Hermione on his lap. Emma did the same with Lily and the four of them looked at Poppy.

"Well?" Emma demanded.

"I'm sorry to say this, but there is more going on here than any of us are aware. While I cannot rule out that previous trauma contributed to Lilys' conditions, the primary cause is much, much worse!"

Dan and Emma looked at the Healer in outrage. Poppy had turned to Minerva and Snape, who looked shocked.

"Lily has been subjected to numerous magical spells that have affected her in many ways. There is a bind on her magical core, which I am not surprised at. Her parents probably did it before her first birthday. However, the scale of the binding has me worried. Then there are spells to hamper intelligence, co-ordination and even social ability." Poppy said.

"Can they be safely undone?" Emma asked.

"I'm not sure. I would have to proceed carefully and I may have to take her to a treatment facility to be sure."

"But how?" Asked Dan. "Lily is almost as smart as Hermione and Hermione is in the top 1% for her age group. Not to mention that they both play sports and do dancing as well. How could Lily do that if her co-ordination was impaired?"

"The spells are not working properly or they have become undone since they were cast. It is that factor that has caused your Daughters' health problems." Poppy replied.

"Do we know who might have done this?" Dan demanded. He, along with Hermione, had their arms round Lily.

"I recognise the magical signature who cast at least one of the spells." Poppy replied, not wanting to identify who as it would cause more trouble.

"Well who is it?" Dan, Emma and Hermione all demanded.

"Albus Dumbledore!" Poppy replied reluctantly and waited for hell to break lose.