Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter and the characters she created. I can only thank her for allowing all of us to play in her playground.
AN: Thank you for the reviews and encouragement. They were a big help in getting me motivated to continue. I think I've got my direction back and have some twists and turns coming soon. I hope you enjoy.
Chapter 10
Harry and Tracey had a very restless night in bed. The few times Harry had drifted off to sleep, he was tossing, turning, and thrashing about in the bed. Tracey had never seen him like this and spent the night trying to hold him to calm him down. It worked to a certain extent but needless to say, neither got much sleep that night. It finally got to the point where they eventually gave up and got ready for the day. Tracey had watched Harry getting ready and she had to tread carefully with him as he was still clearly agitated over the events from last night with their family.
Sensing his Master and Mistress awake, Dobby pops into their room and informs them that their guests have gathered in the dining room for breakfast. Harry turns to Tracey and snaps out "I thought you sent them all home."
Tracey sheepishly replies "I did. I don't know why they are still here."
Again Harry snaps "Well, I refuse to deal with them from this point so you can just deal with YOUR family then."
"Dobby?"
"Yes Master Harry?"
"I think it is time for you and me to tour the other Potter houses and see what needs to be done. Do you have anyone you can leave here to tend to our 'guests'?
"Yes Sir, Moonbeam can handle them while I go with you."
"Very well, give her your instructions and be prepared to leave within the hour."
Tracey approaches Harry and pulls him in a hug. She whispers "You are coming back aren't you?"
He kisses her on the cheek and says "Only for you. I'm sorry but I can't deal with them and I need to get out of here."
Harry finished getting dressed and he left when Dobby popped back in. Tracey sat on their bed crying as Harry felt he had to leave his own house. Moonbeam felt her distress and informed Daphne that her Mistress was upset and needed her.
Daphne hurried to Tracey and Harry's room to find a sobbing Tracey. Daphne asked "Where's Harry?"
Between sobs, Tracey managed to get out "He left!"
"Where did he go?"
"He took Dobby and they went to tour the other Potter properties."
"When will he be back?"
Tracey broke down crying again and said "I don't know. Oh, Daph, I'm so scared he's not coming back."
"Did he say that?"
"No"
"Sweetie, he loves you. He will be back so just calm down. Now, let's get you cleaned up and go downstairs to eat."
Daphne helped Tracey make herself presentable and they went down to breakfast. Upon arrival, Alice immediately asked "Where's Harry?"
Something inside Tracey snapped at the question and she immediately tore into their family. She said "I'll tell you where he is. HE LEFT! He told me that I could deal with MY family from this point as he refused to deal with them."
Alice said "OH NO! I'm so sorry Tracey."
Tracey started again "No, I'm the one who is sorry. I've worked really hard to get Harry to accept me and open up to me. Thanks to YOUR husband, all that is probably shot to hell. Harry probably won't trust me anymore since I'm the one who started pushing him to open up to our family."
The witches sitting around the table just sat there in silence.
Tracey said "One last thing, the houses I mentioned last night are available for all of you. I would prefer it at this point that you either go home or take one of the houses. When my husband decides to return, I would like the chance to try and keep him here. I don't think that is possible with you all here."
With that said Tracey got up and left the room full of stunned witches. On her way out, she heard mutterings of 'husband' along with a few 'cut offs' and several "hex his bits off'.
It wasn't long before four angry witches left by portkey after bidding their farewells to Neville, Daphne, and Astoria.
Before they could leave, Neville had to throw his shot in. He wanted to convey his true feelings on the actions of his father. He said "Tell Lord Longbottom that if his actions from last night are any indication of how the Longbottoms treat 'family', then I will gladly ask Lord Potter to take me into his. He dishonored the Longbottom name last night and I refuse to be the Scion of a dishonorable house." Both Alice and Augusta left with their heads hanging in shame but in agreement with Neville.
Harry and Dobby had spent a good bit of time inspecting the Potter properties and had decided to stay the night at one of the resort properties. He did have the forethought to send Dobby to tell her that he would return in the morning. It was a very distraught Tracey who ran up to Harry and hugged him when he finally showed up Monday morning in class. He kissed her to her surprise told her he loved her and how sorry he was for walking out on her.
Tracey could only respond with "Don't ever let it happen again."
**HNL**
Even though things in Britain were steadily getting worse, none of the adults took Harry and Tracey up on their offer. They had the occasional letters sent from their families but were pretty much left alone other than that. Alice and Augusta had sent several apologies to Harry trying to get him to talk with them but they went unanswered. This was mainly due to Harry finding out that the three Lords were giving a helping hand to Susan Bones and aiding her in restoring her house.
These same three Lords (Longbottom, Greengrass, and Davis) had reestablished their alliances with House Bones in order to offer it some protection. They had taken Susan under their wing to guide and coach her in her position as a Head of House. They had helped her sort through her family business so that she could make sense of it all and it was then that she found the marriage contract to House Black. It had originally been intended for either Sirius or Regulus to marry Amelia but with Regulus' death and Sirius' stay in Azkaban; it had been passed off to the next generation.
Susan turned to Frank and said "If I remember correctly, Sirius Black never married and produced an heir. If that is the case, who will be the new Lord Black?"
Frank said "If he accepts the title, it will be Lord Potter. If he refuses the title, it will fall to Draco Malfoy."
Susan said "Crap! I've really screwed this one up then haven't I?"
Lord Greengrass said "Yes Lady Bones, you have."
Lord Davis said "You had better plan on Draco Malfoy. My wife has seen fit to inform me that Lord Potter said he will loose his magic before he ever took you as his wife."
Susan asked "Wait a minute, don't you all have alliances with House Potter? Why would your wife have to inform you of this?"
Frank said "That would be my fault Lady Bones. You see there was a disagreement between our houses and Lord Potter withdrew from our alliances. At this point, House Potter willingly stands alone and will have nothing to with us."
"Why?"
Frank said "I made a grievous mistake when dealing with Lord Potter."
Lord Davis said "Yes, and now our wives and children no longer will have anything to do with us until the situation is resolved."
Susan said "So resolve it then."
Lord Greengrass said "An impossible task as Lord Potter refuses contact with us or our wives. Lady Potter has even gone as far as removing us from the wards on her home."
Susan asked "So what caused the argument?"
All three men looked nervous at this and didn't respond. Finally after glaring at them, they relented.
Frank said "The argument started over my desire to help you. Lord Potter said we could do as we wished but not to include him."
"So that was what caused all this?"
"No, I told Lord Potter, in his own home no less, to sit down and shut up and let the adults handle it."
Susan gaped and said "Well, I guess you are in about the same boat as I am then. While I admit my actions toward Lord Potter were horrible and childish, I have an excuse as I am still young. You however have no such excuse. I truly regret my actions but it is too late now."
Lord Davis said "It's never too late. You could at least offer an apology."
"Yes and I will do that immediately but that brings us to another problem. While our houses stand together, it has no meaning because without Lord Potter and your children. Your houses are now just as vulnerable as House Bones."
The next day, Bearclaw sent over a copy of the Daily Prophet along with a note.
Lord Potter,
I thought you may be interested in the paper today. You may find it an interesting read.
I would like to suggest you meet with Andromeda Tonks and her family at your earliest convenience. She has been adamant about seeing you.
Bearclaw
On the second page of the paper, there was a notice with the title of Lord Potter. It said:
Lord Potter,
It is my most sincere desire to meet with you. Since that is not possible at the present, I wish to offer you my deepest apology for the wrongs I have done against you personally and House Potter. Please allow a foolish girl the opportunity to try and make amends for her errors. I do this out of a sense of honor that the former Madam Bones tried to instill in me. I know that at this point, House Bones and honor are laughable at best to House Potter.
Harry, I'm so very sorry for what I did. Please forgive me.
Susan
Lady Bones
Susan and the three Lords waited for days that turned into weeks for a response from Harry that never came. The snub was taken as the insult as it was intended. The insult was that they were not good enough for House Potter to waste his time on. It also was a reminder that they needed him a whole lot more than he needed them.
In the meantime, Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters were getting more intense in their attacks. Several old families had been wiped out just for not supporting his agenda. Voldemort had even started a campaign against all the Aurors and their families. His forces had been systematically targeting them and wiping them out.
Things had gotten so bad that half the Ministry had gone into hiding and Hogwarts had been shut down due to a lack of teachers and students. Without the world famous wards surrounding the castle, most of the parents were planning to keep their children at home as it would be safer.
Harry, Tracey, and the others sat their OWLS during their Christmas break and passed them with flying colors. When they returned to their classes, they would be starting their NEWT classes and move quickly to their Unspeakable training and masteries. Harry spent much of his class time working on subjects that interested him and helping the others since he was so far ahead of them thanks to his bond with his rings. His interest in Technomancy had blossomed into a passion and he was about to start experimenting with some of his ideas.
**HNL**
Neville, Daphne, and Astoria had expressed an interest in going home for a few days at Christmas. They had begged Harry and Tracey to come with them. Harry actually told Tracey that she was welcome to go and see her parents. He knew she loved her parents and would not stop her from maintaining her relationship with them. In truth, Harry thought very highly of Justine but Lord Davis left much to be desired after he backed up Frank. She considered going but then quickly informed that her place would always be with him and under no circumstances was she leaving him alone at Christmas. Harry started feeling guilty for keeping Tracey from her parents since he would not go with her. He truly wanted to make their first Christmas together memorable for her and decided to take her to one of their resort homes for an unforgettable holiday. He had Dobby go before them to prepare the house and even decorate it for the season. Before the others left, he went out Christmas shopping and spared no expense for them. For Neville and Daphne, he had the armorer at Gringotts to make matching dragon hide armor. For Astoria, he had the Goblin weapons master create her a short sword made from steel with a jade and silver handle and hilt. The scabbard accompanying it was made from the same material as her armor.
He was pleased with his Christmas gifts for the others but had went all out on Tracey. He had a short sword commissioned for her that was a smaller version of the sword of Gryffindor. It was charmed with the same magic used on his sword and was assured it would be just as powerful as his. He has searched the Potter vaults but couldn't find exactly what he wanted and he thought that every Lady Potter must have had her own jewelry to add to the collection of family jewels, so why not Tracey. He decided to have the Goblins also create a set of jewels for the new Lady Potter. Her jewels were made of white gold with sapphires matching her eyes as the jewels. They created an incredible necklace with matching earrings and bracelets for formal occasions and even went as far as creating an informal set for her as well. By the time he was done, Harry had easily spent fifty thousand galleons just on Christmas. Most of it went towards Tracey's jewels.
Christmas came around and the others left for England. Tracey was a little depressed at first until Harry whisked her off to the Potter resort home in the Austrian Alps. The house sat way up in the mountains and was built into the mountain itself. The part of the house that wasn't was encased in glass offering them a spectacular view of the surrounding vista. Tracey was very impressed at Harry's choice for spending their first Christmas together and found the home very soothing and relaxing. She told him they would have to come here often.
The Potters were thoroughly enjoying their first Christmas together and on Christmas morning, the gifts were exchanged. Tracey opened the box containing her new jewelry and was dumbstruck by their beauty. Harry just kissed her and told her that he thought the new Lady Potter ought to have her own jewels and to add to the family jewels. That plus the gift itself was enough to cause Tracey to tackle Harry to the floor and snog him senseless. Once they came up for air, Tracey gave him her gifts. She was a little embarrassed as she had gotten him some books and a new watch. She was embarrassed because Harry had gone all out for her and she felt she hadn't. She had a jeweler friend of Jonas create the watch for Harry. It was platinum with an emerald face with the Potter crest embedded in it. She had also found every book created on the subject of Technomancy as she knew it was his favorite. With tears in his eyes, he returned the snog and thanked her.
It took a while but she finally got out of him that those were the first Christmas gifts given him out of love and how they meant more to him than anything else. He also told her he felt he owed her since he refused to go see her parents for Christmas. They sat holding each other and enjoying the view when Tracey had an idea.
She jumped up and pulled him to his feet. She hugged him and said "Harry, my love, I can think of only one other gift to give each other that would mean more than anything."
"Name it Tracey and I will buy it for you."
"You can't buy this Harry. Come let's go to bed."
She led him to the bed and they undressed each other. The gift she wanted to share more than anything was to give herself to the man she loved as he did the same. That first time was awkward as is usually the case as they sweetly gave each other their virginities. They must not have found it too awkward as they didn't leave their bed for the next three days. Dobby would pop in and bring them food and pepper up potions to help them keep their strength up as they practiced to perfect their technique. It was a very happy couple that returned to Arizona a week later.
**HNL**
When Harry, Tracey and Dobby returned to their home, they had a three concerned housemates waiting on them. Daphne was the first to speak once she saw them.
Daphne tersely said "And just where have you two been?"
Tracey snapped back "My husband took me on a Christmas holiday/honeymoon? Do you have a problem with that?"
Daphne said "Yes, No, Maybe, I don't know. We came home early and you two were gone. We were worried about you. Wait a minute, did you say honeymoon?"
"Yes I did, it was so great."
"So, did you two?"
"Oh Yeah, wow and I mean wow. And let me just say it was worth the wait."
"Well, that's great Trace. Where did you go?"
"Our house in the Alps. (She pulled out the box of jewels.) He gave me these for Christmas."
Daphne's eyes popped out of her head when she saw the jewelry set.
Tracey said "Gorgeous aren't they. He told me that the new Lady Potter should have her own set to add to the family jewels and that I shouldn't have to wear someone else's jewelry unless I wanted to. I was so embarrassed because I just gave him some books and a watch but he said it was the first present he had ever received from someone out of love. At that point, I jumped him and we made love for three days."
Daphne said "Wow Tracey, I'm so happy for you. It looks like he spent a fortune on you. In fact he did on all of us."
"Yeah I know, but I was afraid to ask. He looked so happy when he gave it to me."
The conversation lulled for a moment and Tracey said "Ok Daph, spill it. Why were you so worried about us and why did you come home early?"
"Well, it's a long story, one that I will need Neville and Harry here for. Let me just say that things didn't go so great."
Tracey called Moonbeam and had her tell their husbands to come to the sitting room. Once they all settled, Daphne began telling her tale of the holidays.
Daphne said "Everything started off well when we got home. It was mainly just us and our moms, including yours Tracey, and Grandmother Augusta. We were having a pretty good time until our fathers all showed up. They were mostly angry at Harry for breaking their alliance and for ignoring their attempts to reach an understanding. Frank was livid that Harry did not even respond to Susan's apology."
Tracey said "So, not much more than we expected."
Daphne said "Yeah pretty much. Justine sends her love to both of you and says she misses you. Alice and Augusta also send their love and beg you to forgive her family for its mistakes."
Tracey just kinda nodded her head.
Daphne continued "The men pretty much left us alone until Christmas dinner. Unknown to us, they had invited Lady Bones along with the Abbotts. When everyone had sat for dinner, our fathers plus Lady Bones started in on us about Harry and how he was being irresponsible and childish. I had to hold Neville down at some of the things they were saying. If you had been there, you would have gotten up and slapped your father's face for the things they were saying. It was evident that Susan was insulted by Harry's non response and made a few rude comments about him. They continued for a while until Neville had finally had enough."
Harry looked at Neville and said "Nev, what did you do?"
Neville actually smiled and said "Well, I told them that you were acting well within your rights and that as you were the senior Lord, you didn't need their approval. I also told my mother that she had better get busy and produce another Longbottom heir as I couldn't, in good conscience, fill that role any longer."
Daphne said "Alice made the comment that there wasn't much chance of that. I found out earlier that she had moved into a guest room as she wanted nothing to do with Frank. I think the same is also true of Justine and Mum. I think the men are just being contrary now because they have been called out for their actions and don't like it."
Daphne added "Yeah, Frank went ballistic at that point and tried to grab Neville which Neville avoided. Which served to piss Frank off even more."
Neville smiled and said "I looked at my father and told him to not bother contacting House Potter again. I also informed him that the emergency portkeys had been deactivated and that the three Lords and Lady Bones were on their own."
Harry and Tracey were looking back and forth at Neville and Daphne as they told their story. They sat there silently with a shock look on their faces.
Daphne said "Then he turned to our mothers and said 'you can always seek refuge with us for whatever reason' and activated the portkey bringing us home."
Neville said "Mum and Gran want to talk with you whenever you will see them. They are real sorry about everything but since dad is the Lord. There is not much they can do."
Astoria walked in the room at that point and said "I wish you could have been there. They were floored. After Neville and Daphne disappeared, I knew they would coming after me next or would forbid me from coming back. I looked at them and said 'don't look at me, I'm with them, you really are some dumb asses and I just might ask Harry to adopt me as well. I used that moment to activate my portkey and came home as well."
Harry looked at them "You guys will always be welcome in my family but I never wanted you to give up your families for me."
Neville stood and walked over to Harry. He placed his hands on his shoulders and looked him straight in the eye. He said "Harry, you are our family. I would never turn my back on you just as you have never turned yours upon me."
Harry sat there silently but Tracey said sarcastically "Wow, I so sorry we weren't there with you."
That got a snort from Harry and Daphne. Neville and Astoria looked confused until Daphne said "Never mind them; they've been somewhere up in the Alps shagging like bunnies for the last week."
Harry and Tracey grinned.
Neville couldn't stop himself and asked "So how was it?"
The Potters blushed bright red but had wide grins on their faces.
Neville again said "I guess that means good then."
They just nodded in response.