A/N Here's another chapter for your reading enjoyment. A guest left a question about a blood transfusion that saved the life of Serenity / Renata. It is in my imagination that because of blood replenishing potions that Wizards and witches do not need to use muggle medicines and treatments. In my world when a witch or wizard gives thier blood to another witch or wizard, especially in young witches or wizards it is best that they are of blood relation becausd the blood of one who is not biologically related to them will change their DNA. So to answer your question Renata/Serenity is now biologically Severus's daughter because she now shares his DNA. She calls him uncle Severus for her protection but she thinks of him as the father that she always needed and respects him as such. I hope that this answers your question. Pm me if you are confused on anything else. :)
Chapter Ten Sad Tidings and A Tough Choice.
For the rest of the summer Renata spent her time either reading or visiting her new friends Fleur and Gabrielle Delacour. At summer's end she traveled to school with her friends since her adopted uncle and grandmother had to be at school two days before the students arrived to make sure that everything was ready for the next year.
Back in England aside from being continually depressed over the loss of his sister, Harry was having his own problems. It was a week before if he was lucky he would be returning to school. He was feeling very alone. As if his sister's death wasn't enough, he had not received a single letter from his friends the entire summer. He sat alone in his room sadly flipping through an album with magical moving pictures of his family and friends in it.
His hand shook as he ran a hand over a moving picture of his sister who was peeking at him over one of her books as she read by the black lake. Tears started to flow again as Hedwig hooted softly and clicked her beak pleadingly. "I can't let you out, Hedwig. I'm not allowed to use magic outside of school or I'll get expelled. If I couldn't even manage to take the risk to save my sister than you know that I can't do it for you," he said wiping his eyes.
Vernon's loud voice called his name from downstairs and he snapped his album closed and trudged downstairs to see what the murders wanted. "You called me Uncle Vernon," he mumbled dejectedly?
"I'm warning you now boy, if you can't control that ruddy bird it will have to go," snapped Vernon as he adjusted Dudley's tie for him.
"Uncle Vernon, she's just board. If I could just let her out for an hour or two each day," started Harry before he was cut off.
"So you can send secret messages to your freaky friends? I don't think so." snapped Vernon as he finished Dudley's tie.
"But I haven't had any letters from my friends all summer." said Harry sadly.
"Who'd want to be friends with you?" asked Dudley in a snarky tone as he pushed passed Harry and tried to pick a cherry off of the lavish pudding that his mother had prepared. Vernon then turned to Harry.
"You should be a little more grateful to us boy. We've given you a home and raised you since you were a baby, gave you the food off of our table, and even gave you Dudley's spare bedroom purely out of the goodness of our hearts." said Vernon in a fake tone that would make people who didn't know him believe that he really cared for Harry.
"Not yet Dudder's it's for when the Mason's arrive." Said Petunia as she swatted his chubby hand away from the confection.
"Right, they should be here any moment now. This should well be the biggest night of my career. Let's go through it once more before they arrive. Dudley when the Mason's arrive you," started Vernon expectantly.
"I'll be at the front door waiting to take their coats," said Dudley pompously.
"Petunia?" he asked expectantly.
"I'll be waiting here in the parlor waiting to greet our guest to our lovely home." said Petunia in a swooning tone.
"And you Harry," started Vernon turning to Harry and leveling his beady eyes on the boy.
"I'll be in my room making no noise and pretending that I don't exist." said Harry.
"Too right you will boy. With any luck this will be the day that I make the biggest deal of my entire career and you will not mess it up for me." said Vernon wagging his fat finger at Harry.
Harry turned and went upstairs Just as the doorbell ring and he heard the Dursley's greet their guests. He entered his room and found a strange little creature jumping happily on his bed. The strange creature stopped jumping on his bed as he entered the room and greeted him in an awestruck tone.
"Harry Potter, such an honor it is to meet you." said the creature with a bow.
"Who are you?" asked Harry in a shocked tone.
"Dobby sir, Dobby the house elf." said Dobby bowing again with wide eyes.
"Not to be rude, but this isn't exactly the best time for me to have a house elf in my bedroom." said Harry stepping closer to the bed.
"Oh Dobby understands sir, but Dobby has to tell Harry Potter and his sister something vitally important. He wonders where to begin." said Dobby shaking his head.
Harry sighed and tried not to cry on Dobby's mention of his sister and took a seat on his desk chair before speaking again. "Dobby please sit down." said Harry in a somber tone. Dobby's eyes widened in shock and he started to shake.
"Sit down, sit down, Dobby has heard of Harry Potter's greatness but never has he ever been asked to sit down with a wizard like an equal." said Dobby starting to cry.
"You must have not met too many kind wizards before then." said Harry attempting to calm the house elf.
"Oh no, sir I haven't. Oh dear that was an awful thing to say. Bad Dobby, bad Dobby, bad Dobby, bad Dobby, bad, bad." said the elf as he started to pound his head against Harry's dresser in distress over what he had said.
Fearing that his Uncle would hear the elf and totally lose it or worse, Harry tried to calm the elf and make him stop. "No Dobby, please stop, please don't do that," he pleaded with the elf as he picked him up from the floor and placed him on the edge of his bed. "You can't let my Aunt and Uncle find you here. Merlin knows what they'd do," said Harry soothingly praying that his uncle didn't come up to see what was going on.
"Dobby is sorry sir, but he had to punish himself because he almost spoke ill of the wizarding family that he serves." explained Dobby rubbing his sore head. "Harry Potter and Serenity Potter must not go back to Hogwarts school this year. There is a plot, a plot to do horrible things." started Dobby before noticing that Serenity was not with her brother, or hadn't joined them.
"Wait a minute sir. Dobby wonders where is Harry Potter's sister Serenity Potter?" asked the elf as he leapt from the bed and looked under it to see if she were hiding there. "Does she have her own room? You should go and get her because I need to speak with both of you." said Dobby turning to look at Harry with concern in his large eyes.
Harry broke down and started sobbing uncontrollably this time unable to hold in his feelings for his sister. Dobby ran over to him and dabbed at his tear streaked face with the end of his dirty old tunic. "Why is Harry Potter crying? Please Harry Potter, what's wrong that you is crying?" asked Dobby as he gently tilted Harry's face to make the boy look at him.
"Dobby, I don't know how to say this, but m-may sister is dead. My uncle Vernon killed her two weeks after we got home for the summer. She didn't even get a decent burial instead they buried her out in the back garden like she was nothing more than a dead dog. I don't have anyone here that loves me and I'm getting starved and beaten anytime that I do anything that makes them angry. I have to go back to Hogwarts." said Harry getting to his feet and pointing out his window to the small flower garden that lay in the center of the back yard as he shook with rage. Dobby leapt up and stood on top of Harry's desk by the window and looked to where Harry was pointing with sad tear filled eyes.
"A crime it is to cut short the life of such a gifted young witch." said Dobby mournfully. "Oh no, no, no, no shame on Dobby. Dobby is a bad elf, a very bed elf indeed." said Dobby with drooped ears. Sensing that Dobby was about to grab his lamp and punish himself again Harry grabbed him and pulled him away not wishing to have him make any more loud noises, but it was too late Vernon had heard the noises and came upstairs to confront Harry about it.
On hearing his uncle's angry pounding footsteps coming closer to his room Harry tossed Dobby haphazardly into his closet. "Stay in there and don't make a single noise that's an order!" he snapped as he shut the door closed just as Vernon burst through his door. "What are you doing in here? You've ruined the punchline of my Chinese golfer joke. One more peep out of you, just one and you'll join your sister in the back garden. Fix that door." said Vernon as he turned away just as Harry pushed the closet door closed for the third time attempting to keep Dobby from being seen or escaping.
"Yes sir." said Harry as he waited for the door to shut and his uncle to leave before letting the elf out.
Dobby came out of the closet and stood before Harry in shame with his ears drooped and sad eyes. "Do you see now why I have to go back to Hogwarts? It's the only place where I belong, where I've got friends and people who care about me. You heard him, He will not hesitate to kill me and bury me out in the yard with my dead sister." said Harry attempting to make Dobby see reason.
"You'd rather go back to be with friends who don't even care enough to right to Harry and his sister?" asked Dobby in shock.
"Wait a minute how did you know about that?" asked Harry in shock with a suspicious look in his green eyes. Dobby backed up so that he'd be out of Harry's grasp shaking slightly.
"You mustn't be angry with Dobby sir. Dobby thought that if Harry and Serenity Potter thought that their friends had forgotten them that they wouldn't want to go back to school. He never dreamed that the lack of the letters would cause Harry and Serenity so much pain. Dobby will do anything to make it up to Harry Potter." said Dobby as he cautiously handed over the large bundle of letters to Harry.
"Would you truly do anything to make up for this?" asked Harry attempting to suppress his anger.
""Yes sir, Dobby will do anything that is within his powers to make it up to Harry Potter." said Dobby nodding making his large ears flap. Harry wrenched open his trunk and took out a piece of parchment and the self-inking quill that his sister had gotten for him as a late birthday gift before their first trip on the Hogwarts express and hastily scribbled down a note and handed it over to Dobby.
"Dobby, you're too late to save my sister but you just might be able to save me. Please take this letter to my friend Ron Weasley at his home in the burrow. I'd send it with my owl but I can't use my magic outside of school to let her lose and my uncle put that lock on her cage." said Harry with large pleading eyes.
"Dobby will do it sir." said Dobby as he took the letter and popped from the room.
For the rest of that night Harry stayed up reading the letters that his friends had sent to him quietly. He skimmed through his sister's letters and pulled out the ones that had been written by Hermione and Ron to return to them. The letters were addressed to her and despite that fact that she was dead he didn't feel right reading words that were meant for her eyes.
He placed them into the bottom of his trunk and vowed to see that all of her letters were returned to the friends who had written to her. He knew that considering how much they all cared for her that many of them would be heart broken when they learned of her loss, and drifted off into a restless sleep that was filled with very vivid dreams of his sister the way that she used to be.
Hours passed and soon he awoke to the sound of a car that seemed to be right outside of his window, thought it was impossible since he was on the second floor and his window didn't face the street. He sat up and blinked sleepily as the beams of headlights flashed across his room and a flying car pulled up beside his window.
He put on his glasses and gasped as he saw three familiar faces just outside his window. "Ron, Fred, George you got my message?" he said getting a bit happier.
"Yeah mate, best get your trunk and Hedwig's cage while we get rid of these bars on your window." said George as he tied a thick piece of rope around the bars of the window. Harry did as he was told and cringed as the bars crashed to the ground making a loud banging noise that woke the entire house.
"Hurry, their coming!" said Harry as he tossed his trunk into the boot of the car which shut itself and belched with satisfaction as Fred moved the car back into a position that would allow Harry to get in. The lock of the bedroom door rattled as Vernon's yells came closer and closer. Vernon burst through the door just as Harry had handed Ron his owl and rushed toward him.
"Oh no you don't boy, you're not going anywhere." he snarled angrily as he leapt for Harry managing to grab his foot.
George and Ron held tightly to Harry attempting to pull him from the window faster as they heard Harry scream in fear. "Fred, floor it! We can't leave Harry here with these horrid muggles!" screamed Ron as Fred nodded and pressed his foot down on the accelerator dragging Vernon out of the window along with Harry as he did.
The last thing that they heard was Vernon's horror filled scream as he let go of Harry's leg and fell head first into a large rose bush in the back yard and the shocked screeches of Harry's aunt as she looked out of the window down at her enraged husband. "You'll be back boy and when you do come back, I'll be waiting for you!" yelled Vernon as the flying car carried Harry away.
The ride to the burrow was quiet and somber instead of being filled with excitement as it would have normally been for someone who was riding in a flying car for the first time. Nobody spoke until they had reached their home and had escorted Harry into the house with his owl and trunk. As the four boys entered the house the hands on a strange clock with Ron, Fred, and Georges pictures on them moved from the words away, to home, and Harry looked around at the house in amazement. Dishes washed themselves and put themselves away while knitting needles flashed knitting something bright and colorful with no direction or interference from anyone.
"Your home is simply brilliant, thanks for rescuing me you guys." said Harry as Mrs. Weasley burst into the room angrily and frowned at her sons.
"Where, have, you, been? Oh, hello Harry dear. Your beds empty, no note, the car gone, you could have died or worse you could have been seen! Of course I don't blame you Harry dear." soothed Molly as she flip-flopped between scolding her three sons and welcoming Harry to their house.
"Mum, they were starving him and beating him. They had bars on his window." started Ron in a pleading tone attempting to make his mother see reason.
"You had better hope that I don't place bars on your window Ronald Weasley. Where's Serenity, please tell me that the four of you have been so ungentilmanly as to leave her outside to manage her trunk on her own?" asked Molly as she stepped to the door and looked out into the yard for the girl.
"Mum, she's not with us." said George placing a hand on his mother's shoulder and giving her a saddened look.
"Why? Don't tell me that you went all the way to Surry to get Harry for the rest of the summer and forgot his sister." she said turning to look at the four boys who were all hanging their heads with tears running down their cheeks.
Harry sank to his knees sobbing for the thousandth time since his sister's death and Molly rushed to him pulling him into her arms and rocking him as if he were her own son. "Harry dear, please, where is your sister? What happened?" asked Molly attempting to calm the hysterical boy in her arms as she rocked with him on the floor. Ginny came downstairs to see what was going on and was about to run back up when Molly called to her. "Ginny, run and get me a calming draught for Harry fast." Ginny nodded and ran into her mother's bathroom and returned quickly with the potion.
After making Harry drink the entire potion Molly looked up at her three sons expecting an explanation. Ron pulled Harry's note that was delivered by a strange house elf out of his pocket and handed it over with shaking hands. She flipped the note open with one hand and read over it, her eyes growing larger and larger with each line that she read in horror and rage.
"Boys stay with Harry until the potions has taken full effect, then once he's able take him to clean his face with some cool water, and bring him back down to have something to eat. I need to make several floo calls. This needs handling quickly before some fool decides to send poor Harry back to those horrid muggles." said Molly as she quickly got to her feet and stomped angrily into the living room with Harry's note clenched in her fist.
By the time that Harry was calm enough to wash his face and be settled at the breakfast table Mr. Weasley entered the house through the front door followed closely by Minister Fudge and Headmaster Albus Dumbledore. The three wizards were pulled into the living room where Molly showed them all the note and raged at Albus for not removing the Potter twins when Serenity was still alive. The adults continued to argue and talk while the children ate, then Molly entered the kitchen and grabbed a large old bowl from the top shelf covered in strange markings.
"Harry dear, I know that this whole thing is hard for you, but the Headmaster and Minister of Magic need to see your memories of what happened. Only then will they agree to have you permanently removed from the home of those horrid muggles who did this." she said holding out her hand to the boy pleadingly. Harry slowly placed his hand in hers and let her lead him from the room and into the livingroom where she gently guided him down into a squashy armchair.
Dumbledore knelt in front of Harry with a sad look in his eyes. Harry there are other ways to do this but we all need to see your memories so that what happened to you and your sister is undeniable. We don't want to put you though the trauma of reliving these horrendous things again, so I want you to concentrate on all of the memories of everything that you can remember that the Dursley's put the two of you through up until last night.
"I am going to place my wand at your head and the memories will be removed from your head. If you desire me to do so, I will return which ever memories that you wish to keep when we are finished viewing them." said Professor Dumbledore as he drew his wand.
"I only want the happy memories back." said Harry as he closed his eyes and concentrated on everything that his sister and he had suffered through over the years.
The strand of silver memories that Albus pulled from the boy's head filled a large phial completely to the rim and threatened to overflow. When the older wizard stood with the phial in his hands Molly took Harry back into the other room with the other children to allow the three wizards to view the memories in solitude.
It was thirty minutes before dinner was to be served when the three wizards exited the pensive that sat on the living room table. On their tired faces were looks of mingled shame, horror, sadness, and disbelief as they collapsed into various seats around the room in exhaustion. From the kitchen Molly looked up from her stove when she heard the sounds of the men's footsteps on the floor.
She left the food cooking and gathered up three glasses and a bottle of fire whiskey from the top shelf of the pantry for the three wizards. She carried the trey with the bottle and the glasses into the living room and poured each man a generous helping before setting the bottle on the coffee table between them.
Arthur's hands shook as he took the offered drink and steadied noticeably after he had drained the glass in one gulp. "More please Molly dear." he said holding his glass out to her with a pleading expression on his tired face. Molly wordlessly poured her husband another drink and remained sitting on the arm of the chair that her husband was in with one hand resting gently on his shoulder while another rubbed soothing circles on his back.
Albus was silent and he had one long fingered hand covering his face as he attempted to hide his remorse for not acting sooner when the girl was still living and pulling her and her brother out of that situation. He knew that Severus, Minerva, and Poppy would never let him either live down his most grieves blunder or forget it for that matter and his mind was in a frazzled wreck as he pondered on exactly how to break the news to them.
Minister Fudge poured himself one, and then another drink before he spoke. "Harry must never be returned to those horrid murdering muggles. If they killed his poor sister than if he is left there it's only a matter of time before they would kill him as well. I make an unbreakable vow that I will see that that entire family is severely punished for their crimes against the Potter children." he said as he drained his third glass and wiped the tears from his eyes.
"Harry is welcome to stay here with us. I'd be proud to raise him like one of my own." said Molly giving Arthur's shoulder a gentle squeeze to tell him that this was not open for debate on his part.
"No, Molly, while your intentions are very kind and noble, I can't let you do it." said Albus finally removing his hand from his face.
"Why not, Albus, I already have children and Harry feels comfortable with us" argued Molly angrily.
"Because Voldemort will come back and when he does anyone protecting Harry will be in danger." said Albus making everyone flinch.
"Now Albus, you know that,'He-who-must-not-be-named,' died on the night that the Potter's lost their lives. If the Weasley's are willing to give the boy a proper home filled with the love that he deserves than they should be allowed to do so." argued Fudge angrily.
"Minister we've been over this one thousand times. Voldemort is not dead. He's already managed to possess one of our teachers and almost succeeded in killing not one but both of the potter children last year. Anyone who is given guardianship over Harry will have to be very well aware of the risk that they'd be taking in becoming his guardian. Knowing the risks as I do, I simply can't allow the Weasley's to take that risk." said Albus seriously.
"Well then what do you suggest, since you, who, neglected to bring the Ministry into the problem sooner do not approve of a completely trustworthy wizarding family taking custody of the boy?" asked Fudge angrily.
"Don't get me wrong Molly and Arthur, it's not that I find you lacking or unable to give the boy adequate care, it's just that one more mouth to feed would put a strain on your family, and I know that if Merlin forbid anything ever happened to any member of your family because you were trying to protect Harry that the boy wouldn't be able to live with himself. Not to mention how I would feel if we lost even one member of your wonderful family." said Albus in a soft tone attempting to keep the Weasley matron from exploding or hexing his beard off in anger.
"I don't think that the finances would ever be a problem. After all Harry's parents did leave a great deal of money to their children. There's more than enough for Harry to live on well into old age. We can't have the boy who lived put into an orphanage so I propose that he be made a ward of Hogwarts until a suitable wizarding family can be found to raise and protect the boy until he is of age to make his own decisions." Suggested Fudge
"I agree, Harry will live at Hogwarts until we can find him a proper family and he may of course go home with the Weasley's for the summer's and any other holidays until a family can be found for him." said Albus nodding in agreement.
"Well then while he is here he is my responsibility and he will be treated no different than I treat my own children. Now dinner is ready you men will all join us for dinner, I insist." snapped Molly as she got up from the arm of the chair and walked into the kitchen before yelling for the children to get ready for dinner.
Dinner that night was a silent affair as everyone was in a state of shock and morning over Harry's loss and what he had been through. Later that night Harry awoke from the same nightmare that had plaighed his nights ever since his sister's death earlier that summer. He awoke screaming and sobbing and looked around the room to find that instead of being in the room that was his prison in the Dursley's home that he was instead sitting in a bed on the other side of Ron's room which was painted orange and was covered with magically moving posters of Ron's favorite quiddich team the Chudly Cannons.
He looked over to where Ron still slept and got up and went down stairs quietly not wishing to wake anyone. As he entered the living room he saw Mrs. Weasley's knitting needles flashing in the dimly lit room as they moved. He walked around the chair that they hovered above to jump in shock when he found that Mrs. Weasley was the one actually doing the knitting.
"What's wrong Harry dear? Did you have a bad dream?" she asked stilling her knitting needles and laying the work aside. Harry nodded mutely and looked out of the window deep in thought before he spoke.
"Mrs. Weasley, what's going to happen to me? They aren't going to send me back to the Dursley's are they?" he asked with a fearful tone in his voice.
"No dear, you are going to stay here with us for the rest of the summer and will be able to visit us any time that you like afterwards. The headmaster and the Ministry have decided that to protect you until they can find a suitable family for you that you will become a ward of the school. The school will, until a family is found be your new home. You will never return to those horrid people ever again." she said as she got up from her chair and joined Harry on the couch and wrapped a motherly arm around him protectively.
"I like your family, couldn't I just be adopted by you and your husband?" asked Harry as he felt safe and warm in Molly's embrace.
"We'd love that more than anything, but the headmaster and the Ministry feel that since we already have so many children, and the fact that ,'You-Know-Who," may still be looking for you that you would be better off with a family of your own. But as long as you are here any time that you are here you are one of my children and I will love you as such." said Molly as she kissed the top of his head.
"Come on dear, I'll make you a nice hot cup of cocoa to help you get back to sleep. We've got a busy day tomorrow as your Hogwarts letters should be arriving and we will have to go shopping." said Molly as she guided Harry into the kitchen and went about making a nice hot kettle of water to make some cocoa for him and some tea for her.
"Mrs. Weasley, do you think that anyone will do anything to my aunt, uncle and cousin for what they've done to me and my sister?" he asked looking down at the table and drawing patterns on it with his finger.
"Oh, yes, Harry, trust me on this darling boy. They aren't going to get away with what they've done. The Minister of Magic will see to it. Furthermore, I understand that as soon as it can be done your sister's body will be removed from where they buried it, and we will be able to give her a proper burial." said Mrs. Weasley as the tea kettle started to whistle.
"What they did to her was horrendous. I don't want anyone to see her like that if it can be helped." said Harry sadly as he took the hot cup of cocoa from Mrs. Weasley.
"Harry it is a tradition in wizarding funerals that the closest living family member prepare the body for burial. If you are unable to do it you may ask someone else to do it in your stead. You may want to think about it." said Molly as she sipped her tea. Harry nodded and finished his cocoa giving Mrs. Weasley a tight hug before he went back up to bed for the rest of the night.
A/N another chapter down I cried while I wrote this because now for the mean time Harry is safe. Please leave a review if you'd like to comment. Chapter eleven Hogwarts In Mourning is next.