Disclaimer: Same as Chapter 1

Chapter 10

Meeting Daphne

"So, did it work?" asked Remus at breakfast.

"Absolutely." Smirked Harry, waving a letter with the Hogwarts emblem at him. "The old fool swallowed the bait hook, line and sinker. Here, read it. It might interest you to know that a compulsion charm had been placed on it that was removed by Trippy before he gave it to me." he tossed the letter to Remus who caught it expertly. All those years of playing Quidditch with Harry and Liz seemed to have paid off.

The others leaned forward eagerly too. The five of them were at Slytherin Manor in the Wales. They had arrived there the day before from New York. After a lot of deliberation they had decided to leave Boris there in order to handle things at that end. It had been difficult for all of them. New York had been their home for fifteen years.

However, Slytherin Manor was incredible in its own way. It had a quiet elegance to it that reflected the tastes of its first and only occupant – Salazar Slytherin. He had built it himself after starting Hogwarts with the other three founders and had lived in it till his dying day. After his death, the manor had been abandoned by his son who much preferred Little Hangleton to the Wales.

Slytherin Manor was unlike any other house that Harry had ever seen before. For one, it was less like a house and more like a labyrinth. The hallway coiled and twisted like a snake – revealing cavernous rooms in nooks and crannies. Riptide had immediately fallen in love with the place and had vanished into the thick forest surrounding the estate. There were two house elves in the manor – Trippy and Mimsy who had both fallen over themselves in eagerness to help the last living descendants of their 'dear Master Sal'. Harry was sure that Salazar Slytherin would be rolling in his grave on hearing this.

The manor had about fifty rooms which included three potion labs, two dueling rooms and an indoor and outdoor Quidditch Pitch. The library was enormous – with even more books than what Salem had. A few hundred of them were in Parseltongue and Harry had taken it upon himself to read all of them before school started. One of them had Salazar Slytherin's memoirs which detailed the location of a chamber below the floors of Hogwarts that had been constructed for Slytherin and his heirs. Harry had a feeling that a similar room also existed for the heirs of Gryffindor and was determined to find it as soon as possible once he set foot in Hogwarts.

They were now in the sitting room enjoying breakfast. It faced the garden where various varieties of flowers were in bloom although it would soon become autumn. The manor had a stasis charm on it which enabled them to control the temperature of the gardens in order for the flowers to survive even when snow blanketed the entire ground.

"Maybe it is best if you read it out loud, Uncle Remus." Remarked Liz. "It will save time."

Remus smiled. "Good idea, Lizzy."

He cleared his throat and began to read.

My dear Harry,

It was wonderful to hear from you at last after all these years. I had often wondered what had become of you when you did not attend Hogwarts in your first year. I can only hope that you and your sister are safe now after having escaped the clutches of your mother and her friends. You may not know this, but as a magical child, your mother had no right to take you with her after your father's demise due to her not being legally married to your father. I know that this must be a great blow to you but the fact of the matter is that there was no marriage that was recorded between James Potter and Lily Evans. As you are the last male survivor of the Potter line, your mother essentially kidnapped you – a crime that is seen to be unforgivable in most of society's eyes.

After your father's demise, it was I who was appointed as your magical guardian as per your father's will (I have a copy of it with me as proof). After the attack on your family fifteen years ago, I tried my best to find you but to no avail. However, there is no need to worry. You are both safe now that you are in England. Needless to say, I will be more than happy to take care of you and your sister so please do not hesitate to contact me if you both need anything. I will certainly do all that is in my power to help you both.

You must have made previous arrangements regarding your stay in England but I would still very much like to meet you before the term starts. Do let me know when that meeting will be possible. As for admission to Hogwarts, it will be a pleasure to enroll your sister and you for your fourth and sixth years respectively. Once again, do not hesitate to contact me if you are in any need of help. If you want, I could take you to Gringotts and introduce you to the goblins there who are good friends of mine. I am sure that will make handling your finances that much more easier.

With Best Wishes,

Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Deafening silence filled the room once Remus stopped reading.

"So what do you think?" asked Harry cheerfully. "Is he crazy or stupid or both?"

"That-that bastard!" growled Sirius. "Marriage is not legal indeed! I will bet my entire fortune that he had forged Prongs' will and destroyed the record of the marriage. Manipulative scoundrel! And I am sure that the goblins at Gringotts absolutely adore him after he tried to steal money from your vault."

"Calm down Sirius." Said Remus, his eyes hard. "We still have a copy of the marriage certificate and James' will. If it comes to that, we can produce the evidence in front of the Wizengamot. Dumbledore will not be stupid enough to pursue this there. Most probably, he has just written this in order to turn Harry against us all."

"What I can't understand is this – how in Merlin's name did Dumbledore derive this entire tale of shit from the letter that Harry sent him? Is he deluded? The letter was just a simple one – standard enough." Demanded Liz angrily. "Not a single word of it implied that we both had been held prisoners or had escaped. All that it said was that we wanted to join Hogwarts as transfer students."

"The most concerning point is that it is Dumbledore who had replied to a letter that was addressed to McGonagall." Pointed out Lily quietly. "So what now, Harry? Are you going to meet him?"

A feral smile crept over her son's face. "Of course mother. It will be most rude of me to not do so. However, when this happy event takes place you all will be with me as well. After all, our dear Headmaster did not specify that I had to come alone."

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Daphne was worried. Scratch that – she was terrified. In the matter of a few hours her dear fiancé was coming for dinner. Today was Sunday, August 18th and the day had finally arrived. She cursed herself for the millionth time. What on earth had made her agree to meet him? Had she been confounded? Had Blaise cast a compulsion charm on her?

Deep down, she knew that she was being ridiculous. The truth was that she had been intrigued. She wanted to meet the man who had taken the time and effort to write a letter to her about the betrothal instead of letting his godfather take up the matter directly with her father as was the norm in pureblood circles. Not many wizards gave that much respect to witches in English pureblood society.

However, she now felt like banging her head against a wall. Later that fateful night, Blaise had told them all about Harry James Potter-Slytherin-Peverell-Gryffindor. Merlin! The name itself was a mouthful. And if her friend was to be believed, her fiancé was the 'Slytherin-most Slytherin who had ever existed' and was 'a marvel with a wand who could bend magic to his whim'. That sounded terrifying to say the least.

What kind of person was Harry really? And where had he been for the past fifteen years? Blaise had been very tight lipped about Harry's life before he had stepped on English soil. He had also refused to answer any questions that her father had put regarding Lily Potter, Sirius Black and Remus Lupin. He had said that they should ask Harry about all these topics themselves.

So, as of now, Daphne knew virtually nothing about her fiancé. This made her terribly uneasy. After all, the first lesson every Slytherin first year was taught was to not enter any unknown situation as far as possible. And she was doing exactly that.

She glanced at the clock. It was five to seven. Time to go downstairs. She surveyed herself once in the mirror critically. She was wearing a dress of sky blue silk with an empire waist and a ruffled neckline. Her hair was tied in an elegant knot and flowed in messy waves from the nape of her neck. She wore a small diamond pendent in the shape of a seven point star suspended from a platinum chain around her neck. She had worn low pumps on her mother's insistence – 'You are meeting your future husband after all my dear!' and hated it. According to Daphne, high heels of any kind had been invented as female torture devices.

Her mother squealed girlishly as she descended down the stairs.

"You look so beautiful, darling! Harry will not be able to take his eyes off you!"

Even her father seemed a little teary eyed.

"When did you grow up, Daffy?" he said gruffly. "It seems like it was just yesterday that you were eleven and starting Hogwarts and now you are nearly an adult – a beautiful woman ready to be married."

"Yes sis." Chimed in Astoria, her eyes dancing with happiness. "You look wonderful. Harry is really lucky to have you."

Daphne could not take it anymore. She clenched her fists, shaking with rage.

"Oh, for Merlin's sake! It is not like I am marrying the guy right now! I have just agreed to meet him for dinner with you all as a family. I don't have to marry him the instant he arrives through the floo! Stop acting as though you are going to lose me. If Harry thinks he can just make me marry him whenever he feels like it without my consent then it does not matter how good he is with magic I will hex him into next week. If he expects me to be a typical good little pure blooded wife then he is sorely mistaken."

"Duly noted, Miss Greengrass." Said an amused voice behind her.

The four of them froze. Daphne whirled around to see a young man of about seventeen emerging from the fireplace. When she looked at him, her mouth went dry. The guy was really handsome. He could probably pass off as a male model in those trashy muggle magazines that her friend Tracey was always reading. He already looked the part with the bottle green dress robes that he was wearing. He was about six feet tall, lean and muscular with untamable raven black hair sticking up in all directions. His best feature was his eyes. They were a deep sea green dancing with laughter. Daphne could feel herself getting drawn into them. Involuntarily, her lips curved up into a sheepish smile. She immediately felt ashamed of her outburst.

The fire flared again to reveal a man of in his late thirties with jet black hair. He had stormy grey eyes. His face broke into a smile on seeing them all.

"Cygnus!" exclaimed the second guest happily moving towards her father and shaking his hand warmly. "It is good to see you."

"It is wonderful to see you too, Sirius." Murmered her father his eyes still fixed on the boy.

The fire flared again to reveal three more people. One was a man who looked to be about forty-five. He had sandy brown hair streaked with grey and warm brown eyes. Behind him was a woman of also in her late thirties. She had auburn hair and green eyes just like the young man who had first arrived. The young girl next to her was around Astoria's age. She had auburn hair too, just like her mother and laughing hazel eyes.

"Oh where are my manners!" exclaimed Sirius shaking his head. "These are Harry, Remus, Lily and Elizabeth." He continued, introducing each of the new arrivals in turn.

"It is a pleasure to meet you sir." Said Harry respectfully shaking her father's hand. To be honest, Daphne was surprised that he had such good manners and knowledge about pureblood etiquette. If he had been on the run for the past fifteen years, it was truly creditable. Also, he did not seem offended in the least by her little speech.

"Likewise." Her father replied warily, undoubtedly worried as to how much he had heard when he had arrived. "Please, call me Cygnus. We are to be family after all."

Harry then moved on to her mother. "Mrs. Greengrass. Words do not do you justice." He bowed. "I can see where your daughters get their beauty from."

Fiona smiled warmly. "Such a charmer! Just like your father. It is wonderful to meet you my dear. Please, call me Fiona."

"And this must be Astoria." He continued, turning to her sister. "It is an honor to meet you young lady. Blaise has told me a lot about you."

"Is it true that you turned all the Gryffindor's hair pink last term?" piped up his sister curiously.

Astoria looked at the guests surprised. From what Daphne knew all the three grownups had been Gryffindors in school. However, there was no malice in any of their faces. As a matter of fact, Sirius looked terribly amused.

"Yes I did." She said at last, a bit defiantly. "But it was only because some seventh years hexed a Slytherin second year the day before."

"Cowards." Said Liz, shaking her head. "They deserved it. What potion did you use by the way? Blaise said that you asked the house elves to put it in their breakfast."

And just like that, Astoria had found a new best friend.

Daphne smiled fondly at her sister.

"I knew they would get along like a house on fire." Said Harry. She looked up and found him standing in front of her. "They are very alike from what Blaise said."

"I am sorry for what I said." Blurted out Daphne. Although what she had said was somewhat true it had been unbearably rude on her part. "I-I didn't mean it."

Harry cocked his head curiously. "Didn't you, Miss Greengrass? From what I have noticed, people seldom say something they do not mean. Even the best of lies have a kernel of truth in them."

"Okay, so maybe I did mean a little of it. But not the whole thing. I was just frustrated by the entire situation in general. Now, I know that it is not your fault but you cannot deny that most of our laws are made by a patriarchal society where witches hardly have the same rights as wizards."

"Look, I mean every word of what I said in the letter. I will not mind in the least if you want to keep this entire arrangement a secret. I would not think any less of you if you did so."

Daphne shook her head stubbornly. "Not at all. I might be a Slytherin but I don't want to do so. I have a few selfish reasons of my own for doing this as well."

"Very well. Now may I escort you inside? The others are all going for dinner." he offered her his arm.

"You may. And please call me Daphne. Miss Greengrass just sounds stupid."

Harry laughed. "Of course Daphne. But only if you call me Harry."

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When Harry first arrived at Greengrass Manor, the last thing he had expected was to find his future bride-to-be glaring at her parents, her hands clenched in fists and yelling at them about how she would not be a typical pureblood wife. Blaise had told him all about Daphne - her thirst for knowledge, how her cold, standoffish personality was only a mask she wore in school and how she loved her family fiercely. That itself did sound different from your usual everyday witch but Harry could not shake the feeling that Daphne Greengrass would not be anything else but another girl who wanted nothing else in life but to be a trophy wife. These ideas were completely shattered the moment he had walked through the fireplace and Harry could not be happier.

Sirius had warned him about how most pureblood daughters were expected to behave in society and to be honest, the very thought had repulsed him. He doubted he could tolerate a simpering air head attached to his arm, hanging onto his every word. From the time he was thirteen, he had promised himself that if he survived the encounter with Tom Riddle, he would have a marriage like his parents did – one based on love and respect, and genuine affection.

Those plans had been thwarted once he had come to know of the betrothal contract and a small part of him had been enraged that he once again had no say in another decision regarding his future. The bloody prophecy had already forced him to walk a suicidal path. He had hoped that Daphne and he could at least be friends by the time they married – he dared not hope that they could be something more due to the fear of having another of his dreams dashed.

Daphne had been much more than what he had dared to hope for. It was obvious that she was a strong willed individual who loved her family dearly. She was clearly very protective of her little sister and also had a quiet intelligence about her. She was also breathtakingly beautiful. Harry had been entranced by her reddish gold hair that had glinted in the firelight and her deep blue eyes that were very nicely brought out by her dress.

If the entire family had not been too busy staring at him in horror, Harry was certain that he would have stammered his way through like a tongue tied idiot. Thank Merlin that Sirius had arrived to make the necessary introductions.

All of them were now sitting around the fireplace after a wonderful five course meal. Mrs. Greengrass had really outdone herself. On one side of the room, Liz and Astoria was laughing gaily, undoubtedly planning a prank of some sort. His mother and Fiona had also become good friends and Cygnus, Sirius and Remus were reminiscing about their years at Hogwarts.

They had all left Daphne and Harry by themselves on the love seat that was in one dark corner of the room. Daphne looked ready to throttle her mother when she had seen that.

"You know Daphne," he began. "The reason we have been made to sit next to each other is so that we can get to know each other better. Not behave as though we have had the Petrificus Totalus cast on us."

She turned towards him, startled. Her mouth twisted into a bitter smile.

"You are right, Harry. So what do you want to talk about? To be honest I have a lot of questions I want to ask you. However, I doubt that you will answer any of them."

"Why do you say so?"

"Because all you men are the same. You believe that witches have no right to information that does not concern them. I suppose you think that as you have already written a letter to me it waives my right of asking you anything else."

"I will not deny that I do not feel that I can share everything with you at the moment since we have barely known each other for a few hours. However, there is one thing I can tell you. A war is coming soon, much worse than the First Wizarding War and I will be at the center of it."

Daphne looked at him incredulously.

"And you have no choice in the matter? I find that hard to believe! Surely, if you can manage to avoid You-Know-Who, you need not take part in the war at all."

Harry laughed bitterly.

"It is not so simple. Let us just say that this was not my choice to make."

He turned to face the fire. He could feel his fiancée's gaze drilling a hole in his back.

"If you are just going to continue giving vague answers just enough to placate a simpering idiot then I am afraid that that is not going to endear you to me or earn my trust at all." She said at last, her voice hard.

"And how can I trust you immediately?" countered Harry. "I don't know anything about you and do not intend to make you swear a vow of loyalty to me like a slave. You are to be my wife, not a subordinate. I don't intend to treat you like my inferior. The idea sickens me as much as it bothers you. Hence, the only way I can tell you everything about me is by you earning my trust over time." His green eyes were blazing like emeralds by the end of his speech.

Daphne was speechless. Never, in all her life had she imagined that she would meet a man like Harry. A pureblood who did not want just a trophy wife! She must be dreaming!

"Alright," she conceded, feeling more ashamed of herself by the minute. "Then what can you tell me as of now?"

"Well, I have already completed my education. I have been brought up in the States. I love my family more than anything in the world and would even die for them. I hate Tom Riddle and will not rest till he is dead. I also distrust Albus Dumbledore and have no intention of joining the light side."

"Who is Tom Riddle?"

"Why your dear Dark Lord of course. Did you know that he is a halfblood?"

"Seriously?" asked Daphne amazed. She wished that her fellow Slytherins could hear this. So many purebloods had been kissing the robes of a halfblood! The thought was comical.

"Yes." Said Harry, a faint smile on his face. "His father was a muggle."

"If only me housemates knew of this!"

"Well, it will be pretty easy to make them 'accidentally' find out right? It shouldn't be too difficult."

"Are you sure that your parents were Gryffindors? You act a lot like a Slytherin."

"Well, my mother is a direct descendent of Salazar Slytherin, you know." For a moment, Daphne was sure that Harry was kidding. However, when his expression did not change, she gasped.

"But she is a muggleborn!"

"And all muggleborns are related to an ancient pureblood family. They just have to take the trouble of taking the genealogy test to prove it." Her fiancé retorted.

"Does this test even exist here?"

"It does. However, it is not advertised due to Dumbledore. After all, if all muggleborns are given their rightful place in wizarding society, where would that leave the leader of the light?"

"You really don't like him." She observed shrewdly.

"More like detest him." He continued conversationally. "Now, I have answered some your questions and in return I would like to ask you one. Why do you want to reveal our arrangement? I am pretty sure that a true Slytherin would not agree to that unless she has something to gain from it."

Daphne scowled. "You picked up on that, didn't you?" On seeing his expecting look she continued, "Draco Malfoy has got this idea that he wants to have me as his wife. His father has sent over a marriage contract to mine which we have to answer before school starts. If we don't, it is as good as signing our death warrant. Malfoy's cronies will be too happy to attack our home. However, if it is made known that I am promised to you, Malfoy might hesitate. Therefore, I want our contract to be known as publicly as possible if you don't mind so that my family remains safe."

"Intelligent of you. Well, from my side, I have no problem if the Daily Prophet even runs a front page article regarding our betrothal. However, there is one thing you might not have considered in this. Making your position clear as my fiancée publicly will only increase the threat of Tom attacking you. Now, I can make arrangements to have your property warded adequately, but in Hogwarts, you might be threatened. Do you really want that?"

"Look, as you said, the war is imminent. As and when that comes, you cannot expect me to not fight. I will. My father refused to leave England last year when this entire mess started and I now see his point. I might be a Slytherin, but I am not a coward. How do you think I will feel if we go to France for example and our home is razed to the ground? Even if we are alive, I don't think I will be able to forgive myself for not even trying to protect it. Neither will the rest of my family."

"So you are saying that if I have to fight Tom, you will be at my side fighting with me?" asked Harry, his eyes wary.

Daphne hesitated for a moment.

"I will not lie and say 'yes' immediately. However, if I find that I approve of what you are doing then yes, I will fight with you. I will not aid you just because you are to be my husband if you end up becoming another Dumbledore. There is one thing I can promise you though, I will not knowingly go against you or help anyone harm you. The four of us can promise you that. We don't betray family. By the way, if you are not planning on joining Dumbledore or Tom how in Merlin's name do you expect to fight the war?"

"By creating a third side - you might consider it to be a grey side in some sense. My idea is simple. I don't classify magic as light or dark. Even a simple spell like Wingardium Leviosa can throw someone off a cliff just as a cutting hex can slice an apple. Magic is dark or light depending on how you end up using it. That is what I want to tell anyone who joins me. I also do not believe in this nonsense of muggleborns that Dumbledore has propagated. A person is magical only if their ancestors are. It is a proven fact. This is what I believe in. Tom is one extreme of the spectrum - obsessed with blood purity and dark magic. Dumbledore is at the other end - the champion of muggleborns and the light side. I am somewhere in the middle trying to strike a balance between the two ends."

"That makes sense. I suppose you are also not a believer in the myth that all Slytherins are evil?"

"Considering that my best friend and my fiancée are both Slytherins? Not a chance." laughed Harry.

"One last thing. If you have already finished your education, why are you joining Hogwarts?"

"There is a muggle saying 'keep your friends close and enemies closer'. That is exactly what I am doing. The only way that I stand a chance of winning this war is by getting to the heart of the situation which is Hogwarts."

"Smartly played Mr. Potter-Slytherin-Peverell-Gryffindor. And how do you know that I will not go to Dumbledore and tell him all about your plans the moment you leave my home?"

"You could not do so even if you wanted to, Daphne. After all, Dumbledore has discriminated against your house since your first year. I doubt that you will tell him anything. You are more likely to tell dear Tom all that you know but considering that your father disowned your uncle Fredrick when he took the Dark Mark, I think I am safe."

Daphne did not know whether she should laugh or cry. Harry Potter-Slytherin-Peverell-Gryffindor was something else for sure. Looking at his green eyes dancing with laughter at her expense, Daphne realized that there was a very great possibility of her falling for him. Now that was a frightening thought for sure.

So Chapter 10, everyone! I hope you liked the meeting between Harry and Daphne.

Harry should start attending Hogwarts by about Chapter 12 or 13 as of now - there are still a few loose ends to tie up before school starts.

Also, your opinions of which House to put Harry in are as follows:

Slytherin: 16

Ravenclaw: 13

Hufflepuff: 3

Gryffindor: 1

It is pretty obvious that Ravenclaw and Slytherin are the most liked. However, I am myself REALLY confused between the two of them as they both work pretty well the way I want the story to progress. So a little help would be appreciated in order to clear the confusion in my mind.

Also, a huge thank you to everyone who reviewed, followed and favorited this story. Your comments siriously make my day!

See you next week with the next chapter!