Harry Potter and the Shadow Legion
Chapter 25
Aurora and Gabrielle knew there was nothing they could do, as Fleur's breathing slowly became less. After a few minutes, it stopped completely. Her Veela side, had lost the battle with the Dragon blood, and surrendered to the embrace of darkness, Fleur Delacour, was dead...
... but Fleur Potter, still had a chance to live. Aurora and Gabrielle knew they had to work fast, Gabrielle was using muggle CPR on Fleur, in order to keep oxygen flowing to her brain, while Aurora waited until the burns of Harry, Hermione and Ginny were fully healed.
The moment they were, Aurora quickly administered the antidote to the sleeping draught they had been given. Within half a minute, all three were awake again.
Aurora quickly explained the situation to the trio. "okay listen up, we have very little time, so don't interrupt me. Right now, Fleur is technically dead. Gabrielle is keeping her body alive but the Veela magic that has kept her body going thus far, has been extinguished by the Dragon blood.
So in essence, Fleur has lost her way to stay alive and her reason to keep living. There is but one thing stronger than death, the power of friendship and love. The four of you share a bond now, exploit that bond. Fleur's mind is still reachable, if you can lay the connection to her.
What I want you to do is this, focus your thoughts, try to break outside of your own mind and reach out to Fleur. Give her a new reason to live". The trio nodded and sat down in a triangle, around Fleur and Gabrielle. Harry at Fleur's head, and Hermione and Ginny on either side.
They sat down in the meditation stance they had been taught, and cleared their minds of everything but their thoughts about Fleur, confusing as they might be. Slowly they tried to broaden their thoughts beyond the confines of their own minds.
It took about 2 minutes, but finally Harry felt something breach, like a broken dam, letting his thoughts out. He felt the minds of Hermione and Ginny first. They were likewise attempting to breach the mental dam keeping their thought hidden.
Hermione was the next to break through and together, she and Harry helped Ginny to break her bonds. When they were all free, they searched for the weak signs of Fleur's fading mind.
Acting on instinct the trio thought, "Fleur". A soft ripple went through the remnants of Fleur's thoughts and Harry continued, "Fleur, please don't give up, there is so much left to live for. You have friends and family who love you, you have Hermione and Ginny and me. We love you Fleur, so please don't leave us".
Hermione took over and said, "I know it doesn't seem like it right now, but please, there is so much left to do and to experience. I can't believe I'm saying this, but damn it Fleur, you're my wife and I refuse to let you give up, so fight. Fight for yourself, fight for us, fight for your parents and for your sister".
Ginny added, "Fleur, I know we don't really know each other, but right now, it seems as if I have known about you for all of my life. I know you are a part of me. A part of us. You, Harry, Hermione and me, we're supposed to be together, so please Fleur, don't leave us, we need you".
Harry placed a loving kiss on Fleur's forehead and placed her head in his lap, while softly stroking her hair. His example was followed by Ginny and Hermione, who each picked up one of Fleur's hands and placed a soft kiss on it, before placing it against their steadily beating hearts, to let her feel they were alive and their hearts were beating as one.
Gabrielle was still performing CPR on Fleur, but to her relieve, she could feel Fleur's own heart was slowly taking over, she was going to make it. Gabrielle nearly cried tears of joy when she said, "I don't know what you said to her. But whatever it was, it worked. She's pulling through, she's going to make it".
The relieve and joy on the faces of Harry, Hermione and Ginny was obvious and in their excitement, they didn't immediately notice, when Fleur slowly opened her eyes. The two adults did notice however and Gabrielle carefully took Fleur's head from Harry's lap and helped her sit upright, while Aurora hurried to the restaurant to let the other Delacour's know that Fleur had woken up.
"careful sweetie", Gabrielle sent a stern look to the three other children on the beds and they immediately became quiet. "how are you feeling Fleur? Do you feel pain anywhere"? "I... I don't know mama", came the soft reply, "I feel weird, like a large part of me has been torn away, only to be replaced by something else".
"how does that other part feel, is it hurting, or does it feel uncomfortable"? "no, it feels kind of warm and it makes me feel save, it is a comfortable feeling". Gabrielle released a soft sigh of relieve, it would seem that Fleur's body had fully accepted the Dragon blood, and was getting reacquainted with her new source of magical power.
The doors of the ward were thrown open and the three Delacour's came running in. Little Gabrielle climbed onto the bed and threw herself in her sisters arms, while her parents stood at the foot end of the beds, tears of happiness flowing freely down their cheeks.
Gabrielle came down of the beds and went to stand besides her partner, "it would seem that it went as well as it could have gone. Her body is readjusting itself to work with the Dragon blood, I think we even managed to save a part of her Veela side, so it has to learn how to work with the Dragon blood, instead of against it".
Aurora gave her partner a loving kiss on the lips and they watched as the children on the bed were rejoicing in the fact that Fleur had survived. After a few minutes however, they knew there were certain issue's they had to address, so Gabrielle cleared her throat and asked for attention.
"I'm sorry to put a damper on the celebrations but there are several, very serious issue's we have to deal with. First and foremost, Fleur's new status". Gabrielle looked at Jean-Paul and Apolline when she continued, "I don't know if you have ever heard of something called, a Blood pact"?
Apolline looked clueless, but the colour drained from the face of Jean-Paul. He stuttered, "wha... what do you mea... mean a Blood pact. Are you saying that my little girl is part of a Blood pact"?
Gabrielle nodded solemnly and responded, "I'm afraid so Jean-Paul, the Veela magic of Fleur was fighting our attempts to use our power to heal her. So we had to somehow weaken the power of Fleur's Veela magic. The only option left to us, was to attempt to create a Blood pact, between, Fleur, Harry, Hermione and Ginny".
Jean-Paul sat down on a chair with his head in his hands, "why does the world has to be so cruel". The four children on the bed were following the conversation between the adults with interest, while little Gabrielle had returned to reading on her mother's lap.
"what is wrong papa", asked Fleur carefully to her father. He seemed to be unable to speak so Gabrielle answered in his stead. "your father is having trouble accepting that his twelve year old daughter, is married, to no less than three other, eleven or twelve year olds".
The children did not fully understand the full repercussions of their marriage so Hermione asked, "but what is so terrible about that than, we don't mind being married. We were already best friends and it was not such a big thing to do, in order to safe Fleur's life".
The sad smiles of the adults shut her up and Gabrielle continued her explanation. "What you four don't understand, is that there are certain consequences to being married.
First of all, as soon as the ministry is notified of your marriage, an heir must be conceived, within five years, or they will annul your marriage and separate you, which will most likely kill you.
Secondly, you will be required, by law, to live together and as soon as you come of age, which will be at 15 instead of 17, you are to perform all duty's that come with the position of the head of house. In this case it will be Harry, so the official documents will state that Harry James Potter has three wives".
The four children were shocked to hear this, but Gabrielle wasn't done yet. "furthermore, seeing as Harry is the heir to multiple ancient houses, at least two heirs must be produced, for each house. In your case these houses are, Potter, and 3 others.
And lastly, because of the Blood pact, all of the wounds you might sustain, will be shared equally by all four of you. However this means, that if one of you is killed, all four of you, will die".
The shock on the faces of the four children was clear and it was silent for a few minutes, until the silence was broken by soft sobs.
Fleur was silently crying and the other three came immediately to her side. "what's wrong Fleur"? the soft question was asked by Harry, who sat before Fleur and was softly stroking her long silver hair.
"this is all my vault", she sobbed softly. "if I had more control over my allure, none of this would have happened. Now you are all forced to pay the price for my shortcomings". There was an immediate objection from three sides, as Harry, Hermione and Ginny all clearly let their disagreement with this statement be known.
"Fleur", Harry stated sternly. "don't you ever think we are unhappy with this. Yes it is a lot to take in, but if we had known this before we did it, our choice would have been the same. You are one of us, part of our little family. And if anyone messes with our family...".
He didn't need to finish his sentence as everyone clearly understood what he meant. Jean-Paul and Apolline were surprised by the mature manner in which Harry, Hermione and Ginny were dealing with the whole situation.
Aurora and Gabrielle were smiling at the love and caring, shown by the four children on the bed. Gabrielle softly cleared her throat and said, "We might have a solution about our little five year problem".
When everyone looked up in hope, Aurora continued were her wife had left off. "all correspondence from, or concerning Harry, goes through Lord Ragnok at Gringotts. He makes all official declarations and statements for both our family's. He will not release this news unless we tell him to.
The law will only go into effect, when the ministry is officially informed by Gringotts. So even if the news was leaked somehow, the law can only be enacted when Lord Ragnok confirms it. So as long as he remains unwilling to answer, the ministry can't do anything.
However there is also the matter of your living conditions. It is crucial for the bond between you four, that you spent as much time together as possible". She turned towards the elder Delacour's and said, "I think I can safely assume, Fleur will not be returning to Beauxbatons",
They both nodded and Gabrielle took over again, "we suggest the following solution. You enrol Fleur at Hogwarts. That way, Harry, Hermione and Ginny can protect her and make sure nothing like this ever happens again".
The children looked absolutely ecstatic at the mention that Fleur might go to school with them. However Jean-Paul looked a little hesitant at the notion of sending his daughter to a school in another country and one that has produced so many dark wizards and witches.
Gabrielle and Aurora seemed to recognise his hesitance and Aurora said, "don't worry Jean, come January, there will be a few changes at Hogwarts. The troll attack at Halloween, has given her majesty exactly the excuse she needed, to order a full investigation of the workings at Hogwarts.
I can't go into details yet, but there are several issues that will be addressed next term, including the curriculum, student behaviour and overall security. So rest assured, Hogwarts will soon be amongst the best and safest schools in the world, as it is supposed to be".
This seemed to take away his fear and he was finally able to smile a little. "so what are we going to do now", he asked. Gabrielle smiled softly and said, "there are a few ancient laws and rules which we can use in our favour.
It shouldn't be a problem to get Fleur transferred to Hogwarts and to ensure Harry and the girls will get their own quarters, without raising suspicion, so they won't be bothered by other students if they don't want to". The Delacour's nodded contend and Gabrielle took over again.
"I know of several thing we need to get arranged, as soon as possible, so I suggest we get Fleur cleared and get the hell out of here". They all nodded and Aurora asked Charles to drop the barrier, which still closed the doors to the ward.
When he had done so, a concerned healer immediately stormed into the room and started asking questions about how it was possible that a patient, who was as good as dead only an hour ago, could suddenly be looking as if nothing had happened.
Aurora smiled reassuringly and explained that she had used ancient family magic to heal Fleur. When the healer heard this, she demanded to know from which family she thought she was, that she would dare to treat a patient without first consulting a senior healer.
She stood up to her full height and with a cold voice she replied, "my name is Aurora Emrys. First line descendant of Merlin the Great. I don't have to ask permission to save the life of a patient, who was already given up by your own healers". When the healer heard her name, she went white as a sheet and started muttering apologies.
Aurora cut her off and said, "I don't want to hear excuses. I just want miss Delacour here, to be cleared as soon as possible, so we can all go home again". the healer nodded and quickly cast several diagnostic charms on Fleur to ensure she was in good condition.
Five minutes later, she was cleared and Apolline transfigured her hospital robe to a simple dress, so Fleur wouldn't be looked after, until she could get changed.
Aurora and Gabrielle led the four happy children back to the entrance hall, followed by the three Delacour's.
When they stood before one of the fireplaces, Gabrielle said, "I think it would be best if we went to Beauxbatons first, to start the transfer and so Fleur can go and get all her things from her room. Afterwards, I think it would be best if Fleur left with us for the manor. There are a lot of things we have to discuss with the children, so the sooner we get that taken care of the better. You are all invited to come at Christmas, so it won't be to long apart".
Jean-Paul and Apolline nodded and they went through first with little Gabrielle on her father's arm. Gabrielle went next, followed by the four kids and Aurora went last.
They arrived in the entrance hall of the palace of Beauxbatons. When they were all present Fleur led the group towards the office of the headmistress. After a few minutes they arrived at a large wooden door with large tainted glass windows, carrying the emblem of the school.
Fleur knocked and a voice came from inside. "Enter". When she opened the door, they saw a woman sitting behind a large desk. The woman looked to be the same size as Hagrid and when she stood, her graceful head would nearly touch the ceiling.
When the headmistress saw Fleur, she stood up and walked around her desk. She knelt down on one knee and took Fleur's hands in her own, "how are you miss Delacour? It is amazing to see you look so good, when only last night, you were on the verge of dying".
Fleur smiled at the headmistress and said, "I'm feeling great, Madame Maxime. Thanks to the parents of my friend, who managed to heal me". At this Madame Maxime looked over Fleur's head and saw the others who stood at the entrance of her office.
She stood up and first greeted Jean-Paul and Apolline, before turning towards Aurora and Gabrielle. "it is a pleasure to meet you, I am Madame Maxime, the headmistress of Beauxbatons".
They shook hands and Aurora said, "nice to meet you Madame, my name is Aurora Emrys and this is my wife, Gabrielle, our son Harry and his friends, Hermione Granger and Ginny Weasley".
They all shook hands and Madame Maxime invited them all to sit on the chairs in front of her desk. Gabrielle said, "perhaps it would be best if the children went to pack Fleur's belongings. We have some matters to discuss Madame".
The headmistress nodded solemnly and after the children had left, she said, "I agree. It would be best to start with the heart of the matter. I assume you wish to press charges against the three students who attacked Fleur.
Unfortunately you will know better where they are, than me. Yesterday evening, ten man in muggle army uniforms came by to take them into custody. They carried a letter signed by you, monsignor Delacour, as the deputy Minister for Magic of France".
Jean-Paul nodded and said, "that is correct Madame, those men were members of the personal guard of Lady Emrys here. She has taken responsibility for their interrogation and prosecution. Rest assured, we will get to the bottom of this".
Madame Maxime nodded and turned towards Aurora, "might I ask if you are by any chance related to Merlin Emrys, also known as Merlin the Great"? Aurora smiled and said, "yes. I am a first line descendant of Merlin. I have several responsibility's in Britain, including to take care of Harry Potter. And any friend of my son is a friend of mine. So this is a personal matter".
Madame Maxime nodded again and asked, "what will happen with Fleur from now on? Will she stay at Beauxbatons, or do you intend to transfer her to a different school. I must add I'm deeply disappointed and shocked that something like this could have happened on my school".
Jean-Paul and Apolline nodded in thanks and Jean-Paul said, "we plan to enrol Fleur at Hogwarts, starting January. There she already has friends who will look after and protect her, we have nothing against your school Madame, but we feel that it is no longer safe for Fleur to stay at Beauxbatons. Gabrielle will start here in a few years, but she has several friends and cousins the same age, so we do not fear for her safety".
Madame Maxime accepted this with a graceful nod and said, "I understand. Do I have to send Fleur's records to Minerva McGonagall, or do you want to do it yourselves"? Jean-Paul looked at Aurora and she answered, "I have a meeting with professor McGonagall later today, so I'll deliver them myself".
Madame Maxime nodded and waved her wand. A door in her office opened and a folder came flying towards them. Madame Maxime caught the folder, shrunk it and handed it to Aurora, who put it in her bag. At that moment there came a knock on the door which was opened immediately.
"Madame", said an elderly woman in a teachers robe, "there is a fight in the first year dorms. Several of our students tried to attack miss Delacour, when her friends stepped in to stop them".
Aurora and Gabrielle groaned, focusing her mind on the aura of the four, Gabrielle grabbed her partner's hand and they vanished in a flash of blue fire, leaving a shocked headmistress and teacher behind.
Jean-Paul smiled and said, "yea, they do that occasionally. They can break through any anti apparition ward invented, even through goblin wards. Madame Maxime shook her head and stood up before quickly making her way towards the scene of the fight, followed by the Delacour's, with Gabrielle in her father's arms.
The quartet was making their way towards Fleur's room, when they were stopped at the entrance to the dormitories. A girl who seemed to be at least a fifth year, stood in the way, with several equally big boys besides her.
The girl pointed at Fleur and said, "you bitch, how dare you show your face here, after what you have done to my sister and her friends. It is your fault they have been arrested, I'll make you pay for that".
The girl prepared to step towards Fleur, when Harry stepped between them, with Hermione and Ginny on either side of them. "you keep your hands of off Fleur, or it will be the last thing you do with those hands, for quite a while".
The five older students were a little surprised to find their way blocked by some strange first year they had never seen before and when he told them to shove of, they laughed and the girl in the middle said, "step aside dwarf, or you'll get a beating as well".
When Harry and the girls refused to move, the girl snarled and looked to her fellows on either side of her, hereby missing the vicious smirk on the faces of Harry and the girls.
The girl stepped forward and swung her right fist towards Harry's face. Using a move his mother taught them, Harry caught the girl's fist, in his right hand and in one motion he delivered a punch to the girls elbow, with his left palm, breaking the joint and the arm in several places, with a loud SNAP. Several pieces of cracked bone shot through the girl's skin and she started bleeding immediately.
The girl howled in pain and dropped to the floor, cradling her broken arm against her chest. The four other students charged at Harry, but Hermione and Ginny tackled two of them. Their strength had increased quite a bit since Halloween, so they had no problem taking down the older students.
Harry delivered a single punch to the gut of the first student who charged him and he crumbled to the ground, gasping for breath. The second student was a tall, broad shouldered boy who clearly knew a few things about fighting the 'muggle way'. He dodged Harry's first punch and delivered a hard punch to his chest, Harry felt something snap and he thought the punch might have broken a rib.
In the meantime, Hermione and Ginny were beating the two boys they had tackled and they were sitting on their chest delivering punch after punch to the boys faces.
Harry snarled at the older boy and dropped in the fighting stance his mother had taught them. He dodged several of the blows the other boy threw at him and finally he saw his chance.
The boy raised his right fist to deliver another blow and with a lightning strike Harry's left fist found its way to the boy's side. There were several SNAPS and the boy dropped down, joining the still howling girl on the floor.
The first boy, who he had struck in the gut, had managed to regain his breath and charged at Harry the moment his friend dropped down. Unfortunately for him, Harry was warmed up and saw him coming.
With his left arm he blocked the boy's blow and with his right fist, he delivered a punch to his jaw. Several teeth and globules of blood flew out of his mouth and the boy crumbled to the ground, unconscious.
At that moment there was a flash of blue fire and two very familiar voices yelled, "HARRY, GIRLS, THAT, IS, ENOUGH". Hermione and Ginny felt a hand on their shoulder and they were pulled of off the two boys, who they were beating to a pulp.
Harry was likewise, pulled back to his senses, but in his case by Fleur, who looked a little pale, at what her friends had done to protect her. Having a chance to look around, Harry, Hermione and Ginny saw that they were standing in a crowd of at least 80 or 90 students, who were looking wide eyed at them.
The five students who had attacked them, were lying on the floor, two were crying in pain and the other three were unconscious. Hermione and Ginny looked at their hands and went wide-eyed when they saw the blood covering their hands and sweaters.
At that moment, Madame Maxime came running towards the scene with Jean-Paul and Apolline hot on her heels. The three newcomers looked shocked at the scene that awaited them and Jean-Paul turned Gabrielle's face away from the groaning and bleeding students on the floor.
Madame Maxime raised her hand and it immediately became still. "everyone who is not supposed to be here, leave. And could someone go and get the school healers, it appears they are needed". The crowd dispersed immediately and one of them ran off, presumably to get the healers.
Jean-Paul and Apolline observed the 'battlefield,' one girl with a broken arm, bone sticking out of the arm and bleeding quite severely. One boy, with presumably broken ribs, one boy with a broken jaw and several missing teeth and two boys with broken and bloodied faces. Harry, Hermione and Ginny were huddled together and appeared to be deeply ashamed of what they had done. Fleur stood next to them and seemed a bit lost.
Madame Maxime looked between her own wounded students and the blood spattered trio and demanded on a stern tone, "what happened here? Who started this and why"? Fleur was the one who answered, as all the others were unable to reply, either by shock at what they had done, or due to pain.
"they tried to stop us when we wanted to enter the dormitory. The girl said it was my vault that her sister had been arrested and she would make me pay for it. Harry, Hermione and Ginny stepped between us and when the girl attempted to punch Harry, he broke her arm. The rest attacked us and Harry, Hermione and Ginny beat them".
Madame Maxime nodded solemnly and said, "I recognise the girl, she is the younger sister of the student who cursed you yesterday. The four boys have caused trouble before, they are the typical schoolyard bullies. I had them suspended for misconduct last year, but apparently they have not learned from it".
At that moment, a trio of healers, in clear white robes, came running towards them and when they saw the five wounded students, they gasped and quickly went to work. They conjured stretchers and rushed the students to the infirmary.
Madame Maxime said, "Fleur, would you show your friends to the bathrooms, so they can clean themselves up, while you pack your trunk"? Fleur nodded and led the others in through the door, the five students had attempted to block.
As soon as everyone had cleared the area, Madame Maxime sighed and said, "I think you are right. It would be best if Fleur left Beauxbatons. We have to avoid things like these, from ever happening again".
They spoke for a few more minutes until the four children returned, with Harry and Fleur carrying her trunk between them. Fleur looked at her parents and said with a sad smile, "I'm ready to go". She turned towards the headmistress and added, "it was nice to get to know you Madame, but I'm going somewhere I'll be safe".
Madame Maxime smiled and said, "good luck miss Delacour. I'm very sorry that your time at Beauxbatons has been less than pleasant for you. School should be about learning. Not about having to survive bullying and murder attempts. Be safe and maybe we will meet again one day".
Fleur made a polite bow to the headmistress and the group likewise said their goodbye's, before they left back to entrance hall. When they arrived, the group split up, the three Delacour's went back to their chateau, after saying goodbye to their eldest daughter, and the others went back to Gringotts, they had some business with Lord Ragnok.