Chapter 37

My eyes wandered over the window, watching the crowd outside as they went about their business. Leaning against a wall, I let the twins' idle chatter fade into the background as my thoughts turned to the events of the past week.

After finally normalizing my relationship with the Greengrasses, I had stayed with them for a couple more days before receiving an owl from Dad. In it, he basically assured me that Mother had mostly calmed down, and that it was okay to go home. I had been honestly hesitant to go back yet, considering I still hadn't made much progress with my memories. However, after another unsuccessful evening, I had to admit that I wasn't going to succeed any time soon.

Besides, I was sick and tired of the migraines.

The next night, Dad came through the fireplace. The adults exchanged pleasantries while I grabbed my trunk, double-checking if I left anything in the room. Once that was done, I returned to the drawing room and thanked Darius and Mariana before ruffling Astoria's hair a bit. Daphne caught me off guard when she decided to hug me, something that entertained the adults to no end. I found it somewhat enjoyable, until she pinched my sides hard enough to make me almost yelp. Trapped, she whispered in a forceful tone that she was going to get to the bottom of my secrets and let go before anyone suspected anything.

In my last act of defiance, I poked my tongue at Daphne before making my escape through the green fire.

It had taken me a bit of time to adjust, as the Greengrass family dynamics were very different from my own. Thankfully, it only took me a few days. Adding to my relief was the fact that my new-found fame hadn't been that big of a deal.

Well, except for Percy. He kept asking me about my meeting with Minister Fudge. It was oddly disturbing and I couldn't help but worry. At least when my Percy was arse-kissing, he had a slightly better role model with Crouch.

My idyllic downtime had been cut short when we received our Hogwarts letters. While that by itself wasn't disturbing, their contents reminded me that life loved to bend me over.

Before I could keep worrying about the implications, a warm hand fell on my shoulder, making me jump. Glancing to my side, I saw Dad looking at me with a frown.

"Are you sure you don't need new robes, Ron?" Dad asked. In the background, I noted Fred-maybe being measured this time and Madam Malkin looking annoyed with his inability to stay still. Her left eye kept twitching. Percy, already done, looked at them with a frown.

I shook my head. "The uniform that Mrs. Lovegood bought had some sort of enchantment that lets it grow with me." Though I would probably need a replacement next year. If I remember correctly, that was when I would start my growth spurt.

Before I could return to looking through the window, Dad added, "Ron, are you okay?"

"Yeah," I replied quickly. "Why?"

He sighed, looking away slightly. "Ron, do you… do you want to go back to the Greengrasses?"

I blinked, frowning, but before I could reply, he continued.

"Don't think I haven't noticed you moping since you got back. I completely understand if you're a bit disappointed to be back home so soon. I know it's hard to come back to us after living with them or going to France."

Was he—?

He shook his head, a sad smile on his lips. "Ron, I can't give you everything that the Greengrasses can, and—"

I stopped him with a hug. His eyes widened when I tightened my embrace. "You're the best dad I could ever have," I whispered, loudly enough so only he could hear it. "There will never be anyone like you."

Slowly, his expression turned to relief, then happiness as he began patting my head.

Disengaging from the hug, I added, "I'm happy being home again." That was the honest truth. "Mother's treating me okay now." Neutrally, more like it. She still gave me some odd looks here and there. "Besides, I needed to give you all my gifts at some point."

He chuckled. "Did your brothers and sister at least thank you?"

I paused for a second, wondering how to answer that. "In their own ways, yeah."

Well, the twins had been the most grateful. They really liked the advanced Rune and Arithmancy books that I had given them, as well as the small sample of the Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder I was able to obtain.

Percy was also thankful for his new, exquisite set of quills, inkwells, and high-quality dry ink. Of course, he was being really pompous about it, just like a politician.

I shuddered. Just like Fudge.

Arguably, his reaction was better than Ginny's. Ever since I had come home, she was giving me the cold shoulder, most likely due to Mother's influence. However, the flying action figure of Captain Gwenog Jones did soften her slightly.

I wished I could have personally given the Lovegoods theirs. Pandora had apparently needed to take a trip to study some ancient enchantments and the family was going to return a few days later. I thought it better to leave them be, considering they would be completely occupied trying to get Luna's things on time. So I just dropped the package off at their house.

Thank goodness for preservation charms. Luna needed to learn the joys of high-quality chocolates.

"I still wish you didn't give us half your winnings," Dad said, derailing my train of thought.

"Why?" I asked, confused. I thought it was a good move, considering my brothers were getting fitted with new robes.

"Ron, a parent's job is to provide."

"And a son's job is to support them," I countered. When he frowned, I added, "If it makes you feel better, Dad, treat us to some ice cream. Then we can consider the matter settled."

He stared at me in disbelief for a moment before laughing. "Slytherin has done you good, Ron." He placed his hands on my shoulders. "I'm proud of you."

I just beamed at him.

"Next!" Madam Malkin called from behind us. "And sir, I insist you don't move while I'm taking your measurements!"

"Of course, my good Madam," George-maybe replied as he stepped up the raised platform, channeling a bit of Percy with his tone. Said brother didn't appreciate it as he grunted with disapproval. "May I say, you look lovelier since I last saw you."

"Fred!" Dad called, glancing back. "Behave!"

"Yes, Dad!"

He turned back to me, his head shaking again. "I never did ask you about your trip to France. How was it?"

"It's a beautiful place." And dangerous. "The magical areas were really well connected to the muggle side. We were able to get to a lot of the muggle places, even if they were far away! There were so many interesting shops. You would have liked it there." Though I would insist you bring Mother along. The veela can deal with her at their own risk.

"I'm sorry you had to cut your trip early because of your injuries," he replied. "It sounds like you loved France."

I couldn't look Dad straight in the eye. We never told him about the incident with the Delacours. Even when Darius had insisted, I actually convinced him not to. There were no real advantages to be gained by revealing what happened yet. Doing so would only drive Dad to be more overprotective and give Mother more ammunition against the Greengrasses. I did not spend my whole week normalizing my relationship with that family only to have that fall apart. In the end, we used my 'injury' during the duels to explain why we had to cut things short.

The Delacours were going to pay to what they did to me, and once I was ready, I would be there to collect.

I shook my head. Forget them for now. I deserved a break, to do something normal before I continued my plans of protecting everyone I cared about as well as subverting the two other insane time-travelers to my side.

"Arthur?" Madam Malkin called, making Dad and I turn to her. "The measurements are done. I'll get to working on their uniforms. You can pick them up later this afternoon."

Dad smiled. "Thank you, Mary. Hope they didn't give you too much trouble."

"A little," she replied, giving the twins one last look. "I'll need a deposit so I can get started. Half now, the other half when the clothes are done."

"Of course," Dad said, pulling out his pouch.

After that, the five of us made our way to get the rest of things we needed for Hogwarts this year. We started off with our potion ingredients, though I noted the twins sneakily adding a few extras to their bag. Dad did as well, but said nothing.

Our next stop was Flourish and Blotts to meet up with Mother and Ginny. When we arrived, the place was packed. Understandable, as today was Lockhart's book signing. Mother and Ginny were already in the middle of the line. Dad called to them, and after a few minutes, my sister joined us.

"Come on, Weasleys," Dad said. "Who wants some ice cream?"

"Excuse me, Father, but I need to get some books," Percy replied. "I'll meet you there."

As Dad gave Percy some galleons, I looked back at the line, being reminded of the contents of my Hogwarts letter. For some reason, Lockhart's books weren't listed, which meant that our next Defense Professor was someone I didn't know.

"Ron?" Dad called, making me turn to him. He looked at me curiously. "Do you also need to get a book, son?"

I shook my head, giving him my best smile. "And miss ice cream? No way! Let's go!"

It was the night before we were to go to King's Cross when James' letter arrived, complete with similar charms that the Greengrass used on theirs.

To the Weirdest Kid in the World,

I have to admit, this was one of the most fun research projects I've had in awhile, even though it had me staying in France a little longer.

Did you know that the French have started a campaign to tweak my nose? A new article came out after you left, trying to discredit me by starting a rumor that I was a bigot. Apparently, 'birds' is the new racial slur against the veela. It also painted me as some sort of misogynist—a woman hater, if you will.

Sad to say, it's working. I love progressive ideas, but honestly, I think this is a little much. I'm fourteen-years old, for crying out loud, and they are trying to shame me?

Stupid birds.

Don't worry about it too much, though. One thing you'll realize in this world is that power buys influence. Just your rotten luck that you learned that a little too early in your life, eh?

As to what you need, it took me a trip outside Paris, the Delacour stronghold, before I found anything. A few old newspaper articles do confirm Mrs. Greengrass's story.

A Gaige Roche was engaged to Dorothée Delacour. Those birds are astoundingly arrogant, aren't they? Can you imagine calling your daughter the God's Gift of the Court? Anyway, it ended with a scandal. Roche was apparently stolen by a woman they didn't name.

The woman was described as some sort of betrayer and seducer. There were hints that she was actually under the protection of the birds. I don't fully know why, but it has to do with some sort of common or shared ancestry. However, when she made off with Roche, it was decreed that neither she nor her family were allowed to come back to France. In fact, I think it is safe to say that her name was pretty much blotted out of their history. I'll try to get more information soon.

As for your other inquiry, well, I found that back at home easily enough. It wasn't just the normals that were involved in the American War of Independence. When we kicked you Brits out, the magicals that stayed behind were quite eager to hand out any books and knowledge they had to help build the Magical Congress. That's our version of the Magical Ministry, if you didn't know.

Those books are now considered magical public domain, and one of them dealt with old world contracts.

The Friendship Contract is considered an incomplete Betrothal Contract. Traditionally, it was used by families who want to create deeper ties with each other by marrying their kids together, but were unsure if it would work out. The two kids would grow up together as friends and get to know each other better. At a specified time, usually when the kids were of age, the contract would be disclosed and they would decide whether to complete it or not.

Ron, you have some sort of luck. While you didn't specifically explain why you wanted me to look over that, I could make a few guesses. Whether this is good or bad, I'll leave it up to you.

Well, I'll see if I can find any more about that mysterious bird betrayer, but I will be really busy at Ilvermorny.

That's my school by the way. Has a much better name than Hogwarts, right? Why don't you transfer here? Can't give you an offer like the Delacours, but it'll at least be poison-free. Plus our witches are far prettier than the birds.

(Little Lady Greengrass, if for some reason you're reading this, I was joking. And don't go through his mail. He'll definitely find it creepy. Also, if you destroy this letter or don't give it to him, I'll know and tell him what you did. So, just give him the letter, apologize, and go easy on him for snooping about your family.)

I'd say I would love to have a rematch next year, but I doubt we'd meet in the next tournament. Thankfully, I earned enough points to be qualified for the Amateur Leagues. With your victory, you just need to enter another tournament, get to the semifinals, and you're in.

I still want to punch you in the face, and with the Amateur League Rules, I might even get that chance. So don't mess this up for me. Later.

James Kowalski

Even after reading through that repeatedly, I didn't know what to think. At least I confirmed that the Greengrasses were honest with me about their history with the veela, but the contract definitely had me reeling.

Betrothal Contracts were something the muggle-raised considered distasteful. From their view, it would be seen as terrible, forcing two people together in a marriage. I remembered Hermione being disturbed that there was no minimal age for the contract to be formed as well. She had pointed out one instance of someone in their late-twenties who had been engaged to someone who was just about to start Hogwarts.

While I could empathize with her, the sad reality is that magicals and muggles have different practises for a lot of reasons. For example, we naturally lived longer than muggles and have a much more drawn out physical prime. Then there were also family circumstances, like long-standing Alliances or Debts. Age differences and feelings were unimportant considering that a Family's business, magic, and life were almost always on the line.

Thankfully, the situation of two people with huge age differences being betrothed were rare and strictly monitored by the Families and Ministry. There were a lot of legal clauses and penalties available to ensure that no one took advantage of anyone.

In the end, while I would like a closer look at the clauses of this Friendship Contract, I could understand why none of the adults would talk to me about it. The talk of marriage and betrothals was an adult's business. Kids normally didn't even think of such things.

Well, normal kids at least. I probably should exclude the Greengrass girls from that list. It explained a lot of things, giving me a deeper insight on Mariana and, in turn, her daughters.

James had described Mariana as scary, territorial, and reminding him a bit like the veela. This mysterious unnamed great-great-grandmother was rumored to have shared or similar ancestry to them as well.

Mariana had talked about having a gift that would cause confusion, about some people loving fiercely. I didn't miss the look she gave to her husband when she talked about the latter, nor the fact that she spoke almost empathetically about the veelas when it came to their passions and faults.

It wasn't hard to build a story from there. With the information I had now, I finally realized why the Greengrasses were tight-lipped about their situation.

Mariana had a non-human ancestry. In turn, so did her daughters.

That alone explained a lot of things. For example, I always wondered why Darius and Mariana were a little too willing to keep the deal with the the Delacours. It wasn't just the fact that the former broke their side of the contract. No, there was something else, something bigger. The Delacours knew their secret and I was willing to bet that part of that ceasefire deal was their silence on the matter. Then there was Daphne's reticence in revealing the secret as well.

She was right. A normal kid from a Pureblood family would have balked if they knew, no matter how progressive their thinking were. If word went out, especially in the House filled with scions of Pureblood bigots, then Daphne's—and Astoria's, if she got sorted there—stay in Slytherin would become very uncomfortable. Dangerous, even.

I also guessed that the someone, maybe Darius, paid an extensive amount of gold to do some sort of cover up or to at least minimize the damage. If people in Magical Britain found out, it would cause quite a scandal. All three of them would be labeled as half-humans, or worse, dark creatures. I could imagine the majority of the Wizengamot would pressure Darius to disassociate himself from them.

What better way to hide such ancestry than telling people that Mariana's family had a cursed bloodline instead, right? After all, a cursed bloodline was actually a fashionable by-product of having a rich and pure pedigree.

I found it amazingly silly how Purebloods could accept something considered cursed, yet would disdain a similar yet impure alternative.

The Greengrasses were also discreetly trying to get me on their side. Why? Well, Astoria gave that away when I first saw her. For one reason or another, Daphne apparently chose me, like how Mariana chose Darius.

In technical terms, I was the asset they were slowly trying to recruit and build. The favors and kind offers were the galleon. The wand in this case was the subtle and unsaid threat of losing their support, leaving me open to my enemies. It also explained why they made an effort to have me spend time with them, to adapt to their dynamics. Their end game was to keep me on their side when they finally revealed their secret.

In a way, Mother was right. They were trying to steal me away.

In the grand scheme of things, it was a non-issue. I had no problems with such lineage, or even the fact that they were manipulating me. While some people would hate the latter, the harsh reality was that we were always being used by someone, somewhere. It was more productive to accept that fact and take a pragmatic look at the advantages and disadvantages of the situation.

For me, I still needed their support. I spent too much time building rapport with the family, and it was foolish to throw it all away because of a little unpleasantness. Besides, their methods of bringing me in were restrained and easy to swallow.

They wanted to do this slowly, properly, to truly make me part of their House. I would be the biggest hypocrite in the world to deride that, considering how my family treated my sister-in-law when she became engaged to Bill.

As I laid down on my bed, staring into the darkened silence of my room, I wondered what kind of heritage they had. They weren't obviously like the veela; for one, they never showed any signs of having the Allure. I hoped James would get more information about that because I was pretty sure I wouldn't get many answers here.

Then there was the fact that my thoughts strayed on the concept of having Daphne as my wife.

I steered away from trying to imagine the adult version of her. I didn't need anymore headaches or reminders that I had a pretty big gap in my memories. Instead, I focused on her personality and the way she was most likely going to act in the future.

She was assertive and had no problems speaking her mind. Sure, she was also possessive, probably something from her heritage, and immature in a lot of ways. Hopefully, time would slowly smooth that out.

If it did, she would be one hell of a woman. I have a weakness for women with domineering personalities. It was the reason why I chose Hermione in the end. Sure, she wasn't as pretty as Lavender, but she wasn't overly-dependent or sensitive. She also had no problem putting me in my place when it was needed, and it was always fun jerking her chain.

Still, Daphne didn't know I lived a full life before. She didn't know I had been married or had kids. Was it fair of me to limit her options? I could imagine her being happier with someone who was closer to her age, mentally speaking.

Then there was a fact that I still loved Hermione. Down the line, when Daphne finally matured, both physically and mentally, could I accept her as a potential new partner and wife?

What would Hermione say if she knew? Or Harry? As I closed my eyes, I wished once more that they were here.