Draco sighed, his son was now six months old and starting to teeth, this had caused a few problems. At First Sophie couldn't figure out why he was not sleeping properly again, and why he was crying more than usual, it wasn't until she noticed he was biting absolutely everything that she realised what was actually going on.
Sophie was always quite tired when he got home after a day at school, she spent a lot of the time cleaning the house, even though her mum insisted she needn't, it was Sophie's way of saying sorry that she got knocked up, and because she was so tired Draco felt it was his responsibility to get out of bed at night when Alastor cried that meant many restless nights, spent allowing Alastor to chew on his little finger, which it seemed he had taken to as his favourite chew toy.
"You're gonna drive mummy insane, just so you know kid," Draco whispered to the boy who was lying beside him, looking at him with heavy eyes, about to fall asleep, but it was like he was trying to remain awake, he would stare up at Draco with familiar silver eyes and look at him. Eyes that showed how much he loved his daddy, even if he was a grumpy sod. "I want you to know that I'll protect you, and that I love you."
It had been relatively quiet recently, the papers were speculating, and Harry knew that they were right, something big was sure to happen any time soon. It seemed inevitable as the end of the year drew up dangerously close, like they were waiting for that vital moment.
There were all these precautions, and he knew his family was safe, but just knowing that one day, and soon, that everything could fall apart was mind numbingly awful. It was like teetering on the edge of a cliff, and knowing that any second you are going to fall, there's no stopping it, no going back, you're going to fall, you'll probably not survive it, but all you can do is wait…
There were times that he almost forgot; like it wasn't really about to happen but there was no escaping the nightmares… Two years on a he still saw Cedric Diggory die before his eyes, he could still see his eyes wide and empty… he could still see that girl falling to the ground, her screams ringing in the air and stopping so instantly… He could still see the faces of his parents after they had told them about his grandparents' deaths…
It was never ending.
He knew that Katie was his prime source of relief; she was his light in the darkness. She was his everything, and he loved her undoubtedly. But his love for her scared him quite a lot, he knew it put her at risk, it had already, he knew it was no coincidence that Katie's family had been killed, and it haunted him every night.
It was quiet; he was lying in his bed in the dorm room he shared with Ron, Seamus, Dean and Neville, the others were either sound asleep or not in their beds at all. It was probably the dark and silence that was playing with his mind as he turned restlessly in his bed, but he could feel something, he was not sure what that something may be, but it was enough to set Harry on edge, making him only more restless.
With a near silent groan Harry threw back his covers and pushed the covers off of his body, leaving him covered with only his Pyjama shorts, he threw his feet over the side of the bed, and rested his elbows on his knees, before dropping his head into his hands. He was stressed, forget school, he had just finished his NEWTs, it was something else, something more.
"Harry?" Harry almost fell of the bed at his surprise at the voice speaking to him, one which was clearly female, he looked up and saw Riley standing in the doorway, tilting her head to the side as she looked at him. "What are you doing?"
"I'm about to go down to the common room, what are you doing? This is the boys dorm," Harry pointed out to his cousin, glancing briefly towards the bed which Seamus usually slept in, but he wasn't there at the moment.
"Never mind that, where is Seamus?" Riley asked quickly, not looking away from her boyfriends bed which was untouched.
"I don't know, he never came up tonight," Harry admitted to Riley who bit her lip nervously.
"Well, do you want to hang out in the common room with me?"
Harry smiled at his cousin before nodding his head and following her down the stairs down into the warm common room, it was summer now and the nights were hotter than usual, but still the fireplace was a light with orange warmth.
"I wish I was actually tired," Riley said once they had settled next to each other on the couch, and staring into the flames before them. "I really like Seamus, but I don't know what to do with him."
"What do you mean Riley? He's your boyfriend isn't he?" Harry asked curiously, looking intently at his cousin's guilty expression.
"I don't know if I can do it… You might be able to for Katie, but I don't know if I can for Seamus. I love him, and I want to be with him… but if I'm not constantly worrying about him, then he's being overly protective and possessive over me," Riley admitted in the smallest voice, Harry was not sure what he was meant to say to her, it was clear she was losing touch on how to deal with her boyfriend, but it seemed Seamus was also making his mistakes.
"Riley you're not even seventeen yet, you can't expect to be able to look after Seamus, no matter how much you might wish you could," Harry told her honestly.
"But what if he needs me?" Riley asked him desperately.
"But what if you need you?"
Riley would have argued perhaps, but there was a sudden noise that took her attention from Harry and she looked towards the portrait and her brows furrowed as she looked at the back of the fat lady's portrait.
"Did you hear something?" Riley asked, slowly getting to her feet, she took a step towards the portrait entrance when they heard a loud clanging noise and screaming, causing riley to jump away form the portrait.
"FIRE!" Someone screamed, before their screams were drowned out by a loud roaring noise, and Harry and Riley looked at each other for a mere second before the screams got closer and they listened in horror as they realised the Fat Lady was burning.
The back of the portrait begun to turn black and they could smell the flames and smoke.
"EVACUATE THE SCHOOL! EVACUATE THE SCHOOL! EVACUATE THE SCHOOL!" The yelled of Albus Dumbledore rang out over the school like a loud speaker, and they could hear running above them as they looked at the door and then they saw in horrified fascination as the flames licked through the portrait, burning a hole through the wood and teasing them with fear.
"RUN!" Riley's voice screamed suddenly as the portrait disintegrated into nothing but a pile of black ash. It was sudden and terrifying as the flames stopped and like from a horror movie a hooded figure appeared in the entrance.
Without much other hope Riley instantly picked up the nearest item to her, and threw it at the Deatheater, hitting him on the head and promptly knocking him out. They looked at his still form, Hogwarts a History lying next to his head with utter amazement.
"He was really thick, almost as thick as that damn book," Riley said quickly, before running up the stairs and grabbing anyone she could get hold of, Harry quickly grabbed his wand and looked at the floo network, he stepped towards it, to throw the floo powder into the fireplace, but anytime he attempted to get near it, flames erupted fro9m the fireplace, threatening to seriously burn anyone who attempted to get near, and he knew it was unsafe to risk sending anyone anywhere when clearly someone had tampered with the connection.
"Harry!" Harry looked up at the sound of his voice and to his shock saw Ron come clambering through the portrait hole with Pansy, helping her carefully through and holding her hand within his own. "Harry, there's Deatheaters in the school, they're all over the place, one or two of them in every corridor, and their swarming towards the different common rooms, me and Pansy knocked out a few, but it's really hard to get through the hallways."
"Any safe routes?" Mackenzie asked as she pulled her dressing gown around her, wand held tightly in her grasp as they were joined by most of Gryffindor in the common room.
"Not really no," Pansy admitted as she looked over her shoulder down the stairs that led to the main corridors, knowing that the Deatheaters were going to be along any minute.
"They're trying to round us up, and kill us off like that," Harry whispered as realisation dawned on his features. "We're cut off from the teachers and I'm guessing the entrances into the building are blocked off, they're in the different corridors cutting them off…"
"What if we went out there anyway?" Neville asked suddenly, and Harry looked at him with a grim expression. "There's a number of us that can fight, if we went first, followed by the kids, then maybe we will outnumber the Deatheaters go straight to Ravenclaw Common room, help them, and then go to Hufflepuff and then Slytherin…"
Everyone looked around at each other.
"We've got nothing else," Samantha said slowly as she looked around at the scared faces.
"It's our only hope, Harry, otherwise we're trapped here," Ginny said finally and they all nodded, they didn't have any other option. They all had their wands, and with a quick nod of his head they were all rallied around and ready to do what they all knew needed to be done.
They were as silent as they could be as they stepped out into the corridor, the halls were endlessly dark, it was warm in the night, but still hidden in the shadows of the night there was a chill over their bodies. Everyone was huddled together, slowly led forward by Harry as he looked around carefully, trying to ensure they avoid any possible approaching Deatheaters, it was then that they felt the whole school shake.
Harry looked up, praying tot the heavens that they remained, safe, and remained still for a moment, when he heard a loud cracking noise, and opened his eyes, as dust from above trickled down and landed on his face. The screams broke out when they realised to their horror that the ceiling above them was cracking.
"FOLLOW ME!" Harry yelled, suddenly running forward, wand held out ready forever who might try and stop their escape to from the staircase. As they rounded the corner they found themselves looking at two battered figures, they would have raised their wands if it weren't for the familiar male voice.
"Samantha!" Harry turned to see his sister beside him dash forward into the open arms of her godfather, Remus Lupin. He was covered in cuts and bruises were forming on his face, but he looked so relieved as he held Samantha in his arms, kissing the top of her head.
"Guys, is this everyone from Gryffindor?" Tonks asked, pushing her dark brown hair back as she looked around the group. Harry nodded, looking at the group around them, this was it.
"There's a secret corridor just over there, it'll take you to Honeydukes, Tonks will go with you-"
"Remus, you've got to come with us, there's no way in hell I am leaving you alone in here right now, you can't ask me to do that," Tonks insisted, taking Remus' hands into her own. "And what if they're already there?"
Remus looked at the group of students before nodding his head, he'd stay with them, but he'll still need to get word out to the rest of the Order and the Aurors, so with the quick flick of his wand he conjured a silvery wolf, his patronus
"Tell them we're taking the Gryffindor kids to Hogsmeade down the witches hump, take this message to James, Sirius, Lily or Ivy, they'll know what it means," Remus told the waiting creature before allowing it to dance down into the never ending darkness that engulfed the school.
They were manoeuvring through the entrance into the secret corridor when the screaming started in the distance, Harry was at the back as he and Remus got the younger students to follow Tonks down the dank corridor. They had heard shouting form somewhere in the ancient corridor, someone yelling something intelligible, and then the screams of girls and young children just reverted around their heads, ringing in their ears.
"We should go, Remus, I'm an adult now, you can't make me stay here, but we can't leave them!" Harry yelled, as his friends and family stopped and watched, they knew it would be all too easy to just follow Harry, because with him they entrusted their lives, and knew that it was always him, but they needed to protect these kids, and some of them were more scared than others.
"Ben, I'm going through that hole," Maggie told Benjamin, a mixture of fear and regret on her features, her eyes were wide, and begging for his forgiveness.
"I don't want you there with me, go on, Tonks could use the help," Benjamin assured Maggie, kissing her lips swiftly before watching as she followed the last of the younger students through the hole, not before Harry asked her a favour.
"I need you to watch Jonathon for me?" Harry asked, as his little brother looked up at him with accusing eyes, Maggie nodded her head, quickly picking up the eleven year old who struggled against her, and carrying him through with her.
"You can't get someone to carry me through that damn hole!" Samantha said, almost challenging her brother to argue with her, but they had no time, and so with that, Ron, Pansy, Benjamin, Mackenzie, Riley, Samantha, Colin and Harry followed Remus as he ran towards the screaming.
As they neared the area it was coming from, Pansy recognised it almost instantly.
"If you go up those stairs, it will lead to the Ravenclaw tower," Pansy told Remus quickly, just as another scream and more yelling broke out from above. Instantly they moved up the stairs, and were met with resistance.
Remus was brought into a duel with a mountain of a man in black robes, with the all too familiar skull mask, he was slow in his movement, but his spells were deadly and painful. Harry was duelling another smaller Deatheater, this one much quicker, but he had trouble pronouncing some of the different spells. He hadn't realised who else was there until someone grabbed him out of the way of a stray spell and he saw his grandfather standing there looking fierce.
His movements were quick and precise; he knew his target and barely missed, he was a figure to be feared, and it was more than just fighting the enemy, it was protecting those that they loved most dearly. A scream to their right caught their joint attention as someone towered over the form of Mackenzie who was bleeding heavily from her leg, with a bone jutting out of her calf in a way that was disgusting to look at.
"Harry the barriers are completely down, I need you to get 'Kenzie out of here now!" Harold barked out, before shooting a spell towards the Deatheater who hovered over her, instantly Harry had her in his arms, and they were spinning the air pushed from their lungs, and with a loud pop they were out in the grounds of Hogwarts, it was the farthest he could take her when she was like this.
Out in the grounds however they found the situation was no better, all around them were people wearing the familiar Auror robes, he needed someone though, someone who could take Mackenzie somewhere safe.
It was then that he saw his mother fighting a Deatheater just a few feet from where he and Mackenzie had landed crumpled on the floor.
"MUM!"
Lily recognised that voice instantly, and turned towards her son once she had knocked out the Deatheater, at first all she saw was his panicked face, but quickly her eyes drew her to the bloody form of her niece.
"Go on Harry, I've got Mackenzie," Lily told Harry as she gripped her nieces body in her arms, and disappeared instantly, Harry remained still for a second before he too disappeared from the spot. He landed back into the corridor from which he left, but this time there was a stillness about it, the Deatheaters which had invaded lay unconscious or dead on the floor, tied up, but no one seemed to spare them a second glance, because they were too busy with something else…
Staring silently, they looked to the centre of the room, where Remus was working desperately, trying to plug the bleeding from a great gash across the chest of a man, he was older, quite a lot older, but still had a youthful look to him, his black hair was greying in a ay that made him more handsome, beside him lay a female, she was equally beautiful, if not more so, her dark hair was fanned out, as she remained in endless silence.
No one needed to say it, because it was terribly clear what had happened, and what was happening.
Remus stopped moving, his head bowed as his blood covered hands fell into his lap, he remained very still for a while, before sighing heavily and getting to his feet, he did not look at anyone for a second or so before catching Harry's eyes.
"I'm so sorry, but their gone," His voice was catching as he stepped away from the bodies, and he saw Benjamin move as he restrained Samantha who looked so beyond devastated, and Riley clutched to Ron, who also had his arm around Pansy, and Harry realised that he really had just lost his grandparents.
Usually when the students left school there was a great ceremony held, certificates were given out, family and friends came to support you, and Albus Dumbledore would enjoy every single moment of it. This year the certificates were sent to the students homes, and no ceremony was held… It was all so disheartening.
Much more than just Harold and Christine were lost in this battle, Marcus Wood had been injured and never quite managed to get back into health, he died in St Mungo's, leaving Benjamin and Oliver without their father and Amy without her husband as well as loosing both her parents with James and Claire.
It was a difficult time for everyone, but there were some who still had their hope to live on.
"Come on baby, wake up," Ivy begged as she sat in a cold hard chair beside a bed that her daughter was lying silently in, with the rails pulled up it was almost like a prison that banned her from waking…
"They think that if you continue to talk to her, she'll wake up faster," A voice broke across the room, Ivy turned and saw Ava Belle standing there smiling sadly at her older sister, wearing her casual clothes rather than her healer uniform. "I don't know… its muggle research, but it seems to make sense."
Ivy nodded, and turned back to her daughter, she wanted to say something so badly, but words escaped her as she saw her daughter lying there so silently. She was so pale, and so still, it was unnatural in Mackenzie, because she was so full of life, she always had something to say…
"I'll talk," Ava's voice broke across the silence, and she walked swiftly towards he niece and smiled down at her pale form.
"Hey Mackenzie, you know you've had a visitor, well many actually, but one in particular, he comes by and places another rose in the vase – everlasting roses, everyday he places another rose in there, like a count down, well, a count up I guess," Ava told Mackenzie quietly, smiling at the girl, knowing that she couldn't see it. "It's that Weasley boy, one of the twins, how cute can a guy be? I think he really likes you, and you're seventeen now, he's what, twenty? It's not that much older than you, and he'll certainly take good care of you."
Ivy watched astounded as Ava encouraged this romance, the one which Ivy had barely realised was going on, even though it was happening to her own daughter.
"You know, I read in one of those business magazines that the Weasley joke shop what is it – Weasley Wizard Wheezes, is actually one of the biggest profit making stores in the whole of wizarding Britain… y'know it's probably because they do all the work themselves, I dunno, I'll talk to them a bit more, I mean I am what two years older than them, plus they have a really cute older brother, he's only around some of the time, not the married one, the other one…" Ava stopped talking for a second, seemingly in her own little dream world before she snapped back to reality. "Oh and did you know that Ron and Pansy are together? Seriously, I think if everyone hadn't been so traumatised after the battle that it would have really kicked off, I mean Ron and Pansy have from what I heard been at each others throats for years, and suddenly they're together."
Ivy watched her little sister talk with fascination, all these little things about the kids that she didn't know.
"And Sophie, well, she's all goofy and happy, Alastor is an angel, and he's getting so big. He's like over six months old now, and totally beautiful, he looks like Draco all silvery eyes and blonde hair, he'll break many hearts when he is older," Ava told Mackenzie with a gleeful look.
"Thank you," Ivy suddenly said to her sister, looking relieved as she realised that Ava was filled in with all the gossip that would interest Mackenzie.
"Hey no worries," Ava assured Ivy before turning back to Mackenzie. "Hey, Harry got accepted onto the Auror training programme, and Hermione is looking around for available jobs, Draco's considering starting his own business, and Sophie still is happy being a at home mum, Seamus is joining the Ministry as a intern in the sport regulations department, and Benjamin's doing the same thing, but Maggie she's done modelling as a kid and I think she wants to stick with that, Ron is trying to see what there is in the wizarding world, while Pansy if interning at Witch Weekly, and Blaise has actually joined Law School, and Neville he's getting his healer training, I know it's madness."
"But y'know what it's made a lot of other people think about what they want to do, like Ginny, she wants to become a healer, and Riley wants to work in Creature control, the cute Weasley was talking to her about it, and Luna was to do the same thing, but mainly because that kid that she's dating is writing a book on unfound magical creatures, he's called it Magical Beasts of yet Unfound," Ava informed Mackenzie in an amused tone. "And Samantha has decided she wants to be a counsellor, and Jonathon wants to be an Auror, ah, I think it's kinda cute, they look up to their parents so much."
"Are you sure about this Draco?" Sophie asked as they walked along the high street hand in hand, Alastor was staying with his grandparents while Sophie and Draco walked together towards Gringotts Bank, where Draco was intending to take out a business account.
He had recently decided that using the money that Lucius had used in fake businesses, to support numerous Deatheaters, and actually put it into proper businesses, such as the one he intended to buy today, seeing as it was near financial ruin.
"If I was under any slither of a risk of losing the money that we need to support our family I honestly would not even consider it, but Sophie, I've got a huge personal account full of gold that will keep you me, Alastor and other children and endless grandchildren and great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren well and truly supported," Draco assured Sophie. "And that's just my personal account, since my dear aunt and her husband were caught and are without an heir I received their portion of the LeStrange fortune, and I have gathered a large sum of the Black fortune, and there's also the Malfoy businesses or non-business, as well as other accounts... So trust me Sophie, I am currently one of the richest men in the wizarding world."
"Do you mind if I ask how?" Sophie asked her boyfriend with a stunned expression, she had always known he was filthy rich, but not quite this rich. Her family was pretty rich, most of it was invested in education, a lot went into Hogwarts, a portion into the Ministry, and everything else was kept in savings, they'd never lived a particularly luxurious lifestyle.
"My family were very selfish, and it's all well and good having the blood advantage, but everyone knows that money is power, and my family loves power," Draco told her almost shamefully. "It's partly why my mother was married to Lucius, because the Malfoy fortune beats everything else out there, there is no competition... Well, there's Blaise's family, but that comes from another place."
"Do you mind telling me?" Sophie asked, greatly interested in the affairs of the filthy rich. Of which she realised, she was now part of.
"No, Blaise won't mind either, it's his mother... She's married several very rich men, all of which died mysteriously. She's a brilliant and beautiful woman, but she knows what she wants and how she can get herself there," Draco admitted, Sophie looked blow back as she heard the truth of the matter. "It happens a lot, and we're pretty sure she's not killing her husbands, but-"
"But she might be?" Sophie asked slowly.
"She's alright, not insane like my dear Auntie, or like my father," Draco assured Sophie, but she didn't feel my assurance
"Oh, well that's alright then."
"So Ron, son, how long have you been with Pansy then?" Arthur asked one night, after dinner, they were in the Evans manor living room, because since the attack it seemed only right that everyone once again join together.
"Just a while," Ron grunted, not quite meeting his father's eye. He knew where this was leading, and it made him feel nothing short of awful.
"So, ok... it's just that you and Pansy have always had quite a ... volatile relationship. I wouldn't like to see either of you in a relationship which could easily turn nasty," Arthur said slowly, not wanting to insult his son, but worried about his new relationship.
"Dad, it's not like that, I promise it's not like that," Ron assured his dad, looking guilty, but the honesty in his face allowed his father to know that he really did mean what he was saying.
As he finished Pansy walked into the room, her hair was newly done, she had longer hair that was now curly rather than the pin straight bob, but it was still inky black, contrasting greatly against her paler skin, her lips were covered with a bright pink gloss, and her beautiful sapphire eyes were lined with black.
"Hi Mr Weasley," Pansy said taking in the situation before her. "I didn't mean to interrupt."
"Not at all Pansy, and please call me Arthur, I'm off, I'm sure Molly needs help with the cleaning," Arthur said getting to his feet and smiling at the new couple.
"Hey sexy," Pansy said once Arthur had left to room, crawling onto Ron's lap and straddling him as he grinned at her. "So, what was the daddy talk about?"
"The daddy talk? Wow, I've not heard it called that, but it was just to ensure that we were cool," Ron assured Pansy, kissing her softly on the lips. "It's a Weasley thing, they like to look out for their own, and unfortunately for you, you've become one of their own."
"Like a proper part of the family?" Pansy asked, the teasing look from her face disappeared, and she suddenly looked really serious, but not unhappy.
"Almost, you're well on your way to being a proper part of the family, Fleur was in almost immediately, and if we as a couple show any promise, then there will be no escaping," Ron told Pansy, looking at her with amused blue eyes. "Why?"
"I just... I just never really had the family thing down... I've never really been part of the ifamily/i," Pansy said slowly and quietly, like she was embarrassed of the words she was saying.
"Well as I said, give it a couple of weeks, and there will be no escaping."
