The Stag and the Flower
A/N: Don't own a thing, especially not HP. I hope you enjoy the next chapter. Italics denote thoughts. Bold is for spells.
The curse inflicted on Harry by Ginny required rest to cure. His bones were fragile which meant while Andromeda worked on his injuries, he couldn't take deep breaths for fear of cracking his ribs. He couldn't get out of bed without risking a broken leg, so he had to lay still, propped up on pillows kept fluffed by a distraught Fleur.
He had a steady stream of visitors. Ron and Hermione were with him as Ron wanted to keep him abreast of the situation. Ginny had tried to accuse Fleur of casting the spell and using a spell to confound Harry into blaming her.
"That's ridiculous!" Harry said, moving up in the bed before being gently pressed back down by Fleur, "We were all there!" His outburst was muffled somewhat by the action.
"I know that mate," Ron told him, "I already offered to take truth potion. Luckily no one buys her story." At that, Harry seemed to calm back down. "Right now, she's in a holding cell until her trial. Kingsley wants to wait until you're healed and can attend."
"Naturally. How else can he blame her for why we want to leave?" Fleur said scoffing lightly. During Harry's recovery she had taken it upon herself to act as his go-between, keeping away the people who wanted to gawk at him.
The door opened and Andromeda stepped inside, "Harry, Mr. and Mrs. Delacour have arrived." Behind her walked Fleur's parents and Gabrielle. Andromeda moved to the bed and began to cast diagnostic charms on him.
"How are you feeling?" Jean-Luc asked Harry, for once his ready smile seemed strained. Of course, Harry thought, I feel the same way right now. Ginny could have killed someone. Fleur noticed the change in Harry's eyes and took his hand.
"I'm getting better." He said and physically speaking, he was. It was his emotions that was the problem. Fleur squeezed his hand and he got the impression that she could tell he was lying through his teeth. "My body is healing; my brain is still trying with the fact that someone I was prepared to marry tried to murder the woman I love."
Jean-Luc nodded sadly, "I will not lie to you. I wish you and Fleur had stayed in France. I understood why you had to go, but-"He let his thought stop there. Apolline hadn't spoken yet. Her sharp eyes moved from Harry to Fleur. He could tell his future mother-in-law was making a decision, but he wasn't sure what about. Not until she spoke.
"You have chosen better this time, the both of you." She looked at Ron and her sharp eyes softened slightly, "No offense to you. You have been Harry's friend during this and for that I thank you."
Ron went slightly pink, "Well, I mean- He's my best mate, of course I'm with him. He's told us about Bill. I couldn't- "His words died as another healer opened the door and allowed two more people into the room.
Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.
For a moment, no one said anything. Apolline stared coldly at the other couple. Mr. Weasley cleared his throat, "We um, just wanted to see how you are doing Harry." His voice was strained in a way he'd never heard before. Mr. Weasley sounded old and worn down. Harry knew that a lot had happened lately.
"There is no lasting damage from Ginevra's attempt on his life." Andromeda said coldly. Molly glared at her for a moment before looking down at the floor.
"I know that Ginny did wrong-" Molly began but was cut off by a scoff from Apolline.
"'Wrong' does not cover what your daughter did." The tall blonde said heatedly. "She very nearly killed Harry for no better reason that loving my daughter when your son wouldn't." Jean-Luc placed a hand on his wife's arm. It was meant to be a calming gesture.
It failed.
Apolline jerked her arm away from Jean-Luc. "I am not going to listen to her try to explain away what her daughter did!" She turned back to Molly her eyes flashing, "You are very lucky that Ginevra was captured so quickly. If I'd have found her, she would have came back to you in a matchbox!" With that she turned on her heel and walked back to the bed. "Harry, once you are cleared for travel you will be coming back to France, do we understand ourselves?"
Harry nodded. Apolline moved back against the wall beside Jean-Luc and continued to glare at the Weasleys but said nothing. Harry shifted in his bed and looked at the Weasleys. "I'm sorry that all this happened, well almost all of it. I don't regret falling in love with Fleur. Bill was using her, and he is very lucky that all she wants is a clean break from him." It hurt him to talk to the closest thing he'd had to real parents like this, but it had to be done. "Mrs. Delacour is right, I planned to resign before the attack and I still am."
There was a stiff silence in the room. Molly made a sort of squeaking sound into a handkerchief and Arthur, with some difficulty, managed to get her to walk with him out of the room to try and calm down. With the Weasleys out of the room it felt as if a coiled spring had lost its tension. Jean-Luc sighed and reached into the pocket of his robes, "We wanted to bring you something." He explained as he placed a small wrapped package on Harry's bedside table, "Again you have saved one of my daughters, Apolline and I will never be able to explain what that means to us, though one day I believe you will know what having a daughter does to you."
Harry looked at the package and then back to Jean-Luc, "Thank you, but I didn't do it for a reward. I did it because I love Fleur."
"We know that." Apolline said from beside her husband, "That being said you still deserve this."
Harry opened it and was surprised to see a small flat gray stone. Inscribed on its edge was a series of runes. "This is your copy of the wardstone for our home. We consider you a member of our family now and forever." Jean-Luc said to him, "We had planned on giving it to you after you and Fleur returned, but I couldn't think of a better time than now."
Fleur couldn't believe it. Her parents hadn't even given Bill a copy of the wardstone. Harry met her gaze and smiled at her. She bent down and kissed him softly. "I love you Harry Potter," She said quietly.
"I love you too." He said just as quietly. It was as if the others didn't exist and for Harry and Fleur it was true. That moment was theirs alone and they treasured it.
Scene Break
Harry was cleared to leave a few days later. Resigning from the Aurors was much less difficult than he'd expected. Proudfoot had made some token noises, but post-war magical Britain was a place that yearned for peace and quiet and Harry Potter being attacked by his former girlfriend made the sort of headlines he didn't want to deal with.
Once freed from his duties at the DMLE there was only one thing really holding Harry from leaving England; the Longbottoms. He arranged to meet Neville and Hannah on the first Saturday after he was released.
"This will go well; I am sure of it." Fleur said soothingly as she wrapped her arms around him from behind, "Nicholas Flamel is a genius, even if he is a cranky old man." She said trying to make him smile.
Harry looked at the bottle in his hand and then turned so he could face her. "I just feel like if this doesn't work then I will be hurting Neville worse than if I'd done nothing." He sighed softly, "Even though I'm sure it will be fine, I'm still worried. What if something goes wrong?"
"He would not blame you." Fleur told him gently, "He would still thank you for trying. As they are now, they are as good as dead. It's the worst thing I can imagine, being trapped in your mind like they are." She shivered and tightened her grip around him. "We have to leave if we are meeting him at three." She told him after a few more moments of holding the man she loved.
Neville looked strained when they arrived. Though he shook Harry's hand and accepted a hug from Fleur while Hannah did the same for Harry, there was a definite tension in his eyes. I don't blame him Harry thought If it were my parents I don't know if I'd be excited or terrified.
"I can't believe you actually met Nicholas Flamel!" Hannah said excitedly. She, like Fleur and Harry, had noticed how nervous her husband was. She had chosen to act as the cheerleader for the venture. "I thought he died years ago!"
"Well, he would have. He told Professor Dumbledore that they had enough elixir to 'sort their affairs'." Harry said as they entered the lift from the lobby of St Mungos that would lead them to the Janus Thickey Ward. "It turned out that their affairs involved the creation of another stone."
"And with everyone believing that they were dead," Fleur supplied, "They were free to live their lives under assumed identities. We met them, the first time, in a small café they were running."
"They noticed that we were together, but that only Fleur had a wedding ring. So, they decided to meddle." Harry said lightly, though if he were honest, he was still annoyed with how high-handed they had been. "When we found out, I told Nicholas that Fleur was the one he had to get the forgiveness of."
Hannah smiled and leaned against Neville, who put an arm around her waist, "Already being a good boyfriend." She teased lightly.
The lift chimed and the quartet exited the lift. They saw Augusta Longbottom standing by the door waiting for them. A tall, thin woman, she looked older than Harry could remember ever seeing her. She'd fought with them at the Battle of Hogwarts and hadn't looked so worn Harry thought. Still, she stood against the wall as if on guard for some attack. "Hello Mrs. Longbottom," Harry said politely as the woman faced them.
"Hello Mr. Potter," She replied crisply, "Are you prepared?" She was very brusque, and someone could be forgiven for thinking she was being rude. But Harry knew that with the exception of Neville, there was no one more nervous about what they were planning.
"Yes ma'am. I have the potion and the directions for how to dose it out." He reached into his robes and drew out the bottle and the letter Nicholas had sent with them. "The directions said to pour half the bottle, slowly, into their mouths."
"They aren't so far gone that they are bed-ridden." Augusta said sharply, "They are sitting by the window right now."
"Will they drink the potion on their own? How do the healers give them medicine?" Harry asked her. He didn't want to stun them, but if they wouldn't drink on their own, he didn't know how to do it any other way.
"The healers give them their potions in small doses mixed with their drinking water." Hannah responded, "Those potions are meant to block them from experiencing bursts of accidental magic."
"I don't think this can be diluted." Harry said frowning, "Is there someone we can get to help us?"
"I don't think so. No one knows we're doing this." Neville said, "I don't want to stun them-"
"I don't either," Harry broke in quickly, seeing the pained look on the face of his friend.
"No one will be stunning anyone." Augusta said harshly, "You will find a way to make this work-"
"Gran, if there's no other way then we'll have to stun them. If it works then they'll understand, and if it doesn't…" Neville's voice trailed off, "If it doesn't work then they won't know we stunned them." Hannah pulled Neville into a hug. Harry and Fleur looked towards the door while Neville drew comfort from his wife.
"I swear," Harry said quietly to Augusta, "everything we are going to do is because I want to help. When Nicholas Flamel told me what he was working on this was the first thing that I thought of. Neville is one of my best friends and I want him to have his adulthood with his parents."
Augusta didn't say anything else, but after a swift, searching look at Harry she moved from the door. Harry nodded and walked into the room, shutting the door behind him. It felt like that Christmas in his fifth year, when they had been visiting Mr. Weasley after Nagini attacked him. Frank Longbottom was staring blankly at a patch of sunlight and Alice, whom Harry noticed had the same chin as Neville, was looking at him with a dull sense of curiosity in her eyes from her seat on the edge of her bed. It was as if she could tell, albeit dimly, that something was about to happen.
Harry drew his wand and silently stunned both Longbottoms. Deciding to start with Alice, he sat beside her and pulled her head into his lap. She looked frail as he held her mouth open and began to feed her small amounts of the potion. After each dose he helped her limp form swallow the potion. Eventually half the bottle had made it into her. Harry moved and let her rest on the bed before turning his attention to Frank.
As Frank was sitting up in his chair, or he had been before he was stunned, it was a quicker process. In minutes the bottle was empty, and Harry stood, preparing to reawaken them. He said a silent prayer to whatever was listening and lifted his wand, waking Alice first.
The first thing he noticed was that when she opened her eyes, they weren't blank. Instead they darted around wildly. She scooted back away from Harry patting her right leg as if looking for a wand, "S-stay back! We don't know anything! Please!" She cried, tears filling her eyes.
Harry held up his hands, "Mrs. Longbottom, please I'm not a Death Eater-"
He was interrupted as the door flew open and Neville raced inside followed by Augusta, Hannah, and Fleur. Neville looked at his mother in disbelief, "M-mum?" He said quietly, as if worried she'd vanish if he spoke too loudly.
"Who are you? Where am I?" Alice said her eyes going from Harry to Neville.
"I- It's me, It's Neville." He said, stepping between Harry and his mother. "You were attacked when I was a baby."
"He's telling the truth Alice." Augusta said quietly, "You and Frank have been in this ward for a very long time. We-" She cleared her throat, "The healers didn't hold any hope for you, it was Harry Potter who saved you."
Alice looked from Neville to Augusta and then to Harry. "H-Harry?" She said unsure. Harry stepped closer and allowed her to look at him better. "You look so much like James. But those are Lily's eyes…" She turned to look at Neville, "Is it really you Neville?"
He nodded, not trusting himself to speak. Carefully, Alice stood and took a few halting steps before standing in front of her son, a son that now stood nearly a foot taller than she did. "You look just like Frank." Saying her husbands name made her turn to Harry again, "Is Frank alright now too?"
Harry nodded, "I believe so. I gave him the same dose I gave you. I just woke you first." He turned and lifted the stunning spell from Frank Longbottom.
Frank groaned lowly and opened his eyes. Like Alice, Frank jumped backwards before taking in the people around him. "M-mum? James?" He said looking from Augusta to Harry.
"Half right Franklin." Augusta said quietly, tears starting to stream from her eyes. "James Potter died. This is his son Harry. We have- we have a lot of catching up to do."
Harry and Fleur left the ward, the Longbottom family, now whole for the first time in decades, deserved some privacy. They could catch up with Neville before they left for France. "You are amazing," Fleur said to him as they rode the lift down.
"I just get lucky." Harry said, "If the potion-"
"Non. None of that." Fleur said sternly, before pulling him into a kiss. "You were my hero when you saved Gabrielle. Then you saved me from Ginevra. Now you gave Neville his parents back. Stop being so damned humble and take the compliment or I will smack you."
Harry laughed and pulled her into another kiss. The kiss didn't break until the lift opened and they walked out. "Alright then, I'm amazing."
"Don't say it like that." She teased, "You will get a big head."
"Well which is it? Either I'm too humble or I'm going to get a big head."
Fleur rolled her eyes and tugged him out the door of the hospital. As they walked into the welcoming warmth of a beautiful summer day, she found herself thinking of how quickly life had changed. She smiled at the thought. Harry noticed her smile and squeezed her hand, "What's on your mind?"
"Nothing. Just enjoying being with you."