Chapter 31: A Dinner Party: Interrupted
At 7 p.m. sharp, most people in Potter Manor were ready to go. It took quite a bit of convincing, but even Eileen agreed to go. Luckily the woman had brought her clothes because Emma was much shorter. Ianthe was still recovering. The doctor was looking fabulous. When she was home, she dressed very comfortably, mostly in lounge clothes. Since Narcissa was wearing black, she decided to contrast her. She put on a simple, elegant little beige dress that was knee-length, and showed off her figure without showing much skin. She had a gold shawl and clutch, and nude pumps. Her hair was up in a chignon, and two tendrils framed her face.
The men cleaned up well. Sirius was wearing his all-black suit, Remus was dressed similarly, but in gray tones. Daniel went with a blue suit with a beige shirt to match his wife's attire and gold cufflinks. He chose a blue tie. Martin did not have formal clothes, but luckily his built was similar to Daniel's, and a couple of spells altered the clothes perfectly. He kept his clerical collar on and wore a black suit. Severus was happy that Emma had included black in his clothes. He had a black suit on with a gray shirt. He came into the living room with his tie undone.
"Can someone please help me with this? I haven't worn a tie in years," Severus said with a blush.
Emma could have helped him, but she knew that was one of the male bonding types of things, so she did not offer. She just gave her husband a meaningful look. Daniel got up and approached Severus. "I can help you with that."
Harry and Hermione looked really cute. She was wearing a blue dress, nude ballerina flats, and a beautiful hairdo, which Eileen had done with a couple of swishes and flicks. Severus' mother had always wanted to have a daughter, and the woman was glad that all the spells she learned to that end could be useful. She had been pregnant with a daughter, but her brute of a husband had beaten her so badly that she had a miscarriage. Having several little girls around was helping her spirit. Also, her son was becoming the man she always hoped he would become.
Emma Granger was a fantastic influence on her boy. He would always be her baby boy. The doctors had been shocked that magic could tame their daughter's hair. Doing Hermione's hair was a challenge to them, but not to a witch. Harry's hair was a bit less messy than usual after Eileen worked her charms. The boy's much healthier body had grown and filled up. He was still lean, but he was not bony anymore. He could not stop watching Hermione as she kept twirling in her flowy dress with a dazzling smile. She felt pretty. That was not common for the little girl. Harry could sense how special she truly felt through their bond. Somehow it made him giddy inside. She looked like one of those beautiful roses in the garden once it was fully bloomed. He sighed contentedly.
Emma had woken Ianthe to ask her if the girls could join them in their outing since the witch was still too tired to go. Lady Greengrass said that if it wasn't a bother and the girls wanted to go, they could, and promptly fell back asleep. Emma had asked the girls. Daphne shook her head repeatedly with wide eyes. The doctor couldn't know that the girl had seen a bad omen that morning. It wasn't a lucid dream or a vision, but the clouds told her things would be scary that night. Astoria wanted to go, but Daphne said she wanted to be with her little sister. Astoria looked quizzically at her older sister as she insisted they wanted to be home in case her mother needed them. Emma understood. She told them to request a yummy meal and to help themselves to any toys they wanted from the shared box. She then hugged the girls good night.
They were all waiting for Narcissa and Draco. When the two came into the room, everyone stopped and stared. Narcissa was glowing. Her makeup was expertly done, the muggle way, by Emma. The black cat eye and falsies made her eyes look even more striking than usual. The rest of her makeup was a simple base with subtle highlighting and a sultry matte cherry red lip. Her hair had been curled and put up in a romantic updo that was decorated with a beautiful red rose that Draco had brought her from the greenhouse. Emma had warned the men not to stare at Narcissa's forehead. She did not want her friend to feel self-conscious because of the change. Draco was looking very dapper with his mini blue robes that were transfigured to a suit and a silver tie.
Soon enough, they were all at the restaurant's entrance. Emma had called ahead and made a reservation. It was a good thing that the Grangers ate there often because getting a chance to eat there would sometimes take weeks. A fancily dressed maître walked them to their space. Three tables that had been pushed together to fit their large party. The men wanted to show the boys to be courteous and gentlemanly. Daniel pulled back the chair for his wife to sit down. Severus did the same for Eileen while Draco followed their example, pulling the chair back for his mother, and Harry did the same for Hermione. The boys struggled, as the chairs were heavy, but they persevered and were rewarded with gushing smiles from the ladies.
A string quartet played classical ambiance music in the corner of the restaurant. Once their orders had come out, after some menu explaining of the dishes by the doctors, they were all chatting animatedly and enjoying their respective meals. The food was heavenly. Their conversation was on various topics, and by the time dessert was served, they had all had a good time. Some lightning sounded in the distance, and rain started pouring. The party was having such a fun time celebrating that the weather went mostly unnoticed. However, Remus could not turn off his animal senses, and he could smell petrichor from miles away. The smell reminded him of happy times in his childhood. That was about to change.
The lamps flickered slightly. Remus tensed and grabbed his boyfriend's hand under the table to get his attention. Something wasn't right. He could feel it in his bones. His other hand grabbed his wand. Across the table, Harry and Hermione looked at each other and then at their forearms. Their skin had exploded in goosebumps. They felt afraid. The chandelier above them rattled slightly. Daniel tensed at the sound. He looked at Sirius and Remus, who were looking at each other with a concerned frown. A loud bang of lighting sounded like it fell really close to where they were. The power went down entirely. There were many murmurs, and a couple frightened gasps. The windows had shaken. It was a good thing every man at the table had already agreed on what they would do in dangerous situations.
FLASHBACK
"While everyone else gets ready, I think we need to have a quick chat," Daniel said. "What happened to me has had me very concerned about our security."
"Daniel, I am so sorry. I've been wanting to apologize, but you won't let me," Martin said with a sad face.
"Father, please. I didn't let you because you didn't do anything to me. There is nothing for you to apologize for… Alright? Drop it," Daniel waved him off. Martin sighed.
"What do you want us to talk about?" Sirius sat down.
"It is now evident to me how any of us could be attacked at any moment, and I want to establish some rules of thumb in case we are together and shit hits the fan."
"That is a good idea. Planning is key," Remus agreed.
"I think that we can consider Potter Manor is the safest place for all of us," Sirius frowned.
"Obviously, but I think what the doctor means is when we are not here," Severus said with a shrug.
Daniel nodded. "We need to prioritize when we are in combat. I am all for feminism and girl power and all of that, but biology is biology. I would never want my wife or my daughter or any other woman, for that matter, to have to stand their ground alone against a man in a physical confrontation. Emma is a warrior. She can kick ass. She knows martial arts better than I do, and her technique is much better, but her frame is smaller than a man's, and she doesn't weigh that much. That is why her favorite martial art is aikido; it's the one that made her fall in love with martial arts."
"Aiki what?" Remus asked, perplexed. The only martial art he ever heard about was karate.
"It's a Japanese art of self-defense. It mainly employs locks and holds. The whole trait that makes it such a great tool for women is that it utilizes the principle of nonresistance," Daniel explained.
"Nonresistance meaning?" Sirius asked with a raised brow.
Martin replied, "If I recall correctly, the principle means that you use your opponent's own momentum against them."
Daniel nodded. Martin carried on, "So by garnering your enemy's strength and using it to fuel your own moves, you will see how they get exhausted quickly, and even if you are shorter or slimmer, you can still cause significant damage while you protect yourself."
"I like that. We need to structure our training. But until we do that, if we are in a dangerous situation, we have to protect those who would fare worse in a physical confrontation. Emma would probably slap me for saying this, but I think you will agree that Sharptooth was right," Daniel shrugged.
"What did he say?" Severus asked. Martin and Remus looked interested too as they hadn't been there for that conversation. Sirius shrugged then nodded.
"He said that the future depended on their females, and that was why while male goblins supported them in becoming whatever they wanted to, they felt as males that it was their duty to keep them safe, so most of their warriors are male" Daniel sighed. "I would rather die than have those sickos from the church or those dark wizards from the bank take Em or Hermione, and I have a feeling you will agree with me regarding all the other women and children in this house."
They all nodded. "Good, since we agree, let's talk about what we need to do the next time we are at risk…"
END FLASHBACK
When the power went down, Emma immediately took Dan's hand. He was tense. She was bout to ask him what was wrong when he quickly grabbed his steak knife and gave her a stare that said, 'don't ask, just do.' She nodded, sure that he had seen something dangerous. He pulled her down under the table, and she did the same to Hermione, who in turned pulled Harry down with her. He brought his last spoonful of crème brûlée with him. It was way too good to leave behind.
This position was a bit awkward for Emma because while her dress wasn't too tight or short, it wasn't pants. Not one second later, all the windows that were a few meters away from their table exploded. Severus had moved his wand just before this, and the three tables turned to the side of the windows, protecting everyone from the blast as Severus had pushed his mother down. Remus had pulled a confused Draco down, who, in turn, pulled Martin by his pant leg under the table, and Sirius had brought Narcissa down with him.
The Grangers were wondering whether this was a terrorist attack or a dark magic thing when three bangs came from the hole created by the explosion, and bright multicolored light jets and sparks flew in every direction. People began screaming louder and trying to run towards the exits. Remus turned an amulet he had on him and reached over to do the same to the one Sirius was wearing. The amulets were keyed to Amelia Bones' office alarm system and to the different families' head elves at Potter Manor. The last breach had made her so embarrassed at her Auror's slow response that she had sent the necklaces to Remus with a lengthy apology. The kids were scared and crying.
The screams around them were deafening. Glass was breaking everywhere. The chandelier shook with a loud, dissonant chiming sound. As they had agreed, Daniel pushed Emma and the kids towards Martin, who pulled them towards Narcissa as the men took the riskiest positions closest to the hole.
"Little doggie, come out and play!" the creepy soprano sing-song voice of Walburga Nott called out to Sirius. "Your cousin has sent you a message, you mutt!"
Sirius felt a cold drop fall down his back. Fucking Bellatrix! He would send her a message back. He was still seething at her for standing by Lucius as he abused her sister. He stood up before he thought it through. Remus saw his actions in slow motion with horror. Sirius began dueling with all his might. Severus knew Sirius would tire quickly. He was too upset to think about technique or time. Remus jumped out to back up his boyfriend after quickly telling Narcissa to get as many of them out as she could. He pushed Draco to his mother's arms. It took some effort because the boy was holding on to him like a cat's claws do to wool sweaters. Martin saw an odd-looking old man who was crawling in all fours and moving surprisingly quickly towards their side of the table, was it a friend or a foe?
"Rosarys man, quicks hold on to me!" the old man, Trippy in disguise said.
"No, take them first!" Martin motioned towards everyone else. He pushed Eileen towards the elf. Narcissa hugged Draco and grabbed Eileen's hand. Emma held on to Trippy, and Harry and Hermione did the same. They were about to vanish when a spell hit the elf, and he fell down, dead on the spot. Hermione screamed an anguished "Nooooo!" and threw herself over Trippy, Harry immediately joined her. A Death Eater that came in through the actual entrance, and as he heard her shout, he came charging with a feral grin. What Goyle wasn't expecting, as wizards never do, was to be faced with physical confrontation.
Martin shoot up and tackled the man with all his might, the spell he was about to shoot died on his lips as he grunted in pain. Goyle never saw what hit him. He just felt horrible pain and could not breathe. The priest's first move was to break the attacker's wand. Fight me like a man with no weapons, you coward! Martin then punched the man twice as hard as he could knocking him out. Jonsy apparated, wearing armor. He was too old to care for disguises. Safety was more important. He would show his loyalty to all these people who were helping keep his mistresses safe.
Trippy was dead. The grumpy elf felt a big wave of sadness hit him. He snapped his fingers, and the Death Eater that Martin incapacitated was bound and gagged. The priest saw Daniel throwing knives at the cloaked terrorists. He ran towards someone else who was attacking Remus from behind as he fought two others and kicked the man behind one of his knees, which put him on a kneeling position. Then he went for the wand hand, kicking the wrist and punching the man on his gut. Jonsy nodded at the priest with pride. The elf grabbed Hermione, Emma, and Harry, and tried to leave, but someone had just activated anti apparition wards that included elves. They were in big trouble now. Jonsy told Emma to run to the kitchens as they could find ways to defend themselves there. He would cover for them. Emma had to forcefully pull Hermione and Harry from Trippy. She told them to run as fast as they could towards the kitchens. The doctor had kicked off her heels. She couldn't afford to twist an ankle as she ran.
Narcissa had managed to apparate with Draco and Eileen, but she saw Trippy fall down as they vanished. When they reached Potter Manor, she immediately tried to apparate back, but couldn't. Damn wards!
"Mother! Trippy!" Draco's lip quivered. "We have to go back! They are all still there!"
"Missy Black," Neesy said, as she approached them with a limp. "Where be everyone else? What is happening to Trippy?"
"He was attacked right before he could pop in here. T-They killed him, Neesy. I am so sorry! I tried to go back, but someone must have placed wards."
"T-Trippy be dead?!" the elf's eyes filled with tears. "We is needing the big guns!"
"What?!"
"We is being preparing for war! Warrior Elvesies!"
All healthy elves in the property appeared. "Yes, Neesy?" they replied in unison.
"Masters and Mistresses is being attacked. Pop to the Ministry in London"
"I'll go with them. I can call the Knight Bus so we can get to the restaurant as soon as possible," Narcissa said. All the elves nodded, adjusting their armors.
A groggy Ianthe came in the room with her daughters."Narcissa? What is wrong?"
"I don't have time to tell you. We were attacked. Please take care of Draco. Eileen can fill you in. I have to go… Drakey," she said hurriedly. The boy just hugged her tight and shook his head. He understood.
"Go, mother."
"Please watch out for my boy," Eileen begged Narcissa.
She nodded and vanished with the elves.
Emma, Harry, and Hermione barely managed to barricade themselves in the kitchen. The staff had run out as soon as chaos started. Emma wanted to join Martin and kick ass, and she would have gone back to do just that if they had been able to get the kids to safety. Her motherly instinct was the only thing holding her back. The kids were crying hysterically. They wanted to go back to get Trippy's body. Emma looked around the kitchen storage space and tried to find things she could turn into weapons. Chef knives were her first choice. While it was Dan, who was an expert at throwing knives, Emma had learned the basics. She rummaged through the cleaning supplies closet. Eureka! Bleach and ammonia. She put the bleach in a tall bucket. There were about two liters of each liquid. She grabbed a serrated knife and cut off the top of the ammonia bottle. She put them both by the cold storage door. She would have it ready to use. That closed room would be the only place it wouldn't hurt her or her kids. It was dangerous, but desperate times call for drastic measures.
The screaming and the explosion sounds outside hadn't stopped. It had been around twenty minutes since the fight began when a thought struck Emma. Wizards and witches were not in line with modern inventions. She needed to put a flame to a smoke detector so the water would cause a distraction for a few seconds. The only problem was that the closest one was outside the kitchen. She called the police who were apparently unable to come in as this was being treated as a terror attack and hostage situation. The kids freaked out further when she said she would go out of the kitchen. They grabbed her and refused to let her go.
Martin came in through the kitchen door after Emma opened it once she saw it was him who was pushing to get in. She had barricaded it. The priest's hair was covered in dust, his lip was split, his knuckles bloodied, and his face would be horribly bruised soon. "Here, activate the fire detector and pull the alarm to create a distraction," Emma handed him a dry mop that she had covered in rubbing alcohol and a lighter. He asked no questions, but nodded and left crouching in the dark. Unfortunately, a Death Eater saw this and waited for the man to come back out. That mudblood looked like she would be a screamer, and he was sure he could get her to comply with anything if he threatened the kids.
"Harry, Hermione, I need you to do something for me," Emma said, kneeling in front of them. I will get you out of the building, and you have to use your magic to go home, okay? We will be right behind you as soon as we can," she looked hard into Harry's eyes as he read her.
"No, mommy. We won't leave you!" Hermione was angry but kept her voice down.
"Emma. I will keep her safe. I promise," Harry whispered solemnly, grabbing Hermione's hand. Emma let out the breath she had been holding.
"Harry, we can't!"
"We have to! Your mom can't help your dad if she's protecting us!" Harry whisper shouted as he pushed through their bond to convince her. She yielded with a frown.
"Fine, but I don't like this!"
"Then, don't like it!" Harry snapped back. Later, Emma would meditate on how much the kids sounded like her and Dan.
The shouting and explosions got worse outside. As Emma got up to leave, Hermione gasped, and Harry pulled her behind him. Emma turned to find a colossal wizard had come into the kitchen from the service side door. He must have been around 300 pounds and six feet tall. She had locked that door, but he had worked his magic.
"Do you want to do this the easy way or the hard way, mudblood?" he spat. His wand cast a Lumus.
"What do you want?" Emma began pushing the kids towards the far end wall. They understood and began moving quickly, bending their knees slightly so the man couldn't see them well.
"I want to have a good time with you… Or I can start with your daughter. What would you prefer?" the man spat with a hideous smirk. Emma felt dirty, but she would die before that monster lay a finger on her daughter.
"Leave her out of his. Kids, turn around. Do not look back until I say so," Emma ordered them, and they complied, terrified. Harry immediately stepped behind Hermione, protectively. Emma walked towards the man slowly. As soon as she was within his reach, he grabbed her harshly by her left arm and slapped her. She didn't make a sound. Her entire face hurt.
"Good girl. Strip." He felt lucky. Emma threw up in her mouth a little. She loathed being called girl in that diminishing, infantilizing tone by a sexist pedophile monster.
"If you want me to comply, we are going in there," she pointed at the cold storage. "Not in front of the children."
Nott smirked. He thought he had won. Inbreeding does take a toll on the lowering of IQs. He opened the door and pulled a stool inside. He sat and sent a cutting hex that made her dress fall from her shoulders. Emma gasped. She barely caught it by pressing the fabric to her chest.
"Dance, and strip, you slut," he growled. In the middle of a fight, this bastard wants me to dance and strip? Emma thought. It made no sense to her. However, Emma saw this as an opportunity. She began moving and swaying, lowering the dress a bit then turning around. The faint light from his wand meant that he could only see the parts of her closer to him. The doctor let her dress fall to her waist as she bent over and gyrated her hips seductively to distract the jerk while her hands were out of sight. He took out a riding crop and hit her buttocks twice as harshly as he could. She bit the inside of her cheeks to stay quiet. He had no reason to think she was up to anything. She wasn't a witch. She didn't have a wand. Wizards like Nott thought that muggles were akin to defenseless animals. He would learn that muggle mamas are lionesses protecting their cubs: ferocious predators out for blood.
Emma slid a step away from the man to be in the door frame. The door was half-open. She took a clean kitchen towel that she had strategically placed. She covered her mouth and nose, held her breath, turned her face away, and closed her eyes tightly. Emma then dropped the cut off bottle of ammonia into the bleach. She immediately pushed the bucket into the cold storage and slammed the door behind her. The man began to shout profanities and to palm his robe in desperation. Nott was dying: tears flowed from his eyes, he felt nauseous and lightheaded, he coughed painfully and uncontrollably. He had no idea what the mudblood did, but it burned and hurt horribly. Only the Dark Lord's Crucio was worse. He would have done a bubble charm, but his wand wasn't in his pocket. Harry and Hermione had summoned it without him noticing. Nott was utterly fucked. The cold storage unit only opened from the outside. Emma smirked as she hugged her kids. They were holding the man's wand. Emma took it, turned on one of the gas kitchen's and threw the wand in after breaking it into three parts.
"Emma! Open up!" Narissa was at the door. Emma felt a rush of pure relief. She tied the front and back of her dress together at the shoulders and rushed to the door to move the dishwasher that was blocking it.
"We have to take the kids out of here now!" Emma said as Narcissa hugged her. The witch handed Emma a pair of tennis shoes she had transfigured. The doctor immediately put them on. Her feet had cuts, but she didn't care. There was loud chaos outside.
"Yes, I brought back up, but they called others too. Things are bad out there."
"I know!"
Loud coughs, and the sound of someone throwing up from the freezer, alerted Narcissa. The man's purplish face was pressed against the glass. "What did you do to Nott?"
"Muggle magic! Let's get out of here! Can you carry Harry? I'll carry Hermione, and we'll get them out."
"Of course," Narcissa picked Harry up. They left the kitchen trying not to draw attention to themselves, but Avery saw Narcissa and immediately recognized her even though she was… clothed. He wanted his plaything back. It was so fun to hear her scream. The new rewards system… didn't do it for him. He sent her a tripping jinx, so she fell with Harry. Emma turned back to help her friend, but Martin grabbed her by the waist and semi pushed semi carried her out before she could protest. Dan had asked him to get them out, and he would do so, no matter what he had to do. He would go back for Harry and Narcissa as soon as he could.
Severus was so furious at Avery's cowardly attack that he imitated a move from the priest. He grabbed a silver platter and hit the man over the head so harshly that the Death Eater fell down. Avery turned around to fight back, but Severus' Sectusempra was on him already. Snape broke his wand and burnt his genitalia to a crisp. The potion's master knew all the men who had hurt Narcissa, and he had sworn to himself that they would pay handsomely. He bound the man for good measure and ran to Narcissa, but Harry was no longer there. She was looking around in the dark with desperation. He pulled her up and told her to leave and that he would find Harry.
He turned to search for the boy and saw with horror, from the glow of one spell, as Harry ran to help an elf that was being beaten by Mulciber. The man kicked Harry harshly, thinking he was an elf before realizing he had struck gold. Severus knew he could accidentally hit Harry if the boy moved unexpectedly. Hence, he threw a strong incendio at the smoke detector that Martin had been trying to activate, and water began pouring down. Most Death Eaters looked up in confusion. The fire alarm was activated, and a few red emergency lights turned on and started blinking. Harry was really hurt. He wasn't moving.
As Mulciber readied to Crucio the boy, a black dog ran into the scene faster than Severus could have. Taking advantage of the confusion around them, Padfoot jumped and twisted his body in midair, biting Mulciber's neck with absolute hatred, drawing blood, and making the man drop his wand in surprise. Snape summoned it and broke it. Mulciber had a dagger somewhere because there was a pained dog howl from Sirius as he was stabbed in his side. He let go of the man, and Remus was instantly firing as many spells as he could towards the dark wizard. Severus went in all fours to get Harry and get out. Too many curses were flying at head level. While he moved, he was attacked by Walburga, who seemed gravely injured but persisted in hurting as many as she could. He immediately felt the familiar effects of the Cruciatus curse.
"You fucking traitor! I should behead you where you-"
Before she could finish her sentence, her head was cut off in one clean motion with a glinting sword by an armored Sharptooth. He had brought several warriors with him. The blood came off covered Snape. Sharptooth helped him up without a word, both of them started to carry unconscious Harry outside while the warriors covered them. The account manager held a shield in front of the boy to keep him safe.
Daniel was furious as he stood his ground. He had been deflecting spells by moving around and using furniture to protect himself. Emma and Hermione had almost made it out with Martin when another Death Eater sent the priest flying and crashing against the far end wall. She would have to protect herself as best as she could. He couldn't get to her because he was currently fighting another disgusting arsehole. If he threw a knife in the dark, he could hurt one of his own.
Emma watched with horror how Martin flew and crashed. Could he survive that? She turned to look at the direction where the spell came from and saw a beefy man leering at her and her daughter. The doctor put Hermione down and stepped in front of her.
"Hello, pretty," he smirked at the girl. "Just where do you think you are going?"
"Away from the likes of you, pig," she pulled a shaking Hermione behind her.
"Does she have your filthy mouth? I could have a lot of fun hearing the both of you scream for mercy…"
Whatever the man was going to say next never came out, as Emma took advantage of his distraction due to firefighter sirens that were fast approaching. It was just half a second, but it was enough. She delivered the most vicious kin geri of her life between the man's legs. As he fell to his knees wailing in pain and grabbed his crotch, she took advantage of his position and, pulling his head towards her by the nape of his neck, crushed the man's nose with her flexed knee. Now rivers of blood went down the man's face. Her dress was just covering her from her waist down. The tied-up shoulder parts had come undone. As she ran, Hermione had been holding the knots together.
The wizard lifted his wand with difficulty. Narcissa ran in the scene and kicked his wand hand. Bones visibly broke, and Narcissa summoned the wand as it fell.
"You will not touch them!" She kicked his stomach as hard as she could.
"W-Why b-babe? Are y-you jealous?" he panted, trying to catch his breath, looking down Narcissa's body in a way that took her back to a horrible time. "I could have you p-play with each other, slut. B-But I would keep the l-little one all to myself."
"You are a fucking piece of shit, Carrow! You will never do what you did to me to any other woman!" she sent a harsh cutting spell to the man's crotch before he could move. Blood began gushing down when Snape reached them and sent a Sectusempra to the man to make sure he wouldn't recuperate. The Death Eaters didn't know the counter curse to the spell he created. Severus carried Harry with one arm, and Sharptooth now covered his rear. A Death Eater had noticed them leaving and began attacking them from the back.
Snape grabbed Narcissa's hand tightly and pulled her forward. Hermione had lost consciousness after feeling a lot of pain through her bond. Emma saw this with fear. She had no idea whether she had been hit by a stray spell. She immediately lifted her up and ran to the exit with a bloody Severus while Sharptooth guarded their backs. As soon as they got out, Snape motioned with his head to an alley. They ran. Narcissa grabbed Harry from Snape and apparated. Severus wrapped his arms around Emma and Hermione, blushing and looking straight into Emma's eyes since she was so… uncovered. He apparated to the Manor and then went back to the alley to go look for Martin.
Severus found the man who looked like he wouldn't make it through the night. Severus did as much as he could to stabilize the priest, summoned Trippy's body, and called the Knight Bus to take them to Gringotts as he was sure that he would further hurt Martin if he apparated. The last thing the cleric needed was to get splinched. He needed the best healers. Sharptooth apparated back to the bank to warn the healers that Martin was coming. Before he left, Severus muttered a few charms to keep curious bystanders away.
The Aurors came to find that the family, as they had been nicknamed by the force, had done their work for them… again. Their boss was incensed. Her secretary had not alerted her when the alarms started pinging. She had come personally. Some Death Eaters were bound and gagged, but others had definitely run away. Looking at the scale of violence and damages, there must have been at least ten.
"Madam Bones, we found another one in the kitchen. He's dead apparently. I don't want to open the door because we don't know what killed him," one Auror reported.
Four dead. Amelia knew she shouldn't celebrate that, but with these reprobates, only death ever truly stopped them. "What do you mean, what killed him?"
"It wasn't magic. It seemed whatever it was, was muggle... His wand was burnt… on a stove!" the female Auror giggled.
A scorching look from her boss made her stop. "How is any of this funny?! Muggles had to defend themselves while unarmed from these terrorists! "Start erasing the memories of the muggles who are alive or who watched this outside. This is going to be a mediatic disaster!"
"Someone's getting fiiiiiiireeeeed," an Auror said in a sing-song voice.
"Do you want to become part of the list?!" Amelia snapped, her body giving out angry red sparks.
"No, Madam Bones. I am sorry," the Auror said, walking away briskly to do what he was told.
Emma had forgotten entirely about her torn dress as she hurried to check her kids over for visible injuries. Professor McGonagall, who had been called over, brought Poppy Pomfrey (Hogwarts' healer). The professor put a hand on Emma's shoulder, making her jump. She turned fully intended to punch whoever threatened to pull her away from the children.
"Emma, dear, this is Healer Pomfrey. Can she check the kids? Do you know what happened to them?"
Emma's eyes moved left and right, and she shook her head, allowing the professor to pull her away from the unconscious kids. "Where's my husband?!"
Draco's eyes went super wide when Mrs. Granger turned as Narcissa kept squeezing him tightly. He blushed and looked away immediately. The boy had never seen so much of a woman's body. Emma flinched as she felt more than saw Eileen wrap a house robe around her from the front. The woman and the professor worked together without saying a word. Eileen covered Emma, and Minerva repaired her dress with a spell.
Ianthe had sent her daughters to their room. She had a feeling things would get ugly. Daphne seemed (suspiciously) not surprised. She would have to talk to her soon.
Remus apparated to the manor with a bloodied Sirius. He kissed the man's forehead, passed him on to the Tonks who took him and laid him down on a stretcher that was in the living room. It was a good thing that Andie was here. She guided Augusta, who had also been summoned, on which spells were better for Sirius' injuries. As the man regained consciousness, he squeezed Andie's hand.
"I-I"
"Shhh, Sirius, don't. You lost a lot of blood. Don't talk. Keep your strength," Andy whispered, caressing his forehead.
"No. T-This is i-important," he insisted.
"Nothing is more important than your health, cousin," she pleaded.
Sirius powered through the pain and semi sat up. Saying this was crucial. Ted placed a cushion behind him so he would strain less. "I-I, S-Sirius O-Orion B-Black, in m-my authority as current Head of H-House Black, hereby a-annul the decision of the former H-Head of House t-to cast out A-Andromeda T-Tonks nee B-Black. She will b-be uncast, put b-back in the family t-tree with her husband a-and daughter, and h-her right to o-own and use a w-wand is t-thereby granted b-back to her for life. As I have said it, so mote it be."
Andy felt a painful snapping of her core. It felt as if a tight band that was wrapped around her magical essence broke, and it hit her from the inside out. She fell to her knees and gasped as her heart began beating erratically. Her hands were shaking. Andromeda felt like throwing up, and before she could stop herself, she opened her mouth, and as she looked up as to not cover her cousin in the contents of her stomach, what came out of her and pulled her to a levitating standing position was a bright ray of light.
Her jaw was so stretched out it felt like the corners of her lips would split. The beam went up in a straight line and hit the ceiling, going through it, and creating a wide hole. Her hair changed in a rainbow of colors and went back to black. Her body got bigger, smaller, thinner, curvier, and then went back to normal. Her eyes were shifting colors and shapes. Everyone was staring, with open mouths, except for Poppy, who was absolutely in the zone looking after the kids, and Emma, who was too worried to register what had happened. Ted had jumped away as his wife flew, but as she floated down, he was there to catch and steady her. She was crying.
"It's back. I-I thought it was impossible!" she hugged her husband and then kissed Sirius' forehead.
"S-Sharptooth told m-me. I w-wanted to do this b-big ceremony, b-but we need your h-healing hands, Andy," Sirius smiled weakly.
Augusta approached Andromeda. "Use Frankie's wand. It won't be a perfect fit, but it's better than no wand while you go get a new one."
Andy took the wand and felt more in synch with herself than she had in a few years. She tried a simple lumus, and the tip of the wand lit brightly. "Thank you!"
Augusta nodded with a smile but said no more as a loud crack of an apparition, and several gasps made her turn to see a bloodied Mr. Granger carried by an injured Remus. Andy rushed to his aid, levitating the doctor and applying all the pertinent diagnostic and treating spells as Remus grabbed Emma by the waist to prevent her from jumping towards her husband.
"Remus, let go of me!" Emma growled. "Daniel!"
"Andy, I patched him up, but it won't hold much longer," Remus said without letting Emma go.
Andy severed his shirt with a spell. Oh, dear! This is bad! He had his skin and muscle cut through. One of his organs was about to peek through, although, luckily, that hadn't been cut. "Madam Pomfrey, I need a little help here!"
"We can't fix that here, if we can fix it at all," Poppy said after looking at the injury. Both of them were blocking Emma's line of sight. For all the swishes and flicks, magic healing wasn't very proficient at surgery.
Emma was seething. Remus was looking at Sirius, the doctor didn't like to be manhandled. She stomped on the man's foot, twisted his arm as he let go of her to rub his foot. She then put him in a chokehold. Remus didn't struggle. He knew she was incensed and in shock.
Ted approached her, hands in front of him in a pleading stance, "Emma, let him go before you do something you regret."
"Don't fucking tell me what to do! I didn't see you telling him to let me go, did I? Move it or lose it!" she yelled.
The lawyer took a step back and helped Remus to sit next to his boyfriend.
Neesy popped in and looked around in despair. The masters and mistresses were hurt. She called the elves back, and the situation got even worse. Narcissa, Minerva, and Augusta began assisting the healthy elves in healing the hurt ones.
Emma looked at the older healer in a questioning manner. "So?"
"What do you mean, so?" Poppy wasn't used to being questioned.
"Why aren't you doing anything?!"
"We don't really heal this type of thing on muggles."
"WHAT!?"
"I'm sorry. We depend on a magical core for these types of serious injuries.."
"Get the fuck out or my way, then! You are wasting our time! Tolanthe, bring me my surgical kit!" Emma yelled.
A toolbox appeared on the side table next to Poppy. "Can you sterilize a room with your wand?!"
"Yes."
"Do you know if he has any internal bleeding?!"
"We both checked. There isn't any."
"You! Take care of my kids. Andy! Levitate my husband to the nearest room!"
Both healers complied without comment. They knew better than to stay in the way of a furious wife and mother. Professor McGonagall took a second from treating elves to stare at Emma. She would have loved to have a daughter like that. Eileen followed Emma in case she needed help. It did no good for her to be worried about her son and do nothing.
Emma ripped off her dress as soon as they got to the room. She asked Tolanthe to move her scrubs and comfortable work shoes to the room. Andy placed Daniel on a bed that she transfigured into a gurney. Her magic had been yearning to come out of her now that it was unbound.
"Andy, can a spell clean me up?"
The witch replied by leaving Emma squeaky clean. The doctor changed right there. Andy looked away and suddenly felt she needed to work out more.
Emma still took her disinfectant solution and washed her hands. Eileen used the towel in the kit to dry the doctor's hands. She disinfected her own arms and put on a flimsy cover that Emma handed her and Andy. The witches put on disposable gloves.
"Can you please keep him asleep and make him not feel anything?"
"Of course," Andy summoned a tall jar, opened it, and used her wand to lift the liquid and apply to the wound. She muttered several incantations and nodded at the doctor. Emma looked very concerned. She would do her best to suture her husband up for the time being, and then he would take him to a surgeon friend of his. She had trained for pediatric surgery, but she didn't finish since she had miscarried Ajax, and the thought of doing surgery on kids was too much for her to handle at the time. Her husband was not a child but knowing he felt no pain made her feel better.
"Let's do this," Emma said. "Eileen, Scalpel."
"Madam Pomfrey, why aren't the kids waking up?"
"I don't know. He is pretty bruised, but I checked her over, and she seems to be physically fine," Poppy replied with a frown. "Did someone see what happened to them?"
"They are soul bound. Whatever happened to him, she felt," Tolanthe's echoey voice said. Poppy gasped and looked around at Minerva with a frown. The stern woman blushed. She had forgotten to mention that to Poppy.
A crack of apparition made the conversation stop. A dirty, bloodied, panting Severus landed on his knees, holding Trippy on his arms. Neesy gasped and immediately levitated Trippy away towards the hurt elves' side of the living room. "A D-Death Eater k-kicked Harry on the c-chest."
"Severus," Minerva rushed to help him up so he could sit on an armchair. "What happened to you? You look like you ran here."
"I ran to the apparition point. I was going to bring Martin to St. Mungo's, but the Knight Bus driver told me they wouldn't admit him in his state. So I took him to a muggle hospital and disillusioned Trippy. But then the doctors called the police because they thought I had attacked him… I mean, I am covered in blood," Severus coughed. His throat was dry.
Immediately Narcissa was handing him a glass of water. He drank it greedily.
Draco was sitting between Harry and Hermione holding one of each of his friends' hands. Martin was hurt. "Is he going to be alright?"
"They don't know, son."
Draco took a shaky breath. He could have sworn his friends squeezed his hands, but their eyes were closed, and they were very still.
"I'm glad you are safe, godfather."
"Thank you. How is everyone?" Severus asked Poppy.
The mediwitch looked at him in confusion. She had never seen a polite Snape. McGonagall had told her about how he had changed, but seeing it with her own eyes was a different thing.
"Mr. Black is going to be fine. So is Mr. Lupin. Everyone else had minor cuts and bruises. Except for Mr…"
"Granger," Narcissa added.
"Yes. Mr. Granger had a severe laceration in his abdomen. His organs could come out, but we couldn't help him. We need a magical core for magical surgery," Poppy said with a sigh. She hated not being able to help her patients.
"Where is he?" Severus asked, standing up and immediately regretting it as a wave of pain hit him.
"Emma is suturing him with Andromeda's help," McGonagall replied with a sigh.
"What?! Someone should have apparated them to a muggle hospital!" Severus looked horrified.
"Why? She is a doctor…" Augusta cocked her head in confusion.
"Yes, but muggles have a rule to never let direct family members operate on their loved ones!" Snape looked at Poppy in dismay.
"Let's hope things work out," Augusta grimaced. She cleaned Snape's robes and hair. "You looked like you had survived a mass murder scene."
"I did. I mean… if it hadn't been for Sharptooth and the goblin warriors, I would be dead! How are Harry and Hermione doing?"
"They are unresponsive."
"What did they tell you about the priest?" Edward asked with a frown.
"They said they would do their best to save him, but he was too hurt," Severus sighed. "I hope he recovers."
Andy and Eileen stared at Emma in awe once she put the last stitch in. She had closed her husband up in layers. It was a work of art. She made sure to inject a strong dose of antibiotics and pain medication, just in case. Lastly, she cleaned the skin around the sutures. Tolanthe put a blanket at the foot of the gurney, and Emma covered her husband.
"Can you wake him?" she asked Andy.
The witch moved her wand over his temples, and he blinked lazily. "E-Emma?"
"D-Dan," she whispered. It was then that she allowed herself to cry desperately on her husband's shoulder.
"Mr. Granger, please don't move, do not try to sit up. You got badly hurt. Dr. Granger had to suture you," Andy explained slowly.
Daniel frowned and blinked in confusion at his wife. She would have never treated him herself unless there was no other choice.
Eileen put a hand on Emma's shoulder: "We'll go see how the kids are doing."
"Emma, I need to check you up later. Did you get hurt?" Andy asked quickly before she left.
"My feet. I had to run b-barefoot. C-Can you-?"
"Of course," Andy knelt, took off her gloves and lifted the doctor's feet one by one, and healed the cuts and bruising there. She saw other bruises, on her face and arm, but said nothing. What Emma needed right now was her husband.
"W-What happened to o-our kids? L-Love, why are you crying?"
Draco was watching mesmerized as he held his friends' hands how, whenever Harry's hand was close to Hermione's, there was a magnetic pull. The boy had a sudden idea. Maybe their magic was calling for each other. He put their hands back next to their bodies and began pushing the gurneys together.
"Drakey, what are you doing?"
"I think they need to be together, mother," Draco explained.
"That may be a good idea, considering their bond," Minerva said, standing up to push the other gurney together.
Draco climbed on Harry's side and pushed the boy's hand towards Hermione's as Minerva did the same on the other side, without any climbing. As soon as the hands were an inch apart, their fingers intertwined, and their bodies were pulled together by an invisible force. They began glowing amber. Their hair was floating, and their cuts and bruises were slowly receding as the light shone out of them. Both children smiled calmly but didn't wake.
Emma came into the living room. Her husband had drifted off to sleep, and she needed to see her kids. Everyone had dissipated, mostly to the kitchen. Draco was sleeping on the sofa, and so was Madam Pomfrey who had an empty cup hanging from her hand. The doctor took the cup and placed it on a side table. She sat on Harry's side of the gurney since both kids were glued to each other over it.
Emma began to caress Harry's head and kissed his forehead where his angry bulging scar had once stood out, and now only a very faint, almost invisible, thin, light bolt-shaped line remained. One of Emma's silent tears fell on the boy's face, and his eyes snapped open.
"E-Emma?" Harry whispered.
"Thank God you are awake!"
"I kept trying to stop her…" he said, looking at a still unresponsive Hermione.
"Stop her from what, sweetie?"
"She pushed her energy to me because I was hurt and how she can't wake up…" the boy promptly began to cry. Emma held him and cried with him.
The doctor sniffed. "Honey, I am sure you couldn't have convinced her to stop. She is as stubborn as her father and I. Are you in pain? Can I get you anything?"
Harry shook his head. "I'm still a b-bit tired. She says you should hook her up, so you feel better."
"Hermione? You mean she can hear us, but can't move?" Emma asked to clarify.
"Yes. Mione says she knows you will feel better if you put an ivy?"
"An IV, she corrected. Ask her if she is in pain," Emma requested.
"She says a bit. Like after a tooth is pulled out…" Harry repeated the voice in his head in confusion.
"Tolanthe?"
"It's right behind you, doctor Granger," the house replied.
Emma turned, and sure enough, her kit was there. She took out everything she needed, and a few minutes later, Hermione had fluids and mild pain medication coursing through her tired veins.
"Emma?"
"Yes, Harry?"
"I'm sorry…"
"Like I said, I know Hermione, she wouldn't ha-"
"No," the boy interrupted, and he began sobbing anew. "I know t-that. I just… I saw a-and heard what that m-man did to you. I couldn't protect you. I should h-have helped you. I should h-have let him h-hit me. I can take it. He should have never touched you. Never."
Emma felt her heart constrict. She dried her boy's tears and held him. "Sweetheart, I appreciate the sentiment, but that is wrong," he looked up with a questioning look. "You are a child. No child should fight a grown man or woman. EVER. What the Dursleys did to you was a crime. When you came home with us, we promised we would never allow any abuse of you. What that horrible terrorist did was disgusting, and no man should EVER treat a woman like an object with such disrespect and violence. However, I would go through that and worse a thousand times more to keep you and Hermione safe. Okay? I will be fine, baby."
Harry took her hands and kissed the backs of both. "We love you."
Emma's heart melted, and she could have sworn one of Harry's green eyes was brown. "I love both of you too," she squeezed her daughter's hand.
"Emma… I want to promise you something."
"What, sweetheart?"
"When I am a big boy, I will be strong enough to protect you and Hermione, from bad men like that," he put his hand over his chest as he said this. "I promise."
"Oh, Harry!" Emma hugged her boy for all that he was worth. "I know you will…"
"Emma, dear," professor McGonagall shook her shoulder.
"What is it?" Emma got up, trying not to wake Harry. As she stood, she caught her reflection on a mirror. Madam Pomfrey had probably healed her bruised, swollen cheek as the doctor slept. She noticed there was no more pain or bruise.
"Your husband is trying to get up, and he will open his sutures. We told him you and the children are alright, but he says he knows you are not. Remus is reasoning with him, but I don't think he will succeed," the professor explained.
Emma ran to the room Daniel was in as he tried to get up while Remus pinned him down. "If you dare to move one more muscle, I will divorce you, Daniel!"
This made him immediately stop struggling. Emma had only used that once before, and it wasn't pretty. Remus sighed and got up, sidestepping Emma, putting as much distance as he could between them and left with McGonagall.
"Are you alright?" Daniel asked, stretching his open arms towards his wife. She hugged him lightly and lingered to hear his heart beating. "How are the kids?"
"I am fine. They will be fine too. You three need the same thing: rest," Emma instructed. She lifted the dark blue blanket. "Dan! You are bleeding! I will have to stitch you up again.''
"No. You won't. I can't believe you did it, to begin with. Get me a kit and some numbing, and I will suture myself!"
Emma stood up with a furious expression. "Do not take that tone with me, Mr! Do you think I didn't realize Martin carried me out because you told him to?! "
Daniel sighed, "How is he?"
"Bloody hell! I have to get Severus to take me to the hospital where he left Martin. I fell asleep."
"How is he?!"
"I don't know! But it wasn't pretty. Severus had to run out of the hospital because they thought he was the one who beat Martin to a pulp. I don't have time to fight. I will redo your stitches and you will zip it. It was your Macho Manness that got you so hurt, to begin with! You could have died!"
Daniel grimaced as his wife got to work, numbing the area. If she knew the extent of the collusion from all the men in the house, he would never hear the end of it. He looked away, and as he did, he saw the large, deep purple, man-hand-shaped bruise on his wife's milky arm. He felt a deep, burning rage, "Emma…"
"I am not having this conversation with you right now," she said as she sutured him back up.
Daniel caressed her bruised arm. "Who did this to you, love?" he whispered.
Emma remained focused until she was done and wrapped a bandage on him. "I gotta go."
"Emma! Stop! This is important!" he pulled her by the wrist of the bruised arm and she flinched from his raised voice.
"Martin could be dying all alone. Don't you dare reopen the stitches! I am leaving and you will stay on this bed. I am only letting you get up to use the loo and I will have Tolanthe make sure you are levitated there and these are doctor's orders. Am I understood?!" she raised her voice significantly, giving him a look all husbands know too well. The one that reads "Agree with me or else."
Daniel nodded but pulled her in with a bomb-diffusing look. She sat next to him briefly.
"May I kiss you, love?" he whispered. Emma nodded, letting out a shaky breath.
Daniel kissed her forehead, her cheeks, the tip of her nose, and her eyelids as they fluttered closed. Then he captured her warm lips in a slow, gentle kiss. "You are the most incredible woman, the best wife I could have hoped for, and the best mother the kids could have dreamt of. I understand you want to go, and I wish I could go with you. Just please tell me this, did he do more to you? Did he-?
"No. He didn't. I promise we will talk about this. I am sorry for snapping at you."
"You are the love of my life, Em. I love you, no matter what. I am here for you, no matter what. Okay? Please take your gun and bring at least two people with you," Daniel kissed her forehead again.
"I love you too, Dan. I will be packing and I will go recruit another person. I wish you could come with me too, but we will talk when I come back. Thank you… for understanding."
"Be safe," Daniel blessed his wife by drawing a cross on her forehead.
"Sev, are you ready to go?" Emma said, making a distracted Remus jump.
"Whenever you are ready. I have your gun here, and I have arranged to have a goblin warrior in disguise will follow us at a distance," Severus had changed to another set of muggle clothes.
"Remy," Emma put her hand on the man's shoulder. He flinched. She knelt in front of him and held his hands. "Please forgive me. You were right to hold me back. I was freaking out. I could have hurt my husband and I actually did hurt you. I am so sorry."
"I'm fine, Em. It's the wolf in me who got really confused. You are a part of my pack and so is your husband. I was protecting him, which I thought you would want me to, but you attacked me. I am not used to my pack turning against me… it is probably normal but… it just brought back memories. We can talk at some other time."
"How is Sirius?"
"He lost a lot of blood but he will be fine in a couple of days," Lupin smiled and pulled Emma up. "I am coming with you. I am fine and I am sure Daniel would want extra back up. And of course, you are forgiven. You have become like a little sister to me. It will take a hell of a lot more than that to separate us."
"Thank you, Remy! I appreciate you coming with us," Emma hugged him.
"Lupin, change my hair, will you? I don't want to be recognized."
Snape's hair turned gray, and Remus added a full beard. Snape fumed while Emma and Remus chuckled. They apparated.
"Are you Martin Shaw's friends?"
"Yes," Emma stood.
"Can you get a hold of his family?"
"He's an orphan and a priest. We are his family," Emma said. "Doctor Emma Granger, a pediatrician."
"Dr. Fiels, trauma surgeon. Look, I am really sorry-"
The doors behind them opened, interrupting the doctor. About ten bodyguards came into the room. They requested to talk to Martin Shaw. The hospital's director rushed in and greeted the head of security warmly… far too warmly for a stranger. The other personnel scurried away after they were ordered to do so. This couldn't be good. Emma looked at Severus and Remus with a frown, and they grabbed their wands discreetly. The doors opened back up and a man stepped inside. Emma had to hold on to her friends from the shock. She would have never expected this.
A/N #1: Thank you for reading! First of all, I was really saddened to see the murder of George Floyd by the police in the U.S. Black lives matter. Period. No need to say more. Police brutality is inexcusable. For those of you struggling with these violent and scary times, I hope reading this gives you a momentary distraction while you garner some energy to keep resisting/protesting.
A/N #2: The reason for this quick upload is that my plot bunnies weren't letting me sleep. Four more chapters to go. Thank you for the comments, favorites, follows, and for caring about my back. I was just told that next semester will stay the same with long-distance learning. -Lux-