A/N: My readers may be excused if they think my life's ambition is only to write takeoffs from broomstick flyer. This story iswritten in Harry's POV. I thank JKR for letting us play in her universe.I hope you enjoy. (1)
–SWM–
Chapter 5: A Daughter's Demand
After arriving at the Grangers I was shown my room which is one of six large comfortable bedrooms. Hermione showed me the room and glomped onto me barely keeping herself from sobbing. "Harry I'm so terribly sorry for what I put you through..."
I had to interrupt. "Hermione there really is nothing for you to apologize. Look we can talk about this but I want to get this issue buried for good so let's go into the family room where we can all talk."
We went into the family room and I asked Kreatcher to summon all the adults. Besides me and the Grangers I was surprised to see that Susan Bones was here too. It turned out she had managed to contact Hermione as she too wanted to leave Britain where she had no family after her aunt's death. Hermione named Susan as Marie Jane's Godmother and 'Auntie Susan' was having the time of her life.
"Well, we have some things that need saying so we can put the recent past behind us. To begin there is nobody at fault for this situation. All my life weird things have happened to me and this is simply more of the same. I call this Potter's 'Luck'. In the end I can't complain because I'm so totally happy to be a father and to have living family. So what if her conception is a bit odd? Just proves that Hermione and I have a different sort of synergy than the usual. Considering we became friends after a Toll attack nothing much ought to startle us!
"I really think that we need have no apologies among us. All of us did the things that seemed necessary at that time and I for one have no regrets at all". What are your thoughts?"
For the next few hours we took turns sharing our feelings. Hermione's parents told us how having a witch in the family had put stresses on their relationship and how they finally came back together over her restoring their memories and the shock of having to prepare for a daughter/granddaughter. The situation brought them closer and united them as a family.
Susan told us (mainly me) about how stricken she'd been after her aunt's death and how free she finally felt after Voldemort's passing. She sought the Grangers out and found a family in which she could heal. She admitted that she helped them in figuring out what they should do to find justice. I said I was glad she was their expert adviser.
Helen and Richard both said how they felt enormous pain over the pregnancy and hatred towards me. They admitted that they were still going to need some time to adjust.
The conversation ended at about noon when five hungry people sat to lunch. It was my first lesson in fatherhood watching them feed Marie. She'd had not graduated to solid food and wouldn't for another few months. Although she got breastfed once or twice a day Hermione also used a breast pump and everyone shared in her feeding. My first time came at dinner that night. By then I'd held her for a lot of the afternoon talking to her and reading baby books to her.
–SWM–
The first couple of months I worked to catch up on being a father. I learned to feed and bath her and how to change her nappies. Even though Winky did most of the nanny duties we still had plenty of chances to care for her. I found calming her and putting her to bed a bit of a steep learning curve but I enjoyed every moment.
We also had the chance to mend, start or deepen our relationships. Hermione and I moved back toward the amazingly close friendship that had developed during our Hogwarts years.
I'd known Susan mainly through the Defense Association but we learned a lot about each other and our acquaintance grew into a mutual camaraderie and esteem.
Helen and I started to bond over our love of cooking – assuming we could talk Winky into letting us into the kitchen.
Richard found a hiking companion and we explored the rather large piece of land on which the house was built.
Both Helen and Richard gave me a tour of their dental practice located in nearby Adelaide.
–SWM–
About two and a half months after I arrived I had Hermione apparate us to the magical section of Melbourne. I needed to transact some business with Gringotts and finally get a replacement wand.
"Harry why didn't you buy a new wand in London? For that matter what happened to the wand you took from Draco?"
"Draco's wand was given to Narcissa along with the rest of his effects. I couldn't bring myself to go to Olivander's I was too wary about the chance someone might have a go at me despite my vindication. Besides Olivander was leery of me. (2) I figured that I'd not need one for a while but the time to buy one is now."
So she took me there. I consulted with the Goblins about my balances, investments and my plans to buy up the land around the Grangers to ensure our privacy. At the best Australian wand shop a wand chose me. Ten inches of wizard's mahogany (3) with a thestral hair core. I was a bit melancholy to have a wand with my father's wand wood and my mother's wand core (4) and wondered about what might have been.
–SWM–
As we all settled in Hermione, Susan and I started considering finishing our education. Their main magical school was the Australian Academy of Magic (AAM) in Sydney. It happened that the academic year started in June then had a month's recess from 1 December to 6 January. Then classes ran through May ending with our exams. We contacted the school and found that we'd be tested to properly place us then enrolled.
We all were placed into Year Seven as we hoped. The school issued us Portkeys so we lived at home (a must with an infant at home).
–SWM–
Four months after I arrived we got word that Hannah had finally recovered and we invited the three of them to come over. In my note to Neville I asked him to introduce her to me since thanks to Selwyn we'd never truly met.
When they arrived Hannah tried to apologize but I said she had been controlled so I had no grievance with her. Augusta adored Marie and doted on her. She said she needed practice as they found out Hannah was with child just before they left. At our celebratory dinner we asked Neville to be Marie's Godfather and he accepted which started a tradition of biannual visits in England and Australia. When their daughter Alice Paula Longbottom (4) was born they asked Hermione and me to be Godparents so we had another reason for our visits.
–SWM–
Come June we started school. We had little trouble being students again and the other students were only mildly curious about us which was a welcome change for me. We finished our NEWTs with Hermione earning straight 'O's and Susan and me earned a mix of 'EE's and 'O's.
Susan began Healer training while Hermione and I felt under no pressure to start careers.
–SWM–
Our true careers was being parents to Marie. We found parenthood a total joy. We saw her first teeth, heard her first words ('mama' and 'dada'), saw her first steps. Finally when she was four she started magical preschool. This was a milestone and soon we made new friends in the other parents. In her second year there we had a crisis.
–SWM–
When Hermione picked up Marie one day she was clearly upset. It took both of us and her grandparents to calm her down to where she could tell us what was wrong.
"Justin was so mean! He kept saying mummy and daddy aren't my real parents because they weren't married."
Hermione tried to explain. "Justin is just wrong. Sometimes mummies and daddies are married to each other. Sometimes mummies and daddies were married but they aren't anymore. Sometimes a mummy or daddy then marry someone else and their children an extra mummy or daddy. Sometimes mummies and daddies never married at all. That is what happened to us."
"But mummies and daddies ought to be married. I WANT YOU TO BE MARRIED! NOW! NOW!NOW!"
Marie had shown some accidental magic as early as two years old but it was rare. But now as she stamped her foot Hermione and I were suddenly in wedding robes. We easily changed ourselves back and Marie cried "You have to marry each other! You won't be really my parents if you don't!"
I saw that Richard, Helen, Hermione and Susan were looking at me and I suddenly understood that they had expected me to propose and it was likely they'd been waiting since I came to Australia. I sighed. I've never been someone who expressed my feelings and now I had to talk about it in front of my hardest audience. That is Hermione, her parents, Marie and Susan.
"Marie I'm going to try to explain. I won't marry your mummy because I'm not worthy of her." I had to raise my hand to cut off their immediate protests.
"Look this is how I see your mummy." I waved my wand and a tall silver image of her appeared. This is how I see your grandparents and Auntie Susan and you."
And I added four more tall beautiful figures."And this is how I am." I waved my wand and a small and ragged figure appeared. I ignored their gasps. "This is how I am and how your are and nothing can change that." Marie stared at me then burst into tears and ran out of the room.
–SWM–
"Winky please go and look after Marie." Then Hermione walked over and slappd me. "How can you say such terrible things to your own daughter!" Slap! Slap! Slap! When she tried to slap me again I caught her hand. My magic flared.
"How dare you strike me. Never do that again." She fell back and I saw the fear in their faces.
"None of you know me not really and none of you have ever tried to ask. My life growing up was terrible. When I was five Aunt Petunia told me I must earn my keep. That morning I cooked the bacon for breakfast for the first time and she slapped me when it burned. In a few weeks she made me learn to cook the full English. That was on top of my doing the yard work and the cleaning. I remember once when they ..."
Once I started I couldn't stop. It spewed out of me like a garden hose. I went on for hours. "When I planned to attack Voldemort my thinking voice sounded like Hermione's. Shortly before the attack I realized that I had a piece of Voldemort's soul and I would have to die." All of them cried out in horror. "Hermione's voice pleaded me to find another way but I couldn't. That is why I allowed him to hit me with Avada Kedavra. I knew I'd wounded him so badly that casting the curse would kill him. Of course it didn't come out in the newspaper stories – they didn't want to complicate the image of a rapist with my 'heroics'.
"When I was gaoled I meditated trying to find any memories of being intimate with Hermione and 'she' told me I wouldn't hear her anymore because I'd raped the real Hermione ... So that is why I am what I am. That is why I'm not fit to be anyone's husband." I felt strangely lighter once I was done and I got up and walked to my chamber saying "I'll be out for dinner but now I must rest."
–SWM–
Then Hermione entered my room. She cuddled up and spooned me and murmured comforting words in my ear.
When I came out for dinner Marie ran to me. "Daddy was I bad girl?"
"No little love you are not a bad girl. I just felt very sad but you didn't make me sad I felt sad inside and needed to rest a while. But I'm better now."
It took a week but when she joined me that night she confessed."Harry I've wanted you to ask me to marry you for so long. I've loved you for so long. Do you know what love is?"
I shook my head and she then held me tighter and started whispering to me about what love is and why she knew she loved me. Three weeks later when she came in I caught her in a hug and gave her a kiss that curled her toes. She then did the same for me. After that we held hands and kissed where the others could see.
After another week I went to Melbourne then that evening I knelt and proposed. Afterwards we asked a very happy Marie if she would like to be our Flower Girl. We had a quiet wedding. Justin's father was a good friend and was Best Man and Justin was our Ring Bearer. After a small reception we went to a lodge outside of Sydney. And there we made love awake for the first time.
–SWM–
In the next five years we had three more children: Lily Helen, Charlus Arthur and Richard Alexander. We were thrilled that Susan assisted in all three births and when Richard was born she was a fully trained Healer. Rearing our new additions was hectic and complicated as Hermione began a mastery in Enchanting and I started one in Transfiguration.
By the time she finished her training Susan had married a fellow student. I gave them one of the plots I had bought for them to build a home and they set up their practice in Sydney.
–SWM–
Shortly before Marie's tenth Birthday Hermione was awarded her mastery and opened a practice in Adelaide. Six months later I got my mastery and we practised out of the same location.
On 14 October 2009 on her eleventh Birthday Marie received her Hogwarts letter. We were amazed that they thought we'd send her to Scotland. Richard wondered if this was a plot to lure us back to Britain.
It was moot as Marie was in the preparatory program at AAM and already had a guaranteed a place in the main school for the next term. We decided that a short trip back was needed and the Longbottoms were happy to host the whole crew.
Richard and Helen enjoyed sightseeing in non-magical England with the kids. Hermione and I visited Hogwarts and spoke to Minerva still the Headmistress. We told her we would not send Marie to Hogwarts as we no longer wished to live in Britain and to not send her brothers and sister any letters.
I made a brief trip to Gringotts and then the Wizengamot where I named the chief Goblin of Gringotts as my proxy. The uproar this caused combined with gawkers when I went anywhere magical made me happy to live in obscurity at home.
On Christmas Day I stepped back and took stock of my life. I no longer had to fight evil witches and wizards. I was married to the best woman in the world and I was surrounded by a loving family. I thought 'All is well'.
Finite
Notes
1. Footnotes àla chem prof.
2. We should remember that in this story Malfoy Manor didn't happen. So Olivander isn't rescued and Hermione doesn't get the Cruciatus, nor is marked by Bellatrix, nor is Dobby killed.
(3) The taxonomy of mahogany is too complex to go into here. So I just call it 'Wizard's mahogany.
(4) James Potter's wand is made of mahogany in canon. We don't know what core Lily's wand had so I chose Thestral hair as an appropriate foreshadowing of her life and Harry's.
A/N: First, a big shout out to my Beta, Alix33. Betas help keep me on the straight and narrow, bless them all. Any goofs are on my dime.
I hope you have enjoyed my story. I have tried to write this story in the style of broomstick flyer. I'll leave it up to you as to how well I did.
The story recommendation the this chapter is The Apothecary by grenouille7777id: 7481870 Features a different sort of courtroom drama.
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Posted: 05/08/2021
Words: 2,860