Book Four: Astoria Greengrass and the Curse of Quennell Park

Full summary:

"You know something, Astoria?" Draco mumbled, daring to play with her hair that fell from under her hat. "All this Dark magic… I think you might be a bad example for me."

"Oh, that's it," she said, and she drew him down into a kiss.

During the war, Astoria undergoes the biggest changes of her life. She begins desperately pulling her strength from darker places — too dark, as far as her friends are concerned. But they haven't seen what she's seen.

Astoria has always gone far to protect those dear to her. If there is anything to be done about their safety, she will do it, even if it means tapping the fount of her family's age-old secret.

Info:

The Curse of Quennell Park takes place during The Deathly Hallows and after. This is mostly canon-compliant with Deathly Hallows and the epilogue, but it is not compliant with The Cursed Child. This is the final series installment.

Book Four Content Warnings:

Violence (family death, child abuse, stalking, physical torture, eye injury, mentioned bird death, sexual harassment, implied failed attempt of sexual assault, kidnapping, blood)

Self-harm (manipulative threats of self-harm, genuine self-harm [i.e., compulsive scrubbing], suicide)

Adult themes/content (sexuality, enmeshment, trauma bonding, symptoms of Stockholm syndrome, moral ambiguity, severe hoarding, war & abuse trauma, bigotry & prejudice, strong language)

-Book Four is rated M. Please read the content warnings and read the story at your discretion.

Song rec: "My Hero" by Foo Fighters

One thing Rhiannon knew was that the regal Mrs Ciel-Greengrass did not consider this a wedding. Two people were about to get married right in front of them, but this, a wedding? Oh no.

Rhiannon and Mrs Ciel-Greengrass were two of only four non-relatives present at the wedding, having been permitted to enter the tavern after a string of security questions. The rest of the witnesses to the wedding were looking on in amusement, eating and drinking their fill by the bar counter.

The Fair Fortune was a nice, warm Wizarding pub in Scotland. The room Rhiannon had dropped her bag off in was clean and cosy, and through an enchantment set by the pub's owner, the noise from the barroom stayed in the barroom. The patrons of the pub were the nice sort: bored, middle-aged townsfolk who seemed happy to see a wedding going on. Yet even they were a bit curious as to why anybody would get married there in the fairy-lit room off the bar.

A certain wrinkly Auror had sworn by the place, aware of the bride and groom's desire to keep the wedding small and simple. He was sitting diagonal from Rhiannon. It was very, very hard for her to look at him. Alastor Moody's image was achingly familiar to her, but they didn't know each other.

Rhiannon knew why she was lucky enough to be present at the celebration for Tonks and Professor Lupin. She had not been personally invited, because weddings had to be kept quiet in times like these. But Mrs Tonks and Mrs Ciel-Greengrass were age-old friends. Since Mrs Ciel-Greengrass had seen Nymphadora grow up, it only made sense to invite a portion of Greengrasses. The trouble, as Mrs Ciel-Greengrass explained to her friend, was that her daughter Astoria was completely out of sorts ever since Dumbledore's murder. Astoria's bouts of total silence concerned her parents even more than they concerned Rhiannon, so Mr Greengrass remained at the estate with Astoria and his other daughter, Daphne. Rhiannon had eagerly taken up the offer to go with Mrs Ciel-Greengrass to see Professor Lupin. They kept each other company, different personalities though they were.

Mrs Ciel-Greengrass watched the proceedings respectfully but curiously, occasionally sharing a smile with the mother of the bride. Rhiannon thought the decorations were sweet and tasteful. The point, whether Mrs Ciel-Greengrass accepted it or not, was to come together and celebrate, not to make a big show. Wizards usually didn't have full wedding parties, although Tonks did refer to an Auror named Hestia Jones as her witch of honour. Every time someone asked for Hestia, Rhiannon's heart did a little twirl. It was impossible not to think of her girlfriend, Hestia Carrow. Rhiannon worried greatly for her. Her Hestia was no Auror at all. In fact, she lived with two Death Eaters.

The old celebrant of the wedding began reading all sorts of matrimonial lines, but nothing he said could add up to the love written all over the couple's faces. Tonks had picked a flattering mauve for her hair colour as opposed to sporting her favourite bright pink. Rhiannon admired her white and silver gown and Professor Lupin's spiffy dress robes. It was probably the only occasion where Tonks would be caught wearing a dress, and the only time Professor Lupin's clothes were not scruffy. It was funny and touching at the same time.

Professor Lupin and Tonks joined hands as the celebrant cast a glittering spell over them, and sparkling stars fell upon them. Tonks couldn't help herself after they were declared husband and wife; she picked up a magical star from the back of her hand and put it right on Professor Lupin's nose before kissing him. Rhiannon wiped her eyes. To see them truly happy in this war filled her whole heart. The patrons at the bar joined in to applaud the couple, many of them having craned their necks to see into the room.

Tonks's parents and Hestia Jones promptly set the room for the reception. Again, Mrs Ciel-Greengrass wore the curious look that Rhiannon found so pretentious; there was only one large table for the nine people present. In the centre was a small bouquet of magical flowers, which shimmered silver and magenta. A hearty meal was soon ready on their golden plates. The cake, supposedly, was for later.

Rhiannon wasn't feeling quite herself, even though the food was good. Usually, meal times were her favourite excuse to talk about anything and everything, but she was the youngest person there by quite a margin. Tonks was actually the closest in age to her, but Rhiannon thought that anything she might say would be daft. The woman just got married, after all. It was very special. Everyone wanted to talk to the couple anyway. Rhiannon ate her potatoes and did her best to avoid Alastor Moody's magical eye, which seemed to keep falling on her.

"What was your name again, young lady?" asked Mr Lyall Lupin, an ageing wizard with a huge, bushy beard.

She swallowed her food quickly, "Oh, erm, Rhiannon, sir. Rhiannon Clarke."

"You don't say!" said Mr Lupin suddenly. "The Slytherin!"

The Slytherin. If only she really was the Slytherin poster-child, maybe things would be different in the world. There wouldn't be Slytherins like Voldemort running amok.

"She was a very good student, Dad," Professor Lupin said, and Rhiannon flushed.

She had been his student twice. Once, he was actually teaching at Hogwarts, and the other time, he had been hired to teach Patronuses to Rhiannon and the Greengrass sisters. As it turned out, Professor Lupin, Tonks, and Rhiannon all had the same wolf Patronus, though he was the only one ashamed of its, well, lupine form. He usually shunned any notion that he could have a positive effect on other people. Not this time, though. This time, he really accepted that Tonks loved him with all her heart, and that Rhiannon would have been disconsolate if she could not see them on this happy occasion.

Professor Lupin and Tonks's first dance was to "The Feeling Follows Me," a sentimental power ballad by The Weird Sisters. Tonks tripped on her dress whilst dancing, and Professor Lupin smiled in a way that meant he was waiting for it to happen. They were one of those couples that looked good together no matter what.

"That's very nice, isn't it?" Mrs Ciel-Greengrass whispered to Rhiannon, finally convinced. "I didn't get to pick my first dance with Adam. It was determined by arithmancy."

Tonks kept more music coming, and her parents joined them in the open space to dance. Rhiannon hadn't expected dancing at a wedding this small, but the parents of the bride were doing some sort of disco abomination.

"Do you dance, Mr Lupin?" Mrs Ciel-Greengrass asked politely, and the wizard accidentally spilt Firewhiskey into his beard.

Any number of things could have convinced Mr Lupin to accept — her eminent name, her beauty, or even her dulcet French accent. They were soon with the other dancers. Rhiannon fixed her eyes on her butterbeer and wondered when the cake would be revealed. Alastor Moody and Hestia Jones were deep in conversation. She hoped that it would stay that way. Six people couldn't dance for that long, right?

"I thought that was mine," growled Alastor Moody.

Goose pimples prickled Rhiannon's arms. The voice that had once been so comforting and welcome to her was now unapproachable. She steadied the stein in her hands and cleared her throat.

"This?" she said stupidly, pulling a small piece of framed but broken glass out of her robes. "I'm sorry."

The old Auror's bright blue eye fixed on the glass then whirled all over.

"Hell, that thing didn't do me any good," he said. "Why do you think I didn't want it back? But if you're going to sneak off with something, why didn't you nab a better piece?"

Hestia Jones's attention was caught at the word "sneak," and Rhiannon tried not to freeze up. She hadn't stolen the item at all, really.

"This piece was broken off when, erm, stuff was getting cleaned up. We, er, call it the Foe-Shard, actually, since it was small. I — I split it with my girlfriend, so it's even smaller."

Alastor Moody raised his eyebrows, and the lines on his forehead could have been ridges in desert sand. Rhiannon wasn't sure which part he was giving her that look for. That she had gone through Crouch Jr's rubbish? That she had nicknamed the object? If he had been a Muggle, he might have given her that look for saying "girlfriend."

"More power to your elbow," Moody said, clapping a hand on his knee and turning back to Hestia Jones.

Rhiannon slipped the Foe-Shard back into her pocket and exhaled. That hadn't been so bad in the scope of things, though all of the little hairs on her arms were still standing up. To distract herself, she started to eavesdrop on Mrs Ciel-Greengrass's conversation, and at once, the woman's reason for dancing with the old widower was clear. She was asking Mr Lupin about the ghost that haunted her estate.

"I'm afraid my expertise lies with the non-human supernatural," said the wizard shyly, his moustache wiggling. "But he walks, you said, and is tinged with colour? That is most peculiar! Poltergeists can be solid in form, but I've never known any apparition except boggarts to walk. Forgive me if I'm mistaken, but could he be a boggart appearing as a ghost? Do you fear ghosts especially?"

"Oh, he is no boggart, no," said Mrs Ciel-Greengrass quietly, and they stopped dancing. "We all have seen him at one point or another. He talks to my younger daughter. He does not talk to us."

They sat next to Rhiannon so as not to disturb the happy couple with their talk of ghosts. Mrs Ciel-Greengrass looked faintly guilty for bringing up the topic.

"I contacted the Spirit Division when we finally moved back in after the First War, and they told me that they have records of complaints from my husband's family that are centuries old. That tells me they do not know how to get rid of our ghost."

"Well, they don't exactly get rid of ghosts…" said Mr Lupin timidly. "But if he causes undue disturbance, they may step in. For instance, has he been aggressive?"

"He talks to my daughter," Mrs Ciel-Greengrass repeated.

Mr Lupin evidently did not think this was as significant as Mrs Ciel-Greengrass did. His lack of a shared reaction led her to eventually change the subject, disappointed.

The wedding cake was brought out when Tonks and her parents had danced to their heart's content. Professor Lupin's breath had been taken away by Tonks, both figuratively and literally, and he sank into a chair after cutting the cake with her.

"The cake is vanilla," Tonks announced. "Although, if it changes colour on you, the flavour might change too… if Hestia and I did this right!"

Mrs Ciel-Greengrass looked aghast that Tonks had been involved in baking her own wedding cake. Rhiannon watched in amazement as Tonks's piece of cake turned red. She put a piece in her mouth, nodded, and said, "a nice hint of cherry."

"Reassure me again that this isn't Bertie Bott's Every Flavour Bean cake, dear," said Professor Lupin as his own slice turned bright yellow.

"I promise," Tonks answered.

"Ah, lemon," Professor Lupin said with relief. "It's delicious, Dora."

Rhiannon's own slice of cake had a sweet strawberry flavour, whilst Mrs Ciel-Greengrass's was blueberry. She ate it in careful bites even though Rhiannon knew she liked it. Mrs Tonks gave her own piece a quizzical look.

"Mum's afraid of her cake," Tonks chuckled.

"Green, Dromeda? That must mean it's cabbage flavour," joked Mr Tonks.

"It's… lime," Mrs Tonks announced once she tried it, and everyone smiled at her bravery.

Moody, Mr Tonks, and Hestia Jones all had a few more rounds of Firewhiskey after dessert. Professor Lupin and Tonks moved closer to Mrs Ciel-Greengrass and Rhiannon, who were under the window. Mrs Ciel-Greengrass immediately began to fuss over the bride, finally having her all to herself. She thanked her over and over for including her, and Rhiannon was glad she had overcome her initial snobbery. The two women talked about nothing of Rhiannon's interest, and then a shade of sadness touched Professor Lupin's face when he caught sight of the moonrise.

"My O.W.L.s are next week, Professor," Rhiannon said, desperate to distract him from anything less than pleasant on his mind.

The truth was the O.W.L.s were about as pleasant to her as the waxing gibbous moon was to him, but adults tended to like to talk about academic milestones.

"You have ten exams, don't you? I thought I remembered you saying you took Divination," Professor Lupin said. "What classes do you really want to continue?"

"Defence Against the Dark Arts and Charms for sure," Rhiannon said. "I have other hopes and dreams, but, er, I have to see my results first…"

"I dropped History of Magic like it was a Fire Crab," Professor Lupin whispered with a smile. "N.E.W.T. Charms was quite enjoyable, though."

"I'm looking forward to it," Rhiannon said, though she regretted it would not be with Professor Flitwick after her move abroad.

"Dora and I both heard your band's last release," said Professor Lupin unexpectedly, and Rhiannon felt like she swallowed a rock. "You know her, she loves all that. She had me listen to it after I came back from my, er, adventure."

"I…" Rhiannon said, but there was, of course, that rock she had swallowed.

"I liked it, too," he said brightly, and the rock shrank to a pebble. "You did a fantastic job. I should have learnt to play guitar. Maybe I would have been cooler in school."

"Thank you, Professor!" Rhiannon said. "We, er, had to disband because of the war and all, but maybe one day…"

"I don't doubt you'll make a comeback. You have it in you. I'll be looking forward to it when this is all said and done," he said. "We all need a little music, even if I'm no good at dancing."

Professor Lupin touched a brutal claw mark behind his ear absentmindedly. It was profoundly personal to see self-consciousness in a full-grown adult. Rhiannon had always hoped her self-loathing would ease up after teenhood was over. Maybe it would take more than leaving school to shake the feeling of being rejected so thoroughly in the past.

"Er, thank you, Professor. That really means a lot," Rhiannon said. "Tonks liked your dancing, for the record," she added in a whisper.

Tonks, who was right next to them, made her ear expand out to her shoulder and cupped her hand round it, though her hand was now much smaller in comparison.

"I heard my name," she said.

"We were talking about my lamentable dancing," the professor responded.

"Aw, nonsense, Remus," said Tonks, and her ear shrunk back to normal size. "Did you see Dad?"

"I had the privilege," he said, and they all shared a look.

It was not long before Mrs Ciel-Greengrass was hugging Mrs Tonks goodbye and thanking her for the tenth time. Alastor Moody was smacking Lyall Lupin on the back.

"Oh wait! Muggle brides throw their bouquets to single ladies, don't they?" Tonks asked Rhiannon. "Dad asked me if I was going to see if Mad-Eye caught it. He'd see it coming with his eye, you know, and think it was a threat. It'd be the perfect prank."

Tonks had picked up her bouquet much in the manner of a Quaffle and looked nearly ready to hurl it across the room. Rhiannon had never been to a wedding before, Wizarding or Muggle, but she was one-hundred percent certain that that was not how it was done.

"I think they throw it into a crowd, er, intact," Rhiannon said.

"I see, I see," Tonks said thoughtfully. "Well, then, I want you to have it, Rhiannon. Good luck for you and someone really special."

"Oh, wow, Tonks…" Rhiannon said, carefully holding the flowers and uttering her deepest thanks as they hugged. Flowers always made her think of her Hestia, who loved Herbology. Her thoughts were getting carried away.

"Thank you for coming, Rhiannon," Professor Lupin said, arms outstretched.

Oh, didn't he know that he didn't need to thank her? She would have fought her way all the way up here to see him on his big day. It was priceless to see him without the gloom that had overtaken him in recent years. Professor Lupin was her one true role model. He had never done anything to spoil that admiration, unlike other teachers such as Barty Crouch or Severus Snape. He was in the Order of the Phoenix, not with the Death Eaters. He was truly brave, truly kind, and truly hard to let go of. He didn't know she was leaving the country soon. He didn't know her pain.

"I don't want you worrying about those O.W.L.s. You can do anything you set your mind to," Professor Lupin said.

He saw her choking up and brushed the line of tears off her cheek. His hands were rough and scarred and perfect. It had been his scars that had made her not feel so horrible about her permanently mutilated arm.

"You always make me feel better," Rhiannon said in the very firmest voice she could muster under the circumstances.

"You have done very much the same for me, Rhiannon, without realising it. Did you know that?"

She searched his face for the comforting pretence, the nice lie, but there wasn't one. He didn't mind taking the extra moment as others were finishing up their goodbyes. He and Tonks joined hands and beamed at Rhiannon.

"Not many people thought the same of me after word got out about my condition. But you didn't think anything of it. Sometimes, I think there are more important lessons to be taught than what might show up on an O.W.L. And I think you're just the witch to do it, when the time comes."

Rhiannon turned his message over and over in her head all night. She loved the words and his confidence behind them, but she was unsure of what he meant.