October 29th 1997
"Crap," Jen muttered, healing the wound instantly. "Winky!"
The house-elf appeared in an instant. "Yes, Mistress Jennifer?"
"Could you fetch me a Calming Draught and anti-Cruciatus potion please, and then inform Miss Amelia that there's been a Death Eater attack on a Muggle-born's parents, but I don't think there are any casualties."
"Certainly, Mistress Jennifer." Winky vanished, returned with the potions, and disappeared once again.
Jen hooked the anti-Cruciatus onto her belt; it would probably be easier to get it down his throat once his wife had calmed down. "Mrs Barter?"
"Nathan," Mrs Barter whimpered, shaking her husband desperately. "Nathan, please …"
"Mrs Barter," Jen repeated, more firmly. "Meredith, I need you to look at me."
The use of her first name seemed to cut through her panic, and the woman looked up, anguish in her eyes. "Mrs Lupin …?"
"That's right," Jen said quietly. "He's just unconscious."
"He was screaming …" Meredith whispered.
Jen shivered involuntarily. "I know." She uncapped the vial in her hand and held it out. "Here – it's a Calming Draught. It'll make you feel better."
Meredith gulped down the potion and the colour slowly seeped back into her cheeks. "You're right."
Jen gave her a small smile. "No need to sound so surprised." She waved her wand over the unconscious man between them. "Enervate."
Nathan Barter's eyes slowly opened and he groaned in pain.
"Mr Barter?" Jen called quietly. "My name's Jennifer Lupin; do you remember me?"
He gave a slight nod, his eyes a little unfocussed.
"Alright, that's a good start." Jen pulled the vial from her belt. "This is a potion that will help with the side-effects of the curse."
Thankfully, he was lucid enough to follow her instructions and the potion worked quickly. Jen was able to help him to his feet and sit him down on one of the sofas.
"Was there any one else in the house?" Jen asked.
"No one," Meredith answered, sounding much better now her husband was conscious again. "It was just us and then …"
"Did you get a good look at them?" Jen asked. "I mean, I'm going to guess that they were wearing black and wearing white masks, so no help there, but was there anything unusual that stuck out?"
Meredith was quiet for a few moments, but there seemed to be no sign of distress, so Jen let her think.
"There was one," she said finally, after a few minutes. "She was quite short and very fat, and … she had the most peculiar voice. Like a little girl."
Jen raised an eyebrow. "Did it sound like she was talking to very young children?"
"Yes," Meredith answered. "Do you know her?"
"Dolores Umbridge," Jen said, shaking her head. "That … doesn't surprise me, to be honest."
"We can't go home again," Meredith said softly. "Can we?"
"If your home is still in one piece, I'll be surprised," Jen said with a sigh. "I would also suggest that you find a way to take leave from work and stay here until it's over. I'm sorry."
"Sorry?" Nathan repeated weakly. "You saved our lives – if you hadn't visited us, they'd have murdered us in our own home!"
Meredith gripped his hand tightly. "That spell … The one they used on Nathan – Catherine won't learn that one, will she?"
"I should hope not," Jen said with a scowl. "She'll learn of it, eventually. The Cruciatus Curse is one of the three Unforgivable Curses. Use of one of those against another human being is an automatic life sentence."
"It hurt like hell," Nathan muttered.
"I know," Jen said. "I've been under it a time or two. Are you still in pain?"
"No," Nathan answered. "I'm tired, but it doesn't hurt anymore."
Jen sighed in relief. "Good. You weren't under it for too long then. The fatigue is expected, but a good night's rest and you'll be right as rain in the morning."
"Are they all like that?" Meredith asked. "The people who attacked us?"
"Unfortunately," Jen admitted. "And we've had another major blow today; a lot of his more powerful supporters were in prison and there's been a breakout. On top of that, we lost ten good fighters on our side."
"We want to help," Meredith said firmly, her husband nodding in agreement.
Jen sighed again, this time in resignation. "I wish you could – we certainly need all the help we can get – but …"
"Maybe they can."
Meredith screamed, Nathan jumped, and Jen rolled her eyes. "They can't if you give them a heart attack, Padfoot."
Addie swatted him over the head. "Honestly, you're as bad as the children." She stepped into the room, drawing the Muggles' attention away from the 'wanted mass-murderer'. "Good evening, Mr and Mrs Barter; I'm Professor McKinnon, Catherine's Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher."
The name clearly rang a bell, because Meredith's face lit up in a smile, clearly over the sudden shock. "It's wonderful to meet you, Professor; Catherine thinks the world of you."
Addie smiled, blushing a little. "Well, I'm flattered she thinks so highly of me. I apologise for the shock, I would imagine that Jen wanted to explain under slightly more relaxed circumstances. You probably remember Sirius from the news a few years ago; essentially, he was framed and never given a trial."
"Is that usual for the Wizarding World?" Nathan asked, horrified.
"It's not supposed to be," Jen said, not wanting to get into politics right now. "All the same, it happened."
"And we are going to fix it," Remus added from behind him. "As soon as the Ministry get their heads out of their …"
"Thank you!" Jen interrupted. "That's quite enough. You remember my husband?"
"Of course," Meredith said, giving him a shaky smile.
"Now, what do you mean; maybe they can help?" Jen asked Sirius. "They can't do magic."
"No," Sirius agreed. "But you don't need magic to research or prepare potions ingredients. It's not much, but it would be a help."
"Man's got a point," Remus said.
Jen thought of a moment. "We do need to stock up on pain-relievers … and it's so expensive to buy them … I could use some help …"
Remus frowned. "You said you were fine when I asked."
Sirius sniggered. "That's because you've always been terrible at potions."
Remus scowled at him. "Have not."
"Have too."
"Have not."
"Have too."
"Mutt."
"Wolf."
"Mangy mutt."
"I am not mangy!"
Addie rolled her eyes. "Just ignore them." She advised the Muggles quietly. "They'll forget what they're fighting about sooner or later."
"Do they … get along?" Meredith asked tentatively.
Jen almost laughed, but then realised that their playful bickering could be mistaken for something else entirely. You would need to be blind to miss that Sirius and Jen were related, after all, and even people at school had assumed that Jen dating Remus would cause him and Sirius to hate each other immediately.
Not that Sirius hadn't had his overprotective moments.
"They're best friends," Addie explained. "This is … normal."
"As normal as they get, anyway," Jen added. "Out of interest, why did the Dark Mark Detectors not go off?"
"They probably did," Meredith admitted. "We were in the back garden, and they were in the hallway."
"Need to talk to the twins about making them a bit more portable," Addie said, flicking her wand.
One of the cushions flew off the sofa and hit first Sirius, then Remus on the head. "Boys, knock it off!"
"Sorry Shadow," they chanted.
"Where are we?" Nathan asked, looking around now the potion had taken full effect.
"Potter Manor," Jen answered, "the ancestral home of the Earl and Countess of Richmond."
Nathan's expression was almost enough to make Jen burst out laughing, were it not for the fact that she wanted him to realise she was telling the truth.
"I thought there was only a Duke of Richmond," Meredith said, frowning.
"In the Muggle world, certainly," Jen said. "James's ancestor was granted the title long before the Norman conquest. And, yes, before you ask, the current monarchy do still recognise it and, yes, they know about magic. As does the prime minister."
"And how did you end up access to it?" Meredith asked curiously.
"Well, I'm not the Countess of Richmond, if that's what you mean," Jen said with a laugh. "I am currently Baroness Blackmoor by proxy until we get Sirius's name cleared. I think we're the only remaining titles still recognised by the Muggle monarchy – am I right, Padfoot?"
Sirius thought for a second. "I think so. The only remaining Ancient and Noble families are the four founding families, but since three of the bloodlines got lost and Slytherin's practically bred themselves into obscurity, I think they 'died out' in the Muggle world."
"The newer pureblood families, once they amass a certain amount of age and wealth, are granted a seat on the Wizengamot," Addie continued. "Kind of like your House of Lords. However, that title is not recognised in the Muggle world. But to answer your original question, Mrs Barter, since Jen seems to have forgotten it, the current Earl and Countess of Richmond are James and Lily Potter, the parents of Harry Potter, who is our godson." She glanced at the clock and jumped to her feet. "I'll have to love and leave you, Jen; I've got to get back to the school. Try and stop the Ministry sending the letter to Catherine, alright?"
"Why?" Sirius asked, kissing his girlfriend goodbye.
Addie smiled. "I've got Gryffindor and Hufflepuff first years before lunch on Monday; I can tell her in person then."
Daphne and Draco hadn't gone to Hogsmeade, and Ginny had stayed with them in the Room of Requirements, working on some homework and trying to distract Draco from what his mother might be up to.
Almost as soon as the first students started arriving back from Hogsmeade, the other seven joined them, Ron looking very excited.
"Zonko's has closed," he announced as soon as the door shut behind them.
"You're joking," Daphne said.
"I'm not," Ron said grinning. "Guess who are buying the premises."
Draco raised an eyebrow. "Already? Diagon Alley must be going well."
"They've got a lot of investors," Ron said, jerking a head at Harry.
"Hey, I do what Gringotts advises me to do," Harry said. "Not because they're family."
"How did it go at the Hog's Head?" Ginny asked.
Everyone, including the two Hufflepuffs turned to Hermione, who shrugged.
"It went fine."
"What did she want?" Ginny asked, when it looked like Draco wouldn't.
"Oh, the obvious," Hermione said. "To know if Draco was alright. To know what would happen when Lucius gets out of Azkaban – Voldemort's planning a break-out. To know if Draco would fall back on Slytherin self-preservation and sit this one out."
Draco rolled his eyes. "Not going to happen."
"I know," Hermione said with a smile. "She says she's proud of you."
Draco nodded impassively, but Ginny took his hand and squeezed it softly, betraying his thoughts.
"And what about the barman?" Cedric asked. "You talked to him for quite a while."
"Harry, where's the mirror?" Hermione asked in response. "I'd rather not repeat myself."
Harry rooted in his pockets for a second and handed it over. "Here."
"Thanks." Hermione said. "Selena."
The mirror shimmered for a second, and Jen's face appeared, looking rather drawn. "Hermione. Did something happen in Hogsmeade?"
"Not exactly," Hermione said, frowning. "Are you okay?"
"You first," Jen said.
"Well, Narcissa sent me a message asking me to meet her at the Hogs Head," Hermione said.
Sirius's face popped up next to Jen's. "Hermione …"
"Yes, Dad, I was careful," Hermione said automatically. "She thinks there's going to be a break-out from Azkaban. I thought you ought to know."
Jen sighed. "Well, thank you for the warning, sweetheart, but it's a little late. I'm sure you'll read all about it in the paper tomorrow. What else happened?"
"I'd rather hear about Azkaban," Hermione said, eyes wide. "There's been a break-out?"
At this, the other nine students huddled around her.
"Are you somewhere private?" Jen asked.
"Room of Requirement," Hermione answered.
"Alright then," Jen said. "Yes, there's been a break-out. Although whether you can call it a break-out when the only prisoners left are the petty crooks, and ten of the auror guards are soulless, I don't know – no one you know," she added hastily. "Couple Sirius and I worked with back in the day."
"Jen, I'm so sorry," Susan said. "Is there anything we can do?"
"Keep your eyes and ears open," Jen said, "and stay safe. What else happened in Hogsmeade?"
Hermione wasn't convinced Jen was telling them everything, but Jen very rarely withheld information, and never without a good reason, so she let it go. "Well, I met the barman of the Hog's Head."
"Oh good," Sirius said, grinning. "Abe always hated Albus, never could figure out why."
"Well, he says if you contact him, he can help with a way to get the younger years out of the castle if we need to evacuate," Hermione said. "We'd just need to get the kids to the Hog's Head."
"How?" Sirius asked. "You can't send them all through Honeydukes – someone would notice."
"No, but we can ask the Room of Requirement for a passageway, I'd imagine," Hermione said. "It gave us another passage to the Chamber of Secrets. Who's watching the Map at the moment?"
"Dobby," Daphne answered. "We all wanted to be here when you got back."
"Well, if you can open up a passageway, brilliant," Jen said. "I'll talk to Abe tomorrow – I don't want to give them all a portkey if I can help it."
"Jen, what else happened?" Harry asked. "There's something."
"Talk to Addie on Tuesday," Jen said. "She needs to talk to everyone else involved first; best you don't know until then."
October 31st 1997
The news of the Death Eater's escape had sent a shiver of fear running through the school and the corridors suddenly became much quieter. Although there were some students who dealt with the fear by pulling pranks and cracking jokes, any laughter was quickly stifled, as though it would act like a beacon for Dark wizards.
Even those students who followed those teachings kept their heads down.
Addie wasn't too worried about the sudden change in the students. Aside from the fact that everyone was suddenly working a lot harder in her lessons, she'd seen all this happen before. She knew that it wouldn't be long before the students realised that Voldemort wasn't about to come bursting through the front doors just yet.
Catching hold of her thoughts before they could wander any further, she glanced at the clock, realising as she did that she was just about to make the first years late for lunch – and none of them had said a word.
"Okay, everyone; wands and quills away. For homework, I want five alternatives to the Shield Charm, magical or otherwise. I don't care how it's done – essay, list, practical demonstration if you're feeling really brave; whatever you feel comfortable with. Class dismissed. Catherine, could you stay behind for a few minutes please?"
While she gathered her papers together, Addie watched out of the corner of her eye as Catherine said goodbye to her friends and walked slowly towards her desk. "Come on, you're not in trouble."
The young Lion followed her teacher up the stairs to the office and took the seat in front of the desk. "What's wrong, Professor?"
Addie gave her a smile and moved her chair round to the front of the desk as well. "Catherine, do you remember what I taught you about Death Eaters?"
Catherine nodded. "They're Voldemort's followers."
Addie couldn't help the way her smile widened. Whether it was because of her own influence, or the admiration the young girl had for Harry and Hermione, she didn't know, but Catherine had never had a problem with using Riddle's name. "Exactly. On Saturday, evening, they attacked your house. Your parents are fine," she added hastily, when the girl turned horribly pale. "Harry's godmother, Jennifer, had given them an emergency Portkey, which took them to a safe-house."
Catherine's voice shook a little. "Do they hate me now?"
"No, they don't hate you," Addie said. "In fact, they're going to help Jen prepare all the healing potions we're going to need."
"And they're both okay?" Catherine repeated, sounding calmer.
Addie nodded. "You should've had a letter yesterday telling you all this, but I didn't want to you find out through a letter."
Catherine nodded, her eyes downcast. "I suppose that means I can't go home at all, can I?"
"Actually, it means the opposite," Addie said gently. "Your parents are now completely safe, behind very strong wards, which means it will be safe for you to spend Christmas with us."
"Us?" Catherine repeated, the light returning to her eyes.
Addie smiled at her. "Yes, us. Jen happens to be one of my best friends, so I'll be there over Christmas as well. Now …" she stood up and moved her chair back behind her desk with a flick of her wand. "I think it's time we went to lunch. This doesn't mean you can get out of homework."
"No, Professor," Catherine said, beaming. "Thank you, Professor."
Addie chuckled fondly, as she followed the young girl out of her office, making sure to keep her in sight. She wasn't supposed to have favourites, as a teacher, but Catherine was fast becoming one of hers.
December 12th 1997
Just as Addie was becoming fond of Catherine, Sirius, Jen and Remus had found themselves 'adopting' Nathan and Meredith Barter into the family.
Nathan – a surgeon – spent a lot of time with Remus, who patiently explained different aspects of the wizarding world, and Sirius, who was happy to show him his bike; Nathan was particularly interested in how it had been 'altered' to allow it to fly.
He had taken leave from work, concerned that the Death Eaters would take their escape personally, and potentially endanger the hospital. Since he now had extra time on his hands, he was helping with the search for the island James and Lily were trapped on.
Meredith – a former nurse and pharmacy tech turned housewife – spent most of her time with Jen, who talked her through the art of potion-brewing. Without magic, Meredith couldn't actually do any of the brewing but she did have a degree in chemistry – which was a similar process – so proved very helpful with ingredient preparation.
"Jen?" She asked one day, as Christmas drew nearer. "When we were taken to Diagon Alley to get Catherine's school things, there wasn't anything that looked familiar. But this house has a lot of Muggle technology it, albeit about twenty years old. How is that possible?"
"Well, Muggle technology is a bit difficult," Jen answered. "First of all, magic doesn't like electricity which means we need to charm things to work, which we're not supposed to do in case it falls into the hands of actual Muggles."
"Would we notice the difference though?" Meredith asked.
"Well, no," Jen admitted. "But some would charm them to do things that they wouldn't normally, so it's safer just to ban all of it."
"But Sirius's bike flies," Meredith said.
"There are ways around it," Jen said. "Sirius's bike is covered in runes that act in the same way as Muggle-Repelling Charms. You two can see it because he lets you. Other Muggles just wouldn't notice it, and they wouldn't ever go near it. Now the items in this house are slightly different. Lily Potter is Muggle-born, which of course is why there are Muggle items here. As for the rest of the wizarding world …" she sighed. "Even those who don't believe that Muggles are beneath us believe they couldn't possibly have come up with anything useful. When the Statute of Secrecy was invoked, we were miles ahead of them. Then we dug our heels in and remained oblivious. Most pureblood wizards wouldn't have a clue what to do when confronted with a light switch. Or Muggle money, for that matter."
"But …" Meredith frowned. "You said there are only a handful of villages that are solely magical, so witches and wizards must spend time in the Muggle world sometimes. How doesn't that raise suspicions if they can't blend in?"
"Personally, I agree with you," Jen said. "They do teach Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, but it's an elective and it's at least a century out of date. Changing it at the moment, however, just isn't possible. It's on my to-do list for when we win. In the meantime, the majority of purebloods don't need to enter the Muggle world at all. You've seen our transportation – their homes are extensively warded, they shop in magical villages and they work in magical buildings – or not at all, if they can afford to."
"Afford to?" Meredith repeated.
"Many of the pureblood families have enough money not to work," Jen explained. "James and Lily, for example, both worked, but they certainly didn't need to. They could have just managed the Potter accounts, and their great-great-grandchildren could still not work their whole lives and have money left over."
Meredith frowned. "Are there purebloods that do that, then?"
"Oh yes," Jen said. "Usually the men. The women … Merlin only knows what they do."
"Look after the house?" Meredith suggested. "Magical housewives must have it much easier."
"Sometimes," Jen conceded. "You can't transfigure or conjure food, so cooking isn't any faster, but most of the richer families have house-elves for things like that, anyway." She stopped rummaging through the store cupboard. "Dobby?"
Dobby appeared with a crack. "Yes Miss Jennifer?"
"Do we have any newt's eyes?"
"No, Miss Jennifer," Dobby answered. "You is running out last week."
"Bother," Jen sighed, rooting in her pocket. She handed him two galleons. "Can you go to the apothecary and get me two pounds please?"
"Certainly Miss Jennifer." Dobby took the money and disappeared again.
"That," Jen said calmly, "is a house elf. If you wait until Christmas, I'm sure Hermione would be more than happy to explain exactly what they are and why they don't want payment. Well, Dobby does, but Winky absolutely refuses. Dobby is just rather strange. Lovely. But strange nonetheless."
"But if they don't get paid," Meredith said, "why is it only the richer families that have them?"
"Because you still have to buy one normally," Jen answered. "Most of the elves who don't have a family are on their own because they're disobedient. Honestly, most of them end up at Hogwarts."
"So if the house-elves do all the housework, so what do the housewives do?" Meredith asked.
Jen shrugged. "Sit around and look pretty, I guess. Remus and I didn't have one when we left Hogwarts. I've got more than enough on my hands now. Lily stopped working when she fell pregnant, but then she looked after the Potter accounts, since James was working, and anyway she insisted on doing the cooking."
"I suppose the house-elves are the reason I can't find the kitchen in this place?" Meredith asked, smiling.
"That would be why," Jen said, casting a Stasis Charm on the potion. "Can't do any more with that at the moment. Come on, I'll show you."
She led Meredith out of the potions lab – or rather, the room she had commandeered as a potions lab – and led her down the stairs and into the ballroom.
The ballroom itself was impressive – even more so than the one at Ravenscroft, since Potter Manor was the ancestral home – with high, cathedral-style ceilings that didn't appear to be possible, given the fact that there was a library directly above them.
Jen headed straight to the back of the room, running a finger down an almost invisible seam on the wall.
A section of the wall slid away to reveal a dark passageway and Jen gestured for Meredith to follow her.
"It's alright," she said cheerfully. "Nothing's going to bite."
Even though she had learned to enjoy cooking while she was a Muggle, Jen had yet to enter the kitchen at Potter Manor, and nostalgia hit her harder than she expected.
She half-expected to round the corner to find Lily playfully bickering with the house-elves about the Mistress of the House cooking.
Instead, she just found Winky in the middle of dinner preparations.
"Mistress Jennifer!" Winky squeaked in surprise. "Is Winky doing something wrong? Winky will …"
"No!" Jen said hastily. "No, Winky, you haven't done anything wrong. Mrs Barter was wondering about household spells and I thought I'd show her the kitchen."
Meredith was staring around her in shock. "It's huge! It's as big as the ballroom!"
"Well, the Potters held a lot of functions," Jen explained. "After all, they would need to be able to feed as many people as could fit in the ballroom. That was Lily's corner, over there." She pointed to a corner of the kitchen where the appliances were a little more Muggle – at least in appearance. "She used to bake all the time. She did it more when they moved to the cottage – I was never there when the cottage didn't smell of cookies or bread or …"
Meredith put a gentle hand on her arm. "You miss her."
Jen nodded. "I know she's okay, but … I hope she's okay."
Hermione hadn't seen Lily since September – at least, not that Jen was aware – so they were working from old information.
They could only hope that it was still true.
To try and distract her from her morbid thoughts, Jen showed Meredith a couple of simple household charms, but she had a feeling that there was something else she was wondering about.
"So what would a witch do," Meredith said slowly, "if she thought she might be pregnant?"
Jen smiled. "Do you?"
Meredith nodded nervously. "I mean, it's stupid – Catherine's not an only child by choice, and it's been so long …"
"It's not stupid," Jen said, before the other woman could get too wound up. "You're around a lot of very old magic; it wouldn't be out of the question for it to give you a helping hand so to speak. There is actually a simple spell, and it would work on Muggles. I wave my wand over your stomach and a grey mist appears. Then you blow on it and it changes colour – pink for positive, blue for negative."
"Not pink for a girl, blue for a boy?" Meredith asked, looking a little apprehensive through her smile.
"No, this spell is far older than current gender segregation," Jen said with a grin. "Tell you what, why don't I test me first?"
Meredith nodded, looking more than a little relieved, and Jen waved her wand over her own stomach.
The grey mist appeared, hovering in the air in front of her, and Jen blew on it softly.
The mist shimmered for a moment, then turned a bright, brilliant pink.
