A/N: I hope you enjoy.

For the disclaimer, please see the prologue.

Chapter Forty-Three: July 1948

"Min? Aidan?" A frantic voice called through the Floo in the middle of the night. "Please, are you there?"

Minerva groaned into her pillow. Dalton was finally sleeping regularly through the night, allowing her and Aidan to do the same. She almost thought she was more tired now; she found that her body wanted to catch up on all the sleep she had missed since becoming a mother.

"Why is the Floo on, and why is someone calling us on it in the middle of the night?" Aidan grumbled, wandlessly lighting the room.

"I seem to remember you claiming it was necessary in case of an emergency," Minerva sighed. She turned onto her side and propped her head up with her hand. "Do you want me to go with you?"

"No, it's fine. I'll go see who it is. Stay in bed." Aidan kissed her forehead quickly and left the room, tying his robe around him as he went.

Minerva heard quiet but hurried mumblings before Aidan yelled, "Uh, Min? I think it best if you come here."

She rolled her eyes and sat up, grabbing her own dressing gown. "What on earth is the matter?"

Her mouth dropped open comically as she entered the living room to find their nieces draped across Aidan on the couch. "Why are the girls here?"

"I don't know," Aidan whispered. "Lucy came in, completely distressed, and threw the kids at me."

"Well, is she all right?" Minerva asked. "Do they need help?" She could sense she wasn't going to get a straight answer and inwardly cursed her husband. Sighing, she Summoned her wand and said, "I'm heading over there."

"No, Min. Let me go. It's late, and you need your sleep."

"I don't think either of us is likely to get much more sleep tonight, dearest." Minerva looked pointedly at her crying nieces. "Get those two settled down, and then put them in the bed beside Dalton's pram. I'm going to go check on my brother."

"Uh, Min? You might want to change first," Aidan smirked, nodding at her tartan housecoat.

"Good call," Minerva muttered, quickly transfiguring her sleepwear into Muggle activewear. "I'll be back as soon as I can." She stepped through the Floo and entered her brother's house.

Lucy and Callum had recently moved into a house in Kent, preferring to get away from the city after Lucy's stint at Albus' cottage. While Minerva had expected boxes, she hadn't expected their contents to be strewn across the living room.

"Cal? Luce?" Minerva called cautiously. She heard shouting coming from the kitchen and headed in that direction, only to duck as soon as a plate came flying towards her head. "What the hell is going on in here?" she demanded, looking at her brother and sister-in-law.

"We're fighting, Min. Clearly," Lucy snapped. Minerva raised her eyebrows. She had never seen Lucy this exasperated. "Your brother is being a right arse."

"How dare you!" Callum shouted. "You have no idea what I've gone through!"

"No, because you won't talk about it!"

"Hold on." Minerva held up her hand and was instantly taken back to her Prefect days. "I'm getting the feeling this is a recurring argument."

"You could say that," Lucy muttered bitterly.

"In that case," Minerva said, "I highly doubt you'll solve it at half-past two in the morning. Lucy, why don't you travel back to my house? Aidan put the girls in bed; you can rest on the couch until morning. They'll feel better if they see you there when they wake up."

Lucy glared at Minerva, and when she saw the Scottish witch wasn't yielding, she sighed. "Fine." Stomping, Lucy took off in the direction of the fireplace, and Minerva and Callum stayed silent until they heard the evidence that she had left.

"Don't give me that look, Minnie." Callum shook his head. "You have absolutely no say in what goes on here."

"I don't recall claiming that I did," Minerva said neutrally. "But I do have a right to be concerned when Lucy drops your children off unexpectedly in the middle of the night because you two are fighting."

Her brother had the good sense to look ashamed. "That's a fair point."

"And," Minerva continued, "you are my brother. I care about you. Forgive me for saying it, but you haven't been the same person since you got back."

"Did you really expect me to be?"

"No, I didn't," Minerva answered truthfully. "I knew there'd be an adjustment period. Having said that, I expected you to try to cope with your ordeal. I didn't expect you to try to push it away like it never even happened."

"You're in dangerous territory here, Minnie," Callum warned. "You've never had a similar experience."

"So tell me about yours." Minerva raised an eyebrow, daring him to back down. "I understand if you don't want to tell Lucy—I'm not keen on exposing my weaknesses to Aidan, either—but you need to talk to someone. Talk to me."

"It's late," Callum protested. "Can't we do this some other time?"

"You woke me up," Minerva shrugged. "Let's go clear off one of your couches and sit down."

"Fine," he relented. Callum walked into the living room and waved his wand, making space for Minerva and himself to sit down. "Where do you want me to start?"

"Why don't you start by telling me what caused your fight tonight?" Minerva asked gently.

"I've been having night terrors," Callum sighed. He rubbed his brow wearily. "At first, it happened sporadically; now, it's practically every night. I woke up, and Lucy was..."

"Terrified?" Minerva supplied.

"Yes," Callum nodded, "but also angry. This has been going on for months. She has asked me to go see a mind healer for a while, and I have refused. Tonight, I think I hit Luce's breaking point. She's stressed, and I know I'm not helping her by refusing help."

"Why are you refusing help?"

"It's not that I'm completely refusing," Callum argued. "I looked into it. The problem is that, because this investigation isn't closed and the threat still exists, the Ministry will only let me see a mind-healer who works in-house at the Ministry."

"They can regulate that?"

"If I want our Auror benefits to pay for it, yes." The siblings exchanged a look, clearly displeased with the Ministry bureaucracy. "It all just rubbed me the wrong way, and I know Luce would be fine if we paid for it, but I feel like such a burden. I don't know how to tell Lucy that, so I just haven't."

"And instead, you're suffering nightly. Callum, you need help. There's nothing weak about needing help. I know that this certainly isn't the most ideal situation, but I'm sure the Ministry healer would be qualified. Besides, there is more than one, is there not? I'm sure you could shop around, if you want. Or," Minerva suggested, "Poppy did a course or two in mind healing. She may know someone you can talk to that offers a referral discount."

"Really?" Callum perked up. "Could I call her?"

"I'd wait until morning so Ro doesn't hex your hair off," Minerva laughed. "But for the record, yes. Poppy would be more than happy to help you. And so am I. If you and Lucy ever need time to talk, or if you ever need a break, you're more than welcome to drop the kids off."

"I don't want to add more stress to your day," Callum confessed. "I know what it's like being a new parent. I couldn't imagine adding in two more."

Minerva smiled. "We're well-versed by now, especially after our time at the cottage. I'm good for more than just babysitting, too. I'm here to talk, if you're ever so inclined. I'd rather you talk to me than bottle it all up. Besides, I've been on the same battlefields as you. You won't offend my sensibilities, I assure you."

"It was terrible, Minnie," Callum whispered, his voice so distraught it broke Minerva's heart. "The things they did...the things they said. They'd starve me, chain me up to the walls, invade my mind. I'm so thankful you all got out of our flat."

Minerva suddenly knew what was bothering her brother. "Callum, no one blames you if they discovered the location of your home. No one. Not one of us, do you understand? It's not your fault your Occlumency shields couldn't withstand months of torture. Very few people could manage that!"

"It doesn't matter if one or one hundred people can do it—I should have been the one to do it. If anything had happened to Lucy, or the girls..." he trailed off, shaking his head. "It would have been my fault. All because I was careless."

Minerva hugged her brother. "You weren't careless; it's a risk of being on the field. You're forgetting that I have also been captured at the hands of a dark wizard. I know how stupid you feel after." She took a moment to think. "I never told Aidan about how I felt, and now, I think I should. There are times when the trauma hits me too: Aidan will sneak behind me to give me a hug, and it will make me panic, for example. If I could give you any advice, it would be to explain this all to Lucy. She'll understand. Trust me. I spent an entire pregnancy with her. She just wanted you home. And I promise you: we will find Riddle and Grindelwald and make them pay."

Callum pulled away. "Minnie, I don't think it is Grindelwald."

She frowned. "What do you mean? Albus said..."

"You of all people should not accept a statement as true simply because Albus is the one saying it." Callum raised an eyebrow. "I don't know much, but I have a sinking feeling it isn't Grindelwald. I didn't hear his name, not once. I heard Riddle's, and that's it. I'm not saying Albus is wrong, but I feel like there would have been more signs."

"Merlin," Minerva breathed. "What do we do?"

"We go back to your flat. I'll collect my family, and you should get as much sleep as you can before Dalton wakes you up."

"Callum," Minerva laughed weakly, "I meant about the war."

"We're not in charge of saving the world. At least, not tonight." Callum smiled wryly at his sister. "But thanks to you, I'll start talking. I owe it to my family to do my best to heal from this."

"Cal," she said with loving exasperation, "you owe it to yourself."

True to his word, Callum talked to Lucy. It had been a difficult conversation, but his sister was right: he felt better than he had in months. With Lucy's encouragement, Callum realized he also needed closure from one more person: Albus. And, if Callum had to place a wager, he would bet that Albus also hadn't allowed himself to fully heal.

It was with that thought that he arrived at Violet and Albus' house, a baby gift in hand.

Violet opened the door, her features pulling into a surprised smile. "Callum! We haven't seen you in a while. Come on in."

"Thanks," Callum said. "Here. I brought something for Athena. Our girls each got good use out of theirs." He showed her a small stuffed owl as he entered their house.

"Oh, you didn't have to do that! Thank you so much," Violet gushed. Her blonde hair swung in its low ponytail as she took him into the family room. "Athena is right here in her pram, if you'd like to give it to her yourself."

"Hi Athena," Callum sang, smiling. His eyes widened as he took in the babe's blue eyes and small but bright tufts of red hair. "She looks like Albus."

"Yeah, she does," Violet laughed. "I think it scared him a bit, to be truthful. Right after she was born, he took off. Ran back to school to do some "emergency work," he said."

"Ah," Callum commented neutrally. "I'm sure that wasn't fun for you."

"Oh, I was livid," Violet agreed. "He came crawling back a few hours later looking worse for wear. Albus has done his best to make up for it, but..."

"But?" Callum prodded. His curiosity might be impolite, but he wanted to know.

"Forgive me if I'm speaking out of turn," Violet apologized, "but I fear that Albus isn't the most natural father. He tries, God bless him, but I feel like when he's here, he's never truly here."

"I'm sorry to hear that."

"He is getting better," Violet said hurriedly, "but he does worry me. I even joked about having another baby, but all he said was, "that's nice, dear." I know he was gone for two months, but I don't know what possibly could have happened on his work trip to make him change like that."

"That's actually what I'm here to talk to him about," Callum said. "Is he here, by chance?"

"He promised to be home after the school's dinner, so he should be back within half an hour. Would you like some tea while you wait?"

"Yes, but let me get it," Callum answered quickly, finding his way to the kitchen. He put the kettle on and instantly remembered he couldn't use magic to speed up the process. "Cream and sugar?"

"A small spoon of sugar," Violet called.

When the tea was ready, Callum carried both cups back to Violet and placed them gently on the coffee table. "It must be difficult for you to be here with a new baby while Albus is up at the school."

"He is gone rather a lot," Violet admitted. "It can be hard, but I try to remain positive. I have a wonderful baby and a loving fiancé. Albus may have a demanding job, but I understand. I wouldn't have become a nanny if I didn't love caring for children and watching them develop. It's one of the things that drew me to Albus: he's so passionate about education."

"Is he?" Callum intoned politely. He wished Albus would hurry home. It was clear to anyone—especially someone with a trained Auror eye—that Violet was lonely, and while he felt bad about that, Callum had come to heal his own mind, not solve Violet's problems.

"Surely you must think so," Violet frowned. "After all, he was your teacher."

"Ah, yes, he was. I was a good student, but I caused a lot of trouble," Callum laughed wistfully. "I was definitely the school prankster. Minnie was the studious one."

"Don't be too hard on yourself. Albus told me you made some sort of elite police force upon graduation. That must have taken some good marks."

"It certainly wasn't easy." Callum sipped his tea, wondering what other half-truths Albus had told his fiancée. "You are right, though: Albus is a fantastic teacher."

"What a wonderful thing to hear upon returning home." Albus entered the room with a smile on his face. He was dressed in a Muggle suit; clearly, he couldn't wear his usual flamboyant robes in the presence of his Muggle family. "It's good to see you again, Callum. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

"Well, I thought it was high time I come by and meet your daughter," Callum said, noticing the way Albus' eyes flickered slightly. "She's beautiful."

"Thank you," Albus said. "We think so, too."

"He also came to talk to you about that work trip you took." Violet nudged Albus' ribs. "Why don't you take him into your office?"

Albus narrowed his eyes. "I didn't realize we had anything left to discuss, Callum."

"Oh, nothing major," Callum said airily. "Just a few things I need to clear up, is all."

"Albus, don't be rude," Violet chuckled. "Give your daughter a kiss goodnight, and then go."

Albus obeyed her instructions silently, refusing to talk until the two men were inside his office with the door shut. "Why are you really here, Callum?"

"I need to talk to you about what we went through," Callum said simply, "and I have a hunch you may need to do the same."

"I don't want to relive any of that, Callum!"

"You think I do?" Callum snorted, leaning back in his chair. "I was there a hell of a lot longer than you."

Albus faltered for a moment. "Of course. Please forgive me."

"You're forgiven. Sit down, Albus. You're not getting out of this conversation," Callum said, gesturing to the empty chair across from him.

"Why do you think this is a good idea?" Albus asked wearily. He sat down and gripped the arms of the chair so tightly that his knuckles turned white.

"Minerva convinced me of it," Callum said simply. "She made me realize that I was selfishly hurting everyone around me instead of dealing with our...experience."

"How is Minerva doing?" Albus did his best to keep his tone polite, but he wanted to know how she was faring. He missed her terribly.

"She is doing really well. Motherhood suits her." Callum grinned, thinking about his sister. "Dalton is a great baby, too, which always makes it easier."

"I'm glad she's enjoying it," Albus said truthfully. "I've been worried."

"Oh?"

"Minerva said she would bring Dalton over, but she hasn't," Albus confessed quietly. "I didn't know if she was all right, or if I had done something wrong."

Callum restrained himself from rolling his eyes. "Albus, for being the greatest wizard of our time, you're bloody self-conscious—and transparent. You haven't done anything wrong. She's merely busy. They're trying to find a new place to live, Aidan's spot with the Aurors is in flux, they have a newborn...it's busy, Albus."

"What is going on over there? What's wrong with Aidan and the Aurors? Where are they moving?"

"They don't know where they're moving. That's the problem. They want to move out of the city, but other than London, Minerva doesn't have much of an affinity for England. I think they may go home to Ma for a while, to be truthful. With Aidan," Callum sighed, "it's challenging. It was great that he was considered "on-duty" while cloistered away at your cottage—he is grateful to you—but when he came back, a lot of newbies had come up and taken all of the promotions. Aidan's feeling a bit restless, that's all."

"And the baby?"

"What do you want to know about the kid?" Callum snorted. "He's Minnie's mini-me. Same green eyes, same dark hair." He paused for a moment. "Why don't you take an interest in your own baby?"

"Callum, that's unfair."

"Albus, I've spent half an hour with your fiancée, and I can tell that she is overwhelmed and neglected," Callum remarked frankly. "Is that because you're genuinely uninterested, or you haven't yet processed your feelings over our time in captivity?"

Albus considered the question for a moment. Despite his trepidation in confiding in anyone, he trusted Callum. So much, in fact, that he had told Callum about his relationship with Gellert—something he had only disclosed one other time since it had ended. "Both, I suppose. I deeply care for Violet, but I had never intended for this to be permanent. That sounds horrible, I know, but I didn't expect to hide large parts of myself with my partner.

"I don't think it will come as a surprise to you that Athena was unexpected. It's not that I don't love her, but the entire situation caught me unawares. Then, I returned home from our time in captivity..."

"To something that feels like a different trap?" Callum finished gently. "You don't have to feel bad about these feelings, Albus; however, you need to work on them so they don't interfere with your relationships. Athena and Violet deserve better, and you know it."

"It's more difficult than I would like it to be," Albus admitted. "I feel stupid for being ambushed in the first place. Not to sound too egotistical, but I am Albus Dumbledore. People expected me to be able to defend myself, and I expected more of myself. And after Minerva left—" Albus paused suddenly. "This stays between us, correct?"

Callum nodded, smiling. "Yes."

"After Minerva left me, I took solace in my power and position. I thought, 'well, I may be unable to have her love, but at least I am accomplished.' Now, it feels like I have nothing. While I know that isn't true, something doesn't feel right. About any of it."

"Minerva and Lucy both think it's wise for me to see a mind-healer," Callum said. "Would that appeal to you?"

Albus shook his head firmly. "And admit my foibles to yet another person? No, I don't believe I have the fortitude."

"Would it help if I came to visit more often? You know I won't spill your secrets to the press, and I have the added benefit of knowing what you went through." Callum bit his lip. "You have a beautiful family, Albus. I don't want to watch it fall prey to the evils of the world. And, if it will help," he added, "I can talk to Minerva about bringing Dalton to visit. I trust that you want to simply have your friends around again, and not make a homewrecker out of my baby sister."

"Thank you, Callum. I appreciate that. And I appreciate even more that you came to visit me today." Albus thought for a moment. "In fact, this is good. The more we work through our...experience, the more we may remember or uncover about our captors. I still haven't managed to discern how or why Grindelwald is coming to the future to hurt me. What does he think he'll gain?"

Callum frowned. "I've had a different theory for a while."

"Oh, by all means." Albus waved his hand and leaned in intently. "What are you thinking?"

"I don't think it is someone coming forward in time. I think it's someone travelling to the past."

"You believe someone is coming back from the future?"

"Yes."

"To what end? To try and kill me?"

"Most likely, along with a plethora of other unknown reasons."

"Callum, why would anyone in their right mind do that?" Albus' tone was a mix of exasperation and curiosity. "Dealing with time is a tricky business to begin with, but why would anyone have any desire to go back in time? One could cause innumerable harms to the world, not to mention erase one's own birth."

"Albus, to be fair, I don't think any of these murderers are in their right minds," Callum chuckled darkly. He looked down at his hands. "I was there for a long time. I heard words I didn't understand; they talked about political agreements that I'd never even heard of. I just...have a feeling."

"I see," Albus murmured, considering the idea. "This is perhaps even more harrowing than my original conclusion."

"For the record, I don't think we should dismiss the Grindelwald theory," Callum said hastily. "I merely think we need to explore other options. That way, we're less likely to be wrong-footed when it comes time for confrontation."

Albus smiled, proud of the young man before him. "I knew you would make a good Auror."

"It's all thanks to you. I never would have considered this career if you hadn't suggested it," Callum said, the tips of his ears reddening. "Don't give me too much credit just yet. I still can't figure out who is doing this."

"Do you believe Tom Riddle has something to do with it? After all, we heard his name often enough." Albus frowned, unwilling to consider how things may have been different had he taken a kinder approach with young Tom.

"I don't think Riddle is leading it; we heard his name too many times for that." Callum grimaced and rubbed at his forehead. "I wish it were, because then we would know who this enemy of ours is. But I think he's working for someone. They were way too cavalier with his name and his talents, and then there was the 'leader' they always mentioned. Leader Q, if I remember correctly. Do you have any memory of that?"

"No." Albus shook his head. He hesitated for a moment before saying, "What would you say to us spending time in my Pensieve together? We can go through our collective memories and get some more information. Perhaps it may even help us heal."

Callum grinned. "I think that's a brilliant idea. Your Pensieve is at Hogwarts, yes?"

"Callum, do you really think I could keep it here?"

"Touché," Callum laughed. "All right, when would you like to get started?"

"Saturday, if that works for you. I'm off-duty at the school."

"Perfect. I can even bring Lucy and the girls up with me. They can visit with Violet and Athena while we're at Hogwarts, and after, we can all have dinner together." Callum smiled brightly at Albus. "If you spend time with us, you may find your familial spirit again."

"Let's focus on one issue at a time, all right?" Albus quirked an eyebrow. "Being open and vulnerable is new to me."

"I know you're a beginner," Callum smirked, "but hey, it's not like I'm inviting Grindelwald over for tea, now is it? I'm just a friend, not a qualified couple's therapist."

Albus charmed his glass of water to explode over Callum's jacket, feeling smug that the prankster had gotten what he deserved.