"Harry!" Hermione called as she and Ron saw him entering Hagrid's cabin, which is where their next class was going to take place.
"Hey you two!" Harry greeted, "I was just going to get something from Salazar. I didn't know he had a class now."
"We still have about forty-five minutes more before class, actually," Ron said, "Professor Helga just dismissed us early for today."
"Aaaah," Harry said, "Ok then. Why don't you go in now while I talk with Salazar?"
The trio entered the small cabin. They saw Salazar sitting in a small armchair, his head leaning back, and his eyes closed.
"He's still sleeping," Hermione said, "We'll just go back later, Harry."
"He's not sleeping, Hermione," Harry said.
Salazar made a light growl before opening his eyes, confirming what Harry had assumed.
"How did you know he wasn't asleep?" Hermione asked.
"His eyes were fluttering a bit," Harry chuckled, making Salazar growl even more.
"Good afternoon, Uncle Zar!" Harry greeted cheerfully.
"Good afternoon yourself!" Salazar answered, still glaring at the cheerful Harry.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaw, come on!" Harry protested, "You knew I was coming anyway!"
"Yeah, yeah…" Salazar said. "What is it you want?"
"Well," Harry began, "I was thinking. Can you excuse these two for a while in your next class." He pointed to Hermione and Ron who were both wearing looks of shock in their faces.
"And they are…" Salazar said, "Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, I presume?"
Hermione and Ron nodded, while Harry said, "Yes."
Salazar seemed to think of the idea for a while before saying, "Just be sure to bring them back about 15 minutes before I dismiss the class."
Harry nodded respectfully and said, "Don't worry, I will."
With that, Harry grabbed Hermione and Ron by the wrist and dragged them out to the Forbidden Forest.
~*~
"Harry!" Ron shouted, "Where the heck are you taking us?"
"We're in the Forbidden Forest, for pete's sake!" Hermione fumed. "What is going on Harry?"
Before they could hear Harry answer, however, they found themselves being surrounded by black mist.
"What is going on?!" Ron asked loudly, but no one answered. The black mist slowly unfogged, and he found himself in a room he didn't know.
"Ron!" Hermione's voice came, making Ron turn around and see one of his best friends. "Where's Harry?"
Ron shook his head, signaling that he didn't know where Harry was when Harry himself answered. "Here I am."
"Where are we, Harry?" Ron asked, "Where have you brought us?"
Harry sighed and mumbled something that neither Hermione nor Ron understood. "Anyway," Harry said in English, "You've seen this Hermione. But I felt the need to let Ron see, too."
It took a minute for Hermione to understand what her friend implied, but when she did, she just nodded.
à A person stood in the room. It was Harry Potter, except that this person looked to be about 25 – 30 years old. He was holding a white rod with green, yellow, lavender, and red colored ribbons wrapped around it. He was singing a very uncommon song, a song that hasn't been heard for ages. It was very heart-breaking and soul tearing.
All the pain
All the suffering
It's finally coming to an end….
I've lead people to war
Lead them to afflictions
I've battled with the worst
And put an end to the bad
I've done my part
He stopped singing, but Ron couldn't help but notice that the song wasn't finished yet. He looked up when a new voice sang.
"It's finally come to an end."
A woman with long, black hair stood in a distance, giving Harry a comforting smile. She was looking at him as if she was holding a burden in her heart, as if she knew something that only she and Harry knows.
The woman curtsied and cleared the way as four figures entered the room. It was them – The Hogwarts' Founders.
Harry signaled them to take a sit, so they sat and the woman left the room.
"Why the sudden meeting, Merlin?"
Harry bobbed his head and said in a straight-forward kind of way, "I can't die."
There was silence after that before Salazar Slytherin broke it. "What do you mean you can't die?"
"The truth is, children…" Harry said, then sighed, "Before you were born, at my first battle, your mother and I were cursed. Cursed to live a thousand years and then some until I could fulfill an indefinite prophecy."
"And you're telling this to us… because?" Rowena Ravenclaw asked.
"Because you can't die, either."
Another silence.
"I'm sorry." Harry said, looking down at his feet as if it was the most amazing thing on earth. "At that time, your mother was pregnant with you four. I couldn't do anything about it. So until I die, you can't die, too. "
Then as Harry rambled on and on about how really sorry he was, I saw Godric Gryffindor stand up and go behind him. I never expected it, but he embraced Harry in a strong grip from behind.
"Don't worry about it, Dad."
Harry leaned back into the embrace and gave a contented sigh. He said, "Thank you, Godric, my son."
"Daddy!" Helga Hufflepuff followed after, hugging him in the waist. Then came Rowena Ravenclaw. She wiped the tears - it started falling after Godric embraced him – off his cheek and neck and soothed him with words of comfort. "We all love you, Daddy. We'll be here for you and can never be angry with you."
Then Salazar Slytherin gathered all of them in one big grip, with Harry being in the center. "Yeah Dad, forever if need be, we'll always be your sons and daughters. We love you. "
Soon after, Harry smiled again and hugged them back saying, "I love you all, too, My Little Ones. Thank you… for understanding." ß
"DAD!" Ron shouted, "Harry, you're the bloody father of the Founders?!"
Hermione watched as Ron babbled on and on about how Harry could keep something as important an information from them. She didn't blame him, and she was sure neither did Harry, it was really shocking – that's an understatement, actually.
"Ron," Harry said in a weak voice, "I know you understand why, so please stop babbling already."
The redhead teen calmed down a bit after that and said, "Just one question, Harry."
"What?"
"Who was that woman who sang the last verse of the song?"
"That was my wife."
"What happened to her?" Hermione asked silently, "She's also immortal, isn't she?"
Harry sighed and said, "You've got to understand one thing, first. We are not immortals. We're just people who just can't die for a long period of time." He stopped and didn't say anything for a minute, then he said, "About my wife, her name is Ivory Constella Gonzalez, or Ivy as I like to call her. She's dead."
"But how?" Hermione asked, "If Professor Helga, Rowena, Salazar and Godric were cursed, doesn't that mean that she's also cursed?"
"Yes," Harry coughed, "But unlike them, her curse never depended on me. The curse put on them was formed because of Ivy's blood and mine."
"So Ivory had her own prophecy to fulfill!" Hermione concluded, "That's why her life didn't depend on your death!"
Harry nodded, "Right. Any more questions?"
"I do," Ron said, "Why is it that if you're the father of the Founders, you call them 'Aunt or Uncle?'"
"Because I told them to," Harry answered truthfully, "Honestly? They've all just called me 'Dad' or 'Father' about ten times in their life. I never let them refer me as such because I still feel guilty about their miserable life. I know and I can feel what they feel – sometimes all they want to do is die, but they can't. Living as an immortal isn't as fun as it seems to be, you see. Their great, great, great, great grandchildren die even before they can. And it's hard to see those you learn to love pass away as if it's so normal. So even before they learned how to talk, I taught them to call me Merlin, or whatever name I was using at a certain time."
Hermione, seeing her friend in a somber spirit, hugged him closely and said, "Don't worry, Harry. I know they love you."
Ron, too, comforted Harry by embracing him.
"Thank you both." Harry said silently. He wriggled free of the tight embrace and said, "But it's thirty minutes before Salazar dismisses the class. You better go."
Hermione checked her watch and said, "He's right. We better go, Ron."
Before the two left, however, Harry stopped them and said, "Don't forget. I love you both so much."
Smiling, the two answered, "Just don't forget that we love you, too. No matter what."
~*~
"Professor Salazar, we're here!" Hermione called as she and Ron entered Hagrid's cabin.
"Right on time, you two," Salazar said. "I'm about to give out your homework for the month."
Ron groaned with the rest of the class.
Salazar grinned and said, "Don't worry, this will be easy enough." He left the room to get something and returned a bit later with a cradle in hand.
"Now look here," Salazar said, "This is your assignment."
He opened the cradle and said, "My friend in London is taking a vacation with his husband, so it is your duty to take care of their baby for the rest of this month."
In the cradle was a tiny child about the age of one and a half. Judging from the pink and purple robe that it was wearing, they confirmed it as a girl.
"Her name is Amelia Mignonette Thermopolis (AN:// For those "Princess Diaries' fans, I just liked her name and it isn't going to be a crossover.) I have set for all the seventh years to be placed in one tower for this month so that all of you could take care of the baby. Since today, you won't be living in your houses, but in a different tower located above the Great Hall. You will all be lead to it after your class with Harry Potter. That is all, Ms. Parkinson, would you mind taking Little Amelia right now?"
Pansy stood up and gathered the little girl in her arms.
"Thank you." Salazar said, "You're all dismissed.
The students quickly left the cabin, but not before groaning aloud, making sure that Salazar heard them protesting.
AN:// So? That's my longest chapter yet! Hehehehe….. So… Good? Odd? Bad? What?! I want to know…. I also hope I've answered some of your questions from the previous chapters. More will come, I promise! Bye!