Episode One Hundred and Twelve

Part One

            The next day Gwen was scarce again. Harry hadn't seen her and feared that she had run off and gotten herself killed. Graves paced about, not aware that his dearest friend was sitting in a dungeon classroom, vacated for the lack of students. Even Draco seemed concerned that she was nowhere to be found, but if they had simply wandered down into the bowels of Hogwarts they would have found her, sitting disconsolate across from Severus.

            She couldn't face Minerva, not just now. Her mood was something she couldn't handle and she didn't want to put pressure on the older woman's shoulders, not now when she needed her concentration to get the school back up and running.

            Graves knew, she felt certain, but she couldn't talk to him about that yet. Harry couldn't possibly understand. Dumbledore pissed her off too much. Snape seemed the only logical choice.

            He looked at her gently. "I think you should tell him."

            "I don't…" She huffed. "I don't even know how to begin the conversation."

            "Just start where you did today, with me."

            She laughed and shook her head, tears slipping down her cheeks. "It sounds so damn simple."

            "Guenivere, I am truly honored that you came to me. But there are three people who need to hear this, three people far more important than me."

            Gwen's chest rose unevenly as she struggled against her emotions to breath. She nodded slowly and sat for some time in silence with the teacher she had hated the most.

Part Two

When she appeared suddenly in the Great Hall, three young men looked up in surprise. Each one had been wringing their hands and pacing to and fro, too nervous to eat. That she could cause such anxiety was almost laughable to her, but she should have guessed that anyone can be made nervous in such times.

The hall was vacated but for the four of them and Gwen was surprised to see after all their years of rivalry that Draco and the other two were getting along so well. She took a seat at the table, sidling next to Harry and looking across at the two former Slytherins staring intently at her.

"We need to talk." She said hardly above a whisper.

"What about?" Draco asked. He was surprised that she would include him in on this conversation.

"When we were in the cave system in the Forbidden Forest and Harry, Graves and I separated I came upon a hidden cavern. When I entered I found myself face to face with Lord Voldemort."

The boys remained silent, the different stages of shock and surprise washing over them.

"I've never been afraid of Voldemort. It may sound like an exaggeration to you, but it's true."

Graves looked at her with a deep frown. Harry looked shocked. Draco found her statement a new source of admiration.

She rushed on. "I'm immune to it too, the Avada Kedavra curse. Something in my blood, something fey protects me."

"How do you know?"

"Voldemort tried to kill me, three weeks ago in the caves. It hurt like hell, but it didn't do any lasting damage, just revived an old scar." She said pulling down the neck of her shirt carefully to reveal a star shaped scar on the side of her breast.

"And you still don't fear him? He's an invincible monster now." Harry pressed.

"No. He can't kill me. We're connected somehow, I just can't piece it together. He needn't have bothered trying to kill me really. My father had already discovered my immunity."

"How?" Graves asked.

"He tried to kill me after I was born." All three men looked at her horrified to different degrees. She didn't notice and continued without stop. "I couldn't rightly remember, but Ann was trying to piece it together for me. Then I found out it's because he wasn't my father at all. The curse caused me great pain, which I can't remember, but it didn't kill me. It didn't leave any lasting mark other than a star shaped scar that had faded pale white by the time I could walk. I guess the second time the curse hit me the scar remembered itself and reappeared, right over my heart, angry red. My mother didn't tell me because she didn't know. My real father had performed an oblivate spell on her."

Harry just stared at her, not understanding. Graves breathed heavily.

"It sounded like rubbish at first, but the more I think about it the more it seems like truth. It makes sense. He wouldn't want anyone knowing he'd fathered a bastard and even more than that an heir."

"An heir to what exactly?" Graves said slowly.

"That is what I've yet to find." She bit her lip while crossing her arms over her chest.

Harry and Graves wanted to embrace her but they had known her long enough to recognize that she didn't want that. Draco remained still and quiet, trying to absorb her story. She sat deep in thought while they looked on in silence.

"You ok?" Harry asked in a tiny voice.

"I don't know." Gwen said. "My dad wasn't who I thought he was. He wasn't even my dad" She turned to Graves. "You knew." She stated calmly.

He nodded his head, fearing this would be another wedge driving them apart.

"But you know more than that don't you Graves? You won't tell me because you think you're protecting me, but really you're just pissing me off."

"I'm not telling you because I took an oath not to tell anyone the secrets that I learned from the death eaters. I promised Dumbledore and I'm not going to break that promise."

She looked at him angrily. "Dumbledore is powerless to stop him and we will be as well if we can't even be honest with each other."

"I can't tell you." He said levelly. "You know I would if I hadn't promised. Gwen I love you more than anything."

She looked at him, weighing her options. He obviously wasn't going to back down. He wouldn't tell her and she had only two options. Accept that and move on, or stay angry.

"In that case I need to find the one person who can tell me the truth."

"Who?" Draco asked.

"Jeremiah." She said softly. After a moment of questioning silence she added darkly: "My father."