A/N Thanks to Starzlight who always has the best reviews. I adore the long reviews. Ramble all you like. Also I'd like to mention the Dragonsbane1611 has written some companion pieces to the story. Very good ones. Luna's song is a favorite of mine and there is a recorded version that just rocks beyond belief. There is also a song for Harry and Ginny that is sooooo cool. So if you want to hear the song just ask Dragonsbane1611 and I do recommend her stories. This chapter finally explains things a bit. Some more things come to light. Thanks for reading.
My head ached as I opened my eyes to the light streaming in my suddenly open windows. Tenderly I placed my fingers over my eyes and reveled in the darkness. The dull pain began to throb as I tried to push myself into a sitting position. Fingers digging deeper into my eye sockets I winced at the flashes of light that it brought and finally hung my head low running both hands through my hair.
"Is Master awake yet?" A high, squeaking voice asked timidly.
I looked up and found, Pip, the house elf staring at me. Her big brown eyes were liquid with tears of worry and she kept wringing her hands together.
"I'm fine Pip." I muttered wishing the light would stop shining in my eyes.
"Master left so quick last night, Pip didn't know what to do, or where's he was going." She continued.
I smiled a little and regretted it immediately as it tightened the skin of my face. Very slowly I lowered my feet to the ground and waited for the intense pain to pass.
"Master just says, 'put the boy to bed.' So Pip puts the young Master Bane to bed and sits to wait for Master Draco to come home."
I looked at Pip, her tiny house elf body shivering with nerves, little button nose sniffing back the tears that still threatened to fall.
"When did I leave?" I asked unable to remember much of the night before.
"Ohhhh, Master Draco left near ten, Pip was so worried, sir." She squeaked and edged closer.
"Did I say where I was going?"
"No. Master just says 'put the boy to bed.' so Pip did, sir." She repeated. "
Bane must be up by now, where is he?"
Pip seemed reluctant to tell me where my son was, she played with the edge of her pillowcase and shuffled her feet a bit.
"Where is Bane, Pip?" I said again with a bit more force, causing my head to nearly burst.
"Pip answers the door this morning and finds the horrible Mistress there. She hits Pip with her stick and demands the Young Master. Pip doesn't get him and the woman hits Pip again. Then the old Mistress walks to the Young Master's room and wakes him, dresses him and takes him away." Big tears were flowing down her face by the time she was through.
I clenched my jaw tightly at the pain and forced my body to stand up. Pip's loud sobs weren't helping. When I was younger I might have hit her, much in the way my mother had earlier, but I couldn't find it in me to do so now. After all she was weeping for me.
"Pip, it's fine. You couldn't stop her. I'll just go over and retrieve him." I said with more resolve that I felt.
Stumbling towards the dresser I tried to remember what I had done the night before. I vaguely remembered sitting with my son in the study, listening to him read, correcting him sometimes, but then things grew indistinct. I remembered going out the front door, and then a few disjointed images of rooms I had never been in before. Seemed I saw myself writing with my wand, hearing a voice I couldn't recognize.
"Did anyone go with me, Pip? Was someone here?" I asked digging through a drawer.
"No." She sniffed, her sobs having lessened.
"Did my mother say anything else when she took Bane?"
Ever so carefully I began to change clothing, gingerly I pulled my shirt over my head wincing as the neck stretched over my face. Seemed every nerve in my brain was on fire. Looking down I noticed strange little burns on my chest, each the size a finger tip. I frowned and looked at them closer, it appeared I had stabbed myself with my wand while it blazed. I shivered involuntarily and tugged another shirt over my head, this one not nearly as tight. Trousers were another whole ordeal. Bending over was dangerous and I had to keep steadying myself as I slipped my feet out of the legs. No strange wounds greeted me as I peered at my bare skin. Sighing I somehow pulled on a clean pair and sat heavily on the bed.
"Is Master Draco sick? Should Pip send an owl to the Healer?" The little elf whimpered.
"No, Pip, I'm fine. Just dizzy." I lied.
Finally I heaved myself to my feet once more and began searching for my wand.
"Pip, find me something for a headache." I said absently as I felt about the bed sheets.
Her little feet padded out of the room quickly and finding myself alone I laid back on the bed for a moment to catch my breath. My eyes burned and my ears felt as though they might gush a fountain of blood. Thankfully I heard the patter of elf feet on the stone floor and felt her climb up beside me on the bed.
"Pip found her Master a good potion, good for hurting heads." She said sounding proud.
"Thank you." I said taking the vial from her fingers and gulping it down.
There as no taste or smell, simply the running of liquid down my throat. Minutes passed and finally the fire began to recede and became a mere ache once more. Sitting up again I felt for my wand near the foot of the bed and found it. The end appeared to be burned a little. Something odd was happening but I didn't know what.
"What else did my mother say?" I asked getting to my feet, satisfied that I could stand.
"She says to Pip, If Master Draco is sick then the Young Master should go with her. Pip tries to stop her sir. She tries."
"Did you tell her I was sick?"
"No, Pip just says that Master is in bed sir. That you had been up very late sir. You was tired."
"Well, I'll just go and straighten this out." I said and patted the house elf's bald head.
Raising my wand for just a moment, I apparated into my mother's living room. She appeared startled at my sudden entry and I took great pleasure in this. She dropped the book she was reading and stood from her sofa to greet me. I ignored her and looked about for my son.
"Draco." She said stiffly.
"Where's Bane, mother?" I asked turning back to her.
"How did you apparate in here?" She demanded.
"I have my ways. Where is Bane?" I repeated.
As I watched her demeanor changed and she stood up a little taller. Her long midnight colored robes hung lazily off her tiny frame and her hands folded neatly in front of her.
"Bane has come to stay with me early." She said very clearly, the same voice she used when I was younger and had done something wrong.
"No he's not, he has a week left with me." I said in the same clear voice.
"Draco, I will not have my grandson staying alone in a big house with nothing but a house elf to care for him, while his father drinks and carouses with his friends." Something in her eyes told me she knew this wasn't true.
"I wasn't out drinking, I was running an important errand. Who are you to say what is good or bad for my son?"
She appraised me carefully, looking over every inch of me as if looking for flaws.
"I control your income. If I liked I could take your son from you by law, and leave you penniless on the streets. Do you honestly think that it would be that difficult for me to just cut off your allowance and fight for custody of the child?" She said her voice still very even.
I was becoming angry, but would not let her see.
"Bane has another week with me, I intend to spend it with him."
She tried to hide the cruel smile, but I saw it and frowned.
"Bane told me how you left suddenly last night. He told me that this is a common occurence."
I laughed, "And you believed him?"
"Are you saying that you son is a liar?"
"No. I'm saying that he lied to you. He doesn't lie to me."
She sighed and took her seat on the sofa again. I had to admit that she was talented. No matter the situation she could remain in control.
"Sit." She commanded.
I did.
"I have been sensing that you do not truly appreciate what I am doing here, what I am trying to teach Bane. He needs to learn how to act in public and how to make the right friends, things that obviously were lost on you," She paused waiting for me to say something, "I do not want to take him from you by force, Draco, but if things continue as they are, I will be left with no other choice. So as a last effort to make you see I have once again changed the will."
She allowed me time to think on this. I knew what she planned to do. It was obvious now. If I disagreed she would take my son from me, and she had the connections to do so.
"If you take Bane, does that mean that you will take Father as well?" I asked raising an eyebrow curiously.
She laughed a high false laugh, "No dear, a child is one thing, a complete invalid would be to much, I think your father is fine where he is."
Again I stopped to think. She did not give me much time, though
"The will has been changed to leave everything to Bane. You will inherit nothing." She stated slowly.
My blood ran cold.
"He's underage, if something happens the money will be in my care anyway."
"No, he will control his own money no matter his age, and you will cease to receive your allowance, thus your fate will be in the hands of your child. If he has been raised correctly he will know how to take care of you, if he has not, you will be left with nothing." Her eyes lit at the thought.
"Where is Bane?" I asked suddenly wanting to leave.
She smiled her cruel smile again, "Bane." She called.
He stepped through the doorway to the room and I realized he had heard everything that was said. He had heard her call me a drunk, he knew he would inherit a lot of money, he also knew that I would be unable to stop him. That is a lot of knowledge for a six year old.
"Come Bane, we're leaving." I called to him.
He hurried to meet me in front of the large fireplace. I handed him floo powder and sent him through first. Without even a good bye I left my mother alone in her large mansion.
(Ivy)
Lotus is my other half. Literally. Identical twins are the only people on earth who can say that, and even if it isn't true, it is for us. Split down the middle into two different people. Very different. I've never met anyone who is more my opposite than she. But then, I think of our parents and understand.
My mother died when we were a year old. We never knew her really. Though from the pictures, we look just like her, long blonde hair, big blue eyes, pale skin. I've caught my father staring at us, his eyes growing hard as steel, as if he were angry at himself for something. Neither of us has ever asked him about our mother, we agreed early in our lives not to. Sometimes I think I remember her. Remember her voice. Even though we never asked, Father told us some things.
We listened carefully to each of his words, wanting to hear every bit about her we could.
He said that she loved us more than anything. That, nothing was more important to her than her family. She died saving that family. He said that when she was little she lived with her father, just as we did. However, her father had not been there for her, left her alone most of the time. So when she had a family, it only seemed right to love them beyond anything else.
Bits of her still lingered. Father felt them more than the two of us. Sometimes he would stop on the stairs and just smile, or sit at the foot of his bed and hang his head low. Lotus and I tried to feel as he did, but we didn't understand.
Once when I was five, I was playing quietly in the playroom while Lotus took a nap. My doll had just fallen asleep, and I was humming to her, rocking her gently in my arms. I paced about the room, holding the little doll like a real baby and quietly began to put words to the tune I hummed. It was strange even to me, most of the words were to big, I didn't understand them, but still I sang.
"There's a chill in the evening air tonight,
Tells me that something isn't right
They say that contentment finds it's home
But I've never known serenity to stay long."
"Where did you hear that?" My father said from the doorway.
I looked up and shrugged, "Somewhere."
"Your mother used to sing that to you. That song." He said making a strange face.
"Why?" I asked forgetting my promise.
He smiled a little then.
"When you were very tiny you were very sick. Had a fever, and couldn't stop crying. Your mother stayed awake all night, rocking you, and she sang that song. How could you remember that?"
I looked at my doll and then back up to him. He smiled even wider at me and I suddenly found myself scooped up into his arms. He hugged me tight, my cheek pressed hard against his shoulder.
"I love you so much. Both of you." He said pulling back to look at me.
"I love you too, Daddy."
"Now why don't you wake your sister for dinner." I was set on the ground and as I turned to obey, I heard him laugh a little.
My father was a simple person. He rarely got angry, or even annoyed with us. Just shrugged his shoulders and smiled a little, no matter what kind of trouble we were in. His shy manner made Lotus and I want to protect him. He was our father and he was easily hurt, or so we thought. So, if we had a choice, we never left his side. Which explained why both Lotus and I were very anxious as the adults had their meeting.
They had been conferring all day. Ever since we arrived at Number 12 they had gathered into a dark room and locked the door behind them. All of the kids were sent up to the bedrooms with Angelina, who was strangely quiet. While the others played a game on the floor I sat on one of the beds and drew a picture. I drew sunny skies and big tall trees and all of us children playing, We had no colors so I just used a quill and ink, then took it to Angelina. She smiled at me and patted my head.
"Thank you, Ivy." She said and folded it neatly to put in her pocket.
I sat beside her and watched the others play. I noticed Lotus kept looking towards the door. She was as worried about our father as I was. There were a lot of people down there, he didn't like big groups, he needed us. I caught my sister's eye and she wandered over.
"Angelina I have to…" I paused and looked away shyly.
"Go on. Do you remember where is was at?" She asked petting my hair.
"Yeah, but can Lotus come with me, I don't like this place."
She smiled and nodded, "Go ahead but come straight back."
Grabbing my sisters hand I ran for the door.
"What are we going to do?" Lotus asked as I dragged her down the hall and to the stairs.
"Check on Daddy." I answered.
Quietly we crept down the stairs until we reached the landing and heard voices from a room to our right. I shushed Lotus as she was about to ask a question and kept a tight hold on her hand. Despite her love for our father, she hated being in trouble and I feared she might bolt if I let go. Very carefully we edged to the door and I pressed my ear against it. With my free hand I motioned for Lotus to do the same and we waited.
For a moment there was silence and then I heard my father begin to talk.
"Harry, we might be looking at this the wrong way." He said.
"What do you mean?" Said my Uncle Harry.
"Maybe the prophesy isn't about you, maybe it's about something that we don't know yet. I mean no one knew your prophesy was about you until after some of it happened. In fact that's how it is with most prophesies. I think we need to take that into consideration."
"While I appreciate your input, Neville, I don't see how it could be about anyone else, the time of birth matches just as in the other one."
I frowned, not understanding what they meant.
"I was born then as well, or have you forgotten that we share the same birthday?" Father said, I could hear an edge in his voice.
"That may be, but I don't think you've ever had prophetic dreams." Uncle Harry stated.
"Neither have you. Your dreams were all what happened in the present and one of them wasn't even real. And you know, it just says the end of July, that doesn't mean the last day. It could be anyone born then." Father answered.
There was silence and I clenched my fist. I didn't understand what they were talking about, but I suddenly disliked my uncle. He wouldn't listen. I wanted to open the door and run to my father's side, then tell my uncle what I thought of him. Looking over at my twin she was frowning as well, her eyes merely slits.
"Neville, excuse me for saying this, but you don't know anything about that." Uncle Harry said finally.
"Harry," Father began.
"Neville we've decided that the prophesy is about the people in the houses marked. Though maybe not in that order, I am the only dreamer in any of them. I think you need to drop this."
I gripped Lotus' hand tighter as a tingle of anger ran through me and heard her gasp. Glancing over I saw her step away from the door in surprise.
"What?" I mouthed.
She pointed at the door and I looked. A little palm print was burned into the wood, the exact size of her hand. Not understanding I lifted my hand off the door and found an identical mark beneath it. Our eyes met and then reverted back to the door. For one more fearful moment we stared and then hurried back up the stairs to Angelina.
"What was that?" She hissed at me as we approached the door to our cousins.
"I don't know. Maybe we did magic." I said looking at my hand.
"Without wands?" She asked.
"Lots of kids do that early on. I've never heard of anything like that before though."
"Should we tell Angelina? There might be something wrong with us."
"No. Then we'd be in trouble for spying. I think we're fine, we just should be more careful." I replied.
She nodded and pushed the door open.
"What took you girls so long? You didn't get lost did you?" Angelina asked as we entered the large bedroom again.
"A little, but we came back." I admitted.
"Well have a seat, who knows how long they are going to be." She said and Lotus went back to playing on the floor.
I crawled up next to Angelina on the bed and leaned against her. The events of a few minutes before stayed with me and I thought over them carefully. It might have been wandless magic, of course it was. It had to be, nothing else but magic could do that. Yet, I didn't feel any different. I didn't feel as though I had done anything special. I inspected my hand carefully. Smooth and pale, I could trace the veins, thin lines, long fingers, it was still my hand. Bringing it closer I thought perhaps I could see a glimmer beneath the skin, a flash of something hidden.
I jumped and lost sight of it as the door was shoved open.
"Hey, Angie." Uncle Fred called.
I looked at Angelina and found a strange fear in her eyes. Slowly she stood up and pulled him away from us, though I could still hear her.
"We need to talk, right away." She said urgently.
He looked at her strangely, "What about? What did the doctor say?"
"That's what we need to talk about." She whispered.
"Are you going to be okay? It's not serious is it?" He sounded upset by her words.
"I'll be okay, we need to talk about it though. Now."
"Fred! Harry's starting again." Uncle George called from down the stairs.
"We'll talk tonight. I promise." He said and kissed her quickly on the lips before hurrying back out the door.
Angelina seemed about to cry until she saw us looking at her.
"Well then, I think it's time we all got ready for dinner." She said and began taking us one at a time to the bathroom to clean up.
Lotus caught my eye and wanted to talk, I shook my head. There was to much going on, someone would hear us. Later when they had gone to sleep we would talk over what had happened, for the time being it was placed securely in the back of my head.
(Ron)
The table was full of grim faces, mine being one of them. For long minutes we simply stared at each other unbelieving, I glanced at Harry who sat very still at the head of the table. His hands were fists clenched in front of him, eyes gleaming with restrained emotion.
"What does it mean?" George said at last.
"It means trouble." Ginny said quietly.
I caught the look Harry sent her and he seemed surprised to find her still there. Almost as though he had forgotten her.
"I think I remember something." Tonks said suddenly.
Everyone turned to her. It had taken a while to explain everything to she and Remus, but after they knew, there was no keeping them from the meeting.
"Yes." Harry said, his voice very low.
"There was a prophesy wasn't there, at one time, about this. I remember. We were arguing about it the night…of the attack on the hospital." She said her voice quickly dropping.
There were varied reactions to this. Though in general most people seemed to think she was right. I thought back as carefully as I could, not wanting to stir up old emotions best left buried. Vaguely I recalled something about a prophesy. Though I could not remember what it had been about.
"I think I remember that." I offered.
Harry nodded, "I've been trying to remember it since I saw the writing on the wall."
"I think I can help with that. I kept all the notes from all the meetings in a safe place, I'll simply go and find the parchment for that night." Remus said.
"You took notes?" Harry asked surprised.
"Of course. I wasn't about to let something like that happen again, so I took careful notes and then kept them hidden so that if we needed them I could provide them." He replied and stood from the table.
I nudged Hermione, but she just held up a hand.
"Don't even say it. I know you would love to tease me about note taking, but now is not the time." She said.
I grinned at her and then turned back to the group. Moments later Remus appeared again carrying a small roll of paper. Harry unrolled it and read very carefully.
Four from three
The Dreamer, born beneath the waning July sun, sees afar the evil thing
The Healer, fair and kind, knows the evil by it's name
Torn by war, The Warrior, shall end it's evil reign
Four from three, beneath the setting sun
Again there was silence. Until at last Harry spoke.
"Well I think we can safely say that the Dreamer is a reference to me."
No one argued the point.
"Who are the other's then? And why, if you are the Dreamer, was it found at Neville's house?" Fred asked.
"Maybe whoever did it doesn't know anymore than we do, maybe it was just a warning." Ginny suggested.
"That's true," Hermione put in, "even the last prophesy was misinterpreted by Voldemort."
Though years had passed there was still a series of shivers at that name.
"Why is Harry the Dreamer?" George asked.
"His birthday is at the end of July, that description of him has been used before." Fred told him quickly.
"Then who are the others?" My dad said finally speaking.
"The Healer could be Ginny." Hermione suggested.
My sister frowned and looked upset by this. She had never finished her Healer training, though she was a natural. After the fires in Hogsmead she had lost interest in it, retaining only her status in the Order as Healer she ceased to go to her classes.
"Don't get that look on your face, Sis, you're the only one here with any healing abilities to speak of." I said.
"It could be Neville. He's kind of a healer." She said quietly.
Neville shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"No, I'm nothing like a healer." He said.
"If Harry is the Dreamer and Ginny is the Healer then who is the Warrior?" My dad asked.
There was another pause as everyone thought about this. We considered each other carefully in turn, looking for a clue as to who might fit the qualifications. In the end Harry spoke first.
"That could be Ron."
"No. I'm not 'torn by war' in the least." I replied shaking my head.
"What about Neville?" George said.
"Why me?" Neville asked again squirming in his seat.
"You were in the war and…Luna…you could be war torn." George said stumbling over words.
I saw the look of pain cross my friends face at the mention of his wife, his fingers brush over the gold band he still wore.
"I'm no warrior." He whispered.
"You do yourself a disservice. You are very much a warrior." Harry said proudly.
At first everyone seemed happy with this explanation. It appeared we had identified those involved and could now proceed.
"Wait," Remus said holding up his hand, "If Harry is the Dreamer, Ginny is the Healer, and Neville is the Warrior, why was Ron's house broken into? That doesn't make sense."
"Harry, we might be looking at this the wrong way." Neville said thoughtfully.
"What do you mean?" Harry said curiously. "Maybe the prophesy isn't about you, maybe it's about something that we don't know yet. I mean no one knew your prophesy was about you until after some of it happened. In fact that's how it is with most prophesies. I think we need to take that into consideration." "While I appreciate your input, Neville, I don't see how it could be about anyone else, the time of birth matches just as in the other one." It didn't surprise me that Harry dismissed Neville's suggestion so quickly, but his forcefulness gave me pause. "I was born then as well, or have you forgotten that we share the same birthday?" Neville was sitting up straight and leaning towards Harry, his voice becoming hard. "That may be, but I don't think you've ever had prophetic dreams." Said Harry with a snort. "Neither have you. Your dreams were all what happened in the present and one of them wasn't even real. And you know, it just says the end of July, that doesn't mean the last day. It could be anyone born then." Neville had a point, but still I found myself taking Harry's side.
He was our leader and my best friend. No matter what happened it seemed wrong to question his decisions.
"Who else was born at the end of July?" Harry snapped.
"My son." Hermione said testily from beside me.
I glared at her and shook my head, she ignored me.
"And Meshach is how old? Six? Seven? I highly doubt that this prophesy is pertaining to him." Harry growled standing up.
"You weren't even born when a prophesy was made about you." My wife stated, her voice in the even tone I knew meant she was becoming angry.
"So you think this is about your son?" Tonks interjected trying to calm them down.
"Not necessarily, but it seems unreasonable that we can't consider other options." Hermione explained.
I continued to glare at her.
"Could it be Meshach?" Fred asked.
"I don't know. He's never mentioned a dream that came true, but then we rarely talk about things like that."
"I'd like to keep the children out of this." I spoke up.
"So would we all, but if they are involved then there is little we can do about it." Remus assured me.
"I think we should take a short break and get some air." My father stated and stood up.
There was a mutter of agreement and slowly everyone made their way out of the room. I followed Hermione into the hall and quickly took her arm. She gasped as I pulled her into an empty room.
"What were you doing in there?" I scolded waving a finger at her.
"Don't you wave the finger at me. He was out of line." She whispered angrily.
"I don't care, that's Harry. He knows about these things."
"No, Ron, he doesn't. So some bad things happened to him. So what? Bad things happen to us all. Your father was in the war longer than any of us and you don't see him butting in and making his opinion fact."
My anger was near boiling now.
"That is my brother in there Hermione, he needs our support." I growled inches from her face.
"I know he's your best friend and all that, he can still be wrong. And he is. I will not back down, you can't make me." She hissed back.
I could see my reddening face in her eyes now and cringed a little.
"Look, I just think that we should be a little more supportive. You know how he can get." I said with a deep breath.
"Yeah I know just how he can get, and he does it to himself. The only reason he is alone is because he wants to be alone." She muttered not noticing that I had ceased to be angry
"That's a bit harsh." I said, remembering a time when I had said something much like that to him as he sat moping in my kitchen.
She glared at me for another minute and finally looked away. I could tell she was calming down, the fire was going out of her eyes and her breathing was becoming regular again.
"I know you love him. I love him too, he just makes it so hard sometimes." She whispered.
A shout from outside told us that the meeting was starting again. I sighed and took her hand in my own.
"I know he does." I replied and together we rejoined the others.
My head ached as I opened my eyes to the light streaming in my suddenly open windows. Tenderly I placed my fingers over my eyes and reveled in the darkness. The dull pain began to throb as I tried to push myself into a sitting position. Fingers digging deeper into my eye sockets I winced at the flashes of light that it brought and finally hung my head low running both hands through my hair.
"Is Master awake yet?" A high, squeaking voice asked timidly.
I looked up and found, Pip, the house elf staring at me. Her big brown eyes were liquid with tears of worry and she kept wringing her hands together.
"I'm fine Pip." I muttered wishing the light would stop shining in my eyes.
"Master left so quick last night, Pip didn't know what to do, or where's he was going." She continued.
I smiled a little and regretted it immediately as it tightened the skin of my face. Very slowly I lowered my feet to the ground and waited for the intense pain to pass.
"Master just says, 'put the boy to bed.' So Pip puts the young Master Bane to bed and sits to wait for Master Draco to come home."
I looked at Pip, her tiny house elf body shivering with nerves, little button nose sniffing back the tears that still threatened to fall.
"When did I leave?" I asked unable to remember much of the night before.
"Ohhhh, Master Draco left near ten, Pip was so worried, sir." She squeaked and edged closer.
"Did I say where I was going?"
"No. Master just says 'put the boy to bed.' so Pip did, sir." She repeated. "
Bane must be up by now, where is he?"
Pip seemed reluctant to tell me where my son was, she played with the edge of her pillowcase and shuffled her feet a bit.
"Where is Bane, Pip?" I said again with a bit more force, causing my head to nearly burst.
"Pip answers the door this morning and finds the horrible Mistress there. She hits Pip with her stick and demands the Young Master. Pip doesn't get him and the woman hits Pip again. Then the old Mistress walks to the Young Master's room and wakes him, dresses him and takes him away." Big tears were flowing down her face by the time she was through.
I clenched my jaw tightly at the pain and forced my body to stand up. Pip's loud sobs weren't helping. When I was younger I might have hit her, much in the way my mother had earlier, but I couldn't find it in me to do so now. After all she was weeping for me.
"Pip, it's fine. You couldn't stop her. I'll just go over and retrieve him." I said with more resolve that I felt.
Stumbling towards the dresser I tried to remember what I had done the night before. I vaguely remembered sitting with my son in the study, listening to him read, correcting him sometimes, but then things grew indistinct. I remembered going out the front door, and then a few disjointed images of rooms I had never been in before. Seemed I saw myself writing with my wand, hearing a voice I couldn't recognize.
"Did anyone go with me, Pip? Was someone here?" I asked digging through a drawer.
"No." She sniffed, her sobs having lessened.
"Did my mother say anything else when she took Bane?"
Ever so carefully I began to change clothing, gingerly I pulled my shirt over my head wincing as the neck stretched over my face. Seemed every nerve in my brain was on fire. Looking down I noticed strange little burns on my chest, each the size a finger tip. I frowned and looked at them closer, it appeared I had stabbed myself with my wand while it blazed. I shivered involuntarily and tugged another shirt over my head, this one not nearly as tight. Trousers were another whole ordeal. Bending over was dangerous and I had to keep steadying myself as I slipped my feet out of the legs. No strange wounds greeted me as I peered at my bare skin. Sighing I somehow pulled on a clean pair and sat heavily on the bed.
"Is Master Draco sick? Should Pip send an owl to the Healer?" The little elf whimpered.
"No, Pip, I'm fine. Just dizzy." I lied.
Finally I heaved myself to my feet once more and began searching for my wand.
"Pip, find me something for a headache." I said absently as I felt about the bed sheets.
Her little feet padded out of the room quickly and finding myself alone I laid back on the bed for a moment to catch my breath. My eyes burned and my ears felt as though they might gush a fountain of blood. Thankfully I heard the patter of elf feet on the stone floor and felt her climb up beside me on the bed.
"Pip found her Master a good potion, good for hurting heads." She said sounding proud.
"Thank you." I said taking the vial from her fingers and gulping it down.
There as no taste or smell, simply the running of liquid down my throat. Minutes passed and finally the fire began to recede and became a mere ache once more. Sitting up again I felt for my wand near the foot of the bed and found it. The end appeared to be burned a little. Something odd was happening but I didn't know what.
"What else did my mother say?" I asked getting to my feet, satisfied that I could stand.
"She says to Pip, If Master Draco is sick then the Young Master should go with her. Pip tries to stop her sir. She tries."
"Did you tell her I was sick?"
"No, Pip just says that Master is in bed sir. That you had been up very late sir. You was tired."
"Well, I'll just go and straighten this out." I said and patted the house elf's bald head.
Raising my wand for just a moment, I apparated into my mother's living room. She appeared startled at my sudden entry and I took great pleasure in this. She dropped the book she was reading and stood from her sofa to greet me. I ignored her and looked about for my son.
"Draco." She said stiffly.
"Where's Bane, mother?" I asked turning back to her.
"How did you apparate in here?" She demanded.
"I have my ways. Where is Bane?" I repeated.
As I watched her demeanor changed and she stood up a little taller. Her long midnight colored robes hung lazily off her tiny frame and her hands folded neatly in front of her.
"Bane has come to stay with me early." She said very clearly, the same voice she used when I was younger and had done something wrong.
"No he's not, he has a week left with me." I said in the same clear voice.
"Draco, I will not have my grandson staying alone in a big house with nothing but a house elf to care for him, while his father drinks and carouses with his friends." Something in her eyes told me she knew this wasn't true.
"I wasn't out drinking, I was running an important errand. Who are you to say what is good or bad for my son?"
She appraised me carefully, looking over every inch of me as if looking for flaws.
"I control your income. If I liked I could take your son from you by law, and leave you penniless on the streets. Do you honestly think that it would be that difficult for me to just cut off your allowance and fight for custody of the child?" She said her voice still very even.
I was becoming angry, but would not let her see.
"Bane has another week with me, I intend to spend it with him."
She tried to hide the cruel smile, but I saw it and frowned.
"Bane told me how you left suddenly last night. He told me that this is a common occurence."
I laughed, "And you believed him?"
"Are you saying that you son is a liar?"
"No. I'm saying that he lied to you. He doesn't lie to me."
She sighed and took her seat on the sofa again. I had to admit that she was talented. No matter the situation she could remain in control.
"Sit." She commanded.
I did.
"I have been sensing that you do not truly appreciate what I am doing here, what I am trying to teach Bane. He needs to learn how to act in public and how to make the right friends, things that obviously were lost on you," She paused waiting for me to say something, "I do not want to take him from you by force, Draco, but if things continue as they are, I will be left with no other choice. So as a last effort to make you see I have once again changed the will."
She allowed me time to think on this. I knew what she planned to do. It was obvious now. If I disagreed she would take my son from me, and she had the connections to do so.
"If you take Bane, does that mean that you will take Father as well?" I asked raising an eyebrow curiously.
She laughed a high false laugh, "No dear, a child is one thing, a complete invalid would be to much, I think your father is fine where he is."
Again I stopped to think. She did not give me much time, though
"The will has been changed to leave everything to Bane. You will inherit nothing." She stated slowly.
My blood ran cold.
"He's underage, if something happens the money will be in my care anyway."
"No, he will control his own money no matter his age, and you will cease to receive your allowance, thus your fate will be in the hands of your child. If he has been raised correctly he will know how to take care of you, if he has not, you will be left with nothing." Her eyes lit at the thought.
"Where is Bane?" I asked suddenly wanting to leave.
She smiled her cruel smile again, "Bane." She called.
He stepped through the doorway to the room and I realized he had heard everything that was said. He had heard her call me a drunk, he knew he would inherit a lot of money, he also knew that I would be unable to stop him. That is a lot of knowledge for a six year old.
"Come Bane, we're leaving." I called to him.
He hurried to meet me in front of the large fireplace. I handed him floo powder and sent him through first. Without even a good bye I left my mother alone in her large mansion.
(Ivy)
Lotus is my other half. Literally. Identical twins are the only people on earth who can say that, and even if it isn't true, it is for us. Split down the middle into two different people. Very different. I've never met anyone who is more my opposite than she. But then, I think of our parents and understand.
My mother died when we were a year old. We never knew her really. Though from the pictures, we look just like her, long blonde hair, big blue eyes, pale skin. I've caught my father staring at us, his eyes growing hard as steel, as if he were angry at himself for something. Neither of us has ever asked him about our mother, we agreed early in our lives not to. Sometimes I think I remember her. Remember her voice. Even though we never asked, Father told us some things.
We listened carefully to each of his words, wanting to hear every bit about her we could.
He said that she loved us more than anything. That, nothing was more important to her than her family. She died saving that family. He said that when she was little she lived with her father, just as we did. However, her father had not been there for her, left her alone most of the time. So when she had a family, it only seemed right to love them beyond anything else.
Bits of her still lingered. Father felt them more than the two of us. Sometimes he would stop on the stairs and just smile, or sit at the foot of his bed and hang his head low. Lotus and I tried to feel as he did, but we didn't understand.
Once when I was five, I was playing quietly in the playroom while Lotus took a nap. My doll had just fallen asleep, and I was humming to her, rocking her gently in my arms. I paced about the room, holding the little doll like a real baby and quietly began to put words to the tune I hummed. It was strange even to me, most of the words were to big, I didn't understand them, but still I sang.
"There's a chill in the evening air tonight,
Tells me that something isn't right
They say that contentment finds it's home
But I've never known serenity to stay long."
"Where did you hear that?" My father said from the doorway.
I looked up and shrugged, "Somewhere."
"Your mother used to sing that to you. That song." He said making a strange face.
"Why?" I asked forgetting my promise.
He smiled a little then.
"When you were very tiny you were very sick. Had a fever, and couldn't stop crying. Your mother stayed awake all night, rocking you, and she sang that song. How could you remember that?"
I looked at my doll and then back up to him. He smiled even wider at me and I suddenly found myself scooped up into his arms. He hugged me tight, my cheek pressed hard against his shoulder.
"I love you so much. Both of you." He said pulling back to look at me.
"I love you too, Daddy."
"Now why don't you wake your sister for dinner." I was set on the ground and as I turned to obey, I heard him laugh a little.
My father was a simple person. He rarely got angry, or even annoyed with us. Just shrugged his shoulders and smiled a little, no matter what kind of trouble we were in. His shy manner made Lotus and I want to protect him. He was our father and he was easily hurt, or so we thought. So, if we had a choice, we never left his side. Which explained why both Lotus and I were very anxious as the adults had their meeting.
They had been conferring all day. Ever since we arrived at Number 12 they had gathered into a dark room and locked the door behind them. All of the kids were sent up to the bedrooms with Angelina, who was strangely quiet. While the others played a game on the floor I sat on one of the beds and drew a picture. I drew sunny skies and big tall trees and all of us children playing, We had no colors so I just used a quill and ink, then took it to Angelina. She smiled at me and patted my head.
"Thank you, Ivy." She said and folded it neatly to put in her pocket.
I sat beside her and watched the others play. I noticed Lotus kept looking towards the door. She was as worried about our father as I was. There were a lot of people down there, he didn't like big groups, he needed us. I caught my sister's eye and she wandered over.
"Angelina I have to…" I paused and looked away shyly.
"Go on. Do you remember where is was at?" She asked petting my hair.
"Yeah, but can Lotus come with me, I don't like this place."
She smiled and nodded, "Go ahead but come straight back."
Grabbing my sisters hand I ran for the door.
"What are we going to do?" Lotus asked as I dragged her down the hall and to the stairs.
"Check on Daddy." I answered.
Quietly we crept down the stairs until we reached the landing and heard voices from a room to our right. I shushed Lotus as she was about to ask a question and kept a tight hold on her hand. Despite her love for our father, she hated being in trouble and I feared she might bolt if I let go. Very carefully we edged to the door and I pressed my ear against it. With my free hand I motioned for Lotus to do the same and we waited.
For a moment there was silence and then I heard my father begin to talk.
"Harry, we might be looking at this the wrong way." He said.
"What do you mean?" Said my Uncle Harry.
"Maybe the prophesy isn't about you, maybe it's about something that we don't know yet. I mean no one knew your prophesy was about you until after some of it happened. In fact that's how it is with most prophesies. I think we need to take that into consideration."
"While I appreciate your input, Neville, I don't see how it could be about anyone else, the time of birth matches just as in the other one."
I frowned, not understanding what they meant.
"I was born then as well, or have you forgotten that we share the same birthday?" Father said, I could hear an edge in his voice.
"That may be, but I don't think you've ever had prophetic dreams." Uncle Harry stated.
"Neither have you. Your dreams were all what happened in the present and one of them wasn't even real. And you know, it just says the end of July, that doesn't mean the last day. It could be anyone born then." Father answered.
There was silence and I clenched my fist. I didn't understand what they were talking about, but I suddenly disliked my uncle. He wouldn't listen. I wanted to open the door and run to my father's side, then tell my uncle what I thought of him. Looking over at my twin she was frowning as well, her eyes merely slits.
"Neville, excuse me for saying this, but you don't know anything about that." Uncle Harry said finally.
"Harry," Father began.
"Neville we've decided that the prophesy is about the people in the houses marked. Though maybe not in that order, I am the only dreamer in any of them. I think you need to drop this."
I gripped Lotus' hand tighter as a tingle of anger ran through me and heard her gasp. Glancing over I saw her step away from the door in surprise.
"What?" I mouthed.
She pointed at the door and I looked. A little palm print was burned into the wood, the exact size of her hand. Not understanding I lifted my hand off the door and found an identical mark beneath it. Our eyes met and then reverted back to the door. For one more fearful moment we stared and then hurried back up the stairs to Angelina.
"What was that?" She hissed at me as we approached the door to our cousins.
"I don't know. Maybe we did magic." I said looking at my hand.
"Without wands?" She asked.
"Lots of kids do that early on. I've never heard of anything like that before though."
"Should we tell Angelina? There might be something wrong with us."
"No. Then we'd be in trouble for spying. I think we're fine, we just should be more careful." I replied.
She nodded and pushed the door open.
"What took you girls so long? You didn't get lost did you?" Angelina asked as we entered the large bedroom again.
"A little, but we came back." I admitted.
"Well have a seat, who knows how long they are going to be." She said and Lotus went back to playing on the floor.
I crawled up next to Angelina on the bed and leaned against her. The events of a few minutes before stayed with me and I thought over them carefully. It might have been wandless magic, of course it was. It had to be, nothing else but magic could do that. Yet, I didn't feel any different. I didn't feel as though I had done anything special. I inspected my hand carefully. Smooth and pale, I could trace the veins, thin lines, long fingers, it was still my hand. Bringing it closer I thought perhaps I could see a glimmer beneath the skin, a flash of something hidden.
I jumped and lost sight of it as the door was shoved open.
"Hey, Angie." Uncle Fred called.
I looked at Angelina and found a strange fear in her eyes. Slowly she stood up and pulled him away from us, though I could still hear her.
"We need to talk, right away." She said urgently.
He looked at her strangely, "What about? What did the doctor say?"
"That's what we need to talk about." She whispered.
"Are you going to be okay? It's not serious is it?" He sounded upset by her words.
"I'll be okay, we need to talk about it though. Now."
"Fred! Harry's starting again." Uncle George called from down the stairs.
"We'll talk tonight. I promise." He said and kissed her quickly on the lips before hurrying back out the door.
Angelina seemed about to cry until she saw us looking at her.
"Well then, I think it's time we all got ready for dinner." She said and began taking us one at a time to the bathroom to clean up.
Lotus caught my eye and wanted to talk, I shook my head. There was to much going on, someone would hear us. Later when they had gone to sleep we would talk over what had happened, for the time being it was placed securely in the back of my head.
(Ron)
The table was full of grim faces, mine being one of them. For long minutes we simply stared at each other unbelieving, I glanced at Harry who sat very still at the head of the table. His hands were fists clenched in front of him, eyes gleaming with restrained emotion.
"What does it mean?" George said at last.
"It means trouble." Ginny said quietly.
I caught the look Harry sent her and he seemed surprised to find her still there. Almost as though he had forgotten her.
"I think I remember something." Tonks said suddenly.
Everyone turned to her. It had taken a while to explain everything to she and Remus, but after they knew, there was no keeping them from the meeting.
"Yes." Harry said, his voice very low.
"There was a prophesy wasn't there, at one time, about this. I remember. We were arguing about it the night…of the attack on the hospital." She said her voice quickly dropping.
There were varied reactions to this. Though in general most people seemed to think she was right. I thought back as carefully as I could, not wanting to stir up old emotions best left buried. Vaguely I recalled something about a prophesy. Though I could not remember what it had been about.
"I think I remember that." I offered.
Harry nodded, "I've been trying to remember it since I saw the writing on the wall."
"I think I can help with that. I kept all the notes from all the meetings in a safe place, I'll simply go and find the parchment for that night." Remus said.
"You took notes?" Harry asked surprised.
"Of course. I wasn't about to let something like that happen again, so I took careful notes and then kept them hidden so that if we needed them I could provide them." He replied and stood from the table.
I nudged Hermione, but she just held up a hand.
"Don't even say it. I know you would love to tease me about note taking, but now is not the time." She said.
I grinned at her and then turned back to the group. Moments later Remus appeared again carrying a small roll of paper. Harry unrolled it and read very carefully.
Four from three
The Dreamer, born beneath the waning July sun, sees afar the evil thing
The Healer, fair and kind, knows the evil by it's name
Torn by war, The Warrior, shall end it's evil reign
Four from three, beneath the setting sun
Again there was silence. Until at last Harry spoke.
"Well I think we can safely say that the Dreamer is a reference to me."
No one argued the point.
"Who are the other's then? And why, if you are the Dreamer, was it found at Neville's house?" Fred asked.
"Maybe whoever did it doesn't know anymore than we do, maybe it was just a warning." Ginny suggested.
"That's true," Hermione put in, "even the last prophesy was misinterpreted by Voldemort."
Though years had passed there was still a series of shivers at that name.
"Why is Harry the Dreamer?" George asked.
"His birthday is at the end of July, that description of him has been used before." Fred told him quickly.
"Then who are the others?" My dad said finally speaking.
"The Healer could be Ginny." Hermione suggested.
My sister frowned and looked upset by this. She had never finished her Healer training, though she was a natural. After the fires in Hogsmead she had lost interest in it, retaining only her status in the Order as Healer she ceased to go to her classes.
"Don't get that look on your face, Sis, you're the only one here with any healing abilities to speak of." I said.
"It could be Neville. He's kind of a healer." She said quietly.
Neville shifted uncomfortably in his seat.
"No, I'm nothing like a healer." He said.
"If Harry is the Dreamer and Ginny is the Healer then who is the Warrior?" My dad asked.
There was another pause as everyone thought about this. We considered each other carefully in turn, looking for a clue as to who might fit the qualifications. In the end Harry spoke first.
"That could be Ron."
"No. I'm not 'torn by war' in the least." I replied shaking my head.
"What about Neville?" George said.
"Why me?" Neville asked again squirming in his seat.
"You were in the war and…Luna…you could be war torn." George said stumbling over words.
I saw the look of pain cross my friends face at the mention of his wife, his fingers brush over the gold band he still wore.
"I'm no warrior." He whispered.
"You do yourself a disservice. You are very much a warrior." Harry said proudly.
At first everyone seemed happy with this explanation. It appeared we had identified those involved and could now proceed.
"Wait," Remus said holding up his hand, "If Harry is the Dreamer, Ginny is the Healer, and Neville is the Warrior, why was Ron's house broken into? That doesn't make sense."
"Harry, we might be looking at this the wrong way." Neville said thoughtfully.
"What do you mean?" Harry said curiously. "Maybe the prophesy isn't about you, maybe it's about something that we don't know yet. I mean no one knew your prophesy was about you until after some of it happened. In fact that's how it is with most prophesies. I think we need to take that into consideration." "While I appreciate your input, Neville, I don't see how it could be about anyone else, the time of birth matches just as in the other one." It didn't surprise me that Harry dismissed Neville's suggestion so quickly, but his forcefulness gave me pause. "I was born then as well, or have you forgotten that we share the same birthday?" Neville was sitting up straight and leaning towards Harry, his voice becoming hard. "That may be, but I don't think you've ever had prophetic dreams." Said Harry with a snort. "Neither have you. Your dreams were all what happened in the present and one of them wasn't even real. And you know, it just says the end of July, that doesn't mean the last day. It could be anyone born then." Neville had a point, but still I found myself taking Harry's side.
He was our leader and my best friend. No matter what happened it seemed wrong to question his decisions.
"Who else was born at the end of July?" Harry snapped.
"My son." Hermione said testily from beside me.
I glared at her and shook my head, she ignored me.
"And Meshach is how old? Six? Seven? I highly doubt that this prophesy is pertaining to him." Harry growled standing up.
"You weren't even born when a prophesy was made about you." My wife stated, her voice in the even tone I knew meant she was becoming angry.
"So you think this is about your son?" Tonks interjected trying to calm them down.
"Not necessarily, but it seems unreasonable that we can't consider other options." Hermione explained.
I continued to glare at her.
"Could it be Meshach?" Fred asked.
"I don't know. He's never mentioned a dream that came true, but then we rarely talk about things like that."
"I'd like to keep the children out of this." I spoke up.
"So would we all, but if they are involved then there is little we can do about it." Remus assured me.
"I think we should take a short break and get some air." My father stated and stood up.
There was a mutter of agreement and slowly everyone made their way out of the room. I followed Hermione into the hall and quickly took her arm. She gasped as I pulled her into an empty room.
"What were you doing in there?" I scolded waving a finger at her.
"Don't you wave the finger at me. He was out of line." She whispered angrily.
"I don't care, that's Harry. He knows about these things."
"No, Ron, he doesn't. So some bad things happened to him. So what? Bad things happen to us all. Your father was in the war longer than any of us and you don't see him butting in and making his opinion fact."
My anger was near boiling now.
"That is my brother in there Hermione, he needs our support." I growled inches from her face.
"I know he's your best friend and all that, he can still be wrong. And he is. I will not back down, you can't make me." She hissed back.
I could see my reddening face in her eyes now and cringed a little.
"Look, I just think that we should be a little more supportive. You know how he can get." I said with a deep breath.
"Yeah I know just how he can get, and he does it to himself. The only reason he is alone is because he wants to be alone." She muttered not noticing that I had ceased to be angry
"That's a bit harsh." I said, remembering a time when I had said something much like that to him as he sat moping in my kitchen.
She glared at me for another minute and finally looked away. I could tell she was calming down, the fire was going out of her eyes and her breathing was becoming regular again.
"I know you love him. I love him too, he just makes it so hard sometimes." She whispered.
A shout from outside told us that the meeting was starting again. I sighed and took her hand in my own.
"I know he does." I replied and together we rejoined the others.