AN 23 September 2016, cleanup.
Chapter 3, Deals and Discoveries
"In the mean time, you will converse with the Chancellor and First Secretary. The three of you will work out a way to 'paper' this crisis over. If an over-annulated schoolmaster can consign two children to death or worse, surely you can see to the appropriate drafting of a law to preserve said lives."
"Easier said than done, Your Grace" William thought to himself as he entered his train-board office. His office, unlike the Duke's observatory car, was magically enlarged, though still somewhat smaller than his main office at Hyrule Castle. He had no secretary on board. But as he was a fairly good typist and his telephone calls were routed through the Hyrule Castle Telephone Operators, he didn't need one. He sat behind his large mahogany desk, and picked up the telephone.
This telephone looked like it had come out of an 1920s English Hotel, complete with no rotary dial, as indeed it had. However, with magic, technology, and the Hyrule Castle Switchboard, dialing was not necessary. The operator answered,
"Yes, my Lord-Keeper?"
William replied, "Good evening, Hosanna. I need a secure video conference call to the Chancellor and the First Secretary. They may see me, and I may see them in return or not as they see fit."
"At once, my Lord-Keeper! I'll ring you back when I have them connected." The senior watch operator, Dame Hosanna Aveilla-Wainright rang off to complete the call. William hung up his receiver and reviewed his notes, jotting down extra details. Less than five minutes passed before the phone rang.
He answered, and Hosanna replied, "My Lord-Keeper, the Chancellor and First Secretary of the Realm of Hyrule; both will be visible to you. You may go secure once I connect them and ring out." A device resembling a wide home movie screen materialized before William's desk. The Chancellor, an ancient Gerudo man with some faint traces of red left in his white beard and hair was to William's left. The First Secretary, a young Kokiri man with green hair and red eyes was to William's right.
The Chancellor, Lord Alastor D'Aveil, Marquis of the Gerudo, stood six feet and nine inches tall, weighing two hundred sixty pounds. In his ninety years, he had fought as a professional officer in the Hyrulian Army, until his elder brother died in the fight against the Walpurgis Knights; Grendenwald's followers. He assumed his brothers lofty title with grace and wit, and had claimed the Chancellor's chair some ten years previous, to the acclaim of the House of Lords. In that decade, he handled the governance of Hyrule's external affairs, including her relations with the rest of Britain skilfully.
The First Secretary, Lothar Hunter was of average size and weight for his people, which is to say just under four feet tall. Like his other kinsmen, he had a guardian fairy, pointed ears, and hadn't used a wand for his magic since the age of six. He was a political achiever as well. He was barely thirty years old, and had just claimed the First Secretariat the previous month in by-elections. He first won his seat, North-West Kokiri Forest, when he was only fourteen, the youngest MP in over one hundred fifty years. He rose quickly through the Conservative, or "Zeldist" party, holding every major domestic Cabinet post in either a sitting or "shadow" government. As the House of Commons was in charge of taxation, the Army, and all domestic affairs, but NOT foreign affairs, he in fact held every government post not reserved for a Lord. He was instrumental in the last round of by-elections going in favour of his party, and in fact had just finished organizing his cabinet.
William addressed the two men, whom he had last talked to the previous evening, with Link's permission. "Gentlemen, all hell has broken loose."
Both Witenagemotary leaders were stunned! The Chancellor answered first, "Surely the Longbottoms didn't try to give Harry Potter to Dumbledore, did they?"
William answered, "No, much worse yet. The Longbottoms were brutally attacked by Riddle's Death-Eaters just before his Grace and I arrived at their home. We barely managed to rescue Neville Longbottom, the toddler son of Frank and Alice Longbottom. Death Eaters tortured Neville's parents into insanity right in front of him, and did God only knows what to his now late grandmother.
The next nearest kin that boy has are his paternal grandfather and maternal great-uncle. Both are honourable enough men, but the grandfather just lost his wife earlier today as well as effectively losing his only son and daughter-in-law. The great-uncle is a bachelor at seventy, and not a good candidate to raise a child. What's more, if we give Neville back to his closer blood relatives, Harry's removal from the Dursleys will be made plain that much sooner, and you can imagine what trouble that will cause."
The First Secretary asked, "What does His Grace want us to do?"
William answered, "He told me to have the two of you 'paper this over.' Obviously, we are engaged in two acts of kidnap. In mitigation, our own security is threatened if these two children aren't raised in a proper home, and the one Englishman who would affect their upbringing has demonstrated unsound judgment as to the placement of Harry Potter. Furthermore, the Ministry of Magic are guaranteed to make even more drastic mistakes with Harry if they take him in Dumbledore's stead.
"His Grace will require a bill from Witenagemot declaring Harry Potter and Neville Longbottom to be adopted by him, and declared native-born Hyrulians. Any and all laws and treaties contradicting this law are to be nullified in this particular case."
Both Chancellor and First Secretary were silent for over a minute. The First Secretary spoke first. "Lord William, I can get such a bill through Commons, even tonight. However, there is one problem, and that is the succession. In order to get your bill passed, I'll need to have some assurance that both boys will be appointed Margraves upon their Kokiri Majority, eleven years of age. Will His Grace agree to this?"
In Hyrule, any child or grandchild of the King of Hyrule, and later the Duke of Hyrule, was referred to as a Prince or Princess. Such titles, while prestigious, carried no authority, and were based upon the descent from a King or Duke. The great grand-child of a King or Duke would be a commoner unless they were granted other titles or inherited other titles from their parents.
But a Duke before the treaty, or a Margrave after, was an officially acknowledged heir of the King or Duke of Hyrule. They were beholden only to the King or Duke, and each one had special responsibilities apart from their seat in the House of Lords, and their generous pensions from the King or Duke and the Realm. The "senior" Margrave or Duke, the one who would take the throne upon Link's demise, was the commander of all of Hyrule's armed forces. The second Margrave was in charge of the Admiralty under the senior Margrave, commanded the Constabulary in his own right, and was also responsible for appointing the Preceptor for the Knights-Guardian of the Realm of Hyrule.
The only duke appointed by Link was his eldest son, Darunia, third Duke of Hyrule (Link was the second, his father Arliss was the first.) In that time the title was not hereditary. Under his third life-mate, Duchess Rebecca, all of their children were appointed Margraves, and Link made their titles hereditary. Thus, he was faced a few hundred years later with a self-appointed house of Parliament; a house he had to disband with the Lords, Commons, and the Sword of Ages, his feared magical two-handed great-sword. Link married one time after that, to Duchess Kikyo. Of their offspring, only one was appointed to any noble rank; he was the Earl of Iwakuni, a "dual-crowned" nobleman who was also responsible to the Emperor of Nippon. That title survived for only three generations, and was never recreated.
William answered, "I'm not sure. You know from history that he hasn't had the best of luck with officially appointed heirs."
The Chancellor replied, "The Council of Margraves was a major problem… in 1370! None of His Grace's sons were on that council, nor did they have the approval of Witenagemot to do what they tried. Were it not for Witenagemot's loyalty, His Grace would have been deposed, and our Sceptred Realm would have been enslaved! But we haven't had an heir to His Grace since. He may be nearly immortal, but even people such as His Grace can be called back to Our Father in Heaven, leaving us all behind. With the way the Treaty is written, we could yet become bondsmen to the English! Britons were not made to be slaves! I will work with the First Secretary on a Joint Bill, avoiding political squabbles. And I am just as aware as you that Riddle still walks the earth in some form, and that Harry Potter must be the one to slay him. But we Hyrulian subjects must have our due! Please prevail upon His Grace to appoint the two children Margraves, and to raise them to perform their offices in justice and truth. Do this, and I can give you a law ready to sign the moment His Grace steps off of his train at Hyrule Castle. Withhold this, and I can not guarantee anything."
William answered, "His Grace would not want to impose such a burden upon such small children. He also conceders himself honour-bound to Albus Dumbledore to raise Harry in as 'plain' yet loving a home as he can provide, that the boy's heart is not turned to arrogance and cruelty. But, I will present your request to him. I ask you in return to offer titles only as a last resort."
The Prime Minister asked, "Who is the eldest, and who is most closely related by blood to His Grace."
The Lord-Keeper answered, "In the first case, it's Neville, but in the second, it's Harry. Harry was born at thirty seconds past midnight on the thirty-first of July 1980. Neville Longbottom was born two hours and thirty minutes earlier. Harry is related to His Grace on both sides of his family, and to every Queen and Duchess save Duchess Kikyo, including Queen Saria. Neville descends from Queen Zelda alone. Harry would take the senior Margraveship, and Neville the junior, until Harry had an heir come of age to take the armed forces, should Harry ever ascend to the throne."
At that moment, there was a knock on William's door. Knowing only one person who would dare interrupt him, he asked, "Yes, Your Grace?"
Link answered, "I've handed the boys off to Sergeant Stebbins for the moment. Do you have the Chancellor and First Secretary on the phone?"
William answered, "Yes, Your Grace, and come in." Once Link entered, William said, "Your Grace, the Chancellor and First Secretary say that they can have a bill by the time we arrive at Castleton. However, they also say that in order to do this, they will need you to appoint your new sons as Margraves upon their Kokiri Majority."
Link looked sadly at the two men. He said, after some moments of thought, "You would impose such a burden upon my sons, knowing that both of them are fated to battle Voldemort?"
The Chancellor answered, "Your Grace, we are obliged to overturn numerous British and Hyrulian laws to grant the children you claim as your sons the peace and quietude they truly deserve. Most of our fellow Witenagemot members will not see the justice in this. The only cudgel we have to fight with on your behalf is the promise of two known heirs to make them rest easy that even if Dragmire should claim your life in some future day that the Realm shall remain free! Compared to the burden they already face, surely this isn't that much to ask?"
Link stood in silence for almost two minutes. He finally answered, "I will raise my sons to this burden. Have mercy on then if you can, but if their duty also calls them to be my heirs, they shall be ready."
The Duke of Hyrule stood pensively for another minute, before he turned back to his Chancellor and First Secretary, eyes alight with determination and spoke again.
"If the die must be cast, then We say let it be cast truly and well. They will be appointed tonight. Harry is to be the Margrave of Ivanhoe, first in line to the succession. Neville is to be the Margrave of Elsinore; first in line to succeed Ivanhoe and second in line to succeed Us. Their appointment is to be gazetted with the minimum possible fanfare due to the recent loss of their birth parents; parents who were Our descendants and who died in service to the Realm. They will be protected against legal and other harm by the Succession Act. We will see to their still enjoying their childhood, yet also being ready to do their duty." Without another word, the Duke of Hyrule left the compartment, his bearing giving little hint of the anguish he felt at giving such a burden to his two youngest sons.
Alastor remarked, "He must really be anxious over this in order to give in so quickly."
William replied, "I've not seen him so worried about anything as long as I've known him."
Lothar answered, "Yet, though he keeps the children close, their titles are somewhat distant."
"How so," Alistor queried.
Lothar replied, "'Ivanhoe' is His Grace's estate just to the north of Rotherwood's lands in York. And Elsinore, though still held, has never been more than a punitive occupation after the Hamlet incident. While being appointed a Margrave is a great honor and solemn responsibility, their estates are less than the freeholds of some hereditary Knights or Samurai. Ivanhoe is a hunting lodge, and the uncontested portion of Elsinore Castle is little more than a large luxury flat!"
William said in answer, "Seeing that they are the only two Margraves in the realm, their titular fiefs make no great matter. You will also recall that the Margravial titles are not recycled, and many have been driven into disrepute.
"Prince Harry is the also pretender to the hereditary principality of Wales, and as a Potter is also the closest non-Pevensie claimant to the male line of descent of the DePilatus line of the Hylean Royal Family. And, Prince Neville's holding in Somerset are no small matter; though it will be years if not decades before he can publicly claim them.
"So, let's not prolong our errand with needless worry or speculation; we need to have this bill written in the next half-hour if you wish to meet Witenagemot with it." The three men conferred for the next twenty minutes, drafting the complete bill with all of its provisions in record time.
Link returned to the Observation Car to find Sergeant Stebbins playing "horsey" with Harry and Neville. The sergeant was not much larger than the two boys himself, as he was a house-elf.
House-elves had been bred by wizards several millennia ago. They were bred to be magically bound to and serve their masters. Moreover, they were bred to be addicted to their labours, such that they would die if left for a prolonged period of time without work or a bond to a wizard or witch. House-elves were imported into Hyrule in the 440s, less than twenty years before King Link outlawed both slavery and serfdom. Link refused to reconsider his law, yet he could find no other way to keep the house-elves from dying from their unsought freedom. In desperation, he finally drafted all the remaining house-elves into the Hyrulian Army, and posted them wherever he could within the realm to do household chores.
This solution was rather difficult at first, especially with all the poorer Hyrulians who desperately needed to earn money and were competing for the same jobs as the house-elves were being given. But, in time, the adjustments were in fact made.
This was just as well. In other countries the local house-elves were subservient to the point of insanity, seldom even speaking the local language with proper grammar, and never in the first-person. Hyrulian house-elves, while quite respectful, were also quite direct, and spoke directly and in perfect English, Kiríál, Zoresse, Japanese, Gerudo, or Goron as their "supervisors" (all Hyrulian house-elves served and were bonded the King) required. Color Sergeant Purley Stebbins was no different.
"Do you need me any further, Your Grace?" the house-elf asked.
"Not for now, Purley. I'll need their bottles brought around twoish, listen for when they wake up, or when I call. Harry knows to wake me, Neville will probably try to nurse me first."
"Begging Your Grace's pardon, but wouldn't they be happier in a cot?"
Link replied, "Heaven forbid! Harry has already taken up civilized ways, I trust Neville will as well." All Kokiri, including Link, believed that infants and toddlers should sleep upon the chests of their parents. As this was the way all Kokiri raised their children, and indeed was the only way to raise Kokiri children, it was what Link would do.
Sergeant Stebbins had not only entertained the two toddlers, but had expertly exhausted them. Harry, used to bathing before going to bed, asked, "Bath, Dádí?"
Link answered, in modern Kiríál, "Yes, Harry, then, bedtime. It's been a long day, and we will have a longer one tomorrow settling in at home. Neville and you have a new home, and I have the two of you as new sons. This will take some getting used to.
Link bathed the two boys, only getting slightly drenched in the process. He put nappies on them, and lay down to sleep with them on his chest.
As Link dosed off, Neville quietly asked "Cot, Hawwy?"
Harry answered, "No, Nevo. Dádí."
Neville predictably tried to nurse off of Link at half past one. After a quick explanation and two bottles of formula, the toddlers went back to sleep.
Link dreamt again, as he had for the past several nights. At least, he had assumed he was dreaming normally. However, he realized that the presence he felt in his dreams had doubled this night. After a moment's thought he realized what was happening. Kokiri children who not yet reached puberty would frequent the dreams of their parents, especially when they were still nursing. This had not happened to Link in over a thousand years. He had only two Kokiri children, Darunia and Darmani. Out of the rest of his many children, only his third child, his first by Queen Zelda did this. And boys tended to share their mother's dreams, whereas daughters shared the dreams of their fathers. But, Darunia had shared Link's dreams frequently, and Darmani had shared his dreams several times while he was still in his mother's womb.
Link sought out his two new sons. Harry came to him joyously and almost instantly, speaking perfectly. Neville came more reluctantly, and seemed to hesitate in his speech. Link comforted both boys, and explained the dream they were sharing, of a time when Link and his first life-mate, Queen Saria, were still children. The three of them dreamt thusly through the rest of the night, until the train reached the train station at the dungeons of Hyrule Castle.
Witenagemot had just approved the adoption and succession bill not ten minutes before. The Chancellor and First Secretary practically sprinted from the Witenagemot Chambers to meet the Duke's Train with the bills for signature. They arrived at the platform moments before the train itself did; the Honour Guard of Gerudo Dragoons had already formed to welcome their liege-lord. As soon as the train stopped, the two politicians entered to first locate the Lord-Keeper, then the Duke, that the bills would be signed before anyone left the train. They found William, Link, Sergeant Stebbins, Harry, and Neville in the observation car. Link saw the documents the Chancellor and First Secretary were carrying. He took, read, and signed them without speaking. Link then bid the men leave the compartment so he could finish dressing Harry and Neville, who had amazingly remained asleep even after Link himself awoke and attended to his morning ablutions. The Chancellor and First Secretary left the train to take their place in the receiving line outside.
Link left the train several minutes later, carrying Prince Harry and Prince Neville, to the quiet applause of the men gathered outside. They were quiet because they had been warned their Duke would be carrying two young children who wouldn't appreciate loud noises from strangers in a strange setting. Prince Neville and Prince Harry looked about as the Gerudo Dragoons quietly gave their traditional greeting, "My Father, the King!"
Prince Harry looked at his new father and asked, in perfect fifth century Kiríál, "Do I have that many brothers, Papa? Must I share you with all of them, too?"
Link answered likewise, "Not exactly. I'm more like a Great-Papa to them, and they are already grown men. I'll tell you more about them when you can understand it."
Prince Neville asked, in perfect modern Kiríál, "When will that be, Dádí?"
Link answered, "Soon, Neville. But first, we go up to breakfast."
"Pancakes?" Prince Harry interrupted.
"Perhaps…" Link answered.
As the Duke and his sons left the platform to their private living quarters, William remained behind to answer the questions he knew would be coming. He was not disappointed.
"You weren't kidding, Lord-Keeper! If I didn't know better, I would swear they were Kokiri themselves!" Lothar said.
"As would I" Alastor seconded, adding, "So, they had already bonded when you called us yesterday evening?"
"Harry had" William answered. "Neville was just a matter of time, though he will never be as close as Harry. And, Neville and Harry themselves are also bonded. Both children spoke above the level of ones their age, unless both had been of Kokiri intellect before. Now, as you can see, they feed off of their father's intellect, especially for languages, not unlike Kokiri children."
At that moment, everyone in the castle felt a profound sense of well-being and protection envelop them. Alastor paused, then spoke. "I think I know how Prince Harry survived Avada Kedavra.
"It would seem that Lily Potter either knew or guessed the Shield Charm of the Mother's blood-love. The incantation has been lost for centuries; had I not studied Charms as a favourite hobby for all my life I wouldn't know of this myself. But the charm, if cast by a powerful spell-caster, and received by a powerful spell caster, will protect the recipient from almost anything and everything for many years. In fact, in the feeblest of circumstances, this charm has been known to last in some degree until the recipient reached adulthood. In other circumstances, the protection has lasted even longer."
William interjected, "Our own Duke was a recipient of this unusual charm when he was an infant, or at least so the legends say. Before you ask, I tried asking him once as a young man; he nearly discharged me on the spot, and I never asked again. But I'm sure he was."
Lothar said, "I've studied that charm myself. Supposedly, it only lasts when the recipient is housed in a dwelling of one of his mother's relatives."
William answered, "I wanted to be a Charms Master and teacher in my youth. As I remember the charm, what you say is correct. The continuing effect of the charm depended on the recipient dwelling in the house of his mother's blood, being loved in that home, and the relative themselves being magically powerful, in that order. Blood alone was to be enough to sustain the child whilst they dwelt there. Love would reinforce the charm, and the magical power of the relative would add power. Prince Harry is descended from His Grace on both his father's and his mother's lines. His Grace is as powerful a spellcaster as has walked the earth, and is much stronger than most. And I could see that His Grace loved Prince Harry at first sight! Prince Harry, in turn, loves His Grace as if they had always been father and son.
"It would seem that we have indeed done a good turn for the realm in this hurried piece of legislation. Let us now go upstairs. We need to find out when His Grace adopted these poor orphans, and when he plans on telling the Realm of it."
The three public servants, having been preceded off the platform by the Gerudo Honour Guard by several minutes, left for the upper floors of the castle.
The next few months were indeed months of discovery for all. Prince Harry had been christened in the Latin Rite in Cokeworth, but Prince Neville had not been christened at all, though both Harry and Neville had godparents, as was typical in wizarding tradition. Harry's godparents were Sirius Black, who was imprisoned in Azkaban Fortress without trial for the betrayal of James and Lily Potter amongst other crimes, and Alice Longbottom, who was with her husband Frank Longbottom hospitalized at St. Mungo's Hospital in London for cruciatus after-effects, likely never to be released. Neville's godparents in turn were James and Lily Potter. Link had proxies summoned from the choir of the Chapel Royal, and had the Archbishop of Castleton, the leader of the Hyrulian Catholic Church administer the sacrament for Prince Neville.
Seeing both of his sons spiritually "bathed," Link found himself free to get on with the rest of his life raising two magically strong, emotionally fragile, and exceedingly wilful sons. To bend the will to follow only righteous causes, strengthen the emotions, and properly encourage the magic, unlike the English who neglected this strength far too long, was a challenge even for Link. But, though feelings were occasionally hurt, and bottoms occasionally spanked, neither father nor children ever came close to forgetting that they loved each other, and far more days were filled with laughter than sorrow or consternation.
Meanwhile, in Surrey, Harry's absence was being felt, though no one knew what they missed, or why. Dudley Dursley, who was indeed quite magical, started to "spark," or cast accidental magic. With no Harry for the magic to be blamed upon, nor with the indirect lesson to destroy one's magical core Harry would have provided, Dudley became more magically powerful, not less. Vernon and Petunia, rather than spoiling their only son, treated him much more harshly. When their daughter was still-born, because of Petunia's hatred of magic, it was Dudley who caught the blame, not Harry. Dudley was not mistreated the way Harry would have been, especially not at first, but he no longer knew the unconditional affection and lack of boundaries that would have passed for love from his parents.
Moreover, the Traitor's Payment was slowly being spent. Had the Dursleys known or cared, there was one caveat to their having accepted the payment they did. That caveat was that if they tried to return whatever part of the money was still theirs, they would get Harry back as if they had never sold him. However, they had no idea just how important Harry would be to them. It took them over six months, but the last of the money was spent on the first day of June. With the spending of the last pence, on a bouquet of roses for Petunia, the wards on 4 Privet Drive fell, never to be replaced.
The Dursleys neither knew nor cared that the wards fell. But, in the foothills of the Grampian Mountains, at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Albus Dumbledore also felt the wards fall. And Albus Dumbledore did know, and did care. For, as far as he knew, the worst possible tragedy to befall humankind had just happened. Harry Potter, the only known person capable of killing Voldemort for good, had disappeared or died. When Voldemort came back again, as he was sure to, nothing would be able to stop him. Dumbledore hung his head and wept bitterly at his profound mistake in judgment, and at the cost it would undoubtedly bring.