Chapter 33 – Devastating Secrets
Anna didn't know how long she stayed outside but before she knew it the sun was rising and she was walking slowly back to the castle. She went to the Great Hall to wait for breakfast. No one else was up as it was 5am on a Sunday but she saw that there was an owl waiting to deliver the Daily Prophet to someone. It flew over to her and landed in front of her, she sighed and took it. The note attached to it said:
I thought you might like to see this before everyone else could tell you about it.
Love Dad.
She unrolled it and read the headline.
Harry Potter's secret daughter.
Yesterday evidence was discovered that Harry Potter has a daughter. Anna Potter who went by the name of Anna Fischer has been attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry since the beginning of last September. Before that it has been revealed that Harry and Anna had been moving around Australia and Europe. Anna's mother was killed in Milan 6 years ago. You-know-who was the one to bring this into light he was reported to have said: "Are you going to die like your mother screaming and begging for her life? Pleading to be set free to go back to her precious husband who would take care of her. Are you going to die a coward crying like your mother?" Then after she had replied "she didn't," he retorted. "Only a relation of Harry Potter's would be stupid enough to stand in front of me and try to defeat me." This comes as a shock to the Wizarding community…
The Article went on in this fashion for the rest of the newspaper somehow they had managed to get Anna's whole life story in a matter of hours. Anna sighed everyone knew now, there was no turning back. One good thing about this was that now she could be completely open with her friends now and she would be able to go to her father's wedding.
When students finally began to wake up and come down to breakfast all of them seemed to be whispering and staring at Anna. She wasn't used to all eyes being on her, and it unnerved her slightly. Anna wanted to find Lily and Lupin. When they finally came down to breakfast Lily came and sat next to Anna along with Remus. Lupin however wouldn't look at Anna and went and sat with James and Sirius.
"Anna," Lily said, "why couldn't you tell us?"
"I couldn't tell anyone," she pleaded Anna got up to go over to Lupin.
"Don't," Remus said pulling on her robes. "He doesn't want to speak to you right now," he said.
"Why not," Anna said but she knew the answer before she finished the sentence.
"He is just upset you didn't tell him," he said. Anna was mad, and upset, she had told him she had secrets she couldn't tell him. He said he would wait. She wasn't going to apologize, she had warned him if he was going to be like that about it then fine, he could be like that.
Remus watched as Anna left the Great Hall with all eyes except one pair watching her. Remus looked over at Lupin who was intently interested in what was on his plate. Remus got up and went to sit next to him.
"Don't start," Lupin said before Remus had even opened his mouth.
"I wasn't going to say anything,"
"Yes you were you have that look,"
"What look?"
"The look where you think you know better than me and you are about to explain why," Lupin said looking his friend in the eye.
"Actually I was going to say that it seems very unlikely that Anna was having an affair with Professor Potter now does it?" Lupin looked at him and burst out laughing but quickly stifled it.
"That's not funny, and slightly disturbing," he said.
"Yeah it is, but anyway don't be too hard on Anna, we don't know what she has been through—"
"Because she didn't tell us," Lupin interjected. Remus sighed this was going to take time.
"Alright but remember she didn't have a choice." Remus said and left the Great Hall.
Lupin watched as Remus left and then didn't look up as someone sat down next to him.
"So you and Anna broke up?" Alison said and Lupin felt his insides drop unpleasantly. He shrugged his shoulders.
"You know I would never keep anything that important from you."
"No you just go behind my back," he said and made to stand up but Alison put a hand on his arm. It felt cold and bony as apposed to Anna's who always had warm hands.
"It was the stupidest mistake I ever made," she said but something in her eyes Lupin felt he didn't trust.
"We'll see," he said and left the Great Hall. He walked toward the common room thinking about Alison. If his best friend had just died he sure as hell wouldn't be trying to get his ex back. There was something unsettling about that. Although everything seemed much easier with Alison. With Anna he never knew what was coming next, he snorted to himself, that certainly proved true yesterday. Everything was easier and simpler with Alison…