The following Saturday found Marigold Potter sitting at the breakfast table, sipping her tea and trying to wake herself up. It had been a late night, as seemed to be the trend these days, and she had gotten very little sleep. It wasn't just the length of the discussion that kept her awake, but the topic - for most of the evening, the five had discussed their godparents.

And there they came to another stark reminder that their worlds, though similar, held important differences.

Sirius Black was the sworn godfather of both Spellforged and Chaser Potter, as Marigold had taken to calling him. Spellforged was confident that Sirius would be godfather for the others as well, if only because he could not think of any other candidates from among the wizards he knew to be friends with their parents. Rose pointed out that their parents' circle of friends might differ from world to world as well, and Spellforged had no answer to that.

Chaser Potter offered to ask his father about that choice, when he had an opportunity. Maybe another name would surface. "You might even ask Sirius himself," Rose had suggested. Seeker Potter mentioned that Hagrid had invited him to tea, and knew their parents when they were students - maybe he would know who his godfather might have been.

When the discussion turned to godmothers, the answers were even less clear. Madam Amelia Bones was the godmother to Spellforged and Chaser Potter, but Rose had learned that her godmother had almost been Lady Selena Greengrass, mother of Daphne Greengrass. This surprised the gryffindors among them, and it had apparently surprised Rose as well. For her part, Rose did not get into much detail about how she had found this information, except to say that her version of Daphne had helped Rose subdue the possessed defense professor (and, therefore, Voldemort), and was one of her closest friends in her house. That Daphne was one of Rose's only friends in Slytherin went unmentioned.

Maybe the hat knew she would need that support, wondered Marigold. Both from Daphne and from her mother.

Rose had noted that Lady Greengrass had been a Ravenclaw, and had become friends with their mother while studying Ancient Runes in their later years at Hogwarts. She was reasonably certain that they could trust her, at least in her world - after all, according to Daphne, their mothers had been close. Rose had asked Daphne if her mother had a picture from their school days, in hopes that they could identify others from Lily's circle of friends.

Knowing who to trust will be important, thought Marigold, as she watched the great hall begin to fill. And maybe that'll be the hardest part, at least for Rose and I. The group had agreed, trusted allies would be vital when the link began to act.

Spellforged had worried himself sick over the idea that three of the others were still living with the Dursleys. Apparently, when he was found, the muggle healers had assumed that his injuries were all related to the explosion that had leveled the house and killed his guardians. But then they noticed the malnutrition, the bruises, the evidence that he had been shaken. A picture began to emerge of a less-than-loving home. And some of the comments from Rose, Marigold, and Seeker Harry had cause Spellforged to wonder if he had gotten lucky. Put simply, Spellforged would feel alot better about their safety if they found a way to get permanently away from Privet Drive. No one could disagree with that.

Finding a godparent, whether the (hopefully) innocent Sirius Black or someone else, became priority one.

Marigold watched the Hufflepuff table as Susan Bones and Hannah Abbott walked in for their breakfast. What if her Aunt is my godmother, like she is with Harry? Another 'puff leaned over to Susan and said something, which got laughs from the redhead and her housemates. It would have been nice growing up with a sister, she thought.

Her attention was drawn to Neville Longbottom, who sat down across the table from her and partially blocked her view. He nodded in greeting, his typical shyness precluding anything more. Marigold smiled at him in return, her thoughts still on the identity of her godparents. She looked from Susan to Neville and back, taking a bite of her toast as she thought. Neville busied himself with some eggs, and seemed to be preparing himself for another quiet breakfast.

"Hey Neville, can I ask you a question?"

Neville looked up, surprised. "Um, sure Marigold, what can I do for you?" She heard a very slight emphasis on the "I" there, as if he was surprised not that she had a question, but that she had chosen to ask him.

"I know you grew up in the wizarding world," she began, "so maybe you can help me. I know the muggles have godparents, but someone said that magical families do too. Is that a thing?" She had tried to keep the question light and informal, not wanting to betray her eagerness for an answer.

Neville blinked at her, his face even more surprised than before. "Do you not, I mean…" He paused, taking a breath. "Yes, we have godparents. Usually it's a close friend of the parents, sometimes an uncle or another family member."

Marigold nodded. "And is it just a religious thing, like the muggles, or do they do anything?"

Neville shrugged. "I don't know what the muggles do, but for us the godparents are supposed to help raise the kids and guide their magic. Sometimes parents will choose godparents who are strong in areas that they aren't, like two parents who are pants at charms choosing a charms master, for example. But most of the time, it's a more personal choice." He looked at her again, tilting his head, considering. "You don't know, do you?"

She took a sip of her pumpkin juice, before setting the cup down. "Know what?"

Neville's expression was unreadable. "Marigold, your mum was my godmother."

Oh. "I knew there was a reason I liked you, Neville." She gave him a disarming grin, hoping that he relaxed a little. "We might have been brother and sister, if things had gone differently." Then she paused, trying to appear thoughtful. "I wonder who my godmother is."

Neville shook his head. "I wouldn't know. Unless it had been my mum or gran, there wouldn't be a need to tell me."

Strike one name off the list, then, she thought. "Surely someone can tell me, right? I mean, it'd have to be written down somewhere?"

Another shrug from Neville. "Probably. It would have been mentioned in their wills, if your parents had them - and knowing how old the Potter family is, they would have had to." Neville's face lit up. "Hey, that's an idea - the goblins might know."

Marigold laughed. "I can see it now. 'Dear Director Ragnok, whenever you get a chance, could you look up my godparents? No one ever told me who they are. Thanks! Love and kisses, Marigold Potter.' Can you imagine?" Neville's look of shock turned to a broad grin, before the punchline broke him into a laughing fit. That got Marigold laughing as well, drawing looks from the other lions.

"Merlin," he said, calming down. "I'd love to see the response that gets from the Director of Gringott's. 'Love and kisses,' listen to you."

"I happen to know quite a lot about goblin culture," Marigold replied, trying to sound as serious as possible. "Though perhaps my coach was having me on with some of the details."

Neville chuckled. "Maybe so."

They continued to chat for the rest of breakfast. As they rose to head back to the common room, Marigold put a hand on Neville's shoulder.

"Seriously, all kidding aside - thank you."

Neville seemed surprised by the contact, and the sentiment. "I didn't do anything, Marigold."

"Nev, I've been in the wizarding world for just over three months. No one ever explained to me about my family, or about the fact that there might be some adult out there who's supposed to be helping me. You did." She grinned, giving him a half bow. "I owe you one, Heir Longbottom."

Neville returned the bow, almost on reflex - as his gran had taught him. "I could do no less for House Potter, or for the Heiress Potter."

They resumed their walk back to Gryffindor Tower. Marigold let Neville's last statement sit for a while, before looking over at the Longbottom Heir. "What do you mean, House Potter, exactly?"

Neville's eyebrows raised in surprise, before he remembered her words from breakfast. No one told her about her family. None of it. Merlin… he thought.

"Alright, Marigold, this is going to sound strange, and to most muggleborn witches and wizards, it's one of the ways that our world is 'backwards'. Most families are just families, raising children, making a living, building a home, and so on. Much like muggles do, I imagine." Marigold nodded, saying nothing. "Okay, well there are some families in the wizarding world that trace their lineage back centuries. For those families, things are more complicated."

"How so?"

"Well, for example, your family is the Ancient and Most Noble House of Potter. Your house, like mine, has a seat on the Wizengamot, which is kind of like the muggle House of Lords. In centuries past, when houses would go to war with each other, you would have houses that traditionally stood together - these were called allied houses." Here, he paused. Neville had been speaking as if reciting a lesson, and he may have been. He wondered how to phrase the next bit, for he knew that it would be the heaviest burden to bear. If she even chooses to bear it…

But Marigold beat him to it. "Our houses…. We're allied, aren't we?"

Neville stopped, staring at her. "You knew?"

"Not as such, no." Spellforged hinted at it, but didn't know if it carried over to me… "But when you said House Potter earlier, in the great hall, the way you said it tipped me off. And then you tell me that house alliances are a thing, and it clicked."

Neville looked visibly relieved, and the pair resumed their walk. "For a moment there, I thought you knew about the alliance and were rejecting it. Gran would have been furious."

Marigold laughed. "Like I said, Neville, I'm on my own in the dark, here. Even if I wanted to - and I don't! - I'm not in a position to reject any aid I can get my little hands on." She inclined her head, looking over at him. "Longbottom and Potter, eh?"

Neville grinned, relaxing again. "And Marchbanks, and Bones. There are other houses who have worked with Gran in the Wizengamot, but those four are the closest allies."

Thinking back to Rose's comments the night before, Marigold decided to go fishing. "What about the Greengrasses?"

Neville's eyebrow raised again. "I'm surprised you got any information out of Daphne, she is a true slytherin, gathering information without giving any away. No, her family is neutral, but sometimes Lord Greengrass agrees with Gran on business regulations or similar issues. They're in the import business."

"I got the impression that her mother was friends with mine."

Neville nodded again. "Your mother and mine were both friends with Lady Greengrass. They were some of Professor Flitwick's favorites in charms, as he tells the story. Our mums were the only two lions that could keep up with the 'Claws, or so he said."

"Sounds like I should find an excuse to have tea with Professor Flitwick, then."

"He did know our parents, Marigold. He might be able to tell you more about your godmother." Neville's features clouded, just for a second, and Marigold caught it. He had realized who her godfather had been.

They reached the entrance to the tower, and Marigold paused again. "When you graduate, and get bored with your strange Wizard Parliament or whatever, rest easy - you've got a fine career ahead of you as a Wizarding Culture professor."

Neville chuckled. "Happy to help." They parted as Neville went to his dorm, and Marigold found a quiet corner of the common room. Sitting on a small couch, she closed her eyes.

Good morning, Spellforged. The goblin-raised Ravenclaw was never one to sleep in on the weekend.

Good morning Marigold, everything alright?

Fine. I just had a nice talk with Neville Longbottom about godparents and wizarding culture and whatnot. She couldn't help but chuckle as she thought back to his idea from breakfast. He suggested that I write to the goblins and ask about who my godparents are.

Worth a shot. But more likely than not they'll make you come in for an inheritance test or something similar. She could almost hear his shrug. Ask me next year and I could probably do it for you, but I'm not at that level just yet. And don't forget, there's a distance factor as well.

A distance factor? Merlin, Spellforged, you almost made me laugh. She shook her head, smiling. One other note for the file, though - Neville mentioned that our house is allied with the houses of Longbottom, Bones, and Marchbanks. My Lord Greengrass is a neutral here, but probably persuadable.

Good, replied Spellforged. I'll add them to the list.

"Ravenclaws," she muttered. Tell me you don't have a notebook with five worlds worth of intelligence written down… If someone finds it, they'll put you in a soft room.

Give me at least some credit, Marigold, Spellforged shot back, amused.

It took her a second. You wrote it in Goblin, didn't you?

Hermione Granger looked up from her book to see her friend Marigold sitting in the corner, her eyes closed as if trying to nap, a broad grin on her face as she stifled a laugh.


Later that day, Gringott's London received a letter.

23 November 1991

Accounts Manager Foecleaver

Gringott's London

At your client's request, I have completed the purchase of ownership shares of the Daily Prophet. The shares involved in this purchase constitute 2.5% of the currently available shares in the firm.

As we discussed, I expect shares equaling approximately 8% of shares to become available within the coming calendar year, perhaps as soon as the third quarter of 1992. If that is that case, I shall pursue the acquisition of those shares as well, under our original agreement. In the event that my instructions change, please advise me without delay.

I will, of course, continue to explore additional avenues for further acquisitions. Once a controlling interest is in hand, we will need your client to attend at least one shareholders meeting if they wish to assert control over the operations of the firm. I can serve as proxy, of course, but we will need the Potter Regent to appear in person to complete that designation, under the board's rules.

Please extend my compliments to your Uncle, and thank the Director for giving us this opportunity.

I remain your servant,

/s/

Robert Fitzpatrick

Farrow, Kerry, & Fitzpatrick

Solicitors and Advisors

Hogsmeade, UK


A/N: No, we have not met the Potter regent. Interestingly, neither have the five.

This feels a bit like a filler chapter, and it is to some degree. I wanted Marigold to feel more comfortable, to start reaching out a bit, with the encouragement of the link. Once she started sassing Neville, the conversation grew from there.

One note on oaths: A few readers asked for clarification about the previous chapter. Sirius Black had made an oath to protect his godchild, and to prevent them from coming to harm. Actively betraying the child's location in such a way as to ensure that Voldemort would harm the child would definitely break that oath, costing him his magic. Since he still has magic, he didn't do the betraying. (Chasing Peter was not a breach, nor was handing Harry/Rose/Marigold to Hagrid - the Oath would have seen that as actively seeking out a threat to the child.)

Peter, meanwhile, was only covered by the Fidelius. He had to be able to reveal the location to whomever he wished, because he was the one entrusted to keep the secret. So in this case, his betrayal did not break any oath, as such. (Had the Marauders made an oath of friendship or alliance or to stand together come what may, or whatever, THAT might have been broken by Peter's betrayal. Hell, taking the Dark Mark alone might break such an oath. I've seen that work before, but that's not an angle I plan to explore here.)

Your feedback, as always, is welcome.