Chapter 21: Betrothed?

Harry had no problem convincing his roommates to agree to sign the contract Hermione had drafted, after thorough research, of course. However, Minerva insisted that it would be much better (and safer) for the portrait to be in a separate area. Severus and Andromeda volunteered. They finally settled on the office of the Infirmary. Students never went in there, and if Harry needed privacy, he only needed to create a privacy bubble. Aunt Andi promised to teach him. That was a fourth-year level spell! He was nervous to attempt that, but his friends were willing to go through the embarrassment of failing with him, which made him feel better.

Minerva was quite sure they would do just fine. Even Neville, who was always insecure of his performance, had been improving consistently. The fact that they studied together and shared notes helped them to cover more content more efficiently. They had also told her that once one of them managed a spell, that kid would help the others until they managed to do it. She was quite proud of her cubs and her baby snake. They were quite lucky to have each other and to work so well together. They had emotional support in each other too. As they talked and smiled during dinner, Minerva noticed that Daphne walked over to where they were sitting and sat in between Draco and Mr. Finnigan.

In her time at Hogwarts, Daphne was receiving significant attention from boys and young men of all ages. The girl was very beautiful, but she tended to keep people at arms length. She did talk to people politely and was respectful, but she hadn't been there long enough for her to be friends with anyone. She was friendly, smart, and feisty. Comments of her bitch-slapping Pansy Parkinson went around the castle in a couple of hours, and that made her even more popular. She adored the kids, and she wasn't about to let anyone mess with them. Finnigan would rue the day. She would make sure of it.

Neville, who was apparently late to dinner, came holding a gift-wrapped box. The headmistress shared an inquisitive look with Andromeda, who shrugged. Minerva looked at Severus, and he repeated Andi's actions with a slight frown. The boy almost fell on his face when he stumbled, but Harry caught him by the elbow. Daphne seemingly ignored the whole scene until Neville, red as a tomato, lightly tapped her on her shoulder. She turned to him with an impassive expression and looked at the gift with curiosity. Seamus sniggered at Neville. The kid was pathetic. Finnigan was certain that Daphne would never like nor even be friends with such an ugly squib.

"Scioness Greengrass," Neville bowed slightly.

Daphne dabbed her lips demurely with the napkin in front of her. She got up and bowed a bit deeper. "Scion Longbottom."

"I apologize for interrupting your dinner… I hope this doesn't make you uncomfortable. This is for you," Neville offered her the gift. Hermione moved Daphne's half-eaten plate so she could place the box on the table.

"Oh! I love presents!" she turned and opened the gift carefully. She pulled out the potted plant slowly and stared at it with a pleased smile. She smelled it as she did when they planned this plot. "Oh my! Nevy! This is incredible! I love it!"

Daphne placed down the plant, and to Seamus' astonishment, she kissed Neville's cheek and hugged him tightly. He awkwardly patted her back.

"It's nothing special… I made it for you," Neville was blushing furiously and thanking his lucky stars that Daphne had told him to take a sip of calming draught before he went in to pull this rouse.

"Wait, what?! You made this?! For me?! I have never seen this flower before," she took the plant again and lightly touched the petals.

Neville smiled, "I crossed several species of a flower called ambrosia, and this is what sprouted!"

Daphne gaped. "Nevy…" she gushed. "No one has ever done anything so sweet for me! This must have taken weeks! Oh, I feel so bad that you went through so much trouble," she caressed his face.

Harry looked at Hermione in confusion, but she smirked slightly. Oh, he thought. Draco was trying hard not to react. He focused on taking small bites and chewing them thoroughly. Otherwise, he would burst out laughing at Seamus' face and Neville's embarrassment.

"It was no trouble!" Neville assured her, feeling tingles on his cheek.

"You are so sweet! I will have this on my bedside table always! I am not that good with plants, though. Will you walk me up to the tower and tell me how to take proper care of it? I would hate for her to die!" she squeezed his arm.

Neville, being the proper young gentleman that he was, immediately offered her his arm. Never mind that he had not eaten dinner, and they took off chatting animatedly.

"What the hell!?" Seamus exclaimed. "How can she be so happy for something so stupid!?"

Susan sighed down the table. "Why wouldn't she!? That was so romantic!"

Finnigan looked incredulous. "It's a dumb flower! Only one! It's not even a bouquet! Considering he has galleons to spare, that is so cheap!"

"A dumb flower? Cheap? Wow. Do you know how much time and effort it takes to cross-breed five flowers into one? Especially one that looks and smells lovely and is not an ugly freakshow?" Hermione blinked slowly, completely dumbfounded that the boy was so foolish.

Seamus frowned and turned towards her, "Oh, you would know all about ugly freakshows, wouldn't you bookworm? With that frizzy, bushy hair that looks like an animal nest and those ridiculously huge beaver teeth!"

Hermione gasped, and then she ran away before anyone could stop her.

Harry's magic escaped him, and a gush of air hit Seamus' stomach pushed Seamus harshly about 10 feet away. "Don't you ever insult Hermione again! I have had it with you thinking you can mistreat and disrespect ladies!"

Immediately, Draco was next to Harry with his wand pointed at the boy. "If you know what's good for you, apologize NOW!"

The professors rushed and placed a protective bubble over Seamus and another one over Harry and Draco. The kids never noticed, but other students had rushed to step away as soon as Seamus insulted Hermione. The kids of the family had a reputation of when you messed with one, you get the anger of all.

"Children, enough!" the Headmistress demanded.

"Mr. Finnigan, detention for a week and 50 points from Gryffindor. You will not run around wildly bullying students. That may be something you are allowed to do in your home, but certainly not here," she removed the bubble.

"Mr. Potter and Mr. Black, detention for three days. Twenty points from Gryffindor and Slytherin, respectively. I do not want any fighting unless you are in dueling club, and even then, the proper rules must be followed," Minerva approached the boys with a frown. "I can appreciate you sticking up for a friend. However, you should never draw your wands against other students unless you are in class and under strict supervision. Am I understood?"

"Yes, Headmistress. I apologize for my temper. However, I will not have anyone mistreating Hermione or any of my friends," Harry bowed slightly.

"Mr. Potter," she said in a warning tone.

"I will try to help cool him off in the future," Draco offered with a restraining hand on Harry's shoulder.

"Thank you, Mr. Black," the headmistress nodded and waved them away. "Off you go."

Hermione couldn't stop crying as she pulled harshly on her offensive bushy hair. Her eyes were red and puffy. Her face was splotchy. Even her uniform was a mess: her tie loose and askew, her shirt partially out of her skirt, one sock high up and the other rolled down. She had no idea where her robe was, and most shockingly, she didn't care.

Tonks came to Hogwarts to bring a few practice dummies and toy wands for their disarming practice for the next lesson. She heard crying from the girl's bathroom. Nymph expected to hear another girl consoling the child, but apparently, she was alone. The Auror was technically a professor now and could not just pretend she didn't hear that and walk away. When she came into the bathroom, she was glad she didn't leave. Hermione had apparently been crying for quite a while. Nymph had to rush to the girl to stop her from ripping more of her hair.

"Hermione, stop!"

But the girl shook off Nymph's hands like a zombie and went back to pulling her hair.

"Hermione, NO! STOP IT!" Nymph grabbed Hermione's forearms and shook the girl, "Look at me!" Tonks exclaimed. This finally made her come back to Earth. She jumped, and then she collapsed to her knees, crying. Tonks immediately gathered the younger witch in her arms and held her until she stopped crying a bit.

Once she was able to speak, Nymph began, "Who did this to you? Who has a death wish?"

"No one…" Hermione managed in between sobs. "I guess DNA."

"DNA? What do you mean?"

"Nothing… I just wish I was beautiful like you," Hermione whispered.

Tonks frowned. "Why? You are beautiful like you, and that is better," she winked.

Hermione scoffed. "I am not beautiful at all. My hair is a nightmare, and I have huge teeth!"

"Honey, you will grow into your teeth as you get taller. Your hair is not a nightmare. Trust me. It will eventually thin out, and you will miss having so much healthy hair. Plus, I am certain that your hair just can't contain your magic, love," Nymph smiled.

Hermione huffed, "Ugh. You don't get it. You can change anything you want at will!"

Tonks sighed, "Hermione, I was stuck with a pig's snout for over a month, and I was called Piggie forever at Hogwarts. Every girl and I guarantee you every woman, no matter how beautiful she looks to your eyes… has felt ugly, hideous even, but the mirror lies," Tonks squeezed the girl's hand and took a hair strand that Hermione was clutching. "People lie too. It was a boy, wasn't it? It better not have been one of our boys because I will rake them across burning coal!"

"No! I mean… yes. It was a boy. Seamus Finnigan. Our boys would never do something like that. They have even quarreled among them, but they always leave me out of it," Hermione explained. "They are quite protective of me."

"Finnigan. Okay. I shall know who to drill in class," Tonks replied, squinting her eyes maliciously.

"Don't do it on my account. I don't want any trouble."

"Hermione, you are not in trouble. He needs to learn to respect other people. Especially people who can kick his ass. But that aside, love, if your hair really bothers you… Harry's family owns the patent for Sleekeazy. It's a pomade that one of his ancestors invented to tame their own hair. It's what Snape's mom uses in your hair to do updos and such."

"Can I use it every day?" Hermione's eyes shone.

"If you wanted… It is a tad pricey, but if you don't wash your hair every day, one application should last you a couple of days. I'll send an owl to Dorea. I bet she'll send you enough for the year… Just between us… That's how Charlus'hair looks so good," Tonks smiled conspiratorially. There was a spell to make teeth smaller, but she refrained to tell her because the Grangers would not like that at all.

"What?! You mean that his hair isn't naturally like that?"

"Nope. The Potters have always had wild hair. Look at Harry," she winked.

Hermione chuckled, "I guess you have a point."

"Of course I do... Don't you know? I am a professor!" Tonks wiped away the remaining tears. "Come wash your face. I'll walk you back. The boys are probably going berserk trying to find you."

Hermione smiled and nodded.

Harry was growing desperate. He and Draco had searched most of the school with help from the No-Names. The twins had rushed to find Neville and Daphne to add them to the search party. They were panting by the entrance to the Great Hall. The Headmistress came towards them with a folded scroll in her hands. Swiftly, she created a privacy bubble.

"I assume you haven't found her?" Minerva asked with a frown.

"No, we've been everywhere in the castle," Draco replied, puffing.

"I really should not be doing this as your Headmistress…."

"What?" they all replied.

"Here, Harry," she handed him the scroll, and he opened it with a frown. It was blank.

Harry looked up at her. "Um, I don't understand."

The Headmistress looked like she would really, REALLY, rather not be doing this and then tapped the scroll and said, "I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Harry's eyes went as open as they could go when ink began to appear, forming shapes and letters.

Itinerarium Maraudentium

Messrs

Moony, Wormtal, Padfoot & Prongs

Purveyors of Aids to Magical Mischief-Makers

are proud to present

The Marauder's Map

All the kids gathered around Harry with Ohs and Ahs. The twins paled.

"As the twins can tell you, this map is quite a magical feat. Mr. Filch confiscated it from them before the break, but as you can clearly see here, it was created by your father and his friends. I am sure Mr. No-Name and Mr. No-Name are fine with you keeping it."

"Of course," the twins replied, nodding after Draco poked one of them. Harry was the son of one of The Marauders! The teens had heard him mention two of them, but this was incredible.

"Look! Hermione is with Nymph! They are headed this way," Neville pointed at the map.

"Thank Merlin. Mr. Potter, see to it that this stays safe with you," the Headmistress requested.

Harry closed the scroll and held it against his chest with teary eyes. He nodded. "I will cherish it forever, auntie, thank you," he replied and hugged the older woman tightly.

"You are most welcome. Just so we are all on the same page, this conversation never happened. I do not know what that is. I did not give it to you. You found it somewhere in the castle. Understood?"

"Yes, Headmistress," they all chorused.

"Now, once you are done with it, you must erase it. In case it falls in the wrong hands…." Minerva tapped it with her wand and said words that none of the students would have ever thought the woman could ever utter, "Mischief Managed."

The map disappeared, and it was again a simple folded scroll. "Reducio," she touched the map, and it became tiny. "When you need it again, simply tap it, say 'Engorgio,' and it will go back to its original size."

Harry nodded and pocketed the map. Over Draco's shoulder, he saw Hermione and Tonks. He ran to her and hugged her tight, "Mione! Are you okay? We've been looking all over for you."

"I'm sorry. I just… I couldn't stay. Please tell me you didn't punch Seamus?" Hermione asked.

"Aunt Minnie stopped me. I did push him with my magic and told him to stop messing with my friends," Harry explained with a blush.

"Good job Harry!" Tonks high-fived him.

"Professor Tonks!" the Headmistress exclaimed in a warning tone.

"Sorry," she blushed.

"Miss Dagworth-Granger, I apologize for not intervening faster. Mr. Finnigan was given detention and lost 50 points. However, I had to take points from Harry and Draco as well. I am sorry, boys, but I need to be as objective as possible," Minerva smiled sadly.

"We understand, but again, Headmistress, if Finnigan or anyone else messes with one of us, we are not going to take that sitting down," Draco said this before Harry's temper went up again.

"Quite. However, I would rather you stick to surreptitious methods like that of Miss Dagworth Granger," Minerva smiled slightly.

"Surre- what now?"

Hermione blushed. "We understand, Headmistress. Let's turn in," she motioned at the boys. As they walked far enough away, Hermione said in a curious tone, "I think Aunt Minnie just gave us unofficial permission to Marauder."

"Right?" Draco asked with a smirk.

"Well, we would be very remiss not to obey our Headmistress," Daphne said in a sing-song voice.

"Doth mine ears deceive me, Fred?" George asked his twin.

"No, my less handsome twin. I think the new generation of Marauders is ready to storm Hogwarts," Fred replied with a smirk.

"And we are ready to help with you mischief-making…."

"But first things first… Whose marauder's heir are you?" George asked.

"I'm the son of Prongs. Padfoot is my godfather, and Moony is my uncle," Harry replied with a small smile and a blush. To his surprise, the twins turned and fell to their knees, fanning him with their hands.

"We are not worthy!" the twins replied, holding on to Harry's pant legs.

"Hush!" Hermione exclaimed. "If you want our mischief to work, that information must remain secret," Hermione.

"Yes, Princess of Mischief! You can count on our secrecy and support!" the twins said their goodbyes and went towards their common rooms.

As they walked the hallways and went up the stairs, Harry took Hermione's hand and didn't let go. He whispered in her ear, "You are beautiful, Mione. Finnigan is just a jelaous prat. He lashed out at you because he was pissed at Neville."

Hermione smiled and squeezed his hand. "Thank you."

"Nymphadora," Minerva began.

She sighed, "I know."

"I haven't said anything yet," the headmistress countered.

"You used my whole name."

"It is your name, darling. But what I was going to say-" Minerva was interrupted.

"I cannot show favoritism to the children," Tonks shrugged.

"That's not what I was going to tell you. I trust you will abide by your contract. However, I forgot to tell you that there is only one room available for the Defense position. William stays here two nights a week when his classes end late and start early the next day. However, if you want to stay, I could habilitate one of the married student quarters for you. They are not being used…." Minerva said all this with a strange tone.

"Minnie… Are you worried about my virtue?" Tonks chuckled.

Minerva rolled her eyes, "Of course not. You are a grown woman, and I trust William to respect your boundaries. However, I want you to know that there are other options. You could share the room with bunk beds provided that you can promise to keep things… um… professional," the Headmistress clearly hated having to have this conversation.

Tonks decided to tease her. "I am offended... that you think I am the one at risk. What if it's me who doesn't respect his boundaries?"

McGonagall stopped walking. "Nymph…" she said in a warning tone.

"I mean… Bill is a good-looking guy. He's single… I am single…" she carried on teasing. "Those muscular arms… and he's so tall and gentlemanly…."

"NYMPHADORA!"

Tonks burst out laughing. "Minnie… I am joking! We would never do anything… too untoward."

"Professor Tonks!"

"And we would never do anything in front of the children," Tonks went on.

"Nymphadora Adhara Tonks, I swear to Morgana-!"

"Merlin! All my names? I am in big trouble now!" she laughed. "Headmistress, I give you my word that we will be on our best behavior. Night!" Tonks smiled and actually skipped away like a child.

"That isn't saying much," the headmistress replied in a whisper. She would have to talk to William. He had been Head Boy. He would definitely have a more appropriate response to her request for decorum... She hoped.

Bill was exhausted. He had taken a bath and was ready to turn in. His lesson notes were over the desk by his bed. The gray towel around his waist contrasted against his very pale skin. He had already turned most of the candles off except the one by his bed when he heard the door opening slowly. Wand at the ready, he turned. Tonks dropped to the floor, and the petrifying curse Bill sent went through where her head had been a second before.

"No bedside manners, have you?" Nymph chuckled but then saw his state of undress and blushed.

"Bloody hell, Tonks! I could have killed you!" he grabbed his towel.

"With a petrificus totalus? I don't think so," she chuckled and got up.

"What are you doing here so late?" he pulled her inside and closed the door behind her.

"What do you think?" she wiggled her eyebrows suggestively and walked towards him.

He took a step back. "Tonks… I don't know what you think is happening, but you told me we couldn't pursue anything because we are teaching together."

Her smirk did not leave her face. "Right. I changed my mind…."

Bill's brain was going fast. No. This is too easy. Is she even Tonks? He rushed to her and pushed her against the door, his wand against her throat. "Who are you?"

Nymph chuckled, and William realized she saw pointing her wand at… the center of his towel knot. "I see you constant vigilance has improved a bit."

He huffed. "What are you doing here so late, Piggie?"

"This is my room too, you idiot. There have never been two professors of Defense teaching simultaneously."

"Oh…" he let go of her and put his wand back on his bedside table.

"Yeah… so how do you want to do this?" Tonks asked. Once she said it out loud, she realized how dirty that sounded. She went red.

"The regular way, I suppose," he winked.

"In your dreams, William."

"Who said you aren't already there?"

"Blunt much? Usually, we'd go to dinner first…" she smirked at his blush.

"You can have the bed. I'll sleep on the floor," Bill offered.

"Are you scared of sharing a queen-sized bed with me? I don't have any cooties, you know," she sniggered.

"Oh, I am definitely scared. You are a menace. I don't think I can trust you with my virtue," Bill wiggled his brows.

"What virtue?" Tonks replied immediately. "Everyone knew of your… extracurriculars."

"Interesting choice of word," he chuckled.

"You know, I always did wonder how you managed to sneak all those girls in and out of broom closets, and yet no one ever saw them come out."

William smirked, "You assume it was broom closets…."

"You were seen leaving broom closets disheveled all the time! I saw you twice myself!" Tonks insisted.

"Who said there was anyone in there with me?"

"Morgana! That makes it worse! What would you be doing in a closet by yourself and coming out like you got snogged? Ew. No, never mind. I don't want to know."

"But you do!" he laughed.

"William, I promised McGonagall we'd be on our best behavior. Go put on some clothes on while I transfigure this bed into a bunk. I call dibs on the bottom," Tonks pushed him back into the bathroom.

"I would have thought you'd be more of a girl on top type of deal," Bill laughed as she pulled the door close, poking her tongue out at him.

"Oh, I am… just not for you!" she laughed as she transfigured the room accordingly. Any further teasing was stopped by a knock on the door.

Nymph opened the door to find two distressed teens.

Half an hour later, both Defense professors were in equal parts of shock and disgust at the tale that they had been told. Lucius Malfoy owed Nymph for beating her up. William had been incensed when he heard. Oliver was not about to let anyone, let alone a despicable criminal like Malfoy, marry his girlfriend. After much negotiation with Cicely, who believed they should talk to their parents together, Oliver finally convinced her not to go. He didn't want her to hear the -he was sure- ridiculous things their parents were probably saying. They agreed that Cicely would speak to her sister while they were gone. Pansy needed to know the direness of the situation.

Migraines suck. That thought was pounding in Charlus' head. The swoosh of owls coming in and out was adding to his pain. How could any grown man want to be with a child? Lucius Malfoy had never been Lord Potter's cup of tea. The blond was completely in love with himself. That, Charlus didn't care much about. Many a rich douchebag was similar. It was a problem, yes, but vanity was unimportant. There were many more pressing concerns. Child abuse was abhorrent. Full stop. There were no ifs, no buts, no exceptions, no nothing to reason or justify it.

The whole civilized world frowned upon it, whether this censure was explicit or implicit. Charlus was now convinced that all those outdated, backward, misogynistic wizarding laws would be the end of him. When Ted confirmed that it was indeed possible for Lucius to marry eleven-year-old Pansy Parkinson provided that she had gone through her menarche, Charlus' blood pressure spiked so much that he thought he would die from an aneurism. Antigone had all reason to be desperate. Lucius could indeed use the life debt to force one of the daughters to marry him.

Lady Parkinson had confirmed that Pansy had not started her monthlies yet, but would probably start soon as was common for women in their family. Dorea requested Lord and Lady Wood's presence in her home immediately. If the daughter most at risk was Cicely, the Woods would perhaps be amenable to help The Alliance succeed in pulling off such a feat. Lord and Lady Wood came into the Potter Manor living room looking quite regal. They bowed at the whole group of people assembled within.

Antigone rushed to Lady Wood and fell to the floor clutching the lady's long robe in her fists. "Please, I beg you to help my Cicely."

"Lady Parkinson, do be seated; melodramatics are not necessary," Lady Wood looked down in disgust at the other woman. Irina Wood was a no-nonsense type of person. Recent circumstances had made her disposition even colder than it was by nature. Oliver was her youngest son, and while she did like Cicely, her son was young, and young love was fickle. Many heiresses would do.

Dorea stepped in, helping Antigone up. "Irina," she nodded at the woman.

"Dorea. I was quite surprised to see your owl," Irina nodded back.

Antigone sobbed on her hands, and Emma pulled her in towards her. The proud woman was too distraught to even register who was next to her, and she collapsed on Emma's lap crying with tired desperation.

"Yes, I know we haven't been on the best terms. However, I trust you can put that aside to help us in our effort to save an innocent pair of girls, so they do not end up married to that… beast," Dorea reasoned with a grimace.

"Quite. While we have come to appreciate Cicely, Oliver is far too young for us to feel comfortable betrothing him to anyone. Our house is famous for our respect of tradition. Life debts are among the most important, most binding traditions we have," Lady Wood replied.

This made Antigone sob even harder. She expected this.

"Did you talk to your son about this?" Lord Potter asked Lord Wood as he handed the other man a cup of tea.

"I didn't have to. The hysterics of Lady Parkinson reached Cicely, who echoed her sentiments to our son who got quite upset," Lord Wood replied with a bored expression.

Antigone all but leaped up at this and got really close to slapping the man, "Hysterics?! How would you feel if you were in my position?! If one of your daughters could be forced to marry a monster at eleven years old?!"

"I wouldn't feel any way because that would never happen. As Lord Wood, I would have never signed the travesty that is a nameless marriage contract! Especially not between my House and a lesser House like that of Malfoy without consulting with my legal counsel and my account manager at Gringotts, which is what Lord Parkinson should have done!" Lord Wood snapped.

"ENOUGH!" Emma yelled. "This is absurd. The betrothal is just a pretense to save a young woman's life! Once he sees he cannot marry either of the girls, he will turn to something else!"

"Who are you? I have seen you before," Lady Wood looked up and down at Emma with disgust.

"I am Lady Dagworth Granger!" Emma replied with a growl, and her head held high. "And a mother is allowed to be as affected as she chooses to be when her daughters are about to be subjected to a most despicable destiny, and the people that can help do not want to be inconvenienced for a contract that wouldn't even be binding!"

"We owe her nothing," Lord Wood replied with a haughty expression.

Emma threw her hands up in desperation and turned away, covering her face with a cushion to cover her growl. She wanted to do painful things to that man so badly.

"My daughter didn't owe your son anything either, and he was there for him when Oswald passed! You know full well that Oliver would have jumped off the Astronomy tower that night had it not been for my Cicely!"

Oliver Wood came through the fireplace escorted by Professor Tonks and Professor No-Name.

"What?!" multiple voices shouted. Neither Lord Wood nor his wife knew how dark Oliver had gone without Quidditch to keep him busy from self-destructive thoughts.

"What are you doing here?" Lady Wood asked, approaching him.

"It's true, mother."

"Who's Oswald?" Emma asked with confusion.

Oliver continued, "I would have committed s-suicide over my grief at losing my b-brother had it not been for Cicely. She risked her own life when she tackled me back to safety. I was standing on the ledge ready to j-jump, father."

"Ollie!" Antigone rushed to the young man, bypassing his mother, and hugged him tightly. He squeezed her briefly, trying to convey that everything would be fine. "Where's my Cicely?" she asked.

"She stayed at Hogwarts. I did not want to subject her to this disgraceful spectacle. Mother, Father, shame on you. Fortunately for us, I am legally considered an adult, and I will enter into a betrothal contract with her as soon as her father signs the papers," Oliver said, looking at his parents with a frown. "The only problem is that as the contract needs to be backdated. When the papers would have been signed, I would have been a minor. You have to sign for me, father."

"Absolutely not!" his mother exclaimed. She was still shocked that her son had attempted to end his life, and she had no idea.

"I expressly forbid it!" his father added, paling significantly at the news.

"FINE! Then I will marry her tomorrow morning!"

"No! You cannot marry her! They are dark-aligned. We are neutral and have been neutral for generations!" Lord Wood grabbed his son harshly. "That will absolutely not change with you nor after you!"

"You have two choices, father: you can either sign a backdated betrothal contract today, or I can tell Cicely to collect the life debt I owe her from when she saved me by making me marry her! Either way, I am fine with it. I love Cicely and want to marry her as soon as we graduate, regardless of what you think," Oliver said, pulling his arm from his father's grasp.

Charlus walked over to the young man, "I'm Lord Potter, Oliver. It is a pleasure to meet you. Your parents should be proud to have such an amazing young man as a son. I offer my condolences regarding your brother. We didn't hear anything-"

Oliver shook Charlus' hand. "Thank you, Lord Potter. It's a pleasure... You wouldn't have heard. You see, my brother was gay, and he died in a car accident with his muggle boyfriend. My parents never accepted him or his boyfriend. They disowned him, so he didn't even get to have a proper obituary or a decent wake!" the young man stared at his parents with immense resentment. "He was my favorite brother…."

Charlus and Dorea blinked multiple times. They couldn't understand parents who loved conditionally.

Emma went red with anger. "Shame on you indeed! Oliver, I am Emma, Lady Dagworth-Granger. I have a lot of respect for you and for how much you love your girlfriend. She's lucky to have you. Many a lesser man would run away from such conflict," she stared down at Lord Wood.

"These are family matters. I would appreciate it if your House stays out of my business. Your husband should show you your proper place," Lord Wood said.

Dorea had to tighten her hold on her husband lest he punched Lord Wood and Cicely ended up as a casualty.

"My proper place is where my allies need me. As you are not an ally nor a friend, I demand that you never use that tone with me again. You have a wand, but I am not above bitch slapping you for disrespecting me," Emma said all this in a dangerous tone.

"Oliver, a word, in private," Lord Wood growled. "Lord Potter?"

"Lord and Lady Wood, Oliver, follow me to my study. You will not be disturbed there."

Lord Parkinson finally agreed to meet Lord Potter at Longbottom Manor. Edward Tonks had drafted the contract himself under the watchful eye of the Potters, the Parkinsons, and the Goyles. It allowed for the contract to be broken by either of the children upon their majority. Dorea had been shocked that Lady Goyle and her husband had demanded half of Cicely's dowry in addition to Pansy's dowry. It was greedy, not to mention cruel and unnecessary. Especially when they brought up Pansy's behavior with Daphne as an excuse for such demands. They said that the girl was a handful and a very risky purchase. Yes. Purchase. They argued that Pansy was a difficult girl and that they were doing the Parkinsons a favor. As such, they expected to be rewarded for it. Dorea was disgusted with the Goyle family, but she didn't exactly expect much more from them.

The next morning Pansy didn't leave her bed. The curtains were drawn shut. Hermione heard crying when she returned to get a book she forgot before the first class. She shouldn't care. Pansy never had anything but glares and insults for her. It doesn't matter, a voice that sounded strongly like her mother said. The way we treat people is about us, not about them.

"Pansy? Are you okay?"

Silence.

"Can I help you?"

More silence.

"Look, I know we are not friends, and you don't trust me. You don't have to tell me anything. Can I get someone for you? A professor? One of your friends?"

"Go away. Nothing matters anymore. I should just end my misery…." Pansy said in between sobs.

"Whoa!" Hermione pulled the curtains to find Pansy with her eyes bloodshot and a pair of open scissors pressing one of the blades against her wrist. "NO! Pansy, stop!" Hermione panicked as she wrestled the scissors out of the Slytherin's hands. Pansy scratched and kicked and bit Hermione as she tried to regain control over the scissors. Hermione got a deep cut in her palm and screamed in pain. She wished hard for Pansy to be unable to move, and the girl froze. Hermione pressed her palm against her school robe to stop the bleeding and pulled her amulet five times which meant mortal peril. In a couple of seconds, Headmistress McGonagall, Professor Snape, Healer Tonks, and three security elves popped into the room.

"Hermione! What happened?!" Andi diagnosed her and healed her cut.

"I'm fine, just help her!" Hermione exclaimed, fighting back tears. "She tried to cut her wrists and said she should end her m-misery," the girl said in a questioning tone. "I offered to get someone to help her, but then she said that, and I-I-"

"Ennervate!" the Headmistress said.

Andi got to work on the girl who couldn't stop shaking nor crying.

Severus grabbed Hermione in his arms, doing what he thought Daniel would have done, "It's okay, Hermione. We got you, and we will help her. Here, have some calming draught," he handed her an opened vial which she took with shaky hands. As she drank, Harry came in, crashing through the open door.

"Hermione!" Harry rushed to her and hugged her. His tie, and apparently Draco's, were both soaked with blood and wrapped around Harry's now healed cut.

"I'm okay!" she said after drinking the draught.

"Miss Parkinson, calm down. Your sister will be back soon with good news, I'm sure," the Headmistress tried to calm the girl down.

"I don't want to marry Draco's father! Please! Help me die! I don't want that life," the girl wailed at the Healer and the Headmistress. "You! You shouldn't have stopped me!" She jumped towards Hermione to attack her.

Harry pulled the girl behind him, "Pansy, stop! Everyone on The Alliance and your mom are trying to stop this!"

Cicely rushed to the room and gathered the shaking child in her arms. "Sister! It's going to be okay!"

"H-How?" Pansy asked, trying to breathe normally.

"Look!" Cicely showed her engagement ring to Pansy.

Everyone would have expected the child to be relieved, but Pansy was a different kind of girl. In her most scathing and sarcastic tone, she replied, "Great! You are saved. All that means is that I am going to have to marry him! It was your duty as my older sister to protect me!"

Cicely jumped away from her sister. "Pansy!"

"No! What am I supposed to be? Grateful to take your place?!" Pansy scratched her sister across the face with rage.

"Miss Parkinson! Enough!" McGonagall petrified the girl again while the healer fixed Cicely's face.

"If you had only given me a chance to finish, you would know that mom managed to sign a betrothal contract between you and scion Goyle. It is backdated. Now we have to hope that the goblins help us if only to support The Alliance," Cicely handed Pansy a copy of the contract.

"Goyle?!" Pansy felt insulted. He was an oaf!

"You better not be complaining! It cost half my dowry and significant property to convince Lady Goyle!"

"Your dowry? Why? My dowry is good enough!"

Harry and Hermione began walking backward slowly at the Headmistress's brief nod. Things could only get worse from there, and they weren't needed anymore.

"No, it wasn't because the stunt you pulled with heiress Dagworth-Granger makes you very difficult to sell!"

"To sell!?" Pansy's eyes filled with tears, and she ran out.

"Morgana's Saggy Ti-!"

"Miss Parkinson!" the Headmistress exclaimed before the girl could finish.

"Sorry, it's just… I really put my foot in my mouth with that one," Cicely sighed. "I better catch up with her."

"See that you do. She's in a very vulnerable state right now, and your comments didn't help," the healer frowned at the teen.

Pansy had never run so fast in her life. That proved to be a mistake. She collided against something solid and fell on her bum, entirely out of breath.

"Sorry! I was distracted," Draco let out after he recovered from the hit. He had been walking back to class from the bathroom, where he washed Harry's blood away. He hoped Hermione was okay. His good breeding overcame his hesitation, and he offered her a hand so she could stand, "Oh! Pansy, are you okay?"

"YOU!" She yelled after she finally got enough air. She slapped his hand away and scrambled up with difficulty.

Draco's eyebrows went up in confusion. "Me?"

"This is all your fault!" she yelled, pushing him back.

"My fault? What did I do? I mean… I know I wasn't paying attention, but you ran into me," he said with a questioning tone.

"If you had sided with your father, I'd be marrying you!" Pansy spat, pushing him back again.

"Marrying me? What do you mean?"

"We were supposed to marry when we were older! Our fathers agreed! There was a contract!"

"Well, if Lucius has another child, maybe you can marry him," Draco replied with a frown.

"Aaaargh! You don't understand! He wants to marry me, so I bear him an heir!" Pansy yelled.

Draco stared at the girl and blinked twice. His shock was such that his jaw could have hit the ground. He scanned Pansy's face for any deception and found nothing but despair and pain. "Lucius wants to marry you?!" Draco couldn't believe what he was hearing.

"You don't need to sound so disgusted!" she started crying again and turned away from Draco. "You are spared from that fate now!"

"Oi! Wait a minute! I am disgusted at him, not at you. Of all the horrible things he has done, which have been many and quite revolting -disowning me included- this is the worst. Marrying a child? He's a psycho," Draco handed Pansy his handkerchief. She took it with a shaky hand. "Look, I am really sorry that you are in this situation. However, I know Lucius. If he thinks he can legally marry you, it's because the contract was worded so that it was a possibility. Has anything been done to fix this?"

"Well, he could have married my sister, but she got betrothed to her boyfriend Oliver Wood, so now my mom has betrothed me to Goyle! They backdated it, and we now depend on the goblins' friendship with the Potters to certify those contracts as having been entered before Malfoy demanded to marry one of us."

Draco grimaced. "Look, Goyle is not nice, not at all, but he is not Lucius. I hope it is a countermeasure and that you can choose to end it in the future."

"So do I. I would have much rather married you," Pansy whispered with a blush.

"What? Pansy, you don't even like me," Draco shrugged with a blush.

"You have shown me more respect and kindness in this interaction than Goyle has in his entire life, and we've known each other since we were in nappies," Pansy replied.

"Hey, don't think that I'm special for that. People are not supposed to be disrespectful or mean. Men should never mistreat women. No matter their ages, no matter the circumstance. Lucius is, among many other things, a disgusting pedophile. I really hope the goblins can help you and your family. You can rest assured that if Lord Potter gave your mother his word, he will not stop trying to keep it," Draco squeezed her shoulder and left quietly.

Pansy smiled at the boy's back, took a deep breath, and opened the contract.

Cicely approached Draco as he was turning a corner to go back to the class.

"Have you seen my sister?"

"Um, yeah. I was just talking to her. Pansy is not doing okay. I know you are not the closest or anything like that. I also know that this is none of my business, but please listen with your heart. Listen to understand, not to reply," Draco said, repeating words taught to him by Emma and echoed by his therapist.

"I will. Thank you, Draco," Cicely kissed his cheek and walked away, leaving him with blushed cheeks.

Inside King Nagkrat's private meeting chambers, an awkward conversation was taking place.

"Charlus, you and your family are my family. We are honor-bound to help you. But do consider what you are asking me to do. You are asking me to break several laws and banking policies to help people who aren't your allies and who will, at the earliest opportunity, come for your and our blood!" Nagkrat was between a rock and a hard place.

"Do you think I don't know that?! I do! I just want to spare a child from a fate worse than death!" Charlus threw his hands up to his hair and pushed it back with a pained expression.

"I understand why you want to do this. However, helping Death Eaters is against our best interest."

"Nagkrat, I know you and your wife. You cannot be okay with this. Please, in the name of all our years of friendship, help the Parkisons save their daughters," Charlus pleaded, grabbing the king's hand. "If we don't help the girls, they will be nothing but slaves to his proclivities and his torture for the rest of their lives. The youngest girl already tried to commit suicide to avoid such a fate. She's eleven years old, like Harry or Hermione, Nagkrat. For the love of Merlin, that's not o-okay," Charlus' voice broke.

"If this is discovered, Gringotts can suffer greatly. Our reputation as impartial and indifferent to wand-carriers' affairs will go out the window. Do you understand the magnitude of trouble we will be in if this comes to light?"

"Yes. I know. And still, I implore you to do this."

"For you?"

"For Pansy Parkinson. For all the girls that are forced to marry beasts that don't care about them at all. Please. I know goblins do not condone this behavior."

"My Moon," Queen Gankra spoke at last. "We have do this for her. If, after the fact, you wish to close their vaults and banish them from Gringotts, I will support that. So will the Nation. Our punishment for child abuse is among the cruelest, most drawn-out ways to die for a reason. I know we shouldn't meddle in human affairs; however, if we do not do it, who will? The Ministry? The Parkinsons?"

Nagkrat sighed. "My Sun… If this is the action that launches another war against humans, will you be okay with that? Our family and our citizens bleeding and perishing for this cause?"

"To spare a child of such a fate? Absolutely. I will fight for that, and so will our allies and friends," she looked at Charlus who nodded resolutely.

Nagkrat closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths. He grabbed the blood quill and signed at the bottom of the scroll. Then, he placed his coat of arms seal next to his signature, dating the document as having been registered at Gringotts a week before Lucius' visit. "This child better be appreciative of the fact that thousands of lives are at risk if this plot to save hers comes to light."

Charlus let out the breath he was holding. "She will. As a sign of gratitude, The Most Ancient and Noble House of Potter wishes to give you this," he handed the man a small scroll which was then enlarged.

"What is this?" Nagkrat'e eyes widened.

"Goblins have taken care of our businesses, our properties, and our family for years now. You handled everything impeccably, even when we were thought dead. You are willing to do this even if you don't really want to because we are allies and friends. Thus, I believe the equation has not been fair. You receive a very meager percentage of our earnings in fees for holding, protection, paperwork, and such. It is time that you actually receive what you should."

"Our earnings are more than fair in your account. Yearly, we make about 5% of your entire transactions."

"That is not fair. When we were kidnapped, our fortune was vast, yes. But under you and Sharptooth, even while we weren't there, it grew exponentially. You haven't behaved as employees. You have behaved as friends. You deserve to be treated in the same way. Our fortune is so strong now that even building and staffing the hospital hasn't made a dent significant enough for us to notice. That is all thanks to you. As such, I want Gringotts to receive 10% of every single transaction we make. You have helped us grow and we want you to grow with us," Charlus smiled.

Both goblins were pale. Such a percentage was unheard of in Gringotts' history.

"Charlus, we cannot accept this. It would be too much."

"It is no less than you are due. As you can see, I included provisions for you to take all that you are due since the day we became formal allies, my friend. Whatever happens with the Parkinsons is not something we can control. But House of Potter can control how it chooses to be grateful to those deserving its friendship and unconditional support."

The goblin stood and embraced Lord Potter. "You are definitely a different kind of human, my friend."

"I just try to be a credit to what James and Lily would have wanted."

Queen Gankra squeezed his hand. "You are."

A/N: Thank you for reading! This beginning of the semester has been rather tiring. We only had one week in between semesters. When I tell you my finger hurt from typing lesson materials and such, I mean it. I appreciate your comments and reviews.

As for a question, or rather a set of questions I received recently, here are some clarifications:

-As for ages:

1. When Harry and the other kids were 5, Tonks was in third year (13 years old) [This is mentioned in ASF when Sirius and Andromeda first talk, and she says that her little girl is not so little anymore that she's a third year]. Therefore, when Harry is 11, Tonks is 19 (She's a rookie Auror). As for the No-Names, Bill is 20, Charlie is 18, and Percy is 16 (working towards his NEWTs). The twins are 13, Ronald was 11, and Ginny is 10.

2. When Harry is 5, Astoria is 3, and Daphne is 8 [this is established in ASF when the Greengrass family is attacked], but Daphne turned 9 a couple of months after moving into Potter Manor. I didn't include it explicitly in either story because it didn't seem that important. So, when Harry is 11, Astoria is 9 and Daphne is 14 (about to take her OWLs because she was promoted a grade at Beauxbatons). She came into her 5th year after her sorting [This is why McGonagall says it is never too early to start working towards a Mastery].

-As for Pandora Lovegood, she passed away when Luna was three. This will be significant at some point of the story, but not for a while.

-As for the Marauder's Map: there you go. As for the other part, good things come to those who wait. *winks*

-As for the prizard, Charles O'Brian is the one that helped Dumbledore and Grindelwald get a new Headquarters in Scotland [Chapter 18, ToG].

-As for Filius, I went with dwarfism because being part goblin would give him a fighting advantage and dwarfism would be considered a disadvantage. I want to highlight that he has accomplished much despite the odds and prejudice.

That's all for today. I hope you are all safe and healthy wherever you are. -Lux-