Disclaimer: I own the plot, I apologize if it's been done before. Harry Potter belongs to J.K. Rowling.
AN: Hi! Real AN at the end! Enjoy!
Consanguina by Jess S
Chapter 5: Talking, Lunch & Papers
Silence reigned throughout the Headmaster's office, it's occupants quietly brooding thoughts remarkably similar.
After a short time, Dumbledore shook his head, "It is odd," he sighed.
"Odd?" Professor McGonagall shook her head, "It's ridiculous!" She sighed, shaking her head again, "How is it that someone could just kill an Auror, walk into the house of the Boy-Who-Lived, and vanish. No one is that good! It simply isn't possible... But we haven't found anything!"
"Vivian's found a lot..." Ginny murmured quietly.
McGonagall nodded, "For which we all are grateful..." she sighed. "There was one article in the paper on this... none since... and nothing's happened. You'd expect them to at least make some mistake that'd lead to them! But even everything Miss. Potier has found... leads to nothing, with the exception of more questions..."
"I don't get it."
Everyone turned to look at Fred.
"What, dear?" Mrs. Weasley asked.
"How come she keeps finding all this stuff that no one else does?" He asked, "You have people looking all over the place, and even a spy in He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named's inner circle, but nothings turned up for you." The redhead shook his head, "What could she possibly have that would make her so much better at this?"
"Experience?" Professor Snape suggested, only the slightest hint of sarcasm in his tone.
Arabella nodded, "And she's very well connect. Incredibly well... She's been doing stuff much more difficult then this for years."
"Years?" Mrs. Weasley blinked, "How old is she, anyway...?"
"We told you, Mum," Bill spoke up, gesturing to Charlie, "early twenties."
"The definition of that statement is twenty to twenty five years old, Bill."
Arabella laughed, "She's twenty-one."
Nearly everyone in the room blinked, and stared.
"T-tweny-one?" Mrs. Weasley repeated, "Good gracious, I would have at least thought twenty four..."
"Why?" George frowned.
"Because," Mr. Weasley answered for his wife. "She's very successful, and very influential. She's already been nominated for the position of Head of Magical Law Enforcement... twice?" he asked, looking at the senior Aurors.
"Three times," Arabella corrected, "she's very popular."
"How could anyone possibly become that highly ranked in the Ministry in three years?" Professor Flitwick asked, and shook his head, "It is obviously very unorganized under Minister Fudge, but... the initial training alone usually takes at least two years... and then the experience required to even be considered for Head of the Department... I'd think that'd be near a decade... and several stars, I believe."
"Stars?" Ron repeated, blinking.
"It's a reward-system within the Ministry." Professor McGonagall explained patiently, "They're awarded to people who do something of great value and have already obtained an Order of Merlin, First class."
"Yes, well," Arabella nodded, "Vivian's career has been nothing short of... extraordinary, really..."
"Oh?" Dumbledore asked, as everyone waited for her to continue.
"Yes..." Arabella nodded, then sighed, shaking her head. "I suppose I should explain a bit of her history first..." she thought a moment, "Vivian originally began training at home... under the direction of a governess and several tutors.... When she turned ten, her governess, Inès d'Ark, who was also her legal guardian, died, and several of the tutors had already left. Not long before, Madame d'Ark had contacted Madame Maxime, the Headmistress of Beauxbaton, and asked for her to continue Vivian's schooling. Madame Maxime became Vivian's legal guardian until the completion of her magical education... The Headmistress wasn't entirely sure of how to manage Vivian. She was undoubtedly magical, as she'd already received a great deal of training, very intelligent, incredibly clever and extremely driven... and that was when she was ten years old..." the Auror shook her head. "She had Vivian take the O.W.L's, or N.M.O's as the French call them..."
"When she was ten?" Hermione asked, looking stunned.
Arabella nodded, "Yes... just to see how well educated she was..."
"How'd she do?" Ron asked, not particularly liking the subject of OWLs, but curious nonetheless.
Moody laughed, "Came in second place when she was against the whole school. Only the current Head Boy beat her."
Hermione shook her head, "How's that possible...?"
"She'd been training with specialists one-on-one for years," [AN: All of whom, had been part of the Order of the Phoenix, technically.] Arabella shrugged. "Anyway, the results obviously shocked the staff... but after some debate they decided to place her in a higher grade level. So, she started in third year when she was eleven years old."
"Why third?" Fred asked.
"They were actually going to place her higher, but," Arabella said, "I believe she said there were too many tall people in the higher levels... And they were worried about her being able to relate to her peers, which she actually turned out to be rather good at, and the third years happened to be the 'most welcoming' year out of the incoming students, according to the staff."
"Oh..." Hermione nodded, "So she graduated when she was sixteen?"
Arabella nodded, "Head Girl, top marks–"
"In everything except Flying..." Moody chuckled, gratingly.
"Flying?" Madame Hooch repeated, looking slightly offended
Arabella laughed, "The instructor was fired at the end of her seventh year... He was rather... anti-feminist... didn't think witches should have any place in Quidditch or with broomsticks... and Vivian ended up arguing with him a lot, the only reason he graded her fairly was because the rest of the staff so clearly adored her."
"And she was the Headmistress's ward." Moody added.
"That too," Arabella agreed. "Anyway, she graduated at sixteen, entered the extreme training program immediately afterward, she'd already applied over the school year, and finished the preliminaries over the summer."
"The preliminaries?" Hermione asked.
"The first two months of training," the Auror replied, "must be dedicated to solely training. The following classes can be taken at your leisure. It's set up so that you can still be working a different job well your training."
"What're the preliminaries for, then?" Ron asked, interested, "Why do you have to take them by themselves?"
"It's essentially a test, I believe." Professor McGonagall answered.
"A test?"
Arabella nodded, "Yes," she agreed, "You have to prove that you have sufficient understanding of Magic, then you specialize in one, two, or even three areas, and work." She shrugged, "It cleans out the people who aren't fit for the job, and prepares those who are."
"Cleans out?" Hermione repeated.
"Um-hmm," the Auror nodded, "Eighty percent of the applicants leave or flunk out within the first two weeks."
"Wow..." Hermione blinked, "And what about the ones who don't?"
"They earn their Masters."
"Masters?"
"Yes, their Wizarding Masters. What fields they specialize in." Arabella explained, "There are other ways to receive them, of course, but this is the fastest, if you can handle it."
"What did Vivian study?"
"Vivian received her Masters in; Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions, and Politics."
Everyone blinked.
"That's... an unusual combination, isn't it?" Mrs. Weasley asked, after a moment.
"Yes, very unusual, and extremely difficult." Arabella shook her head, "She's good at all three, but I still think she picked those three because they'd be the most challenging..." she grinned, "She does stuff like that from time to time. Of course, getting back to the story," the Auror continued, "It's probably why she was stationed so quickly... After she passed the preliminaries, she went through the necessary courses, and, as it happens, all the Professors she wanted to study under, because she'd researched all of them beforehand, all of them held their classes on weekends; leaving her free on every week day."
~ * ~
Now, if you mentioned having a meal or a drink, while in Diagon Alley, most would turn to the famed Leaky Cauldron. There were a select few, however, who would find that idea quite preposterous.
Vera Hectates was undoubtedly the finest Wizarding restaurant in London, considered by many to be a place of solely formal dining, for that was indeed the required attire. Of course, it wasn't actually in London, but several of its entrances to it were. One of these entrances was directly off Diagon Alley, so it was there that those who could afford it, chose to dine.
The high-class restaurant sat atop a small mountain, on its own, unplotable island, with numerous magnificent views, by both balcony and window, all around. As it was always kept in perfect working order, under extreme care, the fine classical marble architecture was quite stunning; an impressive piece of architecture in its own right.
Inside, it was furnished as exquisitely as was possible. Beautiful Persian rugs decorated the floors, stained-glass-windows captured and held light, while still allowing it to pass through, so that the lighting was always quite attractive. Overstuffed, white vinyl sofas were scattered in a seemingly meaningless, yet elegant pattern. Flawlessly polished wood tables bore settings of Wedgewood plates, Waterford goblets, and Towal silver.
This apparently did little, if anything to impress the lady sitting along the edge of the finely polished bar, by herself. One might consider this strange. For she was in fact, very beautiful. Long, silky pale gold hair was pulled atop her head in an elegant French-twist, and held there by a strand of perfectly matched pearls, leaving her soft, aristocratic features open, decorated only by pale lip gloss and Wizarding mascara. Immaculately manicured nails on long, pale fingers of a small, elegant hand, held the stem of a half-empty crystal goblet of Sauvignon Blanc. Her magnificent form was fitted perfectly by the emerald silk gown she wore, lined with silver and diamonds, which also hung from her ears and her neck.
Narcissa Malfoy frowned slightly, taking another sip of her first glass of and turning her sky-blue eyes to the clock on the other side of the room, before setting the goblet back down on the finely bar. It was strange. Her husband, known for being punctual, was not late, but he wasn't early either.
She turned slightly, upon hearing the door open again.
This time, she was not disappointed, though she was surprised. Her husband entered, his elegant silk robes sweeping out behind him, conversing with a young witch at his side. The young lady was very pretty; with long raven black hair pulled back into a simple, but elegant bun, bright green eyes, emphasized by the deep emerald shade of her silk robes, delicate, glossed lips accented by pale skin.
She watched them approach, Lucius had undoubtedly spotted her the moment he stepped in the door (when he scanned the room for any possible threats, as was his habit), she then noticed the Ministry badge on her robes, and, as they neared, that they were talking in French. It clicked.
"Ah! Mademoiselle Potier!" {Ah! Miss Potier!} Mrs. Malfoy nodded in greeting. "Quelle surprise plaisante. Je la prends que vous nous joindrez?" {What a pleasant surprise. I take it you'll be joining us?} she asked, smiling pleasantly. [AN: The Malfoy's are heavily into politics, she'd be just as good with 'the Malfoy Charm' as her husband.]
"Oui, Madame Malfoy," Vivian replied, offering an equally charming smile. "J'espère qui n'est pas un problème?" {I hope that isn't a problem?}
"Non, naturellement pas," {No, of course not,} Mrs. Malfoy replied, "Et si vous plait, appelez-moi Narcissa." {And please, call me Narcissa.}
"Merci," Vivian replied, with a nod. "Je suis Vivian." {I am Vivian.} She then stepped slightly to the side, gesturing to the young, finely dressed wizard beside Draco. "Peux je présenter mon frère, 'Arold Potier?" {May I introduce my brother, Harold Potier?}
Narcissa smiled, and nodded. "Heureux pour vous rencontrer, 'Arold. Je suis Narcissa Malfoy." {Pleased to meet you, Arold. I'm Narcissa Malfoy.}
"C'est un plaisir, Madame." {It's a pleasure, Madam.}
"Mr. Malfoy?"
Lucius turned to the finely dressed maitre d' who stood nervously awaiting his attention. "Yes?"
"Your table is ready, sir."
~ * ~
"What'd she do then?" Fred asked.
"Got a job. As it happens, her DADA Professor; Merveilleux, I think it was, had retired at the end of her seventh year, so Madame Maxime offered her the job."
"She was a DADA Professor?" Ron asked.
"Yes, and according to the current students; a 'bloody good one', for one year. She could very easily have fallen back on it as a career."
Hermione frowned, "I thought all the Beauxbatons students had trouble in DADA... that's what they said during the Tournament."
"Oh they are, the current Professors aren't very good... So everyone going into fifth year and under hasn't learned much unless they memorized their textbooks and worked with the older students... The seventh years had learned the basics from Merveilleux, and the sixth years learned that from Vivian, who also instilled a passion for them in almost all of her students. She was very good, and she gave private instruction to whoever asked for it. Still does, as a matter of fact. Several students from Beauxbaton visit her Manor occasionally to ask for help... That's actually probably why Delacour became the Beauxbaton Champion. She absolutely adored Vivian, and learned a great deal from her." Arabella shook her head, "Anyway, she received her Masters in July, and was in the French embassy, here in London, immediately afterwards."
"Wait," Ron frowned, "she worked for the French?"
"Yes, she was a Beauxbaton graduate, after all." The Auror replied. "She applied for British citizenship, and received it, and transferred into the British Ministry. She's still technically one of their ambassadors, she handles any important conflict between the two of us."
"But how did she reach such a high rank so quickly?" Mrs. Weasley asked. "I wouldn't think it be possible if she was originally a citizen, let alone a foreigner."
"It's the way the Department was arranged." [AN: I need another Auror who can answer questions here! Moody doesn't strike me as the type to do much talking (at all), but I'm starting to feel bad for Arabella!] Arabella continued, "Any Auror can accept 'special assignments' at any given time."
"Special assignments?" George asked.
"Their missions that are particularly difficult, or, more often then not; dangerous, so they ask for volunteers. You handle enough of those and you have to be recognized. She gained a reputation for excellence rather quickly." Arabella shook her head, "she's also, I'm sure you've noticed, very charming, so she became very popular, very quickly." She stopped, blinked, then laughed.
Everyone stared at her.
"What?" Fred and George asked, "What is it?"
"Nothing, I just remembered an amusing detail in the next part of the story." Arabella shook her head again.
"What is it?"
"Ironically," the Auror replied, "Vivian partially owes the beginning of her advancement, to Professor Dumbledore, and Professor Snape."
Both mentioned blinked.
"Why do you say that?" Dumbledore asked, curious.
"I still remember," Arabella laughed, "I still remember the day she did this... She didn't only take special assignments, she had to take regulars too... Out of curiosity, Professor Snape, are you acquainted with Eric Rosier?"
Snape blinked, "Yes, he was a school and housemate of mine."
"Yes... but he didn't really like you, did he?"
"No, he did not."
"Yes, well," Arabella shook her head, "apparently, he felt you were still a threat to society, and a loyal Death Eater, despite the results of your trial... he was the Minor Division Head of Vivian's precinct. He knew, and he was right," she nodded, "that if anyone could get anything on you, it was Vivian, so he assigned her the case. She read over the file when she received it, researched some parts of it, went to his office the next day, and flat out refused it." The Auror shook her head, suppressing chuckles, "That was the day I met her."
"What happened?" Ron asked.
"Well," Arabella shook her head, "I was visiting some of my old friends and colleagues that day, and they, of course, had already told me about Potier. Everyone really was, and still is, quite impressed with her..." she smiled, thinking back on it as she told it.
~ FLASHBACK ~
"How old is she, again?" I asked.
"Eighteen," my old friend, Ailith Bode; a witch in her late seventies with shoulder-length white hair and pale green eyes, replied, smiling. "She really is a charming young lady, you should meet her."
"I'd like to, is she in today?"
"I think so... wait, let me check..." as she turned to look on the registry, she stopped and turned back slightly, smiling. "Vivian!" she called, over my shoulder.
I turned to see a lovely girl in her late teens with long-black hair, currently held in a French-twist, stunning green eyes, and a polite, charming smile on delicate lips.
"Good morning, Ailith," the girl nodded, then smiled at me, "I don't believe we've met." She held out her hand, "I'm Vivian Potier."
"Arabella Figg." I replied, shaking her hand, and noticing she had a firm grip, but not one that was overbearing or overly eager.
"Pleased to meet you," Vivian nodded, still smiling as her brow creased slightly in concentration, "...Figg... Figg... where have I – Oh!" she smiled, "You accepted the task of watching over Harry Potter during your retirement, right?"
I blinked, not many people were aware of that fact, as it could be dangerous if it reached the wrong person, but I couldn't feel the least bit guarded against the charming, young Auror whose bright eyes held mine steadily. "Yes," I confirmed, "I did."
"Admirable," she commented.
I blinked again, "Pardon?"
"That you'd be willing to give up your free time to watch over a child, just to make everyone else here feel better." Vivian explained.
"Oh not really," I argued, "after all, there is always the chance of a Death Eater–"
"It is possible, yes," she agreed, "but no more likely then it is for any other child." Vivian shrugged, "After all, the dark times are supposed to be over. Many of the actual Death Eaters who could find him worked too hard and are too smart to do anything for revenge, any of the ones that are likely to do it are either; dead, imprisoned, or soon will be. None of the ones that could actually manage it, would actually do it." She shook her head, "I'm sorry, I'm rambling, anyway," she smiled, "It was a pleasure to meet you, I hope we meet again. Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to talk with my supervisor." She said, and turned on her heel, walking toward Rosier's office.
"Miss Potier?" I called.
She turned back, "Yes?"
"Why do you say that?"
"What...?"
"That the Death Eaters that could harm the Boy-Who-Lived, wouldn't."
Vivian shrugged, "Because they're too smart, it wouldn't bring Voldemort back, so they wouldn't gain anything, except maybe a cell in Azkaban, or the Kiss." She replied, and started to turn away again, "Oh, by the way, please call me Vivian."
"In that case, call me Arabella."
She smiled, "Gladly," and nodded as she turned and walked into Rosier's office, not bothering to close the door.
"I wonder why she's going to see him." Ailith murmured.
"What?" I asked.
"Vivian," she replied, "She generally doesn't bother ever speaking to Rosier directly, doesn't think it's worth her time."
"Hmm," I shrugged, "the doors open..."
Ailith laughed, "We've been at this job too long."
"Of course we have."
She shook her head, and reached into her desk, pulling out a small object and pointed her wand at it, activating it.
Both of us touched it, and a moment later we could hear what was happening inside Rosier's office.
I blinked. The voice I heard was certainly Vivian's, but she didn't sound like the polite, sophisticated young lady I'd just met... if anything she sounded like a spoiled brat.
"No!" she whined, "I will not take this assignment, and you can't make me!"
A moment later, Eric Rosier his face livid with rage as he came storming out of his office, dragging Vivian behind him.
We followed.
A few minutes later, he stopped in front of Thomas Fletcher, Major Head of their division.
"Is something the matter?" Fletcher asked, glancing from the red-faced, fuming Minor Head, to the calm and collected Auror beside him.
"This..." Rosier began, pointing at Vivian, "brat is unfit to–"
"Now really, Eric," Fletcher cut him off, "calm down, think about what you're saying."
"I know what I'm saying!" Rosier spat. "She won't take the case I assigned her, won't provide a viable reason, and–"
"Is this true, Miss Potier?" Fletcher asked.
Vivian shook her head, "Not entirely, Mr. Fletcher." She replied, once again the charming young lady I'd met a few minutes prior. "In my opinion there is no case, and to pretend that there is one is illegal – double jeopardy, I believe."
"Oh?" Fletcher replied, clearly interested. "And what is this case?"
"Mr. Rosier seems to think Mr. Severus Snape's, Potions Master and Professor at Hogwarts, trial was inaccurate, and his 'possible remaining loyalty' to Voldemort needs to be investigated further."
Mr. Fletcher frowned, "Yes, I do believe Severus Snape was declared innocent of all charges. Was he not?"
"They didn't do enough–" Rosier began.
"And," Vivian continued, overriding her superior. "I personally find the suggestion of this quite ridiculous."
"How so?" Fletcher asked.
Vivian handed him a file she'd been carrying. "Scribe's notes: Closing Article: thirty-six. After hearing the testimony of Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, the judge ruled that there was no way the accused could be considered guilty of the alleged charges." She shook her head, "Honestly, there are therefore only two ways Professor Snape could be a loyal Death Eater under these circumstances; and both are ridiculous!"
"How so?"
"One possibility is that Snape managed to hoodwink the Headmaster. The other is that the Headmaster himself was protecting an ally." Vivian replied firmly. "In which case, we are saying that Albus Dumbledore is either an old fool, or a Death Eater."
"Hmm..." Fletcher nodded, "True..."
~ END OF FLASHBACK ~
Arabella chuckled, "I can still remember the look on Rosier's face when she finished."
"What happened?" Hermione asked.
"Rosier was fired," Moody replied, "Vivian was promoted."
"Just like that?" Hermione asked.
"Um-Hmm," Arabella nodded. "You see, everyone, Mr. Fletcher included, had been following Vivian's accomplishments for quite some time. They were really remarkably impressive. But, more then that." She shook her head, chuckling, "Vivian planned that out rather well."
"Why do you say that?"
"Mr. Fletcher was a known supporter of the Order of the Phoenix." Arabella replied, "Vivian knew that, and she knew that he would find the point that Albus," she nodded to the Headmaster, "was either a Death Eater or an old fool very offensive."
"Why would he find it offensive?" Fred asked.
"Because," Mr. Weasley replied, "that would mean he'd been following a Death Eater for several years, or an old fool for several years. In which case he'd have to be even more of a fool."
"Quite right." Arabella shook her head, "So Rosier was done for."
The room absorbed this information in silence.
~ * ~
"Vous aiment de l'aide?" {Would you like some help?} Draco asked, observing the other teen's struggle with the menu.
Harry blinked, looking up at him. He didn't really like this spell. It served its purpose, certainly... but now he could barely read anything off the menu! All of the foods were international delicacies, and he could read the names of the French ones, but all the descriptions were in English! He frowned, blushing slightly in an embarrassment. "Si vous plait?" he replied, "Je ne suis pas très bon avec l'anglais..." {I'm not very good with English...}
Draco smiled, "Ne vous inquiétez pas à son sujet, la seule raison que je suis n'importe quel bon au Français étais en raison d'un certain charme mon père utilisé pour m'inciter à l'apprendre rapidement... Un effet secondaire était que j'ai eu la difficulté avec l'anglais tandis que j'apprenais le français, il étais terrible!" {Don't worry about it, the only reason I'm any good at French was because of some charm my father used to make me learn it quickly... A side effect was that I had difficulty with English while I was learning French, it was terrible!}
Harry bit back a wince, and forced a reply out, "Je peux imaginer..." {I can imagine...} he pointed to something on his menu, "Qu'est-ce que c'est?" {What's that?}
The blonde leaned over slightly, scanning the menu quickly before he came to the one the other boy was pointing at. He blinked, "C'est potage de poulet..." {That's chicken soup...}
~ * ~
After a moment, Hermione looked at the clock, and blinked. "It's getting awful late, shouldn't Miss Potier be here by now?"
"No," Arabella replied, "It's her day off, one of the first she's taken willingly…" she thought for a moment, then shook her head, "ever, as far as I can tell."
"Ever?" Fred & George repeated.
Arabella rolled her eyes, "Vivian is somewhat of a workaholic…" she sighed.
"She's the most effective Ministry personnel of her generation." Moody pointed out.
"True," Arabella agreed, then chuckled.
"What?" Ron asked, curious.
Arabella shook her head, "I still remember…" she shook her head, then glanced at Moody, "Do you remember the day she argued with Croaker on whether or not she was fit to bring in Dolohov?"
Moody chuckled, a sound that made several of the younger people flinched. "When she'd come directly from the medical ward, after leaving in the middle of the examination, only half an hour after she'd been brought in – unconscious – from the attack on the French Embassy?" He nodded, "Yes, bloody riotous, I thought."
"Why'd she do that?" Hermione asked, "She seemed quite logical to me."
"Oh, she usually is," Arabella nodded, "But she'd never liked Antonin Dolohov, and he'd been a fool enough to boast of his earlier transgressions on several occasions." She shook her head, "Vivian wanted that 'bloody bastard' out of business one way or another. And she wanted to handle him herself, whether she needed to do it with a broken leg, two cracked ribs and a minor concussion, or not."
"So what happened?" Ginny asked, after a moment of silence.
"She brought him in, and was promoted to Vice-Department Head, while in intensive care."
"She actually went back to the hospital?" Ron asked.
"Oh, yes," Arabella nodded. "Vivian is a very sensible person... when she feels that she has the situation under control."
~ * ~
"Ainsi qu'avez-vous été jusqu'à récemment, Vivian?" {So what have you been up to lately, Vivian?} Narcissa inquired, before taking another sip of her first glass of Chateauneuf duPape.
"Je vous crois avais travaillé avec le cas de Potter," Lucius inquired. "Vous ai pas?" {I believe you've been working with the Potter case, have you not?}
"Oui," Vivian nodded, taking a sip from her own crystal goblet. "Oui, je su." {Yes, I am.}
"Une chance, jusqu'ici?" {Any luck, thus far?} Narcissa asked, honestly interested.
"Très peu," {Very little,} the Auror replied, taking another sip of her dark wine.
"Le plus malheureux," {Most unfortunate,} Lucius replied, then frowned. "J'avais entendu il y avait un Auror tué tandis que sur ce cas... est ce vrai?" {I had heard there was an Auror killed while on this case... is that true?} he asked.
"Pas tout à fait..." {Not quite...} Vivian replied, "Antonin Macnair gardait la résidence de Monsieur Potter le jour où le garçon a disparu. Il était un Auror, et il a été tué." {Antonin Macnair was guarding Mr. Potter's residence the day the boy disappeared. He was an Auror, and he was killed.}
"C'est une pitié..." {That is a pity...} Lucius murmured softly, while glancing over at the younger two that were with them... to see both teens laughing quietly. The elder Malfoy blinked, but after a moment, satisfied that his son was being a good host, he turned back to his own guest. "Il n'y a eu aucun développement sur le cas du tout? Aucune note aléatoire, rien?" {There have been no developments on the case at all? No ransom note, nothing?}
Vivian blinked, "Il n'y a eu aucun entretien de ransom, aucun... et d'évidence très petite du tout, dans la mesure où je sais..." {There has been no talk of ransom, no... and very little evidence at all, as far as I know...}
"Alors il n'y en a eu aucun, assurément." {Then there has been none, undoubtedly.} Lucius replied, finishing his first glass of the deep red wine and setting the elegant goblet back on the table with practiced grace.
A moment later, the wine stuart; a young man with dark blonde hair, tanned skin and hazel eyes, dressed in the scrupulous, white uniform befitting his station, appeared at his elbow. "Would you care for more wine, sir?" the nervous young man inquired, his fingers grasped around the bottle of Chateuneuf duPape just a little too tightly.
"Please," the blonde aristocrat replied eloquently. He met Vivian's emerald eyes with his own striking silver, "Would you care for more, Mademoiselle?"
Vivian shook her head slightly, "No, thank you." She replied, just as effortlessly, offering the stuart, who looked to be quite near her age, a reassuring, beautiful smile.
The young man blushed, his hand wavering slightly as he filled the elder Malfoy's goblet, not enough to cause any harm, but more then enough for those present to discern.
Lucius chose to ignore it. "My dear?" he asked, raising an eyebrow at his wife.
"No, thank you." Narcissa replied smoothly, not bothering to smile. "I would prefer something from the bar." She inferred, finishing the last of her wine with a small, delicate sip, before setting her own goblet back on the table.
The young man blushed again, this time carefully pulling the wine bottle up and setting a handkerchief up near the top of the bottle, and lifting it away. "O-oh, of course." He nodded, backing away slightly. "I-I'll send Eric over."
"Please do," Lucius replied, somehow managing to seem completely indifferent to the matter and quite dangerous at the same time.
Vivian just barely rolled her eyes, taking another sip from her goblet.
~ * ~
The room's occupants stopped in mid-sentence as the sound of some rather unhappy tummies interrupted them. They all turned, blinking.
After a moment, Mrs. Weasley offered a soft smile, "Hungry, dears?" she asked, glancing at the clock, which read half past one.
Both of the Weasley twins nodded, blushing. "Sorry, mum."
"Quite all right, dears," Molly replied, still smiling slightly, "it is rather late..." she rose, turning to Dumbledore, "I'm sorry to be leaving like this, Albus, but would you mind...?"
"No, not at all... As a matter of fact," Dumbledore paused, considering. A moment later, he seemed to have decided. He looked around the room, counting heads. "I wonder if all of you would be kind enough to lunch with me?"
"Isn't he Great Hall closed for refinishing?" Ron asked, blinking.
The headmaster chuckled, "Yes, yes, it is. But, as it happens. I've built up a large number of gift certificates to the same restaurant, and I can't seem to get through them..." he shook his head, "People seem to think they're a wonderful Christmas gift... always preferred a good batch of fudge myself, but..." he shrugged, and then smiled. "Would you mind giving an old man a hand?"
Everyone blinked several times at this. Finally, Mrs. Weasley managed to reply, "Of course... we'd love to, Albus..."
"Good, good." Dumbledore smiled, nodding as he rose to his feet, his elegantly starred robes swishing about behind him. "Shall we be on our way, then?" he asked, gesturing to the fireplace.
"All of us?" Professor Snape inquired, his tone relatively neutral.
"Yes, Severus, all of us." The headmaster replied, "I'm sure you can suffer our presence for a short time longer."
The Potions Master rolled his eyes, but nodded.
"Albus?"
"Yes, Arthur?" Dumbledore replied, while pulling out a bag of Floo powder from his desk drawer.
"If you don't mind my asking, where are Remus... and Snuffles?"
"Oh, Remus is a bit preoccupied at the moment." Dumbledore replied evenly. "And Snuffles is staying with him." As he finished saying this, he swept slowly over to the fireplace, his age apparently offering him a wizened grace rather than a lack thereof. "Who would like to go through first?" He asked, taking a handful of the light powder from the bag.
A momentary pause met this inquiry, before Hermione stepped forward, dragging Ron with her. "We will, sir, if that's all right..."
"Of course," the headmaster nodded, gesturing to the fireplace, "of course. In you go."
Both moved into the fireplace, Ron somewhat reluctantly. They stood there, Hermione not bothered by the fact that her head just barely came up to the redhead's nose, and that was probably only because she was wearing half-inch heals, and bore herself with slightly better posture than the other Gryffindor.
Dumbledore smiled at the picture they made, then he tossed the handful of light powder into the fireplace, intoning, "Vera Hecates."
~ * ~
Lucius raised an eyebrow, while his wife blinked, and their guest remained apparently indifferent, though there was a glint of amusement in her eyes. All three were watching the younger two of their party.
"Two orders of chicken soup, sir?" The waiter repeated for the second time, blinking. "Are you... quite certain, sir?" he asked, his quill poised in a delicate grip over his scrolled parchment. The middle-aged wizard clearly didn't know how to react to this situation. In his impeccable, long white robes and perfectly polished black boots, he didn't feel that it was appropriate to order something so... common. But, he was dealing with a Malfoy...
"Quite," Draco replied scathingly, "thank you." He held the older man's dark eyes with his own silver gaze until the other looked away.
"Yes, yes, of course." The waiter nodded, quickly writing the order down, his hand shaking ever so slightly. "Would you like anything else?" he asked, looking back and forth between the two teens.
Draco looked at Harry, "Toute autre chose?" {Anything else?} He asked.
Harry shook his head, "No, merci, Draco." He smiled slightly at the waiter. "Merci, monsieur. Désolé pour le dérangement." {Sorry for the trouble.}
"Votra beenvenoo," The waiter replied in broken, poorly accented French. He then bowed to the tables elders, having already taken their orders, and left rather quickly.
After a moment, the elder Malfoy shook his head, deciding to ask his son what the importance of 'chicken soup' was, at a later date, before turning back to his wife and guest. Before he could think of something to start up conversation once again, Vivian stepped in.
"Oh, Lucius, il y a quelque chose que j'ai étée signification pour vous demander..." {There's something I've been meaning to ask you...} she said, reaching down into one of the lower pockets of her robes and pulling out a scroll. "Est-ce que cela vous dérangerait de lire ceci?" {Would you mind reading this?}
Raising an eyebrow to show his curiosity, the blonde accepted the document, carefully unrolling it and scanning the text.
Vivian turned to Narcissa smiling, "Je n'avais pas maintenu le monde de la mode récemment," {I haven't been keeping track of the world of fashion lately,} she sighed, "est-ce que j'ai manqué quelque chose?" {Have I missed anything?}
~ * ~
"Wow..." was the general statement that ran throughout the group as they assembled in the entrance hall of Vera Hecates Restaurant.
Snape raised an eyebrow at the headmaster, "You have nineteen gift certificates to one of the finest restaurants in the Wizarding world?"
Dumbledore shrugged, "Twenty-five actually. But it will be nice to get these out of the way."
The others simply stared at him.
The aged wizard just smiled, his eyes twinkling. "Shall we?" he asked, gesturing to the main entrance (to the restaurant, from the hall).
~ * ~
"Que font-elles ici?" {What are they doing here?} Narcissa broke in suddenly.
Her two companions turned slightly in the direction of her glare, to see the maitre d' sitting a large party, which included; a large portion of the Hogwarts staff, Aurors Figg and Moody, and the whole Weasley family.
Lucius frowned, glancing at the Auror across from him.
Vivian returned his gaze steadily, shaking her head. "Importe-t-il vraiment?" {Does it really matter?} she asked.
~ * ~
"This place is..." Hermione shook her head, clearly awed, "really nice." She murmured quietly.
Ron nodded in agreement.
"Hey look!" Fred whispered, but everyone at the table heard him.
His mother raised an eyebrow, clearly feeling out of place in these surroundings, but determined to enjoy it. "What is it, dear?" she asked.
Fred blushed, "The Malfoys are here..." then he frowned, "...and Vivian's with them!"
"What?!" Almost everyone gasped, turning to look.
And there indeed, at one of the private tables, on the upper levels, sat the Malfoy family and the Auror they'd become acquainted with over the last few weeks.
Hermione frowned, "Who's the boy talking to Malfoy?"
"Jr.?" Arabella asked, glancing in Draco's direction, her eyes settling on Harry. She frowned, "I don't know... wait!" she glanced at Moody, "You don't suppose that's her brother...?"
Moody frowned, "Has to be...doesn't look like a Malfoy, and he does look a lot like her... strange..."
"What?" Molly asked, "and who is he?"
"That has to be Vivian's younger brother, Harold." Arabella replied, shaking her head. "But I wouldn't think she'd be willing to bring him anywhere near the Malfoy family..."
"Why?" Ron asked, glaring at his best friend's rival and the boy he was talking to [AN: LOL, ironic, isn't it?]
"Vivian's little brother is her only known weakness..." Arabella shook her head. "I didn't think she even let him leave the Potier Manor, no ones ever met him."
"Where is he educated, then?" Professor McGonagall asked with a frown.
"At home, just like she was, we assume." Arabella shook her head, again. "Not much is known about him... I've visited the Manor dozens of times, and I've never met him."
"So the Malfoys are the first members of Wizarding society that the boy has supposedly met?" Snape asked, raising an eyebrow. "Aside from his family, and tutors, of course."
Both Aurors nodded.
All of the Weasley winced.
"That doesn't make any sense!" Ron protested, "Why would she be with the Malfoys anyway?"
"They probably invited her to lunch." Snape sneered.
Arabella nodded, "And she might have wanted to discuss some political matter with Lucius Malfoy... or maybe she's investigating them on something."
"But I thought Harry's case was the only one she was..." Ron stopped.
"Exactly," Moody nodded.
~ * ~
Draco suppressed a sigh when he saw his father signal their waiter for the check. He was actually enjoying himself. That was a rare occurrence at meals, especially when they had guests.
Thanks to his parents training and expectations, he always strove to be a superb host, which was often rather difficult, or at least quite aggravating when he was with people his own age. They usually fell under one of three 'problem categories'. One; they talked about themselves the whole time (very aggravating!). Two; they fawned over him the whole time (quite annoying). Or, three (in Crabbe and Goyles case); they didn't make any conversation at all, so he had to fill the silence...
But Potier was different.
It was too bad the other boy didn't attend Hogwarts, then he might have had a chance at having an actual friend at school. He didn't think the boy would be in Slytherin, although he certainly seemed to have a number of Slytherin qualities, so it was a possibility. Maybe he would've been in Ravenclaw... He couldn't be a Gryffindor; how could Draco even consider liking him then? And he probably wouldn't be in Hufflepuff...
Potier carried conversation well, and he like talking about Quidditch; Draco's favorite hobby.
"Votre facture, monsieur." {Your bill, sir.}
Draco sighed as the maitre d' handed his father the check, bowing deeply.
~ * ~
Vivian smiled at her brother, as he sat down beside her with a sigh. "Have fun?" she asked, before tapping the ceiling with her wand and commanding; "Harrods."
Harry nodded, then frowned.
"What's wrong?"
"Deux choses..." {Two things...} he replied shaking his head.
The Auror raised an eyebrow.
"Comment est-ce qu'au nom de Merlin je suis parvenu à m'asseoir par le déjeuner avec la famille entière de Malfoy, parlant avec Draco Malfoy le temps entier... et à l'apprécier?" {How in Merlin's name did I manage to sit through lunch with the entire Malfoy family, talking with Draco Malfoy the entire time... and enjoy it?}
Vivian smiled. "The Malfoys are excellent hosts, they make sure of it... and perhaps you only needed a chance to see beyond the visage he's expected to hold before society." She shook her head, and continued before he could reply. "And your second worry?"
"La volonté I puisse jamais parler anglais encore?! " {Will I ever be able to speak English again?!} he whined.
Vivian laughed, glancing out the window. "Ah look, Aunt Petunia's waiting for us..." she frowned. "My, she was certainly busy today."
Harry snickered. "Je vous ai dit ainsi!" {I told you so!} He kept laughing, while his sister glared.
~ * ~
"Good morning, everyone." Dumbledore smiled, entering his office to find all of the Weasleys, the school staff, and Remus present. "Anything interesting today, Arthur?" he asked, while sitting down behind his desk, watching Mr. Weasley glare at a copy of the Daily Prophet.
"There's an article on Harry's disappearance on the front page, by Skeeter." The redhead replied.
"Oh?" Dumbledore murmured, taking a sip of the tea that had just appeared on his desk; undoubtedly thanks to the Hogwarts house elves. "And what does Miss Skeeter have to say?"
"I don't know yet," Mr. Weasley replied, "I haven't been able to make myself read past the headline; Boy-Who-Lived; Gone Forever?"
Almost everyone present groaned.
Suddenly there was a 'SCHWUMPH' from the fireplace, quickly followed by a second, as Arabella Figg and Alastor Moody arrived.
Arabella blinked upon seeing everyone glaring at the newspaper in Mr. Weasley's hands. (Well, almost everyone; the Headmaster was smiling pleasantly while offering them an all too cheerful, "Good morning," and Professor Snape seemed to be having difficulty between deciding on whether he should glare at the paper of praise it.) "Is something wrong?" she asked.
"Rita Skeeter wrote an article on the case." Mrs. Weasley explained.
"Oh..." Arabella blinked, then laughed. "It can't be that bad!"
Everyone looked at her.
"Why wouldn't it be?" Ron asked, "She's never written anything nice about anybody."
Arabella shrugged, "But I bet she didn't say anything overly awful about this case."
"Why?" Professor McGonagall asked.
"Because Vivian's involved."
"What?" several people asked.
Moody nodded in agreement. "Skeeter's always had rather immense deference for Potier."
Another burst of green flame from the fireplace announced said Auror's arrival. She looked around, "Did I miss anything?"
End chapter 5.
AN: That's it for Chapter 5! What'd you think?
Response to Reviews:
Angelic-devil – Thank you. ^_^
Xirleb70 – LOL, I'm glad. ^_^ *sigh*, Yes, Foreign languages can be difficult, can't they?... Hmm, as to the relationship with Draco... [I'd like to mention; I'm not a slash writer, I'm pretty much neutral in the category. I'll read it, if the story itself is good, but I can't write it... But] yes, friendship is a possibility, which I believe this chapter suggested rather strongly (if it didn't, please tell me, so I can rewrite it!)... Yup, Harry's growing up! ^_^
Everpresent – LOL, yes, this is quite the change from LS, isn't it? Thank you... It's a little difficult... the stories are different enough that I usually don't get them mixed up, but I can't write them back to back, because I might screw up on some points in the characters personalities.
Ah yes, Vivian's great, isn't she? Don't worry, she's not perfect, she's just good at what she does, and handling people when she wants to. We'll see more of her flaws pretty soon... Yes, she is only twenty-one, and she is unusual... but I honestly think it wouldn't be *impossible* for someone to rise to where she is in the amount of time she's had. She skipped two years of school, (which I did mention here... didn't I?) so she's been out of school (working) for five years. She's very strong, she has her weaknesses, but she's good at hiding them, she's very ambitious, aggressive, and demanding of herself and others when the situation calls for it.
I do appreciate your warning though. If you honestly thing she's getting worse as the story progresses, please tell me again, and I'll try to work on it... I do have quite a bit of conflict planned, but that's for later... right now I'm working on getting to the conflict (while working with several other fan fics at the same time... not overly wise, but... what can I say?)...
LOL, yes, Petunia is too good to be true isn't she? A constant source of confusion for Harry... I find that amusing... and she has her moments later on... so... I like her. (I'm particularly fond of her aversion to house elves...)
Thanks for reminding me about Harry writing to his friends. As it happens, he's been so busy that he hadn't thought of it before. Plus, the books always start out (basically) with him interacting with them (in some form or another) on his birthday, so that's when I thought he should remember it...
Evil LOL... Not telling... well... it's starting to come out... but that's for you to find! :P (^_^) Harry does have to go back to school soon though, so it won't be long... LOL... the introduction is an amusing concept I've been toying with for awhile... everyone (basically) already knows
Vivian, but very few people (Here's the list: Vivian herself, Harry, A. Petunia... Ria, someone else, and the house elves of the Potter/Potier Manor...) know her as Harry's older sister; Vivian Potter (thanks to the spell)...
Yup! Family... I like that theme in HP, don't ask me why, but it's one of my favorites... Don't worry, I don't plan on dumping the Weasleys... but that's for later...
You're welcome, and thank you. ^_^
Pheonixrising – ^_^ Thanks.
Yes, the training was fun, how was it in this chapter? I know there wasn't any (yet... that's for later), but I didn't want to throw too much into this chapter... I did that before with another fan fic... (the stupid chapter just wouldn't end!)
Yes... restaurant was fun...
LOL, merci, but I can't take much credit at all. My mom checked everything I wrote and I was using a lot of translators... and don't down yourself too much! If you've made it through French 1 and can at least say that it looks right, that's pretty good! I know some people who couldn't read any conjugated words until the end of their second year of language!
Thanks for reviewing! ^_^
Translations:
Consanguina - related by blood (Latin)
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Bye! ^_^
~ Jess S