Chapter Seven

When she awoke, it was to sobbing, Silas clutched their two boys to him, crying so hard. "Lou, Leo, did you wake Daddy?"

"When were you gonna Mama?" Leo asked. "Why is Daddy sad?"

"Well sweetheart, someday you'll have Daddy tell you stories about your Auntie Lucille."

"I was named for her, wasn't I Mummy? I'm Lou Daddy, Mama always calls me her little Lou love and Leo is her little lion." He said and smiled brightly. "I'm five years old today, five is a good number. My brother and I both like the number five, we wanted to turn five so badly."

"Eleven is a better number yet, lets open up another box, my sweet boys." She said and she walked into another box with her family. She then grabbed each of their hands and reversed time. This time it was the other box she had set up, in her hide away from the world. Silas didn't want to talk with her most days, which was fine, she understood. He also wanted to pass on things he thought were important to her sons, which she was fine with as well. She had taken an aging potion, which made her look as though she was still only seventeen, but she knew the truth. Then once she had her daughter Lucille Lavender she drank a bottle of the dreamless and fell asleep

She awoke next, her boys beaming down at her, they had grown so much and she felt so proud of them. They were much older now than they had once been and she saw how strong they stood, how they carried themselves and couldn't help but smile. "Hello Mum, can we go back today, I'm bored of living in this box with only Dad, Lulu and Leo for company. I want to get my hands-on books and got to my first year at Hogwarts. Can we please go back Mummy?"

"Does your Daddy want to go back, back to Hogwarts? We never did finish our seventh year, maybe we should, I hope no one takes my memories again."

"No one would dare, our Mummy." Both boys said at once and she laughed at their little scowling faces.

"So serious, my little ones, surely you remember who you were once."

"Yes Mummy." They both said at once and the door opened, a little five-year-old girl rubbed sleepily at her eyes.

"Mama, Leo and Lou said they would wake you up, I'm sleepy and Daddy still is sleeping, can we cuddle?" She asked and Roxie smiled, her daughter had the red hair of her family, where her sons didn't. Their hair was as dark as their father's, raven black ringlets had turned into wavy curls that hung to their mid backs. They braided their hair back with two silver clasps, in the colors of the Knott House.

"Of course dear, what fine young men you have become, I think you will be quite capable of sharing a manor, once you are fully grown." She said and they stared at her wide eyed. "Twins should never be separated." She said and all three of her children cried, rushing to her, she hugged each of them in turn and kissed small faces, tenderly.

They clung to her robes and she knew that her boys would be in Gryffindor, once they were sorted. It seemed cruel to hold her sons back a year, but she didn't run the school after all. She found her Silas asleep, mumbling under his breath as he dreamed, she then grabbed hold of all of them and took them to the morning after...After that night, the night of her generation's battle

She woke Silas and he smiled at her, there would always be pain in his eyes, she knew that. She also knew that for what pain he might have, he also had a lot of joy as well. She smiled and they stepped through the two boxes and into Silas's old dorms. He strode forward not glancing at the dorm room, or the sleeping students, instead they walked together to the Great Hall. She smiled when she saw that Foddy had prepared a small table for them, they took their seats, today Leo sat to the right of his Father and Lou sat to his brother's right, she knew tomorrow they would switch, with the rising of the sun.

"Leo, Lou, when are we gonna eat, I'm hungry."

"You don't even belong at Hogwarts, baby." Lou teased and she glared at him, her little face scrunching up in anger, Roxie laughed.

"Your brother is right, my little lion, don't be too mad at him."

"It's dumb though, I already know a couple of spells and some potions, why do I need to wait."

"You are only five my darling, there will be time for you to go to school, I really want to see my brother and have him meet you."

"Uncle Freddy? We get to meet Uncle Freddy?" Lucille asked and suddenly she was all smiles, at five it was relatively easy to break her family out of a fit of temper.

"WHAT THE BLOODY HELL...YOU AND YOU...AND WHAT THE BLOODY HELL?" Marigold was the first to arrive and she felt her boys bristle at her words.

"Boys, this is Marigold Goyle, she's a fourth year and yes, some time has passed since last night. Who are you to judge the decisions of the Knott family?" She asked smoothing out her skirts. "You are only a fourth year, what do you know of love and loss, of trying to make a life together...After what happened? What do you know of how we might like to spend our time, my husband's clever notebooks and interesting new inventions."

"My wife's singular talent for potions, which I couldn't even understand half of." He said and kissed her hand. "My darling, I love you so much, I don't need to know you, to know your mind. Will you read my journals, as I read yours? I followed everything you asked of me, though it was difficult at times, our boys will be great men one day."

"I know my love, but maybe we should attempt to know one another, through more than journals." She said and he laughed.

"Indeed you are correct and you were right to keep me busy, those first three years were very hard, now it has lessened somewhat. I thank you for writing of your childhood, with your father and your twin. It helped put things into perspective for me, that I would never have fully understood otherwise." Silas said and kissed her hand. "I suppose our families will be even more surprised, I've yet to write Father or hear from Mother." He said and she held his hand.

"I wanna meet Grandmama when can I meet Grandmama?" Lucille asked, one tooth was coming in and her hair was in pretty ribbons.

"Not now Lulu, we must act as the children of Silas Knott."

"Why that's boring, I want to go play, can I go play?" She asked getting fidgety.

"No little love, I'm sure your father has taught you how to stay at the table, at the very least. I know this is not very interesting, but we must sit here, this table was provided to us, by the house elves." She chided gently and her daughter smiled broadly.

"You are both the same age now, but Leo and Lou say you are really different than Father." She said and she smiled at her daughter.

"In private call me Mum, or Mummy, but in public you must always call me Mother, unless you know you are among family and friends."

"That's dumb, why?" She asked and Roxie fiddled with her skirts.

"Don't ask questions you don't like the answer to, I think that should be your first challenge Lulu."

"But I'm only five." Lulu protested.

"Yes and my Uncle Harry was only one, but that matters little, you cannot go angering people, you and your brothers might have some difficulties relating to the other children." She said and smoothed out her skirts again. "Watch how I talk and attempt to mimic my formal speech."

"Yes Mother." Lulu said and she smiled at her daughter.

"And who might this be, sitting in the castle, like one might sit at home? You are very brazen to make yourself at home here, I don't know who you are, but I demand to know why your sitting at a small table, with people I don't recognize. Speak your names and what your about, before I demand you leave, this is a school for children to learn magic and you don't seem to be children. In fact I don't recognize you at all, I have a mind for faces and yours is not any I've seen." Severus said and she laughed.

"Is that our Headmaster?" Leo asked excitedly and Severus put a hand in between his eyebrows.

"Please confirm my worst fears and my highest hopes, have you sired children and are you young Scion Knott."

"Yes I am and these are my sons, though only their mother and they know who was born first."

"I would correct that by saying only their mother and Foddy know who was born first and only Foddy knows which baby is which. Unless of course by some strange error my house elf confused my two infant sons." She said and Severus blinked in surprise.

"Interesting, how you choose to raise your children, when ultimately I see you as little more than a child, how old are you in years?" He asked and she smiled.

"I believe this year I will become twenty-two years of age and my dear husband will be twenty-three, isn't that right love?" She asked and he kissed her hand.

"Yes dear, though unfortunately we haven't had much time to ourselves, these little hellions take up most of my waking hours." He said and smiled at his sons. "I liked creating spells and potions, but I couldn't leave my boys to the tender care of their mother's house elf."

"I hope you treated Foddy well, I trusted you with his care, not that it matters, we didn't bring him back with us."

"We left Foddy, how could we leave our house elf!" Leo asked and burst into tears, Leo looked close to crying as well and she sighed, apparently the one constant in her children's lives had been Foddy and Foddy was a wonderful elf, but he had some strange habits.

"Oh little loves, do I have permission to add my sons to this year's first year class?" She asked Severus.

"In your case an exception can be made, considering the openings, all counted there were twenty dead, half of who were children." He said and Silas' hands clinched under the table. "Not a bad number, though every family lost someone and to some that matters more than others, you might haves sworn and others might have sworn not to engage in war, but your Uncle Percy lost his daughter Molly and the Lupins lost Lysander." He said gently and she sighed, she knew what she had done would be risky and if they could be brought back they would be. However some could never be brought back.

"Are they truly...Are they...I will never see them again will I? Not on this side of the veil." She said and Severus nodded, she cried until Silas gave her a bottle, which she downed without thinking. Instantly the pain didn't seem so bad, the horror not so real. "I hope you know better than to take this not more than once every four days." She chided and he smiled at her in return, it was a smile that reached his eyes, a true smile. She could not manage such a smile, poor little Molly, her children were beside themselves with grief. Of course she'd written out the best stories of her family, little stories that they could have while they grew. They knew who each of her family were to her and she gave them only the best stories.

"Your sons will be sorted, but I think that we can skip the pomp and ceremony, considering the entire school is in deep mourning." Severus stated and a hat appeared, she nodded to both her sons and smiled at the outcome she had been expecting. Her little Snake and Lion would have to find their own way. Those silver hair clips had better hold up against all the hatred the world had for her boys.

She cheered for each of them in equal measure and saw Silas beam with pride.

"I see a Knott in Gryffindor and in Slytherin, I wonder how similar your two sons will be."

"I doubt it matters, we will love them regardless, for as long as we can." She said and kissed each one on the head. "I suppose we should go to the Burrow first then, I think that the Lovegoods will be there."

"That sounds fine dear, as long as we can get to my parents by the end of the day, I have no complaints in how you choose to organize our calendar." He said and she laughed.

"Well if we forget important events, we have Foddy to remind us, Foddy is a good elf." She said and he started to cry as well, she gathered up her children and her husband, before going through the fire, they arrived at the Burrow and everyone stared at them in shock.

"How could you smile on such a day; do you have any shame?" Her Gran asked her and Roxie sighed, going over to Percy and shoving the bottle in his hand.

"Trust me Uncle Percy, take this potion, it's for your own good." She said and he did as she asked, instantly he smiled, though she knew he would feel the pain again shortly.

"What is that potion? What did you make, your clever little raven?" Percy asked. "My little Molly is gone, but suddenly I feel as though I am capable of eating something."

"I'm not hungry." Lucy said and Lucille stepped forward, bold as any of her family.

"I'm not very hungry either, Mama says that it's better to remember good stories than bad memories."

"And who might you be little one?" Her Dad asked and he started crying no sooner had he asked the question.

"I think I knew you once, long ago, or not ever again." Lorcan said. "I don't believe you were my brother though, perhaps a new friend? One can never have too many friends, do you like creatures, I like creatures."

"I do a lot, a lot a lot, please teach me about your creatures...There weren't any where we were, it was very boring." To her surprise it was her little Leo that spoke and she laughed.

"Of course my little lion and my little snake seem to be somewhat confused, they are only eleven after all. This is Leo and this is Lou, they are starting their first year at Hogwarts this year."

"Leo and Lou Knott, it is a pleasure to meet you, which of you likes creatures."

"I do, I got Foddy to give me lots, it drove Daddy up a wall and down another, the best was when...They didn't come either did they, my little friends aren't here are they?" Lou asked and she smiled.

"Well love, I'm sure magical creatures are nice enough friends, but perhaps it's time you played with other children."

"You mean to say...You were raised completely and utterly isolated?" Lorcan asked and both boys nodded.

"We had the library once we started to read and one another, course Dad wouldn't let us see anything interesting." Leo said and pouted.

"By interesting he means dangerous, nasty and otherwise somewhat unpleasant spells and as for what you were allowed to study, you have your Mother to thank for what reading material she deemed suitable."

"Indeed, so you only let your sons learn, what you wanted them to and didn't let him decide."

"More or less, then again we had a somewhat different approach, didn't we love?" She asked and he smiled.

"Indeed my heart, we did indeed."

"Are you on the potion right now Knott, tell it to me straight, I'm her twin." Freddy said and Silas shook his head.

"I only need to dose myself when it gets really bad, my children bring me enough happiness, though I will forever..."His face crumpled and he started crying again. She was fairly certain that he would neither want, nor need her comfort, she went to the kitchen and poured several cups of tea.

"How do you like it loves?"

"I prefer coffee, but tea will do, he likes it with a lot of milk and sugar, I like it with just a splash of milk." Leo said and Lou was sobbing. "Look little lion, you have to be strong, for them and for me. I can't always look out for you, I have to make sure I'm safe too."

"Yes Leo, I love you Leo." Lou said and cried harder still.

"Oh sweet, you have to tender a heart, I knew that from when I first heard you cry." She said and kissed the top of each of their heads in turn. "My sons, it's alright, try to pull yourselves together, before we go to see Grandmama, no one here would judge you for crying." She handed them both the tea and cast cheering charms on them. "Is that a little better?" She asked and they both nodded.

"Yes mama, can I go play with my cousins after I finish my tea?"

"Drink your tea and regardless of whether or not you're hungry, you are going to eat a piece of toast and a boiled egg." She said and both her boys nodded. She made enough for the five of them and made them over medium. They knew better than to complain about her cooking, she had never had the time nor the inclination to be as creative in the kitchen as some of her relatives. They finished the simple meal and she smiled at them.

"Now that I'm done, can I have a scone Mum?" Leo asked. "With cream."

"And I want a bit of apple pie." Lou said.

"And what do you want, my darling little Lulu?" She asked her daughter.

"Chocolate cake." She said and she laughed.

"Chocolate cake is good for chasing away bad memories, or is that wrong?" Leo asked and she laughed, as did half her family.

"Really that's all that you know about my Dad, that he liked chocolate and it chased away bad memories? What sort of stories did you tell your children?"

"Oh the best sort, a bit of truth, a whole lot of codswallop, didn't want them to feel as though they were obliged to be anything other than themselves." She said and smiled. "Of course, eleven is a bit young to be thinking of doing your family proud, but I'm sure that my sons will."

"What of my daughter?"

"I knew what was happening Uncle Percy, I'm not a fluff for brains, like some of my cousins." She said and sighed. "Did it really have to be Molly though she wasn't even in fourth year and...Well I don't want to think of that, no I can't think of that."

"You know your right, there are things that you can never forget, there are things that you never want to remember. There are things that you can't think of, any debt between us is null and void." Percy stated flatly.

"Agreed, do you second this Freddy?" She asked. "I'm only the second born after all." She said and her brother stared at her, long and hard, it was a look she knew well.

"Yes, I can agree to that, but you are yet to give your condolences."

"Well honestly, it's not as though we can't go back, people might argue about fixed points in time, but it's not as though we're not known for breaking the rules." She said. "I think in a month or so, I'll truly believe that they are gone."

"That's how you see things isn't it, clever girl...No matter what others say, you will do what you think is right. Unfortunately you won't be able to use that time turner of yours again, it must be handed over." Her Uncle Ron said and she took it off her neck, she would have to trust in others now. She handed it to him and he took it, not giving it a second glance. He put it into a lock box and then sent it through the fire.

"There lest any question if our side still has a time turner, I'm certain that they will soon be corrected." He said and something inside her broke, she felt it despite the potion. Something inside her broke and she fell to the ground.

"Mother you fell again, like when we were kids, you would fall a lot...How much did you drink? You cried a lot Mummy, I remember you would cry more than me or Leo. Then you had really bad dreams, crying out in your sleep, so scared that we would run and give you cuddles. The cuddles didn't seem to help very much though." He said and he curled around her. "I think I understand why, a bit not really though."

"That's a good thing, you don't want to know, by magic's grace you won't." Freddy said and turned to her. "You knew didn't you, you knew and you did it all the same."

"I knew that there would be losses, that it would be horrible, I also knew that it needed to be done. I tried to keep everyone safe, but I couldn't." She said simply and they all stared at her. "I failed." She said simply. "It's my fault they died, I'm sorry."

"What did you see, that you aren't telling us?"

"Much but does it matter, I let anger get the better of me, in the thick of it. I'm not so different than you Uncle Percy, quick to anger, I didn't think to look out for Molly, the way I tried to protect Lucy."

"Oh my sweet, how could you ever think this was all upon you, that the burdens of the world rested squarely upon your shoulders?" Her Mum said and she started crying as Roxie raised one eyebrow and Freddy let out a wet laugh.

"Oh Fred, what a strong woman we raised, look at her, she's a wonder." Her Mum said and smiled at her Uncle Fred, she blinked, her mouth dropping open.

"I believe we shocked our daughter George, she seems to think that she's only my child." Fred said and everyone laughed. "Now let's see here, I don't know what to feel sad about, or who to mourn or what to do with my life. However I'm glad I have a life in the end and I think Guid and Fab feel the same."

"Don't speak for us, we can speak for ourselves." Gideon said and it was Gideon, you could always tell by the slight scar across his face, a fight with one of their rivals had left a small mark upon his face, when they were children.

"I see now why you wanted those memories, to know who was who, isn't that right?" Her Gran asked. "How long have you been planning this? Plotting your little schemes and strategies?"

"Since I was fourteen, I decided then that it was worth the risk, if handled right. Of course I just was a part of all that craziness, though I went back several times, over certain events." She said and shrugged. "Maybe I'll think next time, before I let myself be blinded by anger."

"You know, I understand that, I think everyone here might understand that too. Not the most rational lot, we Weasleys, I saw how you strode up to that werewolf bold as can be. Ultimately though, I think that it might be best for you to have your seventh year."

"What no, we're not doing that, I can't I'm in a good place, don't make me deal with that all over again." Silas said.

"Well we do need to protect our children Silas, but I think we're a good deal older than seventeen now. Maybe we could be instructors, who better to teach diplomatic relations and comportment." She said and he laughed.

"Oh really, diplomatic relations and comportment, that's what you would suggest we teach students at Hogwarts? Bloody hell woman you do demand most of my time, with your notions."

"I think that they might seem strange to you, but they make a bit of sense to me. Luckily I can just chuck everything into a pensive." She said and got out her pensive, it was top of the line and it had been a seventeenth birthday to herself. She cast the charm and felt a good deal better, without all the uninteresting spells and failed potions in her head.

"What's in your pensive, what is it that you set aside? "Freddy asked.

"Well its boring, calculations for the most part, but you can look if you like Freddy." She said and he did just that, of course he'd be gone for hours. She stroked his back and then turned towards her kids. "Right then, my little chasers how bought a few rounds of quidditch on a proper pitch with grass."

"You didn't have grass?"

"We had a garden, with an artificial sun, I liked that best. That was our first place wasn't it Mummy? The other place had a moon instead of a sun, why did you make them like that?"

"No reason in particular, because I felt like it to be honest." She said and smiled. "Of course it wasn't really the sun or the moon, really just illusion." She said and put her daughter on her shoulders. "Maybe we should take off our shoes and run around the garden first." She said and they did as she suggested, she smiled as she stepped outside the door and within moments her sons were laughing and chasing one another, her daughter trying to catch up to her big brothers. Her baby feet didn't move nearly as fast as theirs and she tripped over a gnome and started crying.

"Bad gnomes, hurt my little sister, going get rid of your pesky things." Leo said and Lou frowned.

"I don't know I might like gnomes, they might not hurt our little sister."

"That's like asking for a treaty between us and the goblins." Bill said with a laugh, before he set to getting the gnomes out of the garden.

"You let her run right into the gnomes?" Lucy demanded and Roxie shrugged.

"Well we all had to learn the hard way, come here little one, let me see to your bruised knees and that gnome bite." She said and took her daughter into her arms, going back inside. Her daughter sniffed back tears, her knees bloody as Roxie set her on the kitchen table. Of course the first aid kit was in its usual place and she got it down, patching up her daughter and adding two of the colorful bandages left over from Aunt Hermione's yearly gift of muggle bandages. Her daughter wiped away her tears and she gave her a cookie. "That's a brave girl, now go run and play with your cousins."

"You don't heal their wounds? You have them feel the pain, even though you could magic it away?" Rose asked and she nodded.

"I find it builds character, of course Dad was a bit busy when we were growing up and Mum was a bit busy trying to run the shop. Me and Freddy learned to look after one another fairly well, didn't we Freddy?"

"Yes, we did at that and we always knew that we could fire call Gran or Uncle Harry." He said and smiled.

"I never questioned why you wanted to stay at my house so often, perhaps I should have." Uncle Harry said and she shrugged.

"It was a good enough upbringing, but I want better for my children. I'm about as absent minded as my Dad, I just have other interests. I think after this year I may join the Unspeakable, or I may just continue to do my own research." She said and shrugged. She then got out the crate and entered it, everything was as she recalled, she went to Silas and woke him, he stared at her in wonder. "You are caught within your own time loop, but don't fear, for everything will be alright in the end my love." She said and kissed him tenderly. "I remember how I couldn't bear to visit you at first, to see you sleeping on that bed."

"How long has it been, what year is it, who do I become?"

"Shush, it's alright, it will all be alright." She said and patted his back. "Just because someone needs to rest here, doesn't mean you do, I think Percy can take your place and we'll miss him, but you will be with your family and you will recover from what has happened. I need to believe that you are here, but you don't have to be."

"You mean I can go and be with my family, he can stay here and then...What precisely? What can be done to...Nothing can...My sister." He said and started crying.

"Yes and my little cousin and Lysander died as well." She said and sighed. "You are so very young now, go into this box and I'll try to keep it safe."

"All these boxes within boxes, realities within realities." He said. "I like the way you think." He said and then Percy came in with Silas.

"Right then, I suppose that we just trust in these two potions." He said and she nodded.

"How did you know when to come in?"

"We got a visit from the Unspeakable, too many boxes they said and so we can only have these three."

"These two." She corrected and stepped into the box they had come in from. She then turned to the Unspeakable. "If all goes utterly horribly wrong, step into this box, if I've done it right, it shouldn't alter this time stream."

"What the hell is up with all of your boxes, within boxes within boxes, within timeframes within more boxes?" The Unspeakable looked rather put out, she could tell by the way his mask moved. "Can't you see this isn't a game girl?"

"Yes, I can see how this is a bit serious, but honestly I'm going off of little to no information." She stated. "I'm simply doing what I feel like doing and letting everything go to random chance, I believe that if things become as chaotic as possible, then things will come out alright in the end."

"You are a singular talent."

"My husband is very talented as well, of course we could throw a proper party, but I felt being married in the old way was enough to make it official." She stated as Silas came out of the box.

"Miss my dear?"

"Always you rogue." She said and he laughed.

"I think my sister filled your head with a few too many stories." He said.

"Or not enough, after all you and my brother were the most sought-after boys in our year." She said and he groaned.

"Don't remind me, I'd rather not remember that." He said and she laughed.

"I was told to give this to you as a gift, something about requests and bequests." Draco Malfoy said and smiled at Rose Weasley. "Congratulations are in order, I am told that you are to be my daughter in law. My son is waiting for you, hopefully you will do alright for yourselves." He said and Rose entered the box.