...
"Guilt is perhaps the most painful companion of death."
Coco Chanel
...


.

Still existing fragments from the Collection of the 'Old and ancient Slytherin pure-blood family codex':

[...]

and therefore, the following rules apply for all those, who try to keep their blood as pure as possible and try to meet the high standards of our forefathers:

... Marriages are to be arranged between pureblooded families only...

... However both Family heads have to agree to the union of their children...

... Women are to marry whoever the head of the family tells them to ...
(Everyone who does not obey is to be disowned without any kind of mercy)

[…]

... Witches unable to bare children are to be considered marriage-unworthy...

... Widowed witches may marry again into a pure-blooded family ...
(children from previous marriages are to take the new Family Head's name)

... Firstborn girls will automatically be replaced by the next born male in line...

[…]

... no matter how much younger the boy is, he will take his rightful place as the heir of the house and is to inherit the majority of the family fortune...
(This includes children born out of wedlock)

[…]

... All children are to be raised according to the pure-blood standards...

... They must be aware of the importance of their blood...

...warned about the dangers witches and wizards with filthy blood can cause...

... Heirs will be given access to the fortune upon reaching their 18th birthday or right after the Head of the family's death...

... The family fortune will be stored in a vault at Gringott's...

... is to be secured with a blood-magic lock, so only the rightful heir is able to open it...

[...]


"Where in Merlin's name have you been?" Dorothy Holloway's shrill voice rang through the unusually quiet halls of St. Mungos.

Minerva just rolled her eyes and sprinted after her son-in-law as fast as she possibly could - considering her still healing leg.

"Whatever owls you sent Dorothy, they must have flown a lot slower than you thought," Minerva shouted back over her shoulder, "we just got your message."

Pushing open the clean white door, she heard the nurse's mumbled "…bloody owls… will go there myself next time…"

The emerald eyed witch chose to ignore her and took a few steps forward to stand next to Aidan, whose body was already bent over the hospital bed and his eyes were quickly scanning over the horribly looking man who was lying on top of the bed.

It was true; Cornelius really didn't look good: beaten up, bruises everywhere and a deep cut was to be seen at the side of his throat.

"Peter did the surgery?" Dan asked without looking at the nurse.

Dorothy rolled her eyes. "Yes; and Dr. Pearlman won't stop talking about how he saved the life of the one and only Cornelius Fudge… You know there was a reason why I specifically asked for you to be on this case! Someone his age shouldn't be allowed to perform surgeries anymore anyway! Oh, and don't look at me like that, Minerva. The way he keeps forgetting things… one would think he's not 30 but at least 60 years older than we are!"

A soft chuckle was heard from Dan. "Don't be so mean, Doro. He loves his job."

The nurse only raised her eyebrow and even Minerva had to admit that she looked quite scary now. "You love your job, too, Aidan. But you don't kill your patients because you accidently use the wrong medications!"

"True," the young surgeon mumbled, picked up the chart and scanned the information written on it. "Let's wake him up, shall we?"

Minerva's eyes widened in surprise. "You can do that?"

He just shrugged. "It's worth a try. We probably don't have much time before the exhaustion causes him to pass out again… but we need answers, don't we?"

The witch just nodded and watched in amazement as her son-in-law easily and skillfully injected several different medications into her old school-mates blood system.

A few minutes passed without changes; then, after she had almost given up Cornelius lazily opened his eyes.

When he was fully awake, the monitors next to them began to race; indicating that his heart was beating much faster than it should.

"Mr. Fudge," Aidan said in a very professional voice and laid a calming hand on his shoulder. "You're in the hospital. I'm Dr. Gold and I'm sure you know Professor McGonagall?"

His swollen eyes wandered over to look at the transfiguration mistress. "Mi- Min-n-nerva…"

Despite their well, rocky past, Minerva reached out to take his shaking hand in her small one. "Cornelius, we don't have much time. We need to figure out who did this to you. Can you remember anything?"

"The smallest of detail will help us," Dan added.

The former Minister only shook his head vehemently. "No, no, no… so m-much p-pain… I c-can't…"

"Yes you can," Minerva urged him, "For Merlin's sake you managed to remain sane even with Dolores around you… I honestly doubt-"

"Do-Dolores," Fudge breathed and held his hurting head with both hands now. "She – she trapped… helped h-him t-to…"

At times like these, Minerva was overly grateful to have her animagus hearing. "Dolores had something to do with this. I should have known."

A window exploded behind her as the transfiguration mistress thought about who that bloody toad had not only killed her beloved little sister, but how she almost managed to do the same to her daughter.

Aidan sighed and waved his wand to repair the damage; then sent a glare towards the transfiguration mistress that clearly said 'Don't. Use. Magic.'

"Cornelius," Minerva tried to ignore the stern glare and focused on the man in front of her. "Who was it she was working with?"

The man's eyes started to roll. "C-can't t-tell. S-spell t-to p-prevent t-that."

The emerald eyed with looked up at her son-in-law with concerned eyes. "Who ever this was used probably a dark magic spell to prevent somebody from telling something."

"These exist?" Dorothy asked astonished. Minerva had to admit that she had almost forgotten that the nurse was still with them in the room, but she nodded.

"Not anymore. Most of these specific books had been destroyed after Grindelwald's defeat…" she mumbled, lost in her own thoughts for a moment.

"So whoever HE is, he is most likely the same age you are. Or a lot older," the young surgeon added, grinning slightly as he noticed Minerva's mockingly raised eyebrow.

"Fudge, how did he look?" Dorothy asked from her place at the door.

But the old minister just shook his head even harder than before. "Ch-changes c-constantly. H-hair, e-eys, a-always d-different."

"He's a metamorphmagus?" Dan asked, concern clearly evident in his voice.

"N-no. H-he u-uses s-spells a-and-d-d…" the last words were nothing more than a stutter before his swollen blue eyes finally rolled backwards and closes

Minerva sighed. This wouldn't get them very far. She feared that there was no other way than having the nice and already long overdue chat with Dolores…

Dan also sighed, injected him something else and handed the chart to Headnurse Holloway. "That's all we get right now. He'll be out for quite some time now… Dorothy, please keep me up to date."

"You're going back to Hogwarts? Well, then at least take this card… it belongs to the man who brought Fudge here… Just in case you have any questions."

"Thanks, but this has time. Oh, and next time you want to reach me, use the pager. It is far more reliable than that owl of yours," the young surgeon told her smiling brightly.

Upon seeing Dorothy nod happily, he followed the ebony-haired witch out of the room.

Minerva was about to take a left turn in order to get to the Hospital exit, when Aidan softly grabbed her arm and lead her in the opposite direction.

"I thought we are going back to Hogwarts?" The witch asked confused as he opened yet another door and offered her with a swift movement of his hand to enter.

"We are. But I really need to change this coat," he winced and gestured towards the bloody white coat. "Besides, you really need to eat something now or Arina and Poppy are going to kill me in a very painful way…"


Hermione breathed hard when she came to a stop right in front of the Great Hall's double doors. She bent a little forward and put her hands on her knees in order to be able to breathe better. It had been a close call; the ceiling was even more instable than they had anticipated and they had been running the whole way from the headmaster's office to this place.

Finally looking up, the young witch noticed that she wasn't the only one who was slightly panting. With a small smile she noticed that Prof- Severus was still holding Narcissa's hand. Harry had told her that the potions master had been madly in love with his mother Lily for quite some time… but perhaps the end of the war also offered a second chance for him – and Draco's mother.

Turning her head in the other direction she saw Harry and Professor Dumbledore as well as the golden wedding band he wore on his ring-finger; naturally matching Professor McGonagall's. However, both of them had one arm each around a slightly pale Arina; trying to steady her as well as possible.

"Are you alright, Rina?" Hermione asked her aunt concerned.

The ebony haired witch only nodded, but since she gave her a small smile it was alright.

"Is there a special reason that and old man like myself looks better after a sprint like that than a young witch like you, my love?" The now short bearded man asked his daughter with a raised eyebrow.

"We – We had a little confrontation with the oh so lovely Mrs. Umbridge… but don't worry… just give me a couple of seconds and I'm as good as new," Arina answered, leaned further against him and used her other hand so softly squeeze Harry's shoulder.

The headmaster's twinkling blue eyes darkened a little. "We?"

"Well – "

"There is more history between Minerva and the stupid toad than she led people to believe, isn't there?" Severus asked the headmaster.

The older man sighed. "Unfortunately yes. Is she alright?"

Harry nodded. "Yes. She was amazing."

"I have no doubt about that," the headmaster and Narcissa said at the same time; causing both of them to chuckle.

Arina just rolled her eyes, and walked – still Harry on her side – towards the doors to open them. "Oh, before we enter, Dad, you should know that… well, Uncle Aberforth is also here."

Hermione noticed that the Headmaster raised an eyebrow once more, but in the end he only sighed. "Well, I wanted to talk to him anyway… so I better get it over sooner rather than later I guess."

Since her aunt just stared at the elderly wizard, Severus rolled his eyes, and rather impatiently opened the door himself. With a gesture of his hand, he mentioned for everyone else to step through.

.

The remaining people at the 'Round Table' reacted in exactly the way Hermione had expected them to do. Molly, Arthur, Bill, Fleur, Neville, Ginny and Ron stared at the approaching wizard open mouthed, Augusta, Rolanda, Poppy, Moody and Aberforth's eyes had at least double their size, Draco also looked a little surprised but his main attention was focused on his mother, who still walked right next to the potions master. The young Slytherin jumped up from his chair and quickly walked towards his mother, who immediately took him into her arms. Well, and Xemerius almost chocked on the sip of water upon seeing his best friend's husband all up and alive again.

And of course, they all started talking at the exact same time, so Hermione barely understood anything.

"What in Merlin's name-"

"Albus, how –"

"You've got to be kidding me – "

"Bloody hell – "

"Ronald, watch your language!"

Hermione chuckled at seeing Molly scold her boyfriend; but in the end she took pity on the red-haired young man and kissed him lovingly on the lips before she sat down on his lap.

In return he wrapped her arms around her and whispered, "tell me I'm not going crazy, Hermione."

The young witch shook her head and leaned against his chest; waiting in anticipation for what was about to happen next, but it was Arina who spoke up first.

"Where is my mother?" She asked concerned and scanned the whole hall, but most people had apparently returned to their work or – as Hermione noticed – since it was slowly getting dark outside, a couple of them were already sleeping on tiny beds in their conjured sleeping bags. "Come to think of it, my husband isn't here either."

"They both got an urgent owl from St. Mungos and they left immediately. Some sort of political situation, I think," Ginny explained, though she was still staring at Professor Dumbledore, who was apparently a little relieved to be given a little more time to think about a way to tell his wife about his faked death…

Harry took this opportunity to sit down on the empty chair next to his girlfriend. He also gave her a sweet kiss before he turned his attention back to the current situation.

"Are you real?" Neville finally asked the question everyone else was probably wondering about. "Sir?" He added after a moment of consideration and a glare from his grandmother Augusta.

The headmaster laughed whole-heartedly. "Indeed I am, dear boy."

"How?" The simple question came from Aberforth, who was staring at his brother as if he had seen a ghost; 'Which is actually not all that wrong,' Hermione thought and a small smile was playing around her lips.

The white-haired man sighed and he held his brother's glance for a moment. "A couple of spell here and there. It was mostly Severus' work really…"

"That's all you're going to tell us?" Augusta asked a little outraged.

"If you're really that interested in the works of these special charms, I will gladly explain it to you Augusta. Though I was always under the impression that charms has never been your favourite subject…"

The old witch rolled her eyes and elbowed Rolanda who had started to laugh. "Alright, alright. What about the short version?"

But before the Professor was able to answer, Xemerius did – even though he was grinning over both ears.

"Just look at him Augusta. Give the man a break. We should be happy he is alive. And I think he is not in the mood to answer all your questions after he just got back into the world of the living. Besides, I'm sure that his brilliant mind is already going over the many possible ways of what Minerva might do to him once she's back."

This statement seemed to calm Neville's grandmother down, and an evil smile replaced her outraged expression. "I hope you are aware of the fact that I'm still extraordinary angry at the both of you for keeping us in the dark about your marriage – and your daughter!" She said and gestured towards Arina, who was once again leaning against her father.

The considered to be most powerful wizard of all times winced under the witch's expression. Hermione assumed that he had also known her for quite some time; and whenever a woman was looking at someone with this particular evil expression, one had to be careful.

"But," Rolanda added with the same evil grin, "we will get at least a little revenge once Minerva is through with you… That will partly make up for the fact that you didn't tell us about, well, the two of you. It will be spectacular to watch."

Once again, the headmaster cringed and took a deep breath. "I'm always happy to be able to amuse you, Rolanda…"

"What were you thinking, Albus? Leaving her in the dark for all this time?" Madam Pompfrey's voice was angrier than Hermione had ever heard her and she watched as the medi-witch started pacing around; her angry blue eyes never leaving the white-haired man. "She was a wreck!"

"I know-"

"She worked herself half to death to distract herself so she didn't have time to think about your so called death!"

"I know-"

The mediwitch now stopped pacing and Hermione was really scared upon seeing her face; but she did understand her anger. After all, the young witch might have only seen bits and pieces in the Mablomi so far, but she knew that Professor McGonagall really suffered from her husband's loss…

Arina also moved with a sad look in her bright blue eyes and sat down next to Harry, who immediately took her hand protectively in his.

"You know better than anyone else that she doesn't take it well when the people she loves are taken from her!" Poppy continued and pointed at him accusingly. "You are lucky that she hasn't done something incredibly stupid! You – "

"Poppy," Xemerius laid a calming hand on the furious mediwitch's shoulder. "Let him talk."

The mediwitch opened her mouth but upon seeing the stern grey eyes of her old friend, she closed it again and just waved her hands up.

Xemerius then nodded toward the Headmaster; a clear sign that he could speak now.

"I made a mistake, Poppy. It's as simple as that," he explained and a pair of sincere blue eyes looked first at the mediwitch, then at his daughter and finally at everyone around him.

The mediwitch slowly nodded and so did Xem; Arina suspiciously wiped at her eyes and gave her father a small smile. Aberforth however only coughed suspiciously.

"You really admit that you've made a mistake, big brother?" He asked with a raised eyebrow.

Hermione could see that Arina's previously sad looking eyes started to glow dangerously.

The headmaster had noticed it, too and flashed his daughter a look that clearly said, 'let me handle this.'

"Yes, I admit it as many times as you like, Abe," he finally said and his eyes locked with his brother's pale ones. "I made a lot of mistakes in my life; I admit that, too. But as much as I would like to, I cannot change the past. And I cannot bring back Ana either," he added and both brother's took a deep, simultaneous breath.

But finally Aberforth nodded slowly. "I know that. But perhaps, we could change the future," he suggested in his deep voice and looked from his brother to Harry and Arina and to Hermione. "Perhaps, we could be the family we once were."

For a moment, no one said a word; then the headmaster nodded and outstretched his hand for his brother to take – which he did. "We could do that."

"Arina?" The younger Dumbledore brother asked his niece and all eyes turned to the younger ebony haired witch; including Harry and Hermione's.

"Kiddo?" Xemerius repeated carefully and waved his hand to get his god-daughter's attention.

But Hermione's aunt just continued to stare at her uncle Abe for a moment with the same piercing blue eyes her father had. Eventually, her eyes softened a bit. "One condition," she finally said.

Abe nodded and held his niece's glance.

"Don't ever insult my mother again," she then whispered, but it was loud enough for everyone to hear.

Now it was the Headmaster's turn to look at his brother angrily. "You did what?"

"That's between my uncle and me, dad," Arina answered and flashed her father a Professor McGonagall like glare that clearly left now room for argumentation.

Hermione noticed that Narcissa whispered something in the potions master's ears that caused him to chuckle.

"It won't happen again, Arina." Abe promised earnestly.

The blue-eyed witch nodded. "For your own good I hope you're right."

Xemerius just laughed. "Believe me, love, your mother will clearly show him his place if he ever says something like that again! Just wait until she hears that your father is still alive and you will see what I'm talking about. I still remember the last time she was furious with Albus…"

A roar of laugher followed his remark and they all glanced at the old headmaster who looked a little pale in the face. "Don't remind me, Xem…"


Minerva swallowed hard and put the almost empty plate down on the table next to her.

She had quickly changed her torn and bloody emerald robes and put on one of Arina's dark blue ones, which Dan had for some reason in the closet of his office. Lucky for her, Minerva had the same size as her daughter; though she noticed that she had indeed lost more and more weight in the last couple of month than she should have…

Dan, also dressed in a new and perfectly white coat, rolled his eyes at her. "That's all you're going to eat for dinner?"

"Have you seen how much this was? In case it has escaped your notice, but I'm not one of those skinny boys in their teenage years that have to eat twice as much as anyone else in order to get a couple of muscles more."

Satisfied with her answer, she watched as the St. Mungos Chief of Surgery chuckled at her remark. "Alright, alright. I get your point. I'm happy to get you to eat anything at all."

This said, he waved his wand and vanished both of their plates. Then, Aidan got up from his chair and moved over to his desk – or what was left of it, considering all the tons of paper that were currently dropped upon it.

After he had looked through a couple of them, he finally found what he was looking for and grabbed a rather thick looking file out of the pile.

Minerva raised an eyebrow and looked at him a little amused. "What happened to your desk? I'm quite sure neither Hermione nor Harry had been here lately."

Her son-in-law sighed. "Well, they do have a tendency to ruin my desk, don't they? But no, we have a couple of new nurses… sadly they have no idea where to place things… I need to have a little talk with Dorothy again…"

"Knowing Dorothy, she will be even harder on them than Poppy is."

Aidan shrugged and gestured towards the mess on his desk. "To be honest I don't really care what she does with them as long as they start working properly…"

With the hand in his file he returned to the little table and poured both of them another cup of hot and steaming chamomile tea.

"But the nurses are actually not important right now. You are," he said and his chocolate brown eyes looked at her with a mixture of sadness and sympathy before he handed her a small bottle with a light blue liquid in it.

Minerva sighed, but accepted the little bottle nonetheless. "I knew this was about more than just dinner…"

The blond man nodded. "I'm afraid so," he said. "The potion will hopefully reduce the pain a little…"

She looked at him gratefully. "Thank you."

Aidan nodded and opened the file so she could take a look at them.

Squinting, Minerva cursed her eye-sight and fished her square glasses out of the pocket of her still ruined black robe.

"They survived all this time in your pocket?" Dan laughed despite himself.

Minerva chuckled a little. "I'm quite surprised myself... But luckily I just need them to read, so it would not have been catastrophic had they been damaged in the battle. Now what do we have?"

She put the glassed on the tip of her nose and cursed. "I take it back; they did not survive," she said and showed him the broken glass.

Aidan smiled. "Reparo," he said and handed them back to his mother in law.

"Thank you, dear," Minerva said; then looked at the young man expectantly.

The surgeon held her glance for a moment, then took a deep breath. "How much magic have you used during the last school year and the battle? And this time, please be honest with me, Minerva."

Sighing, she leaned back in her chair. "Too much. But there was no other way."

"I was afraid you would say that. Minerva, I can only repeat myself: the more magic you use the more pain it will cause you."

The emerald witch knew that he was only trying to do what was best for her.

"All magic comes with a price; I'm aware of that. But we both know that I will die sooner rather than later. Merlin, I'm a pure-blood witch… These lab results indicate I should have been dead months ago. So the least I can do is use the last bit of life that I have left to protect my students and my family."

Despite the fact that Minerva had never seen a more professional healer and surgeon than her son-in-law, her heart skipped a beat when she looked into his sad and but determined brown eyes.

"I will find a way, Minerva," he swore, but his shaking voice betrayed his usual confidentiality.

She sent him a kind smile. "Aidan, we've already talked about this and I accepted it by now. There is now cure known for 'Mors ad Crutiam'. My magic is turning against me. It will only be a matter of time now until …" she trailed off. No matter how many times she thought about it, so far she had not yet been able to actually say it aloud.

Aidan's brown eyes sparkled and he squeezed her hands. "You have lived longer than anyone who has ever been affected with the poison, Minerva. Don't give up."

Minerva returned the gesture and smiled at him kindly; at the same time trying to hide the tears that were welling up in her own eyes. 'When this whole thing is over, at least I'll be able to see Albus again,' the transfiguration mistress thought hopefully.

"Aidan, look at me," she said and carefully lifted his chin; and brown eyes met watery, emerald green ones. "You have achieved more in the research than anyone else has in centuries."

"Yeah, using you like a lab-rat…" he mumbled a little grumpily.

Despite herself, Minerva chuckled softly. "Well, I'm glad this whole torture has at least one positive side," she said and realized a little too late that she should have avoided the word 'torture', since this was after all exactly what the poison did to her…

"Aidan," she continued quickly, "You did what no one else managed so far. You have at least a very possible cure-theory for 'Mors ad Crutiam'."

The surgeon gave a rather uncharacteristically snort.

"But that's all it is, Minerva, a theory. And a – in the muggle world - common blood-transplant has never been done before with magical blood and sadly transferring magic from a witch or wizard to someone else is beyond difficult – not to mention illegal because it is considered 'stealing' and therefore a major crime in this world."

Minerva nodded. "True. But that's at least something. Just this little flicker of hope was enough to keep me going for a little bit longer. And it's not your fault that Arina's blood and magic resemble her father's rather than mine."

Aidan sadly nodded and slowly got up from his chair. "Still, I'm not giving up just yet."

The transfiguration mistress smiled at her son-in-law. "I wouldn't expect anything less from you. And I'm so very grateful for it."

"You know, it would still be easier if you told people that you are sick…" the young man suggested as he helped her up. "Arina has a right to know that you are going to die soon."

Minerva sighed, but shook her head. "No, I haven't changed my mind. This little secret stays between the two of us. I don't want Arina to worry about me."

"She's your daughter. She would want to know if you are in pain."

"Arina hasn't been the same for a long time after Albus told her about his cursed hand. No, there's no need for her to know."

Dan knew better than to argue with his mother-in-law, so he just sighed and held out his hand for her to take in order to get them both back to Hogwarts; Minerva's medical file and medicine bottle securely wrapped in his other hand.

"Oh, and I hope you don't mind a little trip to the owlery first… I really need to send a letter to Jean and Liam."


Harry had to admit that it was true that you couldn't miss something before you really knew it.

And as he leaned against his godmother's shoulder and she put an arm around him in return, he felt incredibly relieved that he had her by his side now. There was simply something about Arina… the love and happiness that was shining in her sparkling blue eyes whenever she looked at him….

At first, Harry had indeed been a little hesitant about what his godmother would be like… and he had feared that a sort of awkward conversation would follow sooner or later. But for some reason he now had the feeling that there were no words needed between them. Arina had made it plain clear that she really did love him and this was a feeling Harry truly treasured.

And having all his friends around him made it even better.

Since Aberforth and Xemerius had been standing earlier, they had simply performed a couple of spells to enlarge the 'Round Table'.

Now they were all once again seated together; Hermione and Harry himself were both next to Arina; right next to Harry sat Ginny. Followed by Ron, Neville, Luna, Draco, Narcissa, and Professor Snape. Professor Dumbledore was now sitting at the opposite end next to the potions master. Next to him were Moody, Molly and Arthur, along with Bill and Fleur. After them came Aberforth, Rolanda, Augusta, Poppy and finally Xemerius, who closed the circle.

Arina's hospital bed had also been vanished with a quick flick of her wand. She had said something along the lines, "bad memories… and never really been fond of medical stuff either…"

Naturally, this caused everyone at the table to laugh whole-heartedly and Professor Dumbledore just commented, smirking, "Last time I checked, you married a healer, love…", which caused her to blush a bright crimson.

Due to the fact that it was already quite late, a lot of people had already entered the Great hall to catch some long-overdue sleep. Harry had been a little surprised, but after Madam Pompfrey explained that it had been decided to put up small cots for everyone, it would be no trouble. And he could see her point; like he had experienced first had, the castle grounds were still dangerous and a lot of people simply weren't ready to return to their own homes just yet.

"What was she like? My mother, I mean," Harry suddenly asked out of the blue and lifted his head from his godmother's shoulder.

Arina, who had been studying the little mablomi in front of her with new-found interest, turned to look at her godson and smiled.

"She was like the sister I never had," she said and for a quick second a small shadow flashed over her face. "The most loving and caring person I have ever met."

Professor Dumbledore nodded in agreement. "She was indeed a lovely girl and also an excellent student who turned into a stunning young woman."

Xemerius on the other hand chuckled and looked at Harry.

"Oh, and she had a temper that resembled Minerva and Arina's. From what I've heard your mother has also passed that on to you, Harry," the silvery eyed wizard laughed. "And she was most certainly not a witch to be underestimated; a little like Hermione here. Studious and bright, but whenever someone needed her, one had no doubt that she belonged into Gryffindor house!"

Harry smiled; both at the lovely tales about his mother and the fact that Hermione had blushed a bright crimson.

"And she lived with you, didn't she?" Harry directed the question at his godmother and Professor Dumbledore. Both of them nodded.

"She did?" Augusta, Rolanda and Aberforth asked at the same time.

Arina smiled. "Yes. Her parents weren't really fond of her being a witch and they gave her the choice… either forget about 'all this magic nonsense' or go to Hogwarts, but then she would no longer be welcome at their home."

Harry's eyes darkened. This was also new to him. But knowing how much his aunt Petunia detested magic it didn't surprise him at the least.

Augusta shook her head. "These muggles… unbelieveable…"

"So you simply decided to take the girl in?" Rolanda asked and looked at the Headmaster with a small smile on her face.

The white haired old man chuckled. "Well, I didn't really have a say in the matter."

"Why is that?" Moody asked surprised. And judging by Molly and Arthur's looks he wasn't the only one.

Professor Dumbledore chuckled. "Let's just say that when I came home that day, I was a little surprised to see Minerva sitting on the living room couch with Arina one side and a little red-haired girl sleeping on her other side. And all she did was look at me with –"

"- these damn twinkling emerald eyes," Arina interrupted grinning.

"Yes," the headmaster agreed head-shakingly, "she looked at me with exactly those damn twinkling emerald eyes and all she said was: 'Please. She's got nowhere else to stay.'"

Everybody laughed and Harry grinned like an idiot.

"Really?" He asked and was completely unable to hide his amusement.

After all, despite the fact that he had learned a lot more about his transfiguration professor and really got to adore her over the years, Harry would have never imagined her to be the puppy-dog-look kind of person.

"Really," Arina confirmed and smiled at him and Hermione. "And trust me, once you've spent a little more time with her, you will see that there is so much more to her than just the role of the stern, icy and no-nonsense Deputy Headmistress."

"And as I can see the two of you are already on a very good way of breaking through the little ice-barrier she has built up around her heart," Xemerius said seriously and also smiled at the two.

Hermione returned the smile, but before she was able to say something, Professor Dumbledore spoke up.

"My dear, what are you doing?" He asked and looked at Arina.

The younger witch looked at her father and gestured towards the little liquid mirror in front of her. "It works like a pensieve," she explained and smirked at Harry and Hermione. "Created by pure serendipity, though. We're still trying to find out more about it."

"And it wasn't us," Harry quickly added and showed the sleeping little bat in his pocket to the white-haired wizard. "Batty here knocked over a couple of things…"

Dumbledore chuckled. "Ah, Severus told me about the mess this little creature created in Aidan's office… So its name is Batty?"

"Indeed, Professor," Luna answered, smiling.

Harry noticed that Arina had once again turned her attention back to the Mablomi. "I have to admit, I'm quite fascinated by the blood and all…" she mumbled and traced the edges of the mirror with her slim finger.

"Arina, you should be careful not to touch it," Harry advised his godmother. He had a weird feeling inside of his stomach. "We don't know what will happen when – "

But it was too late.

Distracted by her godson's voice, the blue-eyed witch's finger slipped and touched the still white-ish liquid.

Like every time it happened, Harry and Hermione got immediately sucked in, though this time… Arina followed.


Harry groaned. Not because he was hurt, but rather because he was quite frustrated that both Hermione and his godmother had landed right on top of him.

"Holy Morgana," Arina cursed, got up and helped Harry back on his feet with an apologetic look on her face. "I'm so sorry, love."

Harry just shrugged. "No worries. You weigh almost nothing anyway. Neither of you do," he added quickly upon seeing Hermione's raised eyebrow.

But the brown haired witch's eyes softened again; then turned to her aunt. "You will get used to the weird feeling in your stomach after you've got sucked in here a couple of times.

Arina winced. "I hope so… it is indeed more unpleasant than I had first anticipated."

Then she looked around rather curiously and watched as the waves of red slowly disappeared to present the memory. Harry did the same; after all he also wanted to know where – or rather when – they had arrived this time.

"So this is it, hmm? What it looks like inside the mablomi?"

Harry nodded, smiling.

"Well, Harry and I or at least one of us has to come in her and watch… but you already know that," Hermione explained. "But it appears that you are able to decide freely whether or not you want to come with us since your blood is also part of the mablomi liquid. And all you have to do is touch the mirrors red surface like you just did. The only consequence seems to be that both Harry and I have to come along."

"I always had the tendency to touch things I wasn't supposed to come in contact with… It drove my parents up the walls." Arina laughed and her blue eyes sparkled with excitement. "And I know that curiosity usually kills the cat, but… this is an opportunity simply too great to miss."

Harry and Hermione both laughed and hugged the blue-eyed witch tightly.

"And we are able to spend more time with you," Harry said and beamed at his godmother, who smiled at him.

Hermione then moved her hand and pointed straight ahead. "Harry, Rina, look! The memory's ready to be watched."

"Goody Godric, this is so exciting!" Arina whispered to the young adults, a bright smile on her face.

.

After a couple of minutes, the first structures of the white entrance hall were visible, which Harry and Hermione had already seen in one of the other memories.

"That's the entrance Hall of McGonagall Manor," Arina explained quickly. "We used to live there when I was a child. It was a wonderful place; Lily and I had a lot of fun there."

"You're not living there anymore?" Harry asked surprised. The more he looked around, the more he wanted to know how the whole Manor looked.

"Well, your parents bought the house in Godric's Hollow and Dan and I moved into our own little flat in London," the blue eyed witch said smiling.

"What about Professor McGonagall? Where does she live?" Hermione asked confused.

Arina cringed a little. "Well… after Dad 'died' she was pretty occupied with Hogwarts… but I can imagine that if there had been a time when she left the castle during the last year, she probably would have moved a couple of things to my father's old house that is also in Godric's hollow…."

Harry raised an eyebrow. "But the Manor is hers, isn't it?"

The elder witch nodded. "Yes. But it was built centuries ago and it's still too big for a whole family, let alone a single person. Besides, my mother… let's say she associates a lot of memories with this place. I mean, she grew up here. Naturally, there are times when you simply remember things you aren't really fond of re-living again…"

Harry nodded. It made sense; he knew now that his professor had also lost her parents at quite a young age and living here probably brought up not only fond, but also terribly sad feelings.

"Do you know what year we are in?" Arina suddenly asked and brought Harry back from his thoughts.

"Nope, no idea."

Pursing her lips, the blue eyed witch took her wand from the pocket of her robe, flicked it and quickly whispered, "anno revelio."

"There we go," she said smiling and showed harry and Hermione the little silver glowing numbers and letters that were levitating above them. "But now let's watch, shall we?"

Beyond impressed with his godmother's skills, harry turned to Hermione and smirked slightly upon seeing the look on her face that clearly said, 'why didn't I think of that?'

But Harry only smiled and turned his attention back to the scene in front of him.

October, 1935 …

And just in time to see a tiny little house elf appear who wore a surprisingly neat purple dress and opened the front door, revealing an elderly looking blonde woman, a young auburn haired man, a slightly younger blond haired teen and a little blonde girl with a small golden phoenix necklace coming through it.

"Mrs. Dumbledore, young Mr. Dumbledore and little Miss Dumbledore," the house elf addressed the four, "Please step inside. Master and Mistress are expecting yous."

Kendra Dumbledore smiled and put one arms around her daughter. "Thank you, Sunny. I take it they are in the living room?"

"Yes, please follow Sunny," the little house elf said and, after getting an approving look from the blonde woman, carefully extended her hand for Ariana to take.

After an encouraging glance from her mother and brother the little girl took it with a shy smile.

"I didn't know Dad looked so incredibly handsome back in the days!" Arina whispered astonished as they followed the Dumbledore family into the living room.

"I quite agree. How old is he in 1935?" Hermione asked curiously.

Arina seemed to think for a moment. "Mum was born in 1935… so he's 17 if I'm not mistaken. Uncle Abe should be 15 and aunt Ariana 13. I'm not sure about Grandma Kendra though…"

"I must say this little house elf of yours is quite lovely, Apollo," Kendra said to an elderly, but nonetheless very handsome man dressed in a black smoking.

On his hand he wore – beside his wedding band – a rather old looking ring with his family's crest on it. One could easily see that despite his quite advanced age, he was still well trained and he had amazing emerald eyes and messy black hair just like Harry's.

A smirk crept over his face upon seeing his guests. Putting his newspaper down, he got up from the couch and gave all of them a hug.

"I'm glad you made in, Ken," Apollo McGonagall said smiling and told them with a small gesture of his hand to take a seat on the remaining chairs and couch. "And yes, Sunny is - despite her young age - my personal favourite."

Kendra smiled and sat down. Albus and Ariana followed her example. "Now, how's Rose? I suppose everything went well?"

Apollo nodded slowly, though his forehead wrinkled a little, which betrayed his age. "Well, let's just say there were some complications… that's why they kept her in the hospital for a little bit longer, but apart from that and a little lack of sleep, she's doing fine by now. And well, she's beyond happy. We both are to be honest. She will be down here momentarily."

From the way he spoke, Harry could see that the elderly man was not only as good a Minister of Magic as everyone always told him, but Apollo was also a kind and very nice man who obviously loved his wife a lot.

"I'm glad to hear that," Kendra replied, "after all – "

She was interrupted by the opening of yet another door that led to the living room.

In stepped a beautiful woman with flaming red hair and amber eyes. She wore a pair of relatively tight trousers that showed her slim legs and a white blouse. In her arms she carefully held a tiny newborn child, securely wrapped in several soft and green coloured blankets.

"I apologise, Kendra," Rose McGonagall spoke in a soft scottish accent as she walked towards her friend. "I completely dozed off."

The blonde woman laughed. "Oh, Rose, don't worry about that. We just arrived anyway and your husband here kept us company."

Turning her head slightly, the red-haired witch gave her husband a lovely smile and Harry immediately saw the similarities to his transfiguration Professor.

"Now let me see this little bundle of joy," Kendra said and stepped closer to Rose. "My, she's beautiful! And look at her emerald eyes! Sooner or later you will have your house full with all kinds of young men that are falling for Minerva, Apollo."

The elderly man cringed. "I don't even want to think about that, Ken…"

This statement made the blonde witch laugh even harder. Albus on the couch had also a bright grin on his face and little Ariana quietly observed the scene.

"Well, she most certainly got Apo's emerald eyes and black hair," Rose continued and rocked her child a little.

"Trust me, she'll turn out to be the perfect mix of the two of you," Kendra said and carefully held her hand over the baby, who took one of her fingers in her tiny little hands.

Then Ariana got up from the couch and shyly approached the adults. "Might I see her please?"

Worry immediately replaced the joy in Kendra's eyes and young Albus also got up from the sofa and laid a hand on his sister's shoulder. "Ana, I don't think – "

But Rose interrupted him. "It's alright. I'm sure Ana will be careful, right?" The red-haired beauty asked the little blonde girl.

In return she received a joyful, "Yes!"

"Very well, then," the scottish witch said smiling and placed her tiny daughter in the blonde girl's arms.

Ana looked at the tiny child in awe and her blue eyes widened. "She is so tiny!"

"Indeed she is. That's why you have to support her head. But in time she can get quite heavy, so just tell me and I'll take her again."

Fascinated, the adults watched the blonde girl holding the baby.

All of a sudden, little rose-petals started to form over Ariana and they fell softly to the ground. But the blonde girl didn't even notice.

Her mother on the other hand did and she turned to her friend.

"There, it's happening again…" Kendra mumbled to Rose and sighed.

The first Lady of Magic raised an eyebrow in a typical Professor McGonagall fashion. "But Ken, these are only flowers."

The Dumbledore mother sighed. "We got lucky this time. It always depends on her emotional state; it makes her magic even more unpredictable and dangerous."

Apollo used that moment to excuse himself into the kitchen to prepare some tea.

Once her husband was out of sight, Rose whispered, "I know St. Mungos is completely out of the question. But what would you say if I try to teach her a little? To show her that magic is nothing to be afraid of. I'm sure you'd both be happy to leave Godric's Hollow every now and then…"

Glancing at her daughter, Kendra sighed. "Do you really think there is something you can do? I mean, I would love it, but her magical outbursts can be terrible and I don't want you to get hurt. Especially not with little Minerva around now."

Rose shrugged and gestured towards the two girls. "Look at them. Ariana is completely calm around the baby. She already has her emotions in check because she doesn't want to hurt Minerva."

Kendra looked surprised, and so did 17-year-old Albus. "You think there is still hope?" He asked the red-haired witch, who gave him a smile.

"There's always hope, Albus. And we simply – "

This time, the interruption came from the blonde haired girl. "Erm, Mina's making weird sounds."

Rose stepped closer and smirked. "She's smiling, love. She likes you!"

Ana stared at her for a moment, then she giggled sweetly. "I like her too! But she gets heavy… can you please…?"

"Of course, love," Kendra said surprised and smiled at her daughter. The baby in her own arms now, she looked at her eldest son. "Albus, do you want to hold little Minerva?"

The young man's bright blue eyes widened. "Erm, I don't think – "

Rose laughed. "Oh, come on, Al. A grown up young man like yourself isn't afraid to hold a child, now, is he?"

Taking a deep breath, Albus carefully outstretched his arms and his mother planted baby-Minerva in his arms. He softly wrapped his arms around her; making sure not to let her fall. For a moment, the young man just stared at the child, mesmerized. Then he softly touched the little girl's cheek with his finger and when he was about to retreat it, the tiny emerald eyed witch reached out and wrapped her tiny little fingers around his.

When little Minerva giggled softly, Albus looked at his mother and Rose with a sheepish grin on his face. "She really does have fascinating eyes."

...

Harry laughed whole-heartedly, and so did Hermione and Arina.

"Oh my goodness. He held her as a baby?" Hermione squealed and grinned at her aunt with big brown eyes. "That's so cute!"

Arina giggled. "Indeed it is. One look was enough and she's already got him wrapped around her tiny little fingers."

For a moment, they were silent and simply watched the swirling red waves of the mablomi.

"It's so sad to know that they died," Hermione then said and looked at her aunt with sad brown eyes. "Apollo and Rose, I mean. They seemed to be such wonderful people…"

Arina sighed. "I know. I would have loved to get to know them."

Harry smiled sadly at her. "You should come in here with us more often. I'm sure we'll see more about them."

The blue eyed witch returned the smile. "That's a lovely, idea, Harry."

"Look," Hermione said suddenly, "the new scene has formed. Let's see what it will be about this time."

...

... July, 1968…

They stood at the side of a very busy street – probably somewhere in or around muggle London.

They continued watching the vehicles and Harry was about to ask if there was ever something going to happen when –

CRASH.

Harry, Hermione and Arina all jumped out of their skins; horrified.

The little red car they had spotted earlier got hit in the side by a gigantic truck with full force.

Immediately, people around started to break and get out of their own cars to help; they managed to carry seriously injured and unconscious little blond haired boy out before the red car caught on fire completely.

...

And the scene jumped again.

Harry still felt sick from watching the accident and taking a look at Hermione, he could see that she clearly felt the same.

"That boy in the red car…" Arina mumbled, still in shock, "that was Dan."

Both wizard and witch looked at her now; wide eyed.

"He told me about the accident after we started dating," the blue eyed witch continued and stared at the red waves in front of her. "Though I never knew how terrible it really was."

Hermione nodded; eyes filled with tears now. "He hates riding in a car…. Now I understand why."

"It seems like a true wonder that he survived in the first place…" Harry added thoughtfully.

"I think his magic had something to do with it. He was only eleven back then, but all children show early signs of magic and they use it unconsciously in dangerous situation," Arina explained and took a deep breath to control her emotions.

Harry agreed. "Yeah, it's like with the snake in the zoo…"

He was relieved when his godmother chuckled again. "Honestly, I wish I could have seen that."

...

... late August, 1968...

This time, they were in a white hospital room. 11-year-old Aidan was lying in the bed in the middle of the room. Obviously still unconscious and with several medical machines attached to him.

Then, the door opened and a man in his early to mid-fourties entered. He had the same brown eyes like Aidan, though his hair was bushy and brown.

Harry could make out the slight resemblance to his best friend and was therefore pretty sure that this had to be Hermione's grandfather Max.

Only a couple of steps behind the man, a young version of Professor McGonagall – probably in her early thirties – followed him into the room. She wore a pair of black muggle trousers and an emerald green blouse that made her eyes sparkle even more.

They sat down by the small table in the room and Max stared at the ebony-haired woman in front of him.

"So the fact that my son is a wizard saved his life?"

Professor McGonagall nodded and sent a sad look toward the boy in the bed. "Yes. His magic protected him during the crash."

Max nodded like in trance and followed her glance. "The doctors don't know if he will ever wake up again. The damage was still too much for his small body."

The emerald eyed witch sighed. "Magic used in such amounts comes with a price I'm afraid. But I'm sure that once his energy is back, young Aidan will recover."

"I hope you are right," Max whispered and blinked the upcoming tears away. Then he tore his glance from his son to look at the witch. "Do – Do you think - if Aidan is ever going to heal - that he could still go to your school? This magic of his… it's a true gift."

Young Minerva smiled kindly. "There's never been a situation where a muggle born started his first year of Hogwarts late, you are right," she said and touched him softly on the shoulder. "But since my last visit… let's just say I pulled a few strings. Aidan will be more than welcome to start his education whenever he has fully recovered."

Max looked at her gratefully. "Thank you, Minerva."

The transfiguration mistress smiled at him. "There's no need to thank me, Max. Your little boy has already suffered more than anyone his age ever should. And once he feels a little stronger – and with your approval - " she continued thoughtfully, "I would love to come by a couple of times and teach him a couple of small things about magic. I have several of my old school books he could have, so he gets used to the magic in his life a little more."

Hermione's grandfather nodded happily and looked at his boy. "This is a very generous offer, Minerva. I'm sure Dan would love that."

...

Red waves once again started to dissolve the picture.

Harry glanced over to Hermione and his godmother.

"I'm really glad Dan recovered," he said relieved.

"Believe me, Harry, so am I," Arina sighed, but then she put an arm around both her godson and niece. "Though thinking about it now… life can be very humorous in its own kind of way…"

"Why is that?" Hermione asked curiously.

Arina smiled brightly at her. "Well, Mum kept her promise and started teaching Dan in the hospital. They developed a really great friendship, and well, she was surprised, but at the same time pretty happy when Dan and I started dating during the year I was at Hogwarts."

Harry laughed. "I guess – "

He was interrupted by the by now gigantic red waves. "You should prepare yourself, A."

The blue eyed witch looked confused. "What? Why?"

"Because we're about to exit the Mablomi again," Hermione explained and instantly they started swirling around in the red liquid again.

.

Right after being thrown out of the Mablomi, they once again stood in front of the people at the 'Round table' – mostly due to the fact that Arina had managed to grab both Hermione's and Harry's arm to prevent them from falling onto the ground once again.

Wearing rather sheepish grins on their faces, the three sat down on their earlier places next to their friends.

"Glad you're back," Ron whispered and kissed her lovingly on the cheek.

The young witch gave him a bright smile in return and leaned slightly against him.

"I have to admit, this mirror is indeed quite fascinating," Professor Dumbledore said and gestured to the Mablomi that was still untouched on his old place.

Xemerius laughed. "Oh, I doubt you will find it fascinating after these two got full insight about your marriage life."

Adults as well as the younger ones started giggling – including Harry and Hermione. Arina on the other hand blushed a bright crimson and mumbled something along the lines, 'Honestly, Xem, there are things I really really don't want to think about…"

Professor Dumbledore seemed rather speechless for a moment. Then he turned, slightly embarrassed, to Hermione and her black haired best friend with a raised eyebrow. "Erm, should you ever come in the position of … well… witnessing…. erm, this… then – "

"It's quite alright, Professor." Hermione said, but couldn't quite suppress the grin on her face. "We aren't first years anymore. I think Harry and I are quite able to handle insight in marriage life, won't we, Harry?"

The boy-who-lived was still laughing, so he simply nodded his head in affirmation. He then turned towards his godmother and looked at her wickedly.

"I think Arina's got a bigger problem with that."

Even Severus and Narcissa laughed whole-heartedly now. Especially since Arina loudly exclaimed, "HARRY!" and nudged him playfully in the ribs.

"Oh, Honey," Poppy added, also smirking. "There are things much worse than that."

The blue-eyed witch started at her godmother with a rather disgusted look on her face. "I don't think so…" she mumbled.

Rolanda smiled at her equally wickedly. "Poppy is quite right, my dear!"

"Has no one ever told what a naughty girl your mother has been during our own days in school?" Xemerius asked his god-daughter innocently.

"Though it's still a mystery to me how she was able to get outstanding grades in every subject…" Augusta added, headshaking.

Arina covered her eyes in a rather childish manner and tried to ignore her mother's friends.

Hermione also noticed that with a glance through the window that it was now completely dark outside and the only lights shone from the little candles that were standing on top of the Round-Table.

The young witch also noticed the many sleeping forms of the people at the back of the Hall and she couldn't blame them; she was also quite exhausted but not quite yet tired enough to sleep.

The see-through shimmer she saw indicated that a bubble-charm had been cast, that made sure that the people in the back – and majority – of the great hall were able to sleep peacefully; all voices and sounds were filtered, so the witches and wizards in the small, front part of the Great hall - including the Round Table - were able to speak without disturbing the others.

Hermione smirked slightly because she suspected Professor Dumbledore to be the one who put up the wall in the first place; in a sort of wise foresight to keep most of the people from witnessing his wife's anger.

'Speak of the devil,' the young witch thought smiling as she heard the unmistakable voices of her uncle and favourite teacher rang through the doors of the Great Hall.

"… though I do hope Jean will remember," the Aidan said and Hermione's heart skipped a beat. She really hoped that her parents would be able to re-gain their memories again…

"I sure that potion of yours will work splendidly," the voice of the emerald eyed witch continued and everyone at the Round table sat up straight and turned around to see the doors of the Great Hall being pushed open. "Hermione will be happy so see that her parents – "

Hermione never knew what the ebony witch had wanted to say, for she had stopped dead in her tracks.

Her emerald eyes widened in disbelief and all colour instantly drained from her face upon seeing her 'dead' husband sitting next to her friends and daughter on the table.

Looking at her from this perspective, Hermione noticed that the ebony-haired witch didn't look good at all – apart from the obvious shock. Her face was thin and she was still limping slightly.

'All magic comes with a price', Hermione thought worriedly and remembered the words she had once read in a rather ancient textbook. And considering the amount of energy and magic the elderly witch had used recently, it was no wonder that she looked completely exhausted. The young witch just hoped that it was nothing serious.

All of a sudden, reacting faster than Hermione thought to be possible, the transfiguration mistress raised her wand, pointed it straight at Professor Dumbledore, and looked at him with dangerously sparkling emerald eyes.

"I don't care who the bloody hell you are," the emerald-eyed witch hissed; a burst of uncontrolled magic once again broke several windows and Hermione was once again reminded why Professor McGonagall was considered to be the most powerful witch alive, "but disguising as a dead man is a fairly poor idea. And if you don't step away from my daughter right now, I can assure you that even Voldemort and Grindelwald combined would have been child's play in comparison to what I'll do to you."


Hello my faithful readers!

First of all I hopy you all had a good start into the new year 2017!

I apologise to all of you for the - incredibly - late update. December has been pretty busy... I had my hand pretty full with writing several gift-fics for people at the Hogwarts, HPFC and Golden Snitch forums, and well, that took quite some time to be honest.

Also, I had some nastly little plot-problems that caused me to re-write the chapter over and over again... I'm still not really satisfied with it...

Anyway, thank you all so much for fav/following and reviewing!

- Mawenn, Ramona, Paige, Amiliana, TealBlueEyes, Jane, Rabmo: Thank you all so much for reviewing! You really kept me going and motivated! I'm really glad you like it so far!

- AmericanMuggleborn: Yes, even after reading the books and watching the movies the thought about Severus being alive wouldn't quite leave my mind so... and honestly, I have no idea what really happened to Fudge at the end of the books :D

- Guest1: You are pretty good at picking up things! Tough I'm only going to say that Albus is not infected with the poison...

- Scha: Oh my goodness! I'm so incredibly happy that you re-read it all again! Thank you for the reviews! (And I hate Dolores, too :D)

I hope you will all still enjoy the new chapter! Tell me what you think :)

All the best, Lexi