DAPHNE POTTER
She was listening so intently to the Headmaster'sHeadmaster's words for an explanation about her husband's life as a child, that she didn't grasp a significant fact when mentioned. When Harry nearly growled out his question, she went over the Headmaster'sHeadmaster's words again, a gasp making it out of her soon after. It was less because of the untold information and more because of the feelings permeating through her marriage bond. Waves of confusion, anger, fear, were crashing inside, making it difficult for her to concentrate. So intense were these emotions that her mind couldn't decide how to calm her husband down. Fortunately for her, there was one more entity now alive who could do it.
Hedwig, who had been resting on Junior's chair after calming the teenager, flew in front of Harry's face. But unlike before, she looked ready to attack, precking loudly and wings flapping hard. It was enough to give her Husband a shock, probably more because Harry flinched back in his seat and the magic accumulating around him dissipated. It also gave her enough control that she grabbed Harry's face, telling him to calm down. For a few seconds, it looked like he did not even recognize her, but after another preck from Hedwig, the swirl of emotions on his face muted. Another minute passed before he turned to face the HeadmasterHeadmaster. She could see that everyone was looking at them with amazement, most likely due to the display of magic Harry had shown a minute ago. Her eyes moved over Junior, who too looked shocked, but seemed too tired to react.
"I was told that my parents were buried in the cemetery at Godric's Hollow. If their bodies went missing that night, what is in their graves?"
The Headmaster shared a glance with Madam Bones before answering calmly.
"Nothing, The caskets are empty, Mr. Potter. May I know who told you about where your parents were buried?"
Her husband, who had once again started to get angry, stopped at that.
"I don't remember... I mean I assumed..."
The HeadmasterHeadmaster cut him off.
" Did you ever try to learn what else happened that night, and after that, Mr. Potter?"
Harry's silence answered that question for everyone. The HeadmasterHeadmaster spoke again; his eyes focused on Harry.
"It was a common knowledge that your parent's bodies were missing, and the graves were symbolic, Mr. Potter. If you had read any copy of the Daily Prophet of November and December month of 1981, you would have found a mention of reward for anyone who could bring information about your parent's bodies."
"Why did nobody ever tell me this?"
"I don't know about anyone else, Mr. Potter, but I didn't mention it because I thought you would have researched everything about your parents after rejoining the wizarding world. It seems to me that I was incorrect in my assessment." The HeadmasterHeadmaster replied in the same calm tone.
Harry flushed a little at the words, his eyes snapping to Andromeda, who was the next to speak.
"It was no one's responsibility to tell you, Mr. Potter. Mentioning about family members' death is something the Wizarding world tends to avoid in most cases, so except Sirius, nobody else would have considered discussing it with you. I am not sure why you never came across this information when you got access to your family vault because Gringotts should have informed you about the previous lord's conditions of death at that time."
Now, this she knew why didn't it happen. Harry had told him about his difficulty dealing with the Goblin Nation after the war, which had taken more than a year to resolve. It was likely that the Goblins were too angry at him to follow standard protocol and had not informed him anything apart from what was really necessary. It took some time, but soon Harry relaxed back in his seat.
"Professor, do you have any idea...is there a chance..?"
His words had so many emotions behind it that she couldn't stop the tears from appearing in her eyes. Even the Headmaster'sHeadmaster's eyes were a little wet.
"There are a lot of possibilities, Mr. Potter, but one fact is confirmed. Your parents died that night. I say this because the Potter seat in the Wizengamot was found in an inactive state in the next meeting after the attack. It happens only when there is no Lord to hold the seat, or an eligible Heir to step up to it. There was also the matter of all the Potter vaults going into lockdown, with only young Mr. Potter's trust vault remaining active."
Everyone was staring at Harry as he processed the Headmaster'sHeadmaster's words. Her husband turned to look at Madam Bones.
"I would need every bit of information there is about the day of the attack and everything that happened after that. Auror reports, Ministry investigation, everything."
The Director of DMLE shared a glance with the HeadmasterHeadmaster before replying.
"If Lord Potter makes a formal request, then I would be able to access everything that there is. Otherwise, we would have to take Wizengamot's approval."
This was a problem, as they had no plans to take over their seats for a year. Fortunately, the HeadmasterHeadmaster had an option.
"You will have it, Madam Bones. I will sign off the Proxy of House Potter's request as the Chief Warlock."
Although she had a good idea who the Proxy was, she still enquired.
"And who is the proxy of House Potter, Headmaster?"
"He is an old man, Mrs. Potter, who took up the Proxy when the Ministry sealed the Potter wills. He was quite close to Harry's parents and had proof of being granted the Proxy." The Headmaster replied, his eyes twinkling just like her husband had told her.
Ron spoke up at that moment, his eyes fixed on the Headmaster.
" If that old man was you, a few more questions arise, Professor. Please continue your explanation about Harry's placement."
The discussions among several people in the room, which had started in the meantime, stopped at that moment. After taking a deep breath, the Headmaster continued his explanation.
"After I had checked over the house, I started looking for someone who would take care of Harry. Last I knew, Sirius was the secret keeper, and It seemed that he had betrayed the Potters, so he was not a choice. The same was with Remus, as he and Potter's were not on good terms for the past few months. I only knew of four other families that could protect Harry and keep him safe. Placing him with Andromeda was an option, but it could have given the remaining House Black members a chance to gain custody over him, which I couldn't allow. The Bones and Weasley families had lost quite a few members of their families in past days, and placing Harry with them could have been questioned in the Wizengamot. The last options were the Longbottoms, and with Alice as Harry's godmother, no one could make a claim at him. I don't know why, but Frank Longbottom asked me to wait for two days before bringing Harry over when I informed them about it. But the day I was going to bring Harry to them, they were attacked. I knew I could not keep him with me or at Hogwarts, so I chose the last but best option, Lily's sister. I had enough pull to stop any custody claims by proving Petunia's blood relation to Harry. With a little bit of help from my mentor, I was able to anchor the blood protection of Lily to Petunia, thereby creating a place where Harry would be safe from any type of magical attack."
Her husband's shock was evident in his next words.
"Nicolas Flamel helped to set up the blood wards?"
"Yes, Mr. Potter. Nicolas and his wife had lived for more than 900 years. The knowledge and resources they have gathered would remain unmatched for a long time."
Hermione piped up the next question.
"But it was mentioned that they have only lived for 600 years in the book. And you said 'have'. Are they still alive, Professor?"
The Headmaster just gave a smile in reply before Harry spoke again.
"Did those wards ever work, Headmaster?"
"Yes, Mr. Potter. They definitely worked, and in ways that I should have known."
At the curious glances from everyone, he explained further.
"Everyone knows Lily Evans was one of the brightest and most talented witches of her generation. What was only known to a few people that below that mind and talent, laid a ruthless and stubborn determination. Ms. Evans was one the most vicious fighters of the Order, taking down Death eaters in ways I always argued against. If the matter of protecting people who she loved, everything was fair for her. I believe the first person who died by her hand was a man who had managed to knock out James in a very brutal manner. Oddly enough, it was James, the man who was the leader of the most vicious pranksters Hogwarts had seen in decades, who had taken to temper her actions and seen some success. He even told me that he was thinking about becoming a Healer after the war, jokingly saying that the change in his decision was due to his wife. But when I think about it now, it does not feel like he was joking."
Harry interrupted the Headmaster in between; his eyes fixed on Junior.
"We can discuss about my parent's behavior later, Professor."
The Headmaster looked a little sheepish as he started speaking again.
"Anyway, the wards were just as ruthless as their creator. I had not thought that someone would notice Hagrid bringing you to privet drive. But it seemed that the flying motorcycle had caught the attention of three followers of Voldermort. An hour after I had left you with Dursely residence, the alert ward around the house informed me of a magical activity at the same home. When I arrived there, all I found was three bleeding donkeys lying just outside the ward perimeter. A little bit of diagnosis told me what had happened. The wards had intercepted the attackers, drained them of their magic completely, destroyed their cores, and turned them into Donkeys before throwing them out. They were admitted to St. Mungo's at my behest, but none of them survived till the next morning. So yes, Mr. Potter, the wards worked just as they were intended to by their creator."
A wave of pride flushed through her marriage bond with Harry. Looking at him, she could see that he was trying to hide the awe he felt for his parents. Even she could admit that Lily Potters's work was impressive. Family was one thing that the Greengrass considered most important, and the Potter seemed to take it steps further. The union between both her and Harry was more complicated than she had thought. Her eyes snapped to the Headmaster when he started speaking again.
"I admit I did not check up on him again, trusting an old friend to keep an eye on him inform me in any important matter. I knew about Petunia's hate for magic, and thought that by preventing any magical from approaching her house, she would take care of Harry. An assumption, which I know now was totally wrong. When I didn't receive any news from Arabella for a few months, I thought that his family had accepted Harry, and let the matter rest. I did obtain a memory from Arabella of Petunia caring for Harry and used it to stop adoption and custody claims in the Wizengamot. Lord Greengrass, Lord Davis, and Madam Bones, do either of you remember how many such cases were filed?"
She looked at her father, who had an amused smile on his face.
"I don't remember the exact number, Headmaster, but I can't forget my father's grumbling about the delay in important Wizengamot work due to a large number of such cases."
"Indeed, Lord Greengrass. There were a total of 53 custody claims for Harry Potter, and since James was related to most of them due to his mother, 39 out of that were of families of the Dark faction. The only member of the Neutral section was Horace Slughorn, with the rest being of Light. Except for one or two families, most of them were interested in Harry with less than optimum reasons. I know of alteast two light families who had plans to betroth Harry to their daughters or relatives, and the less said about the Dark faction, the better. So no, Harry, I did not know that you were being treated as you were at the Durselys. I had expected indifference or something like that, not this, never this."
Her father had taught her and Astoria a lot of things to take over the House Greengrass's business. One of the things had been to judge how honest a person was. Right now, it looked like that either the Headmaster truly believed what he was saying, or he was an excellent liar, which given his long age, was a possibility. She knew Harry would want her assessment of the Headmaster's words, so she needed to come to a decision. Trusting her gut feeling was a rare thing for her, but she believed in it right now. A small nod from her relaxed her husband, and unknown to her, Junior too. They decided to cover the next two year's memories before taking a break. Harry started the explanation once again.
"A lot of things happened in the summer after 6th year. Professor Dumbledore was reappointed at his positions, Fudge resigned, and Scrimgeour was chosen as the next minister, and the Ministry accepted that Voldermort was back...Bones Manor was also attacked that summer, and Sue was the only survivor. We later found that only 5 of 30 attackers had survived the attack."
She looked at the Bones family and could see that Ginger was sobbing heavily while Madam Bones looked determined. It took a few words from Sue to finally settle the younger Bones down.
"Professor Dumbledore arrived at Privet Drive to take me away. After scaring the Dursely family in the softest way I can think of, he took me to convince Slughorn to return to Hogwarts. I don't know how, but somehow, I succeeded in that task. Slughorn agreed to come back to Hogwarts, and Professor Dumbledore dropped me at the Burrow. Along with the Weasley's, I met fleur there too. She had joined Gringotts as part-time and had agreed to marry Bill."
The blush on Bill and Fleur's face was clear to everyone, and she didn't miss the glances both of them were sharing.
"I stayed there until the day we left for Hogwarts. Various things happened in that time, Florean was attacked, Ollivander had disappeared, and much more. The one good news that we had was that Fred and Geroge had set up their shop in the alley and were becoming more successful by the day."
She could see that Harry's gaze was now fixed upon Mrs. Weasley, trying to make her understand the depth of what he was saying.
"They started getting orders from the Ministry and other organizations for their defensive and offensive products, and their joke items were more famous than ever. Given that I was the starting investor in their business, I got a 30% share for that and further investment. Weasley Wizard Wheezes was making me 1000 galleons per month at its peak that year, the same amount that I had invested in the start."
A lot of people in the room were looking at Fred and George in a different light. Her father was included in that number, too, staring at twins, who had broad smiles on their faces, with a thoughtful expression. If she knew her father as profoundly as she thought, the twins would be getting a lot more investment than they had in the other future. Molly Weasley looked like she may say something, but was once again stopped by Arthur Weasley. It might have been the right decision, as her expression didn't really look much supportive right now. Harry, who was still looking at the Weasley matriarch, shook his head and continued speaking.
"We three came across Draco Malfoy talking to Borgin about repairing something but were unable to learn more about it. I suspected that he was doing something for Voldermort and had become a death eater, but my closest friends disagreed with me."
Ron and Jean flushed in their seats. She knew they regretted not paying much attention to Harry's words.
"I joined the potions class with Ron at Professor McGonagall insistence, although it was more because it was Slughorn who would be teaching. With the help of a used textbook, I became quite proficient in potions, with the Professor estimating me to be as good as my mother. The book I used was the property of the Half-blood prince."
No one gave any reaction to that name, not that they had much expectation of it. Severus Snape's imaginary name was as unknown as it should be.
"There was a tense atmosphere in the school as the classes continued, and soon, I had my first private lesson with Professor Dumbledore."
Harry hesitated after this, glancing at all five of them. This was another point that they had debated most about. She, Ron, and Sue wanted to show Horcruxes' truth while Harry and Jean wanted to omit the mention of it. Since Tracey had refused to take a side, their opinion was decided on. Harry's voice brought her out of her musings.
" What I am going to show you next is something I don't really want to. But the majority of us think that it is essential for all of you to know this... There is a reason why Voldermort didn't die that night. It was because before attacking my parent's home, he had made himself immortal using the darkest and vilest of magical rituals. He had created Horcrux..."
"Merlin"
"Fuck, No"
"No"
Andromeda, Dumbledore, and Bill had reacted simultaneously, but the former two had largely confused her. It seemed that Dumbledore had still not found about the Horcruxes. Andromeda knowing was another thing, but she could chalk it up due to being a House Black daughter.
"yes, Professor, Andi, Bill. Voldermort had made multiple Horcruxes."
This time Dumbledore nearly groaned, while Andromeda had closed her eyes. The ensuing silence was broken by Lord Davis, who was staring at them with a slightly irritated expression.
"Would you mind explaining what exactly these Horcruxes are?"
Her husband looked at Jean, who huffed before answering.
"Horcruxes are containers hosting a part of the soul of a Witch or Wizard. It can only be created by murdering someone. Herpo the foul, is credited for creating this ritual, and it is only recorded in the book Magick Moste Evile."
By the end of her small explanation, everyone who understood what Jean meant had a horrified expression on their face. Bill was the next one to speak.
"How many?"
"Seven"
Even Bill looked defeated after that answer. Soon after, Harry played the first memory of his sixth year. Since he had only conceded to show these memories on the premise of showing them all at once, she leaned back comfortably, and observed everyone as they learned about the Dark Lord. As the memories progressed, it was clear that people were starting to understand precisely who Tom Riddle was. Bastard son of a squib and Muggle, born of rape, a half-blood wizard who was shaped by many experiences of his childhood, and who had used the pureblood cause as a cover to cause destruction upon everything he hated. No adult seemed to miss the fact that Slughorn had sat upon a critical knowledge for years, and had stayed hidden until he had no other option. Seeing a recently graduated Tom Riddle working at Borgin and Burke was a little disconcerting but not more than knowing that he had killed an old lady to acquire some significant relics. It also told a lot about magical prowess of him, as House elf's were not as easy to confound due to differences in the type of magic in them from humans. Nearly everyone in the room cursed when it became clear why a DADA teacher never lasted more than a year, which was expected, as everyone in the room except the Headmaster had suffered due to changing teachers.
When Harry's memory leaving with Dumbledore started, she took up his hand and started rubbing it. This memory had been a part of his nightmares for years and probably still was. She hoped that coming into the past would help him get free of it. Everyone shivered after seeing the lake and the creepy boat. When Dumbledore explained that he would have to drink the potion, more than one cuss word was heard. But before anyone could say something, Dumbeldore had started drinking the potion. What followed after that was something straight out of a tragic play. The expression on the memory of Harry's face as he made the Headmaster drink, nearly brought tears in her eyes. Slytherins had suffered a lot after Voldermort's revival, but the other Houses had suffered worse things than torture and death threats. Harry stopped the memory once his memory self and Dumbledore arrived at Hogsmeade.
"Before we see what happened next, there is some more information that will help everyone in seeing the full picture."
The next set of memories were all about Draco Malfoy. Right from the day in Knockturn alley to Harry confronting Dumbledore in his office about Malfoy. Only the last memory was of Harry handing over the vial of Felix Felicis potion to his friends. When the memory stopped, Harry looked straight at the Headmaster.
"Remember this moment, Professor. You made many mistakes and wrong decisions in your long life, but none of them made many people, including me, rethink everything we knew about you like this decision. Your willingness and efforts to save Draco Malfoy's soul destroyed every bit of credibility, awe about your brilliance, importance of your works and achievements, and finally, the trust people put in you."
She could feel her husband's hesitation as he tried to put his own feelings into words.
"The effect that your this decision had neutralized every explanation, every reason I had accepted for your actions. If not for your diary, I would have considered you a manipulative Dark Lord worse than even Voldermort, Professor."
The words seemed to hit like a sledgehammer to the Headmaster, who flinched back in his seat. Harry's admission had shaken the older man enough to bring tears in his eyes. Even Fawkes had been affected, as the Pheonix seemed to dull a little at that moment. Harry started the last memory in the Pensieve soon after.
When she had seen this memory the first time, her dislike for the Headmaster had jumped up many notches. He had made Harry seem him die, and no matter how much Jean and others justified the Headmaster's action, she could not accept it. When Snape hit the memory Dumbledore with a killing curse, nearly everyone in the room reacted. While most of them were cursing Snape, Madam Bones, Tracey's Dad, Ted Tonks, Nymphadora, and the Grangers were looking at each other. She knew that they all were thinking about Dumbledore's words to Snape just before his death. When Snape was driven off from Harry by Buckbeak, Madam Bones exclamation nearly made her smile. The Director of DMLE had not missed how close Snape had been at hitting Harry with a fire flame, right on the eyes. She had plans for the potion master for everything he had done to her husband and others, and Madam Bones' help was going to make it much more enjoyable.
She glared hard at Mrs. Weasley when a smug expression appeared on her face after seeing memory Harry and Ginny interact. She had no problems with the youngest Weasley, but Harry Potter was going to be with Daphne Greengrass, younger or older. That smug expression evaporated when Bill's condition came up. Fenrir Greyback was not going to scratch even a hair off the eldest Weasley son this time, and maybe even end up paying for his future self's crimes along with his, if the anger visible on the Weasley Clan and Delacour's was any indication. The memory ended just as Mrs. Weasley and Fleur started hugging each other.
After a minute of silence, Ron spoke up. Since he and Sue knew most about the unknown after-effects of that day, she let them take the lead.
"After the war was over, we found out a lot of things that happened directly due to this attack on Hogwarts. Things that had been suppressed by Minister Scrimgeour and later on by the Ministry under Voldermort's control."
Ron's voice had become neutral now like he was reading an evening report.
"9 students died later due to the curses they were stuck with that night, triple that number suffered in one way or other. The death eaters assaulted six girls they had come across and tortured four muggle-born till they had lost all their senses. It took us a lot of time, but we soon realized that something even worse had happened that night. Greyback and his fellow werewolves had bitten or infected 23 students during the attack. Somehow, Madam Pomfrey overlooked the nature of wounds on those 23 students, and they were sent home with basic treatments. On full moon nineteen days later, all except one lived with their family or were in a crowded room. Forty people died that night, and nearly ninety were infected. Only three families were purebloods and received help from the Ministry. The muggle parents who were bit had been executed, while others were obliviated about any knowledge of magic. All the muggle-borns were moved to a safe house, which was owned by one of the death eaters. When the war ended, the population of that house stood at 197, with 39 under the age of 17 and 9 under the age of ten. The youngest was a girl, just three years old..."
"Enough..just stop. Please...stop." Tracey's mother's pained cry was enough to stop Ron in between, who finally seemed to realize how his words were affecting people around him. Her father, who she had never seen showing much emotion, was pale-faced along with the other adults. Charlie Weasley, Nymphadora, and Brat had joined Percy in puking their guts out. Even with the tense atmosphere, she couldn't help but be impressed with Dobby as the overexcited elf kept the room clean. Ronnie and a few other children had turned white-faced and looked devastated, with the only exception being Junior and her younger self. Unlike others, Junior seemed to be trembling with anger. He had recently learned about Lupin, and, combined with the age of those turned, it was difficult for him. On the other hand, Munchkin looked totally neutral, but being her older self, she knew that the young girl was giving everything to control her emotions.
Sue, who had been silent till then, finally looked at the Headmaster, her eyes full of anger.
"I know it was your older self that did it, Professor, but you have been giving chances to people like Draco to save their souls for a long time, all at the cost of innocent people. People who looked up to you, followed you, sacrificed a lot for you, and every time you paid them back in worse ways. I looked into everything you did since you joined Hogwarts as a teacher, Professor, and more often than not, you have let the major incident pass or suppressed them, all in an effort to give them another chance. My family paid for trusting in you, Harry suffered because his parents had trusted you enough to make you Proxy, every child has suffered in a way or other since Snape has joined Hogwarts because you never looked into his behavior, the members of Order of Pheonix sustained due to your insistence of using nonlethal spells even in the face of the life-threatening fights. All because you failed to act responsibly to the position you were in. If you had stopped Draco before, Hogwarts wouldn't have breached..."
Ron gathered his wife in a hug as her voice had turned hoarse by the end. Harry didn't look like he had anything to say, and neither did anyone else. Dumbledore had not looked up from the table since the memory had stopped, but it was not difficult to notice the tear that were dropping on the table.
REVIEW REPLIES
dingo-822 Yeah, that is never happening. I don't think I have the ability to write something like that without throwing up.
mwinter Thank you
pascaldragon Mcg is one of my favorites too, but afrer reading the books so many times, I couldn't help but feel that she could have done so much more.
Heartsglow All very good points. Me and the two beta's had a lot of dicssuion on this. At last we decided to make it that they were not the lords and ladies, but rather heirs. The seats and castle needed the head of the families to activate. With the Gryffindor family, I will explain it in few chapters, but basically it's not passed down just based on blood relation.
fvdv123 Yeah, but the reader's inputs keeps me focused sort of. otherwise I will just keep going on other paths and remain confused.
Hank1967 Thank you. Dumbledore is not exactly an idiot, just a very powerful man who made a lot of mistakes. Thank you once again.