Hey All,
This is just a filler chapter as I try to remember what plans I had for this and other fics. With my sister's marriage done with, the update schedule would be quite short now. Also I fractured my foot a few days ago, so on complete bedrest.
Thank you and keep reading. :D
DAPHNE GREENGRASS
Even though she knew that Tracey's words were hurting Harry, she had let her best friend continue. Despite everything the Headmaster had done, her Husband still had respect left over for him. It was one of the points of contention in their marriage. Harry didn't know that she had plans to remove this respect from his younger self, as soon as the threat of Voldemort was over. She was not going to make him hate Dumbledore, just not consider the older man important enough. That would be the perfect revenge for every argument the Older man had indirectly caused in her marriage.
When Harry settled down after blowing up on Tracey, she decided to take over since the Headmaster's tears didn't matter to her.
"Tracey's words might have felt as exaggerating, but they were not. Everything she said was right. When the truth about Professor's decisions and actions started coming out, our efforts to change things took a big hit. I would not be wrong to say that it was the final push that ended any chance of improving things. Things deteriorated until there were no other options for us either than leave or go on the offensive against the ministry. Make no mistake; If Jean had not told us about the travel, we would have gone for the second option. We might not have survived it, but we would have taken down enough with us that those who would have survived would be in a much better position."
"I hope you realize the severity of the actions you are talking about, Mrs. Potter." Madam Bones observed in a soft tone.
The smile that appeared on her face was unintentional as she grabbed Harry's hand.
"For all his preparation, my Husband is still a Gryffindor, Madam Bones. I would have joined him one way or another. Jean and Ron would have jumped in without thinking about it, Susan and Tracey would accompany their spouses. All six of us are war veterans, child soldiers. We know what our actions would have been. If my wand was needed to put down a few pureblood families so that Teddy would be safe, I would have raised it gladly. There is a very famous saying in the muggle world that would explain our thinking, one which was told to me by Harry's cousin, Dudley. The rules of fair play do not apply in Love and War, and this was both, Madam Bones."
As everyone seemed to think upon her words, Molly Weasley looked at Harry.
"You made up with Dudley?"
Her Husband nodded.
"Yes, Mrs. Weasley. Dudley managed to get in touch with me four years after I last saw them. He apologized for everything and told me how much he had changed. He was present at my Wedding and visited our home with his wife, Jennifer. Two years before we left, both of them died when their car burst into flames. The muggled thought it was an accident; We knew it was Fiendfyre. I later found that it was the youngest son of the Avery's who had done it, as revenge for me killing his brother in the Battle of Hogwarts. The last of my family was dead because the Wizengamot had pardoned the boy and his family a few years earlier. The Avery mansion burned to the ground that night."
This time the silence stayed on for a long time. Finally, Jean broke it with a huff.
"I suggest that we all retire for the night. You all have learned some terrible things today, which would change many things in you, maybe more in the youngers. Go home, rest, and think upon everything. And for the sake of everyone you love, don't try anything foolish. We have to keep things as same as possible, despite what the costs are. In two days, we all will be leaving for the Quidditch world cup. It might prove a distraction for the youngsters and give them something to relax about."
Jean gave a few more warnings and suggestions, after which everyone decided to leave for the night. The only ones that remained behind were her parents and the Weasley's. Mr. Delacour, after a little discussion with Ted Tonks and Lord Davis, had asked for one more day of preparation time before he was ready to transport Sirius. After another reminder to the youngsters to not do anything based upon what they had heard, most of the people left the manor. When it was just the Weasleys, her parents, and the six time travelers left, Harry called them all together once again.
"I know you all are tired and want to rest, but there is one more essential thing that we need to cover, the matter of marriage contracts. A small number of you are already tied in such contracts or would be tied by the end of the night."
Taking a deep breath, she looked at her younger self and Junior.
"Harry, Daphne, when Sirius made Harry his heir officially, you both became a party to a marriage contract between House Greengrass and House Black. It's unbreakable and was written over 100 years ago."
While munchkin looked like she already expected it, Junior's eyes were dancing between her, Harry, and munchkin like a ping pong ball. He finally stopped when Harry poked him on his shoulder. There were a few objections and questions from her parents and the Weasleys, but she handled them quickly. The next announcement was to be done by Ron, who was looking straight at Ronnie.
"I am the Lord of House Gryffindor. Unlike other houses, Gryffindor's family magic does not choose its Lord on blood alone. Ron, you have heard everything that I went through before the ring accepted me. Tell me, if I give you the heir ring right now, do you think it would accept you? Think and answer."
Ronnie, who had been strangely silent this entire time, shook his head. Ron released a deep sigh before looking at George, his hand extended with a small ring in it.
"George, put it on."
For the first time in her entire life, she saw different expressions on the Weasley Twins' face. While one was laughing like a madman, the other had gone completely pale. When George didn't seem to react for a minute, Bill, who had been explaining something to his parents, took the ring from Ron's hand and slipped it in George's fingers. From his Gringotts experience, Bill would have known that an unclaimed house ring could be handled by someone of blood, but not wear it. A visible jolt went through the elder twin, as Molly had told her. A red flow of magic covered his entire self before dissipating. The loose ring had not tightened on George's finger.
"Wha..."
Ron, who was failing in trying to suppress his smile.
"Congratulation, George, you are now the heir of the Ancient and Noble House of Gryffindor."
Instead of saying anything, George just fainted on the table. Once he was revived and seemed to calm down a little, Ron spoke up again.
"This position is not just fun and games, George. It comes with a lot of responsibilities and expectations. Also, this is not permanent. If I ever feel you are not living up to what being an heir demands, I will choose another heir. There would be no more harassing in the name of pranking, no more half-assed trials in Hogwarts, etc. You are also not going to share this information with anyone outside this room for the next year. The ring will give you certain privileges in Hogwarts, but if I ever catch you misusing them..."
He didn't complete the sentence, but the unsaid part was clear, as evident from the fear on George's face. Ron continued soon after.
"There will soon be an active contract for you due to this position. I will explain how it happened later, but once Voldermort is handled, you will be tied to Astoria Greengrass through a transferred contract."
A look of understanding came upon her parent's face, who both turned to look at George. Beside his once again frozen twin, Fred Weasley looked like he would fall off the chair from giggling. Ron, ignoring it, continued on.
"You will have a chance to refuse it, but you would also lose the heir ring. Finally, Ronnie, there is an active marriage contract for you too. Something you would have known about if someone had checked upon his family matters in Gringotts by now."
Ron's eyes had turned to look at Arthur Weasley by the end, who was blushing heavily.
"You have to marry Susan Bones before you both reach the age of nineteen. The contract is breakable, but it can only be done when you both are atleast eighteen years of age and with mutual consent."
Ronnie had turned entirely white, and his face looked like it was drained of blood. Mrs. Weasley was also looking like her youngest son. Harry spoke up soon after.
"Guest rooms have been opened up already. I would recommend the Weasley family to take up the second floor. There is a large hall there for all of you to discuss everything."
With that, Harry stood up and left the room, dragging an eager Junior with him. After consulting with her parents, who were going to leave for Greengrass manor with munchkin, she went looking for her Husband, finding him along with Junior in the heir room. After settling down the young boy, both of them retired to the master bedroom.
"Why didn't you tell me?"
Her question may have felt like random, but Harry knew it was not. He continued washing his hands in the attached bathroom for a few minutes before replying.
"I know what your thoughts about Dumbledore are. Even though I agree with most of them, you all seem to miss a crucial point. For all of his mistakes, Dumbeldore's image is vast and quite influential right now. We can change a lot of things and achieve our goals much more quickly if he is working with us. He would have known something was different if I had not invited him today. The man is too perceptive and attuned to Hogwarts to miss our arrival. I could not risk him labeling us as a danger and work against us. I have read his diary Daphne; he is not bad at heart. Just a very important person who stubbornly believed that only he knew the right thing. I need him to ensure that things that happened to me are not repeated. If I have to work with him for that, I will do it despite what I think about him."
"You kept it a secret from me."
Her words were not a question but a statement. Harry, who had come in the room by them, stopped to look at her.
"Just like you did for your plans about Junior and Dumbledore."
Her heart gave a colossal thud. Harry hated any type of manipulation from her, and this was quite close to it.
"Harry, I..."
He shook his head, transfiguring his clothes into nightwear.
"I am not angry at you, Daph. Junior needs to remove Dumbledore from the pedestal he has put him on. It cannot be done by me, who would most likely use a direct method, ultimately failing, so it has to be you and your methods. It's just that you kept secrets despite promising not to, and this is the third time it has happened. I don't know what to think or say."
She couldn't say anything as Harry laid down on the bed and went to sleep.
RON WEASLEY
From the abrupt exit Harry made, he knew there was something wrong with his best friend. His heart wanted to follow Harry and inquire about it, but his experienced brain knew better. Instead, he focused on handling his family. There was no chance of anyone in the family sleeping tonight. Most likely, the night would end up having an informal family meeting. While George had calmed down a little, Ronnie still looked shaken up. He had not missed the boy's assessing glance at his wife and him. His mother was another point of worry for him as she did not look too happy with everything. He loved his mother, but he would not let Sue face the same thing Fleur did. Guiding all of them towards the floor Harry had offered them, he called for Dobby to provide all of them with hot chocolates. Once they were seated in a small hall, he decided to handle her mother first.
"Mom, Why are you so angry?"
His mother puffed up immediately, but he stopped her.
"And before you say anything, there is no need to shout. Everyone here except Ronnie and twins is an adult, and Sue is my wife, remember that."
He had picked up the right point, as she stared between him and Sue before releasing a breath.
"There was no need to involve Fred..."
"You all did it the last time. It ended with all of them fighting a war of survival in their school three years from now. Keeping them sheltered and uninformed is nothing but preparing them to suffer. The time of your generation is over, mother. Your parents created Voldermort, failed to stop his first rise and the strengthening of dark forces. You all celebrated the death of Voldermort without confirming what had happened, and then let things continue as it is. Now your children might have to fight for their lives, and you want to stop them because they are too young? It's their life, mother, and you have to stop trying to manage it. Your two children already left the country because of this; wake up before your other children do so too."
Bill and Charlie were glaring at him, but he didn't care. His mother had to understand her mistakes, even if it meant throwing cold truths at her face.
"What, I never..."
"Yes, you did, mother. Fred and George are pranksters, we know, but your behavior with them is not something it should be. They are brilliant but naive. Instead of understanding and adequately guiding them, you have always belittled them. And you, dad, you are the head of our house, our father, but you have always kept silent in front of mom. Why? Why didn't you check up on the family matters in Gringotts till now? Whether you like it or not, Weasley's are purebloods. But you both never even taught us the basic courtesy. While Bill and Charlie learned these things at their jobs, except Percy, all of your children are too uninformed. Fred and Goerge make fun of everyone, not caring who they are talking too or are pranking, which is as close to bullying as it could be, Ronnie's table manners are atrocious, and he is barely paid much attention. Finally, your plans for Ginny, forget it, mom. Daphne is a lovely woman, but not when it comes to matters like this. If you try to force or even say something about Harry and Ginny, she will come down hard on you. Instead of trying to manage their lives, it's high time you and Dad step up to your real duties."
His voice had gone soft by the end, mostly because of the tears that had appeared in his mother's eyes.
"I am not saying this to hurt you, mother, but you needed to hear this. In the future, your and Ginny's behavior with Fleur created a small rift between her and Bill, nearly making them annul their marriage one time. No one else except Sue and I knew this. Ginny, as much as I love her, has been spoiled by all of us. She still lives in her stories and does not want to face the real world. Things cannot continue like this."